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Starting CHARON Virtual

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Machine Manager

CHARON execution is controlled by the "CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager" that manages each CHARON instance, called a "CHARON Virtual Machine", running on the host.

The CHARON installation procedure creates a shortcut on the desktop and under the Windows Start menu for the CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager.

Desktop shortcut:

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"Start" menu shortcut:

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The CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager runs automatically at Windows startup. If it is minimized to tray, it can be re-opened in the following way:

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After clicking the shortcuts, the main dialog of CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager appears.

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Creating a CHARON Virtual Machine

Creating a CHARON VM using provided templates

CHARON installation contains a set of template files for creating a base configuration for each AXP model. Once the CHARON Virtual Machine (VM) is created using these templates it can be configured further to meet your requirements and all the specifics of the emulated system.

Note

By default the CHARON templates do not contain any specification for disks and network; you need to update the configuration file created from the template to specify your specific disk and network configuration.

Start the CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager (see above) and press the "Create VM from Template" button:

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Specify a name for the VM and press the "Create" button:

The CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager will report the VM has been created successfully:

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Creating a CHARON VM using an existing configuration file

It is also possible to use an existing configuration file for creating a CHARON Virtual Machine.

Open the CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager (see above) and press the "Add Existing VM" button:

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Press the "Create" button:

The CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager will report the VM has been created successfully:

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Running a CHARON Virtual Machine

Select the target CHARON VM in the left pane and press the "Start" button:

CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager will display the execution log:

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(info) Note the color meaning:

 This
ColorsMeaningExample

Red

Error
Background Color
color#FF2020
 This

This is an error message

Light blueWarning
Background Color
color#E6FFFF
 This

This is a warning message

Light yellow

Information
Background Color
color#FFFFE7

This is an informational message

Purple

Begin/End

of the Windows system log

Background Color
color#7F7EFD
 Begin

Begin / End

The console of this particular CHARON VM will then appear (if defined in the configuration file):

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Warning

The total number of devices (both controllers and units, including disks) displayed by CHARON SRM console is limited to 48. Note that it does not affect the actual number of configured devices provided to CHARON guest OS.

Depending on settings, Windows may display a Firewall warning dialog asking to confirm CHARON access to different networks.

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Info

If you closed the CHARON VM console, it is always possible to re-open it by pressing the "Show Console" button:

(info) Closing the console will not stop the CHARON Virtual Machine

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Stopping a CHARON Virtual Machine

(warning) Note: before stopping the virtual machine from the CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager, a clean shutdown of the operating system running on the VM has to be performed.

Select the target CHARON VM in the left pane and press the "Stop" button. A dialog will appear to confirm, select "Yes" to continue to stop the VM:

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Removing a CHARON Virtual Machine

To remove a CHARON VM, select it and pressing the "Remove VM" button:

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(warning) The Virtual machine has to be stopped before removing it (see StoppingaCHARONVirtualMachine Stopping a CHARON Virtual Machine chapter above).

A confirmation dialog will be displayed:

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Modifying a CHARON Virtual Machine

Select the target CHARON VM and switch to the "VM Configuration" tab to see its features:

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Using this dialog it is possible to:

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Exploring CHARON Virtual Machine Home Directory

Press the "Explore" button to open up a Windows Explorer window showing the content of the selected CHARON VM home folder:

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(info) This content includes the CHARON VM configuration file and may also include virtual disks and tapes images, logs, ROM files, etc. Include PageKBCOMMON:DOC-GoToTocKBCOMMON:DOC-GoToToc

Making a new virtual disk

It is very convenient to use the "Create Virtual Disk" button to create empty disk images in the CHARON VM Home Directory:

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CHARON Virtual Machine configuration file

Press the "Edit Configuration file" button:

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Alternatively it is possible to select the target CHARON VM and press the "Edit Configuration" button:

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The configuration file specifies all the settings of the CHARON VM. This will be discussed in the next chapter.

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CHARON Virtual Machine startup mode

By default, the CHARON VM startup mode is set to "Manual" meaning a user has to start the CHARON VM manually using the CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager after a host reboot. If the CHARON VM has to start automatically, select the "Automatic" option.

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CHARON version to be used for CHARON VM

The CHARON installation procedure allows several versions of CHARON to be installed on the host at the same time (V4.8 and later only). This option can be used for testing.

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Select the target CHARON version from the "Executable" drop-down list and press the "Apply" button:

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Service functions

Additional functionalities are available and described below:

FunctionDescription
Update Log and Number of lines to display

The CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager updates the displayed log every 5 minutes and displays up to 1024 lines by default. It can be changed in the "Settings" dialog of the program system menu.

Right click on top of the CHARON Virtual Machines Machine Manager window and select "Settings":

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In the appearing dialog you can change the interval:

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If it is required to see most up-to-date version of the log, press the "Update Log" button.

Display Log

Available from the VM control tab, bottom right.

Creates a separate window containing the selected CHARON VM log

Show Console

Available from the VM control tab, bottom right, and if the VM is running.

Opens the selected CHARON VM console if it has been closed


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Running CHARON utilities

Select the "Host Information & Utilities" tab to get a quick access to the CHARON utilities:

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These utilities are described below:
 


Button

Description

Sentinel Admin Control CenterUsed to view CHARON licenses and manage them.

HASP License Details

Used to display the CHARON license content.

License Update ToolUsed to manage the CHARON licenses, collect the host system fingerprint.
Network Control CenterUsed to configure the CHARON network.
Device Check toolUsed to review the system resources that can be mapped to CHARON.
Virtual Disk ToolGUI-based utility used to create custom or standard CHARON virtual disk containers.


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