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WebBatch on ISP 

Keywords:    WebBatch on ISP

Question:

No problem running WebBatch on systems on my home lan because I can actually install WebBatch on them.

Question: Is it possible to use WebBatch on my sites hosted at an ISP?

Answer:

It depends. Possibly.

If your ISP is running a Windows based web server (like IIS), and they allow you to run CGI scripts and have provided you with a CGI-BIN directory or equivalent, then the following general procedure is recommended.

Please note that most ISP's run a Web Server based on Unix or Linux. WebBatch is only compatible with Windows based web servers.

  1. Install a WebServer on your local machine for development and testing. You can find a nice, free WebServer at http://www.sambar.com
    Get the WebServer working on the local machine.

  2. Install WebBatch into the cgi-bin directory of your WebServer. For some WebServers like IIS you must create a CGI directory. See WebBatch install instructions. Be sure to enter WebBatch license info DURING INSTALLATION.

  3. Run the following script. It will create a webbatch.ini file in the same directory as WebBatch was installed into. 

    ;This script creates a webbatch.ini file that may be used to create a license
;file for remote installation where write access to the registry is not permitted.

;WebBatch must be installed and licensed on the local machine first.  This script
;will check for that.


;define registry key names
key="SOFTWARE\Wilson WindowWare\Settings\WWW-PROD\WEBBATCH[INFO]"
location="SOFTWARE\Wilson WindowWare\WebBatch\CurrentVersion"

;setup standard error message
   t1="Sorry.  No licensed WebBatch found on this system."
   t2="Install WebBatch, and be sure to enther the license"
   t3="when prompted by the installation process.  After"
   t4="WebBatch is installed, run this script again to make"
   t5="a webbatch.ini that can be used to license WebBatch on"
   t6="remote installation simply by placing the WebBatch.ini"
   t7="in the same directory as webbatch.exe"


;Check for an grab webbatch license info

If RegExistValue(@REGMACHINE,key) == @TRUE
   info=RegQueryValue(@REGMACHINE,key)
Else
   tx=StrCat(t1,@CRLF,@CRLF,t2,@CRLF,t3,@CRLF,t4,@CRLF,t5,@CRLF,t6,@CRLF,t7,@CRLF,@CRLF,"err 11111")
   Message("WebBatch.ini Generator",tx)
   Exit
EndIf

; Locate installed location of webbatch.exe
If RegExistValue(@REGMACHINE,location) == @TRUE
   exepath=RegQueryValue(@REGMACHINE,location)
Else
   tx=StrCat(t1,@CRLF,@CRLF,t2,@CRLF,t3,@CRLF,t4,@CRLF,t5,@CRLF,t6,@CRLF,t7,@CRLF,@CRLF,"err 11112")
   Message("WebBatch.ini Generator",tx)
   Exit
EndIf

;make ini file name

inifile=StrCat(FilePath(exepath),"webbatch.ini")

; write ini file

IniWritePvt("WEBBATCH","INFO",info,inifile)

Message("WebBatch.ini created and placed at...",inifile)
Exit

  4. After you have at least a sample CGI script running, copy your cgi-bin directory from your local machine to the CGI-BIN directory at your ISP. You might want to copy some of the sample subdirectories also.

  5. You should insure that NO ONE can access and see any file in your CGI-BIN directory. A person (including yourself) should not be able to view ANY scripts or other files in or beneath the CGI-BIN directory.

    Of course, your scripts should be able to access all the files.

An alternative that works *real* good in a lot of cases is a split setup, where all the html and big files are on the ISP's machine, and just the webbatch related traffic goes across a slow link. And that does not need to be much. All the images and stuff can be on the ISP machine. 
Article ID:   W15025

File Created: 2004:09:30:12:28:36
Last Updated: 2004:09:30:12:28:36