TECHNICAL BULLETIN 2/22/91 Microsoft Windows 3.0, 3.0a Windows 3.0, 3.0a (3.0X) have been tested in house and are compatible with LANtastic 3.XX, however, Windows will not run in enhanced mode on a LANtastic server. Attempting to do so many result in a loss of network functionality, server disconnects or lockups. We are currently working to provide the most reasonable solution to this problem and will update this bulletin as necessary. This bulletin should replace all other notes generated from this office on Windows 3.0X to date. While claiming Windows 3.0X and LANtastic 3.XX are compatible, Artisoft is not responsible for the compatibility of any other application(s) running within Windows unless otherwise noted. The following information is based on inhouse testing of Windows. If you are not a registered LANtastic owner, your questions should be directed to our technical sales staff at (602) 293-6363. Any questions or comments on this bulletin may be forwarded by fax (602) 293-8065 or mailed to: Artisoft Inc., 575 E. River Road, Tucson, AZ., 85704, ATTN: Windows Compatibility. Installing Windows 3.0X on the Network When installing Windows 3.0X on the LANtastic network operating system (NOS), the network must first be installed and active. If the SETUP program is run to install Windows initially, Windows will be installed as a single-user product. If Windows is to be used across the network, the following steps must be taken (summarized from the Microsoft Windows User's Guide, Chapter 14: Networks and Windows): 1. Log into the machine on which Windows will be installed (this machine will be referred to as the Windows Server), and redirect a drive designation to the directory where the shared copy of Windows should be installed (for our examples, we'll use W:\WINDOWS). Ie: net login \\server username password {Where server is the name of the network server, and an account for username with password (if applicable) has been configured on the server} net use w: \\server\windows {Where windows is a resource which has been created on server for the Windows program. The physical link path may be something like c:\windows} 2. At the DOS prompt, create a batch file which will convert the necessary files from the Windows diskettes (NOTE: any filename can be used for this batch file as long as it contains the .BAT extension). Ie: copy con expall.bat 3. At the prompt, type the following information: a: for %%i in (*.*) do w:\windows\expand %%i w:\windows\%%i w: This creates a program which allows the pathnames of the source and destination of the Windows files to be entered. 4. Press to close the batch file. 5. Insert the Windows disk #2 into the floppy drive A: and copy the expand.exe file into the shared directory. Ie: copy a:expand.exe w:\windows 6. Insert the first Windows disk into drive A: and run the expall batch file: expall a:*.* w:\windows This command runs the expall batch file, which copies and expands the files from the Windows disks to the Windows directory on network disk drive (w:\windows). 7. Repeat the previous step for the remaining disks. 8. Make all files in the windows directory read only by using the DOS ATTRIB. From the w:\windows directory, type ATTRIB +R *.* Configuring Users to run Windows Each user on the network (including the user running on the Windows Server) must run the SETUP/N program to configure Windows for the information specific to that user. This program creates a WIN.COM file and unique configuration (.INI) files for each user and places those files in the specified directory. 1. Each user must first log into the Windows server and redirect a drive designation to the directory in which Windows has been installed: net login \\server username password net use w: \\server\windows 2. From the redirected drive designation, type setup /n 3. Follow the prompts on the screen. When Windows prompts for a directory in which to place the user's Windows files, enter any path other than the one specified for the network Windows files (w:\windows). Ie: c:\winfiles NOTE: The user on the Windows Server must also run setup /n and specify a unique directory. If Windows is installed on a diskless station, follow the steps as above, however, when asked for a path in which to install the user files, select a personal Windows directory on a network drive. Ie: w:\diskless 4. Windows then displays an initial configuration menu. If the selections shown are not correct for that workstation, use the arrow keys to change each item. Once the selections are correct, press enter to accept the changes. The network selected should be MS NET. Additional Configuration Requirements After setup /n has been executed for each user, some additional changes may be necessary for a particular configuration. Windows creates several .INI files which contain various configuration information: CONTROL.INI - Maintains color schemes and patterns PROGMAN.INI - Maintains group information SYSTEM.INI - Maintains system configuration WIN.INI - Maintains Windows configuration WINFILE.INI - Maintains settings To make any changes in the .INI files, one may do so by editing the file through the Notepad in Windows or through any DOS text editor. The SYSTEM.INI File Changes to the SYSTEM.INI file may be required to avoid memory conflicts with various network adapters, or to modify existing parameters. In most cases the default values will be sufficient. Those changes occur in the [386Enh] section and are as follows: EMMExclude=D800-DFFF -- This line must be added if there is a possibility of RAMBASE conflict with the network adapter (only in cases where the adapter uses a RAMBASE, such as our 2Mbps adapter). The adapter's RAMBASE must be excluded to avoid conflict. In this example, the network adapter is using D800-DFFF. NetHeapSize=XX -- A Windows application may not run correctly if it requires a larger buffer for transferring data over the network than Windows provides. NetHeapSize tells Windows the max buffer size in Kb required for this data transfer. The default value (for the Microsoft version) is 12, and all values are rounded up to the nearest 4K. We recommend modifying this value to start between 32 and 76. Please refer to the Microsoft Windows manual, Using Networks With Windows, page 552, for more information. InDOSPolling=TRUE -- Value should be TRUE, ON, YES or 1 The WIN.INI File CHANGES to the WIN.INI file need to be made to accommodate a variety of printing configurations. If an application requires the device to be specified as LPTX.PRN, the following lines may be added. Note: this procedure is not recommended. If it is necessary to print to a file, we suggest printing to LPTX.OS2 (already defined in WIN.INI). Please see the Printing section which follows for details on printer configuration). LPT1.PRN= -- The LPTX.PRN line must be added for each LPT device (LPT1, LPT2...) to create a file name for that specific device. These filenames will then be listed under Printer Ports in the Printer Configuration When an application prints through Windows and the print job is time intensive, the timeout values may be increased in the [windows] section of the WIN.INI file: DeviceNotSelectedTimeout=50 TransmissionRetryTimeout=55 If the timeout values are changed in the WIN.INI file, they will also need to be changed for the printer devices in the WIN.INI file under the [PrinterPorts] section to reflect these new values. For example, the printer resource line may be changed to look something like: HP LaserJet III=HPPCL5A,LPT2:,50,55 Where 50 is the value of DeviceNotSelectedTimeout and 55 is the value of TransmissionRetryTimeout. Once the timeout changes have been made in the WIN.INI file, any new printer resource created will contain these values by default. Our example values of 50 and 55 may be high for a given configuration; since different applications may have different requirements, the user may wish to experiment with these values to find the best solution. It is easiest to start with the default values and work up. Once again, if these corrections are made through the Control Panel in Windows, the Control Panel will adjust only the values under the [windows] section. The WIN.INI file will still need to be edited to adjust the values under the [PrinterPorts] section for existing printer configurations. Using Expanded Memory Managers An expanded memory manager gives applications access to only a limited amount of expanded memory at a time, and is slower to use than extended memory. Therefore Windows uses expanded memory only when running in real mode. (When running in 386 enhanced mode, Windows can simulate expanded memory for applications that require it, using EMM386.SYS). Windows requires that memory to conform to version 4.0 of the Lotus-Intel-Microsoft Expanded Memory Specification (LIM EMS 4.0). If an applications requires expanded memory with Windows in real mode, the EMM386.SYS expanded memory emulator may be used. When using EMM386.SYS, as with any other expanded memory manager, it is important to note that one must exclude any conflicting memory addresses. The following is an example (the EMM386.SYS file is loaded in the CONFIG.SYS file), and shows how to exclude any RAMBASE which may be used by a network adapter (in this example the network adapter is using RAMBASE D800-DFFF): DEVICE=EMM386.SYS X=D800-DFFF Other expanded memory drivers may be used, such as QEMM 5.11 from Quarterdeck. Using Extended Memory Managers Extended memory is memory beyond 640K on 80286, 80386, and 80486 computers, and acts as an extension of the computer's conventional memory. An extended memory manager is required in order to run Windows in standard or 386 enhanced mode. Windows includes the extended memory manager HIMEM.SYS. When running in real mode, Windows uses extended memory only for storing information. Activating Windows Once Windows has been installed and configured, one must log into the server and share the directory which contains Windows. From the user's Windows file directory (the directory specified during setup/n), Windows may be run in either of three formats: WIN /S -- Standard Mode: Provides access to extended memory for 286-based systems or higher with at least 256K of extended memory WIN /E -- Enhanced Mode: Provides all standard mode features for 386-based systems with at least 1MB of extended memory plus Virtual Memory, multiple virtual machines, configurable time-slicing for DOS applications (to determine priority of execution) and standard DOS applications can run in their own windows or full-screen. Enhanced mode may also be activated by WIN /3. WIN /R -- Real Mode: Base-level operating mode for 286/386-based systems with 640K to 1 MB of memory. Uses standard 640K conventional memory, standard DOS and Windows applications can use EMS memory, and standard DOS applications run full-screen in the foreground. WIN -- When loaded with no switch, Windows will attempt to run the mode which best suits the current configuration. If Windows is running on a server and have extended memory present, ALWAYS run Windows using the /S or /R switch. Otherwise Windows will attempt to load in enhanced mode, which is not supported on a server. PIF Files Whenever a non-Windows application is executed, Windows looks for that application's Program Information File (PIF). A PIF is a special file containing settings that tell Windows how to run a non-Windows application. A PIF's filename usually matches that of the corresponding application. Once such a file has been created, that application can started by double-clicking on the PIF filename. It is not necessary to create a PIF for each non-Windows application. When creating a PIF file, Windows allocates the necessary memory for the requested .EXE file. It is possible to create a PIF file for NET, but since NET is comprised of two files: NET.EXE and NET.MNU, Windows does not allocate enough memory for both. This can be corrected by either allocating at least 400K for the NET PIF, or by renaming NET.MNU to NETMNU.EXE and creating an additional PIF file. Please refer to Chapter 12 of the Microsoft Windows User's Guide, "More About Applications" for more information. Printing The LANtastic NET Print Queue Manager (network spooler) handles all network printing activity. Windows also provides a similar utility, the Windows Print Manager (Windows spooler). When using Windows with LANtastic, all printing activity to any network resource must be handled by the network spooler. Any local printing (to a printer which has not been configured as a network printer resource) can be handled by the Windows spooler. This can be accomplished two ways: The first method requires the user to disable the Windows spooler and to process any network print jobs to the resource LPT2 or LPT3 (which has been redirected through the network). Any local printing should be passed to the resource LPT1. When using this method any local printing will not be despooled by the Windows spooler, which ties up that system during large print jobs. The Windows spooler may be enabled temporarily when printing to LPT1, and disabled when printing to LPT2 or LPT3 (network resources). This method is recommended. The second method is to leave the Windows spooler enabled and print all network jobs through a printer file (LPTX.OS2 or LPTX.PRN). This bypasses the Windows spooler and allows the job to be processed by the network spooler. Any local printing can then be processed through LPT1 (or any device without the extension) and the Windows spooler will despool those local jobs. This method is no longer recommended. However, some applications may require printing through a file. If this is the case, we recommend printing to the .OS2 device as there have been reported problems printing to a .PRN device. Using the first method of disabling the spooler, one must first log into the network, redirect the network resource and make the necessary connections in Windows. 1. Log into the server and share the server's printer resource. Ie: net login \\server username password net use lpt2 \\server\@printer 2. Run Windows, and from the MAIN group, select Control Panel and select the Printers option. From the Printer menu, hi-lite the desired printer driver from the Installed Printers list and select the Configure option. Hi-lite the redirected port from the selections (LPT2, LPT3 etc). Clear the 'Use Print Manager' check box to bypass the Windows spooler. Once in any application through Windows, pull down the File menu, select Printer Setup and select the printing device. 3. Select the physical, non-redirected device (LPT1 etc) when printing to a local, non-network device. When printing through the Windows spooler, make sure the 'Use Print Manager' check box is marked to process the job. When printing directly to the local printer without using the Windows spooler, make sure that check box is clear. If the application must print to a file, again we recommend printing to an .OS2 device rather than a .PRN device due to the numerous problems reported with the .PRN extension being used under these circumstances. The following outlines how to print through Windows to a file (the .XXX represents the extension - either .OS2 or .PRN): 1. Log into the server and share the server's printer resource. Ie: net login \\server username password net use lpt1 \\server\@printer 2. Run Windows, and from the MAIN group, select Control Panel and select the Printers option. From the Printer menu, hi-lite the desired printer driver from the Installed Printers list and select the Configure option. Hi-lite the redirected port from the .XXX selections (LPT1.XXX, LPT2.XXX, etc). If these ports do not appear, please review the changes made to the WIN.INI file. Once in any application through Windows, pull down the File menu, select Printer Setup and select the printing device. 3. When printing to a local, non-network printing device, select any physical printer resource (LPT1, LPT2 etc). As above, if the 'Use Print Manager' check box is marked the local print jobs will be processed through the Window spooler. Downloading Fonts If Windows is to be configured with additional fonts, the installation procedure provided by either the font (or in some cases the printer) manufacturer must first be followed to install the fonts. Once the fonts are installed, run the Control Panel, run the Fonts program and follow the Add Font Files section. We strongly recommend following the first method listed above and printing to LPT2: when downloading fonts. Network Drives - Connecting and Disconnecting through Windows Connecting Network Drives 1. First log into the server containing the resource (which may be done through the DOS shell or by running NET through the File Manager or through a created Net PIF file). 2. From the MAIN group, select File Manager, pull down the Disk menu and select Connect Net Drive. 3. Select the desired Drive Letter and enter the Network Path (ie \\server\c-drive), and select Connect. 4. The drive should now appear on the directory tree and NET should appear in the drive box. Double click to access that drive. The bottom portion of the window indicates the full path name of the drive (\\server\c-drive) and the available bytes on that drive. Disconnecting a Network Drive 1. To disconnect a drive, follow steps as above, selecting Disconnect from the File Manager Disk menu. Additional Tips and SuggestionsThe following lists additional suggestions for various problems which may be encountered during the installation and operation of Windows on LANtastic. - When installing on the Windows Server, the network must be loaded and the EXPALL.BAT file must be run with each Windows diskette. Also make sure Windows is installed with the MS NET network driver. - If problems are experienced with 'bleeping' sounds from the network adapter (but operation resumes as normal), try setting NetAsynchFallBack TRUE and NetAsynchTimeout to 10. - To improve stability of the Windows installation, set UniqueDOSPSP and ReflectDOSInt2A to TRUE in the SYSTEM.INI file. - If printing is slow, increase the char/sec for the printer resource under NET_MGR under Shared Resources (sometimes as much as 9600). - When running Windows on a LANtastic server, always load Windows using a /R or /S command line switch. Once again, Windows is not supported to run in enhanced mode on a LANtastic server. SUMMARY If a unique problem arises which we are unable to resolve either through initial phone contact or through this bulletin, please contact the Windows specialist in our technical support department at (602) 293-6363. Any questions or suggestions on this bulletin may be mailed to our offices to the attention of the Compatibility Department / Windows 3.0X Support. ARTISOFT, Inc. makes no warranties as to the completeness or accuracy of this document. LANtastic is a trademark of ARTISOFT, Inc. Brand names and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Vendor Info: Microsoft Corp. One Microsoft Way Redmond, WA 98052-6399