Installing CiscoWorks Common Services 1.0 on Windows 2000
Preparing to Use CiscoWorks Common Services
Download this chapter
Preparing to Use CiscoWorks Common ServicesPreparing to Use CiscoWorks Common Services
give_us_feedback

Table of Contents

Getting Started with CiscoWorks Common Services

Getting Started with CiscoWorks Common Services

CiscoWorks Common Services provides a web interface for accessing the CiscoWorks Common Services features and client applications. The web interface allows you to access CiscoWorks Common Services from any properly configured client system that has HTTP access to the CiscoWorks Common Services server.

To begin using CiscoWorks Common Services, follow these steps:

Step 1   Make sure the client system meets the minimum requirements. Refer to Client System Requirements, for more information.

Step 2   Make sure the client system is properly configured. Refer to Preparing Client Systems, for more information.

Step 3   Log in to CiscoWorks Common Services. Refer to Logging in to CiscoWorks Common Services, for more information.

Step 4   Change the passwords for the default user accounts. Refer to Modifying the Default User Accounts, for more information.

Client System Requirements

You can access all CiscoWorks Common Services features from a client system that meets the hardware, software, and browser requirements. Table 3-1 shows client system requirements:


Table 3-1: Client Requirements
System Component Requirement

Hardware/Operating System
  • IBM PC-compatible computer with a 300MHz or faster Pentium processor running one of the following operating systems:

    • Windows 98

    • Windows NT 4.0 Workstation

    • Windows NT 4.0 Server

    • Windows 2000 Professional

    • Windows 2000 Server

  • Solaris SPARCstation or Sun Ultra 10 with a 333MHz processor running one of the following operating systems:

    • Solaris 2.7

    • Solaris 2.8

Hard Drive Space
  • 400 MB virtual memory (for Windows)

  • 512 MB swap space (for Solaris)

Memory

256 MB, minimum

Web Browser

You must also install one of the following HTML browsers:

  • For Windows-based client systems:

    • Microsoft Internet Explorer version 6.0

    • Microsoft Internet Explorer version 5.5 with Service Pack 2

    • Netscape Navigator 4.79

  • For Solaris-based client systems, Netscape Navigator 4.76.


Other operating system and browser combinations may work, but have not been tested and are therefore not supported.

Note   CiscoWorks Common Services requires the Java Plugin from Sun Microsystems Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 1.3.1. CiscoWorks Common Services is not compatible with Java Plugin from JRE versions 1.2.x, 1.4.x, or any maintenance releases of JRE 1.3.1 (such as 1.3.1_01, 1.3.1_02, and so on). If the required JRE is not present on the client system, CiscoWorks Common Services downloads and installs it automatically; you do not need to install the JRE before accessing CiscoWorks Common Services. However, if an incompatible version of the JRE is present on the client system, you must remove it before accessing CiscoWorks Common Services. If you do not, some features of CiscoWorks Common Services may not function properly.

Preparing Client Systems

To properly display the desktop, you need to configure each system that you will use to access CiscoWorks Common Services:

Setting the Display Font

Setting the display font applies to Microsoft Windows systems only. You must set Windows to use small fonts to view CiscoWorks Common Services properly.

To set Microsoft Windows to use small fonts, follow these steps:

Step 1   From the Windows taskbar, select Start > Settings > Control Panel.

The Windows Control Panel appears.

Step 2   Double-click Display.

The Display Properties dialog box appears.

Step 3   Select the Settings tab.

Step 4   Click Advanced in the Settings panel.

The General panel of the monitor and graphics adapter driver properties dialog box appears.

  • If Small Fonts is selected in the Font Size field, your display font is set correctly.

  • If Small Fonts is not selected in the Font Size field, select it from the list box.

Step 5   If you changed the font size, and are prompted to restart your system, click Yes.

Configuring Browser Settings

Both Netscape Navigator and Microsoft Internet Explorer need to be configured before you can use them to access the CiscoWorks Common Services server. Refer to your browser manual or online help for detailed instructions about accessing and setting the options in this procedure.

To configure your browser settings, follow these steps:

Step 1   Set your browser cache to at least 6 MB.

Step 2   Configure your browser to compare each page with its cached version every time it loads a page.

Step 3   Configure your browser to accept all cookies.

Step 4   Change the default timeout to 20 minutes (Internet Explorer only).

Step 5   Enable style sheets. The CiscoWorks Common Services desktop may not display correctly if you override the style sheets.

Step 6   Change the default font to sans serif for improved readability.

Removing Incompatible Versions of the Java Runtime Environment

CiscoWorks Common Services uses the Java Plugin from Sun Microsystems Java Runtime Environment (JRE) 1.3.1. CiscoWorks Common Services is not compatible with the Java Plugin from JRE versions 1.2.x, 1.4.x, or any maintenance release of JRE 1.3.1 (such as 1.3.1_01, 1.3.1_02, and so on).

If an incompatible version of the JRE is present on the client system, you must remove it before accessing CiscoWorks Common Services. If you do not, some features of CiscoWorks Common Services may not function properly.

To remove an incompatible version of the JRE, follow these steps:

Step 1   Open the Windows Control Panel.

Step 2   Double-click Add/Remove Programs.

A list of currently installed programs appears.

Step 3   Click Java 2 Runtime Environment Standard Edition. The version of the installed runtime environment appears after the name (for example, "Java 2 Runtime Environment Standard Edition v1.3.1_02").

Note   If "v1.3.1" appears after the name, or if you do not see the Java 2 Runtime Environment listed, do not continue with this procedure. 1.3.1 is the proper version, and does not need to be removed. If the JRE is not installed, CiscoWorks Common Services installs it on the client system when you first log in.

Step 4   Click Change/Remove.

A message asks you to confirm the removal.

Step 5   Click OK.

The selected version of the Java Runtime Environment is removed from the system.

Logging in to CiscoWorks Common Services

You can log in to CiscoWorks Common Services from the server or from a client system. In both cases, you access CiscoWorks Common Services through the web browser.

Note   When you log in to CiscoWorks Common Services for the first time, use "admin" as the username. If you did not change the default admin account password during installation, use "admin" as the password. If you changed the password, use the admin account password that you specified during installation.

To log in to CiscoWorks Common Services, follow these steps:

Step 1   Point your web browser to http:// server_name:1741, where server_name is the host name or IP address of the CiscoWorks Common Services server.

If you are logging in to CiscoWorks Common Services from a remote computer for the first time, you may be prompted to install the JRE. If you are, click Yes. Accept all default settings in the JRE installation wizard.

Tip If logging in from a client system, you can bookmark the URL.

Step 2   Enter your username in the Name field.

Step 3   Enter your password in the Password field.

Step 4   Click Connect or press Enter.

The CiscoWorks Common Services desktop appears.

Modifying the Default User Accounts

If you did not change the passwords for the "admin" and "guest" user accounts during installation, you should change them when you first log in to the CiscoWorks Common Services server. These accounts are created automatically when you install CiscoWorks Common Services.

Changing the Admin Account Password

You should change the default admin account password if you did not do so during installation.

Note   You cannot delete the admin account.

To change the admin account password, follow these steps:

Step 1   Use the admin account to log in to CiscoWorks Common Services.

Step 2   Select Server Configuration > Setup > Security > Modify My Profile in the navigation tree.

Note   The admin account does not appear on the Modify/Delete Users page, so you cannot change the password while logged in as another user.

The Modify My Profile page appears in the Applications window.

Step 3   Enter a new password in the Local Password field.

Step 4   Enter the same password in the Confirm Password field.

Step 5   Click Modify.

The admin account password is changed.

Deleting or Modifying the Guest Account

CiscoWorks Common Services contains a default user account called "guest". The guest account has the minimum privilege level available.

Note   By default, the guest account does not have a password, although you may have assigned a password to the account during installation. For security purposes, you should delete or assign a password to the guest account.

To delete or modify the guest account, follow these steps:

Step 1   Use the admin account to log in to CiscoWorks Common Services.

Step 2   Select Server Configuration > Setup > Security > Modify/Delete Users in the navigation tree.

The Modify/Delete User page appears. The guest account appears in the Users field.

Step 3   Select the guest account.

Step 4   To delete the guest account, click Delete. Click Delete again to confirm the deletion and remove the account.

Step 5   To assign a password to the guest account:

   a. Enter a password in the Local Password field.

   b. Enter the password in the Confirm Password field.

   c. Click Modify.

The guest account password is changed.