Land F/X Networking Basics

(Note: The following catalog of content covered in this webinar is time stamped to allow you to follow along or skip to sections of the video that are relevant to your questions, You can also search for content on this page using the FIND command in your browser (CTRL + F in Windows, Command + F in Mac OS.)

• Intro & TOC
• Land F/X Network Descriptions
• Network Concepts and How-To’s
• Workstation Configuration
• Troubleshooting

0:00 – 1:56: Intro & TOC

1:57 – 5:19: Land F/X Network Descriptions

The Three Components of Land F/X (1:57)

• AutoCAD or F/X CAD (Your CAD platform for Land F/X to function in)
• F/X Server (Hosts MySQL database and necessary files for Land F/X to operate)
• F/X Workstation (Connects to F/X Server to access the Land F/X database and necessary files)

Typical Office Setup (3:16)

• Land F/X Server (“F/X Server,” MySQL database, LandFX folder)
• LandFX.com (license verification, plant database, irrigation equipment, database)
• Workstation (“F/X Workstation,” MySQL ODBC connection, OpenDCL driver, AutoCAD menus)

Laptop Setup (also known as a “standalone installation”) (4:11)

• Laptop (F/X Server AND F/X Workstation, MySQL Database, LandFX folder, MySQL ODBC connection, OpenDCL driver, AutoCAD menus)
• LandFX.com (license verification, plant database, irrigation equipment, database)

5:20 – 16:39: Network Concepts and How-To’s

How to share the LandFX folder on your network (this is the folder created by Land F/X upon installation) (7:35)

Note:The default location is the C: drive, although you can choose to store it elsewhere.

Remember: All Land F/X users need to have full read/write permissions for this folder.

How to set Read/Write permissions for the shared LandFX folder (10:20)

Note: You can change the permissions for any of the subfolders in the LandFX folder. 11:10

Adding the Firewall Exception (13:45)

Note: The installation will attempt to set a firewall exception automatically. If it is unable to do so, you’ll receive a message informing you that the system cannot set a firewall exception. In this case, you’ll need to set the exception manually.

16:40 – 24:57: Workstation Configuration

Finding the LandFX folder on the network (16:58)

• Finding the LandFX folder by entering the server name (if you know it) (17:30)
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• Finding the LandFX folder by going into the Options dialog box in AutoCAD and finding the Support File Search Path (17:57)
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• Finding the LandFX folder by expanding/opening opening the Network folder and navigating around your network (18:33)

Mapping the network drive (19:35)

Workstation components (23:50):

• ODBC driver (connects to the MySQL database on the server)
• MENULOAD Registry Key RegKey (allows the computer to know where Land F/X is located)
• OpenDCL driver (allows you to access dynamic, Web-based Land F/X content)

24:58 – end: Troubleshooting

Common Issues:

• Security software blocking the Land F/X installer (In many cases, temporarily disabling your security software, and even the firewall, during installation of Land F/X will allow for a successful installation.)
• Incorrect permissions (Verify that the workstation on which you are performing the installation has the necessary read/write permission.)
•  Incorrect configuration of workstation

To address an incorrect configuration, you can troubleshoot by going through our steps to Verify the Land F/X Workstation Configuration. 

Demonstrations of:

• Verifying that the Support File Search Path is correct in the AutoCAD Options dialog box (28:36)
• Verifying the ODBC connection (29:30)

If when checking your ODBC connection, you see the word localhost or 127.0.0.1 in the TCP/IP Server field, this is an indication that you have a standalone installation. If you know that you have an office server, you can assume that your workstation is set up incorrectly, and you’ll need to reconfigure so Land F/X is reading from your office server. (30:38)

You might also see your office server’s IP address in this field. This is fine, but you want to make sure everyone in the office is using a consistent naming convention here – the server name OR IP address (31:20)

Loading the Land F/X menus (32:20) 

Question: Do the menus become local when I load them? (35:16)

Answer: Long story short, yes. In most cases, they will be stored in your C: drive.

The importance of downloading the Setup64.exe file and then running it from your LandFX folder (37:52)

Note: When you perform a backup of your Land F/X data, it will go to the folder LandFX > data. You can also back up your MySQL database. (38:34)

Recommendation: Grant read/write permissions to only a few people in your office (such as the project managers) to the Standard Details folder (LandFX > Details > _Standard_). This will prevent the inadvertent editing of the standard details. (39:56)

Location of the server backup data (41:35)

You can also find more information about the server backup data on the following links:

• Server Backups of Land F/X Data
• Back Up & Restore MySQL Database (This page also includes a link to a backup script, which you should make a part of your daily backup routine.)

Backing up all projects while running the Land F/X updates (check the Backup all projects box) (43:04)