TechNote

Running ColdFusion MX on Windows ME or Windows 98

Macromedia ColdFusion MX is supported on Microsoft Windows ME and Windows 98; however, there are differences running ColdFusion MX on these platforms versus the Windows server operating systems (NT/XP/2000/2003). Most of these differences occur due to the lack of services on the Windows ME/98 platforms. A service is an executable that runs in the background of a server even when no one is logged into the server. This TechNote explains the differences that may be encountered when running ColdFusion MX on the Windows ME/98 platforms.

Installation:

When installing ColdFusion MX on Windows ME/98, the installation completes but reports that a non-fatal error has occurred. The failure is due to the installer not being able to set up ColdFusion MX Server as a Windows service. This is expected since these operating systems do not support services. ColdFusion must be started from the command line on Windows ME/98.

The configuration wizard throws a similar error when it attempts to set up the ColdFusion MX ODBC Agent and ColdFusion MX ODBC Server services. These two services act as a bridge between JDBC and ODBC. They allow ODBC data sources to be called from ColdFusion. Since Windows ME/98 do not support services, they are not available on these operating systems. Note: ODBC data sources can be used on Windows ME/98 but must be created using the JDBC-ODBC Bridge driver type.

Startup and Shutdown:

Start ColdFusion MX by running the cfstart.bat file located incf_root\bin (\CFusionMX\bin by default). Execute the file by calling it from the command line in a DOS window or double-clicking it in Windows explorer.

Stop ColdFusion MX by running the cfstop.bat file located incf_root\bin (\CFusionMX\bin by default). Execute the file by calling it from the command line in a DOS window or double-clicking it in Windows explorer.

Note: cfstart.bat and cfstop.bat files both contain the startlocal and endlocal commands. These commands do not exist in Windows 98. Edit these batch files and remove the startlocal/endlocal lines.

Using ODBC Data Sources:

You will not find ODBC Socket or MS Access data source driver types in the ColdFusion Administrator on Windows ME/98. Instead, you will find the data source driver type 'JDBC-ODBC Bridge'. To use an ODBC data source, including MS Access, you must have an existing ODBC data source already defined in Windows. If it does not exist, create one using the Windows ODBC Administrator in the control panel. The ODBC data source must be a 'System' data source.

To use an ODBC data source in ColdFusion:

1. Create an ODBC data source using the Windows ODBC Administrator:
2. 1. Open the Windows control panel (Start > Settings > Control Panel).
   2. Open the ODBC Administrator - ODBC Data Sources (32 bit).
   3. Select the System DSN tab.
   4. Click Add to create a new ODBC data source.
   5. Choose the appropriate driver for your database type and click finish.
   6. Complete the ODBC DSN setup. If you need assistance creating a specific data source type, use the Help button.
3. Create a ColdFusion data source of type JDBC-ODBC bridge:
4. 1. Open the ColdFusion MX Administrator.
   2. Select Data Sources.
   3. Add a new data source name and select JDBC-ODBC bridge as the driver type and click Add.
   4. Select the ODBC data source created in step 1 from the dropdown list of ODBC data sources.
   5. Enter a valid username and password or select 'Use Default Username'.
   6. Click Submit to create the data source.

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