Parallel port access using ASP

[Markv2]

Is it possible? would i be able to access my computer's parallel port at home from a remote pc using the parallel port control webpage? someone suggested using windows IIS but im totally clueless regarding this. I am interested in the parallel port control via web browser...but I'm not that familiar with configuring windows xp's web server. Could anyone suggest a website where i could get the basics and other related infos? any tips and help would be greatly appreciated.

[Tomi Engdahl]

Is it possible? would i be able to access my computer's parallel port at home from a remote pc using the parallel port control webpage?

I don't know for sure if you can do parallel port accessing directly from ASP web page. I doulb that. But most propably indirect method works. You have some suitable parallel port controlling program that you then call from ASP web page to do the port accessing you need.

someone suggested using windows IIS but im totally clueless regarding this.

Can't say how good that recommendation is. I don't personally use IIS for anything. Years ago when I had some contact with it IIS was a pretty crappy web server program with tons of security holes.. I selected myself to use Apache web server running on Linux system (that's what runs this site as well). I have not had need to look back IIS... most propably it has improved over the years.

I am interested in the parallel port control via web browser...but I'm not that familiar with configuring windows xp's web server. Could anyone suggest a website where i could get the basics and other related infos? any tips and help would be greatly appreciated.

I have written quite a bit of parallel port accessing information to this document:
Parallel port interfacing made easy: Simple circuits and programs to show how to use PC parallel port output capabilities
http://www.epanorama.net/circuits/parallel_output.html

This document contains information how to interface hardware to parallel port, how to access the port in various operating system, how to access parallel port though web (examples for Apache and Boa web servers, CGI and PHP examples).

[markv2]

thanks mr. tomi. by the way, will apache run on windows xp?

[Tomi Engdahl]

To my knowledge you can run Apache web server on Windows XP system.

I have not done that, but according what I have read it shoudl work.
I have run Apache web server on Windows 2000 system, and XP shoudl not be too much different on that I think.

Some useful links:
http://www.devside.net/
http://www.apache.org/

[markv2]

i see.thanks for those links.

so, if i upload a similar port control web page like this http://www.epanorama.net/circuits/portc ... olfile.php on the apache web server which is running on my windows xp, that web page would be accessible through the internet and i could then control my computer's printer port using another computer..via internet?

[markv2]

someone just told me that i need static ip for this to work...ouch.

[Tomi Engdahl]

Having static IP is the best way to get your web server reliably visible on the Internet. You can connect your PC with that IP address (if you have tht server running, connection up and nothing on the way to block connection).
To get name for your PC, you can buy a domain name from suitable registering company and type in your PC IP address to their name servers as for example www.yourowndomain.com. Many ISPs that provide fixed IP addresses usually can provide some name service for your computer.

But fixed IP is not the only option to run server. If your computer does not have static IP address, in most broadband connections you get one publically visible IP address for your computer. That address can vary every time you connect to Internet and/or boot the PC. If you keep your PC running all the time, the IP address typically does not change too often (usually you get to keep the same IP address from one day to weeks depending on ISP and time).
When you have this IP addres, then you can connect to your PC with the IP address. The problem is to get to know what is the IP at any given time. The normal solution to this Dynamic Name Server service. The idea is that the Dynamic Name Service provider has a server that maps your name to the IP address you have told them to do. Your computer runs some process that will tell this server the new IP address every time this IP addres changes... Can work pretty well if your IP address does not change too often. Generally this kind of system works well, but every time your computer IP address on your server changes, you generally see some kind of service interruption (typically from minutes to hours depending on name server settings).

[markv2]

umm, i used windows iis, copied the control page to the iis root directory, used the dns service, but it just doesn't work. i can't put my site online. anybody here knows a step by step guide on how to turn ur pc into a web server, using dynamic name service? any help and tips would be greatly appreciated.

[mobbarley]

umm, i used windows iis, copied the control page to the iis root directory, used the dns service, but it just doesn't work. i can't put my site online. anybody here knows a step by step guide on how to turn ur pc into a web server, using dynamic name service? any help and tips would be greatly appreciated.

The page is php? if so you will need to install PHP on your IIS computer.

In windows you may have much better luck using ASP. I am not 100% about parallel port in ASP directly, but i think it will work. If it doesnt you will need an active x dll / control made in visual studio which can be called from the ASP page. This could be also done with a command line driven program using the ShellExecute or similar function. Its a bit of a hurdle for someone who hasn't used IIS or ASP before.

[mobbarley]

umm, i used windows iis, copied the control page to the iis root directory, used the dns service, but it just doesn't work. i can't put my site online. anybody here knows a step by step guide on how to turn ur pc into a web server, using dynamic name service? any help and tips would be greatly appreciated.

The page is php? if so you will need to install PHP on your IIS computer.

In windows you may have much better luck using ASP. I am not 100% about parallel port in ASP directly, but i think it will work. If it doesnt you will need an active x dll / control made in visual studio which can be called from the ASP page. This could be also done with a command line driven program using the ShellExecute or similar function. Its a bit of a hurdle for someone who hasn't used IIS or ASP before.

[Tomi Engdahl]

s could be also done with a command line driven program using the ShellExecute or similar function.

I am just working on the Windows version of my portcontrol software that I mentioned on the Linux web controlling example at Parallel port interfacing made easy: Simple circuits and programs to show how to use PC parallel port output capabilities document at
http://www.epanorama.net/circuits/parallel_output.html

[Tomi Engdahl]

The first release of my parallel port controlling through web in Windows system has been released.

Parallel port interfacing made easy document has been updated to contain also the Windows version of Web parallel port controlling. This information can be found at http://www.epanorama.net/circuits/paral ... tml#winweb

[markhenry]

My parallel port is one the newest and best ports out on the market. If you don't believe, come on over to the radio shack in Ann Arbor on Sycamore Street and I'll show it to ya, if I don't beat your brains out for not believing me in the first place!

[Simon]

The most extensively known format for Digital Certificates is designed by the CCITT X.509 international standard; thereby certificates may be read or written by any application associated with X.509. Further refinements are found in the PKCS standards and the PEM standard.

[Rajeev]

Hi sir,
First of thanks for Work on the parallel port.
I had seen your work on PHP regarding the Parallel port Interfacing.
Can please Update me on Parallelport interfacing on ASP.Net So that we can Directly place the web application on IIS Server.
I Downloaded a Project on C# Dotnet with Source code, can we Convert that & make it a web application on asp.net.

I you can update me with the above I will be very much thankfull to you sir.

Rajeev KK
INDIA
[email protected]