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HOSTMODE.DOC
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1994-01-17
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Host Mode
The Softerm Host mode provides a general-purpose,
unattended, remote access mode which can be used
interactively by other terminals and systems. This is
similar to an electronic BBS.
Capabilties
o Automatically answer incoming calls (with optional
password protection provided by the SOFTERM.PWD file
created with the PWDEDIT utility program)
o Send and receive files using any protocol supported
by Softerm
o Function as a server for the Kermit-Server and
Softrans file transfer protocols (meaning that a
command to initiate the file transfer is not
required)
o Process DOS-type commands, such as: DIR, TYPE,
DELETE, RENAME
o Process Script files automatically or on demand
Enter Host Mode
Host mode is initiated by running the HOST() command
from a Script file, such as:
> HOST (20,30,hangup,yes,'automenu.scr')
Note: Host mode will go into effect with the current
Speed, Data Bits, Stop Bits, Parity and Duplex
parameters.
Operation
When Host mode is in effect, Softerm will wait for a
connection to be established. If the optional logon
processing is specified, a caller must supply a
recognized username and password before Softerm
displays the READY prompt and responds to valid
commands.
Once initiated, Softerm will wait for a connection to
be established if one is not already present, display
a READY message after processing an optional logon,
and wait for requests received through remote terminal
interaction, or the Softrans or Kermit protocols.
A system in the Host mode functions in a passive
manner, responding only to requests from the calling
terminal or system. Host mode allows completely
unattended operation. If logging is active, all
commands processed, including error messages, will be
recorded in the log file.
The TIMEOUT assignable system variable (in the Script
language) does not affect file transfer operations
initiated from the Host mode which has fixed or
profiled timeout and retry parameters for all
protocols supported. The Softrans and Kermit
protocols and Xmodem receive operations use a 10-
second timeout interval and allow for 5 retries.
Xmodem send operations will timeout after
approximately 70 seconds. The Character protocol uses
a 30-second timeout on transmit and a 60-second
timeout on receive.
The Host mode also provides an option to automatically
run a script file on connecting after a successful
login. This can be used to display user welcome
messages, instructions on how to perform various user-
defined operations, or a security automatic callback
capability.
Important
To provide caller interaction, such as displaying a
menu and waiting for a key, you will need to use the
XMIT:WAIT Script file command. To simply display a
welcome message, you could use the file transfer SEND
command using Character protocol.
The CALL command is provided to run script files
interactively when requested by remote users. The
TERMINATE command lets a remote user terminate the
Host mode to interact directly with the script file
which initiated the Host mode.
Once the Host mode is initiated, it normally will
remain active until terminated locally.
Optional Logon and Password Processing
Softerm provides an optional logon security feature
to restrict access to the Host mode. It includes the
capability to assign a default directory to each
user, and to restrict the type of commands each
caller can process while using the Host mode.
To implement this feature, a special password file
called SOFTERM.PWD must be created in the same
directory as Softerm's system read files. The
password file is created with PWDEDIT.EXE, a GUI
utility program supplied with Softerm Modular. Note:
PWDEDIT is documented completely through the online
Help system. Just press F1 or select the Help
pushbutton.
- 2 -
SOFTERM.PWD is a fixed-format ASCII file that appears
similar to the following if the DOS TYPE command is
used:
C:\SOFTERM>TYPE SOFTERM.PWD
Jones, John M_Ambrosius
<
Although access restrictions won't appear, names and
passwords do.
Upper- and lower-case characters, except spaces, are
valid in the username and password fields and must be
matched exactly when entered by a remote user. Each
user name must be unique. Multiple entries with the
same user name are not valid and only the first
occurrence can be matched.
When a remote user connects to a system in Host mode,
and a SOFTERM.PWD file is found in the system
directory, the following logon sequence is processed:
Host displays User types
Login Username followed by CR
Password Password followed by CR
(echo is suppressed during entry of
the password)
Ready Any valid host mode command
Important: Username and Password are case sensitive.
For example, if the Username was created as SETH, it
must be entered in upper- case characters.
If an error is made when entering the Username or
Password, press Esc to cancel the entry and repeat
the prompt. If either the Username or Password is
invalid when entered, the logon sequence will be
repeated. After four unsuccessful attempts to logon,
a disconnect will occur.
Once a successful logon has been completed, any valid
Host mode command or Softrans and Kermit file
transfer can be processed subject to access restric-
tions indicated in the password file for the user.
After a Host mode session is complete, the remote
user can use the BYE command to terminate and
disconnect, or the LOGOUT command to terminate and
restart processing without disconnecting.
- 3 -
Host Mode Interactive Commands
The Host mode responds to interactive commands which
are entered in the terminal communications mode at
the remote system or terminal. The READY prompt
indicates it is ready to receive a command.
The host will respond to Ctrl S requests to stop the
display of data and Ctrl Q requests to resume the
display of data (such as when a file is TYPEd).
If you wish to cancel the entire command line, just
press Esc. Host mode will "beep", and display a new
READY prompt for any command not recognized. To
cancel the display of a typed file or directory list,
press Ctrl C. If you press Ctrl S to stop the
display of a typed file or directory list, the Host
mode will timeout after 30 seconds and redisplay the
READY prompt.
Many of the Host mode interactive commands require
arguments. The command and argument must be
separated by at least one space.
Important
All commands are issued by the caller and tell Host
mode to do something. For instance, to send a file,
the caller must instruct Host mode to prepare to
receive a file.
Exceptions to the Rule
Because Host mode acts as a server for the Softrans
and Kermit-Server file transfer protocols, there are
no commands to send and receive using those
protocols. The caller simply needs to initiate the
file transfer operation.
Unless stated otherwise, the following will be true
for all operations:
1. If no path is specified, file transfers will use
the current directory.
2. If the optional Host mode logon processing is in
effect, the command is restricted by the access
restriction code and the path specified for the
file is validated for the current username.
3. Unless supported by the protocol, wildcard
characters (* and ?) should not be used in the
Source field on SEND operations.
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Interactive Commands
The following commands are entered by the caller to
the Host system:
ACCEPT [-,&] d:\path\filename
Used by the caller to send a file using character
protocol. The filename argument specifies the name
of the file to receive the data.
If the very first character of the path\filename is a
hyphen (-), the file will replace a file of the same
name on the Host system. Example:
ACCEPT -C:\SOFTHOST\TEST.TXT
If the very first character of the path/filename is
an ampersand (&), the file will append to a file of
the same name on the Host system. Example:
ACCEPT &C:\SOFTHOST\TEST.TXT
If a file of the same name exists and neither special
character is used, the transfer will fail.
The host will display a GO> prompt when the system is
ready to accept data. Characters can be typed by the
caller or a file can be transferred using character
protocol.
The ACCEPT command is terminated by a Ctrl Z
character or a 60-second timeout.
BYE
Terminate the current Host mode session and dis-
connect.
CALL d:\path\filename 1='string1'...5='string5'
Run a script file and then return to the Host mode.
If logon processing is in effect, all subsequent
commands will observe the access restrictions for the
current user.
Note: We recommend that the CALLed script file does
not end with the CONVERSE command. This command
places the Host Mode machine in Online terminal
emulation mode with unpredictable results.
The command line may include optional switches to
specify the contents of the Script Variables SV1-SV5
used in the script file as follows:
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Switch Function
1='string' Replaces SV1 in script file
. . . . . .
5='string' Replaces SV5 in script file
Note: The quote marks are optional and would be
necessary only if the string contained embedded
spaces.
Up to 5 strings can be specified which are
substituted for dummy arguments in the script file
when the script file is run. Each string may be up
to 64 characters in length. A dummy argument is
defined in the script file as SV followed by a number
from 1 through 5. Thus, wherever SV1 occurs in the
script file, it will be replaced by the string
defined for the SV1= switch in the CALL command line.
Note: The maximum length of the command line is
restricted to 128 characters.
CD d:\path
Change the current default directory used for file
names specified in file transfer operations used in
the Host mode. The new default directory, including
a drive specifier and directory path, is entered as
an argument on the command line. If the optional
Host mode logon processing is in effect, the command
is restricted by the access restriction code for the
current username.
CURRENT
Display the default directory for file transfer
operations used in the Host mode. It initially is
set to the current default directory when the HOST()
command is processed, or to the subdirectory in the
password file for the current user.
DELETE d:\path\filename
Remove an unwanted file from disk. If no drive or
directory path is entered, the file is deleted from
the current directory. You can use the wildcard
characters ? and * in the filename and in the
extension.
This command can be abbreviated to DEL.
DIR d:\path\filename
The DIR command displays a list of the filenames in a
specified directory. If no drive or directory path
is specified, all files in the current default
directory will be listed. The wildcard characters *
and ? may be used in the filename and extension
parameters to list a subset of the files in the
specified directory.
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ECHO <On or Off>
This command turns echo mode for the ACCEPT command
on or off. If the argument is specified as ON,
characters transmitted to the host using an ACCEPT
command will be echoed back to the remote terminal or
system for visual confirmation. If the argument is
specified as OFF, characters received are not echoed.
The echo mode defaults to ON.
HELP
If the HOSTMODE.HLP file is available, the HELP
command will display information about using the host
mode and a list of commands.
KSEND d:\path\filename
Prepare the Host system to send a file using the
Kermit protocol. This command can be used by remote
Kermit programs unable to access a Kermit server.
The command is equivalent to a Kermit protocol SEND
command. The wildcard characters * and ? may be used
in the filename or extension to allow multiple files
to be sent using a single command.
LF <On or Off>
This command turns the line feed mode for the TYPE
and ACCEPT Host mode commands on or off. If the
argument is specified as ON, the host will add line
feed characters after carriage returns in transmitted
or echoed data. If the argument is specified as OFF,
no line feed characters are added. The line feed
mode initially is set to ON.
LOGOUT
Terminate the current Host mode session and
restart with logon processing without a disconnect.
RECEIVE <profile_name or protocol_name> filename
Prepare the Host system to receive the designated
file using the specified File Transfer profile or
File Transfer Protocol. If a profile and a protocol
share the same name, the command will use the
profile.
Note: This method lets you use the Honeywell- Kermit
protocol with the desired GCOS Mapping setting by
using the appropriate profile.
RENAME d:\path\filename1 d:\path\filename2
Change the name of a file in the current or a
specified directory. The first file name entered
with optional drive and path specification is the
file to be renamed, and the second file name is the
new name. A drive or path specification is not
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allowed in the new filename. The ? and * wildcard
characters are allowed.
This command can be abbreviated to REN.
SEND <profile_name or protocol_name> filename
Prepare the Host system to send the designated file
using the specified File Transfer profile or File
Transfer Protocol. If a profile and a protocol share
the same name, the command will use the profile.
Note: This method lets you use the Honeywell- Kermit
protocol with the desired GCOS Mapping setting by
using the appropriate profile.
TERMINATE
Terminate Host mode processing to interact directly
with the script file from which the HOST() command
was started. If the optional Host mode logon
processing is in effect, the command is restricted by
the access restriction code.
TYPE d:\path\filename
Cause a file to be typed or displayed by the Host
system. The command is equivalent to a character
protocol SEND command. The display can be cancelled
by entering Ctrl C.
XRCV d:\path\filename
Prepare the Host system to receive the designated
file using the Xmodem protocol. The filename
specifies the file to receive the data.
Note: The caller may send the file using Xmodem,
Xmodem-CRC or Xmodem(Large Block) and the Host system
will detect and adjust for the error correction
method and block size.
XSEND d:\path\filename
Prepare the Host system to send the designated file
using the Xmodem protocol.
X1KSEND d:\path\filename
Prepare the Host system to send the designated file
using the Xmodem (Large Block) protocol.
YGRCV [d:\path\filename]
Prepare the Host system to receive the designated
file using the Ymodem-G protocol. The wildcard
characters * and ? may be used in the filename or
extension to allow multiple files to be transferred
using a single command.
- 8 -
If the optional drive, path and file name are not
specified, the command will use the data in the
protocol header block.
YRCV [d:\path\filename]
Prepare the Host system to receive the designated
file using the Ymodem protocol. The wildcard
characters * and ? may be used in the filename or
extension to allow multiple files to be transferred
using a single command.
If the optional drive, path and file name are not
specified, the command will use the data in the
protocol header block.
Note: The caller may send the file using Ymodem or
Ymodem (Large Block) and the Host system will detect
and adjust for the block size.
YSEND d:\path\filename
Prepare the Host system to send the designated file
using the Ymodem protocol. The wildcard characters *
and ? may be used in the filename or extension to
allow multiple files to be transferred using a single
command.
Note: The caller may specify Ymodem-G to receive the
file and the Host system will detect and adjust for
the block size and transmission method.
Y1KSEND d:\path\filename
Prepare the Host system to send the designated file
using the Ymodem (Large Block) protocol. The
wildcard characters * and ? may be used in the
filename or extension to allow multiple files to be
transferred using a single command.
Note: The caller may specify Ymodem-G to receive the
file and the Host system will detect and adjust for
the block size and transmission method.
- 9 -
Softerm-to-Softerm File Transfers
System-to-system file transfers using Softerm are
accomplished by placing a port on one of the two
systems in the Host mode using the HOST() command.
The other system then can establish a connection with
the agreed upon serial parameters. Once connected,
the system in Host mode will transmit the READY
message to the other system.
The system in Host mode will respond to commands
entered by the remote system through terminal
interaction, or to Softrans and Kermit file transfer
commands SEND and RECEIVE entered from the File Menu
or script file processing.
- 10 -
