Server Setup
Step 3: First-time Login: Local Access

If you left ACP running and enabled the web server as directed in previous steps, this page should have displayed without any scripting errors. If so, the local URL for your ACP web pages is shown below (it may take a few seconds to appear):
...

If you have a public static IP address, this will be your observatory's home page URL from now on. You'll need the username and password you set up for yourself.

  1. Click the above link. A browser should appear showing a username/password login box.
  2. Enter your username and password and click OK.
  3. If all went well, you should now see your observatory's home page. Note the observatory name you filled into Observatory preferences page is automatically inserted into the HTML for this page.

    If you don't see your home page, see the Troubleshooting the Web Server section below.

Next, test the FTP server. The URL is:
...

  1. Click the above link. Your browser or other FTP program should prompt you with a login dialog.
  2. Enter your username and password and click OK.
  3. If all went well, you should now see the web document root folder (typically in the Public or Shared documents\ACP Web Data\Doc Root folder). Don't worry, your FTP users cannot access most of these files, nor can they access any web content files anywhere.

    If FTP login is not successful, see the Troubleshooting the FTP Server section below.

Prev        Next (Here is where we provide wide-area public access for most of you!)

Troubleshooting the Web Server

 If the browser sits there with a blank window for a long time, then finally displays an error, double check to see that the Enable Web Server checkbox is checked (on). It is in the Servers preferences window. If it is on, look at the error message displayed by your browser. If you are using Microsoft Internet Explorer, and you see a generic "page cannot be displayed", you need to turn off IE's friendly (in other words useless) error messages. See the note below. If your browser shows an Access Denied message, you probably clicked Cancel instead of OK in the login dialog. Try again. If you repeatedly see the login dialog, you're using the wrong username and/or password. Go back to the Web Users preferences window and check your username and password. Do not use your full friendly name, use the login username.
thumbdown By default, Internet Explorer hides the error messages sent by web servers. This bonehead "feature" is responsible for more user frustration than just about anything else connected with the internet. Fortunately you can disable it. In Internet Explorer, Tools menu, select Internet Options... Then select the Advanced tab in the property sheet. In the Settings tree, under Browsing, locate "Show friendly HTTP error messages". Click to remove the checkmark, then click OK. Re try the operation that failed to see the actual error message from the server.

Troubleshooting the FTP Server

If you never even get the login dialog, double check to see that the Enable FTP Server checkbox is checked (on). It is in the Servers preferences window. If it is on, make sure you typed in the correct FTP address ....

If you get a login prompt, but cannot log in and you get a message like 530 Login incorrect, make sure you entered the username and password exactly as you did when you created the account. Re-check it now. If you cannot login and get a message like 550 You do not have permission to use our FTP server, make sure that you checked "Allow Using FTP Server" for the account.

If you are behind a firewall, sometimes FTP's "Passive" mode will allow access where its normal mode will not. ACP's FTP server supports passive mode, but the client (browser or FTP client program) often must be specifically configured to use passive mode. For example, Internet Explorer has an option "Use passive FTP" in its Internet Options window, Advanced tab.

Copyright © 2000-2016, Robert B. Denny, Mesa, AZ