805.TXT
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Multi-User Installation Tips
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PRODUCT: R:BASE VERSION: 5.0 or Higher
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CATALOG: General Information AREA : Multi-User
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There are four steps to setting up R:BASE 5.0 or 5.1 for a multi-user
installation:
1. Create an icon to access the program files and install Win32S on
each user's workstation.
2. Place the network access control file, SERVER.RBG, in a shared
directory on the network. This directory must be on each user's
DOS path or in the working directory.
3. Place an RBASE.CFG file in a unique location for each user. Modify
the file to specify MULTI ON and a unique NAME for the user.
4. Place an RBASE.INI file in a directory on each user's DOS path or
search map. Modify the RBASE.INI file to point to the user's
RBASE.CFG file.
Setup the Workstation
While R:BASE 5.0 or 5.1 could be run from Windows File Manager, it is
easier to add an icon for running R:BASE to the Windows desktop on
each workstation. R:BASE automatically creates a program group and
icons when you install the program from disk. Not all of the installed
programs and icons are needed for a workstation. At the minimum, a
user's workstation needs an icon to run the RBG.EXE program. The other
programs and icons are optional.
To add a new program group or item to the Windows desktop, select New
from the Program Manager File menu. For R:BASE, set the Command Line
to the location of the RBG.EXE file, for example, F:\RBWIN\RBG.EXE.
The Working Directory is the drive and directory location to be in
when R:BASE starts, for example, the database or application
directory.
In addition to adding an icon to run R:BASE, each workstation must run
Win32S, the Microsoft program that allows 32-bit programs to run under
Windows 3.1. You can install Win32S on each user's workstation by
inserting the R:BASE system disk 1 into drive A:. Then, from the
Program Manager File menu, choose Run and enter A:WSETUP.
Win32S is installed onto the drive where Windows is installed. There
must be at least 3MB of available space on that drive, and a Windows
swap file is also required. Win32S adds files to the WINDOWS\SYSTEM
directory and creates a WIN32S directory under WINDOWS\SYSTEM. A
WIN32S.INI file is placed in the WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory. Win32S
modifies the user's SYSTEM.INI file.
If Windows is run from the network rather than the individual
workstations, you might not need to install Win32S on each
workstation. Instead, modify each users SYSTEM.INI file to add the
following line to the [386Enh] section:
device=F:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\WIN32S\W32S.386
The Freecell game that can be used to test the installation of Win32S
is installed with R:BASE 5.1 only. It is also available on the
Microrim Bulletin Board, 206-649-9836, and the Microrim CompuServe
Forum, GO MICRORIM. Download the file FREECELL.ZIP.
SERVER.RBG
The network access control file, SERVER.RBG, must be placed in a
shared directory on the network. Users need to be able to both read
and write to this file. When a user starts R:BASE, their name from the
RBASE.CFG file is written to the SERVER.RBG file as an active user;
when the user exits, their name is removed. Make sure the SERVER.RBG
file is not on the local workstation. The SERVER.RBG file location
will not be found by a search map. The SERVER.RBG file location must
be hard coded into your DOS path.
For example, a path with search maps might look like the following:
PATH=v:.;x:.;y:.;z:.;c:\dos;c:\windows;
The search maps are v:.;x:.;y:.;z:.; the DOS path is
c:\dos;c:\windows;. If y: is mapped as F:\RBWIN, and the SERVER.RBG
file is located in that directory, the SERVER.RBG file will not be
found. The PATH must be modified to explicitly add the location of
the SERVER.RBG file.
PATH=v:.;x:.;y:.;z:.;c:\dos;c:\windows;y:\rbwin
If the SERVER.RBG file is placed in the working directory, it does not
need to be on the DOS search path. The SERVER.RBG file does not need
to be located in the program files directory; it can be placed in any
directory on the network that is accessible by each user.
A SERVER.RBG file is not required to start R:BASE 5.0. If a SERVER.RBG
file is not found, R:BASE can only be used in single user mode. The
SERVER.RBG file is initially installed into the SERVER sub directory
under the RBWIN directory.
You should make a copy of the SERVER.RBG file as a backup so you can
copy it over a damaged server file, if necessary, eliminating the need
to reinstall the software.
RBASE.CFG
An RBASE.CFG file is installed into the RBWIN directory along with
the program files. Modify this file for each user. Change the line
MULTI OFF to MULTI ON and change the line NAME NONE to NAME username,
where username is a unique name for the user. Place the unique
RBASE.CFG in the user's home or public directory on the network or on
the local workstation. Delete or rename the RBASE.CFG file located in
the RBWIN directory.
Make sure the directory where the user's individual RBASE.CFG file is
located is on the user's search path or referenced in the RBASE.INI
file. If the specified RBASE.CFG file is not found, and an RBASE.CFG
file is not found on the path, R:BASE automatically makes a new
RBASE.CFG file in the current directory with default values (MULTI
OFF, NAME NONE).
RBASE.INI
The RBASE.INI file is not installed when you install R:BASE. The file
is created the first time a database is connected and is created in
the R:BASE program files directory, usually \RBWIN. The RBASE.INI
file is used to indicate the location of the message (.MSG) and help
(.HLP) files used with R:BASE 5.0, the location of the RBASE.CFG
file, and to display preferences for QBE and the Designers. The
RBASE.INI file must be located on either the DOS path or a search
map; it directs the location of the RBASE.CFG file, and the message
and help files.
Modify the RBASE.INI file to indicate the location of a user's
RBASE.CFG, and place the RBASE.INI file in a directory on that user's
path or search map. You may find it easiest to place the RBASE.INI
and RBASE.CFG files together in the user's home or personal directory
on the network. Delete or rename the RBASE.INI file in the R:BASE
program files directory.
Each user using R:BASE in a multi-user installation can have their own
RBASE.INI file, or they can share a file. If the RBASE.INI file is
shared, the file locations it specifies must be generic; in other
words, the file locations must be the same for each user. The message
and help files are located in the program files directory. If R:BASE
5.0 is installed in a shared directory on the network, this location
is the same for all users. If R:BASE 5.0 is installed on each user's
local hard drive, R:BASE must be installed in the same directory on
each machine, for example, \RBWIN. In addition, the RBASE.CFG file
location specified in the RBASE.INI file must be the same for each
user. For example, C:\RBASE.CFG, the root directory of each user's
hard drive, or U:RBASE.CFG, where U: is mapped to each user's personal
directory.
If users share the RBASE.INI file, when preferences are saved, the new
preferences affect all users.
The Basics
When R:BASE 5.0 or 5.1 starts, R:BASE first looks for the RBASE.INI
file in the current directory and then along the user's search map or
DOS path. R:BASE stops looking when it finds an RBASE.INI file. The
RBASE.INI tells R:BASE where to look for the RBASE.CFG file to
retrieve the user's name. After R:BASE finds an RBASE.CFG file, R:BASE
then looks for the SERVER.RBG file to check the number of users
currently in R:BASE and to see if the user name is already active. If
everything is okay, the user's name is placed in the SERVER.RBG file
and R:BASE initializes. If R:BASE does not find one of these files, no
error message is returned.
If R:BASE doesn't find an RBASE.INI file, R:BASE searches for an
RBASE.CFG file in the current directory and then along the user's DOS
path or search map. R:BASE stops searching when it finds an RBASE.CFG
file. If an RBASE.CFG file is not found, R:BASE creates one in the
current directory using default settings (MULTI OFF, NAME NONE). An
RBASE.INI file is then created in the R:BASE program files directory
(\RBWIN) when the user connects to a database. The newly created
RBASE.INI file contains the RBASE.CFG file location that R:BASE found
by searching the path.
If R:BASE does not find the SERVER.RBG file, R:BASE starts in
single-user mode. Everything operates normally except that the user
cannot set MULTI to ON or connect to a shared database. R:BASE
responds with error messages at that time.
R:BASE checks multi-user capability in two ways. The SERVER.RBG file
is checked to verify that the name specified in the RBASE.CFG file is
not currently listed as an active user, and that the number of names
listed is less or equal to the allowable number. If either of these
conditions fail, R:BASE returns an error message and does not start.
Once R:BASE has started, the number of R:BASE 5.0 users already
connected to a database is checked to make sure that number is less
than or equal to the allowable number. If there are already the
maximum number of users connected, an error message is returned and
the user is not connected to the database, but remains in R:BASE.
Each user must have access rights on the network to create, delete,
modify, read, and write files both where the database is located and
where the SERVER.RBG file is located. Check your network software
documentation for the appropriate commands to grant these privileges.
Common Error Messages and What They Mean
The SERVER.RBG file shows the user name [ name ] as already active.
Choose RETRY to replace the workstation currently under this user
name. Press CANCEL to return to the operating system. Two users are
attempting to access R:BASE with the same user name, either by using
the same RBASE.CFG file, or the user abnormally exited from R:BASE, in
which case this name was never deactivated in SERVER.RBG. Check to see
which RBASE.CFG file was found by choosing Settings from the Utilities
menu and then clicking on the Save button. The drive and directory
location of the RBASE.CFG file that R:BASE used is displayed.
Another situation that can result in this message is when R:BASE has
not found an RBASE.CFG file at all. When this happens, R:BASE creates
an RBASE.CFG file (using default settings, no user name and MULTI set
to OFF) in the current directory. If that directory is an application
directory on the network, this default RBASE.CFG is used when other
users subsequently start R:BASE from that directory. The other users
get this error message with the user name [ NONE ] displayed. Correct
this by choosing Settings from the Utilities menu, click on the
Multi-User tab, enter a name under Network ID, and check the
Multi-user box. Click on the Save button to store these new settings
to the RBASE.CFG file for this workstation using a unique drive and/or
directory location. Delete the RBASE.CFG file from the application
directory on the network.
Another workstation has replaced your user name [name] in the system.
You must now exit R:BASE. Two users have started R:BASE using the same
user name. The second user received the message, "The SERVER.RBG file
shows the user name [ name ] as already active.", and pressed the
Retry button. The second user replaced the first user in the
SERVER.RBG file. After approximately 10 minutes, the next time the
first user opens up a new child window, the first user gets this
message and must exit R:BASE.
Check to see which RBASE.CFG file was found by choosing Settings from
the Utilities menu and then clicking on the Save button. The drive and
directory location of the RBASE.CFG file R:BASE found is displayed.
The error message shows the user name retrieved from the RBASE.CFG
file. The user name displayed in the error message can help determine
whether a default RBASE.CFG file was created (user name of NONE) or
whether there is a path or RBASE.INI problem.
Current installation does not support multi-user.
R:BASE has determined that the SERVER.RBG file is not located on a
network file server. Either you have a local copy of SERVER.RBG and
R:BASE is finding this file before it finds the SERVER.RBG file on the
network file server, or R:BASE did not find a SERVER.RBG file
anywhere. Check your search path and make sure the location of the
SERVER.RBG file is in the DOS path and not just referenced as a search
map. Check that the location of the SERVER.RBG file appears first
before reference to any other R:BASE directory.
With some network software, this error message can also mean that
SHARE.EXE has not been invoked by all workstations. SHARE.EXE is a DOS
program that installs file sharing and locking capabilities on your
hard disk. When a file server and/or workstation uses SHARE.EXE, so
must all other workstations in R:BASE 5.0.
Too many users already logged_Please see your system administrator.
This message indicates that the allowable number of network users are
already listed in the SERVER.RBG file. After clicking on the OK
button, you are returned to the operating system; R:BASE does not
start. The number of allowable network users can be increased by
purchasing additional LAN packs. Each LAN pack allows up to five users
to start R:BASE.
Limit of network users of R:BASE prevents access.
-ERROR- Unable to connect database
This message indicates that the allowable number of users are already
connected to a shared database. After clicking on the OK button, you
remain in R:BASE and can connect to a different database. The number
of allowable network users can be increased by purchasing additional
LAN packs. Each LAN pack allows up to five users to connect to a
database.
The database is connected in a mode that makes it unavailable to you.
-ERROR- Unable to connect database
Another person has the database connected with MULTI set to ON, and
you are trying to connect with MULTI set to OFF. Check the setting of
MULTI by typing the command SHOW MULTI at the R> prompt, or choosing
Settings from the Utilities menu. The problem could be related to
either the RBASE.CFG file or the SERVER.RBG file.
Verify the location of the RBASE.CFG file. Choose Settings from the
Utilities menu. When the Settings dialog box opens, click on the Save
button. The location of the RBASE.CFG file R:BASE found is displayed.
Click on the Cancel button. Check the default settings in that
RBASE.CFG file by editing the file. The R:BASE text editor, RBEdit,
can be used to edit the RBASE.CFG file.
If the RBASE.CFG file has the correct default setting for MULTI, try
setting MULTI to ON, either in the R> prompt window or using the
Settings dialog box. The error message "Current installation does not
support multi-user" indicates a problem finding the SERVER.RBG file.
The database is currently unavailable - it is probably open with MULTI
set OFF.
-ERROR- Unable to connect database
Another person using the database probably has MULTI set to OFF. This
can occur when R:BASE cannot find an RBASE.CFG file and creates one
with the default settings, or R:BASE cannot locate a SERVER.RBG file.
Check the location of the RBASE.CFG file by choosing Settings from the
Utilities menu. When the Settings dialog box opens, click on the Save
button. The location of the RBASE.CFG file R:BASE found is displayed.
Click on the Cancel button. Check for the SERVER.RBG file by trying to
set MULTI to ON. If an error message is returned, R:BASE is in
single-user mode.
This message can also be produced by conflicting settings of STATICDB
or FASTLOCK. The error message indicates which setting R:BASE thinks
is conflicting. See your R:BASE Reference Manual or online Help for
more information about these settings.
Server network access control file is damaged. Reinstall server.
The file SERVER.RBG has become damaged or R:BASE cannot write to the
file. You must reinstall the R:BASE program files to recreate
SERVER.RBG, then run BUMP.EXE from your LAN pack disk; or, restore a
backup of SERVER.RBG, for example:
COPY SERVER.BAK SERVER.RBG
Could not get access to server network access control file. This
message can be caused by network privileges for the user not being set
correctly. The user must have access rights on the network to create,
delete, modify, read, and write files in the directory where the
SERVER.RBG file is located. The message can also be caused by the
SERVER.RBG file not being found on the user's search path.
Sample Network Configuration
The following diagrams show examples of a network with a file server,
two workstations, and where the necessary files are located. The drive
letters and directory names are for illustration only.
R:BASE has been installed on drive F: in the directory \RBWIN, which
is where the file SERVER.RBG is also located. The database files and
applications are stored on the server in the directory \DBFILES.
Subdirectories have been created in the directory \PUBLIC on drive F:,
USER1, USER2, etc._one directory for each workstation. The RBASE.CFG
and RBASE.INI files for each user are located in the user's public
directory, \PUBLIC\USER1, for example. The path for workstation1 is:
PATH=V:.;W;.;X:.;Y:.;Z:.;F:\PUBLIC\USER1;F:\RBWIN;C:\DOS...
The user's public directory, F:\PUBLIC\USER1, can be a search map
instead of explicitly included in the DOS path; the SERVER.RBG
directory, F:\RBWIN, must be explicitly specified. The Working
Directory is F:\DBFILES, the database and application directory. The
Command Line specification is F:\RBWIN\RBG.EXE.
The SERVER.RBG located in the Working Directory
In Figure 2, the setup is the same as for Figure 1 except that the
SERVER.RBG file is located in the directory F:\DBFILES, the working
directory. The path required for workstation1 is:
PATH=V:.;W;.;X:.;Y:.;Z:.;F:\PUBLIC\USER1;C:\DOS...
The user's public directory, F:\PUBLIC\USER1, can be a search map
instead of explicitly included in the DOS path. The SERVER.RBG is in
the working directory so its location does not need to be listed in
the path. The program files in the F:\RBWIN directory are found by the
Command Line specification and the RBASE.INI file and do not need to
be on the path. The RBASE.INI file designates the RBASE.CFG file as
F:\PUBLIC\USER1\RBASE.CFG.
The RBASE.INI file in the Working Directory.
The file server is designated as drive F:. R:BASE has been installed
on drive F: in the directory \RBWIN. The SERVER.RBG file, RBASE.INI
file, database files, and applications are stored on the server in the
directory \DBFILES. Subdirectories have been created in the directory
\PUBLIC on drive F:, USER1, USER2 etc._one for each workstation. The
RBASE.CFG file for each user is located in that subdirectory. A search
map, V:=F:\PUBLIC\USER1, is defined for each user's public directory.
The path for workstation1 is:
PATH=V:.;W;.;X:.;Y:.;Z:.;C:\DOS...
The Working Directory is F:\DBFILES, the database and application
directory. The RBASE.INI file specifies the RBASE.CFG file as
V:RBASE.CFG. The RBASE.INI file looks for the RBASE.CFG file in the
search map specified by V:.
Program files located on a local hard drive
The database and application files are stored on the network file
server in the directory F:\DBFILES. R:BASE is installed on each user's
local workstation in C:\RBWIN. The SERVER.RBG file is placed on the
server in the \DBFILES directory, the Working Directory specified by
the R:BASE program icon. The RBASE.INI and RBASE.CFG files are located
in the \RBWIN directory on the workstation.