SCRIPT

Version PK-2.20
(Aug 08, 1999)


 DISCLAIMER:
     THIS  PRODUCT  IS  SUPPLIED  "AS  IS".  DREAMLAN 
     DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES,  EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED,
     INCLUDING, WITHOUT  LIMITATION,  THE  WARRANTIES
     OF  MERCHANTABILITY   AND  OF  FITNESS  FOR  ANY
     PURPOSE.   DREAMLAN  ASSUMES  NO  LIABILITY  FOR
     DAMAGES,  DIRECT  OR  CONSEQUENTIAL,  WHICH  MAY
     RESULT FROM THE USE OF THIS PRODUCT.

Introduction

Login scripts in NetWare 4 and NetWare 5 are stored as separate files in the hidden SYS:_NETWARE directory, as part of the NDS database files. Using a NetWare 4 or NetWare 5-aware backup system you can easily backup and restore all NDS information. However, it is often not easy to restore just the login scripts or a particular login script. This is where SCRIPT comes in.

SCRIPT is a pair of DOS command-line utilities (xSCRIPT and iSCRIPT) that can help you to backup and restore NDS login scripts. xSCRIPT allows you to extract any NDS (such as container or a user) login script and writes it to a text file. Later on, you can use iSCRIPT to import the text file back into NDS.


What's New


Notes

  1. 1. You can't use a wildcard to specify object names from which to extract login scripts. We have given this some serious considerations during the design stage and decided against it: by allowing wildcards, one needs to automate the output filename generation. There is never a good naming standard that everyone likes <g>. Also, there is the problem of identifying which file is for which object (you'll end up having to look it up). Things just get too complex.

  2. It seems NDS uses a NULL character to indicate it is the end of a streams (text) file for login scripts. Also, NDS stores the scripts as "binary" files where there is only a line-feed and no carriage-returns. However, text files created under DOS (such as using EDIT) has LF/CR at the end of each line. Therefore, when you import the file into NDS, iSCRIPT has to perform some conversion. When trying to track the number of bytes transferred, it is often difficult to correctly report this number, depending on if the file was created using (say) EDIT or using xSCRIPT. Every effort has been put into SCRIPT to have them report the correct information, and provide explanations where inconsistency is found. You should always check the content of the text file vs. that in NDS just to be on the safe side.

  3. Just to make things easier, SCRIPT requires you to specify the NDS object names using a full NDS path, and not a relative path (i.e. relative to your current context).

  4. There is a small file size anomaly with iSCRIPT that we are still working on to address. Let's say you have a login script that is 100 bytes in size. You used iSCRIPT to import a new script that is only 80 bytes in size. The resulting NDS file size is still 100 bytes, however, LOGIN and other utilities (such as NETADMIN) will see only the first 80 bytes (i.e. the new script). If you modified the script and saved it using a NetWare utility (such as NETADMIN), the file size will be set correctly. This is a harmless issue. The only down side is that some extra disk space is being taken up. We are working on this.


Installation

No special installation steps or program need to be used. Simply copy the iSCRIPT and xSCRIPT files to SYS:PUBLIC of your servers. You must have the unicode files for the country code and code page that your workstation use available in the respective NLS directories, for example, SYS:PUBLIC\NLS.

Should you install the SCRIPT utilities into a different directory, you may need a search path to the directory where the unicode files are located.


Usage

xSCRIPT

You can run xSCRIPT with the following command-line parameters:

xSCRIPT [-o objectname] [-v] [-f filename] [-q] [-c]

where

None of the above parameters are case sensitive.

For example, to extract the login script from the .OU=Testing.O=Earth container and store the script in a file called LOGIN.SCR, any one of the following xSCRIPT command syntax works:

xSCRIPT -o .testing.earth -f login.scr -q
xSCRIPT -o .ou=testing.o=earth -f login.scr -q
xSCRIPT -o testing.earth -f login.scr -q

will work just as well.

Special Switch for xSCRIPT

When an User, Organization, or Organizational Unit object is created, no stream files are created for the login script. However, when a Profile object is created, an empty stream file consisting of five (5) NULLs is created. If you edit (say) the User object's login script using NETADMIN, even if you leave it empty, a stream file is created, containing one (1) byte -- a NULL character. However, this does not happen with NWAdmin (the Windows utility). xSCRIPT tries to determine these situations in order to give an accurate error message, if encountered. However, Novell may change the rules at any time. Therefore, there is a -BYPASS command-line switch that you can use (not case sensitive), if you know there is a login script for an object, but xSCRIPT tells you otherwise.

iSCRIPT

You can run iSCRIPT with the following command-line parameters:

iSCRIPT [-o objectname] [-f filename] [-q] [-c] [-h]

where

None of the above parameters are case sensitive.

For example, to import the login script in a file called LOGIN.CR into the .OU=Testing.O=Earth container, anyone of the following iSCRIPT command can be used:

iSCRIPT -o .testing.earth -f login.scr -q

iSCRIPT -o .ou=testing.o=earth -f login.scr -q
iSCRIPT -o testing.earth -f login.scr -q

will work just as well.


Configuration

n/a


Registration

Two variations of SCRIPT are available. The version included here is a Freeware version. In the Freeware version of iSCRIPT, the -c and -q switches are disabled; the Freeware verison of xSCRIPT has the -bypass, -c, -f, -q, and -v switches disabled (i.e. the Freeware version will only display the login script on the screen).

You are granted an unlimited usage for the Freeware version at no cost. However, you are not allowed to sell or package this utility as part of another software package or service contract. Bottom line: you can not make money using this Freeware version. All standard Freeware limitation applies.

The full version of SCRIPT is available by registering on-line through the following Web sites:

The NDS tree name is required as it is used to generate a key. The registration cost is $50 US. Canadian registration is $70 CDN plus GST. All other countries, please remit in US funds.

You can also FAX a company Purchase Order to +1 (905) 887-3836. Please make sure you either include your tree name information on the FAX or send a follow up email.

Special site agreements for multiple trees and service providers are available. Although the license does not grant you the right to resell the program (for a profit; but you can charge the customer a service charge for your time). If you are a service provider, you can register copies on behave of your customers (by providing your customer's mailing information -- this is used only for tracking purposes). At the same time, we ask you to send us a separate email indicating that you are registering on behave of your customer and inciate in this email if further software upgrade (free or for a charge) be send to you or the customer directly, and an email address for that purpose.


Other Information

iSCRIPT and xSCRIPT are written in C using Microsoft C optimizing compiler and Novell Developer Kit. Some string manipulating routines are from the CXL library.

Inclusion of this utility on CD-ROMs (except for backup purposes) without permission from DreamLAN Network Consulting Ltd. is expressly prohibited.


Revision History