distnetbeans iguide relnotes

This document is the Installation Guide and Release Notes for HP Distributed NetBeans for OpenVMS Version 5.5, released in May 2008.

Core Functionality: Distributed NetBeans facilitates application development for OpenVMS using the NetBeans IDE. It comprises two main components:

1. Distributed NetBeans Client for OpenVMS: A plug-in for NetBeans 5.5.1, installed on the user's desktop system.
2. IDE Server for OpenVMS: Runs on the OpenVMS system, providing remote services for the client plug-in. Communication between the client and server is secured using SSL.

Key Features and Improvements (Version 5.5): The release introduces various enhancements, including:

• Support for NetBeans 5.5.1.
• Remote debugging for non-Java applications (C/C++, Fortran, Pascal, COBOL, Basic) on OpenVMS.
• Improved security for passwords.
• Support for SMB file shares (Advanced Server, HP OpenVMS Common Internet File System Version 1.0).
• Expanded remote execution capabilities, including support for foreign commands and prompts for runtime arguments.
• Enhanced 3GL file properties with per-file, per-project, and global settings.
• Support for Sun's C/C++ module and the latest OpenVMS Java 1.5 kits.
• Compatibility fixes for the Distributed NetBeans plug-in on Mac OS and Linux.
• Improvements in Ant compilation settings and menu items.

Installation and Configuration:

• Prerequisites: Detailed hardware and software requirements are provided for both the desktop client (NetBeans 5.5.1, Java SE 1.4.2-07+, optional X Windows Server) and the OpenVMS server (OpenVMS Alpha/i64 8.2+, Java SDK 1.4.2-7+, HP TCP/IP Services with FTP enabled, optional compilers).
• Installation Process: The client module (.nbm) is installed via the NetBeans Update Center. The server kit (.PCSI_xxxEXE) is downloaded to OpenVMS and installed using $ PRODUCT INSTALL IDESERVER from a privileged account.
• Post-Installation: Requires adding startup/shutdown commands to OpenVMS system scripts. Crucial system parameters (e.g., CHANNELCNT) and user account quotas (e.g., WSEXTENT, JTQUOTA, PGFLQUO) for the IDE$SERVER and remote IDE$USER accounts must be adjusted. Logical names (IDE$JDK_VERSION, IDE$HOST_IPNAME, IDE$RMI_PORT) allow for customization of the Java SDK version, RMI network interface, and port. Instructions are also provided for SSL keystore configuration and handling multiple Ethernet cards.

Known Problems and Corrected Issues: The document lists known problems, such as a lack of CMS support, a Java package com.sun.crypto.provider does not exist error (with a workaround), issues when importing settings from NetBeans 5.0, restrictions on project creation directories, and network challenges with NAT routers (with a workaround). It also outlines numerous corrected problems, indicating improvements in project conversion, debugging, FTP operations, error handling, and overall system stability.

Software Support: HP provides support for Distributed NetBeans under OpenVMS Alpha/i64 service agreements. Community support is available through the NetBeans user group blog and newsgroup, and users can contact the NetBeans for OpenVMS engineering team via email.