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Awk is an powerful text processing language that allows you to manipulate files containing columns of data and strings. Awk is extremely useful, both for general operation of Unix commands, and for data transformation.
 
Introduced in Recital 10 is the PIPETOSTR() function (as well as backticks `` inside strings) which can be used  in conjunction with awk to transform recital data.
 
The following links provide good tutorials on awk:
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VMware products, such as ESX, Workstation, Server, and Fusion, come with a built-in VNC server to access guests.

This allows you to connect to the guest without having a VNC server installed in the guest - useful if a server doesn't exist for the guest or if you need access some time when a server would not work (say during the boot process). It's also good in conjunction with Headless Mode.

The VNC server is set up on a per-VM basis, and is disabled by default. To enable it, add the following lines to the .vmx:

RemoteDisplay.vnc.enabled = "TRUE" 
RemoteDisplay.vnc.port = "5901"

You can set a password with RemoteDisplay.vnc.key; details for how to calculate the obfuscated value given a plaintext password are in Compute hashed password for use with RemoteDisplay.vnc.key.

If you want more than one VM set up in this manner, make sure they have unique port numbers. To connect, use a VNC client pointing at host-ip-address:port. If you connect from a different computer, you may have to open a hole in the OS X firewall. If you use Leopard's Screen Sharing.app on the same computer as Fusion, don't use port 5900 since Screen Sharing refuses to connect to that.

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If you have a live linux site that is running vmware virtual machines, you can pause the virtual machines when you want to perform a backup, I use acronis for linux which does incremental backups and you can specify a command to run before and after the backup, this allows backups to be performed at scheduled times daily without any intervention. In my examples below, the virtual machine i want to control is in /root/vmware/Recital/Recital.vmx

To pause the virtual machine on linux:

# vmrun pause /root/vmware/Recital/Recital.vmx


and then to unpause after the backup has completed:

# vmrun unpause /root/vmware/Recital/Recital.vmx


That is basicallty it, no need to attend the backup and it can be perfomed at a suitable time so no users are affected.

Incidentally, vmrun lets you startup a virtual machine at system startup too, without needing the GUI:

# vmrun start /root/vmware/Recital/Recital.vmx


Or alternatively stop it:

# vmrun stop /root/vmware/Recital/Recital.vmx


There are lots of other capabilities of this command, running applications inside the virtual machine etc etc. For full details just type vmrun in a terminal window.



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This article examines the advantages of using databases and looks at how to create databases for new and existing applications.

Overview

file which contains information, including full path details, about all the files that belong to that particular database. Opening a database gives an application access to all that database's files - operating system and data dictionary protection and security permitting - in whichever directory on the system they reside and database commands can target the files as a single unit.

NOTE: The word 'database' has often been used in Xbase products to refer to an individual '.dbf' file. In this article these are referred to as 'tables' and a database may contain many tables.

Advantages

Recital has always offered developers the maximum in flexibility in the design and deployment of their applications. The SET DEFAULT and SET PATH commands along with the ability to access files via their full Operating System path name has allowed data and code to be created and stored in any required location. Such flexibility does however put the onus on the developer to manage all elements of the application and ensure that maintenance tasks cover all files. The introduction of the database commands retains the established developer-driven design, but provides functionality to facilitate the access and maintenance of the components of that design. The functionality offered is in three main areas:

  • Facilitate data access
  • Facilitate the storage and extraction of information about the files in an application
  • Facilitate the maintenance of the files in an application

These three areas are looked at in more detail in the sections below.

Data Access

The immediate effect of using a database is that all the database's tables and associated files (indexes, dictionaries, memo files) are accessible with the issue of a single command, the OPEN DATABASE command.
// Open the database
> open database southwind
// List the database tables
> list tables
Tables in Database southwind:
Name Source
categories /usr/recital/data/southwind/categories.dbf
customers /usr/recital/data/southwind/customers.dbf
employees /usr/recital/data/southwind/employees.dbf
example /usr/recital/data/southwind/example.dbf
order_details /usr/recital/data/southwind/order_details.dbf
orders /usr/recital/data/southwind/orders.dbf
productsbyname /usr/recital/data/southwind/productsbyname.dbf
products /usr/recital/data/southwind/products.dbf
shippers /usr/recital/data/southwind/shippers.dbf
suppliers /usr/recital/data/southwind/suppliers.dbf
cisamdemo /usr/recital/data/southwind/cisamdemo.dbf
> use example
In the case of the sample southwind database that ships with Recital products on all platforms and is shown above, this effect can be achieved in other ways (SET PATH or SET DEFAULT), since its files all reside in the southwind directory. The database advantage comes when the database catalog contains files from multiple directories, e.g.
// Open the database
> open database myapp
// List the database tables
> list tables
Tables in Database myapp:
Name Source
zipcodes /usr/myapp/data/lookups/zipcodes.dbf
customers /usr/myapp/data/current/customers.dbf
archive03 /usr/myapp/data/archive/archive03.dbf
archive04 /usr/myapp/data/archive/archive04.dbf
users /usr/allapps/data/users.dbf
menus /usr/myapp/data/system/menus.dbf
// Open a table
> use users
The OPEN DATABASE command requires only the database name to be specified, not the complete path of a directory as with SET PATH or SET DEFAULT. Databases are searched for in the sub-directories of the directory defined in the DB_DATADIR environment variable or symbol. DB_DATADIR is set in the system wide configuration file.
#---------------------------------------------------
# location of directories and important files
#---------------------------------------------------
DB_DATADIR="${ROI_ROOT}data/" ;export DB_DATADIR
NOTE: DB_DATADIR is read from these files at startup to determine the home directory for databases. Updates to DB_DATADIR once a Recital process is running do not change this setting. The OPEN DATABASE command and certain other database commands allow a '?' to be specified in place of a database name. In this case the 'Select a file' dialog is displayed, listing the available files in the DB_DATADIR directory.

Click image to display full size

Fig 1: Recital Terminal Developer OPEN DATABASE ? command.

This functionality is also supported by the PACK DATABASE, REBUILD DATABASE and REINDEX DATABASE commands.

Databases can also simplify data access for Recital Client Drivers using the Recital Database Server: instead of specifying a starting directory, only a database name is required. The database can handle files from multiple directories and associate tables with their single index files.
Recital Universal .NET Data Provider
/////////////////////////////////////////
// include the references below
using System.Data;
using Recital.Data;

/////////////////////////////////////////
// sample code to call a Stored Procedure
public int CallStoredProcedure()
{
string source = "Data Source=localhost;" +
"Database=southwind;" +
"uid=?;"+
"pwd=?";

RecitalConnection conn = new RecitalConnection(source);
...
Recital Universal JDBC Driver
import java.sql.*;
import java.io.*;
import java.net.URL;
import java.math.BigDecimal;
import Recital.sql.*;

public class jdbc_test {

public static void main(String argv[]) {
int i;
ResultSet rs;
ResultSetMetaData rsmd;

System.out.println("Recital JDBC driver verification.");

for (int ii=0; ii<1; ++ii) {
try {
//----------------------------------------------------------
//-- Load the Client Driver for the
//-- Recital Universal Application Server
//----------------------------------------------------------
System.out.println("Loading Recital JDBC driver.");
new RecitalDriver();
//-----------------------------------------------------------
//-- The standard format of the connection URL is as follows:
//-----------------------------------------------------------
String url = "jdbc:Recital:" +
"SERVERNAME=?;" +
"DATABASE=jdbc_test;" +
"USERNAME=?;" +
"PASSWORD=?;" +
"ENCRYPTION=false";
...
Windows Recital Universal ODBC Driver

Click image to display full size

Fig 2: Recital Universal ODBC Driver DSN setup using a database.
Database Procedure Libraries
A database can have an associated procedure library, which is automatically opened when the database is opened. This way, any procedures required by the database's data files are always available. The procedure library should reside in the database's directory and be named dbc_xxx_library.prg, where 'xxx' is the name of the database. When the OPEN DATABASE command is issued, a check is made for the database procedure library and a SET PROCEDURE TO dbc_xxx_library.prg ADDITIVE issued automatically. The procedure library is in turn closed when the CLOSE DATABASES command is issued. This is particularly convenient for client/server database access.
Database Events
Issuing the OPEN DATABASE or CLOSE DATABASES command also fires a database event. Database events, like triggers for tables and forms, can have programs associated with them. The OPEN DATABASE command fires the DBC_OPENDATA event and will run a program called db_opendata.prg if one exists in the database's directory. Similarly, the CLOSE DATABASES command fires the DBC_CLOSEDATA event and runs the db_closedata.prg program. Both of these events also allow the current open or close operation to be abandoned if the associated program returns a logical false (.F.).

Information

Databases, specifically database catalogs, are an excellent place to store information about the files required by a particular application. Instead of having to search through application code to determine which tables are being used and what index keys they have, this information can be viewed in the database catalog. Database catalogs are themselves Recital tables and can be viewed and/or updated in the same way as any other Recital table. There is also a series of commands to provide information about the currently open database. DISPLAY/LIST DATABASE The DISPLAY DATABASE and LIST DATABASE commands display the database name and path, followed by the equivalent of LIST STRUCTURE INDEX and LIST DICTIONARY for each table in the database, e.g.
> open database southwind
> display database
Database Name:  southwind
Database Path: /usr/recital-9.0/data/southwind/

Structure for database : categories.dbf
Number of data records : 8
Date of creation : 05/12/2004
Date of last update : 05/12/2004
Database encrypted : False

Field Field Name Type Width Dec Description 1 CATEGORYID Numeric 10 Category ID 2 CATEGORYNAME Character 15 Category Name 3 DESCRIPTION Memo 8 Description 4 PICTURE Memo 8 Picture ** Total ** 42
Production DBX file: categories.dbx
Master Index TAG: CATEGORYID
Key: categoryid
Type: Binary
Len: 8
...
DISPLAY DATABASE shows the data one screen at a time, whereas LIST DATABASE is ideal for output to a file.
> open database southwind
> list database to file info.txt
DISPLAY/LIST TABLES
LIST TABLES, as we have seen above, lists all the tables from the database, giving each table's name and path. DISPLAY TABLES shows the information one screen at a time.

Maintenance

Using a database can simplify the maintenance of an application's programs, tables and indexes. Multiple files, possibly in different directories, can be targeted by a single database command.
COMPILE DATABASE
The COMPILE DATABASE command can be used to issue a COMPILE command for all program files listed in the database catalog.
// Open the database
open database myapp

// Compile all the database's programs
compile database
NOTE: Program files are added to a database using the SQL CREATE PROCEDURE command.
PACK DATABASE
The PACK DATABASE command issues a PACK command for every table in the database catalog. The PACK command is used to permanently remove any records that have been marked for deletion using the DELETE command.
// Open the database
open database southwind
// Pack all the database's tables
pack database
REINDEX DATABASE
The REINDEX DATABASE command rebuilds all the tag and single indexes in the catalog. This is the equivalent of an INDEX ON <key> TO | TAG <index> for each catalogued index key.
// Open the database
open database southwind
// Rebuild all the database's indexes
reindex database
NOTE: Using a database helps protect against a table being opened without its associated single index files also being opened. Any single index files that are included in the database catalog will automatically be opened when their table is opened via the database. If a single index appears in the database catalog, but the physical file no longer exists, it will be removed from the catalog when its associated table is next opened. All indexes, tagged indexes or single indexes, created while the database is open, are added automatically to the database catalog.
REBUILD DATABASE
The REBUILD DATABASE command is used to PACK, rebuild the index tags and refresh the contents of the database catalog file.
// Rebuild the database
rebuild database southwind

Creating and populating a database

Databases are created using the CREATE DATABASE command.
// Create new database
create database newdb
The CREATE DATABASE creates a sub-directory in the DB_DATADIR and initializes the new database's catalog file. The catalog file is given the same basename as the database and is a Recital table with a '.cat' file extension. It has a production index file with a '.cax' file extension and a memo file with a '.cam' file extension.
// Open the database
open database newdb
With the database open, the catalog file table is opened in the highest available workarea and is given an alias name of its basename preceded by an underscore, e.g. '_newdb'. Any new tables or indexes that are created will be automatically added into the catalog and form part of the database. 'Free' tables can also be manually added into a database using the SQL ADD TABLE command.
// config.db
set sql on
set sql to vfp
// end of config.db

// Create a 'free' table, with no database open
create table free1 (field1 char(10), field2 date)
// Open the database
open database newdb
add table free1
As the application runs, 'myapp' in the example above, each table that is opened is added to the database catalog. Indexes that are opened are added in the same way. Using SET AUTOCATALOG OFF, inclusion in the catalog can be restricted. Once all required areas of the application have been catalogued, the application can be updated to make use of the database commands.

Converting an existing application

The AUTOCATALOG commands can be used to automatically create a database catalog based on an existing application. The SET AUTOCATALOG TO >database< command will create the database if it does not already exist.
// Database must be closed during autocatalog process
close databases
// Specify the database
set autocatalog to myappdb
// Start the autocatalog process
set autocatalog on
do myapp
// The autocatalog process can be toggled off to exclude
// certain parts of the application if required
// set autocatalog off

Exporting a database

The BACKUP DATABASE and RESTORE DATABASE commands have been added to simplify the process of moving applications between binary incompatible platforms. Binary files such as tables, memo files and data dictionaries must be exported to ASCII format to allow them to be transferred from one platform to another where the platforms have different binary ordering. For example, this is the case when moving files between a SUN Sparc Solaris machine and an Intel Linux machine. The BACKUP DATABASE and RESTORE DATABASE commands are extensions of the BUILD and INSTALL commands: where BUILD and INSTALL operate on a specified list of tables, BACKUP DATABASE and RESTORE DATABASE automatically handle an entire database.
// Open the database
open database southwind
// Export the database to ASCII format
backup database
The BACKUP DATABASE command goes through the database catalog, exporting each file into an ASCII format that can be handled by the RESTORE DATABASE command. The files are created in a directory with the same name as the database. This directory is a sub-directory of the directory specified in the environment variable DB_BACKUPDIR and is created automatically. By default, DB_BACKUPDIR is the 'backup' sub-directory of the Recital home directory.
// Query the DB_BACKUPDIR environment variable setting
> ? getenv([DB_BACKUPDIR])
/usr/recital/backup
Like DB_DATADIR, DB_BACKUPDIR is set in the system-wide configuration file and is read at startup to determine the home directory for database backups. Updates to DB_BACKUPDIR once a Recital process is running do not change this setting.
# profile.db/uas extract
#---------------------------------------------------
# location of directories and important files
#---------------------------------------------------
DB_BACKUPDIR="${ROI_ROOT}backup/" ;export DB_BACKUPDIR
Once the BACKUP DATABASE command has completed, the files can be transferred to another platform, for example from Intel SCO OpenServer to IBM AIX and the RESTORE DATABASE command used to recreate the database.
// Export the database to ASCII format
// Note: the BACKUP DATABASE command operates
// on the active or specified database
$ db
> backup database southwind
> quit

// 'tar' up the files for transfer
$ cd /usr/recital/backup
$ tar cvf southwind.tar ./southwind

// Transfer the tar archive to DB_BAKUPDIR on the
// target machine, then extract the files
$ pwd
/usr/recital/backup
$ tar xvf southwind.tar

// Rebuild the database on the target platform
// The database is automatically created
// as a sub-directory of DB_DATADIR
$ db
> restore database southwind
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To insert code samples into your articles in joomla, you use the pre tag like this:

<pre xml:lang="xxx"> your code goes here </pre>

You can use any of the following languages for colorizing your code in articles. 
 

recital, abap, dos, lotusscript, rails, actionscript3, dot, lscript, reg, actionscript, d, lua, robots, ada, eiffel, m68k, ruby, apache, email, make, sas, applescript, fortran, matlab, scala, apt_sources, freebasic, mirc, scheme, asm, genero, mpasm, scilab, asp, gettext, mxml, sdlbasic, autoit, glsl, mysql, smalltalk, avisynth, gml, nsis, smarty, bash, gnuplot, objc, sql, basic4gl, groovy,

ocaml-brieftcl, bf, haskell, ocaml, teraterm, blitzbasic, hq9plus, oobas, text, bnf, html4strict, oracle11, thinbasic, boo, idl, oracle8, tsql, caddcl, index.html, pascal, typoscript, cadlisp, ini, perl, vbnet, cfdg, inno, per, vb, cfm, intercal, php-brief, verilog, cil, io, php, vhdl, c_mac, java5, pic16, vim, cobol, java, pixelbender, visualfoxpro, c, javascript, plsql, visualprolog, cpp, kixtart, povray, whitespace, cpp-qt, klonec, powershell, winbatch, csharp, klonecpp, progress, xml, css, latex, prolog, xorg_conf, delphi, lisp, providex, xpp, diff, lolcode, python, z80, div, lotusformulas, qbasic

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Subclipse is an Eclipse Team Provider plug-in providing support for Subversion within the Eclipse IDE. This plugin is required in order to use the recital eclipse workspace.
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A good article describing the configuration of samba for file/record locking can be found here.

Basically you must add these directives to the smb.conf file:

[data] 
oplocks = False 
level2 oplocks = False

The default oplock type is Level1. Level2 oplocks are enabled on a per-share basis in the smb.conf file. Alternately, you could disable oplocks on a per-file basis within the share: 

veto oplock files = /*.dbf/*.DBF/*.ndx/*.NDX/*.dbx/*.DBX/*.dbt/*.DBT/

You can further tune samba by following this guide.

If you specify the Common Internet File System (CIFS) when you mount the samba share then you must specify the following options
mount -t cifs {mount-point} -o username=name,pass=pass,directio
The directio option is used to not do inode data caching on files opened on this mount. This precludes mmaping files on this mount. In some cases with fast networks and little or no caching benefits on the client (e.g. when the application is doing large sequential reads bigger than page size without rereading the same data) this can provide better performance than the default behavior which caches reads (readahead) and writes (writebehind) through the local Linux client pagecache if oplock (caching token) is granted and held. Note that direct allows write operations larger than page size to be sent to the server.

If you get the following error when trying to mount the {mount-point}
Apr 22 16:57:39 bailey kernel: Status code returned 0xc000006d NT_STATUS_LOGON_FAILURE
Apr 22 16:57:39 bailey kernel:  CIFS VFS: Send error in SessSetup = -13
Apr 22 16:57:39 bailey kernel:  CIFS VFS: cifs_mount failed w/return code = -13
The you need to create the Samba user specified on the mount command
smbpasswd -a username
FYI - Make sure you umount all the Samba {mount-point(s)} before shutting down Samba.
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By default Recital uses PAM to authenticate users.  It is also possible to tell PAM to use Kerberos.  Simply replace the existing entries in the /etc/pam.d/recital file with the ones below:

auth       sufficient   pam_krb5.so try_first_pass
auth       sufficient   pam_unix.so shadow nullok try_first_pass
account    required     pam_unix.so broken_shadow
account    [default=bad success=ok user_unknown=ignore] pam_krb5.so
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Platforms supported

  • Intel® / AMD™ 32 bit Linux
  • Intel® / AMD™ 64 bit Linux
  • HP PA-RISC HP-UX® 10.20 and above
  • Sun® SPARC Solaris™ 8 and above
  • HP Alpha OpenVMS 7.2-1 and above
  • SCO® OpenServer 5.0.5 and above
  • Sun® Intel® Solaris™ 10 and above
  • IBM AIX® 4.3 and above
  • HP Integrity OpenVMS 8.2-1 and above
  • HP Intel® Itanium® HP-UX® 11.23 and above
  • Mac OS X leopard 10.5 and above

Large File Support is available for Windows, Itanium HP-UX and Linux. 
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Add this directive to your /etc/httpd/httpd.conf file and restart apache.
DirectoryIndex default.rsp index.html 
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