APPX Client/Server Installation and Configuration

Overview:

APPX/Client lets users run the user-interactive portion (keyboard, mouse, and monitor) of the APPX Development and Runtime Environments on local PCs as thin clients, with the bulk of applications running on an APPX/Server. APPX/Client runs under Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT, Windows 2000, and Windows XP, as well as several distributions of Linux.

APPX/Server resides on a central UNIX, Windows, or Linux server. It connects to APPX/Client over a TCP/IP link, which can run over the Internet. APPX/Server waits for APPX/Clients to log in to it. After authenticating Clients, it launches an APPX Application Server session to service each remote Client.

APPX Application Server processes are identical to locally invoked copies of APPX, except that the APPX/Client at the other end of the TCP/IP connection handles keyboard screen and mouse operations. Also, facility is provided to run processes on the remote Client.

In addition to APPX/Client, APPX/Server can also service APPX/Net Clients. APPX/NET allows APPX Applications running on remote platforms (Windows or Unix) to access APPX data on local platforms (including data accessible locally via APPX/RDMS back end connections).

Thus, APPX/Server can service both thin APPX/Clients and APPX/NET Client processes on remote processors. APPX/Server runs on all APPX platforms except VMS.

To install and configure APPX/Client and APPX/Server, do the following:

1. Install APPX/Client on Client PC
2. Install APPX/Server for Unix, or...
3. Install APPX/Server for Windows
4. Invoke APPX/Client from Client PC
5. Create Multiple APPX/Servers
6. Notes
7. Deault Keymap

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Installation and Configuration

Install APPX/Client on Client PC.

Copy the appx.exe engine from an existing copy of APPX for Windows (release 3.3 or greater) to your Client PC. Make sure that the release version of APPX for Windows that you are using on your client matches the release version you are running on your UNIX or NT server.

If you don't have a copy of appx.exe readily available, you can download it:

From here for APPX Release 3.5 or

From here for APPX Release 4.x

(The Windows Client is ~1.6 meg.)

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Install APPX/Server for Unix ("appxd")

Get a Product Registration for APX / GCS.

The GCS (GUI Client/Server) Product Registration is a lower level registration to your main APPX Registration. Product Registrations are editable from the APPX Main Menu via 3) System Administration, 1) System Setup, 1) System Registration. Then press ENTER to edit your Product Registrations.

To request a GCS Product Registration, send an email to Tech Support ( techsupp@appx.com).

Check for presence of APPX/Server components.

There are two components to APPX/Server: the 'appxd' daemon, and the 'start-appxd.sh' shell script. The script is used to invoke the 'appxd' daemon. Both components reside in the 'tools' directory ($APPXPATH/../tools/).

The "root" user must run 'start-appxd.sh'. It launches the appxd daemon that then runs in background, waiting for APPX/Clients to start up. When new APPX/Clients link up with appxd, they spawn new APPX/Server sessions, one per client.

'appxd' must be owned by root, and have its 's' bit set.

These may be accomplished by:

• chown root appxd
• chmod 755 appxd
• chmod u+s appxd

Modify 'start-appxd.sh' to specify the correct APPXPATH.

In 'start-appxd.sh', you will find a statement ...

• APPXPATH="//data"

If APPX is installed in /usr/appx, you would modify this to ...

• APPXPATH="usr/appx/data"

Set your TCP/IP Socket Port to assign to the Application Server

You will find the statement ...

• APPX_PORT=8060

If you are running only a single server from your system (as is usually the case), you will probably be able to leave this APPX_PORT set to 8060 (an arbitrary number). The important thing is that your Socket Ports be unique.

Optional: You may want to put a 'memo' entry into the /etc/services system file, reserving socket port #8060, or whatever port# you choose, in order to avoid possible future conflicts with socket ports used by other server applications.

Point APPX_SERVER to the desired APPX Engine.

Typically this is ...

• APPX_SERVER=$APPXPATH/../appx

Make sure the APPX_SERVER appx engine actually exists at the path indicated in the last step.

Make sure the APPX_SERVER appx engine is actually an engine, and not a script that then executes an APPX engine.

Permissions on the APPX_SERVER appx engine should be 755 with the 's' bit set, and should be owned by the user 'appx'. You can do this by:

• chown appx appx
• chmod 755 appx
• chmod u+s appx

The permissions on the directory containing the 'appx' engine should also be 755. You can do this by cd'ing to that directory and using:

• chmod 755

Launch 'start-appxd.sh', as 'root' user

You must launch 'start-appxd.sh' as the root user, either from the Unix command line or through some operating system facility such as 'inittab'.

To see your presentation server(s) running in background, execute the command:

ps -ef | grep s=

or

ps -aux | grep s=

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Install APPX/Server for Windows ("WinAppxD")

Get a Product Registration for APX / GCS

(Note: only required for releases prior to APPX 4.1.a)

The GCS (GUI Client/Server) Product Registration is a lower level registration to your main APPX Registration. Product Registrations are editable from the APPX Main Menu via 3) System Administration, 1) System Setup, 1) System Registration. Then press ENTER to edit your Product Registrations.

To request a GCS Product Registration if you're running a release prior to APPX 4.1.a, send an email to Tech Support ( techsupp@appx.com).

Check for presence of required Windows NT Resource Kit components

Some files from the Microsoft WinNT Resource Kit are required to run the APPX/Server on Windows NT. The Resource Kit includes a utility that allows WinNT users to convert most desktop applications into a SERVICE application. This means that you can run an application behind the scenes i.e. it doesn't depend on a specific user to log on. SERVICE applications re-activate themselves after NT PCs loose power and re-boot themselves.

If you have already installed the WinNT Resource Kit, you should see three files in your server's \SRVANY directory: SRVANY.EXE, INSTSRV.EXE and SRVANY.WRI.

If the directory and/or files don't exist, install them now using the instructions provided with the Resource Kit. Create a directory in the root called "\SRVANY", then copySRVANY.EXE and INSTSRV.EXE into it. (The Resource Kit must be purchased from Microsoft. It is not obtainable on-line. If you subscribe to Microsoft's TechNet, you may already have the Resource Kit on one of those CD's. Otherwise, obtain it directly from Microsoft or a bookstore. Be sure to get the Resource Kit version that matches the version of NT that you are running.)

Be sure not to delete SRVANY.EXE as long as you want to use APPX/Server. Winappxd.exe is started by SRVANY.EXE, and if SRVANY isn't there, it can't start.

Create an NT user account to run the WinAppxD service (first-time installations)

Create the NT user account that will be used to run WinAppxD. You can name it anything you like. Place this account into the Administrators group.

Use your normal net account-creation process. This usually involves invoking NT's User Manager or User Manager for Domains.

If installing APPX on a Windows NT Workstation computer, and your LAN's logins are normally validated against a PDC, and that NT Workstation computer is a member of a domain, go to your PDC and create the account using User Manager for Domains. (Don't just create it locally on the server. Unless you have the domain user management tools from the \CLIENTS\SRVTOOLS directory on the NT Server CD-ROM installed on the NT Workstation machine, which you probably do not, you can't create a domain account from your NT Workstation).

If installing APPX on a Windows NT Server computer that you installed as NOT being part of a domain, and your LAN does not have a domain to join (possibly because this is just your test "play" system and NT has not been rolled out yet), use the User Manager application on the NT Server computer to add the user.

What to do next depends on how your organization's NT network is set up. If in doubt about NT network issues, check with your site's NT administrator to find out whether the following applies to you.

If the organization's network includes a 'Primary Domain Controller' and an NT domain, but the server you are installing APPX on is a 'member server' of the domain, NOT a Primary or Backup Domain Controller, you must perform the following extra steps:

The steps below describe how to do this on an NT Server computer. NT Workstation has a slightly different user interface, so the instructions below can't be followed "click by click" if you're installing on NT Workstation.

Note: To perform this next step you MUST be physically seated in front of your APPX Server machine, and be typing on its keyboard, using its mouse. Performing this step from a PDC or BDC if your APPX server is not a PDC or BDC, is guaranteed not to work. Performing this step from another random server or workstation on your network, rather than the APPX server, is also guaranteed not to work.

• From the 'Users' menu, open the 'Select Domain' dialog.
• In the 'Domain' box, type the name of the machine on which you are installing WinAppxD. (Yes, that is counter-intuitive. However, it is necessary).

The extra steps are necessary if you're running on a 'member server' or NT Workstation because User Rights must be set on a per-machine basis. If you add the rights on the PDC or BDC, they will not be in effect for any member servers or NT Workstation computers, just for the PDC and BDC. This is an NT security feature.

If you are installing APPX on a PDC or BDC, then all you have to do is go to the 'Users' menu, choose 'Select Domain', and make sure that the domain of which that machine is a PDC or BDC, is selected.

Assign WinAppxD User Rights