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LAN-Alarm
A Network Management Tool
Version 3.0
LAN-Alarm Page 2
COPYRIGHT NOTICE
This software and its documentation are (C) Copyright 1994,
by NETMan. All rights are reserved.
No Part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted,
transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated in
any language or computer language, in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, magnetic, optical, chemical,
manual, or otherwise, without the express prior written
consent of NETMan.
Only the unregistered version of LAN-Alarm may be reproduced
and distributed freely so long as it is distributed in its
entirety with the README.DOC documentation. The unregistered
version of LAN-Alarm is clearly identified when the program
is executed.
I. DEFINITIONS
"NETMan" shall mean NETMan, 505 Walker Rd. Safety Harbor,
Florida 34695
"CUSTOMER" shall mean the original customer, either an
individual or a company.
"PROGRAM" shall mean the software and related documentation
supplied in this package.
"COMPUTER" shall mean the single computer on which this
program is used.
"LICENSE" shall mean this agreement and the rights and
obligations created thereunder by the United States Copyright
Law.
II. LICENSE
NETMan grants to CUSTOMER the right to use this copy of the
program on a single COMPUTER at a single location as long as
CUSTOMER complies with the terms of this LICENSE. NETMan
reserves the right to terminate this LICENSE if CUSTOMER
violates any provisions thereof and in the event of such
termination, CUSTOMER agrees to return the PROGRAM to NETMan.
The PROGRAM is the sole and exclusive property of NETMan.
CUSTOMER ownership is limited to the diskette(s) purchased.
CUSTOMER agrees to make no more than two (2) copies of the
software for archival purposes and further agrees to label
said copies with all information included on the original
LAN-Alarm Page 3
II. LICENSE (Cont.)
diskette label(s). In the event that CUSTOMER executes the
PROGRAM simultaneously on the same or more than one COMPUTER,
CUSTOMER agrees to request from NETMan and pay for licenses
for additional user copies.
BY USING THIS SOFTWARE, YOU ARE ACCEPTING AND AGREEING TO THE
TERMS OF THIS LICENSE AGREEMENT. IF YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO
BE BOUND BY THE TERMS OF THIS LICENSE AGREEMENT, YOU SHOULD
PROMPTLY RETURN THE PACKAGE AND YOU WILL RECEIVE A REFUND OF
YOUR MONEY. THIS LICENSE AGREEMENT REPRESENTS THE ENTIRE
AGREEMENT CONCERNING THE PROGRAM BETWEEN YOU AND NETMan, AND
IT SUPERSEDES ANY PRIOR PROPOSAL, REPRESENTATION, OR
UNDERSTANDING BETWEEN THE PARTIES.
III. TRANSFER AND REPRODUCTION
CUSTOMER agrees to take all reasonable steps and to exercise
diligence to protect the PROGRAM from unauthorized
reproduction, publication, disclosure or distribution.
Unauthorized transfer and/or reproduction of these materials
may be a crime subjecting CUSTOMER to civil and criminal
prosecution. CUSTOMER may not transfer any copy of the
PROGRAM to any other person without the prior written consent
of NETMan. NETMan reserves the right to revoke this LICENSE
and/or to seek any other legal remedies to which it is
entitled should these conditions be violated.
IV. LIMITED WARRANTY
EXCEPT FOR THE LIMITED WARRANTY CONTAINED IN THIS CLAUSE,
THIS PROGRAM IS SOLD "AS-IS" WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY EXPRESSED
OR IMPLIED AS TO PERFORMANCE, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR
ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE ENTIRE RISK AS TO THE RESULTS
AND PERFORMANCE OF THIS PROGRAM IS ASSUMED BY CUSTOMER.
However NETMan warrants the magnetic diskette(s) on which the
program is recorded to be free from defects in materials and
workmanship under normal use for a period of one (1) year
from the date of purchase.
NETMan warrants the software to be free from significant
errors that make it unusable for one (1) year from the date
of purchase. In the event such errors are found, NETMan will
reasonably attempt to correct them, or to help CUSTOMER avoid
them, with efforts NETMan believes suitable to the problem or
at NETMan's option authorize a refund of the License fee. In
no event shall NETMan be liable for consequential,
incidental, special or indirect damage, regardless of whether
it has been advised of the possibility of such damages.
LAN-Alarm Page 4
Description of Sections Page
1. Table of Contents ...................................... 4
2. Introduction ........................................... 5
3. What's New In Version 3 ................................ 6
4. Hardware/Software Requirements ......................... 7
5. Installation Procedures ................................ 8
6. Installation Location Screen ........................... 9
7. Communication Setup Screen ............................. 10
8. File Server and IP Device Setup Screen ................. 11
9. Trouble-shooting LAN-Alarm ............................. 15
10. Trouble-shooting The Alphanumeric Paging Process ....... 16
11. Loading the TCPIP Driver To Monitor IP Devices.......... 21
12. Running LAN-Alarm Under Windows 3.1 .................... 22
13. LAN-Alarm Program Files ................................ 23
14. Pricing and Ordering Information ....................... 27
15. LAN-Alarm Order Form ................................... 28
LAN-Alarm Page 5
2. Introduction
LAN-Alarm is a network management tool for Network
Administrators.
LAN-Alarm will notify network administrators by pager when a
Novell file server or any device with an IP address goes
down. LAN-Alarm will monitor network devices 24 hours a day
and determine if they are up and running. If one of the
device's goes down, LAN-Alarm will page you.
LAN-Alarm monitors Novell file servers or any device running
Novell NetWare 2.x, 3.x, or 4.x, such as gateways,
asynchronous servers, etc. By loading the TCPIP driver,
LAN-Alarm will also monitor any device with an IP address
such as Windows NT servers, Unix servers, database servers,
bridges and routers.
If you are just monitoring Novell devices you do not need to
load the TCPIP driver and the Novell servers do not need an
IP address. LAN-Alarm does not use IP addresses to monitor
Novell devices.
LAN-Alarm will eliminate the morning network crisis.
LAN-Alarm is a valuable network management tool that will
assist you in providing the maximum available up time for
your users.
If you have an unregistered version of LAN-Alarm, you may
freely distribute it, providing it is distributed in its
entirety. A production version of LAN-Alarm is fully
protected by the copyright laws and cannot be copied and
distributed.
The unregistered version is a fully functional copy set to
monitor only three devices and it will run for two hours.
You can stop the program at anytime by pressing the ESC key.
If you let the program run the full two hours, LAN-Alarm will
stop running and require you to reboot your PC. You can then
re-run LAN-Alarm again.
If you would like an unregistered version sent to you, call
NETMan and one will be sent to you free of charge.
LAN-Alarm Page 6
3. What's New In Version 3
There are a few new features in LAN-Alarm version 3.x. The
major enhancement you will notice is that LAN-Alarm now
monitors IP devices.
Version 3.0
o LAN-Alarm will now monitor any device with an IP
address in addition to Novell file servers.
LAN-Alarm will monitor Windows NT servers, Unix
servers database servers, bridges or routers.
LAN-Alarm Page 7
4. Hardware/Software Requirements
o NETWORKS
LAN-Alarm supports Novell NetWare 2.x, 3.x and 4.x file
servers, Windows NT servers, Unix servers, database servers
or any device that can be pinged with an IP address.
o POCKET PAGER
LAN-Alarm supports any Numeric or Alphanumeric paging system.
o PC HARDWARE CONFIGURATION
You can run LAN-Alarm either on a dedicated PC under DOS or
as a DOS application under Microsoft Windows 3.1 running in
386 enhanced mode or you can run it as a DOS application
under OS/2 and Windows 95. If you want to run LAN-Alarm
under Windows 3.1 see section 11 (Running LAN-Alarm Under
Windows 3.1).
If you run LAN-Alarm on a dedicated PC, then you can use any
old PC, especially that old PC-XT nobody wants anymore and
you don't know what to do with.
A modem on comm port 1 or 2.
The PC must have a network card installed in it. When
monitoring Novell file servers and/or IP addresses the PC
does not need to be logged into the network, it just needs to
be attached to a file server.
LAN-Alarm Page 8
5. Installation Procedures
If you received LAN-Alarm as a ZIP file, then unzip the file
(as I'm sure you did in order to read these instructions)
onto your hard drive. If you received a disk, then enter
A:INSTALL or B:INSTALL.
When you run the INSTALL program, you will see the LAN-Alarm
logo screen followed by the welcome screen. If you're not
using a mouse, you can use the tab and/or cursor keys to
navigate through the screens. The welcome screen as well as
the help screens have vertical scroll bars with up and down
arrows. Using a mouse, you can click on the vertical scroll
bar to scroll the screen up and down. You can also use the
arrow keys on the keyboard.
To configure LAN-Alarm, there are three screens for you to
enter data. The first screen allows you to enter directory
information. The second screen is for modem configuration
information. And the third screen allows you to enter the
file server names or IP addresses and pager information.
Once you are done entering data on each screen, then click on
the OK button. You will then go to the next screen. To get
to the previous screen, click on the Previous button.
If you need help, there is on-line help by clicking on the
Help button. When the help window is displayed, you can
click on the title bar and drag the help screen around to see
the data input fields better.
If you want to quit any time during the installation, just
click on the Quit button and the installation will terminate.
Although, for LAN-Alarm to work, you must complete the
installation process.
LAN-Alarm Page 9
6. Installation Location Screen
The first data input screen after the Welcome screen is the
Installation location screen. This is where you tell
LAN-Alarm where you're installing LAN-Alarm from and to.
Installing From:
You must tell LAN-Alarm which drive you are installing from.
If you are using a mouse click on the down arrow. If you are
using your keyboard, enter the drive letter. So, if you are
installing from the C drive press the letter C. You also
need to identify which directory you are installing LAN-Alarm
from. You can double click on the directory and the
directory name will appear in the input field just below the
drive letter. Or you can just enter the directory name
manually.
Installing To:
Enter the drive and directory of where you want to install
LAN-Alarm (i.e. 'C:\LANALARM').
Network Drive:
If you are monitoring Novell file servers then in this field
you identify your first network drive letter that is used to
login to your Novell file servers. (i.e. F, K, etc.). This
should be the drive letter where the LOGIN directory is
located. LAN-Alarm does not require the PC to be logged into
the network. The PC only needs to be attached to a server.
If you are not attached or logged into the network during the
installation, the network drive letters will not show up.
You need to be attached or logged into the network during the
installation.
The LOGIN directory on all your file servers must contain the
Novell program SLIST.EXE for NetWare 2.x and 3.x and
NLIST.EXE for NetWare 4.x, for LAN-Alarm to monitor Novell
servers. If this program is not in your LOGIN directory, you
can find it in the PUBLIC directory and copy it to the LOGIN
directory. These programs are normally put there during the
installation of NetWare.
Once you are done entering all the information on the
Installation Location Screen, click on the OK button and the
Communication Setup screen will be displayed.
LAN-Alarm Page 10
7. Communication Setup Screen
After the Installation Location Screen is completed and you
click on the OK button, the Communication Setup screen is
displayed. This screen allows you to configure LAN-Alarm for
your specific modem.
Communication Port:
Identify which comm port your modem is using. LAN-Alarm
supports comm port 1 and 2.
Modem Initialization String:
Some modems may require an initialization string. This field
has been left blank. If you do not hear your modem dialing
your pager or experience problems with your modem, you may
want to enter an initialization string. You can reference
your modem manual for the proper commands. All commands must
be prefixed by 'AT'. For example to reset a modem back to
factory defaults you can enter 'AT&F' in this field. If you
have problems connecting to your alphanumeric paging service
provider, you may need to use an initialization string. See
Trouble-shooting the Alphanumeric Paging Process section.
Dialing Method:
'ATDT' is for dialing using Tone. If your modem is connected
to a pulse system, then enter 'ATDP' here, otherwise leave
this field with 'ATDT'.
Modem Speed:
Select the modem speed you want your modem to dial out with.
Your modem must support the speed you select.
Most alphanumeric paging service providers only support 300
or 1200 baud. Unless you have reason to change the baud
rate, it is best to just leave it at 300 baud.
Once you are done entering all the information on the
Communication Setup Screen, click on the OK button and the
File Server and IP Device Setup screen will be displayed.
LAN-Alarm Page 11
8. File Server and IP Device Setup Screen
After the Communication Setup screen is completed and you
click on the OK button, the File Server and IP Device Setup
screen is displayed. This screen allows you to enter your
Novell file server names or devices with IP addresses and
pager information.
Server Name/IP Addr:
Enter the name of the Novell file server you want LAN-Alarm
to monitor. LAN-Alarm will monitor NetWare 2.x, 3.x or 4.x
file servers. Enter the name of the Novell file server as it
appears in SYSCON or SLIST. If you want to monitor a device
on your network that has an IP address, then enter the IP
address here. LAN-Alarm is licensed by the number of devices
you want to monitor. The unregistered version will monitor
up to 3 devices. See the Pricing and Ordering Section at the
end of this document for the price breakdown.
To test LAN-Alarm, enter a Novell file server name or IP
address that does not exist. When you run LAN-Alarm, it will
not find that device on your network, and assume it is down
and call your pager.
You can enter up to three pagers per device. When the device
goes down, LAN-Alarm will call each pager you entered. You
can mix numeric with alphanumeric pagers.
False Alarm Retry:
LAN-Alarm checks every minute to see if the network devices
you entered are active. If a device does not respond to
LAN-Alarm it will call your pager(s). Sometimes a device
becomes too busy and does not respond, therefore causing a
false alarm by having LAN-Alarm send out a page indicating
your network device is down.
Possible causes for this can be due to such software as
Cheyenne's Arcserve 5.0. During backups, Arcserve will cause
a Novell file server utilization to go high and the server
will not respond. Other causes of false alarms can be due to
bridges or routers causing the servers to momentarily
disappear from the network.
If a device gives a false alarm, you may first want to
determine why. Because if LAN-Alarm cannot access your
device, then it is not accessible by your users. You can use
the False Alarm Retry field to have LAN-Alarm try accessing
LAN-Alarm Page 12
8. File Server and IP Device Setup Screen (Cont.)
False Alarm Retry: (Cont.)
your device over a given period of time before it pages you.
You can enter from 1 to 99 in this field. So by putting a 10
in this field for a given device, LAN-Alarm will check that
device every minute for 10 minutes. If after 10 minutes
LAN-Alarm still cannot access the network device, it will
then call your pager(s).
Server or IP Addr (S or I):
LAN-Alarm needs to know if the device you are monitoring is a
Novell file server or a device with an IP address. This is
because LAN-Alarm uses different mechanisms for monitoring
these devices. This field only accepts an "S" for Novell
file server names and an "I" for IP address. You must enter
and "S" or "I".
Pager Type (A or N):
You can enter an 'A' for alphanumeric or 'N' for numeric
pagers. If you have an alphanumeric pager, you can send a
numeric page to it by entering an 'N' in this field and the
proper pager number. If you enter a network device, then you
must enter at least one pager. This field only accepts 'A'
or 'N'.
Call Every Hour (Y or N):
You can have LAN-Alarm call your pager every hour when a
device goes down. Enter a 'Y' for yes or an 'N' for no. You
must enter either a 'Y' or 'N'.
Pager Number:
Enter the pager number you want LAN-Alarm to call. You must
enter any area code or access code required to dial out
through your modem. If you need to include any pauses
between numbers, then enter a comma. Each comma is
equivalent to 2 seconds.
LAN-Alarm will page you two times. This is in case for
whatever reason you do not get the first page. LAN-Alarm
checks the network every 60 seconds to monitor all the
devices. When LAN-Alarm detects a network device is down,
LAN-Alarm will send out a page within the first minute. The
second page will go out within two minutes of the first page.
LAN-Alarm Page 13
8. File Server and IP Device Setup Screen (Cont.)
Pause Time Before PIN #:
Some numeric pagers use a PIN number. If your numeric pager
uses a PIN number then you may need to enter some commas here
to pause before the PIN number is sent and after the pager
number is dialed. Each comma represents 2 seconds. If your
numeric pager does not use a PIN number, then ignore this
field. Pauses are not required for alphanumeric pagers and
this field is ignored.
PIN Number:
If you selected an alphanumeric pager then you must enter a
PIN number. You may obtain this PIN number from your paging
service provider. The PIN number is also referred to as a
Control number, Alpha number, pager number, etc. Some
numeric pagers use a PIN number. If your numeric pager uses
a PIN number then enter it here.
You can enter up to 5 PIN numbers per pager number by
separating each PIN number by one comma. This will allow you
to page up to 5 different people for one pager number and up
to 15 people for one file server. For example, you can enter
4531869,4531977,4532833 in the PIN number field and page
these three pagers.
Pause Time Before Message:
If you selected a numeric pager, then you must enter a pause
time. The default pause time is 12 seconds. You can change
the pause time by adding or deleting the commas. Each comma
represents 2 seconds.
When LAN-Alarm calls a numeric pager, it will pause before it
sends the numeric message. For some paging systems, 12
seconds may be too long, and others too short. If your
paging system does not work with a 12 second pause before
LAN-Alarm sends the message, you can regulate it by deleting
or adding commas. Pauses are not required for alphanumeric
pagers and this field is ignored if pager type is equal to
'A'.
Message:
If you selected an alphanumeric pager, and you are monitoring
Novell file servers then a default message is provided 'Your
Network File Server is Down'. This message also includes the
LAN-Alarm Page 14
8. File Server and IP Device Setup Screen (Cont.)
Message: (Cont.)
name of the file server you entered. If you are monitoring
devices using an IP address, then the message 'Your Network
Device is Down' including the IP address in the message. You
can override this message by entering your own message. The
alphanumeric message can not be greater then 80 characters.
If you selected a numeric pager, then you can only enter a
numeric message. You can also enter an '*' which will
display a '-' on your numeric pager. You can enter a
different message for each file server so you can identify
which file server went down.
When adding servers or devices, the information remains on
the screen making it easier to add multiple records by just
changing the server name or device address. You must remember
to change the pager message to reflect the new server name or
device address since that information does not change on the
screen.
When you are done entering the file server name or IP address
and pager information click on the Update button. This will
add a record if the network device is a new one or update the
record if the device is one that was already added before.
After you are done adding all the network devices, click on
the Done button and LAN-Alarm will be installed if you ran
the Install program. If you ran the Setup program then your
existing installation will be updated.
Once you installed LAN-Alarm, then to change any data run the
Setup program. This will allow you to change the comm setup
and file server and IP device setup.
When you run the Setup program, you can update the network
device record. You can click on the Query button to query
the network device records. You can also just enter the file
server name or IP address, tab to the next field and the
record for that device will display. Once the record is up
on the screen, you can change the data and click on the
Update button to update the record or click on the Delete
button to delete the record.
LAN-Alarm Page 15
9. Trouble-shooting LAN-Alarm
If you ever bring a network device down for maintenance that
LAN-Alarm is monitoring, you should stop LAN-Alarm first by
pressing the ESC key. If you don't, LAN-Alarm will page you
whenever you bring down a device it is monitoring.
There are several ways you can test LAN-Alarm. One way is to
enter a non existent file server name or IP address during
the install process. Then run LAN-Alarm. LAN-Alarm will not
see the network device and call your pager. Or you can also
down your device.
If you are monitoring only one Novell file server and down
your server, LAN-Alarm may take up to 10 minutes to recover
from the abort, retry message when connection is lost. You
will see the clock stop on the LAN-Alarm screen and LAN-Alarm
will call your pager in about 10 minutes. If you have more
then one Novell server, then the PC can recover quickly by
attaching to another server and call your pager immediately.
Make sure you run the LANALARM.BAT batch file and not just
the ALARM.EXE program. If you are using another batch file
like the AUTOEXEC.BAT to run LAN-Alarm, it is best to just
copy the contents of LANALARM.BAT to that batch file.
If you find that LAN-Alarm always goes into the Alarm status
and pages you when you run the program, you may not have
specified the network drive during installation. To verify if
you have specified the correct network drive letter, at the
DOS prompt type the DIR.DAT file and the third line in the
file should specify your first network drive letter. If it
doesn't, then you need to rerun the install program and make
sure you identify your network drive on the Installation
Location Screen then click on OK then click on Quit.
If you always need to be logged into the server to get
LAN-Alarm to run properly, this may be a symptom of not
specifying the network drive letter during installation.
Follow the same procedure in the above paragraph to correct
the problem.
The ABORT.EXE program is a TSR that allows the PC that's
running LAN-Alarm to recover from the abort, retry error
message which occurs when the server the PC is attached to
goes down. If the PC is running VLMs, the ABORT.EXE may not
recover. If this occurs then it is recommended to run NETX
instead of VLMs.
ABORT.EXE has been certified to work with MS-DOS COMMAND.COM
only and may not work with other DOS operating systems or
COMMAND.COMs. ABORT.EXE is known not to work with Norton's
version of COMMAND.COM.
LAN-Alarm Page 16
10. Trouble-shooting The Alphanumeric Paging Process
If you are not familiar with alphanumeric pagers and how they
work, you may need to get acquainted. We have tried to make
this process as simple and painless as possible, but
unfortunately the paging service providers are not
cooperating.
If you are having problems getting LAN-Alarm to send your
alphanumeric pager a page, and you just want to test
LAN-Alarm to see if it works, you can still send a numeric
page to your alphanumeric pager. Just enter "N" for Numeric
Pager under Pager Type on the File Server and IP Device Setup
Screen and enter the pager number used to send numeric pages
to your alphanumeric pager.
LAN-Alarm is based on the IXO Telocator protocol and has been
tested with many paging service providers. Although the IXO
protocol is assumed to be the standard, not all paging
service providers follow the standards to the letter.
Because of this, we cannot account for every possible
variation and therefore you may need to make some
adjustments.
When LAN-Alarm calls the paging service provider, LAN-Alarm
expects to receive specific prompts before it responds with
the appropriate replies such as Pager (PIN) number and
Message. If LAN-Alarm is unable to send a page to your
alphanumeric pager then follow these trouble-shooting
procedures.
LAN-Alarm will try 5 times to send a page. When LAN-Alarm
retries sending a page you will see a message in the Paging
Status Window "Trying to Connect to Paging Company. Retry 2
of 5." If LAN-Alarm fails after 5 tries, the program will
create or append to the ERROR.LOG file records with date and
time stamp indicating that LAN-Alarm was never able to send a
page. The ERROR.LOG file is an ASCII file.
Each of the 5 times LAN-Alarm tries sending a page to your
pager, LAN-Alarm creates a file called PAGE1.TMP through
PAGE5.TMP. These are ASCII files that can be viewed using
the DOS TYPE command at the DOS prompt. These files will
contain the prompts sent by your paging service provider when
LAN-Alarm dials the pager number. By looking at these files
you can see what your paging service provider is sending and
compare it to what LAN-Alarm is expecting.
LAN-Alarm Page 17
10. Trouble-shooting The Alphanumeric Paging Process (Cont.)
To see the prompts that LAN-Alarm expects to receive run the
PAGER.EXE program. You will see a screen that says
Alphanumeric Pager Setup with the following two windows. One
is labeled Pager Prompts and the other labeled Pager
Responses.
LAN-Alarm
Alphanumeric Pager Setup
Pager Prompts Pager Responses
1 CONNECT 1 ^M
2 ID= 2 M
3 Page 3 PIN Number (Ignore)
4 Message 4 MESSAGE (Ignore)
5 xxxxxxxxxxxx 5
6 xxxxxxxxxxxx 6
7 xxxxxxxxxxxx 7
8 xxxxxxxxxxxx 8
9 xxxxxxxxxxxx 9
10 xxxxxxxxxxxx 10
When LAN-Alarm calls your pager it is expecting the pager
prompts identified here and will send the corresponding
responses. The prompts listed here are not the complete
prompts but a portion of the prompt that uniquely identifies
it. For example, the complete prompt sent by the paging
service provider requesting the pager number may look like
"Please Enter Pager Number:" or "Enter Page Id:". Looking for
"Page" in the prompt as identified here on line three will
work for either prompt. Once LAN-Alarm receives this prompt,
LAN-Alarm will send the pager or PIN number you supplied on
the File Server and IP Device Setup Screen. That's why it is
ignored here and should not be entered. The x's in lines 5
through 10 are there so blanks or spaces will not be
considered a valid prompt.
By looking in the PAGE.TMP files you may see in these files a
prompt for pager number that looks like "Please Enter ID".
Since the word "Page" does not appear in the prompt,
LAN-Alarm will fail sending the pager number. By replacing
the word "Page" on the third line with "Enter ID", LAN-Alarm
will now send the pager number when it sees the prompt
"Please Enter ID". The prompts are case sensitive, so enter
all data exactly as it appears in the PAGE.TMP files.
When LAN-Alarm is sending out a page, you will see a Paging
Status window providing the status of the paging process. The
first message you will see if you provided an initialization
string is, "Initializing Modem". After the modem is
initialized, you will then see the message "Connecting to
LAN-Alarm Page 18
10. Trouble-shooting The Alphanumeric Paging Process (Cont.)
Paging Company". If you supplied the correct number, you
will see a message "Connected to Paging Company". If the
number you supplied is incorrect or there is a problem
connecting to the paging service provider, you will see a
message that says "LAN-Alarm never got connected to paging
company, call tech support".
When trying to send a page to an alphanumeric pager, you must
make sure the pager number you entered is a number that will
provide a modem signal or tone. You can dial the pager
number using your phone and if you do not hear a modem, then
you have an incorrect number. This is a common mistake for
users unfamiliar with alphanumeric pagers. Your paging
service provider will be able to give you the correct number
to enter.
If you see the CONNECT prompt in the PAGE.TMP files and
nothing else, you still may be dialing a wrong pager number.
Call your paging service provider and ask them for a phone
number that will allow you to use an ANSI terminal to send an
alphanumeric message to your pager.
Once LAN-Alarm has successfully connected to your paging
service provider, you will see the message "Connected to
Paging Company". LAN-Alarm is now waiting for the "ID="
prompt. If LAN-Alarm receives the "ID=" prompt, you may see
the message "Received Pager Id Prompt". If LAN-Alarm never
gets the "ID=" prompt, then you will see a message "LAN-Alarm
never got the pager id prompt, call tech support".
If LAN-Alarm never receives the "ID=" prompt from the paging
service provider, then the first item to check is the
PAGE1.TMP through PAGE5.TMP files. Check and see if the
paging service provider sent anything after the "CONNECT"
message. Your paging service provider may use some other
prompt besides "ID=". If this is the case then change the
second line in the Pager Prompts using the PAGER.EXE program.
Change it to the prompt your paging service provider sends.
Once you make the changes rerun LAN-Alarm.
If there is no message after the "CONNECT" prompt then the
next item to check is the baud rate. Make sure you
configured the modem setting to 300 baud. Some high speed
modems using the new 16550 uart may not support low speeds.
Most paging companies only exchange data at 300 baud even
LAN-Alarm Page 19
10. Trouble-shooting The Alphanumeric Paging Process (Cont.)
though they may connect at higher speeds. You may be able to
get your modem to operate at 300 baud by adding an
initialization string in the Communication Setup Screen. You
will want to add the string to enable the old Bell 212A
standard rather then the new CCITT protocol. You can do this
by adding the B1 or N0 to the initialization string depending
on your modem. You need to refer to your modem manual to
find out which parameter sets your modem to the old Bell 212A
standard. Run the SETUP.EXE program and add "ATB1" to the
initialization string in the Communication Setup Screen and
click on OK. In the File Server and IP Device Setup Screen
click on Done and rerun LAN-Alarm.
If changing the initialization string and baud rate to 300
does not fix the problem of not getting the "ID=" prompt, you
may want to try an old 2400 baud modem. Keep the baud rate
at 300 and try it with and without the initialization string.
If LAN-Alarm still fails, you can call NETMan or send an
e-mail to netman3@ix.netcom.com. If you call your paging
service provider they can tell you what you need to do to get
the "ID=" prompt. Special characters may need to be sent to
the paging service provider once LAN-Alarm receives the
"CONNECT" message. To have LAN-Alarm send these special
characters, change the first line under Pager Responses.
Replace the "^M" with the special character.
Once LAN-Alarm receives the "ID=" prompt, the status window
may show "Received Pager ID Prompt". LAN-Alarm will then
send an "M", indicating manual mode. If you do not see
"Sending Personal Identification Number" in the status
window, then LAN-Alarm never received the PIN # prompt. You
will see the message "LAN-Alarm never got pager PIN # prompt,
call tech support."
Check the PAGE1.TMP files to see if the "Page" prompt appears
after the "ID=" prompt. Remember LAN-Alarm is expecting
"Page" after the "ID=" prompt. If some other prompt is given
by your paging service provider then replace "Page" with that
prompt. If that is not the problem then some paging
companies do not use a response of "M" for the ID code. If
your paging company expects some other response for the "ID="
prompt, you will need to obtain the ID Passcode from your
paging service provider and replace the "M" in the second
line of Pager Responses with the correct passcode.
LAN-Alarm Page 20
10. Trouble-shooting The Alphanumeric Paging Process (Cont.)
Once LAN-Alarm receives the proper pager number prompt then
the status window will show "Sending Personal Identification
Number". The next message that should appear in the status
windows is "Sending Message to Pager". If this message does
not appear then LAN-Alarm will display the message "LAN-Alarm
never got the message prompt, call tech support.". Check the
PAGE1.TMP files to see what the paging service provider is
sending and modify the Pager Prompts accordingly.
If you are still unsuccessful in getting LAN-Alarm to send an
alphanumeric page to your pager, then please call NETMan or
send an e-mail to netman3@ix.netcom.com and we will get it to
work for you. Please include as much information as possible
such as Pager number, PIN number, Paging Service provider
phone number and contents of the PAGE1.TMP through PAGE5.TMP
files.
Also if you did get LAN-Alarm to send a page to your pager
but had to make changes to get LAN-Alarm to send a page,
please let us know so we can update the LAN-Alarm software.
LAN-Alarm Page 21
11. Loading the TCPIP Driver To Monitor IP Devices
If you want to monitor devices on your network that have an
IP address, then you need to load the TCPIP.EXE program after
you load your other network drivers. This is the last
network driver to load.
To test out the TCPIP driver and the PING program to ensure
they work properly, at the DOS prompt type TCPIP. It should
load without any error messages and you should come back to
the DOS prompt. Then ping one of your devices using the IP
address for that device. For example if your IP address is
128.128.0.10 then enter "PING 128.128.0.10" at the DOS
prompt. You should see the message "128.128.0.10 Answered".
If you don't, then you are not getting to the device or there
is a problem with the TCPIP driver loading properly. This
may be due to the NET.CFG not having the correct sections.
A sample NET.CFG file is provided showing you what is
required in your NET.CFG file. You must have a Link Support,
Protocol TCPIP and Link Driver section with the following
lines in each section. If these sections are not in your
NET.CFG file then add them to your NET.CFG file.
Link Support
Buffers 8 1500
MemPool 4096
Protocol TCPIP
ip_address 158.123.1.10 (Your PCs IP Address)
Link Driver
Frame ETHERNET_802.3 # ethernet II packets
Frame ETHERNET_II # 802.3 packets
Protocol IPX 0 ETHERNET_802.3 #make IPX use 802.3
Once you have the TCPIP driver working you can add the TCPIP
driver to the LANALARM.BAT file just before the ABORT /AA >>
NUL: line. You may want to add the TCPIP line to the batch
file then run the batch file and exit the LAN-Alarm program
and test the PING program once again.
LAN-Alarm Page 22
12. Running LAN-Alarm Under Windows 3.1
LAN-Alarm will run under Microsoft Windows as a DOS
application either in foreground or background. Windows MUST
be running in 386 enhanced mode for LAN-Alarm or any DOS
application to run in background mode. To run in background
mode make sure the PIF file you use for LAN-Alarm has
background checked off under Execution. This allows any DOS
application to run in background. A PIF file is provided for
you to use called LANALARM.PIF and has the proper settings
for most PCs to run LAN-Alarm in background. When you set up
LAN-Alarm under Windows make sure you use the PIF file. You
should test LAN-Alarm using the PIF file because you may need
to change some PIF settings to support your PC configuration.
LAN-Alarm also comes with an icon called LANALARM.ICO. You
can use this icon if you set up LAN-Alarm to run under
Windows.
LAN-Alarm Page 23
13. LAN-Alarm Program Files
ABORT.EXE
This program handles the abort, retry error message that will
appear when the Novell file server the PC is attached to goes
down. In order for LAN-Alarm to send out a page, the PC must
recover from the abort, retry error message. Normally the
abort, retry will cause a PC to lock up until a user response
of 'A' or 'R' is given. This program is a TSR and
automatically supplies the abort response.
ALARM.EXE
This program monitors the network devices to check if they
are up and running and sends out the pages.
ANSI.COM
This program loads the ANSI.SYS driver if it is not loaded in
the CONFIG.SYS file. ANSI.SYS is needed by LAN-Alarm
COMM.DAT
This is a data file that stores the communication setup
parameters.
DIR.DAT
This is a data file storing the directory information from
the Installation Location Screen.
ERROR.LOG
If a network device goes down and LAN-Alarm is having trouble
sending out a page through the paging service provider then
it will create an ERROR.LOG or append to an existing
ERROR.LOG if one exists. If this file is created then you
will want to determine why there was a problem sending out a
page.
INSTALL.DAT
This is a data file used by LAN-Alarm during the installation
and setup of LAN-Alarm.
LAN-Alarm Page 24
13. LAN-Alarm Program Files (Cont.)
INSTALL.EXE
This program installs the LAN-Alarm software and sets up the
configuration parameters. This program should be run when
you want to install the software on a PC. To change any
configuration parameters once the installation is complete,
then run the SETUP.EXE program.
INSTDIR.EXE
This is one of LAN-Alarm's program files executed during the
installation. It is called by the INSTALL.EXE program. This
program should not be run on it's own.
LANALARM.BAT
This is the Batch file that needs to be executed to run
LAN-Alarm. This batch file runs the ABORT.EXE, ANSI.COM and
the ALARM.EXE programs.
LANALARM.DAT
This file contains the network device names and pager
information entered during the installation. DO NOT edit
this file to change any parameters or LAN-Alarm may not work
properly. Use the SETUP program to modify the LANALARM.DAT
file. The SETUP program can be used to add or delete network
devices as well as modify the pager information.
LANALARM.ICO
A LAN-Alarm icon for Windows users.
LANALARM.LOG
This file is created the first time LAN-Alarm detects a
network device is down and appended to thereafter. Two lines
are written to this file each time LAN-Alarm calls your
pager. For example the two lines written to this file are;
* Network Device PROD1 was down on 06-07-1994 at 21:58:57
Calling pager number 7283456
LAN-Alarm Page 25
13. LAN-Alarm Program Files (Cont.)
LANALARM.PIF
If you run LAN-Alarm under Windows then you may want to use
this PIF file. This PIF contains the proper settings to run
LAN-Alarm under Windows.
NET.CFG
This is a sample NET.CFG file containing the necessary
sections for the TCPIP driver to load properly. This file is
provided to show you what sections to add to your NET.CFG
file.
PAGE1.TMP - PAGE5.TMP
These files are created every time LAN-Alarm calls an
alphanumeric pager. PAGE1.TMP is always created. PAGE2.TMP
through PAGE5.TMP are created if LAN-Alarm cannot send a page
to your alphanumeric pager and has to retry. LAN-Alarm will
try 5 times to send a page to your alphanumeric pager. These
files can be used to help determine why LAN-Alarm is having
trouble sending out pages to your pager.
PAGER.EXE
If LAN-Alarm is having trouble sending out a page to your
paging service provider because it is not waiting for the
correct prompts or sending the correct responses, you can run
this program to change the pager prompts and responses. You
are provided with the standard pager prompts and responses
but this can be changed to suit your needs.
PAGER.RCV
This file contains the pager prompts expected from the paging
service provider when sending out a page. This file can be
modified by the PAGER.EXE program.
PAGER.SND
This file contains the responses once the pager prompts are
received. This file can be modified by the PAGER.EXE
program.
LAN-Alarm Page 26
13. LAN-Alarm Program Files (Cont.)
PING.EXE
This program is used to ping the IP device to see if they are
up.
README.DOC
Documentation file. The one you're reading now.
SETUP.EXE
Once you installed LAN-Alarm and you want to change any
communication or file server and pager information, the
SETUP.EXE programs allows you to change these parameters.
TCPIP.EXE
This is the TCPIP driver required to ping the IP devices on
your network. This driver must be loaded if you are checking
IP devices.
WELCOM.EXE
This program is called by the INSTALL.EXE program during
installation of LAN-Alarm and should not be run on its own.
LAN-Alarm Page 27
14. Pricing and Ordering Information
LAN-Alarm is licensed by the number of network devices you
want to monitor.
LICENSE Price
-------------------------- -----
Unregistered Version - FREE
5 Network Device Version - $ 49
10 Network Device Version - $ 79
15 Network Device Version - $109
20 Network Device Version - $149
25 Network Device Version - $189
Unlimited Network Devices - $239
To order your copy of LAN-Alarm, send check or money order in
United States dollars only. Foreign currency will NOT be
accepted. Company Purchase Orders are accepted. Just send a
copy of the P.O. or call with P.O number. For COD add an
additional $10.
A copy of LAN-Alarm and softcopy documentation can be sent
via e-mail if requested. Please provide your e-mail id.
A software disk and hardcopy documentation will be sent in
addition to being sent by e-mail.
For orders outside the United States excluding Canada, please
add an additional $10 for shipment of software disk and
hardcopy documentation. To avoid shipping charges on
international orders, order LAN-Alarm and softcopy
documentation via e-mail only.
Please send inquiries and orders to;
NETMan
505 Walker Rd.
Safety Harbor, Fl 34695
U.S.A.
Voice (813) 799-2883
FAX (813) 724-8316
Internet ID netman3@ix.netcom.com
LAN-Alarm comes with full technical support. Call anytime
between the hours of 9:00 AM through 7:00 PM Eastern Standard
Time or send an e-mail.
You can upgrade from any version of LAN-Alarm by paying the
difference between your version and the upgrade version.
NETMan will provide one year of free upgrades and unlimited
technical support.
LAN-Alarm Page 28
ORDER FORM FOR LAN-Alarm
Date : _____________________________________
Name of Person : _____________________________________
Company : _____________________________________
Address1 : _____________________________________
Address2 : _____________________________________
City/State/Zip : _____________________________________
Phone Number : _____________________________________
Fax Number : _____________________________________
E-Mail ID : _____________________________________
Order : _____________________________________
(Unregistered, 5 Ver, 10 Ver, 15 Ver, 20 Ver, 25 Ver, Unlmtd Ver)
P. O. Number : _____________________________________
Other Information : _____________________________________
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