Clients running Explorer Client can connect
to a server that does not necessarily lie in the local network
to which the clients are connected. Configurations of this type
are very useful when the clients are in more than one
geographical location.
For example, at an Intener Cafè or a chain of hotels with
several establishments connected together only using the
internet. In this case, once registered, the client can go to
any of the hotel chain’s establishments, because every one is
connected to the same server.
To configure the clients in this way, it is sufficient to enter
the address of the remote server, which is running Explorer
Manager, in Explorer Client’s configuration window. If the
remote server is connected to the internet through a router, it
will be necessary to configure the router to turn on port 9393
on the computer which is running Explorer Manager.
Let us look at a practical example to make the configuration
clearer :
Suppose the computer running Explorer Manager is in Rome and is
connected to the internet with the fixed IP address
85.23.67.124. If a fixed IP address is not available, it will
still be possible to use a dynamic DNS service, for example
www.dyndns.com, with which
to get a name of the type name-company.dyndns.org to use in
place of the fixed IP address.
The clients are partly in the same location as the server, and
partly in another location in the city of Florence. The first
group can be configured simply in the normal way, by using the
automatic configuration procedure which is executed when
Explorer Client starts up, while for the second group it will be
necessary to enter the server address manually, specifying the
IP 85.23.67.124 (or the name name-company.dyndns.org).
At this point, a user who is registered at the location in Rome
will be enabled to navigate also in the locations in Florence,
because the navigation workstations are connected to the same
server. Clearly, the location in Florence also has to be
administered somehow by an operator who, for example, deals with
re-charges and new registrations.
This operator could, for example, be connected on a navigation
workstation which communicates with the server via Explorer
Client’s chat. If the user Jane Smith finds herself in the
Florence location and asks the operator for a re-charge, the
latter only has to accept the re-charge amount and communicate,
via chat or other means, with the operator in Rome who will
carry out the re-charge. There is a similar situation for new
registrations : the Florence operator can accept the details of
the new customer and communicate them to the Rome operator, who
immediately registers the new user
on Explorer Manager and transmits the login name and password of
the new customer to the Florence operator.