Create and Configure Lasernet Environments

On each server that will host a Lasernet environment, you must use the Lasernet Service Manager to create the Lasernet environment. The tool will create a corresponding Windows service on that server.

You must also configure the new Lasernet environment.

Steps

To create a Lasernet environment on a server and configure it, follow these steps:

1. In the Windows Start menu, click Lasernet 11 > Lasernet Service Manager 11. The Lasernet Service Manager 11 window opens. It might be empty, or it might already contain some rows:

   • If you installed Lasernet Config Server on this server: The window will contain a Lasernet Config 11 row.

   • If you installed Lasernet Web Client on this server: The window will contain a Lasernet Web Client 11 row.

   • If you did not install either (because this server will host only a Lasernet environment): The window will be empty.

2. Create a Lasernet environment on the server:

   1. In the Lasernet Service Manager 11 window, click Add (see 1 in the image below).
      

   2. Enter the Name (2) of the new environment.

   3. Ensure that Environment is selected in the Type dropdown list.

   4. Click OK. A window that contains the default configuration for the new environment opens.

3. In the new window, check the environment’s default configuration and modify it (if necessary):

   1. On the General tab (see 1 in the image below), ensure that Config server host name and Config server port are correct. If these are incorrect, the environment will be unable to communicate with Lasernet Config Server.
      

      Note

      You configure Lasernet Config Server during the next stage of this installation and deployment process. As a result, you would not have opened the Properties window for Lasernet Config Server and configured its port number yet.

      However, the default Config server port number (443) matches the port number that Lasernet Config Server is configured to use by default. In most situations, this is satisfactory. You would need to change this port number (in the Lasernet Config Server and environment’s configurations) only if necessary to prevent port clashes with other software running on the same server.

      The default Config server host name (localhost) is appropriate if Lasernet Config Server is running on the same server as this environment. If Lasernet Config Server is running on another server, enter that server’s hostname with a fully-qualified domain name.

      If you later find that Config server host name and Config server port are incorrect in this environment’s configuration, click this environment in the Lasernet Service Manager 11 window, click Edit, and then update Config server host name and Config server port.

   2. Lasernet Service Manager generates a Client secret for the environment. Make a note of this code as you will need it when you configure Lasernet Config Server.

      Tip

      You can click Copy to clipboard (2).

      Tip

      To generate a different client secret, click the adjacent Generate (looping arrows) button.

   3. Optional: If you leave the Server runtime data directory box blank, the environment will use the default location for storing configuration files, log files, and temporary files for that environment. In most situations, this local file location is satisfactory. If you want to specify where the environment stores this data, enter or select a directory.

      Tip

      For faster processing, use a local file location rather than a network location. Ensure that the location is not user-specific (for example, do not use the Windows Desktop).

4. Configure the environment’s port number:

   1. Click the Bindings tab (see 1 in the image below).

      

   2. If necessary, modify the Port number (2).

      Note

      Modify the port number only if necessary to prevent port clashes with other software running on the same server (including Lasernet itself).

      For example, if a server hosts multiple Lasernet environments, each environment must have a unique Port number.

5. If necessary, specify the hostnames to bind a local server certificate to. The environment will use the certificate to prove the server’s identity; the certificate also provides encryption keys to secure communication between server and client. An environment can use certificates installed in the Windows certificate store (in the Computer certificates area) or certificates stored on disk as PFX files. You must create a binding for every hostname that clients will use to connect to the environment.

   Note

   If no bindings are configured, Lasernet will autogenerate self-signed certificates for localhost, <server name> and the server’s fully qualified domain name (FQDN).

   To specify a binding, follow these steps:

   1. Click Add (3).

   2. In the Add Binding window, enter a Hostname. This is the hostname that the certificate will be bound to. Valid values for Hostname are a hostname (without a domain specified), a FQDN, or an IP address.

   3. Provide certificate details:

      • If Thumbprint is supplied, the certificate (in the Windows certificate store) with the specified thumbprint will be used.

      • PFX is the path and filename to a certificate (including private key) that is stored in PFX format. Password is the password for the PFX file.

      • If you leave both Thumbprint and PFX blank, a self-signed certificate for the specified Hostname will be generated and stored in the Windows Certificate Store.

   4. Click OK to save the binding.

   Note

   Repeat these steps for every hostname that clients will use to connect to the environment. For example, some clients might connect to localhost, whereas other clients might connect to the server’s FQDN. Multiple bindings can point to the same certificate, if necessary.

6. Click OK to close the environment properties window and save your configuration changes.

Firewall Configuration

If the Lasernet environment is not running on the same server as Lasernet Config Server, ensure that firewall configurations are modified to enable the environment and Lasernet Config Server to communicate with each other.

Next Steps

After creating Lasernet environments, the next step of the Lasernet 11 installation and setup process is to configure the Lasernet Config service.