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Flash Reference Guide

Aug 22, 2003

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The main part of this section is focused on installing Flash Communication Server. You can go to Macromedia’s web site to download the latest and greatest version. The web site you will want to hit is:

http://www.macromedia.com/software/flashcom/

The developers edition for Windows is under 10 Mb. I would strongly recommend downloading and installing a developers version of the software before you install the software onto a server. Both editions are identical with the exception that the server version can broadcast to more than ten users.

You will want to use the developers edition of the server so that you can become comfortable with the setup, testing and debugging of tools within the software.

The current release of Flash Communication Server is version 1.5. If you are used to using version 1.0 you will find few changes.

The major changes are the ability to broadcast live MP3 streams for online radios and conferencing tools, increased security and firewall protection through HTTP tunneling and better use of resources when it comes to broadcasting video.

With that aside the installation and setup is similar for all systems. When insert the CD or launch the downloaded installation software from the web site. In the following picture you can see the first screen for the installation. This version of the Server is being installed on a Windows XP Server. Before installing the Flash Communication Server I made sure that the Development computer is up to date with any security patches from Microsoft. It is a good idea to always make sure that your servers are fully and completely up to date with all patches before you install any major server software.

Figure 2 The Welcome Screen for the Windows XP Developer Edition of Flash Communication Server

The second screen you are presented with after you have selected the "Next" button is the License Agreement. You will need to select "Yes" to be able to install the software.

Figure 3 The Flash Communication Server License Agreement

The third screen asks where you would like to install the software. For development purposes you should save the software to the manufacturer suggestions. However, for a production server you should place the software in a different place such as on an extra hard drive. You do this to reduce the possibility of your server being "hacked" through any security violations.

Figure 4 Destination Folder for the Flash Communication Server

The fourth screen asks which version of the Flash Communication Server you wish to install. There are two versions: Typical and Custom. The Typical version is the easier of the two to install as it has fewer screens that you need to choose options from. The Custom Screen has more screens you need to choose from that give you great control.

Figure 5 In this screen you choose which version of the Communication Server you want to install

You will want to select the "Custom" version.

The Components screen comes up. There are two options you can choose from when installing from the Custom setup type: Server and Authoring Extensions.

Figure 6 Select Components Screen

If you are installing the Flash Communication Server on a Development computer you will need to select both options. If you are installing Communication Server on a dedicated server, such as Windows 2000 or Linux Server, you can de-select "Authoring Extensions" and keep only the "Server" option selected.

At the bottom of the screen you will how much of your server hard drive space will be used by installing the software.

You will then want to select the "Next" button.

The fifth screen you will need to review is the Ports screen. A port is a special communication device on your server. For instance, the default port for a web server is 80.

Figure 7 The Ports for the Server and Administration Console

The default port number for the server is 1935. This Flash Communication Server is different to a conventional web server. A web server delivers its feed to the Internet through a protocol called HTTP. The Flash Communication Server broadcasts with the RTMP protocol to transmit Communication Server objects. Objects that may be broadcast are SSAS, (Server Side ActionScript), AMF (Action Message Format), FSO (Remote ShareObjects), FLV (Flash Video) or MP3 audio.

The next screen allows you enter a username and password to your server.

Figure 8 Enter in a user name and password to access the administration tools for your server

You will want to select a cryptic username and password. For your password choose a combination of lower and upper case letters, with some numbers and special characters such as @,#,$, or %. This will make it much harder for the hackers to infiltrate your servers.

After you have entered your user name and password and confirmed the password you will need to select the "next" button.

Figure 9 Where to install administration tools

You have to use the Web Console to administer your Flash Communication Server. The installation tools allow you to choose Microsoft’s Internet Information Server as the default tool to broadcast the HTML pages needed to administer the Communication Server. If you want to save the files to a different location you can select the second option and choose a folder on your server. This allows you to choose different HTTP servers to manager you Admin Screens. Additional web servers have be Apache, WebSphere, etc..

The next screen asks if you want the Flash Communication Server Service to automatically start when ever the server is re-started. You will want to select this check box.

Figure 10 Automatically Start the Flash Communication Server on re-boot of the server

The final screen gives you are run down of the settings you have set.

Figure 11 Automatically Start the Flash Communication Server on re-boot of the server

You will now have a screen that shows you the server software is being installed.

Figure 12 The Communication Server is being installed

Finally, the last screen tells you that Communication Server is installed and asks if you want to start the service.

After you have installed the Communication Server you will find that you now have some additional tools on your computer. To begin with, if you open Flash MX you will see that you now have some new Components in the Components Panel. The new set of Components is the Communication Components.

Figure 13 Flash Communication Components Set

There are 16 components. These components form the building blocks for many of your Flash Communication Server Applications. You will also find that there is a new Panel installed within Flash MX. The new Panel is the Communication App Inspector.

Figure 14 Flash Communication Components Set

In addition to all of the new developer Component tools you will also find the new Communication App Inspector.

Figure 15 Flash Communication Components Set

The Flash Communication App Inspector allows you to view the current applications running on a server. With this tool you can view the status and activity level for Communication Servers without having to be physically at the server.

Finally, you will also find that the Reference Panel now has a complete new section devoted to Actions you can apply from the Flash Player to the Communication Server.

The Server also has an interface you can connect to. The interface is through a web browser. The interface tools themselves are all web based. You will find that web tools can be connected to from you desktop in the Macromedia Flash Communication Server programs folder.

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