Setup

SETUP

This is a very brief description of how LBL is setup. It contains both more and less information than you may actually need. This "manual" mode does not make use of our INSTALL program, which is the ideal way to get going.

First, make a LBL directory tree on your hard drive:


     c:
     cd \
     md \lbl
     md \lbl\diagnose
     md \lbl\utils
     md \lbl\spool
     md \lbl\spool\files

If you have our distribution disk, put it into drive A: and type the following:


     c:
     cd \
     md \lbl
     cd \lbl
     xcopy  a:\*.*   /s

All files will be copied to C:.

We include a program called MAKE which is even easier. Again, if you have our distribution disk, put it into drive A: and type the following:


     a:
     make

You will be asked what your target drive is. Answer "C". All files will be copied.

Now, two very simple setups will be shown.

SETTING UP LBL ON ETHERNET, NE2000

First, we must refer to one of your computers as node 1 and the other as node 2. This is arbitrary. We assumed that both ethernet cards are NE2000 compatible and are set to i/o address 300H and IRQ 15. If this is not good for you then we'll be more specific a little further on.

We must modify AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS on both computers.

On "node1" add to the bottom of CONFIG.SYS:


  lastdrive=z
  device=c:\lbl\netbshar.sys lpt2 lpt1 on:2 
  device=c:\lbl\net00000.sys #1 "Node_1"

On "node2" add to the bottom of CONFIG.SYS:


  lastdrive=z
  device=c:\lbl\netbshar.sys lpt2 lpt1 on:1 
  device=c:\lbl\net00000.sys #2 "Node_2"

On "node1" and "node2" add to the bottom of AUTOEXEC.BAT:


  c:\lbl\net8
  c:\lbl\eth_link eth:300 int119
  c:\lbl\net21  handles:100  wait:90,1

(Wait:90,1 is how long the lan waits for a timeout, and how many tries. 90 is 90/18.2 seconds, 1 is 1 try)

Reboot the computers.

Go to "node 1". At the DOS prompt type:


     c:
     cd /lbl
     LBL MAP H: to #2's C:

Now, cross your fingers, and type:


     DIR H:

Hopefully you will get a directory of the other computer's C: drive.

This is a very simple example. More complex setups should use special text files to specify certain things about how your computers are connected and how you want to access them.

Those text files are:


     NODELIST.LBL
     DRIVLIST.x
     CONNLIST.x

     (the "x" is the node number, i.e. on node 2 use DRIVLIST.2)

These files can be created with any wordprocessor which supports ascii files (like the msdos EDIT). They must all be in the LBL "home" directory, which is usually: C:\LBL.

All these files use a simple and rather free format.

NODELIST.LBL should look like this:


     Node#    Name
     ------   ----------------------
     1        John's computer
     2        The server

Notice there is a "heading" line which tells humans what the columns are all about (LBL ignores the header lines), and then there is a line composed of only dashes ("-") and spaces (" "). This line specifies the columns which are to follow, that is, where the columns are lined up and how many columns there are.

NODELIST needs exactly two columns. The first column is the node number, and the second column is the node name. After this line there are any number of rows of data, in this case, one row for each computer on the network.

Actually, all of this information is completely arbitrary. You can call the computers by any name and any number you wish. (Just remember that node numbers must be anything from 1 to 254.) LBL itself cares only about the numbers. It uses this file to look up the name you'd like to associate with a particular node number.

This file is not needed at all in very simple setups. But it is always a good idea to have it.

INSTALL automatically creates this file so in most cases you don't have to worry about it. But since we are ignoring INSTALL for the moment, it's best if we let you in on some tedious details.

The second file you should know about is DRIVLIST.x.

DRIVLIST should look something like this:


     Drive  Node#  Nodename                  Drive/path 
     -----  -----  ------------------------  -----------------------------
     G:     2      Jack                      C:                                
     H:     3      Jill                      D:\UTILITIES

Notice that this file's structure is similar to NODELIST. It tells LBL what to do with network drive letters. Let's say that this file is on node "1". It is telling the network that you want to create two new drive letters: G: and H:. When you use letter G:, you really are wanting to access Jack's C: drive, and when you use letter H:, you really are wanting to access Jill's D: drive, directory UTILITIES. Each time you boot your computer this is how you want things to start. (They can be changed on-the-fly with the LBL.COM program later).

The last file you should know about is CONNLIST.x. It looks like this:


     To get to Node:          Use Link Module:   Route Thru node:
     ### Name (of Node)       ### Name (of LINK) ### Name (of Routing Node)
     --- -------------------- --- -------------- --- -----------------------
     1   bigwin               50  ETHERNET
     2   tower 386            
     3   open 486             50  ETHERNET

This file is structured as above. Notice that there are two heading lines. The fact is, heading lines are ignored by LBL. There can be any number of them, including zero. It looks for the first line that has dashes.

This file tells LBL how to reach another node. In cases where you are using all ETHERNET, this file is simple. All nodes use the ethernet. But LBL is very flexible. It can mix ethernet with parallel port connections. Then this file becomes very necessary.

The file itself is hard to explain. If you are interested, look at out "expert" installation examples. INSTALL creates the CONNLIST files automatically.

It's usually best to let LBL.COM create and modify the CONNLIST and DRIVELIST files. This is a special purpose full screen editor. It not only modifies these files for you, it allows you to change the setup without actually changing the "default" values that these files represent. You can also change printer redirection.

To run LBL.COM and modify a drive mapping, just type:

LBL

Hit , scroll down to the appropriate drive, and enter the target node and path. The node can be specified in the node number column, or in the node name column. Part of the name will usually do. Exit by hitting three times. Changes take immediate effect, but they are not permanent. To make them last you should hit over "Save Defaults" prior to escaping from LBL.COM.

Temporary redirection can also be done in the command line mode:


     LBL MAP G: to #1's D:
          or
     LBL UNMAP G:

LBL has many other functions, including printer redirection, connectin management, and password protection, but we won't go into that here.

TESTING THE HARDWARE

There is a handy test included called ETHTEST. Run it on both computers at the same time. It will ask for a node number. Give the node number of the computer where you are typing. On the left side of the screen is a matrix of dots. Here you should see an "X" from the other computer and an "S" for itself.

Type "T" for the transmit test. This will send packets to the other computer.

This test uses only the hardware. It does not need the network setup at all so it will verify the cards are talking.

ASSUMPTIONS

The above setup assumed certain ethernet parameters. If you have others, change the parameters on the ETH_LINK line in AUTOEXEC.BAT.

The original assumption:


          \lbl\eth_link  eth:300  int119

INT119 refers to the CPU vector, not the IRQ, so if using:


                Irq2  = INT10
                Irq3  = INT11
                Irq4  = INT12
                Irq5  = INT13
                Irq7  = INT15
                Irq8  = INT112
                Irq9  = INT113
                Irq10 = INT114
                Irq11 = INT115
                Irq12 = INT116
                Irq13 = INT117
                Irq14 = INT118
                Irq15 = INT119  <-- assumption is irq11

The ETH:300 refers to the i/o address. If your card is jumpered to i/o address 320, set the parameter likewise:


     eth:320

or any address...

SERIAL SETUP

On serial connection we assume both COM ports are COM2 using irq3. If this is wrong you will have to change this setup. More on this later. First, we must refer to one of your computers as node 10 and the other as node 20. This is arbitrary, but it keeps the setup separate from the ethernet configuration.

We must modify AUTOEXEC.BAT and CONFIG.SYS on both computers.

On "node10" add to the bottom of CONFIG.SYS:


  lastdrive=z
  device=c:\lbl\netbshar.sys lpt2 lpt1 on:20 
  device=c:\lbl\net00000.sys #10 "Node_10"

On "node20" add to the bottom of CONFIG.SYS:


  lastdrive=z
  device=c:\lbl\netbshar.sys lpt2 lpt1 on:10 
  device=c:\lbl\net00000.sys #20 "Node_20"

On "node10" and "node20" add to the bottom of AUTOEXEC.BAT:


  c:\lbl\net8
  c:\lbl\com_link com2 int11 linkto:all
  c:\lbl\net21  handles:100  wait:90,1

-- then reboot and try a DIR H: Hopefully this will work. If not, try the COMTEST and make sure this hardware test passes.

More info on debugging can be found in the tech support portion of this site.

ASSUMPIONS

The above setup assumed COM2 parameters. If you have others, change the parameters on the COM_LINK line in AUTOEXEC.BAT.

The assumption:


          \lbl\COM_link com2 int11

INT11 refers to the CPU vector, not the IRQ, so if using:


                Irq2  = INT10
                Irq3  = INT11  <-- my assumption is irq3
                Irq4  = INT12
                Irq5  = INT13
                Irq7  = INT15
                Irq8  = INT112
                Irq9  = INT113
                Irq10 = INT114
                Irq11 = INT115
                Irq12 = INT116
                Irq13 = INT117
                Irq14 = INT118
                Irq15 = INT119

COM1 is usually:


          \lbl\COM_link com1 int12

If using a com3 or com4, you might need to enter the hardware address:


          \lbl\COM_link com3=3e8 int15

If using different comports, CONNLIST.x must be changed, either manually with a wordprocessor, or though LBL.COM (Connections screen)

EXAMPLE CONNLIST.10:


To get to Node:              Use Link Module:     Route Thru node:
### Name (of Node)           ### Name (of LINK)   ### Name (of Routing Node)
--- ------------------------ --- ---------------- --- ------------------------
10  Node_10                   
20  Node_20                  22  COM2

When using COM1 on node 10, Change to:


To get to Node:              Use Link Module:     Route Thru node:
### Name (of Node)           ### Name (of LINK)   ### Name (of Routing Node)
--- ------------------------ --- ---------------- --- ------------------------
10  Node_10                   
20  Node_20                  21  COM1

This says, from node 10's point of view, I am using COM1 to reach node 20.

LBL has a built-in router so this routing info is generally required since it is likely that several drivers (ethernet and serial) could be loaded on the same node. Some nodes would be reached via ethernet, some via serial.

If using Win95 check the README.DOC file and our tech support page.

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