PowerTCP Server for ActiveX

Included with PowerTCP Server for ActiveX

• 16 Controls/Objects.
• 9 Full Sample projects.
• Debug Server for debugging and protocol testing.
• Full MS Help 1.3 Documentation, including examples.
• Free Introductory Support. 

 

Component	Description
FtpServer Control	Use to build into your application a fully-functioning standalone or custom FTP server.
Dns Control	Use to access Domain Name Servers.
DnsServer Control	Use to respond to Domain Name Server requests.
Server Control	Use the Server Control to quickly build custom server applications.
Service Control	Use to make your application into an NT Service.
TCP Control	Use the TCP Control to manage streams of data.
Children Object	The Children Object provides a collection of TCP objects that have been dynamically created.
DartStream Object	Use the DartStream Object to manage a streamed buffer to/from memory or a file.
DnsRequest Object	The DnsRequest Object is used in the DnsServer Control events to provide access to request details found in the incoming (from the DNS client) datagram.
FtpVariable Object	Use the FtpVariable Object to store and manage variables.
FtpVariables Object	Collection of FtpVariable Objects
Request Object	Use the Request Object to obtain information about the current request.
Response Object	Use the Response Object to manage information sent back to the client.
Session Object	Use the Session Object to manage information describing a client session.
Sessions Object	Use the Sessions Object to manage multiple Session Objects.
User Object	Use the User Object to obtain information about the current user and to indicate that a client has been authenticated.

 

Supported Environments

Operating Systems*: Server 2008, 2012, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, Server 2016

PowerTCP Server for ActiveX can be used in the following development environments:

• Visual Basic
• Visual C++
• FoxPro
• ASP
• VBScript (wscript, cscript, etc)
• MS Office VBA

 

Visual Basic

Looking to create a server application using Visual Basic? PowerTCP Server for ActiveX contains 8 full sample projects for Visual Basic, demonstrating several different types of server applications.

 

Visual C++

PowerTCP Server for ActiveX includes C++ wrapper classes to make creating server applications in C++ even easier. In addition, an echo server sample project is included.

Code Examples

Included Sample Projects

These PowerTCP Server for ActiveX samples included with the installation are fully working applications with complete source code.

Sample Name	Sample Description	Environments
Character Generator	Uses the Server and Service Controls to generate a continuous stream of characters. We use this for QA stress testing.	VB 6
Discard Server	Uses Server and Service Controls to receive any data stream.	VB 6
DNS Proxy	A program that could be used to intercept DNS requests and perform actions based on the request (in this case a simple log file) before supplying the response to the requestor.	VB 6
Echo Server	Uses the Server and Service Controls to echo back received data.	VB 6, VC++ 6
FTP Server	Uses the FtpServer and Service Controls to implement an FTP Server Service.	VB 6
Proxy Server	Demonstrates how to use PowerTCP to perform the functions of several of the most common proxy types.	VB 6
SMTP Server	Uses the Server and Service Controls to implement an SMTP (mail) server.	VB 6

 

Server for ActiveX also includes the following application(s):

Application	Description
Debug Server	This server application is based upon one of Dart's own internal testing tools and is designed to help developers debug their client-side applications by being able to see the message sent from a client application. Then, a developer can respond to the client application with a customized response message sent from the server.

 

Product Release History for PowerTCP Server for ActiveX

The following is a list of public releases for all components shipped with PowerTCP Server for ActiveX (Latest Release 2013-05-17)

 

 

 

3.2.5.0   Released: 2013-05-17

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• Resolved a Com registration error.
• Resolved an issue that could cause a crash when using the Server control as a proxy. (5695)

 

 

3.2.3.0   Released: 2012-07-10

---

 

• There are now separate "Trial" and "Licensed" versions of the dll. Trial dlls are not for deployment and will only function on machines on which a trial version of the product has been installed.

 

 

3.2.2.0   Released: 2012-02-09

---

 

• No changes from 3.2.1.0.

 

 

3.2.1.0   Released: 2011-01-25

---

 

• Number update to match product version.

 

 

3.2.0.0   Released: 2010-07-26

---

 

• No longer vulnerable to attacks outlined in Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-035 (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS09-035.mspx).
• Now functions on all Data Execution Protection (DEP) enabled systems.

 

 

 

3.2.4.1   Released: 2013-05-17

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• Blank DNS responses will no longer be included when resolving mail servers for a domain.
• Resolved a Com registration error.

 

 

3.2.3.0   Released: 2012-07-10

---

 

• There are now separate "Trial" and "Licensed" versions of the dll. Trial dlls are not for deployment and will only function on machines on which a trial version of the product has been installed.

 

 

3.2.1.0   Released: 2011-01-25

---

 

• Number update to match product version.

 

 

3.2.0.10   Released: 2010-07-26

---

 

• Now functions on all Data Execution Protection (DEP) enabled systems.
• No longer vulnerable to attacks outlined in Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-035 (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS09-035.mspx).

 

 

 

3.2.3.0   Released: 2012-07-10

---

 

• There are now separate "Trial" and "Licensed" versions of the dll. Trial dlls are not for deployment and will only function on machines on which a trial version of the product has been installed.

 

 

3.2.1.0   Released: 2011-01-25

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• Fixed crash when transferring files.

 

 

3.2.0.1   Released: 2010-07-26

---

 

• No longer vulnerable to attacks outlined in Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-035 (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS09-035.mspx).
• Now functions on all Data Execution Protection (DEP) enabled systems.

 

 

 

3.2.4.1   Released: 2013-05-17

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• Resolved a Com registration error.

 

 

3.2.3.0   Released: 2012-07-10

---

 

• There are now separate "Trial" and "Licensed" versions of the dll. Trial dlls are not for deployment and will only function on machines on which a trial version of the product has been installed.

 

 

3.2.1.0   Released: 2011-01-25

---

 

• Number update to match product version.

 

 

3.2.0.0   Released: 2010-07-26

---

 

• Now functions on all Data Execution Protection (DEP) enabled systems.
• No longer vulnerable to attacks outlined in Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-035 (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS09-035.mspx).

 

 

 

3.2.5.1   Released: 2013-05-17

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• Resolved a Com registration error.
• The Service control now functions correctly on 64-bit operating systems. (4764)

 

 

3.2.3.0   Released: 2012-07-10

---

 

• There are now separate "Trial" and "Licensed" versions of the dll. Trial dlls are not for deployment and will only function on machines on which a trial version of the product has been installed.

 

 

3.2.2.0   Released: 2012-02-09

---

 

• No changes from 3.2.1.0.

 

 

3.2.1.0   Released: 2011-01-25

---

 

• Number update to match product version.

 

 

3.2.0.0 Released: 2010-07-26

---

 

• Now functions on all Data Execution Protection (DEP) enabled systems.
• No longer vulnerable to attacks outlined in Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-035 (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS09-035.mspx).

 

 

 

2.10.2.1   Released: 2013-05-08

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• Resolved a com registration error.
• Resolved an issue where DartStrings would be empty when reading and splitting a large file with delimiters. (5117)
• Resolved a memory leak when calling the Udp.Receive(DartStream) overload. (5536)

 

 

2.10.0.1   Released: 2012-07-10

---

 

• There are now separate "Trial" and "Licensed" versions of the dll. Trial dlls are not for deployment and will only function on machines on which a trial version of the product has been installed.

 

 

2.9.1.0   Released: 2012-02-09

---

 

• No changes from 2.9.0.3.

 

 

2.9.0.3   Released: 2010-10-26

---

 

• CertificateList and CertificateStore are now licensed controls in PowerTCP Mail for ActiveX.

 

 

2.9.0.2   Released: 2010-07-26

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• Fixed problem getting DartStrings.All when the collection is empty.

 

 

2.9.0.1   Released: 2010-04-28

---

 

• Now functions on all Data Execution Protection (DEP) enabled systems.
• No longer vulnerable to attacks outlined in Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-035 (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS09-035.mspx).

 

 

2.9.0.0   Released: 2010-02-11

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• The StartAfter parameter of DartStrings.Find can now be greater than 65535. (4707)
• Ras Phonebook entries can now have names with multibyte characters. (4875)

 

 

2.8.5.0   Released: 2008-03-19

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• It is now possible to edit and add to Ras PhoneBooks on Vista machines. (4225)
• Two running instances of the same application using the Ping control are now completely independent. (4583)

 

 

2.8.3.27   Released: 2008-02-04

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• DartStrings.Remove now works with a string parameter. (4262)
• NoDelay and KeepAlive properties can now be set to false on Vista machines. (4351)
• DartStrings.Add now works when adding strings to the end of the collection by specifying an index parameter. (4632)

 

 

 

2.9.3.0   Released: 2013-05-17

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• Resolved a Com registration error.

 

 

2.9.2.0   Released: 2012-07-10

---

 

• There are now separate "Trial" and "Licensed" versions of the dll. Trial dlls are not for deployment and will only function on machines on which a trial version of the product has been installed.

 

 

2.9.1.0 Released: 2012-02-09

---

 

• No changes from 2.9.0.1.

 

 

2.9.0.1   Released: 2010-04-28

---

 

• Now functions on all Data Execution Protection (DEP) enabled systems.
• No longer vulnerable to attacks outlined in Microsoft Security Bulletin MS09-035 (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/bulletin/MS09-035.mspx).

 

 

2.8.5.0   Released: 2008-03-19

---

 

Product fixes in this release:

• Two running instances of the same application using the Ping control are now completely independent. (4583)

PowerTCP Server for ActiveX Features

FtpServer ActiveX Control

The FtpServer control is used to build custom FTP server applications. Features include:

 

• The FtpServer control uses an internal Daemon object and dynamically creates internal TCP objects as each passive connection is automatically accepted. Use this TCP object to send and receive data to that individual connection.
• When a request is received, a corresponding event is raised. Write your own custom handling code in the event handler.
• Add authentication and customized user directories within the Login event.
• Disallow changing directories within the ChangeDirectoryUp and ChangeWorkingDirectory events to those who do not have proper permissions.
• Disallow directory creation/deletion within the MakeDirectory and RemoveDirectory methods to those who do not have proper permissions
• Disallow file upload/download within the Retrieve and Store event to those who do not have proper permissions.

 

Development Environments

• Visual Studio .NET (.NET Framework)
• Visual Basic (VB)
• Visual C++ (VC++)
• FoxPro
• ASP
• Office 97/2000

 

 

Interface

 

Public Properties
Count	Number of nonsecure TCP connections currently open.
EndEvent	Regulates whether the events will be raised only at the beginning of an operation, or both at the beginning and the end of an operation.
LocalAddress	Returns the address in use while the Daemon is active and an empty string when the Daemon socket is closed.
LocalPort	Returns the port number in use while the Daemon is active and 0 when the Daemon is closed.
LogDirectory	Directory for daily log files.
MaxIdleTime	Maximum time in minutes a session can be idle before it terminates.
QuitMessage	Message sent to the client in response to a QUIT command (when the user logs out).
RequestAccountInfo	Controls whether the ACCT command is requested.
RestartAllowed	Indicates whether users can restart file transfers.
Sessions	Collection of active Session Objects.
Status	Text description of the server status. This is the message returned to the client in response to a STAT command.
SystemName	System name and type. This is the message returned to the client in response to a SYST command.
WelcomeMessage	Message returned to the client when the client initially connects.
Public Methods
About	Show the About Box.
Pause	Stop the server from listening and accepting new connections, while allowing established connections and sessions to persist.
Start	Start processing FTP requests.
Stop	Stop the server from accepting new connections and immediately close existing client connections.
Public Events
Append	Fires when the client attempts to append to a file (by sending an APPE command).
ChangeDirectoryUp	Fires when the client sends a CDUP command.
ChangeWorkingDirectory	Fires when the client sends a CWD command.
Command	Fires when the client sends a custom command.
Delete	Fires when the client sends a DELE command.
Error	Fires whenever an error condition occurs.
Help	Fires when the client sends the HELP command.
List	Fires when the client sends a LIST command.
Login	Fires when the client attempts to log into the server.
Logout	Fires when the client sends the QUIT command.
MakeDirectory	Fires when the client sends a MKD command.
NameList	Fires when the client sends a NLST command.
RemoveDirectory	Fires when the client sends a RMD command.
Rename	Fires when the client attempts to rename a file.
Retrieve	Fires when the client attempts to retrieve a file.
SessionEnd	Fires just before the session is terminated.
SessionInit	Fires when the client first connects to the server.
Site	Fires when the client sends the SITE command.
Status	Fires when the client sends the STAT command.
Store	Fires when the client attempts to store a file.
StructureMount	Fires when the client sends the SMNT command.

 

 

Code Example

How easy is the FtpServer ActiveX control to use? Check out the VB examples below, which demonstrates creating a fully-functional FTP Server application which performs user authentication.

 

PowerTCP Server for ActiveX Features

Dns ActiveX Control

Use the Dns control to integrate domain name resolution into any COM application, allowing your application to easily resolve domain names, host addresses, and email addresses. Features include:

• The Dns control bypasses Winsock system services, so you can query ANY Domain Name Server on the Internet.
• Resolve a domain name to a dot address (forward lookup)
• Resolve a dot address to a domain name (reverse lookup)
• Resolve an email address to the mail server responsible for the mail server (mx lookup)
• The Dns control comes complete with extensive samples.

 

Development Environments

• Visual Studio .NET (.NET Framework)
• Visual Basic (VB)
• Visual C++ (VC++)
• FoxPro
• ASP
• Office 97/2000

  

Interface Members

Public Properties
Addresses	Collection of addresses in dot notation (nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn) returned by the Domain Name Server.
Id	Sets the Dns request ID included with the request.
Names	Collection of names returned by the Domain Name Server.
ServerName	Domain Name Server to use for queries.
ServerPort	Domain Name Server port for queries.
Timeout	Controls the blocking behavior of methods that can be used in blocking and non-blocking ways.
Public Methods
Abort	Abort any blocking method and release all system resources.
About	Show the About Box.
GetAddress	Resolve a host name to a dot address.
GetMailServer	Get the mail server (or servers) responsible for receiving mail for a given email address.
GetName	Resolve a dot address to a host name.
Public Events
Error	Fires when an error condition occurs.
Response	Fires after the Id, Addresses, and Names properties are updated with the contents of a DNS response.

 

Code Example

How easy is the DNS ActiveX control to use? Check out the following VB example below, which demonstrates getting an IP address for a domain name.

 

PowerTCP Server for ActiveX Features

DnsServer ActiveX Control

Use the DnsServer control to build a DNS server application which responds to DNS queries. Features include:

• When a request is received, a corresponding event is raised. Write your own custom handling code in the event handler.
• The GetAddress event is raised when a client requests a domian name be resolved to a dot address (forward lookup).
• The GetName event is raised when a client requests a dot address be resolved to a domain name (reverse lookup).
• The GetMailServer event is raised when a client requests an email address be resolved to the mail server responsible for that email address (mx lookup).
• Use with the Dns control to build a "proxy" DNS server (passing on requests to another DNS server), or resolve names using a local datasource.

 

 

Development Environments

• Visual Studio .NET (.NET Framework)
• Visual Basic (VB)
• Visual C++ (VC++)
• FoxPro
• ASP
• Office 97/2000

 

Interface 

Public Properties
ClientException	ClientException is used only in the GetAddress, GetName, and GetMailServer events. After the event is fired, the DnsServer Control will expect this property to be set if you wish to return an error condition to the client. The default value is dnsOk.
LocalAddress	Returns the address in use while the socket is active and an empty string when the UDP socket is closed.
LocalPort	Returns the port number in use while the socket is active and 0 when the socket is closed. When the Protocol property of the UDP Control is not ptUdp, LocalPort returns 0.
Timeout	Controls the blocking behavior of methods that can be used in blocking and non-blocking ways.
Public Methods
Abort	Abort any blocking method and release all system resources.
About	Show the About Box.
Close	Release system resources.
Open	Allocate a socket for sending and receiving datagrams.
Trace	Start or stop the accumulation of trace or debug data. Once started, this method accumulates data until it is turned off.
Public Events
Error	Fires when an error condition occurs.
GetAddress	Fires when a DNS type A request has been received.
GetMailServer	Fires when a DNS type MX request has been received.
GetName	Fires when a DNS type PTR request has been received.

 

Code Example

How easy is the DnsServer control to use? Check out the VB examples below, which demonstrates responding to a request to resolve an address.

 

PowerTCP Server for ActiveX Features

(Tcp) Server ActiveX Control

Use the Server control to build any type of high-level TCP server application (such as FTP, HTTP, POP3, SMTP, or your own proprietary protocol). Features include:

 

• The Server control uses an internal Daemon (listener) object and dynamically creates internal TCP objects as each passive connection is automatically accepted. Use this TCP object to send and receive data to that individual connection.
• Active connections are available in a collection.
• Events are raised notifying when a new connection occurs or an existing connection closes.
• Create a server which implements an existing protocol such as an FTP, POP, IMAP, or HTTP server.
• Create a server which implements your own custom protocol.

 

Development Environments

• Visual Studio .NET (.NET Framework)
• Visual Basic (VB)
• VBScript
• Visual C++ (VC++)
• FoxPro
• PowerBuilder
• Delphi
• C++ Builder
• ASP
• Office 97/2000

 

 

Interface

 

Public Properties
Children	Returns a collection of TCP child connections accepted by the server.
LocalAddress	Returns the address in use while the Daemon is active and an empty string when the Daemon socket is closed.
LocalPort	Returns the port number in use while the Daemon is active and 0 when the Daemon is closed.
ReuseAddress	When True, the REUSEADDR socket option is set to accept duplicate use of the same LocalAddress / LocalPort pair.
Public Methods
About	Show the About Box.
Close	Stop the server from accepting new connections and immediately close existing client connections.
Listen	Start listening for passive connections.
Public Events
Count	Fires to indicate the count of connected children has changed.
Error	Fires when an error condition occurs.
Receive	Fires when the ReceiveBufferCount changes.
Send	Fires when the system accepts data for sending.
State	Fires when the State property changes.

 

 

Code Example

How easy is the Server ActiveX control to use? Check out the VB example below, which demonstrates creating a functional echo server.

 

PowerTCP Server for ActiveX Features

(Windows) Service ActiveX Control

The NT Service control is used to turn any application into a Windows Service. Features include:

 

• Easily turn any server applications built using PowerTCP products into services.
• Applications built with the Service Control target server-side applications that always run in the background, even when a user is not logged into the system.
• With the Service Control, you can respond to all service events, including Start, Stop, Pause, and Resume. The Message event is included to support user messages sent from external applications. The Log method is included for logging event messages.
• Convenient Install and Uninstall methods provide a way for your application to install and uninstall itself as a service. The Abort method allows your service to abort and stop itself while running.

 

Interface 

Public Properties
Params	Contains the parameters passed to your service. This property may be read when the State property is serviceRunning.
State	Determine what state the service is in. The State event fires to signal that this property has changed.
Public Methods
Abort	Abort and stop a running service.
About	Show the About Box.
Connect	Connect the service to the operating system’s Service Control Manager (SCM). Call this method as soon as possible after your application starts.
Install	Install the application as a service.
Log	Enter an event in the Windows Event Log.
Uninstall	Uninstall a service.
Public Events
Error	Fires when an error occurs. This event fires before the error is reported back to the container's error object.
Message	Fires when an application sends the service a user message. This can be used any way you wish, as it has no special meaning to the operating system.
State	Fires to indicate the State property has changed value.

 

 

Code Example

How easy is the Service control to use? Check out the following Service VB example below, which demonstrates creating an echo service with the Server control.

 

 

PowerTCP Server for ActiveX Features

(Tcp) Server ActiveX Control

Use the Server control to build any type of high-level TCP server application (such as FTP, HTTP, POP3, SMTP, or your own proprietary protocol). Features include:

 

• The Server control uses an internal Daemon (listener) object and dynamically creates internal TCP objects as each passive connection is automatically accepted. Use this TCP object to send and receive data to that individual connection.
• Active connections are available in a collection.
• Events are raised notifying when a new connection occurs or an existing connection closes.
• Create a server which implements an existing protocol such as an FTP, POP, IMAP, or HTTP server.
• Create a server which implements your own custom protocol.

 

Development Environments

• Visual Studio .NET (.NET Framework)
• Visual Basic (VB)
• VBScript
• Visual C++ (VC++)
• FoxPro
• PowerBuilder
• Delphi
• C++ Builder
• ASP
• Office 97/2000

 

 

Interface

 

Public Properties
Children	Returns a collection of TCP child connections accepted by the server.
LocalAddress	Returns the address in use while the Daemon is active and an empty string when the Daemon socket is closed.
LocalPort	Returns the port number in use while the Daemon is active and 0 when the Daemon is closed.
ReuseAddress	When True, the REUSEADDR socket option is set to accept duplicate use of the same LocalAddress / LocalPort pair.
Public Methods
About	Show the About Box.
Close	Stop the server from accepting new connections and immediately close existing client connections.
Listen	Start listening for passive connections.
Public Events
Count	Fires to indicate the count of connected children has changed.
Error	Fires when an error condition occurs.
Receive	Fires when the ReceiveBufferCount changes.
Send	Fires when the system accepts data for sending.
State	Fires when the State property changes.

 

 

Code Example

How easy is the Server ActiveX control to use? Check out the VB example below, which demonstrates creating a functional echo server.

 

PowerTCP Server for ActiveX Features

(Windows) Service ActiveX Control

The NT Service control is used to turn any application into a Windows Service. Features include:

 

• Easily turn any server applications built using PowerTCP products into services.
• Applications built with the Service Control target server-side applications that always run in the background, even when a user is not logged into the system.
• With the Service Control, you can respond to all service events, including Start, Stop, Pause, and Resume. The Message event is included to support user messages sent from external applications. The Log method is included for logging event messages.
• Convenient Install and Uninstall methods provide a way for your application to install and uninstall itself as a service. The Abort method allows your service to abort and stop itself while running.

 

Interface 

Public Properties
Params	Contains the parameters passed to your service. This property may be read when the State property is serviceRunning.
State	Determine what state the service is in. The State event fires to signal that this property has changed.
Public Methods
Abort	Abort and stop a running service.
About	Show the About Box.
Connect	Connect the service to the operating system’s Service Control Manager (SCM). Call this method as soon as possible after your application starts.
Install	Install the application as a service.
Log	Enter an event in the Windows Event Log.
Uninstall	Uninstall a service.
Public Events
Error	Fires when an error occurs. This event fires before the error is reported back to the container's error object.
Message	Fires when an application sends the service a user message. This can be used any way you wish, as it has no special meaning to the operating system.
State	Fires to indicate the State property has changed value.

 

 

Code Example

How easy is the Service control to use? Check out the following Service VB example below, which demonstrates creating an echo service with the Server control.