TCP/IP with pure DOS Clipper 5.3 Application

[w8335]

Since years we run a pure DOS-Application for automation and serving a big amount of dedicated interfaces over serial BUS system. This App is hard approved and running without any problem since 15 years at the known environment. The Computers are Industrial-CPU using Solid-State Flash for Data storage, the Application running in RAM-disc for maximal speeding and minimal loading the hardware.

Now on force of some customers who want control/watch the system over LAN or

http://WWW it

where planned to resize the system to smaller groups which can communicate over LAN together and also to the outside world. Resize to smaller groups just to get free communication power for the communication together and for running a small internal Web-Server for the communication with the outside world.

About the situation above and to not change the system functions there can be no change to any other xBase and also not to Windows(tm) systems.
To realize this it would be necessary to introduce a TCP/IP protocol at this pure Clipper/DOS environment.

Any possible ways known to realize this?

 

[GriffMG]

I do not quite follow what you are asking?

If you just want to view the application running remotely - you could use remote desktop or similar.

If you want the various copies of your system to communicate between themselves using some protocol over
TCP/IP that would be more complicated. Do you have all the source for your venerable program?

Regards

Griff
Keep [Smile]ing

There are 10 kinds of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

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[w8335]

Hello Griff

1st of all, thank you for the interrest.
To the situation: the application is now running at a pure DOS environment without any connection to the outside. For the remote access and service support is a modem access over pcAnywhere in use. But this is not a solution to integrate the system in a open customer world and their systems.

What I want now is the 2nd situation, a communication over TCP/IP as a network between different subunits together and also to realize a

http://WWW interface

for defined external access.

At the moment I'm thinking about two possible solutions: To use the internal CPU hardware with a TCP/IP intergation to the program, or to open the system to outside by connecting a small webserver such as "DIGI connect ME" over serial connection.

I would like the internal solution because there is no external hardware which has additional costs and also can change anytime. The program must be modified anyway for both possibilities. With the 2nd solution (external webserver) there would also given no possibility to grow up the system with additional subunits.

About the source for this programm: I have developed this application and all source code is available. Also is avaliable all the information of the system environment and the usage situations.

Regards
Wolfgang

 

[GriffMG]

You might try running your app in DOSBox on a Windows PC - you could then probably run it as is, but have the machine
connected to the internet, and provide support that way.

Then you might be able to use a VFP9 OLEDB interface to provide an VBScript based, ASP Classic server to create a web interface
to you app - depending on the structure of your databases, you might not be able to do updates though.


Regards

Griff
Keep [Smile]ing

There are 10 kinds of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

I'm trying to cut down on the use of shrieks (exclamation marks), I'm told they are not good for you. ​

 

[TonHu]

There is only 1 of 10 (base-2) solutions that should be acceptable:
Rewrite from scratch, using modern techniques, replicating the business logic of the old DOS application.

DO NOT try to slap on a web-interface or something similar onto a DOS application, it's not scalable so it won't be able to handle any more than a few users, that are all waiting for one of the others to complete their task.
And also, it would be more practical to move the data to a proper (SQL based) database server, again for scalability, but also for maintainability.

HTH.

 

[w8335]

Hello freinds

About the situation described at the beginning there can be no change to any other xBase and also not to Windows(tm) systems!

Please do'nt tell about situations such as DOSboxes in Windoze. The automation units where not designed to run Windoze and over all DOS means DiscOperatingSystem and not warehouse such as Windoze. I know the world would hate me for this statement.

And also there is no idea to change / rewrite this well running and over years approved application just to start at zero with new systems.

Regards
Wolfgang

 

[GriffMG]

I'm struggling a little with this, are you saying that you have an application that is running on existing hardware
that does some kind of localised automation (a cash till or something) and it is running MS-DOS or similar and you
want to be able to add networking to the units so you can remote access withoout using a dialup link and a modem
with a copy of pcAnywhere?

Also, when I suggested VFP, I was not suggesting you rewrite in VFP, just that it could PROBABLY read the data in your
native application.

You MIGHT be able to find some very old networking software that could give you a peer to peer network based on DOS,
I remember that Novell did one, I'm sure there were others - not sure about TCP/IP though...

I have found this:

http://californiasoftwaresystems.com/ts/tcp-ip/

and this:

http://www.dendarii.co.uk/FAQs/dos-net.html

Which might help you.

Regards

Griff
Keep [Smile]ing

There are 10 kinds of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

I'm trying to cut down on the use of shrieks (exclamation marks), I'm told they are not good for you. ​