Version 4.5.2
 —  Terminal Emulation  —

Working With Host Sessions

This document covers the following topics:


Starting a Host Session

When you start a host session, terminal emulation is activated.

Terminal emulation

You can work with several host sessions at the same time. For one communication method, several sessions can be open at the same time. Each host session is shown in a separate terminal application window.

So that communication is successfully established with the host environment, all required communication parameters must be specified for the required session type. During communication with the host, the definitions in the session properties are used.

Messages from the host are shown in the status line of the terminal emulation screen (this is not the status line of the application window). The status line is located below the last line of a screen. For example, the status line for terminal model 2 is located in the 25th line.

Entire Connection uses the right corner of the status line in the terminal emulation screen to display the following information:

Start of instruction set To start a host session

  1. From the Session menu, choose Open.

    Or:
    Press CTRL+O.

    Or:
    Choose the following toolbar button:

    Open

    If only one session has been defined, this session is immediately started.

    If more than one session has been defined, the Open Session dialog box appears and you must proceed as described below.

    Open Session

  2. In the Open Session dialog box, select a session.

  3. Choose the Connect button.

Notes:

  1. When you open a session for which SSL has been enabled, your administrator may have defined that a dialog box is to appear in which you have to enter the password for the private key.
  2. In the user properties, you can specify a default session which is automatically selected in the Open Session dialog box.

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Working in a Terminal Emulation Screen

In a the terminal emulation screen, you can use both mouse and keyboard. To change the cursor position, use the standard keys (e.g. TAB or the arrow keys) or the mouse. To use a host function key, press the terminal emulation key assigned to this function key. To simulate the ENTER key, double-click any position in the terminal emulation screen. Otherwise, you can use your keyboard to enter data as normal.

Key Schemes

The key combinations that you can use (for example, for editing text) depend on the key scheme that has been defined for the current host session. See Key Schemes in the Configuration Manager section.

The following functions are hardcoded for the following key combinations and will always be used if these key combinations are not defined otherwise in the current key scheme:

Key Combination Description
CTRL+RIGHT-ARROW Jump to the next word.
CTRL+LEFT-ARROW Jump to the previous word.
CTRL+END Jump to the end of the field.

Note:
The shortcut keys that are displayed next to a menu command (e.g. CTRL+V for pasting text) are not available when the active key scheme uses them for different purposes.

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Transferring Data Using the Clipboard

Using the commands from the Edit menu, you can copy or cut a terminal emulation screen (or part of it) and paste it somewhere else (for example, in another terminal emulation screen or in a PC application such as Microsoft Word). You can also copy or cut text from a PC application and paste it in a terminal emulation screen. Cut or copied data is stored on the Windows clipboard.

You must first select the desired text before you can use the Cut, Copy or Append Copy command.

The following rules apply for a terminal emulation screen:

Unless indicated otherwise, the left mouse button is always used. The right mouse button is used to select the Edit menu commands from a context menu.

Start of instruction set To select part of a terminal emulation screen (mouse usage)

  1. Move the mouse pointer to the beginning of the text you want to select.

  2. Press and hold down the left mouse button.

    This clears any previous selection.

  3. Drag the mouse until all desired text is selected.

  4. Release the mouse button.

    You can now cut, copy or append the selected text.

Start of instruction set To select part of a terminal emulation screen (keyboard usage)

  1. Use the arrow keys to move the cursor to the beginning of the text you want to select.

    This clears any previous selection.

  2. Press and hold down SHIFT.

  3. Use the arrow keys to select the desired text.

  4. Release SHIFT.

    You can now cut, copy or append the selected text.

    Note:
    When holding down CTRL+SHIFT and then using the arrow keys, all text to the end of the line (with RIGHT-ARROW) or to the bottom of the screen (with DOWN-ARROW) is selected.

Start of instruction set To select the entire content of the terminal emulation screen

Start of instruction set To cancel the selection

Start of instruction set To delete the selection

Start of instruction set To copy the selection and append it behind existing text in the clipboard

Start of instruction set To cut the selection and transfer it to the clipboard

Start of instruction set To copy the selection to the clipboard

Start of instruction set To paste the content of the clipboard into a terminal emulation screen

  1. Move the cursor to the position at which the text is to be inserted.

  2. From the Edit menu, choose Paste.

    Or:
    Press CTRL+V.

    Or:
    Choose the following toolbar button:

    Paste

    The content of the clipboard is inserted at cursor position.

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Setting the Options

Using the commands in the Edit > Options menu, you can set several options. The following options are available:

For each session, the current settings of the options in the Edit > Options menu are stored when the session is closed. They are used again when the same session (with the same name) is opened once more.

Keep Insert Mode

This feature is only available for TN3270 and BS2000 sessions.

TN3270 and BS2000 terminals are normally in overwrite mode. If you want to insert characters, you have to press the INS key to activate insert mode. The insert mode is always reset to overwrite mode when you press ENTER, a PF key or any other key that sends the screen to the host.

However, when you enable Keep Insert Mode, the terminal is no longer reset to overwrite mode after a screen has been sent to the host.

Start of instruction set To enable insert mode permanently

Block Mode Paste

This mode is helpful when working with editors. When you select a block of text and paste it in the middle of a line, the block remains intact. The lines after the first line begin in the same column as the first line.

When block mode paste is not enabled for a TN3270 or BS2000 session, the lines after the first line start at the beginning of a line. When field mode copy/paste is enabled for these session types, block mode paste is ignored.

Start of instruction set To enable block mode paste

Field Mode Copy/Paste

This feature is only available for TN3270 and BS2000 sessions.

This mode is helpful if you want to copy the contents of several input fields in a screen to another set of input fields which has the same structure. During the paste operation, the target input fields (which can also be on a different screen) are filled field by field as they were copied from the source fields. Any non-input fields (protected fields and screen areas) that are part of your selection are ignored during the paste operation.

Start of instruction set To enable field mode copy/paste

Start of instruction setTo copy and paste the contents of input fields

  1. Select the part of the terminal emulation screen from which you want to copy the input fields (see Transferring Data Using the Clipboard).

  2. From the Edit menu, choose Copy.

  3. Go to the screen on which you want to paste the copied input fields.

  4. Select the first input field in which you want to start the paste operation.

  5. From the Edit menu, choose Paste.

    All target input fields are filled field by field with the contents of the source fields.

Single Line Paste (VT)

This feature is only available for VT sessions.

In single line paste mode, only the first line of the text from the clipboard is pasted. Pasting starts at the current cursor position and stops at the end of the line; further text in the line which is pasted from the clipboard is ignored. This feature is helpful when working outside of Natural, for example, on the UNIX command line.

When block mode paste is enabled for a VT session, single line paste is ignored in this session.

Start of instruction set To enable single line paste mode

Right Button Terminal

Within the same terminal emulation screen, it is possible to copy alphanumeric data into an input field using the mouse. To use this feature, you have to enable the right mouse button for terminal mode.

The data to be copied must not contain blanks and it must not contain non-alphanumeric characters. The copied data is always inserted at the current cursor position which may also be in the middle of an input field. If the input field is not long enough, the data are automatically truncated. Example: the copied data is "Display" and the cursor has previously been positioned at the beginning of a two character long input field. In this case, only the first two characters ("Di") are inserted in this field.

When you click on a period (.), only the period is copied to the input field.

Note:
The context menu containing the edit commands is only shown when the right mouse button has not been enabled for terminal mode.

Start of instruction set To enable the right mouse button for terminal mode

Start of instruction set To copy data to an input field (single click)

  1. Move the cursor to an unprotected field in which you want to enter data.

  2. Click the required string with the right mouse button.

    The string is copied to the input field.

Start of instruction set To copy data to an input field and send it to the host application (double-click)

  1. Move the cursor to an unprotected field in which you want to enter data.

  2. Double-click the required string with the right mouse button.

    The string is copied to the input field and is then immediately sent to the host application.

Enable Mouse for Standard PF Keys

It is possible to simulate a function key (PF key or PA key) with the mouse: you double-click the name of a defined function key on the screen in order to send the corresponding key code to the host. To use this feature, you have to enable the mouse for standard PF keys.

Start of instruction set To enable the mouse for standard PF keys

Crosshair Cursor

This feature is only available for TN3270 and BS2000 sessions.

A crosshair cursor consists of two thin lines, one horizontal and one vertical, meeting at the lower left corner of the cursor. These lines help to see what is contained in the same line and column.

The crosshair cursor is displayed in addition to the regular cursor; it does not replace the regular cursor.

When the crosshair cursor is displayed, you can additionally define whether only the horizontal or the vertical line is to be shown, and you can fix the crosshair cursor at the current position.

Note:
The color of the crosshair cursor can be changed in the color scheme.

Start of instruction set To display the crosshair cursor

Start of instruction setTo display only the horizontal or vertical line of the crosshair cursor

Start of instruction setTo fix the crosshair cursor at the current position

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Modifying the Font for a Host Session

You can define another font to be used for the current session directly from the terminal application. Your new font definition is written to the share file. It is not necessary to invoke the Configuration Manager for this purpose.

Note:
When you (the general user) modify the font of a public session, a private session is automatically created. This private session has the same properties as the public session. From now on, you continue working with the new private session.

Start of instruction set To modify the font

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Modifying the Color Scheme for a Host Session

You can define another color scheme to be used for the current session directly from the terminal application. Your modifications are written to the share file. It is not necessary to invoke the Configuration Manager for this purpose.

Note:
When you (the general user) modify the color scheme of a public session, a private session is automatically created. This private session has the same properties as the public session. From now on, you continue working with the new private session.

Start of instruction set To activate another color scheme

  1. From the Session menu, choose Color.

    Or:
    Choose the following toolbar button:

    Color

    The Color Selection dialog box appears:

    Color Selection

    The active color scheme is indicated by an arrow. When the lock symbol next to the color scheme name shows a green check mark, the color scheme can be modified by a general user. When it shows a red cross, it cannot be modified by a general user; it can only be duplicated in this case.

  2. Select the color scheme you want to activate.

  3. Choose the OK button.

Command Buttons

Besides activating another color scheme, you can also create, modify, delete or duplicate a color scheme directly from the terminal application. To do so, use one of the following command buttons in the Color Selection dialog box:

Modify Modifies the selected color scheme. You can only modify the color scheme which is currently active. If you select another color scheme, you are asked whether you want to make the selected color scheme active in order to continue.
New Creates a new color scheme. Specify a name for the new color scheme in the resulting dialog box and choose the OK button. You are then asked whether you want to make the new color scheme active in order to modify it.
Delete Deletes the selected color scheme. You are asked to confirm the deletion. Any session using this scheme will need to be updated manually. SAGCOLORS or VTColors cannot be deleted.
Duplicate Creates a copy of the selected color scheme. Specify a name for the copy in the resulting dialog box and choose the OK button. You are then asked whether you want to make the copy active in order to modify it.

For detailed information on the dialog box which appears when you create, modify or duplicate a color scheme, see the Overview of Object Properties.

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Modifying the P-Key Scheme for a BS2000 Host Session

P-keys (programmable keys) are only available for sessions of type BS2000 TCP/IP.

You can define another P-key scheme to be used for the current BS2000 session directly from the terminal application. Your modifications are written to the share file. It is not necessary to invoke the Configuration Manager for this purpose.

Note:
When you (the general user) modify the P-key scheme of a public BS2000 session, a private session is automatically created. This private session has the same properties as the public session. From now on, you continue working with the new private session.

Start of instruction set To activate another P-key scheme

  1. From the Session menu, choose P-Key.

    The P-Key Selection dialog box appears:

    P-Key Selection

    The P-key scheme with the name Currently defined P-keys is always available. Its key definitions may change dynamically, depending on the application that is active in the current session. When you modify this P-key scheme, your modifications may be lost when you change to another application.

    The active P-key scheme is indicated by an arrow. When opening the P-Key Selection dialog box, the arrow always points to the P-key scheme which has been assigned in the Configuration Manager, or to the P-key scheme with the name Currently defined P-keys if a P-key scheme has not been assigned in the Configuration Manager.

    When the lock symbol next to the P-key scheme name shows a green check mark, the P-key scheme can be modified by a general user. When it shows a red cross, it cannot be modified by a general user; it can only be duplicated in this case.

  2. Select the P-key scheme you want to activate.

  3. Choose the OK button.

Command Buttons

Besides activating another P-key scheme, you can also create, modify, delete or duplicate a P-key scheme directly from the terminal application. To do so, use one of the following command buttons in the P-Key Selection dialog box:

Modify Displays/modifies the selected P-key scheme.
New Creates a new P-key scheme. Specify a name for the new P-key scheme (can be up to 16 characters long) in the resulting dialog box and choose the OK button.
Delete Deletes the selected P-key scheme. You are asked to confirm the deletion. Any session using this scheme will need to be updated manually. The P-key scheme with the name Currently defined P-keys cannot be deleted.
Duplicate Creates a copy of the selected P-key scheme. Specify a name for the copy in the resulting dialog box and choose the OK button.

For detailed information on the dialog box which appears when you create, modify or duplicate a P-key scheme, see the Overview of Object Properties.

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Displaying Security Information for an SSL Session

Only available for sessions of type TN3270 for which SSL has been enabled.

You can display information on the server certificate.

Start of instruction set To display security information

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Printing the Contents of a Terminal Emulation Screen

You can print the contents of the terminal emulation screen on a printer that is defined under Windows.

Start of instruction set To set up another printer

Start of instruction set To preview the screen to be printed

  1. From the Session menu, choose Print Preview.

    The print preview window appears.

  2. Optionally: use the Zoom In and Zoom Out buttons to view the information in this window. Or choose the Print button to invoke the Print dialog box.

  3. To return to the terminal emulation screen, choose the Close button.

Start of instruction set To print the screen contents using a dialog box

  1. From the Session menu, choose Print.

    Or:
    Press CTRL+P.

    Or:
    Choose the following toolbar button:

    Print

    The Print dialog box appears.

  2. Choose the OK button to print the current screen.

Start of instruction set To print the screen contents directly, without displaying a dialog box

You can also print directly from the application that is currently running on the host. You simply have to issue this application's print command. See the description of the Host Printer Manager for further information.

See also: Downloading Data to a File or Printer Using a Dialog Box.

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Defining the Default Orientation for Printing

You can specify that the contents of a terminal emulation screen is always printed with a specific orientation: landscape, portrait or half page.

Half page means that the screen is printed in portrait orientation on the upper half of the paper. This leaves the lower half of the paper, for example, for handwritten notes.

Before you define the default orientation for the first time, the orientation is as defined with the printer settings. Your new default orientation only applies to Entire Connection. It overwrites the orientation (portrait or landscape) defined in the printer settings.

Start of instruction set To define the default orientation

  1. From the Session menu, choose Print Options.

    The Print Options dialog box appears:

    Print Options

  2. Select the desired orientation.

    An example of the selected orientation is shown to the right of the option buttons.

  3. Choose the OK button.

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Locking the Current Session

When you lock a session, terminal emulation is no longer displayed and "locked" appears in the title bar. As long as you do not unlock the session, nobody can work with it.

Start of instruction set To lock the session

Start of instruction set To unlock the session

  1. From the Utilities menu, choose Lock/Unlock Session.

    The Entire Connection Logon dialog box appears. It shows the user name with which you are currently logged in.

  2. Enter your password (if required).

  3. Choose the OK button.

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Switching to a Session in Another Terminal Application Window

Using the commands in the Window menu, you can switch to another session which you have previously opened (these sessions are also called active terminals). Each session is displayed in a separate terminal application window.

Up to ten active terminals can be shown as menu commands in the Window menu. The complete list of active terminals is always shown in the dialog box which you can also invoke from the Window menu. The active terminals are shown in the order in which they have been opened.

The names of the sessions are shown as menu commands or as entries in the dialog box. If a terminal does not contain an active session, "No Session" is shown. The current terminal is marked with an asterisk (*).

Start of instruction set To switch to another terminal using the names in the menu

Start of instruction set  To switch to another terminal using a dialog box

  1. From the Window menu, choose Windows.

    The Active Terminals dialog box appears.

    Active terminals

  2. Select the required terminal.

  3. Choose the Activate button.

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Switching to the Configuration Manager

You can switch directly to the Configuration Manager.

Start of instruction set To switch to the Configuration Manager

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Switching to the Host Printer Manager

Only available to an administrator (default name: SYSTEM), and only when host printer LU support for Entire Connection has been installed.

You can switch directly to the Host Printer Manager.

Start of instruction set To switch to the Host Printer Manager

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Terminating a Host Session

Before a host session is terminated, a logoff procedure, if defined, is executed. A logoff procedure contains, for example, all keyboard input required to logoff from a host session. The logoff procedure is defined in the session properties.

Start of instruction set To terminate a host session

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