NetFloor Live!
Manage your network visually

NetFloor Live! is a network tool program that allows you to create a live "object-oriented" graphical view of your networked office. This graphical view is in the form of a floor plan layout of your office. On this live "object-oriented" view, you can interact with the objects (or devices). The objects/devices could be computers, printers, laptops, routers, switches, etc.

This easy to use program is to help Network Administrators and Helpdesk Supports to manage their network quicker and easier. After you have created a network layout view of your office, you can easily see where a computer is and who is logged on. When a user calls in with a computer problem, you can search by the username to locate the computer. Then connect to the computer to pull up the event log with a few simple mouse clicks. If you need to send a technician to replace the hard drive, you can show the technician exactly where this computer is on NetFloor Live!. You can make a printout for the technician.

On NetFloor, you can create your own commands and execute these commands against the objects. For example, to manage a network of 500 nodes, consisting of workstations, servers, switches, routers, phones, etc., with NetFloor, you can easily see which nodes are on or off. If one of your function is to map to workstation’s C: drive to look for files and the command you use is ‘net use * \\computername\c$’. You can add this command to NetFloor Live!. The next time you need to map to a workstation’s C: drive, just simply right-click on the object and select the command on the pop-up context-menu to execute. This is just one example. You can create complex batch scripts, add them to NetFloor, and execute these scripts against the objects to perform your many administrative functions.

 This is NetFloor’s Graphical User Interface (GUI).

 Item 1           The white space is your main workspace. It holds the FloormapHID_TOOLS_FLOORMAP layout and the devices.

 Item 2           This is the Menu bar to select varies commands. It is consist of:

                                    Filemenu_file

                                    Editmenu_edit

                                    Viewmenu_view

                                    Toolsmenu_tools

                                     Applicationsmenu_applications (appears/disappears)

                                     Helpmenu_help

 Items 3, 4     This is the Tool barHID_VIEW_TOOLBAR. It could be shown or hidden by selecting View->ToolbarHID_VIEW_TOOLBAR. It provides quick access to few commands.

Item 3 provides commands of New, Open, Save, Cut, Copy, Paste, Print, and Help.

Item 4 is the quick locator command. It contains a list of all the Location MarkerHID_TOOLS_ADD_MARKER names. Selecting the name will jump to that Location Marker on the workspace. It will highlight the Location Marker and the marked area. This is to provide a quick way to locate an area (department) on the floormap layout.

 Items 5, 6     This is the Status barHID_VIEW_STATUS_BAR to display varies activities on the workspace. It could be shown or hidden by selecting View->Status BarHID_VIEW_STATUS_BAR.

Item 5 displays help and activity message. The activity message is also logged on the Message logsHID_VIEW_MESSAGELOG window.

Item 6 shows the options that are enabled.

Getting Started

To create this live object-oriented view of your networked office, you simply drop in a floor plan layout of your office and add objects or devices like computers, printers, jacks, phones, switches, etc. on to the workspace.

Step 1) Open the "NetFloor Live" program. It presents you with an empty workspace.

Step 2) Before starting, it is best to have a floor plan layout of your office in bitmap (.bmp) format. This bitmap image can be a scanned image of your office layout or a CAD floor plan converted to a bitmap image. You can use any graphics program (paint, photoshop) to create your floor plan layout as long as it is saved in bitmap format. This means you have the freedom to modify your floor plan at anytime. If the furniture layout has changed in your office, you can use your graphics program to edit the image to reflect the new layouts.

Once you have your bitmap file, you can bring it on to the workspace.
 
To bring the bitmap image on to the workspace,

on the menu: select Tools->Floor Mapmenu_tools and select your bitmap image file.

You can change your floor plan at anytime.

Step 3) Once your floor plan is shown on the workspace, you can add objects like computers, printers, and jacks etc and move these objects to the appropriate locations on the floor plan.

To add a computer: select Tools->Add Computermenu_tools

The computer object is added to the center of the workspace and it is selected (hightlighted). You can move the object anywhere on the floor plan by dragging it. Repeat this step for add other objects (printers, phones, etc).

Step 4) Each object (computer, printer) has property values. These property values, Name, IP address, Username, Comment, etc., are for you to enter data into.  If the object is a computer, you can give it a computername or an IP address.

To modify these values on the object: double-click on the object or select (highlight) the object, right-click for the pop-up menu, and select Properties on the pop-up menu.

 (note: Hold down the CTRL key to select multiple objects.)

Step 5) This is to save your work. It is best to save your work early. Don’t wait until the last object is added to save your work. It is recommended to save your workspace when the first object is added. The way the save function works is once you have saved your workspace to a database file, you no longer need to perform a save again. It will automatically and immediately save the changes you made to the database file. The Status Bar will tell you the change has been saved. The reason for this is because this program can be run on a multi-user environment. When two or more users have the same database opened, any changes made by one user needs to be reflected to all the other users.

 To save: select File->Save Asmenu_file , type a filename and click Save

 Now you have a network layout of your office. Repeat step 4 to add more objects to your workspace. However, NetFloor has a discover function that automates the adding of objects. For more detailed explanations and examples look at “Tools->Live Discover.”

What can NetFloor Live! do for you?

After you have created a live object-oriented view of your office, you can monitor all of the objects to see whether the objects are Active (On) or Inactive (Off).  It also allows you to monitor other information, like software installed, user logon, etc. This is done by setting the “Live Stat Criteria SettingsHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” and enabling Live Stat “Tools->Live Stat”.

You can use NetFloor to perform many of your administrative functions. NetFloor allows you to add “External Application” commands and execute these commands against the objects. For example, if you use Computer Management(MMC) to connect to another computer to view the Event logs, you can add this command to NetFloor. The next time you need to connect to a remote computer’s Event logs again, all you have to do is right-click on the computer object and click on the command to execute it. This saves you the steps off having to open up Computer Management (MMC), looking up the computername, and typing in the name/IP address. For more detailed explanations and examples look at “Tools->Add Applications…”

Another function NetFloor does is to discover for new devices on your network. Let say a user brings a laptop to work and connects the laptop to your network. The laptop obtains an IP address from the DHCP server. NetFloor will discover the new laptop and adds it as a NEW object. When you look at NetFloor, you will see the NEW object. You will wonder where this new object is on your physical network and who added it. For more detailed explanations and examples look at “Tools->Live Discover.”

Besides a live object-oriented view, NetFloor also gives you a “List View” of your objects. This “List View” allows you to sort the objects by date, name, IP, username, etc.. When you sort the list by date, you could easily see the changes that are happening on your network. The change could be a router goes off or a user logs-off a computer, etc. For more information, look at “View->List View”.

You can print a hard copy of your office layout. You can give this printout to a technician to bring to the location. This is done by “File->Print…HID_FILE_PRINT”.

Commands

            File menumenu_file

            Edit menumenu_edit

            View menumenu_view

            Tools menumenu_tools

            Applications menumenu_applications

            Help menumenu_help

File menu commands

 The File menu offers the following commands:

 The Edit menu offers the following commands:

View menu commands

 The View menu offers the following commands: 

The Tools menu offers the following commands:

Applications menu commands

The Applications menu is a dynamnic menu. This menu appears when you have added external application (Tools->Add Applications…) commands to your database file. This menu offers the commands for you to execute on the menu or the right-click of the mouse button:

Help menu commands

The Help menu offers the following commands, which provide you assistance with this application:

New command (File menu)

Use this command to create a new blank workspace in NetFloor.  

This also closes the existing workspace. If your existing workspace has never been saved to a database file, it will prompt you to save your workspace. If you answer Yes, NetFloor displays the Save As dialog boxAFX_HIDD_FILESAVE and suggests that you name and save the workspace to a database file.

If your workspace has a database file opened, it will not prompt you to save your workspace. This is because Netfloor will automatically and immediately saves the changes you made to the database file. Again any changes are immediately saved. If you move an object, it will save this change to the database file. (Note: The status bar will tell you the change has been saved.) The reason for this is because this program can be run on a multi-user environment. When two or more network administrators have the same database file open, any changes made by one user will be reflected to all the other users.

You can open an existing database with the Open commandHID_FILE_OPEN.

Shortcuts

Toolbar:      {bmc filenew.bmp}

Keys:          CTRL+N

Open command (File menu)

Use this command to open an existing database file. NetFloor displays the Open dialog boxAFX_HIDD_FILEOPEN for you to select a database file. 

This closes the existing workspace.

If your existing workspace has never been saved, it will prompt you to save your workspace. If you answer Yes, NetFloor displays the Save As dialog boxAFX_HIDD_FILESAVE for you to name and save the workspace to a database file. 

If your existing workspace is opened from a database file or has been saved, it will not prompt you to save your workspace. This is because Netfloor will automatically and immediately save the changes you made to the database file. Again any changes are immediately saved. If you move an object, it will save this change to the database file. (Note: The status bar will tell you the change has been saved.) The reason for this is because this program can be run on a multi-user environment. When two or more network administrator have the same database file open, any changes made by one user will be reflected to all the other users.

You can create a new workspace with the New commandHID_FILE_NEW. 

Shortcuts

Toolbar:      {bmc fileopen.bmp}

Keys:          CTRL+O

File Open dialog box 

The following options allow you to specify which file to open:

File Name
Type or select the filename you want to open.  This box lists files with the extension you select in the List Files of Type box.

List Files of Type
Select the type of file you want to open:
The default extension is (*.nf).

Drives
Select the drive in which NetFloor stores the file that you want to open.

Directories
Select the directory in which NetFloor stores the file that you want to open.

Network...
Choose this button to connect to a network location, assigning it a new drive letter.

Save As command (File menu)

 Use this command to save to a database file and name the workspace.  NetFloor displays the Save As dialog boxAFX_HIDD_FILESAVE so you can name your database file.  For a new workspace, you will only need to perform the save once. Any changes will be saved automatically. The reason for this is because this program can be run on a multi-user environment. When two or more network administrators have the same database file open, any changes made by one user will be reflected to all the other users.

File Save As dialog box

The following options allow you to specify the name and location of the file you're about to save:

File Name
Type a new filename to save a document with a different name.  NetFloor adds the extension you specify in the Save File As Type box. The default extension is (*.nf).

Drives
Select the drive in which you want to store the document.

Directories
Select the directory in which you want to store the document.

Network...
Choose this button to connect to a network location, assigning it a new drive letter.

Print command (File menu)

Use this command to print the workspace. You can print the whole workspace or partial workspace.

The whole workspace is printed when the area of the workspace is not selected.

The partial workspace is printed when the area of the workspace is selected. Look at “Selecting an area of the workspace” for more information.

 
The “Zoom % and Font Scale (View->Zoom)” you set on the workspace will affect the size of the print out. A higher “Zoom %” will print the image bigger and a lower “Zoom %” will print the image smaller.

Let say the zoom is set at 100%. You print out the workspace and it comes out on 2 pages.

If you change the zoom to 150%, your printout will come out on 3 pages.

If you change the zoom to 50%, your printout will come out on 1 page.

 
AFX_HIDD_PRINTThis command presents a Print dialog box, where you may specify the range of pages to be printed, the number of copies, the destination printer, and other printer setup options.

Shortcuts

Toolbar:       {bmc fileprnt.bmp}

Keys:          CTRL+P

Print dialog box

The following options allow you to specify how the document should be printed:

Printer
This is the active printer and printer connection.  Choose the Setup option to change the printer and printer connection.

Setup
AFX_HIDD_PRINTSETUPDisplays a Print Setup dialog box, so  you can select a printer and printer connection.

Print Range
Specify the pages you want to print:

Copies
Specify the number of copies you want to print for the above page range.

Collate Copies
Prints copies in page number order, instead of separated multiple copies of each page.

Print Quality
Select the quality of the printing.  Generally, lower quality printing takes less time to produce.

Print Progress Dialog

The Printing dialog box is shown during the time that <<YourApp>> is sending output to the printer.  The page number indicates the progress of the printing.

 To abort printing, choose Cancel.

Print Preview command (File menu)

Use this command to display the workspace as it would appear when printed. You can display the whole workspace or partial workspace.

The whole workspace is displayed when the area of the workspace is not selected.

The partial workspace is displayed when the area of the workspace is selected. Look at “Selecting an area of the workspace” for more information.

 
The “Zoom % and Font Scale (View->Zoom)” you set on the workspace will affect the display preview. A higher “Zoom %” will display the image bigger and a lower “Zoom %” will display the image smaller.

Let say the zoom is set at 100% and your display preview shows 2 pages.

If you change the workspace zoom to 150%, your display preview will show 3 pages.

If you change the workspace zoom to 50%, your display preview will show 1 page.

When you choose this command, the main window will be replaced with a print preview window in which one or two pages will be displayed in their printed format.  The print preview toolbarAFX_HIDW_PREVIEW_BAR offers you options to view either one or two pages at a time; move back and forth through the document; zoom in and out of pages; and initiate a print job.

Print Preview toolbar

The print preview toolbar offers you the following options:

Print
Bring up the print dialog box, to start a print job.

Next Page
Preview the next printed page.

Prev Page
Preview the previous printed page.

One Page / Two Page
Preview one or two printed pages at a time.

Zoom In
Take a closer look at the printed page. This is different from your workspace Zoom %.

Zoom Out
Take a larger look at the printed page. This is different from your workspace Zoom %.

Close
Return from print preview to the editing window.

Print Setup command (File menu)

Use this command to select a printer and a printer connection.  This command presents a Print Setup dialog boxAFX_HIDD_PRINTSETUP, where you specify the printer and its connection.

Print Setup dialog box

The following options allow you to select the destination printer and its connection.

Printer
Select the printer you want to use.  Choose the Default Printer; or choose the Specific Printer option and select one of the current installed printers shown in the box.  You install printers and configure ports using the Windows Control Panel. 

Orientation
Choose Portrait or Landscape.
Paper Size
Select the size of paper that the document is to be printed on.

Paper Source
Some printers offer multiple trays for different paper sources.  Specify the tray here.
Options
Displays a dialog box where you can make additional choices about printing, specific to the type of printer you have selected.

Network...
Choose this button to connect to a network location, assigning it a new drive letter.

Export command (File menu)

Use this command to export the contents of the “List View” window to a text file.

This command presents an export window. This window allows you to enter the path/filename where you want the data to be saved. The data could be formatted as Tab delimited or a delimiter of your choice. The “Auto export on changes” option allows when there is a change on the workspace, the change is automatically exported to the text file.

You can filter out what data to export, depending on your “List View” window.

On the “List View” window, if you hide Laptop from the view (View->Hide->Laptops), all the Laptop devices will not be exported to the file. Only what you see on “List View” is exported.

The exported data can also be sorted accordingly. If you sort the “List View” by Name, the exported data will be sorted by Name. What you see on “List View” window, is how the data is exported to the file.

Send command (File menu)

Use this command to send the active document through electronic mail.  This command presents a mail window with the active document attached to it.  You may then fill out the To: field, Subject: field, etc., and add text to the body of the message if you wish.  When you are finished you may click the "Send" button to send the message.

1, 2, 3, 4 command (File menu) 

Use the numbers and filenames listed at the bottom of the File menu to open the last four documents you closed.  Choose the number that corresponds with the document you want to open.

Exit command (File menu) 

Use this command to end your NetFloor application.  You can also use the Close command on the application Control menu.  NetFloor will prompt you to save your workspace if it is not saved.

Shortcuts

Mouse:       Double-click the application's Control menu button.

                  {bmc appexit.bmp}

Keys:          ALT+F4

Undo command (Edit menu)

Use this command to undo the last action.
If you changed the property of an object, you can select undo. This will revert the changes you made.
If you selected 10 objects and deleted them, you can select undo. This will undelete the 10 objects.
It is a one-level undo command. It only undo the last change you made.

Shortcuts

Keys:          Ctrl+Z

Cut command (Edit menu)

Use this command to delete and copy the selected object(s) to the clipboard. The objects copied to the clipboard are in Tab delimited format. 

You can paste the object back into NetFloor or to another application. If you paste it back into NetFloor, it will show up as an object. If you paste it to another application, it will show up as text.

Shortcuts

Keys:          Ctrl-X

Copy command (Edit menu)

Use this command to copy the selected object(s) to the clipboard. The object(s) copied to the clipboard are in Tab delimited format.

You can paste the object(s) back into NetFloor or to another application. If you paste it back into NetFloor, it will show up as an object. If you paste it to another application, it will show up as text.

Shortcuts

Keys:          Ctrl+C

Paste command (Edit menu)

Use this command to copy from the clipboard to NetFloor. This will add object(s) to NetFloor Live.
The data in the clipboard has to be formatted correctly, otherwise, nothing is pasted to NetFloor Live.
To see how the data should be formatted in the clipboard, copy few objects from NetFloor, and paste it to Notepad or another application.

Shortcuts

Keys:          Ctrl+V

Delete command (Edit menu)

Use this command to delete the selected object(s). A prompt will pop-up to confirm the deletion. Once the object(s) are deleted, it is permanent because the change is immediately saved to the database file. You can delete multiple objects by selecting them. 

Shortcuts

Keys:          Del

Move to command (Edit menu)

Use this command to move the selected object(s) to the Discover/Misc Window. A prompt will pop-up to confirm the move. Once the object(s) are moved, the change is immediately saved to the database file. You can move multiple objects by selecting them.

Moving objects to the Discover/Misc window is a way to show that the real physical object is no longer there and that it is in storage.

For example, when a computer breaks down in Accounting, you move the computer else where for repair. Once the computer is back from repair and you moved back to Accounting, you can move the same object from the Discover/Misc window to the workspace.

This function allows object to be temporarily moved out of the workspace without having to delete the object. This enables the workspace to show what your real physical floor looks like.

Find command (Edit menu)

Use this command to enter a text to search an object on the workspace. It searches the object’s property values.

This opens the Find window. The criterion allows you to narrow your search.

If a match is find, the object is selected (highlighted). When the search reaches the last object, it will search from the beginning again.

If a match is not found, it will stop and notify you.

Shortcuts

Keys:          CTRL+F

Find Next command (Edit menu)

Use this command to continue the search for the same text and criteria where the last find left off.

If the text is found, the object is selected. When the search reaches the last object, it will search from the beginning again.

Shortcuts

Keys:          F3

Find Reminder Due command (Edit menu)

Use this command to locate the object that has past the Reminder due date/time.

This command will locate and highlight the next object that has past the Reminder due date/time. When it reaches the last object, it will cycle from the beginning again.

If an object has a reminder due date on it and it is not due yet, this command will skip that object.

When an object has past the Reminder due date/time, the Reminder To Do text will flash below the object. The Status Bar at the bottom of the application will show a count of the number of objects that have past the Reminder due date/time.

Shortcuts

Keys:          F4

Select command (Edit menu)

Use this command to select a pre-defined group of objects. These groups are used to help select a range of objects easier. The status bar will display a count of objects selected for that group. The table below shows a list of pre-defined groups.

Selecting Active objects will select objects that responded to the Live Stat (or in the ON state).

Selecting Inactive objects will select objects that did not respond to the Live Stat (or in the OFF state) and objects in the default state. The default state is objects that are in the unknown state position. When you add an object, it is in the default/unknown state.

You can do additive selection of objects by holding the CTRL key and selecting the pre-defined groups.

To de-select individual objects, hold the CTRL key and click on the selected objects again.

To de-select all objects, click anywhere on the floor plan (background).

Properties command (Edit menu)

Use this command to bring up the device’s properties. There are three different device property windows.

The “Location Marker” device has a property window consisting of “Rec ID”, “Modified”, and “Location Name” fields and a “Mark Area” button.

“Rec ID”                     is a unique number for each device. This number is automatically assigned by the application.

“Modified”                 is the date and time this device was last modified. Any change to the properties will update the date/time except moving of the device.

“Location Name”     is to label the name of the area this object is placed on the workspace. For example, if this object is placed on the workspace that is the Accounting Department. You would label this Accounting Department.

“Mark Area” button   is to draw lines around an area on the floor to mark the size of the location. This helps to give you a visual look at the location when you jump to that location.

When the “Mark Area” button is pressed, it enables the line drawing mode.

Use mouse <left-click> to start the line draw.

Use mouse <right-click> to end the line draw mode.

The “Jack” object has a property window consisting of “Rec ID”, “Modified”, “Jack #”, and “Comment” fields.

“Rec ID”         is a unique number for each object. This number is automatically assigned by the application.

“Modified”     is the date and time this object was last modified. Any change to the properties will update the date/time except moving of the device.

“Live Stat”     an indicator to show device is Active (On), Inactive (Off), or Default (<blank>). The Live Stat Indicator (LSI).

“Jack #”          is the actual physical jack’s label.

“Comment”    is to add other comments about this object.

All other objects (“Computer”, “Printer”, “Laptop”, “Switch”, “Router”, etc. ) have a property window consisting of “Rec ID”, “Modified”, “Device”, “Name”, “IP Address”, “User name”, “MAC Address”, “To Jack”, “Comment”, “/ Text”, “\ Text”, “—Text”, “| Text”, “Reminder”, and “To Do” fields.

“Rec ID”            is a unique number for each object. This number is automatically assigned by the application.

“Modified”         is the date and time this object was last modified. Any change to the properties will update the date/time except moving of the device.

“Live Stat”         an indicator to show device is Active (On), Inactive (Off), or Default (<blank>). The Live Stat Indicator (LSI).

“Device”            type of device and allows you to switch to another device.

“Name”             is to label what this device name is. For example, if this is a computer device then it would be the computername.

“IP Address”     is the IP Address of the device.

“User name”      is to label who this device belongs to. For example, if this is a phone object, put in the user’s full name.

“MAC Addr”      is the MAC Address of this device.

“To Jack”          what is the jack # this device is connected to.

“Comment”       is to add other comments about this device.

Draw properties – these are extra properties for you to add more information about the device, but it has a special property. The check box on the left of the property draws a line on the device when checked. It serves as a visual marking tool to mark the device as being done. Imagine you have a To Do list. As you finish each item on the list, you would cross them out.

“/ Text”              added field to hold extra information about the device. When checked, it draws a forward diagonal line on the device.

“\ Text”              added field to hold extra information about the device. When checked, it draws a backward diagonal line on the device.

“—Text”            added field to hold extra information about the device. When checked, it draws a horizontal line on the device.

“| Text”              added field to hold extra information about the device. When checked, it draws a vertical line on the device.

Reminder properties – use to remind you of the work needed to be done on the device.  When the timer is due for the device, a “Reminder Due: <To Do>” message will flash below the device. Also, it flashes the Application Title Bar showing “Reminder Due: <number of devices>”. You can find the device that has past the due date and time by pressing F4 (Edit->Find Reminder DueHID_EDIT_FINDDUE).

“Reminder”       when the box is checked, allows to enter the due date and time

“To Do”             message to display when it pass the due date and time

Toolbar command (View menu)

Use this command to display and hide the Toolbar, which includes buttons for some of the most common commands in NetFloor, such as File Open.  A check mark appears next to the menu item when the Toolbar is displayed.

See ToolbarAFX_HIDW_TOOLBAR for help on using the toolbar

Toolbar

{bml hlptbar.bmp}

The toolbar is displayed across the top of the application window, below the menu bar.  The toolbar provides quick mouse access to many tools used in NetFloor,

To hide or display the Toolbar, choose Toolbar from the View menu (ALT, V, T).

<< Add or remove toolbar buttons from the list below according to which ones your application offers. >>

{bmc filenew.bmp}         Open a new document.

{bmc fileopen.bmp}       Open an existing document.  NetFloor displays the Open dialog box, in which you can locate and open the desired file.

{bmc filesave.bmp}       Save the active document or template with its current name.  If you have not named the document, NetFloor displays the Save As dialog box.

{bmc fileprnt.bmp}         Print the workspace.

{bmc editcut.bmp}         Remove selected data from the document and stores it on the clipboard.

{bmc editcopy.bmp}      Copy the selection to the clipboard.

{bmc editpast.bmp}       Insert the contents of the clipboard at the insertion point.

{bmc editundo.bmp}      Reverse the last editing.  Note: You cannot undo some actions.

  Jump to the Location Marker and show the marked area.

Status Bar command (View menu)

Use this command to display and hide the Status Bar, which describes the action to be executed by the selected menu item or depressed toolbar button, and keyboard latch state. A check mark appears next to the menu item when the Status Bar is displayed.

See Status BarAFX_HIDW_STATUS_BAR for help on using the status bar.

Status Bar

The status bar is displayed at the bottom of the NetFloor window.  To display or hide the status bar, use the Status Bar command in the View menu.

The left area, Item 5, of the status bar describes actions of menu items as you use the arrow keys to navigate through menus.  This area similarly shows messages that describe the actions of toolbar buttons as you depress them, before releasing them.  If after viewing the description of the toolbar button command you wish not to execute the command, then release the mouse button while the pointer is off the toolbar button.

The right area, Item 6, of the status bar indicate which of the following keys are latched down, actions are activated, and Reminders Due:

Indicator          Description

[F4]Due:           Shows how many Reminders are due. Press F4 to cycle through objects that are due.

LD!                   Live Discover (LD – Loop) is enabled.

LIVE!                Live Stat (LS – Loop) is enabled.

CAP                 The Caps Lock key is latched down.

NUM                 The Num Lock key is latched down.

SCRL                The Scroll Lock key is latched down.

Reminder on Title Bar command (View menu)

Use this command to display the number of Reminder Due message on the application’s Title Bar. The Title Bar will toggle between the application name and the Reminder Due message. The toggle time is the application name will display for 2 seconds and the Reminder Due message will display for 5 seconds. This command will also flash the Title bar when the Reminder Due message is displayed.

A check mark appears next to the menu item when the Reminder on Title Bar is enabled.

Reminder on Devices command (View menu)

Use this command to display the Reminder Due To Do text under the devices that are due. The device will toggle between the property value and the To Do text. The toggle time is the device’s property value is displayed for 2 seconds and the To Do text is displayed for 5 seconds.

A check mark appears next to the menu item when the Reminder on Devices is displayed.

Discover/Misc command (View menu)

Use this command to display the "Discover/Misc" window.

This window holds new devices that have been discovered by the "Live Discover"  (Tools->Live Discover) command.

The new device icon, , is labeled with the discovered IP Address and the word "NEW". It is an "Unknown" device. You can move this new device (Edit->Move toHID_EDIT_MOVETO) to the NetFloor workspace.

This window also holds other devices that are moved from the NetFloor workspace. By moving devices into this window, you can make your NetFloor workspace less clutter and reflects what your real environment looks like. For example, a computer is down, you replaced it, and moved the broken computer into your IT room. The broken computer on NetFloor can be move to this window.

This window allows devices to be move back and forth to the NetFloor workspace. It is intended to help organize the devices on the NetFloor workspace.

When this window is opened, on the menu the option is as follow:

            The “Edit->Move to” command moves devices to the NetFloor workspace.

This window shows devices in Iconic view only. The Iconic view shows the each device's property fields. If the text in the field is too long, it is truncated.

Message Logs command (View menu)

Use this command to display the "Message Logs" window.

This opens the “Message Logs” window.

This window shows logs of all the activities that are happening. When you add/delete a device, it is logged to this window. When "Live Stat" is on, it logs the progress.

List View command (View menu)

Use this command to display the "List View" window.

This opens the “List View” window.

This window shows all your devices in List view format. It is listed by rows and columns. This format allows you to view the devices in a spread sheet type style. This way, you can sort the list by the column in ascending or descending order. You can hide the devices (on the List View window: View->Hide) that you don't want to see or only list devices that is in the "Discovered/Misc" window. By default, all devices in the NetFloor workspace and "Discovered/Misc" window are listed here.

When this window is opened, on the menu, the options are as follow:

"View->Hide" command allows for hiding of devices from the list.

 "View->Discovered/Misc Device Only" command changes the list to show only devices that are in the "Discovered/Misc" window.

"Refresh" command is to manually update the list for changes.

This window is also used by the Export (File->Export...) command. The Export command will export exactly what is shown on this window. If the list is sorted by the Name column and the phone device is hidden, the exported file will reflect that. This is where you can control what to export.

Hide command (View menu)

Use this command to hide and unhide devices from the NetFloor workspace. Hidden devices are just what they are, hidden. It is not deleted. It is for display purposes. Select the command again to unhide the devices.

If you don't want to see all the phones on the workspace, select View->Hide->Phones. A check box will appear next to the Phone command. This helps to make the workspace less clutter. Also it helps to show only what is needed. For example, you might need to make a printout of the workspace showing only Jacks. You can hide all the devices except the Jack device.

 Zoom command (View menu)

Use this command to scale the NetFloor workspace larger (zoom in) or smaller (zoom out). This allows for easy viewing of your workspace. You can enlarge (zoom in) the view of the workspace if you feel it is too small to see. If you want to fit more information in the workspace, you can reduce (or zoom out) the view.

There are predefined zoom levels for you to choose from. By default the zoom level is at 100%. The predefined zoom allows you to use the + and - key to perform quick zoom in and out by 5%. You can press the * key to set the zoom to the default (100%).

If you don't like the predefined zoom level, you can choose the Custom Zoom (View->Zoom->Custom...) command. In this Custom Zoom window, the "Zoom %" entry scales the device icon and the "Font Scale" entry scales the text.

*Note* Adjusting the zoom level also affects the print. A larger zoom will print a larger image and a smaller zoom will print a smaller image. This also means you can adjust how many pages you want your workspace to print out on. For example, if at 100%, your workspace prints out on 2 pages. At 200%, your workspace will spread out to print on 4 pages. Reducing the zoom level will print a smaller image. With this said, you can adjust the custom zoom value to have the whole workspace to fit on 1 page. It is almost like what you see is what you get.

Properties command (View menu)

Use this command to select what device’s properties to display on the workspace. 

A device holds many properties (Live Stat Status (LSS), Name, IP Address, Username, etc). You can choose to show all or some of these properties. This is to give a quick glance of your environment. If you have the Username property shown, you can quickly see who is logon to where and at what computer.

Floormap… command (Tools menu)

Use this command to load a bitmap image into the workspace.

This bitmap image is the floor plan layout of your office. NetFloor uses this image as the background on the workspace.

You can create this image in any graphical program, like Paint, Photoshop, or Autocad. You can use a scanner to scan your floor plan to a file, resize the image accordingly, and save it in bitmap format.

You might be wondering how large should the floor layout, like desk and room size, be drawn so that it looks proportion to the devices?

Here is how you can figure out if your floor plan layout is sized accordingly in respect to the device icons?
Use this command to load the bitmap into NetFloor and then add the computer device icon (e.g. Tools->Add Computer). If the floor plan layout looks too small or large compare to the device icon, use your graphical program to resize it, save it, and load it into NetFloor again. Repeat these steps until you feel the floor layout looks proportion to the device icon. This is to have a floor map where the desk and room size looks proportion to the devices that you will be adding later on. However, you can have the floor map look anyway in shape and size you want.HID_TOOLS_ADD_COMPUTER

Live Stat/Discover Option… command (Tools menu)

Use this command to change the options for Live Stat and Live Discover.

This will open the"Live Stat/Discover options" window.

For the Live Stat Options section

Runs every (second)                 

The number of seconds Live Stat will wait to execute the next "Live Stat Criteria" command of the device. For example, if the value is set to 3 seconds. When Live Stat is enabled, Live Stat will run the 1st command. It waits 3 seconds. Checks if 1st command is done. If 1st command is not done, it waits 3 seconds otherwise it will run the 2nd command. It waits 3 seconds and so on until the last command on the device. Then it will move to the next device. 

# of devices to check per run     

How many devices Live Stat will simultaneiously check at once on every run. For example, if this value is set to 30, runs every 3 seconds, and there are 100 devices. When Live Stat is enabled, Live Stat will run the 1st command of 30 devices simultaneiously. It waits 3 seconds. Checks if 1st command is done for the 30 devices. For those devices that are done with the 1st command, it runs the 2nd command. (Some device's command takes longer to run then others. Live Stat will move on to the next command when the previous command is done.) It waits 3 seconds and so on until the last command of the device. Keep in mind this is happening all at once for 30 devices. How many devices that are done with the last command, Live Stat will move to the next devices to add up to 30. If 13 devices are done, Live Stat will add the next 13 devices to process simultaneiously to have a total of 30. Live Stat will always keep 30 devices running simultaneiously.

Live Stat Criteria Settings button

This opens the “Live Stat Information Retrieval Criteria” window.

Here you choose what command to use for each property of the device? What argument to pass to the command? When the command is run? How the result is handled and assigned back to the property field?

This criterion instructs “Live Stat” on how to run (see Tools->Live StatHID_TOOLS_LIVESTAT). Instead of using Ping to check if the device is On or Off, you can change it to search for a specific text in a comma-delimited file. Or, you can choose to Do Nothing for the command and Live Stat will skip that property check.

Device Type and Commands

The device is grouped by type (Computer, Printer, Laptop, etc.). Each type of device has its own commands. When you change the commands for the Phone device, it applies to all the Phone devices on the workspace.

Device holds many properties (Live Stat Status, Name, IP Address, Username, etc.). Each property is associated to a command. The command is executed by “Live Stat” and the result returned is assigned to the property field.

There are prefixed commands to run. Each command is run with an argument. The argument gives instructions to the commands. The argument could be a path to a folder, a registry key, or an IP Address. For some commands, after it is run, the result can be further filter by the “Search for” criteria.

Substituting with environment variables

There a few environment variables in NetFloor that you can use in the Argument and Search For fields. When you use these environment variables in your Argument/Search For fields, the variables are substituted with the device’s property values before it is used by the commands.

These environment variables are:

$nfN       substitute with the device’s “Name” property value

$nfI       substitute with the device’s “IP Address” property value

$nfU       substitute with the device’s “Username” property value

$nfM       substitute with the device’s “MAC Address” property value

$nfJ       substitute with the device’s “Jack” property value

$nfC       substitute with the device’s “Comment” property value

For example, you have a Laptop device. The device’s “Name” property value is ACCOUNT09. Your “Live Stat Status (LSS)” property command is Ping and the argument is $nfN. When the command is about to run, $nfN is substituted by ACCOUNT09, and it is run as Ping ACCOUNT09.

Explanation of the Live Stat Information Retrieval Criteria options.

“Device”                              Selects the device type to show/change the commands.

For the “Live Stat Status (LSS)” property row:

These Commands set the LSS property to On(Active) or Off(Inactive). Another word, it turns the device On or Off.

“Do Nothing”              Skips this property

“Match to Jack#”     This is a special command for the Jack device only. It compares this Jack’s # value to all the other non-Jack devices’ “to Jack” property values on the workspace. If there is a match, the LSS is set to equal to the other device’s LSS value. If there is no match, the LSS is set to the Default state.

When the Jack is at the On state, it means a device is connected to this Jack and the device is also On.

When the Jack is at the Off state, it means a device is connected to this Jack and the device is also Off.

When the Jack is at the Default state, it means no device is connected to this Jack.

“Ping”                              Argument: <Computername> <IP Address>

Allows multiple arguments separated by space. The command will go to the next argument if fails. If Ping is successful, the “Live Stat Status (LSS)“ property is set to equal to the “Live Stat Indicator (LSI)“ value. Otherwise, LSS is set to the opposing LSI value.

“Registry”                    Argument: \\<Hostname>\<Root Key>\<Key>\...\<Key>\<Value name>

Search for: <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>

The command retrieves the registry value. The value is searched for the <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>.  If there is a match, the LSS property is set to equal to the “Live Stat Indicator (LSI)” value. Otherwise, LSS is set to the opposing LSI value.

“Search for File”    Argument: <Folder Path>\<*.*|*.txt|wildcard> or <URL>\<*|*.txt|wildcard>

Search for: <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>

This command searches in the folder for the filename that contains the <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>. At the first match, the command stops, and the LSS property is set to equal to the LSI value. Otherwise, LSS is set to the opposing LSI value.

“Search in Text File”    Argument: <Filename>

Search for: <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>

This command searches the content of the text file, line by line, that contains the <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>. At the first match, the command stops, and the LSS property is set to equal to the LSI value. Otherwise, LSS is set to the opposing LSI value.

For the “Name” property row

These Commands retrieve the information and assigns it to the “Name” property field.

“Do Nothing”               Skips this property

“NS Lookup”                  Argument: <Hostname>

This translates the Hostname to an IP Address.

The command is run if the device’s “Live Stat Status (LSS)“ is equal to the LSI value. Otherwise, this property is skipped. When the command is run, the IP Address returned is assigned to this property field. Any error clears the property field.

“NS Lookup(reverse)”    Argument: <IP Address>

This translates IP Address to a Hostname.

The command is run if the device’s “Live Stat Status (LSS)” is equal to the LSI value. Otherwise, this property is skipped. When the command is run, the Hostname returned is assigned to this property field.

“Registry”                    Argument: \\<Hostname>\<Root Key>\<Key>\...\<Key>\<Value name>

Search for: <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>

The command retrieves the registry value.

The command is run if the device’s “Live Stat Status (LSS)” is equal to the LSI value. Otherwise, this property is skipped. The registry value is searched for the <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>.  If there is a match, the value is assigned to the property field. Otherwise, the property field is cleared.

“Search for File”          Argument: <Folder Path>\<*.*|*.txt|wildcard>

Delimiter: <,|;|::|combine of characters>

Field Pos: <Position to extract the Text; Position starts at 1>.

Search for: <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>

This command runs if the device’s “Live Stat Status (LSS)” is equal to the LSI value. Otherwise, this is skipped.

This command searches in the folder for the filename that contains the <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>. At the first match, the command stops, and the filename is further filtered by the Delimiter and Field Pos. The filtered text is assigned to the property field. Otherwise, the field is cleared.

“Search in Text File”  Argument: <Filename>

Delimiter: <,|;|::|combine of any characters>

Field Pos: <Position to extract the Text; Position starts at 1>

Search for: <Text in Perl5 regular expression syntax>

This command runs if the device’s LSS is equal to the LSI value. Otherwise, this is skipped.

This command searches the content of the text file, line by line, that contains the <Text in Perl 5 regular expression syntax>. At the first match, the command stops, and the line text is further filtered by the Delimiter and Field Pos. The filtered text is assigned to the property field. Otherwise, the field is cleared.

“Set Value”                 Arugment: <String value>

This command runs if the device’s LSS is equal to the LSI value. Otherwise, this is skipped.

This command assigns the <String value> to the property field.

“Who’s Logon”            Arugment is fixed with $nfN $nfL.

This command runs if the device’s LSS is equal to the LSI value. Otherwise, this is skipped.

This command uses the “Name” field value first to look up the username that is logon to this device. If "Name" field is blank, it uses the “IP Address” field value to look up the username. If successful, the username is assigned to this property field. If fails, the property field value is surrounded by brackets, [username]. This means no one is logon and the last user was [username].

For the “IP Address” property row

The commands and functions are the same as the “Name” property row above.

For the “Username” property row

The commands and functions are the same as the “Name” property row above.

For the “MAC/Port” property row

The commands and functions are the same as the “Name” property row above.

For the “to Jack/#” property row

The commands and functions are the same as the “Name” property row above.

For the “Comment/Marker” property row

The commands and functions are the same as the “Name” property row above.

For the “/ Text” property row

The commands and functions are the same as the “Name” property row above.

For the “\ Text” property row

The commands and functions are the same as the “Name” property row above.

For the “-- Text” property row

The commands and functions are the same as the “Name” property row above.

For the “| Text” property row

The commands and functions are the same as the “Name” property row above.

For the Discover devices section.

This is to add the range of IP addresses for “Live DiscoverHID_TOOLS_LIVE_DISC” to discover for new devices. You can add multiple ranges of IP address.  

Click the Add button to add the range of IP Addresses.

For example, IP addresses can range

From                            To
192.168.1.1                   192.168.1.254
172.1.1.1                       172.1.255.255

Live Stat (LS – Loop) command (Tools menu)

Use this command to enable Live Stat on the workspace.   

Live Stat automates the retrieval of information for the devices. It looks for changes in the network environment and updates the changes to the device’s properties.

A device holds many properties (Live Stat Status, Name, IP Address, Username, etc.). The conventional way to enter information into device’s property fields is manually typing it in. When you add a computer device to the workspace, you would enter in the computer name in the ‘Name’ field. Next, you would enter the IP Address follow by the Username to the appropriate fields. What if another user logs on to this computer, the device information is no longer correct. You will need to find the new username that is log on to this device and enter it in manually. This is a lot of manual data entry work to reflect the changes that are constantly changing on your network environment. 

With “Live Stat” enabled, you instruct NetFloor to retrieve this information into each device’s property fields automatically. Live Stat will process the devices concurrently. Execute each device’s property commands sequentially. The result returned from the command is assigned to that device’s property field. Once it gets to the last device, it will loop to the beginning again.

Here is the workflow on how “Live Stat” loops through the devices on the workspace.

For example, you have 1 Jack, 1 Location Marker, 5 computers, and 3 printer devices on the workspace. The Live Stat options for “Runs every (second)” is set to 3, “# of devices to check per run” is set to 4, and using the “Live Stat Criteria” default settings (the Reset settings).

When you enable “Live Stat”, this is the workflow “Live Stat” goes through for the devices:

                      1)                     Processes the 1 Jack, 1 Location Marker, and 2 Computer devices concurrently in the background (a total of 4 devices that is by “# of devices to check per run”),

a.       For each device, it runs through each device’s property commands sequentially. In the case of the Computer device…

                                                                             i.                Runs the “Live Stat Status (LSS)” property command, Ping, using the “Name” field value as the argument. If the Ping is successful, it sets the “Live Stat Indicator (LSI)” to On. If the Ping fails, it runs the command again using the “IP Address” field value as the argument. If fails, sets the LSI to Off.

                                                                            ii.                Next, runs the “Name” property command, Do Nothing. It skips this.

                                                                           iii.               Next, checks if the LSI is On/Off, either case, it runs the property “IP Address” command, NS Lookup, using the “Name” field value as the argument. If it successfully returns a result, it is assigned to this “IP Address” field. Otherwise, it clears this field.

                                                                           iv.               Next, checks if the LSI is On. If is Off, it skips this. If is On, it runs the “Username” property command, Who’s Logon, using the “Name” field value as the argument. If the command fails, it will run the command again using the “IP Address” field value as the argument. If the command runs successfully, the result is assigned to this field. Otherwise, it clears this field.

                                                                            v.               Next, runs the “MAC/Port” property command, Do Nothing. It skips this.

                                                                           vi.               Next, runs the “to Jack/#” property command, Do Nothing. It skips this.

                                                                          vii.              Next, runs the “Command/Marker” property command, Do Nothing. It skips this.

                                                                         viii.             Next, runs the “/ Text” property command, Do Nothing. It skips this.

                                                                           ix.               Next, runs the “\ Test” property command, Do Nothing. It skips this.

                                                                            x.               Next, runs the “-- Text” property command, Do Nothing. It skips this.

                                                                           xi.               Next, runs the “| Text” property command, Do Nothing. It skips this.

                      2)                     Waits for 3 seconds

                      3)                     Checks to see which devices are done running all its property commands. It sees the 1 Jack and 1 Location Marker are done. So it takes the next 2 Computer devices to process (runs through Step 1a for each devices). While the previous 2 Computer devices are still running. (Note: all these processes are running in the background.)

                      4)                     Waits for 3 seconds

                      5)                     Checks to see which devices are done running all its commands. It sees none.

                      6)                     Waits for 3 seconds

                      7)                     Checks to see which devices are done running all its commands. It sees all 4 devices are done. So it takes the next 1 Computer and 3 Printer devices to process (runs through Step 1a for each devices).

                      8)                     Waits for 3 seconds

                      9)                     Checks to see which devices are done running all its commands. It sees none.

                    10)                    Waits for 3 seconds

                    11)                    Checks to see which devices are done running all its commands. It sees all 4 devices are done. It loops back to the beginning of the devices and goes through Steps 1 to 11 again.  This loop repeats until “Live Stat” is disabled.

The idea is to automate your task and presents the information to you in a graphical view. You want to check if a computer is On/Off, you don’t need to execute a ping command manually. NetFloor already pings the computer and shows you the device is light up - indicating On. Using “Live Stat”, it could show what software is installed on the computer, the printer is out of paper, the phone is off-hook, the switch is down, etc. All this and more could be implemented and automated by NetFloor. This creates a LIVE! view of your network and hence the name NetFloor LIVE!

Multiple Users

When more than one user is access the same database, only one user can have “Live Stat” enabled. This is to cut down on the number of ping traffic on the network.

When this happens, a message will popup notifying the user that “Live Stat” is already enabled by another user and the option to enable it anyway. If the user continues to enable it, the other user will have his/her “Live Stat” disabled and a message will popup notifying him/her.

Live Discover (LD – Loop) command (Tools menu)

Use this command to enable the Live Discover on the workspace.

Live Discover helps to discover for new devices in the network. When it finds a new device, it adds the new device to the workspace. This automates the adding of devices to the workspace.

Live Discover uses the IP Address ranges in the “Live Stat/Discover optionsHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION”.

For each IP address, it checks to see if it is already on the workspace. If it is on the workspace, it gets the next IP address and does the check again. If the IP address is not on the workspace, it performs a Ping command on the IP Address. If the Ping is successful, the IP Address is added to the “Discovered/Misc Device” window as an Unknown Device with the NEW comment, . Otherwise, it moves on to the next IP Address. This repeats until Live Discover is disabled.

When Live Discover is disabled, it remembers the last IP Address. So when Live Discover is enabled again, it will continue from the last worked on IP Address.

Once the new device is added to the “Discovered/Misc Device” window, you can move them to your workspace. Place the devices to the appropriate location on the floor layout. Change the unknown device type to the correct type.  If you have “Live Stat” enabled, you will notice the devices will start to have information populated.

Letting “Live Discover” add all the devices on the network for you

When you start NetFloor and begin to setup the workspace of your network. You don’t really need to add any devices manually. You can let “Live Discover” add the devices and later on you just need to sort them out.

You begin with an empty workspace. Save the empty workspace to a database. This is so that any changes from here on will be instantly saved. Add the range of IP Addresses to the Discover options (Tools->Live Stat/Discover option…HID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION). Finally, enable “Live Discover” (Tools->Live Discover (LD-Loop)HID_TOOLS_LIVE_DISC). Here you can work on the floor plan layout that you will add to the workspace. Come back to check on the new devices added. You can work on the new devices the minute it is in the “Discovered/Misc DeviceHID_VIEW_DISCMISC” window.

Multiple Users

When more than one user is access the same database, only one user can have “Live Discover” enabled. This is to cut down on the number of ping traffic on the network.

When this happens, a message will popup notifying the user that “Live Discover” is already enabled by another user and the option to enable it anyway. If the user continues to enable it, the other user will have his/her “Live Discover” disabled and a message will popup notifying him/her.

LS on Selected object now command (Tools menu)

Use this command to immediately perform Live Stat on the selected devices. It doesn’t matter if Live Stat is disabled, Live Stat is enabled by another user, or Live Stat is processing other devices. This command will ignore all that and process the selected devices.

Live Stat cannot process all the devices at once. It has a limitation to how many devices it can process at the same time. If you have 10,000 devices and you set Live Stat option to process 10,000 devices at once, this will crash the application because you will run out of system resources. Live Stat will eventually get to all the devices. It is a matter of time. Some times you have few devices that need Live Stat to process immediately. This is when you use this command.

The way this command works is, you select the devices you want Live Stat to process now and then click on this command. After this, do not select or de-select any devices on the workspace because Live Stat will process the selected devices. As it finished with the device, it will de-select it. When all the devices are de-selected, Live Stat is done. If you have Live Stat enabled, it will continue where it left off.

Reset Live Stat Status command (Tools menu)

Use this command to reset the selected devices to the Default state.

A device has three states, On , Off , and Default .

The different states serve as an indicator for “Live Stat” and for the user.

The Default state is when the device is newly added. It also means it has never been processed by “Live Stat”. After “Live Stat” processes the device, it turns the device to the On or Off state.

The On state tells the user the device is On or Active. The device is up and running.

The Off state tells the user the device is Off or Inactive. The device could be shutdown or the network cable is disconnected. It serves as a warning sign for the user if this is a server or a switch.

Add Applications… command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add External Applications to the workspace.

This opens the External Applications window.

External Applications are used on the workspace to issue commands to the devices. It helps the Administrator to perform varies administrative tasks quicker and easier. The Administrator can run the application on many devices at once. For example, the Administrator sends a message to user’s computers daily using the ‘NET SEND’ command. The Administrator can add the ‘NET SEND’ command to this External Applications window. Then on the workspace, select the devices and click on the application to send the message. There is no need to type the command and look up the username or computername somewhere else again. All is shown on NetFloor’s workspace.

You can add more complicated commands to use on NetFloor by writing batch scripts. Your batch script can be as simple or as complicated as you like. NetFloor will run the batch scripts using the devices’ information as the argument.

Explanation of the External Application options

Clicking on the Add button will insert a new row.

Clicking on the Delete button next to the row will delete that row.

The column

“On Menu”                   This is to place the program on to the Applications menu, and on to the Context-Menu (right mouse click). Checking the box will place the program on to the menu. The program can then be executed on the workspace.

Having at least one box checked, the Applications menu will appear between the Tools and Help menu.

“Name”                        This is to give a name to the application describing the action of the application. This name is displayed on the workspace menu, Applications, and the Context-Menu.

“Program/Command”     This is the actual program that is run. On the workspace, when you select the application to run, it runs this program/command. You can use NetFloor’s environment variables ($nfN, $nfI, …) as arguments for the commands. These variables will be substituted with the property values before the command is executed.

Here are examples of programs/commands you can add as External Applications.

Name:                           Computer Management

Program/Command:      cmd /c start %Systemroot%\System32\compmgmt.msc /computer:$nfN

Explanation:                  This command opens the Computer Management MMC using the device’s “Name” property value as the argument and connects to that remote computer.

Name:                           Net Send Message

Program/Command:      net send $nfN $nfW

Explanation:                  This command sends a message to a computer using the device’s “Name” property value as the argument. The $nfW variable brings up a window for you to type the message before it is send.

Name:                           Browse remote computer’s C: drive

Program/Command:      explorer \\$nfN\c$

Explanation:                  Brings up Explorer to browse the remote computer’s C:\ drive.

Name:                           VNC Viewer remote control

Program/Command:      vncviewer $nfN

Explanation:                  If you have vncviewer in your path, this will remote control a computer using vncviewer passing the device’s “Name” property value as the argument.

Add Location Marker command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Location Marker device on the workspace. 

The Location Marker has only one state,   .

It has 2 properties:

“Location Name”     A name to describe the area in detail (e.g. Accounting Dept, IT Office, Shipping Area). This name is also added to the Locator pull-down menu on the toolbar.

“Mark Area”               This is to mark the area of the location by drawing yellow lines surrounding the location. This helps to distinguish which area belongs to what department.

a.       Click on the button to start.

b.      <left mouse click> to place marks and draw lines

c.       <right mouse click> to finish

Once you have the area marked, every time the location marker is selected, the yellow lines will appear. You can also use the Locator toolbar to jump to that Location Marker.

Add Jack command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Jack device on the workspace. 

The Jack device has three states, Default  , On , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Jack device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Add Computer device command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Computer device on the workspace.

The Computer device has three states, Default , On  , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Computer device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Add Printer device command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Printer device on the workspace.

The Printer device has three states, Default  , On  , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Printer device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Add Laptop device command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Laptop device on the workspace.

The Laptop device has three states, Default   , On  , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Laptop device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Add Router device command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Router device on the workspace.

The Router device has three states, Default   , On   , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Router device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Add Switch device command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Switch device on the workspace.

The Switch device has three states, Default   , On   , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Switch device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Add Phone device command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Phone device on the workspace.

The Phone device has three states, Default   , On   , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Phone device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Use this command to add the Camera device on the workspace.

The Camera device has three states, Default   , On   , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Camera device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Add Card Module device command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Card Module device on the workspace.

The Card Module device has three states, Default   , On   , and Off 

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Card Module device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Add UPS device command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the UPS device on the workspace.

The UPS device has three states, Default   , On  , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the UPS device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Add Wireless device command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Wireless device on the workspace.

The Wireless device has three states, Default   , On   , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Wireless device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.

Add Unknown device command (Tools menu)

Use this command to add the Unknown device on the workspace.

The Unknown device has three states, Default   , On   , and Off  

When “Live Stat” is enabled, the Unknown device will change states depending on the “Live Stat Information Retrieval CriteriaHID_TOOLS_LIVESTATOPTION” options.