Cmapserver installation @ www.bluehost.com with fixed IP

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Kalyansg
Posts: 6
Joined: Wed Sep 28, 2011 3:04 am

Cmapserver installation @ www.bluehost.com with fixed IP

Post by Kalyansg »

Hello,
I am from Singapore and our academy (EMAS Training Academy & Simulation Centre, Singapore - covers Offshore Engineering subjects) is using CmapTools extensively for a number of years. All our courses are made with CmapTools at a central server and the instructors are using it in the classrooms effectively. We have presented our course-ware, which is based on a knowledge-base model, to many maritime & offshore institutions and it was well-received. But we are still using CmapTools and not Cmapserver. While, as instructors, we are all quite conversant with CmapTools, we are not so sure how to go about using Cmapserver. We have subscribed to http://www.bluehost.com and are also paying for a fixed IP address. But we do not know how to proceed. We have requested for assistance from bluehost.com but they are not sure how to help.
Can we have some guidance with respect to installation of Cmapserver at http://www.bluehost.com with a fixed IP address? We are mainly educators and not computer specialist.
Thanks in advance for your assistance. Thanks also for developing such a fantastic software, which is so well-suited for educational use.
Best Regards
Kalyan Chatterjea
EMAS Training Academy & Simulation Centre
acanas
Posts: 753
Joined: Tue Mar 17, 2009 5:52 pm

Re: Cmapserver installation @ www.bluehost.com with fixed IP

Post by acanas »

Hi Kalyan,
We'll be glad to help. What host will you be running on, a Linux machine? Second, do you have access to a Graphical interface, or do you have access only to a command line?
Kalyansg
Posts: 6
Joined: Wed Sep 28, 2011 3:04 am

Re: Cmapserver installation @ www.bluehost.com with fixed IP

Post by Kalyansg »

Hello Prof Cañas
Thanks for your prompt response. I believe it it a Linux machine. We may not have the graphical user interface. Command line access.
I have already downloaded the bin file of the Cmapserver.
We know how to install CmapTools bin file in a Linux terminal. But not conversant with the Cmapserver file and the cloud services of bluehost.com
Thanks & Regards
Kalyan
marroyo
Posts: 66
Joined: Tue Mar 31, 2009 6:09 pm

Re: Cmapserver installation @ www.bluehost.com with fixed IP

Post by marroyo »

The computer where the IHMC CmapServer will be installed should have a fixed IP address. The IHMC CmapServer may not run properly in a machine that is configured to use DHCP. If the machine where you installed the IHMC CmapServer has multiple network interfaces, you should select the IP address and the host name that you want the IHMC CmapServer to register in the Directory of Places and set them in the "serverconfig.txt" file by editing the values for the "server.ip.address" and "server.hostname" variables. Select a CmapServer IP Address and CmapServer Hostname before installing your CmapServer.

The machine should be registered in a DNS with the reverse lookup option activated. If the machine is not registered in a DNS, the access to the IHMC CmapServer from IHMC CmapTools clients may be extremely slow. Coordinate this with your network administrator.

The IHMC CmapServer has an embedded web server that allows access to the web page versions (HTML) of the concept maps. This web server runs on port 80 by default and therefore the IHMC CmapServer should be installed and run from a "root" account (Unix, Linux, Mac OS X if enabled) or Administrator (Windows, Mac OS X). If you are not able to run the server as "root", you have to change the web server port to be greater than 1024. If you have another web server running in the computer (i.e. Apache, IIS) in port 80, then you should set up a different port for the embedded web server of the IHMC CmapServer by editing the file "serverconfig.txt". We suggest that you use port 8001 or 8080 instead of port 80. Select a CmapServer Web Server Port before installing your CmapServer.

The web page version of the IHMC CmapServer can be accessed from any web browser and its syntax is http://<hostname>:<port>. If the web server is running in port 80, then you don't have to include it in the URL. Those are examples of IHMC Public CmapServers: IHMC Sample Knowledge Models (http://cmapskm.ihmc.us), and IHMC Public Cmaps 3 (http://cmapspublic3.ihmc.us).

If you have a firewall, then you have to open some ports in order to allow the IHMC CmapServer to communicate with CmapTools clients and other servers such the Directory of Places. The ports to be opened are:

Port, Mode, Protocol(s), and description of service
4447, Input, TCP, Communication with CmapTools' clients (IHMC Public servers are using port 443 instead of port 4447)
4747, Output, TCP/ UDP, Registration to the Directory of Places
4748, Output, TCP, Communication with the Directory of Places. Useful to be discovered by old CmapTools' versions
80, Input, TCP, Communication with the WebServer
Use the name of your organization and the name of your country in parentheses as your CmapServer name. Some examples: "University of Kyoto (Japan)", "University of West Florida - UWF (USA)", "Proyecto Conéctate (Panamá)."

A detailed information about the CmapTools Network Architecture is available in our Documentation section at "CmapTools Documentation: White Papers"

To install CmapServer on Linux without graphic interface, run the installer in Console Mode from the command line; type the following commands:

chmod +x LinuxCmapServer.bin
./LinuxCmapServer.bin –i console

IHMC CmapServer runs "in the background." It detaches from the terminal and doesn't have a visible window, effectively disappearing from view. If you want to know if the IHMC CmapServer is running then you can do the following:

Use a CmapTools client installed in another computer

Or...

Verify if a process called CmapServer is running, open a Terminal window and run: ps -A | grep -i cmapserver

If you want to run a CmapServer as a service in Linux:

As root user, then go to /etc/rc.d (directory), open the rc.local file with a text editor (i.e. vi, pico) and add this line:
nohup /Applications/IHMC_CmapServer/CmapServer &

Note: modify the path to your current settings.

After those changes you have to restart your CmapServer machine.
Kalyansg
Posts: 6
Joined: Wed Sep 28, 2011 3:04 am

Re: Cmapserver installation @ www.bluehost.com with fixed IP

Post by Kalyansg »

Thanks so much Marroyo
We really appreciate the help! We will work on it and report our progress and share our experience of installation of Cmapserver on bluehost.com
Please wish us luck!
Best Regards
Kalyan
Ansari443
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Oct 10, 2014 1:26 pm

Re: Cmapserver installation @ www.bluehost.com with fixed IP

Post by Ansari443 »

Last edited by Ansari443 on Thu Oct 30, 2014 2:31 am, edited 1 time in total.
acanas
Posts: 753
Joined: Tue Mar 17, 2009 5:52 pm

Re: Cmapserver installation @ www.bluehost.com with fixed IP

Post by acanas »

When the CmapServer is launched it goes through all resources to make sure its index is consistent. This is done always when launched, and the CmapServer is not accessible while this indexing is done.

Then, if its a new version of the CmapServer running, it will reindex for searching. But under normal circunstances this reindexing is not done every launch. The CmapServer, however, is accessible during this indexing.

How many resources does your CmapServer have?
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