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Expert install guide

Quick guide for experts installing FairCom products

Abstract

This page describes how to download a FairCom product.

This section is a short installation process that takes approximately five minutes depending on the download speed of your Internet connection.

Windows

The FairCom server can be installed from a zip file or from a Microsoft Installer. The zip file is ideal for development environments that want to embed the FairCom server into an application or run multiple instances of the server on the same computer. The Windows Installer automatically installs dependencies and runs the FairCom server as a Windows Service.

Use zip file

  1. Download the FairCom server as a .zip file.

  2. Unzip the download file into any folder — for example, c:\faircom\.

    Tip

    FairCom recommends using 7-Zip because other zip utilities have limitations on the number of files and paths that they can unzip.

  3. Find the <faircom> subfolder named something like FairCom.64bit.v4.5.1.145.

  4. Inside the <faircom> folder, open the server folder.

  5. Run faircom.exe.

    Important

    The evaluation version of the product times out after three hours and shuts down the server. Therefore, the server needs to be restarted every three hours.

    Note

    Each time you restart your computer, you need to run faircom.exe to load the server.

    This is ideal for an evaluation environment where you want full control over the server.

    For a production environment, consider using the Windows installer to install FairCom as a Windows service that automatically loads the FairCom server each time the computer restarts.

Use Windows Installer

This procedure installs the FairCom server as a service that runs automatically when Windows runs.

  1. Download the FairCom server as a Windows Installer package.

  2. Run the installer package.

Use setup.bat

  1. Use a cd command to move into the installation folder where you unzipped the FairCom product.

    cd c:\faircom\FairCom-Edge.windows.64bit.v4.0.0.45

  2. Run setup.bat to install or remove features:

    Note

    For more information on FairComConfig.exe , see Configure installed features using FairComConfig.exe.

    • Select specific features to install by running the setup command.

    • Install all features by running the setup all command.

    • Remove all features by running the setup remove command.

  3. Follow the prompts on the installation window to finish the installation.

    Note

    FairComConfig.exe installs the Microsoft Visual C redistributable file. However, if it is already installed, a Setup Failed error message will appear that a newer version of this file is already installed. This message can be ignored and the installation can finish.

Silently install a Windows service

This procedure explains how to do a silent, headless installation of a FairCom product on Windows

  1. Download the FairCom server as a .zip file.

  2. Unzip the downloaded file into another folder (such as c:\faircom\) to create a subfolder (such as FairCom-Edge.windows.64bit.v4.0.0.45).

  3. Modify the sc create command.

    sc  create  "FairCom-EDGE"  binPath= "C:\FairCom\FairCom-Edge.windows.64bit.v4.0.0.45\server\faircom.exe"  start= auto  error=normal  DisplayName= "FairCom EDGE Server"

    1. Update the binpath value in the sc create command to the path where FairCom Edge is installed.

      binPath= "C:\FairCom\FairCom-Edge.windows.64bit.v4.0.0.45\server\faircom.exe"

    2. If "FairCom-EDGE" does not match the product installed, update it to match.

      • For FairCom MQ, use "FairCom-MQ".

      • For FairCom DB, use "FairCom-DB".

      • For FairCom RTG, use "ctreeRTG".

    3. If necessary, update the start value to change how the service starts.

      • auto

        This causes the service to automatically start when Windows starts. This is the recommended setting for start.

      • delayed-auto

        This causes the service to automatically start when Windows starts but with a delay. There is rarely a reason to delay the start of a FairCom product.

      • demand

        This causes the service to need a manual start. It will not start automatically. This is recommended for a non-production environment when you want to have control over when the FairCom product runs.

      • disabled

        This prevents the service from starting altogether. There is no reason to use this setting.

    4. If necessary, update the error value to change how Windows behaves at startup if the service fails.

      • normal

        This causes Windows to start normally when the service fails to start. Windows shows the logged-in user a dialog box that explains why the service failed to start. This is the typical value for error.

      • severe

        When the service fails to start, this causes Windows to restart using the last known good configuration. This value can be used in a mission-critical environment when the computer only runs the FairCom product.

      • critical

        When the service fails to start, this causes Windows to restart using the last known good configuration. If the service fails to start again, Windows stops the bootup process. This value is not recommended for mission-critical environments since it requires administrative intervention.

      • ignore

        This causes Windows to ignore the service's failure to start. This setting is not typically recommended because there is no indication that the FairCom product is not running.

  4. Run the modified sc create command.

Use sc.exe to manage a Windows service

This section provides commands for using sc.exe to create, remove, start, stop, query, and configure any Windows service (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_service).

Important

All sc commands must be run using an administrator account meaning you must open the Command Prompt with Run as administrator.

Create a service

The sc create command creates a Windows service to run FairCom Edge (see Silently install a Windows service).

Note

A space is required after binPath=, start=, and DisplayName=.

sc  create  "FairCom-EDGE"  binPath= "C:\FairCom\FairCom-Edge.windows.64bit.v4.0.0.45\server\faircom.exe"  start= auto  error=normal  DisplayName= "FairCom EDGE Server"

Query service

This command gets the status of FairCom Edge as a Windows service.

sc queryex fairCom-edge

Start service

This command starts FairCom Edge as a Windows service.

sc start fairCom-edge

Stop service

This command stops FairCom Edge as a Windows service.

sc stop fairCom-edge

Delete service

This command removes FairCom Edge as a Windows service.

sc delete fairCom-edge

Disable service

This command disables the Windows service so that it does not run when Windows boots.

sc config fairCom-edge start=disabled

Start service automatically

This command automatically starts the Windows service when the computer restarts.

sc config fairCom-edge start=auto

Start service automatically with a delay

This command delays the start the Windows service when the computer restarts.

sc config fairCom-edge start=delayed-auto

Start service manually

This command manually starts the Windows service rather than have it automatically start when the computer restarts.

sc config fairCom-edge start=demand

Change serviced description

This command allows you to change the Windows service description.

sc description fairCom-edge "FairCom Edge New Description"

Automatically restart the computer on service failure

When the Windows service fails to start during a computer restart, this command automatically restarts the computer using the last known good configuration.

sc config faircom-edge error=severe

Notify the user when the server fails to start the service

When the Windows service fails to start during a computer restart, this command has Windows show the user a dialog box explaining that the service failed to start.

sc config faircom-edge error=normal

Headless script to install a Windows service

This section provides a simple script that installs a FairCom product as a Windows service. It must be run as an administrator.

Before running the script:

  • Change the binPath to the location of the FairCom product on disk.

  • Change the name and description of the service if the product is not FairCom Edge.

Note

  • This script assumes you have already downloaded and unzipped the FairCom product. It also stops and removes the service in case it is already installed. This is useful when you need to remove a previous version of the product. It then creates a new service and starts it.

  • The service name is case insensitive.

Important

If you use a different name for the service, be sure to change the service name in the script.

sc stop fairCom-edge
sc delete fairCom-edge


sc create  "FairCom-EDGE"  binPath= "C:\FairCom\FairCom-Edge.windows.64bit.v4.0.0.45\server\faircom.exe"  start= auto  error=normal  DisplayName= "FairCom EDGE Server"
sc start fairCom-edge

Run multiple instances

  1. You can run multiple instances of FairCom on the same computer by configuring them to use different ports.

    Note

    Attempting to run a second instance of FairCom with the same ports as a running instance will cause the second instance to exit with errors.

  2. Manage any running instances of FairCom in Task Manager.

Linux

The FairCom server is a .tar file that you expand into a target folder on your Linux server. The target folder should be located somewhere your user has full permissions, such as user.

Run the FairCom server

  1. Navigate into the newly-installed server directory.

  2. Run the faircom executable or run the startserver script.

Stop the FairCom server

  1. Navigate into the newly-installed server directory.

  2. Run the stopserver script.

Run the server as a background process

  1. Navigate into the newly-installed server directory.

  2. Run the startserver script

Run the server in production

Run multiple instances

You can run multiple instances of FairCom on the same computer by configuring them to use different ports.

Note

Attempting to run a second instance of FairCom with the same ports as a running instance will cause the second instance to exit with errors.

Check for running instances of FairCom

  1. Run the command: ps -ef | grep faircom.

  2. Observe the response.

    • Two lines of code indicate there is a FairCom server running.

    • One line of code indicates there is no FairCom server running.

MacOS

The FairCom server is located within a .tar file that you expand into a target folder on your Mac. The target folder should be located somewhere your user has full permissions, such as Documents.

Run the FairCom server

  1. Navigate into the newly-installed server directory through FairCom-<product>.osx.<version>/Contents/Home/Server.

  2. Run the faircom executable or run the startserver script.

Stop the server

  1. Navigate into the newly-installed server directory.

  2. Run the stopserver script.

Run the server as a background process

  1. Navigate into the newly-installed server directory.

  2. Run the startserver script.

Run the server in production

  • FairCom recommends using systemd command.

  • Also see, Script to start and stop the server.

Run multiple instances

You can run multiple instances of FairCom on the same computer by configuring them to use different ports.

Note

Attempting to run a second instance of FairCom with the same ports as a running instance will cause the second instance to exit with errors.

Check for running instances of FairCom

  1. Run the command: -ef | grep faircom.

  2. Observe the response.

    • Two lines of code indicate there is a FairCom server running.

    • One line of code indicates there is no FairCom server running.

  3. Alternatively, run the Activity Monitor application and search for faircom.