What I've been up to!

I've not posted any post for quite sometime now. However, that is about to change. I'm writing apps with JavaScript now and I'm learning new stuff almost daily. I'm currently using RequireJS, AngularJS, Backbone, jQuery and NodeJS to build webapps at my work for our clients. This means my blog will now focus on these technologies a lot. I will try to share my learnings with you all. Thanks for leaving comments on my blog. I hope to continue writing stuff that software developers around the world find helpful.

Installing ColdFusion 9.0.1 Update

Some people might face a problem when installing ColdFusion update on their Windows 2008 Server. This is because they will have to remove ColdFusion 9 connector settings and IIS6 Metabase Compatability from IIS 7.

So, here is what you need to do to update your CF 9:

Download the installer from http://www.adobe.com/support/coldfusion/downloads_updates.html#cf9

1. Remove existing ColdFusion connectors from IIS 7.
2. Shutdown ColdFusion services
3. Run the installer (downloaded in step one)
   You'll note that after installation you'll get a message like this one:
   

   Congratulations. Adobe ColdFusion 9.0.1 has been successfully installed to:

   
   

      C:\ColdFusion9

   
   

   Press Done to quit the installer.

   
   

   Notes

   =====

   
   

   Solr Server has been upgraded. Reindex all the collections.

   
   

   Connector has been upgraded. If you use IIS 6 Management Compatibility, to use IIS 7 support, unconfigure (already configured) websites.

   Then uncheck all IIS 6 Management Compatibility options (Start > Control Panel > Programs > Programs and Features > Turn Windows features on or off > Internet Information Services > Web Management Tools) and then reconfigure all your configured websites using wsconfig tool. Ensure that unconfiguring of the websites is done before you disable IIS 6 Mangement Compatibility options.

   
   

   Note that this step is not mandatory. You have the option to continue using IIS 6 Management Compatibility.

4. Start 'Server Manager' from Control Panel/Administrative Tools
5. Scroll to 'Roles Summary' and Click on Web Server (IIS). (shown below)
   
   
6. You will see a screen similar to the one below. The image below shows three sections: Events, System Services and Role Services.
   
   
7. Since we have to remove specific services from Web Server (IIS) - click on 'Remove Role Services'
8. You will see a window like the one below. Uncheck, IIS 6 Metabase Compatability and IIS 6 Management Console.
   
   
9. When you uncheck, you might see a message saying that there are dependent services. Don't bother if it talks about IIS6 related services. Simple click 'Remove Dependent Role Services'. See below:
   
   
10. Go ahead and finish the removal process.
11. When the feature is removed, you will get confirmation (may get an error - just ignore). You will be asked to restart your windows server - click yes.
12. Once your server completes the reboot, run the WSConfig.exe under Start menu > Adobe ColdFusion 9.
13. Click 'Add' - a pop up window will appear that looks like the one below:
    
    
14. Select the Configure web server for ColdFusion applications option, and click OK.
    
    
15. Click ok.
16. Now restart your IIS7 and you're done.

I hope this helps. If you face any issues, let me know.

ColdFusion 9.0.1 Update Now Available

Adobe released update for ColdFusion 9 yesterday. I have installed the update on my server running Windows Server 2008 with IIS 7.

This update now supports running ColdFusion with IIS7 without installing IIS6 Metabase Compatibility. Finally! IIS7 is almost 4 years old!

Download the update from: http://www.adobe.com/support/coldfusion/downloads_updates.html#cf9

Note: If you are running IIS7 with IIS6 Metabase Compatibility, then you'll have to remove IIS6 MC and that will require a restart of the server.

This update is recommended as it includes many bug-fixes and security hot-fixes.

ColdFusion Manual Configuration & Issues with TCP ports 51011, 51010 and 51800 on IIS and Apache

ColdFusion works by configuring your web server (IIS, or Apache) to execute files with known extensions (.cfm, .cfml, .cfc et al) to run as script. And for doing that ColdFusion comes with a small and important tool called “wsconfig”.

Problem: At times, regardless of operating system and the web server you are using, the ColdFusion installation will fail to configure web-server due to your network settings or firewall/security settings. When running wsconfig tool, you may encounter errors similar to the following:

• Could not connect to any JRun/ColdFusion servers on host localhost.
  • Possible causes:
    • Server not running
      - Start Macromedia JRun4 or ColdFusion server
    • Server running
      - JNDI listen port in jndi.properties blocked by TCP/IP filtering or firewall on server
      - host restriction in security.properties blocking communication with server

Snapshot above shows one of the common scenario when wsconfig will not configure IIS.

Solution: Here is one fail proof solution to complete the installation of ColdFusion and stop worrying about getting wsconfig to… “run”. Yes, you we will not run “wsconfig”. Instead, we will manually configure web-servers and manually create files that are created by wsconfig.

Introducing WordArt for ColdFusion

WordArt for ColdFusion is available for free under new BSD License.

WordArt CFC generates image for insertion of typography on a webpage by converting text to image in various styles. There are over 25 different options available in this first release of WordArt.

If You Ever Wanted to Know How JavaScript Conditional Operators Executes

A basic conditional operators && OR || execution demo in JavaScript:

Tag-Team Death Match: Flash & ActionScript V/S HTML5 & JavaScript

Much has been said about HTML5 and its proponent frequently compare HTML5 to Flash. Many of those proponents try to malign Adobe’s Flash in many ways. Neil Webb has already written a perfect article presenting his counter-points to HTML5 proponents.
HTML5 Applications are nothing without JavaScript. Similarly, Flash Applications are nothing without ActionScript.
I don’t wish to talk about how good or bad the features offered by HTML5 are when compared to Flash’s features.
Let’s see if you can use HTML5 in your projects today!