APPX 5.5.0/5.5.1/5.5.2 Installation Instructions

This page provides instructions for installing APPX 5.5.0 and subsequent patch releases..

Notes

• IMPORTANT: This version includes new SSL certificates. Client versions earlier than 5.4.4c will not be able to connect to this release. There are several options:
  • explicity disable SSL in the login manager. The default is 'optional', which means the client & server will try to use SSL. You may be using it unintentionally because of this default setting. In that case, it might be acceptable to simply disable it. This will allow older clients to connect until you can upgrade them.
  • You can install a new login manager on a different port and force it to use the old certificate by setting '-UseOldSSLcert=true' in your login manager. This will allow older clients to connect to that port until you can upgrade them, at which point they can connect to the normal login port
  • The Java Web Start version of the client can only connect to a 5.4.4c or higher server. That client must be upgraded at the same time as the rest of APPX.
• If you are upgrading from a release prior to 5.3.3, then be aware that:
  • Bug 2823 requires a job to be run to fix the user keymaps - System Administration File Management - Update Keymap
  • Changes in the format of the Role Based Security files require you to scratch 0SA/Struct/SEC* then run Sys Admin File Management - Create Files
  • If you previously used the Data Exchange application in 5.3.0, see these instructions.
• If you are upgrading from a release prior to 5.4.3 and you are using Language Translation you should process the DD in your applications to fix bug 3450
• The Java client did not honour the 'Transparent' flag, but that bug has been fixed. You may have some inputs where the transparent flag was checked but since the client did not honour it, you would not notice a difference. Since that bug has been fixed, you may find some screens where the underlying data is showing thru. In this case, check the 'Transparent' flag on the image. This was the case with some screens in Application Design, so if you use the new client with a release prior to 5.5.0, you will see some transparent screens. This is not a bug, but the result of fixing the bug. The 5.5.0 client with 5.5.0 Application Design does not have this problem.
• The layout of the shared memory segment used by the license manager is different from all previous releases. If you are planning to run 5.5 and any previous release on the same server, make sure APPX_MONITOR_KEY has a different value from your other installations.

Overview

Installation of APPX 5.5.x is accomplished by simply following the steps outlined below for your target platform. Because all platforms use a common Installation Wizard, the installation steps for the various platforms are very similar.

APPX runs on multiple platforms (various Windows versions & servers, Linux, HP-UX, AIX, etc). The steps for installing are very similar between all Linux/Unix platforms and all Windows versions, and rather than give instructions for each variation, we break them down into all Windows installations and all Linux/Unix installations. Where applicable, we note any O/S specific variations within the instructions for that type of O/S.

A new feature in APPX is the ability to email reports directly from APPX. This requires the installation of the 'mutt' email client. See below for information on installing 'mutt'. Note that some Linux distributions already include this package. If you already have a third party email client you prefer, you can hook the Email API and replace it with your code. See here for more details.

APPX Utility Installation Instructions

Windows Server/Win 7/Win 10

New Installation

Follow APPX500WindowsNewInstallation to install APPX onto a Windows system where APPX is not currently installed.

Upgrade Existing Installation

If you are running version 5.0.0 to 5.3.x, then consult these instructions for any special considerations.

When you are ready to proceed with the upgrade, then:

• Ask all users to log off.
• Terminate any remaining appx tasks, such as the license server, using Windows Task Manager.
• Stop the login service(s), using the Windows Task Manager.
• Follow the instructions above for a new installation and install the new release on top of your existing installation. This release includes an upgrade tool that will automatically make any required changes to Structure files, create new System Administration Files and so on but only if your prior release was 5.4.0 or higher. Be sure to check the displayed log for any manual actions that might be required. If your prior release was earlier than 5.4.0, then follow these instructions after installing 5.5
• Restart the login service(s), using the Windows Task Manager. Note that if any APPX sessions are running during the upgrade, or if you don't stop all the login services, you will have to reboot your server to complete the upgrade.

If you are running 4.2.a or older, follow APPX500WindowsUpgradeInstallation to upgrade an existing installation to APPX 5.5.

Linux/Unix Server

New Installation

Follow APPX500LinuxNewInstallation to install APPX onto a Linux/Unix system where APPX is not currently installed.

Upgrade Existing Installation

If you are running version 5.0.0 to 5.3.x, then consult these instructions for any special considerations.

When you are ready to proceed with the upgrade, then:

• Ask all users to log off.
• kill all remaining appx tasks, including the license server.
• Stop the login services, using the O/S specific commands to start/stop services.
• Follow the instructions above for a new installation and install the new release on top of your existing installation. This release includes an upgrade tool that will automatically make any required changes to Structure files, create new System Administration Files and so on but only if your prior release was 5.4.0 or higher. Be sure to check the displayed log for any manual actions that might be required. If your prior release was earlier than 5.4.0, then follow these instructions after installing 5.5.
• Restart the login services.

If you are running 4.2.a or older, follow APPX500LinuxUpgradeInstallation to upgrade an existing installation to APPX 5.5.

Using 64 bit Linux?

If you're planning to run APPX on a 64 bit version of Linux, see Running APPX in a 64 bit environment for details on how to install the required 32 bit libraries.

APPX Desktop Client Installation Instructions - Overview

The Appx Desktop Client (ADC) can be downloaded from the APPX web site under Downloads/Desktop Products. There are installers for Windows, Linux and Macintosh desktops. There are no license restrictions on downloading and installing the client software. You may install the software on as many desktops as you like. Your APPX server license will limit the number of simultaneous connections.

To upgrade an existing ADC installation, simply install the new version on top of the old version. It is not necessary to uninstall the old client software first.

In addition to the ADC, you will probably need a PDF viewer. For Windows and Linux desktops you can use the Adobe Acrobat reader or the free Foxit reader. Mac OS/X includes the Preview application, which is sufficient for view and printing PDF documents.

IMPORTANT: The APPX Desktop Client does not run on Mac laptops with a touch bar or on Mac OS 10.15 (Catalina) or higher. For those systems, use the HTML client instead.

Windows Desktops

Installation

Follow APPXADCWindowsInstallation to install the ADC onto a Windows Desktop.

Linux Desktops

Installation

Follow APPXADCLinuxInstallation to install the ADC onto a Linux Desktop.

Mac Desktops

Installation

Follow APPXADCMacInstallation to install the ADC onto a Mac Desktop.

APPX HTML Client Instructions

Installation

Another alternative to the above desktop clients is the HTML client. This will run your APPX applications in a browser on a desktop, tablet or smart phone. See APPX HTML Client for instructions on installing the HTML client on your web server.

APPX ODBC Installation Instructions

APPX ODBC - New or Upgrade Existing Installation

Databases

Configuring APPX to work with RDBMS systems.

Installing 'mutt'

The new Email feature requires the 'mutt' email client, or, if you have a command line email program you are already using you can hook the email process with your own. See .UTIL EMAIL for information on how to do this.

Mutt is readily available in all common Linux distribution’s package management systems. It may not be installed by default, you can use the following commands (as root) to install:

RHEL/CentOS 7/8 - yum install mutt

Debian/Ubuntu - apt-get install mutt

Unix platforms will would either need to compile from source obtained from mutt.org project site or seek out platform specific binary distribution locations such as:

AIX https://www.ibm.com/support/pages/aix-toolbox-linux-applications-overview
HPUX http://hpux.connect.org.uk
Solaris http://www.sunfreeware.com/introduction.html or https://www.opencsw.org

Windows users can obtain Mutt via the Cygwin project. If you already have an email command line client that you are using, see .UTIL EMAIL for instructions on how to hook the the standard routine with your own.

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-- BrianRyan - 2020-07-30