Direct Connection Shortcuts

Details and examples of direct connection shortcuts.

In this mode, the Runtime System is directly connected to the GDC using TCP/IP network.

The first step is to specify :

the hostname where the Runtime System is hosted. This can be omitted if you use the -Host or -H command line option.
the command line that will be executed to start the application on the Runtime System side.

Within the command line, you can use the following tags:

Table 1. Tags for use at the command line
Tag	Replaced by
`@FGL`	`FGLSERVER=<IP Address>:<serv num> export FGLSERVER; FGLGUI=1; export FGLGUI`

Table 2. You can use one of the @FGL variants depending on your system
Tag	Replaced by
`@FGLNT`	`set FGLSERVER=<IP Address>:<serv num>&&set FGLGUI=1`
`@FGLCSH`	`setenv FGLSERVER "<IP Address>:<serv num>";setenv FGLGUI 1`
`@FGLKSH`	`FGLSERVER="<IP Address>:<serv num>";export FGLSERVER;FGLGUI=1;export FGLGUI`
`@SRVNUM`	`<GDC listening port - 6400 (The second part of FGLSERVER)>`
`@PORT`	`<GDC listening port>`
`@USR`	`<Client current user name>`
`@LUSR`	`<Client current user name, lower case version>`
`@USER`	`<User name on the remote system>`
`@IP`	`<IP address of the client computer>`
`@COMPUTER`	`<Machine host name>`
`@E_SRV`	`export FGLSERVER`
`@4GLSRVVER`	`<GDC version>`

These tags will automatically be replaced when the command is sent to the Runtime System host.

Additional environment variables may be set when using @FGL tags ; these variables are needed to manage connection checks.

To start your program on the Runtime System host, GDC will connect to the host using either telnet, SSH or SSH2. You can specify an alternative port, if your configuration needs it. Using SSH, tunneling can be established to secure your connection.

Note: This connection mode is only used when GDC connects to the host to start the application. Currently, the communication between the Runtime System and GDC does not use telnet, SSH, or SSH2.

If Show Terminal Utility is checked, the window of FGLTTY, our Emulation Terminal Utility, will be visible. (Please refer to the Terminals Section). This could help you check whether your command line is valid..

The Backspace key sends Control-H option modifies the sequence sent by the backspace key in FGLTTY. By default, Control-?(127) is used but you may change it to Control-H. This will allow you, for instance, to use the backspace key in dbaccess.

The Start command in a new shell option allows you to start a regular shell session before executing the remote host command. Note that this option is mandatory when using automatic port forwarding.

On the next screen, there is a method to import your own login form, using a .ui file (Qt designer's file format). See Customizing your own login form. You have the ability to force the login form to always be displayed on top, by checking the option Always On Top.

The same screen also allows you to select your authentication method:

Standard : In this case, you have to provide the username you are using to connect to the host. This can be omitted if you use the -User or -U command line option.
- If Password required is checked, GDC will ask you for a password. If your configuration allows you to connect without a password, uncheck this option. If a password is still requested, review your configuration.
  Important: GDC will not modify your configuration to allow you to connect without a password. It is up to you or your administrator to manage this.
- If Keep password is checked, GDC keeps in memory the password you enter the first time you start a shortcut, and reuses it when you restart. The password is kept in memory, and is lost if you stop GDC.
  Important: GDC never stores your password in a file or elsewhere unless Allow persistent save is checked. The password is kept in memory while GDC is launched, and is forgotten once GDC is stopped.
- If and don't ask it again is checked, GDC will only ask for the password the first time a shortcut is launched. After that, the password will be silently sent, without bothering the user.
- If Even after restart is checked, GDC keeps the password in memory even after having been stopped. Thus, the password is stored until it is manually cleared.
  Important: GDC stores your password on disk in an encrypted form which is very difficult to read but not impossible. Someone with strong knowledge in cryptology can eventually break the password protection.
Kerberos : On Windows™ platforms ( all versions after Windows 2000 ) you can also use Kerberos authentication if your user and computer are registered on an ActiveDirectory that provides a Kerberos interface. Using this authentication method, you are free to Allow Ticket Forwarding; this allows the SSH server to forward the Kerberos ticket that identifies the user to other processes. You may also select a Server realm; this identifies the Kerberos domain. This field can be mandatory, depending on the ActiveDirectory / Kerberos server configuration. Ask your System administrator for further details.
SSH private key file: If you use an SSH connection, you can specify an ssh key file that contains the login information. The file format must use the PuTTY format and can be generated using PuTTY tools.

The next window allows you to specify connection strings. This table is used to tell GDC what to do when the Runtime System host displays a given string on the terminal. GDC can perform the following actions:

Ask the user for a value, and send it back
Display a message to the user
Ask for a password
Send the shortcut password
Send the shortcut command
Execute a local command and send the result
Return a defined string
Ignore the Runtime System string
Send the login
Get a free port number for Port Forwarding
Show or hide the terminal
Close the terminal

You can specify whether each string should be recognized only once or every time (check only once). Also, when ignore remaining terminal strings is checked, all the following strings are ignored.

The default terminal strings should be suitable in most of the cases, but you may have to adapt them to your system. For instance, the default string to send the command is last login: which may be different on your server.

Examples:

Table 3. Connection string examples
Recognized string	Description	Action performed by GDC
`password:`	This is the string used by the telnet daemon to ask for the password.	Sends the password
`last login:`	This is the string used by the telnet daemon to tell the user he has logged in successfully.	Sends the command
`login:`	This is the string displayed by the telnet daemon when the login has failed	Displays a message "Authentication has failed"

Please contact your System administrator if the default values are not appropriate.

The last screen let you configure fgltty options.

In 2.30.x, all these options are inherited from PuTTY. If you need more details on these options, please consult the PuTTY documentation.