Episode 2. Platform installation and setup

   

1C:Enterprise clients can run literally anywhere. There are native desktop clients for Windows, Linux and macOS. There is a web client working on almost any web browser known to humankind. And there are mobile clients for both iOS and Android. Then, there is a 1C Server, that also works on Windows and Linux. And when you use the 1C Server you also need a database server, which can be one of these four guys. Obviously, this is a lot of ground to cover. So what we are going to do instead is to look at the most common scenarios and learn all we need to know to figure out the rest. 

Let’s start with the simplest installation there is. Say, I’m just starting using 1C:Enterprise and decided to build a relatively simple app on my desktop computer that runs Windows. For development I need 1C Designer. To test the app I’m developing I need 1C Client. I also need the 1C file-based database to store both my application and my data. All of this lives inside the 1C:Enterprise 8 component, so this is what I do. This is the Platform distribution I just downloaded from the 1C site.  It’s a RAR archive, so I need the WinRAR application to open it. Which I have, so I’m running it and unzipping the file just like this. 

This is what I’ve got here, so I run the setup, and this is my components list. The first component contains all I need, and the rest of it is useless to me so far. So, these settings are perfect, and I’m just moving on with the installation like this. This HASP thingy is a license key dongle driver, which we will never need, So, I’m, turning this off and leaving this on to prevent the Platform from losing time searching for the dongle. And the installation is done.

Let’s go to the Program Files and see what we’ve got there. So, this is where the Platform lives. And these are different Platform versions installed on this computer. This is the latest version we just installed, and these are the two main executables we need: Designer and Client But we don’t need to remember what’s where or even what version is the latest one. Instead, we just go here, run this 1cestart executable and it launches the Platform for us. 

And the first thing we need to do is to create an infobase. This is what we call 1C:Enterprise database that stores application, data and settings - all in one place. This is exactly what I need, so I click Yes here. I don’t have an existing infobase I want to connect to, so, this is my choice. 

Next. This is where I would see all 1C application distributives if I had any. But now I need to create a new one, so I’m clicking Next. Here I need to come up with the infobase name like this, and tell the Platform where I want to store my infobase: in the 1C file-based database or DBMS-based infobase (that also requires 1C Server). I want the file-base one, so I just click next. 

This is the folder the Platform suggests storing the database, which is completely fine with me. And this is a whole bunch of startup options I’m gonna leave as is for now. And this is our new infobase. OK, let’s run Designer and start developing, shall we? Oops. No, not that fast. So, the Platform can be downloaded from the website for free, but to start using it, you need to buy a license. 

Let me show you how it works. So, this is my desktop, and this is what the Platform does when I run the app. It scans the computer it sits on, collects low-level hardware parameters and encodes them into a digital fingerprint unique to this specific computer. Then it looks for the license file with the exact same fingerprint. If the file’s found, the access is granted, and the Platform starts running. If it’s not… You already saw what happens. 

So, there is one more thing we need to add to the picture - a license. There are three types of licenses the Platform uses. The single-user one. The multi-user one. And the Server one. The single-user license allows you to run any number of 1C clients on one specific computer. So, this is what we need here. When you buy a license, 1C sends you an email containing something like that. This is the license number. And these are the PIN codes you need to activate the license. It means that you can activate this license on several computers but not at the same time. 

Say, I activated this license on this computer using this PIN. Then something happened, and now I need to move all my 1C activities to a new computer. First thing I need to do is to stop using 1C:Enterprise on the old computer in any way. Then I can set up the same license using the second PIN and the Platform will be activated. 

What happens if there are two computers trying to work with the same single-user license? The license will be locked everywhere and you won’t be able to use any of its PINs ever again. OK.

Let’s install the single-user license to our desktop, shall we? First of all, as soon as you have an Internet connection, you never need this second option. So, I’m clicking here. These are my license details, so I’m copy-pasting the license number here and the first PIN code here. Clicking next, and here are two options. We use this one when activating this specific license for the first time. And we use the second one when we are going to use other PINs for some reason.

So, I’m clicking here and here is a whole bunch of info I now need to provide the Platform with. The sole purpose of this form is to collect verifiable info that can be checked whenever you need to reactivate this license using other PINs. Basically, it’s an analog of “your mother’s maiden name” question many online services use. So, you need to fill the form out like this, and then you definitely want to save it to a file (and remember where the file lives). Then I switch on this disclaimer checkbox, click Next. Once more. And here we go. The license is activated. 

Clicking Finish, and the Designer is now open, so I can start developing my application. This was the simplest scenario: one Windows computer, one user, one single-user license.