Help me understand the configuration files and templates

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greavette
Posts: 28
Joined: Mon Jun 13, 2016 2:26 am

Help me understand the configuration files and templates

Post by greavette »

Hello Team,

I'd like to better understand best practice when it comes to setting up my wtware environment. I use Raspberry Pi (4's) where my plan is to have the configuration file for wtware installed onto each SD card. But then I want each Pi thin client to be able to receive new configuration entries when necessary go forward. Please review the following points and questions to make sure I'm planning this out properly.

First:
I plan to use a generic sd configuration file for basic config entries. This would be for entries such as:
Timezone
vnc settings
infobox
onerror

Second:
I then will create templates for each thin client for settings that are unique to those thin clients. Such as:
user id
server to connect too
clienthostname


In this the correct way to use/setup wtware configuration files?

Some more questions for you now:

Reading your documentation I see I can add a menu to each Pi thin client. I do this using the wtware configurator 'Text' tab. How does this work exactly then? It seems I can use templates for my configuration settings and I can also use text (like in this Text tab). Is the text added to the Text tab not shown in any template then? It's outside of all templates?

Thank you.
akatik
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Re: Help me understand the configuration files and templates

Post by akatik »

greavette wrote: Tue Jan 07, 2020 11:11 pm
I'd like to better understand best practice when it comes to setting up my wtware environment. I use Raspberry Pi (4's) where my plan is to have the configuration file for wtware installed onto each SD card. But then I want each Pi thin client to be able to receive new configuration entries when necessary go forward. Please review the following points and questions to make sure I'm planning this out properly.

First:
I plan to use a generic sd configuration file for basic config entries. This would be for entries such as:
Timezone
vnc settings
infobox
onerror

Second:
I then will create templates for each thin client for settings that are unique to those thin clients. Such as:
user id
server to connect too
clienthostname


In this the correct way to use/setup wtware configuration files?
I beleive that's the manual that will help you to understand wtware files structure: http://wtware.com/docs5/includes.html

If you're planning to store config on SD card, then you are to create different config.wtc for each terminal and place all these lines (from first section and from second section) into this file. For each SD.
If I were you I would tell terminal to download configs by network. Then using configurator I would place entries from your first list into all.wtc file, common config file. And into individual configs for each terminal I would place entries from second section.
greavette wrote: Tue Jan 07, 2020 11:11 pm Some more questions for you now:
Reading your documentation I see I can add a menu to each Pi thin client. I do this using the wtware configurator 'Text' tab. How does this work exactly then? It seems I can use templates for my configuration settings and I can also use text (like in this Text tab). Is the text added to the Text tab not shown in any template then? It's outside of all templates?
Text tab is just another way to edit configuration options. If you edit options in Text tab, these options are changed in another tabs also as you may see. But templates you may edit only by doubleclick-ing on template in the list of templates. Text tab is editing only individual terminal config file. You are editing this terminal options, menus, video settings. The same you are editing them in graphical way in other tabs.
greavette
Posts: 28
Joined: Mon Jun 13, 2016 2:26 am

Re: Help me understand the configuration files and templates

Post by greavette »

My plan is to support wtware remotely (I'm not onsite at the office that I plan to use wtware and thin clients). I also don't want to mix up dhcp servers in the office by running two. So my plan was as follows:

1. Create a basic configuration file that gets a thin client on the network and booted to a window with no VM's to connect to yet.
2. Remotely I will see the new Pi Thin client in wtware configurator and be able to assign the specific template to that Pi thin client so that workstation will connect to the Windows Server needed.
3. I then update the Pi Thin Client from wtware configurator so it gets the new configuration files. I reboot the Thin Client and confirm through VNC that it connected and works as needed.

In this way I can create a stack of SD cards with the basic configuration on each so if a workstation has an issue I can tell my hands and eyes resource onsite to simply plug in a new card and/or replace the Pi Thin client and I can configure that workstation remotely.

Can I do this from wtware? Will this plan work?

Thank you.
akatik
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Re: Help me understand the configuration files and templates

Post by akatik »

greavette wrote: Thu Jan 09, 2020 12:51 am My plan is to support wtware remotely (I'm not onsite at the office that I plan to use wtware and thin clients). I also don't want to mix up dhcp servers in the office by running two. So my plan was as follows:

1. Create a basic configuration file that gets a thin client on the network and booted to a window with no VM's to connect to yet.
2. Remotely I will see the new Pi Thin client in wtware configurator and be able to assign the specific template to that Pi thin client so that workstation will connect to the Windows Server needed.
3. I then update the Pi Thin Client from wtware configurator so it gets the new configuration files. I reboot the Thin Client and confirm through VNC that it connected and works as needed.
This plan would work if terminal would download it's configuration by network from your remote computer with wtware configurator.
Wtware configurator edits configurations only for configa downloaded by network.
If your config is stored locally you are not able to edit it using configurator.
greavette wrote: Thu Jan 09, 2020 12:51 am In this way I can create a stack of SD cards with the basic configuration on each so if a workstation has an issue I can tell my hands and eyes resource onsite to simply plug in a new card and/or replace the Pi Thin client and I can configure that workstation remotely.

Can I do this from wtware? Will this plan work?
To edit locally stored on SD configs you may use web-server - enter terminal IP in web-browser and you'll see interface with information about this terminal.
greavette
Posts: 28
Joined: Mon Jun 13, 2016 2:26 am

Re: Help me understand the configuration files and templates

Post by greavette »

I suppose what I'm looking for is the stability of running from SD card so that I'm not dependent upon getting my configuration from another computer. but I would also like the flexibility of using the wtware configurator to deploy a change easily to the Pi Thin client when necessary.

Can I setup (though the web-interface) on a Pi Thin client the ability to switch between using a config file on the SD Card or from the wtware configurator? I know if I'm in front of my monitor I can press Del to enter Setup and I can switch between how to save the config file on the Pi. But I support these Thin Client remotely and I can't get VNC to allow me to press Del to enter Setup. So the Web Interface is all I have to use.

My usecase is that each Pi Thin Client runs using a config file from the installed SD Card. This ensures that each Pi Thin Client will work independently from a problem with my wtware server running configurator. In the event I do want to make a change to a Pi Thin client, it would be nice to be able to make the change through the wtware configurator, push out the new config file to the Pi Thin Client. Is this possible and if so...how do I do this?

Thank you.
akatik
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Re: Help me understand the configuration files and templates

Post by akatik »

greavette wrote: Fri Jan 10, 2020 9:41 pm Can I setup (though the web-interface) on a Pi Thin client the ability to switch between using a config file on the SD Card or from the wtware configurator?
No.
greavette wrote: Fri Jan 10, 2020 9:41 pm This ensures that each Pi Thin Client will work independently from a problem with my wtware server running configurator.
WTware saves downloaded from server config file on every boot. If problem is "wtware server switched off", WTware displays warning and continues to boot with config it downloaded on previous boot.
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