In order to begin creating FGL applications and dynamic web content you will need the following:

• Windows-based system or Mac with either a Windows virtual machine or remote access to a Windows box
• FGL Platform Run-time (if just running FGL apps) or the Developer Edition if creating and running apps
• Optionally: the commercial version if creating or running CJIS or HIPPA-compliant apps

Download and install the required elements. The run-time will provide you with everything you need to run FGL programs and host web-based applications, and the Developer's Edition will provide all of that and provide everything necessary to create and run FGL standalone and web-based applications.

By default the installer creates the following directory structure on drive "C":

The FGL directory contains the main FGL engine and build tool executables. The installer will add a link to start the engine and another to access the default status page to your desktop, and the installer will automatically include c:\fgl in your system path.

Starting the FGL Engine:

To start the FGL runtime environment, double-click on the FGL Engine icon on your desktop. By default this will launch the engine, display the console window, and start the application web server. You can minimize the console window, or use the engine configuration option to hide the console. If you close the console window it will stop the engine.

Using the FGL Server:

By default, the FGL Server is automatically started whenever you start the FGL Engine. The default server is a high-performance web server that initializes port 80 and 443 (for SSL) and is optimized for FGL-based dynamically generated content.

You can customize the server options and even specify multiple servers and virtual servers within your environment through the server configuration utilities.

When the server launches, the built-in firewall is automatically activated. The edge of the firewall defines the “home” directory for your server. By default, the firewall edge is located at c:\fgl\server\home. Everything from the home directory and below is available through the server via a browser or web services interface. Access above the home directory is prohibited by the firewall.

With the server running, you can access web pages through your browser using localhost when running locally, or through your IP address when accessing the pages externally. If you have a dedicated IP address, you can assign domain names directly to your server. The server also supports virtual servers for assignment of multiple domain names to a single server implementation. Virtual servers each receive their own firewall. See the server documentation for details.

Each of the following methods access the same web page:

http://localhost                        // local access only
http://localhost/index.htm              // local access only
http://127.0.0.1                        // local access only
http://127.0.0.1/index.htm              // local access only
http://your_ip_addr                     // local/remote access
http://your_ip_addr/index.htm           // local/remote access
http://www.yourdomainname.com           // domain-based access
http://www.yourdomainname.com/index.htm // domain-based access

The first four examples assume you are accessing the web page through your browser on the same machine as the server. The next two can be used from the same machine or externally, provided that "your_ip_addr" resolves to an external address, as in: http://216.242.117.104 (replace with your own external IP address). The last two examples assume you have pointed a domain name (via its DNS) to your externally available IP address.

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