How to install and configure ScriptX.Services for Windows PC

Installing ScriptX.Services for Windows PC

ScriptX.Services for Windows PC requires

Microsoft Windows Windows 10 (1803) or later on an Intel x64 PC.

ScriptX.Services for Windows PC components:

A self host web application server that provides the REST API to be called by clients to perform printing. The application is self configuring with the printers available to the PC and is implemented with .NET Core 6 as a self-contained application.

Please note versions before 2.12 require .NET Framework 4.6 or later.
The ScriptX Print Server - a COM based server (MeadCo ScriptX Broker/Host) that provides the pagination and printing facilities that is called by the REST API.
Orchestrator. Pre v2.17 this component is optional but required/highly recommended if there may be multiple users concurrently signed in to Windows. From v2.17.0 onwards Orchestator is built-in to Script.Services for Windowsd PC but its use remains optional.

Read about Orchestrator.

Installation and use

A single installer is available that will install both web server and print service and a default configuration that is suitable for most use-cases.

The default configuration has these key aspects:

The server listens on http://127.0.0.1:41191.
https: is supported if a certificate for localhost is available.

Using Google Chrome 70, Edge 42 or later?

Google Chrome 70 and Edge 42 and later on Windows 10 do not block communication between a secure internet site and an "insecure" server hosting on the local loopback address 127.0.0.1 (Firefox has now also stopped blocking communication). Because of this a certificate enabling https: is not necessarily required.

Other/older browsers may block communication and so a certificate for localhost will be required when printing of content originating from a secure site.
Orchestrator listens on http://127.0.0.1:41190.

The default configuration can be customised on a per-user basis.

Download the latest version (2.17.2.32) of ScriptX.Services for Windows PC:
Run the downloaded installer.

In order for the installers to run, you must be logged on to your computer as an Administrator.

ScriptX.Services for Windows PC is now available to any browser at any time.

Using Microsoft Edge or Google Chrome 92 or later?

Microsoft Edge and Google Chrome 92 and later on Windows 10 may by default block communication between an insecure origin site and server hosting on the local loopback address 127.0.0.1.

Because of this origin sites using ScriptX.Services for Windows PC to provide printing must be secure unless the feature is disabled (see //flags and search for "Block insecure private network requests").

Other/older browsers do not block communication.

Customising the configuration if required

As installled:

The server listens on http://127.0.0.1:41191.
https: is supported if a certificate for localhost is available; the server listens on the next port.
Orchestrator listens on http://127.0.0.1:41190.
Does not perform any diagnostic logging.

To view the configration in use navigate to the server dashboard (this link assumes the default port works).

Each of these aspects can be changed by defining configuration values in the appsettings.json file.

This file should be created in the user's local application data folder:

C:\Users\[UserName]\AppData\Local\MeadCo\ScriptXServices

An empty appsettings.json file is simply this:

{
}

To configure the server, add sections as described below to between these top level braces {}, for example:

{
  "ServerHost": {
    "Endpoints": {
      "Http": {
        "Port": "45678"
      }
    }
  }
}

Standard Port Configuration

To configure the port used, create an appsettings.json file similar to this:

  "ServerHost": {
    "Endpoints": {
      "Http": {
        "Port": "45678"
      }
    }
  }

The value given to "Port" can be any value that is free on your systems.

Port conflicts

ScriptX.Services for Windows PC does not run as a system service, it runs per user.

From v2.15 onwards if the configured port is in use (by a concurrently logged in user) then the next available free port will be used (the port used is written to the appsettings.json file).

This will cause problems for client javascript which assumes that the port is always the same.

Orchestrator works around this issue by ensuring that the port it uses doesnt cause a conflict with concurrently signed in users. This means client javascript can assume the port is the same and use the Orchestrator API to determine the port for ScriptX.Services for Windows PC.

The default port for Orchestrator is 41190. If this would cause a conflict with other software, to configure the port used, add a section to appsettings.json file similar to this:

{
  "Orchestrator": {
    "Endpoints": {
      "Http": {
        "Port": 40100
      }
    },
  },
}

Where Port is a port number that is not in use on the system

Support for https:

To support https a server certificate for localhost must be installed and recognised as valid by the browsers that are to be used. Such a certificate may already be installed, in which case it will be used.

If there is a port clash for https, then configure the port to be used by create an appsettings.json file similar to this:

  "ServerHost": {
    "Endpoints": {
      "Http": {
        "Port": "45678"
      },
      "Https": {
        "Port": "45679",
        "Certificate": {
          "Source": "localhost",
        }
      }
    }
  }

Enable logging assistance

Logging is available and configured in the same way as for all .NET Core applications with a section similar to this:

  "Logging": {
    "LogLevel": {
      "Default": "Debug",
      "System": "Information",
      "Microsoft": "Information"
    },
    "File": {
      "Name": "service.log"
    }
  }

ScriptX.Services for Windows PC enables logging to the Debug output stream. If you wish to log to a file, add a "File" section as shown above. If no path specification is given the file will be created in the folder:
C:\Users\[UserName]\AppData\Local\MeadCo.

Please note that for v2.15.4 and earlier log files were written to (if no path given):
C:\Users\[UserName]\AppData\Local\MeadCo\ScriptXServices.

The log file name will be as given in configuration during normal operation. If the application is being run to perform a shutdown during uninstall or upgrade the name will be prefixed with "Shutdown-"

For use cases where log files are written to a common location/file share "[USERNAME]" can be included in the file name and will be replaced by the active users name.

Testing printing

See:

How to configure samples for use with ScriptX.Services for Windows PC.

Deployment of the evaluation license for your own testing and evaluation.