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Installing VLSM on a Windows Machine

0. Download

  • Notepad++ or Microsoft VS Code
  • WampServer from https://www.wampserver.com/en/ (select 32 or 64 bit based on your system)
  • VC Packages from https://wampserver.aviatechno.net/files/vcpackages/all_vc_redist_x86_x64.zip

1. Installing WAMP Server

  • Ensure Windows system is fully updated
  • Install VC Packages (all packages for 64-bit; only 32-bit packages for 32-bit systems)
  • Reboot the machine
  • Launch WampServer and verify the icon displays green

2. Configuring PHP and MySQL

2.1 PHP Setup

  • Download cacert.pem from https://curl.se/docs/caextract.html and place in C:\wamp\ or C:\wamp64\
  • Switch PHP version to 8.2.13: WampServer > PHP > version > 8.2.13
  • Open php.ini via WampServer > PHP > php.ini and modify:
  • memory_limit: change from 128mb to 2G (or higher if available)
  • post_max_size: change from 8M to 500M
  • upload_max_filesize: change from 2M to 500M
  • ;openssl.cafile= to openssl.cafile='C:\wamp\cacert.pem' or openssl.cafile='C:\wamp64\cacert.pem'
  • ;curl.cainfo = to curl.cainfo ='C:\wamp\cacert.pem' or curl.cainfo ='C:\wamp64\cacert.pem'
  • error_reporting to error_reporting = E_ALL & ~E_NOTICE & ~E_STRICT & ~E_DEPRECATED & ~E_WARNING
  • max_execution_time to max_execution_time = 1200
  • Repeat these edits in C:\wamp64\bin\php\php8.2.13\php.ini

2.2 MySQL Setup

Fixing MySQL mode: - Open WampServer icon > MySQL > my.ini - Search for sql_mode and comment it out with ; at line start - Add these lines: 

sql_mode =
innodb_strict_mode = 0
- Search for innodb_default_row_format=compact and change to innodb_default_row_format=dynamic (or add if missing) - Save and close

Changing MySQL password: - WampServer icon > MySQL > MySQL Console - Username: root - Password: (blank — press Enter) - Execute: 

ALTER USER 'root'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED WITH mysql_native_password BY 'PASSWORD';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
exit;

Final steps: - Restart all WampServer services - Download latest Composer from https://getcomposer.org/download/

3. Setting up VLSM

3.1 VLSM Application Setup

  • Clone/download VLSM from https://github.com/deforay/vlsm
  • Extract and place in C:\wamp\www\vlsm or C:\wamp64\www\vlsm
  • Place composer.phar in the vlsm folder
  • Open terminal and run: 
    cd C:\wamp64\www\vlsm
set PATH=C:\wamp64\bin\php\php8.2.13;%PATH%
php composer.phar install --no-dev
php composer.phar dump-autoload -o

Database setup: - Access phpMyAdmin at http://localhost/phpmyadmin - Click SQL and execute: 

CREATE DATABASE `vlsm` CHARACTER SET utf8mb4 COLLATE utf8mb4_general_ci;
- Import sql/init.sql into the vlsm database - Run SQL commands from https://github.com/deforay/vlsm/blob/master/sql/audit-triggers.sql

Configuration: - Rename configs/config.production.dist.php to configs/config.production.php - Edit configuration with: - VLSTS URL: $systemConfig['remoteURL'] = 'https://STSURL'; - Module settings (enable/disable as needed) - Database credentials - Interfacing database details

Virtual host setup: - Open C:\windows\system32\drivers\etc\hosts as administrator - Add: 127.0.0.1 vlsm - Edit C:\wamp\bin\apache\apache2.4.54.2\conf\extra\httpd-vhosts.conf: 

<VirtualHost *:80>
  ServerName localhost
  ServerAlias vlsm
  DocumentRoot "${INSTALL_DIR}/www/vlsm/public"
  <Directory "${INSTALL_DIR}/www/vlsm/public/">
    AddDefaultCharset UTF-8
    Options +Indexes +Includes +FollowSymLinks +MultiViews
    AllowOverride All
    Require local
  </Directory>
</VirtualHost>
- Restart all WampServer services

Application initialization: - Run in command prompt: 

cd C:\wamp64\www\vlsm
set PATH=C:\wamp64\bin\php\php8.2.13;%PATH%
php composer.phar post-install
- Access http://vlsm - Register admin user and log in - Select instance type as "BOTH" - Click "Force Remote Sync" and wait for completion

System admin setup: - Access http://vlsm/system-admin - Retrieve secret key from C:\wamp64\www\vlsm\app\system-admin\secretKey.txt - Register system admin user - Select instance type as "Lab Instance" and choose lab name - Sign out

3.2 Task Scheduler

  • Open Task Scheduler and create new task named "VLSM TASK"
  • Select "Run whether user is logged on or not"
  • Under Triggers tab: Create new trigger
  • Select Daily
  • Check "Repeat Task Every" and set to 1 minute indefinitely
  • Check "Stop task if runs longer than" (default 3 days is acceptable)
  • Under Actions tab: Create new action
  • Program: C:\wamp64\bin\php\php8.2.13\php.exe
  • Arguments: C:\wamp64\www\vlsm\vendor\bin\crunz schedule:run
  • Enter Windows user password when prompted

4. Setting up Interfacing

  • Access phpMyAdmin at http://localhost/phpmyadmin
  • Execute SQL commands: 
    CREATE DATABASE `interfacing` CHARACTER SET utf8mb4
COLLATE utf8mb4_general_ci;

CREATE USER 'interfaceadmin'@'%' IDENTIFIED
WITH mysql_native_password AS 'interface@12345';

GRANT USAGE ON *.* TO 'interfaceadmin'@'%' REQUIRE NONE
WITH MAX_QUERIES_PER_HOUR 0
MAX_CONNECTIONS_PER_HOUR 0
MAX_UPDATES_PER_HOUR 0 MAX_USER_CONNECTIONS 0;

GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON `interfacing`.* TO 'interfaceadmin'@'%';
  • Import interfacing database SQL file
  • Download and install latest Interfacing executable
  • Log in with credentials: admin / admin
  • Configure MySQL details and instrument interface settings
  • Verify connection status before releasing results from instruments