Installing AcuConnect on a Windows Server

  1. Log on to your server using the administrator account or an account that belongs to the administrators group.
  2. Insert the product CD-ROM into your disk drive. If the installation program does not start automatically, perform the following steps:
    1. Click Start > Run.
    2. Enter the following:
      drive:\setup.exe

      where drive is the device designation of your CD-ROM drive.

  3. Follow the instructions on the screen. When prompted:
    1. Enter the product code and product key shown on the card that came with your product.
    2. Specify an installation directory or accept the default location.
    3. Select the component to install. Choose "AcuConnect" from the list of available products.
  4. If you already have the files C:\etc\AcuAccess and C:\etc\acurcl.cfg, the setup utility detects them and asks if you want to overwrite them. Do not overwrite them unless you have a backup copy. The AcuAccess file (as delivered from Micro Focus) contains one access record that gives all users access to AcuConnect. You can modify this file later. The file acurcl.cfg contains the server configuration variables; when the file is first installed, these variables are all commented out. You can also modify this file later.
  5. If you want AcuConnect to start automatically on boot, it must be installed and started as a Windows service. The setup program creates a sample Start Menu folder, and asks if you want to install and start AcuConnect. The default service is named "AcuConnect". Other instances of the service are named after the port on which they run.

    You can also use the command line or graphical user interface to install and start AcuConnect as a service. See Managing the System for information about other acurcl command-line options.

    In Windows, issuing the acurcl command without options causes a graphical control panel to appear. The Services tab in this interface lets you add, start, stop, and remove services.

    Note: Installing a service on a particular port resets all startup options for the service on that port. You can use all valid -start options when installing AcuConnect as a service. These options are stored so that the service will use them when starting.
  6. If you choose to start AcuConnect during the installation process, a Windows Command Prompt (DOS window) appears, showing the status of the Windows services being started or restarted automatically. You may see some error messages that can be ignored if the Windows services are not already installed and running. For example, you might see:
    acurcl –kill
    Open/Control Service failed
    acurcl –remove
    Open/Control Service failed
    acurcl –install
    AcuConnect service installed.
    acurcl –start
    STATE: START PENDING

    When AcuConnect is started as a Windows service, all paths used in the configuration file or on the command line are relative to the Windows server system directory (for example, C:\winnt\system32); if you start AcuConnect with the command acurcl -start -le acurcl.log from another directory, the log file is not created in that location, but rather in the \winnt\system32 directory. If desired, you can use full path names, which has the effect of using an explicit file.

  7. After the services are installed and running, there should be no reason to stop them. However, if you choose to stop them, you may do so from the command line (acurcl -kill). You can also stop services by clicking Stop in the Services tab on the graphical control panel.

    After the services are installed, there should be no reason to delete them. However, if you decide to delete them, use the following command from the command line:

    acurcl -remove

    or click Remove on the graphical control panel's Services tab. See Managing the System for information about other acurcl command-line options.

    This command deletes only the services and does not delete the executables. To help in resolving service problems, you can check some messages from these services in the Microsoft Event Viewer. Choose Start > Programs > Administrative Tools > Event Viewer > Log > Application, or the similar command on your version of Microsoft Windows.

    Note: If you move or delete any installed .dll files, AcuConnect will not run.