We use the Auron QuickServer in house to simulate GSM modems or SMTP connections. It is also great for simulating the server side of custom TCP based interfaces for things like automatic gate control or chemical testing stations, load cells, and similar systems.

How to use

The Auron QuickServer has one window which is visible immediately after startup. The window is split into four sections. From top to bottom: Script, Session control and feedback, Log, and status.

Script section

Your client or server application is built using JavaScript. You can create a new script or open an existing script in the scripting session. Find out more about the layout of this script in the QuickServer Script section below.

Right below the script path there is a tab control to run the script:

• Server tab. Use this tab for server scripts. This is where you specify which certificate to use to enable TLS. You can also choose whether the server listens on IPv4 or IPv6. Start and stop the server from here.
• Client tab. Use this tab for client scripts. You can connect to an existing server by specifying an IP address, port number, and whether the connection is secure.
• Misc. This is where you set your command delimiters and timer settings. Each script can have a timer that runs every n milliseconds.
• Description. This tab contains a description of your script function.

Session control and feedback section

In some cases you may want to control the behavior of your script or get feedback from your script. This section is used for that. Click the buttons to trigger events in the script. The checkboxes next to the buttons can also be set automatically from the script.

In case of a server script you can select which client instance you want to observe or which one should receive button events. Use the boot button to kick the selected session.

Log section

This is where you can see exactly what is happening in the script. In case of a server script each connected session and the server itself has its own log. In case of a client script you can see the details of the running client script.

Status section

This field always shows the current status of the server. If you are unsure what is happening you can use this field to get a high level overview of the situation.

QuickServer script

A QuickServer script is always JavaScript and always follows the same layout. For convenience QuickServer can automatically generate this script for you when you click the new script button in the script section of the QuickServer window.

This is what a QuickServer script looks like:

// Auron QuickServer v3.2.0.1001 script file

// Context key constants. Use these keys in the context dictionary to set specific QuickServer settings
var CTX_KEY_LOG           = "LOG"           // Use this key to add a line to the log file that is visible in the GUI
var CTX_KEY_CHECK         = "CHECK"         // Set bit flag to enable checkboxes in the GUI

// Settings that can be set in the onLoad function to preset the GUI after loading
var CTX_KEY_DESCRIPTION   = "DESCRIPTION"
var CTX_KEY_HOSTNAME      = "HOSTNAME"
var CTX_KEY_PORT          = "PORT"          // Sets both client and server port
var CTX_KEY_SECURE        = "SECURE"        // Set to 1 or 0 for client; set to existing certificate name for server
var CTX_KEY_TIMEOUT       = "TIMEOUT"       // In milliseconds
var CTX_KEY_DELIMITER     = "DELIMITER"     // Use  for carriage return and  for line feed
var CTX_KEY_ALTDELIMITER  = "ALTDELIMITER"  // Use  for carriage return and  for line feed
var CTX_KEY_MODE          = "MODE"          // Use CLIENT or SERVER to pre-open client or server tab
var CTX_KEY_IPVERSION     = "IPVERSION"     // Use 4 for IPv4 and 6 for IPv6

// Called by the GUI directly after loading the file
function onLoad(dctContext)
{  
  dctContext.Item(CTX_KEY_DESCRIPTION) = "This is a newly created template script. " +
    "Please add more details about how this script should be used and how it works. " +
    "Your future self will thank you for it."
  dctContext.Item(CTX_KEY_MODE) = "SERVER"
}

// In a server script QuickServer calls this function right after a new session connects
function onConnect(sHost, nPort, dctContext)
{
    Log(dctContext, "Write a log line on connect")
}

// In a server script QuickServer calls this function right after an existing session disconnects
function onDisconnect(sHost, nPort, dctContext)
{
  
}

// On receiving a string from the session return a string if a reply should be sent
function onReadString(sHost, nPort, sString, dctContext)
{
  return "Echo: " + sString 
}
  
// On every timer interval return a string to send something to the session
function onTimer(sHost, nPort, nIteration, dctContext)
{
  
}

// On clicking one of the control buttons return a string to send something to the session
function onButton(sHost, nPort, sButtonName, dctContext)
{
  
}

// Add a line to the log file once the interface function ends
function Log(dctContext, sLine)
{ 
  dctContext.Item(CTX_KEY_LOG) = sLine
}