NetShow Theater Server Beta-3 Release Notes
Last reviewed: June 5, 1998 |
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BETA INFORMATION BETA INFORMATION BETA INFORMATION BETA
This article discusses a Beta release of a Microsoft
product. The information in this article is provided as-is
and is subject to change without notice.
No formal product support is available from Microsoft for
this Beta product. For information about obtaining support
for a Beta release, please see the documentation included
with the Beta product files, or check the Web location
from which you downloaded the release.
BETA INFORMATION BETA INFORMATION BETA INFORMATION BETA
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The information in this article applies to:
SUMMARYThe following are the Release Notes for Microsoft NetShow Theater Server version 1.0 beta-3.
MORE INFORMATIONThese release notes provide supplementary information to the Microsoft NetShow Theater Server documentation. Reading the documentation is essential. In addition, the NetShow Web site provides important late- breaking information. The Release Notes are divided into the following sections: General Information Setup Issues Administration Issues Hardware Issues Networking Issues NetShow Player Issues SDK Issues GENERAL INFORMATION
NetShow Theater Server Required Operating SystemNetShow Theater Server Beta 3.0 server components can only be installed under Microsoft® Windows NT® version 4.0. Installing under Microsoft® Windows NT® version 5.0 is not supported. Setup will not allow installation under Microsoft® Windows® 95 or Microsoft® Windows® 98 Beta.
Using the Documentation Set for NetShow Theater - NetShow Theater Server Getting Results
- NetShow Theater Server Planning Guide
- NetShow Theater Server Installation Guide
- NetShow Theater Server System Guide
- NetShow Theater Server Administration Guide
- NetShow Theater Server Administration and Client System Developer's
Kit (SDK)
All the documentation is provided in an HTML-Help file, and in .doc format
to be viewed or printed with Microsoft® Word version 7.0 or later.
The product documentation supplied with the Beta 3.0 release of NetShow® Theater Server describes the product to be released as NetShow Theater Server version 3.0. This document describes the differences between this beta product and its final release. From the administrative workstation, open the print.htm file located in the Program Files\Microsoft NetShow\sdk\Theater\print directory.
Changing Font Size in NetShow Theater Server DocumentationTo change the font size that appears in the NetShow Theater Server Documentation, use the following procedure: To change your font size: 1. Open Microsoft Internet Explorer version 4.01. 2. Click<> from the View menu. 3. Click Fonts. 4. Under Font Size, click the down arrow. 5. Select the font size range you want. 6. Click OK, returning to home page and closing Internet Explorer.
HTML Help Documentation Finds Non-Existent Topic in Some SearchesIn some searches, NetShow Theater Server Help returns a help topic labeled untitled. This is a non-existent topic (actually the table of contents) and should be ignored.
NetShow Theater Beta Software Is Date SensitiveThe NetShow Theater Server Beta 3.0 product will expire automatically at midnight on April 15, 1998. Any installed evaluation servers will remain in operation until halted. Once halted, after April 15, 1998, Beta servers will not initialize, or serve files to clients.
Time Taken for NetShow Theater Server Computers to StartThe amount of time required to start the title server and content server computers varies with the size of the NetShow Theater Server installation. For larger installations, the start time can be as much as 15 minutes. There is no progress indicator, nor are any additional messages passed to the console, although you may see disk activity on the servers.
Regedit Requires Careful UseWARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious system-wide problems that can require you to reinstall Windows NT to correct them. Microsoft cannot guarantee that any problems resulting from the use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use this tool at your own risk.NetShow Theater Server Is Optimized for a Specific Screen Resolution -------------------------------------------------------------------Administrator, product documentation, and SDK are formatted for an 800x600 resolution display.
NetShow Theater Server Requires a Web Browserhttp://www.microsoft.com/ie/ie40/download/ie4.htm http://www.microsoft.com/ie/ie40/download/ie4.htmNOTE: The NetShow Theater Server Administrator requires Microsoft® Internet Explorer 4.01 or later.
Beta 3.0 Server Requires Beta 3.0 PlayerYou must use NetShow Theater Player, which is supplied with the NetShow Theater Beta 3.0 server. You cannot use older versions of NetShow clients with the NetShow Theater Beta 3.0 server.
SETUP ISSUESSetup Requires Administrator Permissions ---------------------------------------Before running Setup to install NetShow Theater Server, you must verify that you have permission to administer each of the computers onto which you are installing. When installing to computers enlisted on a domain, be sure that your domain login is included in the administrator group of each computer before running NetShow Theater Server Setup. If installing from the Administrative Workstation, make sure you have local administrator privileges on every computer to which you are installing NetShow Theater Server components.
DCOM Can Fail on Multihomed or Multiple Network Card x86 ComputersUnder some circumstances, the distributed COM utilized by Setup can fail during the installation process. To correct this problem, install CIS COM from the \Theater\Supplement directory on the NetShow Theater Server compact disc. Copy this patch to a local drive before installing it.
Windows NT 4.0 CIS Client Support (BETA)IMPORTANT: To install CIS Client Support, you must start from a clean install of Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 3 for this beta. Future Windows NT service packs or QFEs are not guaranteed to be compatible with or install over this beta. At the end of this beta, you should expect to reinstall Windows NT 4.0. To install the Windows NT CIS Update, run the file Ntcis_i.exe.
DCOM Failure on Alpha When Installed RemotelyOn an Alpha platform computer with more than one network card, if you attempt to install NetShow Theater Server remotely, you must first uninstall the network card drivers for the secondary network cards. After installing NetShow Theater Server, you can reinstall these drivers.
Using Capacity PlannerA new Capacity Planner is available on the NetShow Theater Server Web site. With this tool, you can see the results of using different hardware configurations and software settings on video server performance. Use this tool to perform "what if" calculations when planning new installations or upgrades.
Setup Requires Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 3Setup only installs server components on computers running under Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 3 installed. Setup does not install NetShow Theater Server on computers with Windows NT 5.0 Beta or Windows 98 Beta.
Installing on a Low Bit Rate System (0.5 Megabit or 1 Megabit) on a Shared10-Megabit HubInstalling NetShow Theater Server in this configuration substantially increases the likelihood of lost blocks during title streaming. This degrades the performance of the titles being played on the client. Use of 10-megabit hubs is only supported on development systems.
ADMINISTRATION ISSUES
U.S.-only Version of Administrator Supported for Beta 3.0Only the U.S. version of NetShow Theater Administrator is functional for the Beta 3.0 release. The version 3.0 release will include support for other localized versions of this application.
No Error Is Reported When Title Server System Disk Is FullWhen the Title Server's system disk is full and you add titles using the Web Admin (or command line utility) there is no error message shown. It will appear that the titles were added correctly (initialized), they will show up in title view and you can stream the titles. BUT the next time the server is rebooted or Theater Server is shut down and restarted, these titles will be deleted due to invalid meta-data (due to lack of disk space in which to save them) on the Title Server.
Starting Video ServerThe amount of time required to start the Title Server and Content Server computers varies with the size of the NetShow Theater Server installation. For larger installations, the start time can be as much as 15 minutes. There is no progress indicator, nor are any additional messages passed to the console, although you may see disk activity on the servers.
Adding Content to the NetShow Theater Server from Multiple AdministrativeWorkstations SimultaneouslyFor Beta 3.0 release, NetShow Theater Server allows up to 10 simultaneous administrative connections to the same video server. However, attempting to add multiple titles to the same NetShow Theater Server simultaneously (using nstadd or multiple administration connections) can result in an error stating, "The Requested Resource is in Use." Adding multiple titles from several simultaneous administrative connections is not recommended for this Beta.
Maximum Title Length Is Limited to 24 HoursThe maximum title length is 24 hours. Longer titles can be made into shorter segments, and then played sequentially with an .asx file. For more information on .asx playlists, see "Content Administration" in the NetShow Theater Server System Guide.
NS Log Does Not Record Events at MidnightWhen Microsoft® Access displays the date field, the default format for Date/Time field does not display the time part if it is midnight. Work around this by setting the format of the field in the access .mdb file to another date format.- Open the Microsoft Access file. - Select the table, and click Design. - Click eventdate, and then click the format field. - Select m/d/yy hh:nn:ss AM/PM in the format field. - Save the changes.The EventDate field now displays the time even if it is midnight.
NS Log Produces Validation Error IncorrectlyAttempting to start monitoring a server with nslog from a computer that is not validated either as an administrator or a NetShow administrator on the NetShow Theater server will result in the following error being posted: "Service is not running or incorrect Media Server name." This error should read "User Authentication Failed."
Administrator Is Incompatible with Windows NT 5.0 BetaNetShow Theater Server Administrator requires Windows NT 4.0 and Service Pack 3. It does not function with Windows NT 5.0 Beta.
User Authentication CautionAfter an administrator has been authenticated by NetShow Theater Server, the administrator will remain authorized until he or she disconnects, regardless of changes to the Administrator Group.
Incorrect Bit Rate Is Displayed When Adding a TitleWhile adding a title, Administrator displays an inaccurate bit rate for the file. After the process is finished, and the page is refreshed, the correct bit rate is displayed.
HARDWARE ISSUES
Do Not Use Updated Adaptec SCSI DriversNetShow Theater software exhibits degraded performance using the latest Adaptec SCSI drivers available on Adaptec's Web site. Microsoft is working closely with Adaptec to resolve this issue. Until the problem is rectified, it is recommended that the default NT drivers, shipped with Service Pack 3, be used for the Adaptec 2940/3940 series cards.
NETWORKING ISSUES
Do Not Run Atmsetup.exe on the Administrative WorkstationAtmsetup includes an option to "configure a content loading station." This option should not be used. Atmsetup.exe should only be run on the content servers and ARP server (optional) when using the drivers supplied on the NetShow Theater Server CD.
ATM Configuration Disk Creation Procedure Is Wrong in Install GuideSubstitute the following procedure for that found in Configuring ATM Networks in the documentation.To create the ATM setup and drivers disks: You need two blank, formatted disks and disk labels for this procedure. 1. Go to any computer with a CD-ROM drive and a floppy disk drive. 2. Insert the NetShow Theater Server compact disc into the CD-ROM drive, and insert the first blank, formatted disk into drive A. Close the autorun application and open Windows Explorer.3. From the \x86\Atm (or \Alpha\Atm) directory on the compact disc, copy the contents of the \Atm directory to the formatted floppy disks. Copy the the disk1, and atmsetup files, and the atmarp and cmatm directories to one floppy disk. Then copy the disk1 file and fore directory to a second floppy disk.4. Do not write-protect the disks. Label them as appropriate; for example, ATM drivers for NetShow Theater Server. Ethernet Switch Requires Additional ConfigurationFor the Bay Networks 28115R, you must disable the LattisSwitch Enterprise 10/100 Mpbs Switch Port Flow Control. Improperly configured server network cards and Ethernet switches can cause networking problems. For example, many Ethernet switches have congestion control features that must be disabled for NetShow Theater. There also can be problems if a server's Ethernet network card and the switch port to which it is connected are configured differently.
Well-known ATMARP Addresses Are Not SupportedWell-known ATMARP addresses are not supported in the Beta 3.0 release of NetShow Theater Server.
DEC Alpha Computers Are Not Supported on an ATM NetworkYou cannot use DEC Alpha computers with NetShow Theater Server Beta 3.0 over an asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) network.
Setup Selects Network Card on Multihomed ComputerMultiple network cards are not supported for streaming by NetShow Theater Server Beta 3.0. If multiple network cards are found on the NetShow Theater Server installation(s) during setup, the Setup program determines which network cards are on the same subnet. If multiple network cards in each computer are on the same subnet, Setup selects the first network card based on the lowest device number.
Check Ethernet Network ParametersImproperly configured server network cards and Ethernet switches can cause networking problems. For example, many Ethernet switches have congestion control features that should be disabled for NetShow Theater Server. There also can be problems if a server's Ethernet network card and the switch port to which it is connected are configured differently. You must turn off congestion control, error correction, auto-sense/auto-negotiate of the link speed, and other traffic management features of your Ethernet switch software.
Cabletron MMAC Plus Switches for NetShow Theater Server Beta 3.0You must turn on IP MOBILITY in the firmware. The firmware must be Rev 1.05.03 or higher. The Cabletron MMAC PLUS Chassis requires the following hardware to avoid oversaturating the backplane: - To stream as many as 96 2-megabit clients, you need one 9H422-12 FastEthernet switch.- To stream as many as 192 2-megabit clients, you need two 9H422-12 Fast Ethernet switches.- To stream as many as 504 2-megabit clients, you need five 9H422-12 Fast Ethernet switches. ATM Network Interface IssuesThe following issues have been identified from testing the Beta 3.0 release of NetShow Theater Server:DHCP Because dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) is not supported for some ATM network cards, you must assign static IP addresses to all video client computers (for the Beta release, DHCP is supported only for Ethernet-based NetShow Theater Server systems). Adaptec ANA-5910 If you are using the Adaptec ATM NIC on your clients, download the NetShow Pro drivers (version 2.07M) from the Adaptec Web site (http://www.adaptec.com). NetShow Theater Server does not work with older Adaptec drivers. OLICOM OC-615x Among the ATM network cards used to test clients on Windows 95 and Windows NT computers are OLICOM OC-6151 and OC-6152 ATM network cards. These network cards default to using ATM local area network (LAN) emulation, and must be set explicitly to use Classical IP over ATM. To change the setting on a network card to Classical IP over ATM, create a configuration file named Oc-615x.cfg. On Microsoft Windows 95, this file is placed in \Windows\System, and on Windows NT, it is placed in \Winnt\System32\Drivers. You must specify some additional parameters, such as the MTU size and UNI signaling version. Specifying these additional parameters is critical for correct operation of the ATM network card. Use the sample configuration file below if you plan to use the OLICOM ATM network card. You must modify the ATMARP server address to the ATMARP server on your ATM network. ; * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ; O L I C O M RFC1577 (CLASSICAL IP OVER ATM) C O N F I G U R A T I O N ; ; One Classical IP (RFC1577) virtual adapter, SVC operation. ; LAN type default to Token-ring, to achieve RFC1577 framesize 9180. ; ; Windows (95/NT) Operation: ; -------------------------- ; Make sure the IP protocol is bound to the ATM adapter, and the IP number ; is configured. Optionally unbind other protocols (IPX, NetBEUI, ...) ; On Windows NT, make sure the LAN type is set to Token-ring. ; ; Novell Netware Operation: ; -------------------------- ; LOAD OCA1PODI SLOT=nnn FRAME=TOKEN-RING_SNAP CHANNEL=1 ; BIND IP OCA1PODI ADDRESS=www.xxx.yyy.zzz ; ; * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * DefineAdapter UniVersion Uni3.1 DefineVirtualAdapter ClassicalIp MtuSize 9180 ArpServer 47 00 05 80 ff e1 00 00 00 f2 1a 1d 7b 00 20 48 08 0d 86 00 ; 20 hexadecimal bytes. ; Replace the above address with your ARP server address EndVirtualAdapter EndAdapter Configuring ATM NetworksThe following issues have been identified from testing the Beta 3.0 release of NetShow Theater Server: - Disable policing on all ports. To do this on FORE switches, use thepolicing command on the configuration port menu.- Turn off call proceeding messages on all ports connected to the title server and content servers. Leaving these messages on adds a considerable amount of processing overhead. Call proceeding messages can be disabled in the Configuration UNI menu of the switch management interface. Each port must be deleted and recreated with the call proceeding feature turned off.- The maximum Virtual Channel Identifier (VCI) value on each port has a default value of 511. This is usually sufficient for most installations. If you are setting up a NetShow Theater Server installation configured for more than 400 clients, you must set a larger VCI value. This is set through the configuration uni menu of the switch management interface.- Example of setting the maximum VCI value: Localhost::configuration uni>del 1a1 0 Localhost::configuration uni>new 1a1 0 -maxvci 1023 send_cproc off Configuring an ATM System to Use High-Bandwidth VCsATM system administrators who plan to load high volumes of content can configure ATMARP to increase virtual channel (VC) bandwidth. The following procedure is run from the administrative workstation, or from the computer used to load content. To customize VC bandwidth: 1. Copy atmsetup.exe from the NetShow Theater Server compact disc onto afloppy disk.2. Insert the disk in the floppy disk drive, and type: A:\atmsetup.exe. The ATM Setup dialog box is displayed.3. In the NetShow Theater ATM Setup dialog box, click Configure Content Loading Station. The Content Loading Station Configuration dialog box is displayed.4. In the Content Loading Station Configuration dialog box, type the number of content servers your NetShow Theater Server system uses in the Content Servers field, and then click Next.5. Click Finish to apply the settings calculated by Atmsetup.exe. Click Cancel to cancel the configuration changes, and close the dialog box.The Content Loading Station Configuration dialog box is used to set the high- and low-bandwidth VC size. ATMARP uses a heuristic to switch between low- and high-bandwidth VCs. Packets that are larger than the threshold packet size are sent on the high-bandwidth VC. Packets smaller than the size of the threshold packet are sent over low-bandwidth VCs. The following describes the options in the Content Loading Station Configuration dialog box: High-bandwidth VC Cells/SecDefines the cell rate that is used for high-bandwidth VCs. The default is 2 Mbps.
High-bandwidth VC ChannelsSpecifies the number of channels that are configured on the network card.
High-bandwidth VC VC time-outSpecifies the time the VC remains idle before it is destroyed. The default for high-bandwidth VC is 10 seconds. Low-bandwidth VC Cells/Sec Defines the cell rate that is used for low-bandwidth VCs. The default is 2 Mbps. Low-bandwidth VC Channels Specifies the number of channels that are configured on the network card. Low-bandwidth VC VC time-out Specifies the time the low-bandwidth VC remains idle before it is destroyed. The default for a low-bandwidth VC is 30 seconds. Packet Threshold Specifies a threshold size for packets. Packets larger than this are sent out on the high-bandwidth VC. Packets smaller than the threshold packet size are sent out on the low-bandwidth VC. The default size is 2,000 bytes. Defaults Applies the default values for all options.
NETSHOW PLAYER ISSUES
NetShow Player Required Operating SystemsMicrosoft NetShow Player for NetShow Theater Server Beta 3.0 supports Windows 95 with Service Pack 1, Windows NT Workstation 4.0 with Service Pack 3, Windows NT Server 4.0 with Service Pack 3, or Microsoft® Windows NT® Server, Enterprise Edition, version 4.0 with Service Pack 3. Windows NT 5.0 Beta is not supported. Windows 98 Beta is not supported.
Special Configuration Required with Winsock Proxy ClientWhen using NetShow Player along with Microsoft Winsock Proxy Client on a machine connected to two different networks, the Winsock Proxy Client must be disabled to be able to play on a private network. For example, the machine is connected to a network as IP Address 157.xxx.xxx.xxx, and also connected to a different network as IP Address 1.xxx.xxx.xxx. In order to stream video over the second network, the Winsock Proxy Client must be disabled.
SDK ISSUES
Remove Method Can MalfunctionIn the NetShow Theater Server SDK, in Clients Collection, the wording is vague and conflicts with Microsoft® Visual Basic® Help. The index value refers to the item number within the collection, and not necessarily the client ID. Specifying the client ID for this value can result in a subscript out of range error. This also can lead to disconnecting the wrong client.
InfoType Returns Wrong ValueInfoType returns the value for the server for both server and the client.
Add/Remove Method Does Not Update Titles CollectionWhen you use the ActiveX® control to add or remove titles, you must refresh the titles collection, or the display is not updated.
About the NetShow Theater Server Administration ControlsNetShow Theater Server Administration Controls now are contained in one ActiveX control for creating applications that configure and operate a NetShow Theater Server system. This control, Nstadmin.ocx, contains the following controls and objects:MediaServer Control This control has a comprehensive set of attributes that performs all administrative tasks. Titles, clients, servers, and other system components are available as collection objects. This control is invisible and well- suited to run on a Web server for listing NetShow Theater Server titles and other information. ClientView Control Displays a list of the computers playing NetShow Theater Server titles, and the name of the streaming title. ServerView Control Displays a tree view showing one or more NetShow Theater servers, their content servers, and content drives. TitleView Control Lists each title on a NetShow Theater server, its size in megabytes, the time it was added to the server, and its play time. TraceView Control Displays client, server, administration, and alert events.
Version : 1.00 Platform : WINDOWS Issue type : kbinfo |
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Last reviewed: June 5, 1998
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