Australian Open Access User Group Meeting - 12 August 97 The special topic of the meeting was "Networks". Keith O'Donnell brought along two of the PCs he uses for training sessions and connected them for demonstration of the networking features of Open Access. He also demonstrated the ease with which small networks can be set up under Windows 95. TYPES OF NETWORK PC users may encounter several types of "network". Most are compatible with Open Access 4 which needs to be installed for either a "netware" or "netbios" protocol to take advantage of its networking features. 1.Novell Netware is used for many corporate local area networks. It is very flexible in the way LANs can be configured and connected together but it is relatively difficult to set up and maintain. 2.Novell Personal Netware was bundled with Novell DOS 7.0 (is this still available?). It allows several PCs to be linked in "workgroups" and share hard disks, CD-drives and printers. Windows 3.x can be run and is able to share resources but Personal Netware takes over printer management so it can deal with both DOS and Windows print requests. 3. Windows for Workgroups (WfW3.11) comes with built-in "workgroup" networking capabilities for several users. It allows both DOS and Windows applications to share hard disks, CD drives and printers. Michael Paine has encountered difficulties printing from Open Access under WfW, to the extent that he prefers to use Novell Personal Netware (Keith O'Donnell did not encounter such difficulties!). WfW is supposed to emulate Netbios protocol. 4. System Manager is an Australian network operating system which allows multiple users to run programs such as Open Access from a "host" PC. This saves transfer of data around the network. It has a Netbios emulator and is fully compatible with Open Access. It is a great way to make good use of "legacy" PCs. 5. Windows 95 has similar "workgroup" features to Windows for Workgroups. It is supposed to emulate Netbios but some tests at the meeting suggested that record locking was not working properly - this needs more investigation. 6. Windows NT is an advanced network operating system for corporations. Like Novell Netware, it is very flexible in the way LANs can be configured and connected together but it is relatively difficult to set up and maintain. We are not aware of any Open Access installations under Windows NT. 7. Winframe is an Australian network operating system which includes as its core Windows NT but has additional multi-tasking multi-user features. It provides even greater flexibility than Windows NT in configurations, including a choice of local or remote processing for any application. It is relatively difficult to set up and Datapac usually provide a turnkey solution which includes the host PC. We are not aware of any Open Access installations under Winframe. TIPS FOR USING OA ON NETWORKS Michael Paine's Web Page has a downloadable text file which has comprehensive advice about setting up Open Access on a network. As a first step, it is suggested that you obtain a copy of that document (the author is unknown). USA OA User/Developer Jack Huff has also sent along some tips (attached). Some extra points are: * Make sure that users have read/write access to all directories in their searching order, including the CODE directory (containing OA4.SPI). This is a network administration issue. * After installation make a back-up copy of OA4.SPI. * After successfully linking compiled code make a back-up copy of APP.SPI. * Provided that the above steps have been taken, each time that the network is booted up consider copying the back-up copies of OA4.SPI and APP.SPI over the CODE directory versions. This makes sure no "corrupt" files are used (both OA4.SPI and APP.SPI can be affected by an unusual event such as a user turning the PC off without exiting from Open Access). * If unusual things are happening try deleting all files starting with & (for example &12) in any directory available in any user's Searching Order. These are supposed to be temporary files, created and used by Open Access during processing. They are usually automatically deleted (except for &FLOC and &??). * Make sure that Utilities/Configuration/Misc_Parameters has SCRATCH VOLUME NAME set to a valid directory (best on the local C: drive). *If you wish to stop OA users shelling out to DOS (F8 DOS) then set DOS CALL SCRATCH VOLUME to blank or an invalid name. NUMBER OF USERS "Standard" Open Access 4 can be installed as a network version for up to 4 users. If more than 4 users try to load Open Access at the same time then they will notice Database, Spreadsheet and Word Processor missing from the Main Options Menu. Open Access keeps track of the number of users and sets a flag in the OA4.SPI file. This is one way that a network crash can cause the OA4.SPI to be "corrupted". If this happens you can either copy the back-up copy of the file to the CODE directory or run the STATIONS C-call (in either case make sure all users have quit Open Access). To run the STATIONS C-call you can select Utility/Language_Calls/Attach and enter STATIONS as the c-call to "attach". Then press and enter STATIONS to "invoke" the c-call. Follow the on-screen instructions ( resets the number of users to zero). Alternatively the c-call can be added to the Utility menu: start Notepad, load UTIL.MNU and add the line Reset_stations *STATIONS then save the file (any c-call not requiring parameters can be "attached" and "invoked" in this way). SHARING HARD DISKS AND PRINTERS In setting up a network the administrator nominates which hard drives and printers may be shared with users on the network. Most network systems allow the administrator to assign nicknames to the hard disks and printers. These nicknames can then be referred to when users log into the network. For example, a typical Novell DOS batch file might be: @ECHO OFF rem ** Map Drives ** net map n: denise_pc/denise_c rem ** Capture Ports ** net capture lpt1 laser mike_pc net capture lpt3 officejet denise_pc net capture lpt2 colour mike_pc The NET MAP command assigns the drive letter n: to the hard drive nicknamed "denise_c" on the networked computer "denise_pc" The first NET CAPTURE command "captures" anything that the users sends to the parallel port LPT1 and sends it to the printer nicknamed "laser" on the networked computer "mike_pc". This is done via a print spooler which queues the print jobs. Many network operating system don't like it if they encounter the MAP or CAPTURE commands when the resources are not available - for example the other PC has not booted up, or the user has not loaded networking software. One tip is to have the map and capture commands in a separate batch file which the user can run as an option. Novell DOS 7.0 allows the use of a question mark in a batch file. For example the AUTOEXEC.BAT could have: rem load personal netware call c:\nwclient\startnet.bat - starts networking drivers such as VLM and logs in ?"Is other PC ready?" call c:\netmap.bat - optional mapping and capture The last command line waits until either Y or N is pressed. If Y is pressed then the batch file NETMAP.BAT, containing the MAP and CAPTURE commands, is run With WfW the mapping and capture can be achieved by point and click techniques. The network features of WfW can be disabled by starting with the command WIN /N but, in effect, this disables the ability to optionally map and capture resources after boot-up. If WfW is configured for a network but some resources are not available at boot-up time then annoying errror messages can appear and network features may be disabled. [Keith's note about WIN95 etc] HARDWARE Hardware problems are frequently the cause of network crashes and instability. Networks such as Novell and WfW depend on a complete "loop" being formed by the inner and outer wires of the coaxial cables which connect each PC. Therefore, if the cable on one PC is incomplete (for example no "terminator" is fitted at the end of a line) then the whole network will fail. Note that the T-piece can be disconnected from the back of a PC, provided that the two cables, or one cable and one terminator, are retained on the T-piece. Cables and T-pieces are vulnerable to knocks from vacuum cleaners and passers by - they should be checked regularly. Terminators need to have a resistance within a narrow range - it is worth having a few spare on hand to use if no other reasons for a hardware problem can be located. Network cards in PCs require unique interrupt and port settings to enable them to "talk" to the PC. If other cards are added a "conflict" of interrupt or port settings may occur. Windows 95 is supposed to check for such conflicts but it is not bullet-proof! Most network cards come with test programs to check the operation of the hardware. These are well-worth using for trouble-shooting but make sure that no other programs on the PC are using the network at the time of the test. SYSTEM MANAGER OPERATING SYSTEM The System Manager Operating System by the Australian company Datapac offers a flexible alternative to conventional networks. System Manager is a multi-user, multi-tasking DOS operating system. Three types of "hardware" can be run concurrently: *"Ozterm" where the local PC behaves like a dumb terminal and runs DOS programs such as OA on the host PC's CPU. "Legacy" equipment can be used (ie XT or 286 PCs). Remote dial-in via telephone lines is supported. A serial cable connects each PC to the host. *"Ozstation" where the local PC is connected to the host by netware cards and cable. Disk-intensive DOS applications such as Open Access are processed on the host PC's CPU while Windows 3.x/95 is run on the local PC. The user can quickly switch between the two. *"Graphics edition" allows up to 14 sets of monitor/keyboard/mouse to be connected directly to the host PC - the true "dumb terminals". Multiple DOS/Windows sessions can be run. Other features of System Manager, including tips for Open Access, have been covered in previous newsletters (eg October 94) . In short, it provides a very flexible and economical way of "networking" an office without the need to upgrade or replace existing PCs. Disclaimer Notice: Users should not act solely on the basis of the material contained in this document. Items contained in this document are presented as possible solutions to problems but do not constitute advice. In particular, no assurance can be given that the possible solutions will work in every situation or that loss of data will not occur. Always back-up data before trying to rectify a problem.