Accessing the Advanced Accounting Console on the web
Using simple IIS web server capability, Microsoft’s Remote Desktop ActiveX control, and Internet Explorer, it is possible to access iMIS Advanced Accounting Console functionality from a web browser alone. With the addition of the IE Tab extension from ietab.net, the Advanced Accounting Console can also be rendered and viewed within Firefox and Google Chrome.
The Advanced Accounting Console is a streamlined, easy-to-use interface alternative for customer service and other staff functions. The Advanced Accounting Console allows an administrator to define and set up iMIS. Users can now access the Advanced Accounting Console directly though the iMIS Staff site, from a web browser.
The Advanced Accounting Console can be accessed through a navigation link that is included in the iMIS Staff site. Go to Commerce > Advanced Accounting Console. When you go to this link, you might see the following message:
Unable to connect to the iMIS Advanced Accounting Console.
If you see this message, your Advanced Accounting Console content item is not configured. You must configure your server and your client before you can access the Advanced Accounting Console from the Staff site.
Do the following to configure the server:
- Log in to the server as an administrator.
- Verify Microsoft OS, IIS, and Remote Desktop Services are installed, active, and updated to the latest Critical, Important, and Recommended updates or hotfixes.
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Ensure that Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration is disabled for both Administrators and Users.
- Go to Start > Administrative Tools > Server Manager.
- Select Server Manager.
- In the Security Information area, click Configure IE ESC.
- Verify that the Off checkboxes for both Administrators and Users are enabled.
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Install the Remote Desktop Services role.
- On the computer on which you want to install the Remote Desktop Session Host role service, open Server Manager.
- If the Remote Desktop Services role is not already installed:
- Under Roles Summary, click Add Roles.
- On the Before You Begin page of the Add Roles Wizard, click Next.
- On the Select Server Roles page, select the Remote Desktop Services checkbox, and then click Next.
- Click Next again.
- On the Select Role Services page, select the Remote Desktop Session Host checkbox, and then click Next.
- If the Remote Desktop Services role is already installed:
- Under Roles Summary, click Remote Desktop Services.
- Under Role Services, click Add Role Services.
- On the Select Role Services page, select the Remote Desktop Session Host checkbox, and then click Next.
- If the Remote Desktop Services role is not already installed:
- On the Uninstall and Reinstall Applications for Compatibility page, click Next.
- On the Specify Authentication Method for Remote Desktop Session Host page, select the desired authentication method, and then click Next.
- On the Specify Licensing Mode page, select the licensing mode that applies to your Remote Desktop Services environment, and then click Next.
- On the Select User Groups Allowed Access To This Remote Desktop Session Host page, add any users or groups that you want to add to the Remote Desktop Users group, and then click Next.
- On the Configure Client Experience page, select the client experience that you want to provide, and then click Next.
- On the Confirm Installation Selections page, verify that the RD Session Host role service will be installed, and then click Install. On the Installation Progress page, installation progress will be noted.
- On the Installation Results page, you are prompted to restart the server to finish the installation process. Click Close, and then click Yes to restart the server. If you are prompted that other programs are still running, do either of the following:
- Click Cancel to close the programs manually and restart the server later.
- Click Restart now to automatically close the programs and restart the server.
- After the server restarts and you log on to the computer with the same account, the remaining steps of the installation will finish. When the Installation Results page appears, confirm that installation of the RD Session Host role service succeeded.
Note: You can add users at a later time, if necessary.
- On the computer on which you want to install the Remote Desktop Session Host role service, open Server Manager.
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Add a local user to the server.
- In your Server Manager, go to Configuration > Local Users and Groups > Users.
- Right click on Users and click New User.
- Enter the appropriate information for the new user.
- Provide a password for the local user.
- Click Create, and then close the New User dialog window.
- Go to Configuration > Local Users and Groups > Groups.
- Double-click the group to which you want to add the user. Add the local user to the Users, TS Web Access Computers, and Remote Desktop Users groups.
- Go to the directory where iMIS is installed, for example, C:\Program Files (x86)\ASI\iMIS\, and give the local user Modify and Write access to all files in that directory. This will be the single Windows credentials account used to provide access to the Advanced Accounting Console from a browser.
- Right-click and select Properties > Security.
- Click Edit to add a user and provide appropriate access rights.
- Click OK.
- Grant Modify and Write privileges to all files and directories for the instance of the iMIS Desktop client that is specific to each unique local user.
- Ensure that sufficient Remote Desktop Services connection Client Access Licenses (CALs) have been applied to the server to accommodate the total number of staff users expected to connect at any given time.
- Install only the iMIS Desktop client. The default file location is C:\Program Files (x86)\ASI\iMIS\. For more information, see Installing.
- Log off from the server.
- Log back in to the server using the new local user account.
- Open Internet Explorer and let the browser perform the initial browser setup. This enables JavaScript processing which iMIS requires in the Advanced Accounting Console.
- Log off from the server.
- Log in to the server again as an administrator.
- Go to Start > Administrative Tools > Remote Desktop Services and run Remote Desktop Session Host Configuration as an administrator.
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Right-click in the Edit settings area and select Properties. Ensure that the correct General settings are selected.
- Delete temporary files on exit
- Use temporary folders per session
- User logon mode – Allow all connections
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In the Connections area, right-click the name of the connection (RDP-Tcp), and then click Properties.
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(Sessions tab) Select the first Override user settings checkbox on the dialog window, and set the following timeout settings:
- End a disconnected session – 1 minute
- Active session limit – Never
- Idle session limit – 1 hour
- Select the second Override user settings checkbox.
- Select the reconnection setting End session.
- Click OK. Changes to timeout and reconnection settings are not applied to sessions that are connected when the change is made. The changes will take effect the next time the user establishes a new connection to the Remote Desktop Session Host server.
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(Sessions tab) Select the first Override user settings checkbox on the dialog window, and set the following timeout settings:
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Go to Start > Administrative Tools > Remote Desktop Services, and then click RemoteApp Manager.
- (Overview area) Click Change next to RD Session Host Server Settings.
- (RD Session Host Server tab) Select the Do not allow users to start unlisted programs on initial connection radio button.
- (RD Gateway tab) Select the Do not use an RD Gateway server radio button.
- (Common RDP Settings tab) Select the Printers and Disk drives checkboxes in the Devices and resources section.
- (Common RDP Settings tab) In the User experience section, select the Allow font smoothing checkbox, and select Highest Quality (32 bit) in the Colors drop-down.
- Click OK and exit the dialog.
- (Actions area) Click Add RemoteApp Programs to start the Remote App Wizard.
- Click Next.
- In the list of available programs, select the iMIS Desktop checkbox.
- Click Next.
- Click Finish. iMIS Desktop is displayed in the list of RemoteApp Programs.
- In the list of RemoteApp Programs, right-click on iMIS Desktop and select Properties.
- Select the Allow any command-line arguments option.
- Click OK.
- Click Yes at the RemoteApp Wizard security warning.
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Make sure you can access iMIS Advanced Accounting Console as an administrator.
- Go to Start > ASI > iMIS.
- Right-click iMIS Desktop and select Properties.
- (Compatibility tab) Select Run this program as an administrator.
- Click Apply and then click OK.
- Configure your browser on your client.
- After you configure your browser, go to your Staff site.
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Add the Advanced Accounting Console content item to a new content record:
- Go to RiSE > Page Builder > Manage content.
- Open the Shared Content > Staff folder, then select New > Website content.
- Select Add content, then select the Advanced Accounting Console content item from the Utility folder.
- Configure the content item:
- Server address – The address of the server where the Advanced Accounting Console is hosted.
- Windows domain – The domain in which the local user was created.
- Windows username – The local user.
- Windows password – The password for the local user.
- Height – The height of the displayed Advanced Accounting Console in the browser.
- Width – The width of the displayed Advanced Accounting Console in the browser.
- Command line – The standard location where iMIS Desktop is installed by default. This location can be changed.
- Working directory – This is the standard location where the Omnis files are installed, for example, C:\Program Files (x86)\ASI\iMIS.
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Redirect the Advanced Accounting Console shortcut to point to the content record you just created:
- Go to RiSE > Site Builder > Manage shortcuts.
- Select the All Sites AdvancedAccountingConsole shortcut, then select Edit selected.
- From the URL or Content Record field, select the content record you created.
- Click Save.
- Go to Commerce > Advanced Accounting Console to open the Advanced Accounting Console in your browser.
Note: Install or upgrade to the iMIS Application Server web components on a separate web server.
Note: In a multi-instance deployment of the iMIS Desktop client where multiple customers each have their own instance of the Desktop client on the same server, you must create a unique local user for each customer, for example, ClientA for CustomerA, ClientB for CustomerB, ClientC for CustomerC, and so forth.
Note: The first time you access the Advanced Accounting Console from the Staff site in Internet Explorer, you must agree to allow the webpage to run a Remote Desktop Services ActiveX Client add-on.
Note: The Client refers to the individual machine where the Staff site is accessed from a browser.
For all three browser variants, verify they are installed, active, and updated to their latest updates or hotfixes. For more information about latest versions of the supported browsers, see the System requirements.
Note: The first time you access the Advanced Accounting Console from the Staff site in Internet Explorer, you must agree to allow the webpage to run a Remote Desktop Services ActiveX Client add-on.
Your server domain must be added as a Trusted Site in Internet Explorer, regardless of which supported browser you use to display the Advanced Accounting Console.
- In Internet Explorer, go to Tools > Internet options.
- (Security tab) Select Trusted sites, and then click Sites.
- Enter
http://<www.yourdomain.com>
, where<www.yourdomain.com>
is the fully qualified domain name or IP address of the server. - Click Add, then click Close, and click OK.
- Close out of Internet Explorer completely and restart the Internet Explorer browser to make the changes take effect.
Note: Make sure the Require server verification (https:) for all sites in this zone checkbox is not selected.
The following instructions are subject to change. For up-to-date instructions, refer to Enterprise Mode for Internet Explorer 11.
- Open a command prompt.
- Enter gpedit.msc and press Enter.
- In the Local Group Policy Editor, go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Internet Explorer.
- Find Let users turn on and use Enterprise Mode from the Tools menu and double-click the option.
- In the dialog window, click Enabled.
- Click Apply, then click OK to accept the changes.
- Close the Group Policy Editor.
- Close all open Internet Explorer browser windows.
- Open a new Internet Explorer browser window.
- Press Alt on your keyboard and go to Tools > Enterprise Mode.
To view the Advanced Accounting Console from a browser, an ActiveX control is required. For Firefox, this requires the installation of an IE Tab add-on.
- In your Firefox browser, select Open menu > Add-ons.
- Search for IE Tab V2.
- Find IE Tab V2 (Enhanced IE Tab) in the search results, and click Install.
- Restart your browser.
- Select Open menu > Add-ons > Extensions. For the new IE Tab 2 extension, click Options.
- In the Sites Filter tab, ensure the Enable Sites Filter checkbox is checked and enter the following URL in the Add field:
- In the General Settings tab, ensure the following options are enabled:
- Tools Menu Item
- Tools Menu Icon
- Status Bar Icon
- Always use current engine to open a new URL
- Focus on the new tab when switching engines
- Run the plugin in the firefox.exe process (requires restart)
- In the Context Menu tab, ensure the following options are enabled:
- Tabbar Tabs context menu shows following items:
- Switch rendering engine
- Open in Ext.App.
- Icon
- Content Area context menu shows following items:
- View Page in IE Tab
- View Page in Ext.App.
- Icon
- Personal bookmarks context menu shows following items:
- Open in IE Tab
- Open in Ext.App.
- Icon
- Tabbar Tabs context menu shows following items:
- Click OK, and close Firefox.
- Restart Firefox to make the changes take effect.
- When you navigate to the Advanced Accounting Console from the Staff site the IE Tab extension should automatically be activated. If it does not, simply right-click the page and select View Page in IE Tab.
/https?://<www.yourdomain.com>.*/iParts/Common/AdminConsole/AdminConsoleHost.aspx.*/
where <www.yourdomain.com>
is the fully qualified domain name or IP address of the server.
To view the Advanced Accounting Console from a browser, an ActiveX control is required. For Chrome, this requires the installation of an IE Tab add-on:
- Navigate to the IE Tab extension in the Chrome Web Store, then click Add to Chrome.
- Right-click the extension in the toolbar and select Options.
- In the Auto URLs section, enter the following URL:
- Click Add.
- In the IE Compatibility Mode section select IE 8 Standards Mode.
- Restart Chrome to make the changes take effect.
- When you navigate to the Advanced Accounting Console from the Staff site, the IE Tab extension should automatically be activated. If it does not, simply click the extension's icon from the tool bar to activate it.
r/https?://<www.yourdomain.com>.*/iParts/Common/AdminConsole/AdminConsoleHost.aspx.*
where <www.yourdomain.com>
is the fully qualified domain name or IP address of the server.