Smart Client Technology = Click-Once Deployment = XCopy Deployment

Introduction

• 100% managed Applications can be deployed to remote systems automatically.
• Just tell your end user to go to a URL and the application will deploy/install itself.
• The .NET Framework provides built in security to limit remote application execution without proper authorization.
• All of the OPC Systems.NE components are Smart Client ready.
• COM or legacy ActiveX controls are not Smart Client compatible.

See for yourself...

To experience a Smart Client application select the link below:

RUN LIVE SMART CLIENT`DEMO APPLICATION NOW OVER THE INTERNET

Here's how to do it yourself (step-by-step)

• Develop your own application using any OPC Systems.NET component(s)
• Use any Microsoft Visual Studio.NET 2008, 2005, 2003 including the Express Editions.
• Create a WinForm application using OPC Controls.NET, OPC Trend.NET, or OPC Alarm.NET components connected to your own OPC Systems Service.

Visual Studio.NET 2005 and 2008 Click Once Deployment

Visual Studio.NET 2005 and 2008 makes Smart Client deployment even easier with a deployment wizard for the Project you wish to deploy.

Step 1

Make sure IIS is installed and running on the system you wish to deploy to.

Step 2

In Visual Studio select the Properties of the project you wish to deploy.

Next select the Publish tab to view the Click Once deployment section.

Step 3

Set the Publish Location to the local or remote system that is running IIS.

Step 4

Set the initial Publish Version and either leave the automatic increment or disable the feature and set it manually each time you want to make an update to the application.

Step 5

Select the Publish Wizard button to begin the steps of deploying the application.

Step 6

Determine if the application will be installed remotely to run on each system even if the server is not reachable or if the application will only be available with the server is online.

Step 7

Confirm that the deployment virtual directory is correct and select Finish.

Step 8

Open port 58723 on all systems that will be communicating together that have a firewall enabled.

On each OPC Systems Service system that you wish to connect to and each remote system you will be running the application from add TCP port number 58723 if a firewall is enabled.

For Windows XP SP2 Select Control Panel-Windows Firewall.

• Select the Add Port button.
• Enter a Name and the Port Number 58723.
• Use the Change scope button to limit the IP range to the systems that will be communicating together.

Step 9

From any remote client system simply open url of the deployment server publish page using a web browser and select the Install button.

With Smart Client deployment you can now easily deploy updates to one location and make updates just to the one deployment server and all remote users automatically receive the updates on the next time they run the system.

Step 10

You are now ready to run the application from all remote PCs that you performed Steps 2 and 3.

When the application is installed for offline/online deployment each time it runs it connects to the deployment server to see if there is a newer version available. The user is prompted to install the update or ignore and continue to run the application.

Simply run the installed Example.exe on any of the remote systems with network connectivity.

From the Example application select Network Node from the pull down menu to enter the Node Name or IP Address of any system with OPC Systems Service running.

Select any of the menu buttons to view and control data from the source OPC Systems Service.

Notice that the application is running on the remote PC without the files on the PC.

Also the communications to the source system is dynamically set with the Network Node dialog. Feel free to change the Network Node to any system that is running the OPC Systems Service with the DemotTags configuration.

With OPC Systems.NET you can easily build networked applications that connect to multiple licensed OPC Systems Services. You can either programmatically set the Network Node as in the Example application or simply set the component Tag properties to include the desired Network Node.

The user interface is far superior than a web browser, you are truly running the application on the Remote system.

Now that all of the application files are in one directory it is very easy to make updates to the one directory and all remote systems run the same common updated application, versioning has never been easier.

Visual Studio.NET 2003

Although possible to run applications as a Smart Client on systems with .NET Framework 1.1 only, you can see it is easier to use the .NET Framework Click Once deployment that is included in Visual Studio 2005 and 2008.

There are a few simple steps to deploy an application as a Smart Client developed with Visual Studio.NET and the .NET Framework 1.1.

  ·     Share the directory containing the application you wish to deploy.

  ·     Use the Microsoft .NET Framework Configuration tool on all remote systems to Trust the application and its dependent DLLs.

  ·     Allow execution of the application through any installed Firewall.

The following example walks you through a complete Smart Client execution for a Visual Studio.NET 2003 application. These instructions are also listed in the OPC Systems.NET help file installed with OPC Systems.NET.

You will first need to download OPC Systems.NET and install it on a PC.

The Example application installed with OPC Systems.NET is a Smart Client compatible application demonstrating remote connectivity to any OPC Systems.NET Service. The application includes OPC Controls.NET, OPC Trend.NET, OPC Alarm.NET, and the OPC Systems configuration component. Perform the following steps to setup the Example application for Smart Client Deployment.

Step 1

Share the directory where the Example application resides.

By default this would be C:\Program Files\EEI\OPC Systems.NET\Example\bin\.

Step 2

Open port 58723 on all systems that will be communicating together that have a firewall.

On each OPC Systems Service system that you wish to connect to and each remote system you will be running the application from add TCP port number 58723 if a firewall is enabled.

For Windows XP SP2 Select Control Panel-Windows Firewall.

• Select the Add Port button.
• Enter a Name and the Port Number 58723.
• Use the Change scope button to limit the IP range to the systems that will be communicating together.

Step 3

On all remote systems that will be running the Smart Client Example application use the Microsoft .NET Framework Configuration tool to Trust the Example application.

Select Control Panel-Administrative Tools-Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 Configuration. (Please note that if you do not see the Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 or 2.0 Configuration tool install the .NET Framework in the operating system.)

Select Runtime Security Policy.

Use the Increase Assembly Trust Task to add all of the files from the shared network folder on the hosting system from Step 1.

Select each file from the shared network folder one by one.

Set the level of minimum security to Full Trust.

Select Finish and repeat the Increase Assembly Trust Task for all of these files in the shared folder.

Step 4

You are now ready to run the application from all remote PCs that you performed Steps 2 and 3.

Simply run Example.exe from the shared network folder on the server PC.

From the Example application select Network Node from the pull down menu to enter the Node Name or IP Address of any system with OPC Systems Service running.

Select any of the menu buttons to view and control data from the source OPC Systems Service.

Notice that the application is running on the remote PC without the files on the PC.

Also the communications to the source system is dynamically set with the Network Node dialog. Feel free to change the Network Node to any system that is running the OPC Systems Service with the DemotTags configuration.

With OPC Systems.NET you can easily build networked applications that connect to multiple licensed OPC Systems Services. You can either programmatically set the Network Node as in the Example application or simply set the component Tag properties to include the desired Network Node.

The user interface is far superior than a web browser, you are truly running the application on the Remote system.

Now that all of the application files are in one directory it is very easy to make updates to the one directory and all remote systems run the same common updated application, versioning has never been easier.