Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Alligacom Net-Transfer
User Guidefor software version 2.1.2
1 2 . 1 0 . 2 0 0 3
Disclaimer The information contained in this document is subject to change without notice. Alligacom Inc. makes no warranty of any kind with regards to this manual, including but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. Alligacom Inc. shall not be liable for errors contained herein or for incidental or consequential damages in connection with the furnishing, performance, or use of this manual. Copyright Copyright © August 2003 Alligacom Inc. All rights reserved. Alligacom Inc., the Alligacom logo, Alligacom Net-Transfer, and all other Alligacom Inc. product names and slogans are trademarks or registered trademarks of Alligacom Inc. in Canada and/or other countries. Other product names mentioned herein may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. Alligacom Inc. 5100 Sherbrooke Street East Office 203 Montreal, Quebec Canada H1V 3R9
2
Contents
Using the Alligacom Net-Transfer Documentation .............................................................5 1.1 Conventions............................................................................................5
2 Introducing Alligacom Net-Transfer ............................................................6 A Certified Software .................................................................................6 About Alligacom ......................................................................................6 What’s New in This Release? .....................................................................7
3 How Does It Work? ..................................................................................8 3.1 AS2 Protocol Description...........................................................................8 3.2 Internet Connectivity................................................................................9 3.3 Authenticity Certificates............................................................................9 3.4 Obtaining an Authenticity Certificate...........................................................9
4 Alligacom Net-Transfer ........................................................................... 10 4.1 The Alligacom Net-Transfer Components ................................................... 10
Administrative Engine and Interface ......................................................... 10 Internal Database .................................................................................. 10 Physical Mailbox .................................................................................... 11 AS2 Engine ........................................................................................... 11
5 Software Installation .............................................................................. 12 5.1 Before You Begin ................................................................................... 12 5.2 Hardware and Software Requirements ...................................................... 12 5.3 Network Considerations .......................................................................... 13
Firewall Protected Network With a DMZ..................................................... 13 Firewall Protected Network Without a Subnet ............................................. 13 Network Directly Connected to the Internet ............................................... 14
5.4 Estimating Required Disk Space............................................................... 14 5.5 Installation Under Windows NT ................................................................ 15 5.6 Installation Under UNIX or Linux .............................................................. 21 5.7 Uninstallation Under Windows.................................................................. 21 5.8 Software Updates .................................................................................. 24
6 Quick Tour of the Web Administrative Interface.......................................... 25 7 Configuration ........................................................................................ 28
7.1 Changing the Administrator’s Password..................................................... 28 7.2 E-mail Settings...................................................................................... 30 7.3 Certificates ........................................................................................... 33
Adding a Local Certificate........................................................................ 33 Deleting a Certificate.............................................................................. 35
7.4 Setting-up an AS2 Partnership................................................................. 36 To Send Documents…............................................................................. 36 To Receive Documents… ......................................................................... 37 Local Account Configuration .................................................................... 38 Remote Partner Configuration.................................................................. 40 Partnership Configuration........................................................................ 41
8 Advanced Configuration .......................................................................... 45 8.1 Setting the Login Level. .......................................................................... 45 8.2 Configuring an Administrative Web Interface to Use Https ........................... 47 8.3 Command Line Interface for Scripting ....................................................... 49 8.4 Online Configuration Modifications............................................................ 49 8.5 Installing a License File........................................................................... 49
9 Document Tracking ................................................................................ 51 9.1 Reviewing Sent Documents ..................................................................... 51 9.2 Reviewing a Received MDN for a Sent Document ........................................ 53 9.3 Downloading a Received Document .......................................................... 55 9.4 Sorting Transmission Records.................................................................. 55
10 Managing Exchanged Documents ............................................................. 56 10.1 Mailbox Location.................................................................................... 56
3
10.2 Sending Documents ............................................................................... 56 10.3 Receiving Documents ............................................................................. 57
11 Troubleshooting..................................................................................... 58 11.1 Confirming a Connection Between You and Your Trading Partner................... 58 11.2 Outgoing Network Communication Not Possible.......................................... 58
Your AS2 Server Cannot Connect to Your Trading Partner’s.......................... 58 11.3 Firewall Configuration and Communication Issues....................................... 58 11.4 Using the Event Viewer to See if there Is an Incoming Connection Request .... 59 11.5 Making Sure that You Have a Valid License................................................ 59
12 Technical Support .................................................................................. 61
4
1 Using the Alligacom Net-Transfer Documentation
This comprehensive manual provides detailed information and procedures for using the Alligacom Net-Transfer application. Topics covered in this manual require the reader to have a working knowledge of the Windows and Unix/Linux operating environments depending on the user’s environment.
1.1 Conventions
The following conventions are used in this manual: Steps Numbered steps are listed as Step 1., Step 2., …etc.
Text to type Text that must be typed on the keyboard is preceded by the word "Type" and may be followed by the key(s) that must be pressed:
For example:
Type install and press <Enter>.
Text to replace Text that must be replaced appears in italic.
For example:
JOB=priority
Interface items Items on the Alligacom Net-Transfer interface appear in bold. For example:
On the Properties pane.
5
2 Introducing Alligacom Net-Transfer
Alligacom Net-Transfer is a high-performance secure messaging application. It enables enterprises to exchange electronic documents with trading partners in a completely secure way. Alligacom Net-Transfer respects the AS2 protocol and offers document and exchange tracking features. Alligacom Net-Transfer can be configured in a number of ways to accommodate multiple operating systems environments and high volume documents exchange. A Certified Software
Alligacom is the first Canadian firm to develop an EDI software based on the international AS2 protocol. This solution improves data interchange between business partners and optimizes the supply chain's efficiency. Alligacom received the AS2 certification for its Net-Transfer product. In fact, after various exhaustive test, Alligacom was awarded the AS2 compatibility and the AS2 interoperability certification for the Net-Transfer software by the Drummond Group and the Uniform Code Council.
AS2 and the Net-Transfer software allow organizations to interchange data through the Internet in both a secure and confidential manner; it also allows for a precise and high performance follow-up of the exchanges and can translate into huge savings with regards to the enormous operational costs of traditional private networks. The AS2 protocol is headed by the IETF and allows the exchange of electronic documents - such as EDI, XML and others - through the Internet network. About Alligacom
Ever since 1996, Alligacom has been offering electronic business solutions to organizations of all sizes. Alligacom has positioned itself as an essential partner for any organization who wishes to optimize its electronic exchanges with the rest of the business community. Alligacom has already helped a large number of companies achieving these results.
6
What’s New in This Release?
This release of Alligacom Net-Transfer includes the following new features and capabilities:
• AS2 protocol support • Event logging and reporting • Exchanged documents statistics • Email alert system • Management of the exchanged documents database • Enhanced administrative Web interface • Report printing feature • Event logging system management • Load balancing capabilities (Enterprise version) • Run as a Windows NT/200x/XP service • Includes a scheduler for sending document on a regular basis • Supports AS2 compression
7
3 How Does It Work?
Alligacom Net-Transfer can act as a sender, a receiver, or both, depending on the situation. However, there is always a sender, a receiver and a document to be sent in these scenarios.
Because this release of Alligacom Net-Transfer is capable of sending and receiving documents with the AS2 transport protocol, the following section will focus on the description of the AS2 protocol.
3.1 AS2 Protocol Description
The AS2 protocol allows the exchange of electronic documents in a secure fashion. The secure document exchange process is the following: 1. The sender transmits a signed and encrypted message and asks for a signed receipt. 2. The receiver decrypts the message and verifies its signature. Integrity and authenticity are
therefore guaranteed. 3. The receiver then sends (synchronously or asynchronously) a signed receipt to the sender;
this receipt contains amongst other things a hash of the original message, which allows the sender to validate that his message was properly decrypted.
8
3.2 Internet Connectivity
AS2 uses the HTTP protocol to send out messages on the Internet. This protocol allows messages to be synchronously routed to the recipient(s). It is therefore essential that the AS2 software be ready to receive documents at all time. Consequently, you must maitain a permanent Internet connection and have a static IP address in order to use the Alligacom Net-Transfer software to its full capacity.
3.3 Authenticity Certificates
The signature and encryption mechanisms used by an AS2 application are based on the SMIME protocol and type X509 authenticity certificates. When you exchange documents with an AS2 software, the involved parties must have one or several X509 authenticity certificates and must be familiar with their partner’s certificates. You should: • Be familiar with a partner’s signature certificate in order to verify the authenticity of any
messages signed by him. • Be familiar with a partner’s encryption certificate in order to generate a encrypted message,
which he alone will be able to decrypt. Also note that there are two types of certificates: • Certificates issued and signed by a third party organization, named “root authority”, which
generally guarantee the certificate’s authenticity. • “Auto signed” certificates, which are generally not generated by a third-party organization.
These certificates offer the same security level but without the associated significant costs as the first ones have.
Note: you can use the same authenticity certificate to encrypt and sign documents.
3.4 Obtaining an Authenticity Certificate
You can obtain authenticity certificates through certification organizations like Thawte or Verisign. Certificates provided by these organizations are usually appealing for one reason, that also justifies their cost, as they guarantee the authenticity of the information provided. In AS2 exchanges, this is not very useful because partners directly trade their certificates upon the configuration of the mutual AS2 agreement. The Alligacom Net Transfer software allows generation of auto signed certificates for AS2 exchanges.
9
4 Alligacom Net-Transfer
4.1 The Alligacom Net-Transfer Components
• Administrative Engine and Interface • Internal Database
o AS2 Partnership information o Exchange log
• Physical Mailbox • AS2 Engine
Administrative Engine and Interface
Alligacom Net-Transfer’s configuration and management is performed through a Web interface. You can manage the application from a different workstation than the one where it is installed. Access to this interface is password protected and can be secured with an SSL protocol for maximum security. Internal Database
AS2 Partnership information Alligacom Net-Transfer allows you to configure AS2 accounts, whether local (detailing your organization’s information) or distant (detailing your partner’s information). These entries are then put in relation in AS2 agreements. Exchange log The exchange log can be accessed from the administrative interface. The logs contain information pertaining to every exchanged messages: transmission date, sender, receiver, security parameters, file size, etc. You can filter the log’s entries by date or status and sort the results according to various criteria.
10
Physical Mailbox
Each AS2 agreement is associated with a unique mailbox that corresponds to a folder in the file system. This folder contains:
• A sub-folder named “Inbox” where received messages are stored. • A sub-folder names “Outbox” where messages to be sent are stored.
Note : An “error” sub-folder might be created to store messages that cannot
be properly transmitted to their recipients.
AS2 Engine
The AS2 Engine is in charge of detecting incoming connections and transfers. It also handles the sending process for files you wish to exchange. The AS2 engine is where the encryption, signature, http/https is done; it’s the heart of the software.
11
12
5 Software Installation
5.1 Before You Begin
We strongly recommend that you plan the software deployment before beginning the installation of Alligacom Net-Transfer. Note that you should know who to refer to if you do not have administrative rights to access or modify the following: network and server configurations, EDI systems, firewall and trading partners’ information.
5.2 Hardware and Software Requirements
Minimum Hardware Requirements Processor Pentium Class Memory (RAM) 64 MB, 128 MB recommended (or more for higher
performance) Disk Space 50 MB hard disk space Minimum Software Requirements Operating System
o Microsoft Windows NT Workstation v4.0tm o Microsoft Windows NT Server v4.0tm o Microsoft Windows 2000 Professionaltm o Famille Microsoft Windows 2000 Servertm o Microsoft Windows XPtm o Famille Microsoft Windows 2003 Servertm o SUN Solaris Inteltm et Sparctm o HP-UXtm o Unix o Linux o IBM OS/400tm o Mac OS Xtm
We recommend you to used latest OS patch for additional security.
Internet Browser Internet Explorer 6.0 or later
5.3 Network Considerations
Deployment of the software should be carefully planned in an enterprise network environment. There are several ways to implement the software and because each network is different, you must make sure that the implementation is going to be be secure. Here are different implementation scenarios: Firewall Protected Network With a DMZ
In a firewall protected network, the software is usually installed on a networked server located on the DMZ subnet. The Alligacom Net-Transfer server is then reachable from the outside network (with some restriction) and from the internal network (with less restrictions or none). Also, the Alligacom Net-Transfer server should reach the public network.
Firewall Protected Network Without a Subnet
Here is a second scenario for a firewall protected network. In this case the network has only one subnet, which is where corporate systems like EDI and the Alligacom Net-Transfer server reside.
13
Network Directly Connected to the Internet
This is a real simple case where the network is directly connected to the Internet and the Alligacom Net-Transfer server is reachable from the public network.
Note: We strongly recommend you set-up your Alligacom Net-Transfer server on a secure network even if the AS2 protocol, which is used by the software, is secure and capable of encryption. Note that you can create a breach in your network security if you connect your network to a public one.
5.4 Estimating Required Disk Space
The required disk space is variable. It depends on the document exchange frequency and the volume of the documents themselves.
14
5.5 Installation Under Windows NT
Software installation on a Windows platform should take approximately 15 minutes. After the installation, you should be able to begin the configuration of trading partners and partnerships. Your Alligacom Net-Transfer software kit should contain the following required elements:
• Software installer file • Software license file
Step 1. Run the installer file, Net-Transfer2.1.2.exe, by double clicking on it. A window will appear on screen.
15
Step 2. Select the desired language with the drop down menu on the window and click “Next”. The license window appears.
Step 3. Read the entire software license text, and click “I Agree”.
Step 4. Select the components to install. Users typically install all components as a default option. Click “Next”.
16
Step 5. Specify the directory where you wish to install Alligacom Net-Transfer by clicking the “Browse” button on the right. Once this is done, click “Next”.
Note Because this directory will contain all the received and sent
documents, make sure to have sufficient hard drive space.
17
Step 6. Specify the desired application settings.
The port number used by the software enables you to connect on the Web administrative interface. The license is the license file you received from your Alligacom representative. This file is named NetTLicense.xml. Once you selected the location of your license file, click “Install”.
18
Step 7. The installation process is now being installed. If you wish to see detailed information on the installation process, click on “Show details”.
Step 8. Once the installation is completed, click on the “Close” button.
19
Step 9. To make sure that the Windows service is started, go to the Control Panel and find the service named “Alligacom NetTransfer”. Look for its status: it should be marked as “Started”. If not, please refer to the troubleshooting section.
Congratulations! The installation process is now completed. You are now ready to configure the system for your trading partnership.
20
5.6 Installation Under UNIX or Linux
Step 1. Transfer the installer and the license files on your Unix/Linux server using any file transfer protocol.
Step 2. Decompress the installer file in the desired installation directory with these commands: $ gzip -d netTransfer.tar.gz $ tar -xf netTransfer.tar A netTransfer directory should have been created after the decompression procedure. Note: The “gzip –d” command replaces the .tar.gz file with a
bigger .tar file. We recommend that you keep a copy of the .tar.gz file.
Step 3. Copy the license file, NetTLicense.xml in the netTransfer directory. Step 4. Change directories and go to the netTransfer directory.
$ cd netTransfer Step 5. To run the application use these commands:
$ ./webserver > /dev/null &
Note: You may want to start the application upon the system
startup. If so, and depending on the Unix/Linux system you are using, you can add the startup command in the appropriate file: it will then run as a daemon rather than a user application.
5.7 Uninstallation Under Windows
Uninstalling the software from your Windows system is a pretty easy task.
Step 1. Run the uninstallation wizard located in the “Start” menu under Alligacom/Net-Transfer.
21
Step 2. The wizard will perform all the work for you; just click on “Uninstall” to start the process.
Step 3. Specify if you wish to keep the configuration files where your trading partners information, partnership information, transmission logs and all your sent and received documents are saved. Click on “Yes” or “No” accordingly.
22
Step 4. The uninstallation process is now completed; click “Close” to exit the
wizard.
23
5.8 Software Updates
As updates are available you will be able to get them from the Alligacom Support Center Website or from your local reseller. Please refer to the Alligacom Web site for more details. Alligacom Support Center Website: http://support.alligacom.com In order to access the Support Center you need to use the username and password you received with your license. If you did not receive this information, please contact Alligacom’s support team.
24
6 Quick Tour of the Web Administrative Interface
Step 1. Log on to the Web Administrative Interface with your current username and password.
The default username and password are “admin” and “admin”. Note: You might receive a “Security Alert” informing you of
security issues related with the certificate depending on your browser configuration.
Such an alert is normal and it not critical. You can click “View Certificate” and proceed with the installation. You should not receive any alert the next time you login.
25
The interface may be accessible with a http protocol depending on your software version. Only preconfigured versions are delivered by default with an https interface.
Step 2. Once you are logged in the Administrative Interface you will see a
welcome screen.
The welcome screen offers a main graphical menu at the top and a “JavaScript Disabled Browser” text menu on the bottom.
26
Menu descriptions Exchange
Send AS2 The “Send AS2” option is used to manually trigger the send process.
The sending process will apply to all available partnerships.
Configuration
AS2 Used to access AS2 configuration panels where you can set-up Local
accounts, Remote partners and partnerships.
E-mail This is where you set-up e-mail accounts used for sending SMTP asynchronous MDNs, to retrieve SMTP asynchronous MDNs and send SMTP alerts to the administrator.
Certificates Used to access the certificates manager. This is where you manage local and remote partners’ certificates.
User profile Used to reset the administrator password required to access the Web Administrative Interface.
Options This is where users can set the application’s desired log level, the administrator’s e-mail address and manage the log files.
Report
Transmissions This is a report used by the administrator to follow-up on the details
of the exchanges with trading partners.
Summary This is an activity summary on the exchanged documents. The number of documents sent and received and the used bandwidth for a specified period appear on this report.
Event viewer This is where system event messages are displayed.
Help Shows license and other useful information.
Logout Used to logout from the Administrative Interface.
27
7 Configuration
7.1 Changing the Administrator’s Password
To change the Administrator’s password:
Step 1. Log on to the Web Administrative Interface with your current username and password.
The default username and password are “admin” and “admin”.
Step 2. Once logged in, click on “Configuration” on the top menu and select “User profile”.
28
Step 3. Enter your old password and type in a new one. Please confirm your new password.
Step 4. After having typed both your old and new passwords, click on the “Save” button at the bottom of the box.
Step 5. The system will confirm that your new password has been updated.
29
7.2 E-mail Settings
E-mail settings will allow you to:
• Send asynchronous MDN by using the SMTP protocol. • Retrieve SMTP MDN sent by remote partners. • Send e-mail alerts to the administrator.
Before you begin the configuration process, make sure that you have access to a mail server supporting SMTP and POP3 mail protocols and you have a specific POP3 email account ready to be used by the software. This is not mandatory if you do not plan on using asynchronous SMTP MDN. To configure your e-mail settings:
Step 1. Log on to the Web Administrative Interface with your current username and password.
Step 2. Once successfully logged in, click on “Configuration” on the top menu and select “E-mail”.
30
Step 3. Click on “Add e-mail account”. The account setup form will appear.
Step 4. Type in the parameters in the appropriate fields.
Note 1: The “Name” field is for display purposes only: it will appear as the sender’s name in any messages that are sent.
Note 2: If you want the internal scheduler to automatically retrieve new
asynchronous SMTP MDN, check the box located on the bottom of the form and specify at what frequency you want the scheduler to pool the POP3 defined mailbox.
Note 3: If you DO NOT WANT to use asynchronous SMTP MDN, only the
SMTP server parameter is required. Enter fake parameters in the other fields.
31
Step 5. Click “Save, once all the fields have been completed. You will then be able to see your newly created e-mail account on the right. Here is an example with the “ASxTest” account.
32
7.3 Certificates
The “Certificate configuration options” page allows you to manage the certificates. There are two types of certificates: “Local certificates” and “Remote certificates”. Local certificates are the ones used by your local accounts and for which you have a corresponding private key. The supported certificate type is X.509 v3 formatted in PKCS#12. Remote certificates are used to authenticate your trading partners; they only include a public key. The supported certificate type is X.509 v3 formatted in DER format with or without Base64 encoding.
Adding a Local Certificate
In order to be able to successfully import a local certificate in the system, it needs to be in PKCS #12 format. These files usually have a “.pfx” file extension and because they contain a private key, PKCS#12 files are protected by a password.
Note Alligacom provides you the required scripts to generate a Self Signed
Certificate and a Certificate Signing Request. For more information on using these scripts, please refer to the appropriate documentation located in: application root directory/openssl/doc/instructions.doc.
33
To import a local certificate:
Step 1. Click on the “add local certificates” link. A popup window will appear.
Step 2. Specify the location of the file that contains your certificate and type in
the password that protects it.
Step 3. Once you specify the certificate file and its password, click on “Accept”. The window will now display detailed information about this certificate.
Step 4. To complete the local certificate’ importation process, click on “Accept”. To select another certificate without importing it in the system, click on “Cancel”.
34
Deleting a Certificate
Step 1. To delete a certificate, click on the red cross icon, ; a confirmation window will appear. The certificate will be deleted if you click on “OK”.
35
7.4 Setting-up an AS2 Partnership
Before setting up an AS2 partnership, you need to exchange some information with your trading partner. The next section will help you define what you need to know and what you need to tell your partner. To Send Documents…
Information you need to give to your trading partner Use the following form to record required information.
Choose your AS2-Ids:
Choose your security settings:
Your certificate(s) (public key):
Information you need to get from your trading partner
Use the following form to record required information.
Your partner’s AS2 server hostname or IP address:
Your partner’s port number:
Your partner’s transport protocol (HTTP or HTTPS):
Your partner’s URL path:
Your partner’s AS2 identifier:
Your partner’s certificate(s):
Your partner’s desired security settings:
Contact your local network administrator
Inform him of all the required AS2 parameters in order for him to properly configure your firewall for AS2 communications.
36
To Receive Documents…
Information you need to give to your trading partner Use the following form to record required information.
Your AS2 server hostname or IP address:
Your port number:
Your transport protocol (HTTP or HTTPS):
Your URL path:
Your AS2 identifier:
Your certificate(s):
Your desired security settings:
Information you need to give get from trading partner
Use the following form to record required information.
Your partner’s AS2-Ids:
Your partner’s security settings:
Your partner’s certificate(s) (public key):
Your partner’s AS2 server IP address:
Contact your local network administrator
Inform him of all the required AS2 parameters in order for him to properly configure your firewall for AS2 communications.
Note You can use the provided spaces in the following section to note down your desired “Local account” parameters.
37
Local Account Configuration
Step 1. Create a local account.
Account Name Label identifying the trading partner. AS2-ID This will be your unique identifier as an AS2 partner.
Account Name: AS2-ID:
Signature Certificate The signature certificate will be used by your local account to authenticate itself to remote trading partners. This will occur upon sending signed documents to remote partners and returning signed receipts to the request of a remote partner.
Signature certificate: Local Server Settings Section You only need to fill out this part if you are going to use this local account to receive AS2 documents. Server SSL Certificate This certificate should be defined if you wish to configure your server to receive documents using the HTTPS protocol.
Path to SSL certificate file:
Encryption Certificate
38
This certificate should be defined if your trading partner will be sending you encrypted documents. You need to configure your server to decrypt these documents upon reception.
Path to decryption certificate file:
URL The URL allows your trading partners to locate your AS2 server on the Internet. A local account’s URL is represented by a protocol, your server IP number or your server’s hostname, a TCP port and a path. You can choose either HTTP or HTTPs (also known as SSL) as a protocol. For your TCP port, we recommend using a non-reserved port as there is less chance of conflicts with other applications. The path is usually “/”.
IP or hostname: Protocol: Port number: Path:
Example of a URL: https://as-server.mydomain.com:21051/In this case:
“https” is the protocol. “://” is part of the universal URL syntax,
specifically in the protocol part. “as2-server.mydomain.com”
is the hostname.
“:” is part of the universal URL syntax, specifically in the port part.
“21051” is the TCP port number. “/” is the path.
Note 1.: You cannot specify the host name or the IP address of your
server here; it will be determined by the workstation on which Net-Transfer runs. If your server has multiple IP addresses, they will all be used.
Note 2.: You cannot define one local account with HTTP and another
one with HTTPS on the same TCP port. Perform Client SSL Authentication If you check this box, the SSL session will first start with an authentication phase that uses the certificates your partner specified for SSL.
Local Client You only need to fill out this part if you are going to use this local account to send AS2 documents. Client SSL Certificate Select the desired certificate for SSL authentication.
39
Remote Partner Configuration
Step 2. Creating a remote trading partner: to create the remote partnership click on “Add partner” and fill out the form; be sure to click on the “Save” button afterwards.
Partner Name Label identifying the trading partner.
Partner Name: AS2 ID This will be your trading partner’s unique identifier as an AS2 partner.
AS2-ID: Signature Certificate The signature certificate is the one your trading partner will be using to sign documents. Your trading partner should send you his certificate along with his public key.
Signature certificate file:
Remote Server You only need to fill out this part if you are going to send AS2 documents to this remote partner. Server SSL Certificate This is the certificate your trading partner’s software will use to authenticate itself as a SSL server.
Path to SSL certificate file:
40
Encryption Certificate This encryption certificate will allow to encrypt the documents you wish to send to your remote trading partner. Your trading partner should send you his certificate along with his public key.
Path to encryption certificate file:
URL This is your trading partner’s URL. If you wish to send documents to your trading partner, you need to specify this URL to locate his AS2 server on the Internet. A remote URL is represented by a protocol, your server IP number or your server’s hostname, a TCP port and a path. You can choose either HTTP or HTTPs (also known as SSL) as a protocol.
IP or hostname: Protocol: Port number: Path:
Example of a URL: https://as-server.mydomain.com:21051/In this case:
“https” is the protocol. “://” is part of the universal URL syntax,
specifically in the protocol part. “as2-server.mydomain.com”
is the hostname.
“:” is part of the universal URL syntax, specifically in the port part.
“21051” is the TCP port number. “/” is the path.
Remote Client You only need to fill out this part if you are going to receive documents from your trading partner. Client SSL Certificate Select the desired certificate for SSL authentication.
Partnership Configuration
Step 3. Adding a partnership: after creating a remote partner, you must define the partnership you wish to have with this entity. The partnership defines the way you will exchange documents with the remote partner. You need to define if you wish to receive from or send to the partner as well as the encryption, the signature, etc.
41
Friendly Name The label name you define for the partnership. It is usually the remote partner’s name.
Friendly name:
Local Account Defines which local account is going to be used in the relationship you are creating between you and the remote partner.
Local account: Remote Partner Defines which remote partner is going to be used in the relationship you are creating.
Remote partner:
Mailbox Defines the directory name that will be automatically created by the application. This directory will contain the outbox and inbox for the partnership. This is where you will save the document to send and where you will receive documents.
Mailbox:
42
Send Check this box if you wish to activate the receiving function for this partnership. If it is not checked, you will not be able to send documents using the partnership. Settings
Content type: defines the type of content you are sending. The settings do not change the way Alligacom Net-Transfer processes data, but some other AS2 software do. Make sure to define this parameter with your trading partner. Sign: defines if your sent documents will be signed. Encrypt: defines if your sent documents will be encrypted. Compress: defines if data will be compressed before sending. Algorithm: defines which encryption algorithm system will be used to manage data. Depending on your location and export restriction on algorithm, you can choose between: TripleDES, IDEA, RC2, AES. Make sure you choose an algorithm supported by your trading partner’. TripleDES is usually the standard in AS2 protocol.
Ask for Receipt
Receipt type: defines the receipt or MDN type requested from your trading partner. You can choose between:
None: no MDN required; Unsigned: MDN required (no need for the trading partner’s signature); Signed: MDN required (need for trading partner’s signature).
Asynchronous receipt: defines the asynchronous receipt or MDN. Asynchronous receipts can be delivered using AS2 over HTTP or HTTPS, or even using SMTP. If this feature is activated, you will need to specify the Receipt URL, which should have a specific syntax. To request that an MDN be delivered asynchronously over HTTP, you need to fill out the "url" textbox with a URL following this syntax: http://my.company.com:21050/To get this receipt, you need to setup a local account to receive documents using HTTP on port 21050 with path / (and you also need to have a partnership currently set to receive documents from the partner to whom you are sending). Similarly, you can request an MDN to be delivered over HTTPS (https://my.company.com:21051/). To have an MDN sent over SMTP, type in: mailto:[email protected] Refer to the "Configuration/Email" section to configure Net-Transfer to retrieve asynchronous SMTP MDNs through POP3.
Note : We recommend that you use signed MDNs for higher
security and reliability of your AS2 communications.
43
Send Pending Documents Every _ Minutes Defines the frequency at which the scheduler will send pending documents for this partnership. The frequency unit is in “minute”.
Receive Check this box if you want to activate the receiving process for this partnership. If it is not checked, you will not be able to receive documents using the partnership.
Security Settings This feature enables you to force the security settings for this partnership. If the partner does not comply with those security settings, your system will drop received documents and return an MDN containing an appropriate error code.
44
8 Advanced Configuration
8.1 Setting the Logging Level.
To change the logging level:
Step 1. Log on to the Web Administrative Interface with your current username and password.
Step 2. Once logged in, click on the “Configuration” menu and select “Options”.
Step 3. Select the desired log level with the drop down menu.
45
Step 4. Once you selected the level, click on the “Save” button on the lower part of the box.
46
8.2 Configuring an Administrative Web Interface to Use Https
Step 1. First, you need to locate the local certificate you wish to use for the SSL session. Open the “Certificate configuration options” and click on the desired certificate. The certificates’ detailed information will appear.
Step 2. Locate the certificate name displayed in the special input area. For example, the name on the following screen capture is “as2.alligacom.net”. You must write down the certificate’s name as you will need it in the following steps.
47
Step 3. Once the certificate’s name is noted, you must open the directory where you installed Alligacom Net-Transfer (C:\Alligacom\Net-Transfer by default). You will find the file “nettProperties.xml” in this directory.
Step 4. Backup this file if you need to restore it at some point. Open the file with a regular text editor like Notepad. Only a few lines need to be edited, as described below.
On line eleven: <webserver secure="false" port="7777" sessionTimeout="60" certificate="none" textMenu="on" />
Step 5. Change the parameter “certificate”, [certificate="none"], to the certificate name you want to use. This is the certificate name you previously noted down.
Step 6. Change the parameter “secure”, [secure="false"], to “true”. Step 7. Save the nettProperties.xml file. Step 8. Restart the Alligacom Net-Transfer service or deamon (depending if
you are using a Windows or UNIX platform).
48
8.3 Command Line Interface for Scripting
Two commands allow you to use Alligacom Net-Transfer with a command line and without running it as a Windows service:
Command name Command description as2send.bat Triggers the send process of all documents located in all
outgoing mailboxes. nett.bat webserver Launches the application in the user’s session.
8.4 Online Configuration Modifications
Alligacom Net-Transfer supports, without having to restart any application or service, online configuration modifications. This feature allows the administrator to add new trading partners and change partnership configurations without shutting down the server, so that the receiving and sending processes do not need to be temporarily stopped to reload the configuration. This is part of the high standard features Alligacom Net-Transfer offers.
8.5 Installing a License File
If, for any reason, you need to install a new license file for your software, follow this procedure.
Step 1. Stop the Alligacom Net-Transfer service. Step 2. Backup the previous license file named NetTLicense.xml. Step 3. Copy the new license file in the root directory of the application.
Step 4. Restart the Alligacom Net-Transfer service. Step 5. To validate the new license, log on to the Web Administrative Interface
with your current username and password.
49
Step 6. Click on the “Help” menu. The license information should appear on the screen.
The license is now successfully installed.
50
9 Document Tracking
9.1 Reviewing Sent Documents
Step 1. Once logged in the Web Administrative interface select “Transmissions” option under the “Report” menu.
Step 2. The report will display the sent and received documents. Note that you can filter by “Start date” and “End date”, “Local account”, “Remote Partners”, “Transaction Type” and “Status”.
51
The report interface also enables you to display detailed information.
Column Label Description
1 Date Exact date of document reception or transmission.
2 Account Local account used in the transmission.
3 Partner Remote trading partner involved in the transmission.
4 Subject Subject specified in the AS2 message.
5 Name Document file name.
6 Status Transmission status. See table above for status descriptions.
7 MDN A magnifying glass will appear if an MDN was used for the transmission. When you click on it, a popup window appears where you can review the MDN source.
8 Content Type Content type defined for the transmission.
9 Settings Transmission settings for encryption, signature and compression.
10 Size Document size before compression (if applicable).
11 Transport Transport protocol for the transmission. Available protocols are HTTP and HTTPS/SSL.
Status Descriptions “Send OK” The document was sent without any error notification. If an MDN
was requested, it also means that the MDN was received, that its signature was verified and that the transmission was successful (“processed”).
“Send Error” A problem occurred during transmission, probably at the network level, which means that nothing was sent (you can see it if the “transfer size” is null). The event viewer can give more information on the problem and its source, which can be:
- An MDN was received with a error code (in this case, click on the magnifying glass and look at the MDN).
- A MDN was requested, but was not received. - An HTTP response was received with an error message (in
this case, you can open the detailed exchange log by clicking on the date – you should be able to access the AS2 server response log).
“Send wait for MDN” An asynchronous MDN was requested, but has not been received
yet. On the other hand, the transmission was successful and an HTTP message was received confirming the successful delivery.
“Received Error” An error occurred while the message was processed. This can only happen when a document is received from an exchange partner with whom an reception AS2 agreement is defined. Potential causes are:
52
- No decryption is possible because the partner did not use the proper encryption certificate.
- The message’s integrity was altered, the signature is invalid, the message was modified during transmission.
- The signature is invalid because the certificate used does not correspond to the one that was defined during configuration.
- Message decompression problems. - An improper AS2 format message was received.
Consequently, this is not caused by a transmission problem, but by a message processing one. This type of error can be traced back to a configuration error on one side or the other, or even form both sides.
“Received” The document was decrypted and its signature verified (if applicable) and a synchronous MDN was sent if the sender requested one. Moreover, if the sender requested an asynchronous MDN, the status does not indicate if the transmission was successful.
Notes regarding to SSL errors: When a transmission error occurs (or a SSL handshake problem) upon reception, no exchange log is associated with it. The same thing applies when a connection is refused (because the AS2-IDs are inappropriate). On the other hand, the event log generally contains useful information.
9.2 Reviewing a Received MDN for a Sent Document
Step 1. To review an MDN, click on the magnifying glass that appears on the transmission report line of the desired transmission.
53
Step 2. The MDN window appears on the screen and displays the MDN source. You can use this information to show your trading partners you sent a message they allegedly did not receive. This is the AS2 protocol non repudiation feature.
The trading partners’ signature is located on the MDN’s bottom section (if it was signed).
54
9.3 Downloading a Received Document
If needed, you can download a received document from the Web Administrative interface.
Step 1. In the transmission report, click on the file name.
Note: It may not be able to download the file. This is usually the
case when files are moved or deleted from the specified mailbox.
9.4 Sorting Transmission Records
You can sort the transmission records displayed on the transmission report. You can sort columns by clicking on the arrows on the report’s header.
55
10 Managing Exchanged Documents
10.1 Mailbox Location
Mailboxes are located under the application’s root directory. You will find the folder with your trading partner’s name in the “AS2” subdirectory under the “mailbox” directory.
10.2 Sending Documents
To send documents, you need to save the documents you wish to send in the “Outbox” folder located under the folder named after your trading partner.
Note: Once you received the MDN from your trading partner mailbox, the system
will move the file to the “Sent” folder. The system will not delete the file(s), you are responsible to manage your sent files.
56
10.3 Receiving Documents
Received documents are saved in the “Inbox” folder located under the folder named after your trading partner.
57
11 Troubleshooting
11.1 Confirming a Connection Between You and Your Trading Partner
Note down the time at which your trading partners tried to connect to your server and try locating the following message in the Event Viewer. Note that the <ip number> should be your trading partner’s IP number.
LEVEL Description
INFO Incoming connection from / <ip number> If you do not get this message, a firewall or another network device might not allow traffic from your remote partner to your server.
Note: The login level must be set to the appropriate level for this to work.
11.2 Outgoing Network Communication Not Possible
Your AS2 Server Cannot Connect to Your Trading Partner’s
When your AS2 server is not able to connect to your trading partner’s AS2 server, one of the following error messages should appear in the Event Viewer:
LEVEL Description
ERROR Error Connection timed out: ERROR Error: Connection refused
11.3 Firewall Configuration and Communication Issues
You can test network communication from your AS2 server by using Internet Explorer to simulate a AS2 connection to a AS2 server on the receiver side. To do that, type the URL you to connect to in the URL field. If you are using an http connection, your browser might return one of the following messages:
Invalid AS2 request (either AS2-From or AS2-To is missing) OR The page cannot be displayed (error http 400)
This means that network communications are allowed between you and the remote server. If you receive a browser related message referring to an impossible connection to the remote server, it means you cannot reach the remote network server. You should check the firewall settings or any other network devices that might be related to the problem.
Note: These examples of error messages are generated by the Alligacom Net-
Transfer software. Other vendor’s software may generate different error messages.
When you try to connect to an HTTPS URL and if a network connection is possible, you should get a certificate related security warning from your Internet Explorer browser.
58
11.4 Using the Event Viewer to See if there Is an Incoming Connection Request
You can use the Event Viewer option from the Report menu to see if errors are recorded by the system.
11.5 Making Sure that You Have a Valid License
Step 1. To validate the license, log on to the Web Administrative Interface with
your username and password. Step 2. Click on the “Help” menu. The license information should appear on
the screen. Make sure that there is no date range usage restriction (these license types are for the TRIAL version).
59
60
12 Technical Support
Technical support is available from Alligacom by email and by phone (in English and French). E-mail: [email protected] Phone: (514) 899-0003 Tool free (Canada & USA): 1-877-700-7223
61
