Appendix D: External Server and Remote Services
X-320M™ User's Manual
Appendix D: External Server and Remote Services
Note: The following methods are supported by X-320M™; however, Xytronix Research & Design, Inc.
does not provide or support custom third party applications or external web servers.
Accessing X-320M™ with Custom Software or Third Party Applications
Custom applications can send commands to X-320M™ for monitoring and control functions using XML.
(See
3.2 XML Operation
for more information.) The application interface can be used to provide a
custom user interface, access to multiple units in a single screen, and allow for automation, logging, and
other application-specific features.
Using an External Web Server
Rather than accessing X-320M™ directly from a computer, an external web server can be used. The
term “external” web server is used here to mean a separate web server (such as Apache or IIS) that is
not the web server built into X-320M™. In this scenario, users access custom web pages that reside on
the external web server and the external web server communicates with X-320M™.
An external web server can integrate multiple ControlByWeb products into a single control page. In other
words, the user may not be aware that he/she is using multiple ControlByWeb™ devices, but rather the
user sees an integrated control page for the entire system. In addition, the use of an external web server
allows programmers to create custom user interfaces that take advantage of the additional resources
typically available on larger web servers, including more memory and various web programming
languages.
There are two approaches that an external server can use to communicate with X-320M™ and other
ControlByWeb™ devices: Direct Server Control and Remote Services.
Direct Server Control
The first approach is for the external server to create a TCP connection whenever it needs to access X-
320M™. In this case, the external server opens the connection, sends commands and/or reads the
device, and closes the connection.
This method is ideal when the the web server and all of X-320M™ devices are on the same network
(without routers between them). In this case, the server can communicate with X-320M™ devices
directly and securely since data never has to leave the local network.
When the server and X-320M™ are on different networks, routers must be configured to allow
appropriate access. If a public network is used, such as the Internet, security precautions should be
considered.
Remote Services
The second approach is for X-320M™ to initiate a connection using the “Remote Services.” The settings
under the
Advanced Network
tab in the setup pages will enable the X-320
TM
to open a TCP connection
with an external server. Once the connection is open, the external server can send commands and/or
read the device. The external server can leave the connection open (so that it never closes) or close the
connection.
“Remote Services” is ideal for installations where the server and X-320M™ are installed on different
networks. This is especially useful when each X-320M™ is installed on a separate private network. For
example, if the user doesn't control the network connections where X-320M™ is installed, “Remote
Services” would initiate a TCP connection over the Internet with the control computer. Since X-320M™
initiates the connection, the control computer doesn't have to know the IP address of X-320M™. This
means that X-320M™ can be installed using DHCP. In addition, no special router configuration is
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