home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
- 6th August 1996
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Support Group Application Note
- Number: 296
- Issue: 1.00
- Author: SB
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Using Access+ on A7000 Net machines
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Notes:
- This document details a way to softload Access+ during the boot sequence of
- an A7000 network machine
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Applicable Hardware:
- A7000 Net machines running RISC OS 3.6
-
- Related Application Notes:
-
-
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Copyright 1996 (C) Xemplar Education Limited
-
- Every effort has been made to ensure that the information in this leaflet is
- true and correct at the time of printing. However, the products described in
- this leaflet are subject to continuous development and improvements and
- Acorn Computers Limited reserves the right to change its specifications at
- any time. Acorn Computers Limited cannot accept liability for any loss or
- damage arising from the use of any information or particulars in this
- leaflet. ACORN, ECONET and ARCHIMEDES are trademarks of Acorn Computers
- Limited.
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Support Group
- Xemplar Education
- The Quorum
- Barnwell Road
- Cambridge
- CB5 8RE
- -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Introduction
- ============
- A7000 Net machines do not include hard discs; instead they include a
- 10base2/10baseT combination ethernet card. As RISC OS requires a number of
- resources to function correctly, A7000 Net machines cannot be used
- stand-alone; they must be connected to an Acorn Access network which provides
- suitable resources for the machines to boot correctly. The Network Resource
- Pack (order code AES80) needs to be purchased to provide such resources. It
- consists of a pack of discs that need to be installed on the machine that is
- acting as a server for the resources. It is a one-off purchase.
-
- Acorn Access allows information resources to be shared across an Ethernet
- network. For example, a hard disc on one machine can be made available to all
- users of a local network. On occasions, it is necessary to restrict access to
- such shared information. Acorn Access was therefore extended to include an
- authentication mechanism in the form of a product named Access+. As part of
- the ongoing development and integration of Acorn networking strategies, Acorn
- Access (but not Access+) was included in RISC OS 3.6.
-
- In order to give full Access+ functionality with RISC OS 3.6, a softloadable
- Access+ module is included in the RISC OS 3.6 hard disc build as
- !Boot.Resources.!System.360.Modules.Share+. On a machine fitted with a hard
- disc, it is loaded by the file !Boot.Choices.Boot.PreDesk.SetUpNet.
- Unfortunately, simply softloading the Share+ module is not possible when
- booting from ShareFS (the filing system provided by Access) as it will
- temporarily break the connection between the booting A7000 and the server. A
- small application along with an automatic installation system has been
- developed to work around this problem.
-
- Is this appropriate to me?
- ==========================
- If you wish to use the authentication offered by Access+, then check the
- table below.
-
- [Table1]
-
- The patch described here is only necessary for A7000 Net machines without
- Access+ Ethernet cards.
-
- How do I use the patch?
- =======================
- The patch described here is only for use on the A7000 Net client machines,
- not the server. Running it on the server will work, but will not provide any
- extra functionality, as one of the lines in
- !Boot.Choices.Boot.PreDesk.SetUpNet on the server loads Share+ as standard.
- Each A7000 will create it's own entry in !ShareBoot.MchConfig once it has
- been booted up which will be a copy from the standard !ShareBoot.Choices.
- This means that !Install+ must be run on each A7000 so that configurations
- are altered for each machines. Alternatively, you could delete all the
- entries in MchConfig and then do a manual installation in !ShareBoot.Choices
- as detailed below. This would only need to be done once.
-
- Instructions for use
- ====================
- Automatic install
- -----------------
-
- 1. Share the A7000_Disc directory unprotected instead of protected.
- 2. Boot your A7000
- 3. Run !Install+ on the A7000
- 4. Repeat steps 2&3 for all your A7000s.
- 5. Reset the A7000_Disc to protected sharing.
-
- The Automatic install runs a few checks for previous installations. If
- everything is OK, then !BootShare from inside the !Install+ is copied to
- Boot:Utils. A Filer_Run line is then added to the very end of
- Choices:Desktop.
-
- Manual install
- --------------
-
- 1. Shift-double-click on !ShareBoot on the server.
- 2. Double-click on Utils.
- 3. Shift-double-click on !Install+.
- 4. Drag !BootShare into the Utils directory.
- 5. Double-click on Choices in the window opened in step 1.
- 6. Double click on Boot.
- 7. Shift-double-click on Desktop to load the file into !Edit.
- 8. Go to the very end of the Desktop file in !Edit and add the line:
- Filer_Run Boot:Utils.!BootShare
-
- How does the patch work?
- ========================
- The patch provides a small application !BootShare which is run at the very
- end of the Desktop boot sequence. A temporary RAM disc is created and the
- relevant files are copied in and executed. The RAM disc is then destroyed.
-
- Where do I get the patch from?
- ==============================
- The patch is available from Xemplar Customer Services (ask for A7000 Access+
- Installation disc) or from the Acorn FTP site
- (ftp://ftp.acorn.co.uk/pub/documents/appnotes/290-305/296.arc) with this
- Application note.