README.wduainst Windows Directory User Agent (WDUA32) Release 2.1B Setup and Installation wduainst.exe is a self extracting zip file, together with an automatic setup program which will install WDUA. o FTP the file wduainst.exe (in binary) to your PC. The URL to the software is ftp://naic.nasa.gov/software/windows-dua/wduainst.exe. o In the file manager double click on the file wduainst.exe (or select run from the file menu) This will automatically extract the files needed to run and install WDUA. o Next double click on the setup.exe file to start the Setup Script. Follow the directions on the screen. o If you run into problems, email naic@nasa.gov. NOTE: WDUA 2.1b is a 32-bit only application. In order to use it you must either be running Windows NT or Windows 3.1 with WIN32S. Windows Directory User Agent Version 2.1b Overview WDUA is a tool for accessing the information stored in an X.500 directory. It's main purpose is to allow for easy searching of entries in the directory. In addition, WDUA also has the ability to both view and modify the information stored in those entries. WDUA uses the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) libraries put out by the Regents of the University of Michigan to talk to an LDAP server. DISCLAIMER: This software is provided "as is" and any express or limited warranties, including but not limited to the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, are hereby disclaimed. In no event shall the authors or their sponsors be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, exemplary, or consequential damages (including, but not limited to, procurement of substitute goods or services; loss of use, data, or profits; or business interruption) however caused and on any theory of liability, whether in contract, strict liability, or tort (including negligence or otherwise) arising in any way out of the use of this software, even if advised of the possibility of such damage. Features - General Full 32-bit Microsoft SDI application Resizable in vertical direction Setup program for easy installation Truly asynchronous operations Extremely configurable - No need to manually edit the .INI file Supports external libraries for viewing, modifying and creating entries via simple API Supports external libraries for parsing data returned from the X.500 server via simple API Uses simple authentication when binding to the LDAP server Maintains a constant connection to the server User configurable 'Hotlist' of X.500 distinguished names Remembers previous positions in the X.500 tree so going back is easy Uses user-definable map from X.500 names to 'Friendly Names' Features - Searching Support for LDAP filter file Scope (depth) can be set to one of three levels Searching can be exact or approximate Caching can be turned on or off User-friendly name searching Filter searching User-definable filters Smart automatically apply filter acts like a 'Browse' mode Timer shows how long current search is taking Features - Default Viewer Built-in in case no external viewers are used Can retrieve and display any or all attributes of an X.500 entry in a scrolling window Attribute names can be mapped to user-defined viewing names Separators can be used between attributes Resizable in any direction Features - Default Modifier Built-in in case no external modifiers are used Can retrieve and modify any or all attributes of an X.500 entry Can insert data from a file Features - Default Creator Built-in in case no external modifiers are used Uses Default Modifier to edit attributes and values Features - For Individual Attributes User-definable display name User-definable data type Ascii Binary Best guess Can be used as a filter Can be shown or not shown Can use external parser User-definable external parser file name User-definable external parser function name Can be displayed as one of six different types Single line Multi line Combo box Distinguished name Static text Button User-definable label when displaying as a button User-definable external application when displaying as a button Availability The most recent version of WDUA can always be obtained via anonymous ftp to naic.nasa.gov in the directory /software/windows-dua. The file to get is called wduainst.exe. Installation If you get the program in a .ZIP form, unzip it and run SETUP.EXE to install. If you get it in an .EXE form, run the .EXE and then run SETUP.EXE to install. Answer the questions presented and WDUA 2.1b will be installed on your system. Beta, Beta, Beta Every version of WDUA is beta. This is not to say that the program hasn't been used much or hasn't been tested. The reason that it is always beta is because it will probably never actually be a 'released' product. The reason for this is because it was developed under contract to NASA, and thus is in the public domain. To make sure that NASA has no liabilities due to the use of WDUA (Even though there is a disclaimer), it is put out as 'beta' software (If anything goes wrong, hey it's only beta). History WDUA can trace its lineage to a program called seXie (Simple Experimental X.500 Inquiry Engine) written by Mike Newell. seXie was designed to be a very basic X.500 directory lookup tool, which it was. The name, however, was a little too risque and was changed in a later version to piXie (PC Implementation of an X.500 Inquiry Engine). piXie kept the goal of a very basic X.500 directory lookup tool. piXie worked well as far as it went, but needed further enhancements. These further enhancements were handed over to Kevin Lussier. The ability to play audio and view jpegPhoto attributes was then added. But the demand for more features grew and it became more and more difficult to patch piXie to meet these needs. Thus, WDUA was written. The original WDUA (1.0b) used much of the same underlying code as piXie, but restructured and with a new interface. This allowed for the addition of such things as filters, user friendly name searches, LDAP configuration files and the ability to stop a search in progress. Shortly after WDUA 1.0b was introduced, the need arose for the ability to modify the information in the X.500 directory. Thus, WDUA 2.0b was written. The naming jump from v1.0 to v2.0 was justified because of the significant number of additions necessary to allow for modifications. In addition, the underlying code was rewritten from scratch and the interface was again heavily modified. The new enhancements were the ability to modify attributes and values of an entry, modify the relative distinguished name of an entry, create new entries or delete existing ones. Also, at this time, WDUA because a Win32 program. All coding was done under Windows NT and two separate version were compiled: One for Windows (16-bit) and one for Windows NT (32-bit dubbed WDUA 32). WDUA 2.1b is an upgrade that should significantly enhance ease of use of the program. On the surface, the interface has been changed from being a simple dialog box window (a design left over from the original seXie implementation) to a true Microsoft SDI program complete with a menu bar, toolbar and status bar. Also, the Browse window of past versions has been integrated into the main Search window. Browsing now consists of selecting the 'Automatically Apply Filter' checkbox which puts the program into "browse mode". In addition, a Preferences menu has been added that allows for the configuration of just about everything in the initialization file. The last major surface enchancement is the ability to use external libraries for viewing and modifying information. Underneath, several more significant changes have been made. Most notably is that WDUA now truly uses the asynchronous features of the LDAP library. Thus, for example, you can modify or view an entry while a search is being performed. This required a fundamental shift in the way in which WDUA talked to the LDAP server. Instead of using a polling method which checks for responses after a time limit expires, the new version lets the Winsock library tell it when information from the server is waiting to be received. This method should improve the performance and effeciency of the program. Currently, there are no immediate plans for any major upgrades to WDUA. Maintenance upgrades will of course be necessary when bugs are discovered, or when minor changes or enhancements are made. But for now, no significant modifications are in the works.