Readerware Client/Server Edition

Readerware Client/Server edition is designed to allow multiple users to share and update a single database. It can be used in small home networks to manage personal collections. It can also be used in libraries, churches, schools and enterprise locations to catalog and manage a library.

A single Readerware server accesses the database and allows Readerware clients to connect, view and update the database. You can optionally restrict access so that clients can view the data but not update it. Once started the Readerware server runs quietly in the background requiring no user intervention. The Readerware clients can be anywhere on your network, connected via the internet or on the same machine as the server.

 
 

Starting the Readerware Server (Graphical Mode)

On Windows and Linux, Readerware Client/Server edition is installed as part of the standard Readerware package, there is no extra installation required. On Mac OS X, you must download and install the server separately. You will need to install Readerware on the machine that will act as the server and on all client machines. You are welcome to host the Readerware installation file on your network for distribution internally.

Before you start the server you must create your Readerware database.  To create a new database, start the Readerware program as normal, select the File->New Database menu item, select the name and location of your database and click on Create.

The database needs to be accessible to all users so that images can be accessed, so create your database somewhere that all your users have access to and can mount as a network drive.

If you want to use an existing database, you can.

Make sure that your Readerware client is closed.  There must not be anyone accessing the database when you start the server.

Start the Readerware server. It will open a small console window. You must first select the databases from the server console menus so that the server knows which databases to access.  The databases you select will be remembered and automatically selected next time you start the Readerware server.  If you ever need to change databases, select the appropriate Clear Database Selection item.

Readerware should now display a server started message. That's all there is to it, your Readerware server is now running.

The full Readerware Server menu bar contains a File menu with just an exit item and entries for each Readerware server. Each server menu contains:

Select Database - Select the database the server is to access.

Select Database Mode - Select the database mode, Update or Read Only. If Read Only is selected, clients will be able to view the database but not update it.

Clear Database Selection - Once you have defined a database, the Readerware server will automatically open it the next time the server is started. This  eliminates the need to select a database each time the server is started. If you ever need to change databases, select this menu item. Then when restarted, Readerware will not select a database.

Backup Database - This will prompt you to enter the name and location for a backup file. Readerware will create a ZIP archive of the complete database including the images. You can then easily save this single ZIP file in a safe location.  Any client can also backup the server database this way, providing an automatic backup on another machine.

Restore Database - Use this item to restore a database from a Readerware backup ZIP file. You will be prompted to select the backup file and the new database name, it must not already exist. Readerware will then create a new database with the contents of the backup file.

Now that you are familiar with running the Readerware server, you can set up your system so that it runs as a service under Windows NT/2000/XP or is started automatically on Mac OS X.

Running The Readerware Graphical Server as a Windows Service

If you want to run the Readerware Server as a Windows service, you must first install it. Open a Windows command prompt, CD into your Readerware directory and install the Readerware Server as a Windows service using the following command:
rwserver -install
This will install the Readerware Server as a Windows service and set it up to automatically start every time you start Windows. To start it manually use the Windows Services Control Panel, Control Panel->Administrative Tools->Services. Look for "Readerware Server" in the list.

If you need to remove the Readerware Server service, use:
rwserver -uninstall
The first time Windows launches the Readerware server, it will start up without any active databases. This will happen even if you had previously configured the Readerware server because when the Readerware server is started as a service, it is started with a different set of preferences. Just go through the normal configuration process to configure the Readerware server. Then close the Readerware server from the Readerware Server console window to ensure your new preferences get saved. Now when Windows restarts the Readerware server it will be correctly configured.

Running The Readerware Graphical Server at Startup on Mac OS X

If you want to launch the Readerware server every time you start your Mac, simply add the Readerware server as a login item.

Start by setting up the server just the way you want it. Then start Mac OS X System Preferences, click on "Login Items". Click on the Add button and select the Readerware server application.

That's it, next time you restart your Mac, the Readerware server will be started automatically.

  

Starting the Readerware Server (Command Line Mode)

On Windows and Linux, Readerware Client/Server edition is installed as part of the standard Readerware package, there is no extra installation required. On Mac OS X, you must download and install the server separately. You will need to install Readerware on the machine that will act as the server and on all client machines. You are welcome to host the Readerware installation file on your network for distribution internally.

Before you start the server you must create your Readerware database.  To create a new database, start the Readerware program as normal, select the File->New Database menu item, select the name and location of your database and click on Create.

The database needs to be accessible to all users so that images can be accessed, so create your database somewhere that all your users have access to and can mount as a network drive.

If you want to use an existing database, you can.

Creating the Readerware Server Configuration File

When running the Readerware Server in command line mode you must create a configuration file specifying the database(s) and database mode(s). This file must be created in the Readerware Server installation directory and must be called "rwserver.properties". On Mac OS X this file must be stored in the application package. Control-click on the RWServerd application icon. Select Show package contents from the popup menu. Double click on Contents, Resources, Java, the rwserver.properties file must be stored here.

The rwserver.properties file can contain the following entries:

aw.svr.db={full path to ReaderwareAW database}
aw.svr.db.mode={ReaderwareAW database mode, 0 = full access, 1 = read only)
rw.svr.db={full path to Readerware database}
rw.svr.db.mode={Readerware database mode, 0 = full access, 1 = read only)
vw.svr.db={full path to ReaderwareVW database}
vw.svr.db.mode={ReaderwareVW database mode, 0 = full access, 1 = read only)

You do not need to start all databases, if you are only running Readerware, then you only need to define the rw.svr entries.

Example:

rw.svr.db=C:\\Readerware\\RWareDB.rwd.data
rw.svr.db.mode=0

The Readerware Server will open the Readerware (book) database at C:\Readerware\RWareDB.rwd.data in update mode.

Note that special characters must be escaped with the backslash character. So to enter a backslash you must enter \\.

Starting the Readerware Command Line Server

Make sure that your Readerware client is closed.  There must not be anyone accessing the database when you start the server.

To start the server run:

rwserverd

If you need to start the server in debug mode you can add the -debug parameter:

rwserverd -debug
Now that you have the Readerware server configured, you can set up your system so that it runs as a service under Windows NT/2000/XP.

Running the Readerware Command Line Server as a Windows Service

To install the Readerware Command Line Server as a Windows service using the following command:
rwserverd -install
This will install the Readerware Command Line Server as a Windows service and set it up to automatically start every time you start Windows. To start it manually use the Windows Services Control Panel, Control Panel->Administrative Tools->Services. Look for "Readerware Server" in the list.

If you need to remove the service, use:
rwserverd -uninstall


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<>Running The Readerware Command Line Server at Startup on Mac OS X

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<> If you want to launch the Readerware command line server every time you start your Mac, simply add the Readerware Command Line Server (RWServerd) as a login item.

Start by setting up the server just the way you want it. Then start Mac OS X System Preferences, click on "Login Items". Click on the Add button and select the Readerware server application.

That's it, next time you restart your Mac, the Readerware server will be started automatically.


Configuring Readerware Clients

Start the normal Readerware program on any machine, even the same machine as the server.  You might get an error when Readerware opens the database if the last accessed database is now the one used by the server.  Just click OK, and Readerware will open with an empty database.

Select Edit->Preferences from the Readerware menu.  Click on the Database tab.  Click on the Remote Database radio button.  Click OK to close the preferences dialog. Readerware is now setup to use a remote server. If you do not see the Remote Database radio button, it means that your license is for Readerware Standard Edition rather than Readerware Client/Server Edition. Just select Help->Register from the menu and enter your Readerware Client/Server license information.

Select the File->Open Database menu item.  Now you will see the database connection dialog.  Enter the name of the machine where the Readerware server is running.  Click on the browse button and select the database the server is using.  Although the Readerware client will access the database via the server, it still needs to know where the database is so it can access the images.  You must select the database on the remote machine.  As mentioned earlier the database needs to be stored where all users can access it.

Click on OK, Readerware will now load the remote database. Next time you start Readerware it will automatically connect to the server so you only have to configure the client once. Repeat this configuration on all your clients. If you configured the Readerware server so that clients have read only access, all fields will be read only and the user will not be able to update the database, run auto-catalog etc.

There are no other differences in the Client/Server edition of Readerware so continue to use the product as normal.

If you have trouble connecting to the Readerware server, see the connection problems section.

 

Firewalls and Readerware Client/Server Edition

Firewalls are an essential part of an internet connected PC these days. They prevent unauthorized access to your PC, normally they block any unused ports. To use Readerware Client/Server through a firewall, you will need to open up the ports that it uses. All products use the control port, the other ports should be opened as necessary.

Readerware uses the following TCP/IP ports to converse with the server:


Readerware Server Log File

The Readerware server logs basic activity and errors to a log file. The file is called rwServer.LOG and it will be created in your Readerware directory. Each time the server is started, the log is reinitialized.

If you experience any problems, the answer can normally be found in the log file. This is a plain text file and can be viewed in any text editor.



Connection problems

If the client cannot connect to the Readerware server it is normally one of the following issues:

The Readerware server is not running or does not have the appropriate database open. Check the rwServer.LOG file on the server machine to verify that the Readerware server has started normally and that the database is open. If you start the server and open a Readerware and ReaderwareAW database but do not open a ReaderwareVW database, then you will receive an error if you try to connect from a ReaderwareVW client.

The operating system cannot resolve the server name. The first thing to check is that the two machines can communicate. From the remote machine, open a command prompt and enter the following command:
ping servername
where servername is the name of the machine running the Readerware server. If the ping works, then we know the two machines can communicate. If not there is some sort of networking problem between the two machines. Try using the machine IP address in place of the server name. Readerware will accept either.

Your Firewall is blocking the server ports. If the ping works but Readerware is still unable to connect, then it is probably your firewall software blocking the ports Readerware uses  

Readerware uses the following TCP/IP ports to converse with the server:

You will need to open the control port and the appropriate database ports.

If you are running Windows XP on the server machine and have installed SP2, Microsoft turned on the Windows firewall, so you might have a firewall running without realizing it.

It is often easier to get started by running the server and client on the same machine. That takes things like firewalls out of the picture. Once you get it running on the same machine, you know the server is configured correctly and you can then try connecting from another machine.


 

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