Web Incident Reporting System (WIRS).

The Web Incident Reporting System is a ShareWare program designed to help 
technical support individuals keep track of outstanding and closed incidents.
This can be as simple as keeping ad-hoc notes on small incidents that you
are working on, or as complex as tracking a project over months.  I have 
used it primarily as a reminder and "To Do" list as well as a method to 
report on my activities each month.

The system is written completely in C-CGI.  I used Borland's C compiler.  
The front end to the system is any recent Web browser such as Netscape 3.x 
or IE 3.x.  I have not tested the system with either Netscape Communicator 
or IE 4.0, but it should work.  There is no JAVA, JAVAScript, Jscript, or 
ActiveX.  It uses strictly HTML to accept input and display output.   
I chose to use a Web browser interface for two reasons: 


1. Whatever workstation I go to always has a Web browser of some flavor on 
   it.

2. I like writing logic but I don't like writer user interface code.  
   The Web browser interface makes that very simple.


The system is designed with two things in mind:

1. This system sacrifices features for "ease of use".  I don't need a 
   system that spells everything out for me, I'd rather have a more flexible
   system than one that is complicated by additional features I don't need.
   This also has the benefit of easy "hacking" when something goes wrong.   
   All of the files are flat files and can be edited with any text editor 
   to add or delete data from the Incident files.  Since there is no database
   per-se, it is much easier to maintain and much more malleable.

2. The system does not have any fancy install or maintenance procedures.  
   I usually don't need a fancy install program.  I can pretty much install 
   and troubleshoot a simple system without too much help.


As this system matures, it will of course become more complex, but I will 
weigh heavily the addition of functionality against the additional complexity
that it brings.

So in keeping with the tenor of this project, this document will be rather 
short.


Installation:
=============
This system will run under the Microsoft Personal Web Server on Windows 95 
or on the Microsoft Internet Information Server (on NT Server 4.0).  I have 
tested it on both.  The install differs depending on which one you use.  
The Zip File defaults to the PWS directories.  But simply copying the files 
to the appropriate directories will allow WIRS to run under IIS.


MS-PWS:
-------
Action			Directory		What is this?
======================  ======================  ====================================
Copy all of the WIRS 
EXEs into		\WEBSHARE\SCRIPTS	PWS default CGI Script directory.

Copy all of the WIRS 
HTMs into		\WEBSHARE\WWWROOT	PWS default HTML directory.

Make the following 
Directories		\WEB\TRUBL\OPEN		This is where WIRS puts open Incidents
			\WEB\TRUBL\CLOS		This is where WIRS puts closed Incidents
			\WEB\TRUBL\LOGS		This is where WIRS keeps it's Error Logs. 			
			\WEB\TRUBL\CONFIG	This is where WIRS configuration files reside.  
						There are two configuration files:  
						PASSWD and COUNTER.DAT


MS-IIS:
-------
Action			Directory		What is this?
======================  ======================  ===================================
Copy all of the WIRS 
EXEs into		\INETPUB\SCRIPTS	IIS default CGI Script directory.

Copy all of the WIRS
HTMs into		\INETPUB\WWWROOT	PWS default HTML directory.

Make the following 
Directories		\WEB\TRUBL\OPEN		This is where WIRS puts open Incidents			
			\WEB\TRUBL\CLOS		This is where WIRS puts closed Incidents
			\WEB\TRUBL\LOGS		This is where WIRS keeps it's Error Logs. 			
			\WEB\TRUBL\CONFIG	This is where WIRS configuration files reside.  
						There are two configuration files:  
						PASSWD and COUNTER.DAT

CGI Directory
=============
WIRS assumes that the CGI scripts will always be located in  /scripts off 
of the Web Server root.  Currently this is not a configurable option (Sorry).
This should not be a problem for most installations since /scripts is the 
default CGI directory for PWS and IIS.

    
Config Files
============
In the \WEB\TRUBL\CONFIG directory there are two configuration files: 
PASSWD and COUNTER.DAT.  COUNTER.DAT is created and maintained automatically
by WIRS, you should never need to modify this file.  If you ever want to 
modify this file, it is simply a text number for keeping track of the latest
Incident number.

The PASSWD file must be created by you using any text editor such as 
DOS EDIT or NOTEPAD.  This is your Password file, and it controls who has 
access to WIRS.  It has the following format:

-----> Cut Here <-----

********************************************************
* Level 10 - Can View Open and Closed Trouble Calls    *
* Level 20 - Can Open Trouble Calls                    *
* Level 30 - Can Change Data in their own Trouble Call *
* Level 40 - Can Open and Close their own Trouble Call *
* Level 50 - Can Change Data in ALL Trouble Calls      *
* Level 60 - Can Open and Close ALL Trouble Calls      *
* Level 70 - Undefined                                 *
* Level 80 - Undefined                                 *
* Level 90 - Access to all Functions !                 *
********************************************************
* Userid:Password:Access Level:Name                    *
********************************************************
superusr:superusr:90:David V. Porco:
opener:opener:40:Open and Change:
guest:guest:10:Guest Account:

-----> Cut Here <-----

As a matter of fact, you could create your PASSWD file by cutting the data 
above and pasting it right into \WEB\TRUBL\CONFIG\PASSWD.


Please Note: An Asterisk in column 1 denotes a comment (Original huh?).


The fields in the password file are delimited by colons (:).  Here is a 
description of the four fields:

UserId - The User's ID
Password - The Users Password
Access Level - An Access level that determines what the user can do.
Name - A descriptive name for the User.


Starting Point
==============
nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn/TC001.HTM 
or
www.yourdomain.com/TC001.HTM

(where nnn.nnn.nnn.nnn is the IP address of your Web Server
or
www.yourdomain.com is the DNS name of your Web Server )


You can of course rename it to whatever you wish.


Known Future Upgrades
=====================
Currently the system does not have a search function.  I am working on the 
code for this, but I anticipate that it will be a while until I can finish it.  
I wanted to release the initial WIRS 1.0 offering with this functionality, 
but I decided to make it a little more robust, so I am not sure when I will 
complete it.  However, it is currently in the works.


Can I distribute this Software?
===============================
Yup!

Make as many copieas as you like and share it with your friends...  Be the 
life of the party!  

But seriously...  You may make as many copies as you like, and you may 
distribute this system to as many people as you like BUT it MUST be 
distributed as the ORIGINAL Zip file.  Please do not distribute the programs
separately.


What's it gonna cost me?
========================
I struggled with this, because I know that these types of systems are 
generally expensive.  However, they contain many features that I personally 
don't need (or want to pay for).  I also really wanted help other system
administrators that don't have the budget for this kind of software.


So here's what I came up with:
==============================
You are free to use this Software free of charge.   If you feel that there is 
significant value in this software you can register the software by sending  
$25.00, along with at least one suggestion for improving the software.  This
will get you quarterly updates for 1 year (4 updates).  Which will include any 
modifications I make to the software or to the documentation.

I don't expect to get rich writing this software, but I would like to know if 
anyone has found value in it.  If not, I will continue to modify it and 
tailor it for my own use.  If however, you do find it valuable I would like 
to know and to be supported in my endeavors to improve the software.  If you
REALLY can't afford the $25.00, drop me a line anyway, and let me know what 
you think.

For registration/billing information, please send e-mail to me at: dporco@ix.netcom.com


Disclaimer
==========

                USE THIS SOFTWARE AT YOUR OWN RISK!

I make no warranty expressed or implied as to the usability of this
software for any reason or purpose.  I am not responsible for any
damages incurred or unmet expectations resulted by the use of this 
software.  





Thanks for your support.
David V. Porco  <><

