Dynamic-CD server: What's new

Dynamic-CD

What's new in the V2.6 release

Support for cookie dictionaries
Cookie dictionaries are now fully supported, providing the following functionality :

<%
  Response.Write "Number of cookies = "
  Response.Write Request.Cookies.Count
  FOR EACH thing IN Request.Cookies
    IF Request.Cookies( thing).HasKeys THEN
      Response.Write "<BR>Number of keys = "
      Response.Write Request.Cookies(thing).Count
      FOR EACH key IN Request.Cookies( thing)
        Response.Write "<BR>" + thing
        Response.Write "(" + key + ") = "
        Response.Write Request.Cookies( thing)(key)
      NEXT
    ELSE
      Response.Write "<BR>" + thing + " = " 
      Response.Write Request.Cookies( thing)
    END IF
  NEXT
%>

Support for cookie domains

Cookie domains are now set by Dynamic-CD to the same value as the realm parameter set by Dynamic-CD-Wizard. This keeps cookies generated by different Dynamic-CDs separate.

If you try to set the domain parameter by hand :

<%
  Response.Cookies( "myCookie") = "myCookieVal"
  Response.Cookies( "myCookie").domain = "myDomain"
%>

the value will be ignored and a warning will be generated in debug mode.

Improved emulation of ASP
The compatibility between Dynamic-CD's ASP and ASP has been thoroughly checked. Dynamic-CD now runs large ASP sites (see below) without problems of compability. You should check that Dynamic-CDs created with previous versions run correctly with Version 2.6.

Tested on large ASP systems
With all the major features of ASP now being supported by Dynamic-CD's ASP, large websites such as COMERSUS e-commerce and SNITZ forum run under Dynamic-CD without modification.

Most ASP websites can now be transferred to Dynamic-CD without change.

Sites that use features not currently supported by Dynamic-CD can be easily modified (see Case Studies for examples).

Improved debug support
Dynamic-CD-Wizard now provides settings for running Dynamic-CD in debug or production mode.

In debug mode, Dynamic-CD now generates a log file including details of files served, scripts processed, parsing and run-time errors, and warnings. Use these details to track down development problems. In production mode, only fatal errors are shown to the user.

Support for Windows XP fast user switching
Basic support is now provided for Windows XP fast switching. Dynamic-CD uses resources that cannot be shared between users and so, when a fast user switch occurs, Dynamic-CD terminates cleanly.

What's new in the V2.5.2 release

Modified licence arrangements
We have modified our licensing arrangements so that for the same price, more CDs can be produced. Look at our licence and pricing details for further information.

Stop Dynamic-CD under script control
The Server.StopServer method terminates Dynamic-CD after all pending browser requests have been honoured. This is an automated alternative to informing the user to stop Dynamic-CD by clicking on the icon in the tray,

<%
  ' other code

  ' then terminate Dynamic-CD
  Server.StopServer
%>

Minimal startup - using Dynamic-CD "in the background"
The Dynamic-CD-Wizard (Advanced Options) can be used to have the bowser display the startupURL direct from the CD. Dynamic-CD remains running in the background.

Use this facility to display pages from the CD without the intervention of Dynamic-CD. This technique allows you to structure your CD with a portion that does not need the functionality of Dynamic-CD and to call on Dynamic-CD only when needed.

If, for example, a given platform is not guaranteed to support the required Dynamic-CD functionality - vanilla Windows 95, say, does not support the Scripting.FileSystemObject - the CD can be structured so that only those portions that depend on Dynamic-CD functionality are unavailable on this more limited platform.

Example :

[init] serverRoot=\test startFile=/default.asp cdFile=\index.htm

The path cdFile = \index.htm is relative to the root directory of the Dynamic-CD server. Dynamic-CD ignores startFile=\default.asp and opens a browser page showing the HTML file <drive>:\test\index.htm.

Notes :

The cdFile path to an HTML file must not contain a drive letter - the drive letter depends on which drive the CD is inserted into. Dynamic-CD will determine this drive.
Files outwith the serverRoot address space can in fact also be reached as in the following example :
[init] cdFile=\..\index.htm
The Dynamic-CD-Wizard (Advanced Options) can be used to set the value of cdFile.
If the CD is ejected while Internet Explorer is showing a file not served by Dynamic-CD, such as a cdFile, some versions of Internet Explorer close. When using cdFiles, it is perhaps best to use Dynamic-CD-Wizard's "Advanced Settings" to terminate on CD removal.

Swapping in and out of Dynamic-CD
If Dynamic-CD is subsequently required to process a script, call Dynamic-CD with its full URL and port :


<FORM METHOD=POST ACTION="http://127.0.0.1:8080/default.asp">
<INPUT TYPE=submit VALUE="Process script">
</FORM>

To return to running without Dynamic-CD processing, call an HTML file as follows :

<%
  cd_drive = left( Request.ServerVariables( _
    "APPL_PHYSICAL_PATH"), 1)
  Response.Redirect( "file:///" + cd_drive + "|/index.html")
%>

A more elegant way of achieving the same result is given in the next section.

Additional Request.ServerVariables
The new Request.ServerVariables( "ROOT_DIR_FILE_URL") value returns the file URL of the Dynamic-CD server root directory.

This value can be used to show a file directly from the CD without the file being served by Dynamic-CD.

This value can be used in place of the code shown above in the previous section on "Minimal startup" :

<%
  Response.Redirect( _
    Request.ServerVariables( "ROOT_DIR_FILE_URL") &_
    "/index.html")
%>

In this example,
Request.ServerVariables( "ROOT_DIR_FILE_URL") + "/index.html"
returns "file:///" + <cd_drive> + "|" + <serverRoot> + "/index.html"
where <cd_drive> is the drive on which Dynamic-CD is running and <serverRoot> is the Dynamic-CD root directory.

Note - the latest edition of Internet Explorer for Windows XP considers a request from a http URL to a file URL to be a security risk and does not support the above.

No help screen on startup
The Dynamic-CD-Wizard (Advanced Options) can be used to suppress the Dynamic-CD helpScreen.

Browser start-up
Dynamic-CD now starts by showing the first page in a new browser window, rather than by replacing the current browser page.

Modifed action on CD removal
If terminate on CD removal is checked (Dynamic-CD-Wizard's "Advanced Settings"), Dynamic-CD terminates on removal of the CD.

The flags terminateOnCDremoval and ignoreCDchange are mutually exclusive; if neither is checked, dialogs ask the user to re-insert the CD.

Custom features for professional licence holders
Dynamic-CD-Wizard now provides custom features for professional licence holders. On the "Advanced Settings" page,

The initial "Dynamic-CD is starting up" splash screen can be disabled
The Dynamic-CD tray icon can be disabled

If the tray icon is disabled, Dynamic-CD can be stopped either on CD removal (see above) or under script control using the the Server.StopServer method.

Dynamic-CD : the web server on CD

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