3.9 Accessing Remote Files

With AcuODBC, you can use AcuServer to access remote files and process them locally. Supply the appropriate information on the AcuServer tab. If you are processing remotely via AcuODBC Server, files located on the application server are not considered remote, and you do not need to complete this tab.

Note: The ".xfd" extension must match the name listed in the "xfdrmt.dir" file. The file extension for data files must match what you specified on the General tab.

Compatibility Note: If you are running AcuODBC Version 5.0 or higher, you must also run AcuServer 5.0 or higher. AcuODBC Versions 4.x require Versions 4.x of AcuServer. AcuServer Versions 4.x and 5.x can co-exist on the same machine for use with versions 4.x and 5.x, respectively, of Acucorp products.

AcuServer Password

This field allows you to define a password for accessing remote files via AcuServer. By default, local access is assumed, so "None" is selected.

To define a password for remote access, click Use in the Password field, and then type a password into the entry box to the right of this button. This password is automatically sent to AcuServer when remote access is requested, and you specify that a password is needed.

If you want to be prompted for a password to make access more secure, click Ask. Now, whenever someone tries to connect to remote files, he or she is prompted to enter a username and password. Only users with the correct password are granted access to the remote data source.

NT Security

The setting of this field indicates how the client attempts to access AcuServer. The setting of this field must match the setting of the NT_SECURITY AcuServer configuration variable. (See your AcuServer documentation for information on this configuration variable.) This field is valid in Windows NT and Windows 2000 environments only. It does not apply if AcuServer is running on a UNIX file server.

If the data source is on a Windows server, select one of the following for the NT Security setting:

If ... Then ...
You want to use Windows NT's security system by connecting to the server via a named pipe. This method does not require the use of a password. Select Named Pipe. The password field in the AcuAccess file is ignored. The AcuODBC client connects to the file server using a named pipe. This gives the client all the features of Windows NT file permissions. The client machine must have permission to create the named pipe. If the client does not have permission, both the client and server systems hang. See your Windows NT documentation for information about permissions and named pipes. Note that Acucorp does not encourage the use of named pipes.
You want to use Windows NT's security system by logging the user onto the Windows domain via a password. The password may be stored in the AcuAccess file or can be entered by the user directly. Select Logon. When "Logon" is selected, AcuServer attempts to log the user onto the Windows NT domain using the password in the AcuAccess file. If there is no password or the password is not valid, the user is prompted to enter a password. "Logon" is frequently a simpler, more reliable connection method than a named pipe.

See section 8.4 "System Security - The AcuAccess File" for additional information.

Note: The NT Security setting on this tab is for connecting to the remote AcuServer server only. If you are using the AcuODBC Server for processing, you must indicate your NT Security settings on the AcuODBC Server tab. See section 9.2 "Configuring the Remote DSN on the Client", for more information on AcuODBC Server and NT security.

International Character Handling

AcuODBC supports international character translation. The translation process is handled by AcuServer, which uses a user-defined map to accomplish translation. You do not need to define a map file if your data files reside locally. This is necessary only if your files reside on a remote file server and use a different character set.

Default Map File

Enter the name and path of the map file to be used (if any) to map special characters in your character set to their decimal or hexadecimal equivalent in another character set before they are passed to or from the indexed or relative file system. This file lets you reconcile the character encoding between two machines that use different codes for the same characters. This field is equivalent to the DEFAULT_MAP_FILE configuration variable.

You can specify a local or remote directory for the map file, or leave blank to decline the use of a map. To specify a local directory, click "Browse" and navigate to the desired directory.

To specify a remote directory, use the following syntax:

@server-name:directory-path

where server-name is the name of the UNIX or NT server on which the map file resides. Note that whether the map file is local or remote, you must store the ".xfd" files on the remote server and access them using AcuServer. (This is not a requirement when using the ACUCOBOL-GT runtime to map characters.) We recommend that you store the map file and ".xfd" files together on the server to simplify file access and maintenance.

When creating a map file, you need to re-map only those values that vary between the two character sets (e.g., vowels with a grave accent, acute accent, circumflex, tilde, etc.) You can check the values of specific characters using the Windows Character Map accessory in the PC environment, or by referring to your UNIX manual pages (man pages) in the UNIX environment.

The map file should contain two values per line: the first indicating the decimal or hexadecimal value of the special character on the client machine and the second indicating the decimal or hexadecimal value of the corresponding character on the server machine. (Hexadecimal values use the standard "0x" notation.) For instance:

0x90 0xC9

maps "E" (acute) in the IBM PC character set to "E" (acute) in the ISO8859-1 character set using hexadecimal notation.

144 201

gives the same mapping using decimal notation.

You can use the pound sign ("#") to indicate a comment.

Note to application developer: The map will be used to translate only alphanumeric fields; but it will translate all alphanumeric fields, including group items and items subject to a REDEFINES clause. If this is not a desired behavior, you may need to restructure your program to avoid these clauses by passing the elementary items instead of the group item, or passing an item from the REDEFINES clause instead of the first reference.

AcuServer Port

Enter the port number assigned to the AcuServer host if it is different from the default port number, "6523". This field is useful for redirecting additional instances of AcuServer or for working around a firewall.

If ...	Then ...
You want to use Windows NT's security system by connecting to the server via a named pipe. This method does not require the use of a password.	Select Named Pipe. The password field in the AcuAccess file is ignored. The AcuODBC client connects to the file server using a named pipe. This gives the client all the features of Windows NT file permissions. The client machine must have permission to create the named pipe. If the client does not have permission, both the client and server systems hang. See your Windows NT documentation for information about permissions and named pipes. Note that Acucorp does not encourage the use of named pipes.
You want to use Windows NT's security system by logging the user onto the Windows domain via a password. The password may be stored in the AcuAccess file or can be entered by the user directly.	Select Logon. When "Logon" is selected, AcuServer attempts to log the user onto the Windows NT domain using the password in the AcuAccess file. If there is no password or the password is not valid, the user is prompted to enter a password. "Logon" is frequently a simpler, more reliable connection method than a named pipe.