ZfD Application Management provides users with the ability to run applications, install applications, and verify (repair) applications while disconnected from NDS. To enable a user to run, install, or verify Notepad while disconnected, complete the tasks in the following sections:
Before an application can be run, installed, or verified on a disconnected workstation, it must be marked as being a disconnectable application. By default, when you create an Application object, the application is marked as disconnectable.
Marking an application as disconnectable does not necessarily mean that a user will be able to run the application when disconnected. Running the application also requires that the application be installed or cached on the workstation (for more information on caching, see Caching Notepad). If, however, an application is installed on a workstation but is not marked disconnectable, Application Launcher/Explorer will not display the application icon when disconnected.
Applications that are run from the network or are dependent upon network resources such as a database should not be marked disconnectable.
To verify that Notepad is disconnectable:
In ConsoleOne, right-click the Notepad Application object > click Properties.
On the Identification Icon page, verify that Disconnectable is checked.
Click OK (or Cancel).
When a workstation disconnects from NDS, Application Launcher/Explorer continues to display an Application object's icon if the application is installed (or cached) on the workstation. As part of the installation of a disconnectable application, Application Launcher/Explorer copies the application's NDS information to a hidden directory (C:\NALCACHE) on the workstation. This information, along with the installed application files, enables the user to run the application just like he or she would if connected to NDS.
To disconnect, you can use the Work Offline option provided with Application Launcher/Explorer. The Work Offline option causes Application Launcher/Explorer to ignore NDS even when the user is authenticated.
Make sure that Notepad is installed on the workstation.
At the user's workstation, right-click the Application Launcher/Explorer icon > click Work Offline.
Application Launcher/Explorer disconnects from NDS and refreshes the workstation to reflect the applications that are still available in disconnected mode. The Notepad icon should still be displayed in the same locations as when Application Launcher/Explorer is connected to NDS.
Double-click the Notepad icon to launch Notepad.
When you finish using Notepad, close it.
Right-click the Application Launcher/Explorer icon > click Work Online to reconnect to NDS.
If a user has not installed an application, you can make the application available for installation in disconnected mode. Or, if the application is already installed, you can make it possible for the user to verify or repair problems with the application.
This is accomplished by caching the application source files to a local drive (either the hard drive or portable media such as a Jaz drive or CD). Application source files are compressed to save space on the local disk.
You can enable users to cache their own applications, or you can force cache an application. The following sections use Notepad to explain these options.
IMPORTANT: The following sections require Notepad to be uninstalled before starting them. To uninstall Notepad, right-click the Notepad icon > click Uninstall.
Application Launcher/Explorer's Manage Applications dialog box lets users manage the applications that are installed or cached on their workstation. Using the dialog box, users can install, uninstall, cache, and remove cached applications.
By default, the Manage Applications dialog box is not available to users. To enable and use the dialog box:
In ConsoleOne, right-click the user's object > click Application Launcher > click Edit.
Click the User tab > select Enable Manage Applications Dialog > select Yes from the Setting list.
Click OK > click OK again to save the change.
At the user's workstation, make sure the NDS tree that contains the user's object is the primary tree (right-click the Novell icon in the system tray > click NetWare Connections > select a tree > click Set Primary).
Right-click the Application Launcher/Explorer icon > click Refresh.
Right-click the Application Launcher/Explorer icon > click Manage Applications.
The Manage Applications dialog box opens with the Install Applications tab displayed.
Click the Cache Applications tab.
Notepad appears in the Cache Applications to Install/Verify While Disconnected list. This list includes all applications that you can cache to your local drive.
Check the Notepad box to select Notepad > click Apply.
Notepad is moved from the Cache Application to Install/Verify While Disconnected list to the Remove Applications from Cache list, indicating that it has been added to the cache. To verify that Notepad was cached, you can use Windows Explorer to look in the C:\NALCACHE\NDS_tree_name\.Notepad.context directory. If the application is cached, this directory will contain an INSTALL directory.
NOTE: NALCACHE is a hidden directory. To see the directory, Windows Explorer must be configured to view hidden directories and files. In Windows Explorer > click the View menu > Folder Options > View. Under Hidden Files, select Show All Files > click OK.
If you plan to complete the steps in the next section to see how to force an application to be cached, select Notepad (in the Remove Applications From the Cache list) > click Apply. Otherwise, skip to Installing Notepad from the Cache.
To force Notepad to be cached locally:
In ConsoleOne, right-click the Notepad Application object > click Properties.
Click the Associations tab.
In the Associations list, select the user for whom you want to cache the application > check the Force Cache box (on the same line as the user).
Click OK.
The next time Application Launcher/Explorer refreshes on the user's workstation, the application will be cached to the C:\NALCACHE directory.
To force a refresh, right-click the Application Launcher/Explorer icon on the user's workstation > click Refresh.
To verify that Notepad was cached, use Windows Explorer to look in the C:\NALCACHE\NDS_tree_name\.Notepad.context directory.
If the application is cached, this directory will contain an INSTALL directory. You can also use the Manage Applications dialog box, discussed in Enabling Users to Cache Applications, to verify that Notepad is cached.
NOTE: NALCACHE is a hidden directory. To see the directory, Windows Explorer must be configured to view hidden directories and files. In Windows Explorer > click the View menu > Folder Options > View. Under Hidden Files, select Show All Files > click OK.
Once an application has been cached to a user's workstation, the user can install the application when he or she needs it.
To install Notepad from the cache:
Make sure Notepad is uninstalled. To do so, right-click the Notepad icon > click Uninstall > click Yes
Disconnect from NDS. To do so, right-click the Application Launcher/Explorer icon > click Work Offline.
After Application Launcher/Explorer has disconnected, double-click the Notepad icon.
or
Right-click the Application Launcher/Explorer icon > click Manage Applications > select Notepad in the Install Applications list > click OK.