Interactive COBOL Readme 5.60                May-2026

**********************************************************
NOTICE: Previous ICOBOL 5 Beta versions should be
		uninstalled before installing a final ICOBOL 5.
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GETTING STARTED WITH INTERACTIVE COBOL FOR WINDOWS
--------------------------------------------------

This readme is designed to help the first time Interactive Cobol
user/developer get up and running from a very basic local
installation and configuration.  It will describe:

    a) how to get the license server (ICPERMIT) started,
    b) how to get the executive service (ICEXEC) started,
    c) how to get a runtime (ICRUN) started, and
    d) how to do a simple compile (ICOBOL).

We recommend that you familiarize yourself with our product in
this way.  Once you are comfortable with the basic operations,
you can move to more involved setups, if desired.
This information applies to ICOBOL on all Windows platforms.


WHAT IS NEEDED TO START
-----------------------

1) An ICOBOL license file.

The default name for this is "system.lic".  This can be either
a demonstration or an actual license.  It should contain a
runtime license, and, if you wish to use the compiler,
a development license.  If the license is a DEMO, then all
you will need is the license file itself copied onto your
machine.

NOTE WELL: As of ICOBOL 5.60 the only types of license that are
supported are the MAC address license and the DEMO license.

2) A copy of the ICOBOL for Windows Master installer program, which
can be obtained by a download from our web site (www.icobol.com).
It will have the name winXXX.exe, where XXX is the revision number.

NOTE WELL: As of ICOBOL 5.60, the Windows installer will not
run on a 32-bit Windows installation, even if the hardware is 64-bit.

QUESTIONS TO ANSWER BEFORE INSTALLING
-------------------------------------

1) Where do I want to install ICOBOL?

For a Windows system the default location is "C:\Program Files\ICOBOL".
You can choose any directory you wish, but we recommend that you keep
it on the system drive.

2) Where do I have my license file (system.lic) located?

This should be located outside of the installation folder.  It should
NOT be located on a mapped drive.

TIP: We recommend creating a directory on the system drive
(e.g., C:\ICOBOL) to hold the license file and the other system files
mentioned below.

3) Where do I want my working directory to be?

The working directory is the directory that the ICRUN shortcut
will start running in.  While getting started, choose a directory
on a local drive.  Avoid using mapped drives at this point. This will
also be the default working directory for any ThinClients,
although they can have a different working directory.

This typically will be the eventual location where the ICOBOL application
will store its program and data files.

The root of a drive usually has special security settings that often
interfere with running ICOBOL, so we recommend that you avoid using
the root of a drive for the working directory (especially the root
of the Windows system drive).

4) Where do I want my printer queue file to be?

The ICOBOL print queue file, default name "system.pq",  is created
the first time the executive service (ICEXEC) is started, so it is
not installed by the installer.  However, the installer must set
the file location when it configures ICEXEC, so you will need
to decide where to locate this file.  We recommend a location on
a local drive and to avoid using mapped drives. (see TIP above)

5) Where do I want my configuration file to be?

The ICOBOL configuration file, default name "system.cfi", is created
by the installer and you will need to decide where to tell the
installer to locate it.  We recommend a location on a local drive
that is outside of the installation folder and to avoid using a mapped
drive location.  (see TIP above)

The default settings in the configuration file will get you started.

6) Starting with ICOBOL 4.70, a separate directory is available
for storing system files that have been customized by the user.  The
environment variable ICCONFIGDIR can be set to this directory.
Any customized help, messages, print, or term file should be created
in this directory.  (see TIP above)



DOING THE INSTALLATION
----------------------

You are now ready to start the ICOBOL installation program.
As mentioned, you can change the default names if you wish, but
otherwise keep the default selections.  Once you have finished
the installation, reboot your machine.

The ICOBOL services should start.

The default location for the services log files is: "C:\ProgramData\ICOBOL".
A shortcut is placed in the ICOBOL start-menu folder to access this folder
because ProgramData is a hidden folder.

Look at the files called "icpermit_YYYYMMDD.lg" or "icexec_YYYYMMDD.lg",
where YYYYMMDD is a date stamp. Look for the most recent date stamp.
These files should give you an idea of what any problem is.  For ICPERMIT,
the most likely causes at this point are a typo in the license file
or a license file for a MAC address that does not match the computer.


STARTING THE ICOBOL RUNTIME (ICRUN)
-----------------------------------

The major issue to remember here is that you cannot start ICRUN
without having ICPERMIT running.  Attempting to do so will
result in this error:

    connection refused (oserr=10061) Connecting to localhost:7334.

If you receive this error, you need to go back to the section above
on ICPERMIT.

If ICPERMIT is running, then you are ready to start an ICRUN.
Until you are familiar with the basics, avoid using shortcut icons
for this purpose.  Instead, use one or both of these methods:

1) Go to Start->All Programs->ICOBOL 5->Runtime.  If the option
    to install 32-bit components was selected in Setup, there will
    be a Runtime (32) and a Runtime (64))

This will start our sample logon program.

2) Open a command prompt and either go to your ICOBOL installation
   directory or make that directory a part of your PATH.  The
   installer updates the PATH automatically, but that change only
   takes place when the user logs off and then logs back on. Then
   give this command:

       icrunw -ai

    If ICRUN fails to start, look for the file "icrun.lg" in the current
    directory.  This file should indicate the source of the error.


USING THE COMPILER (ICOBOL)
---------------------------

Once you are familiar with Interactive COBOL, you will probably want to
do your compiling from within our Integrated Development Environment
(ICIDE).  However, when starting out, you may wish to compile from a
command line to learn about the various options.  As with ICRUN, in
order to use the compiler ICPERMIT must be running.

The ICOBOL installation includes the source code for our logon program
in the "examples\programs" subfolder.  The contents of the folder
can be copied to any convenient folder where you have read/write
permissions.  The installation folder and its subfolders will usually
be read-only.

Then, from a command prompt, if you give this command:

        icobol -a -e -l logon.sr

it would create the following files:

        icobol.lg - This is the log file for the compiler.
                    It will indicate any errors in actually starting
                    the compiler.  The most likely would be a
                    'file not found' type of error.

        logon.er -  This file contains any actual compilation errors.

        logon.ls -  This is the listing file.

        logon.cx -  The executable file.

You can experiment with the various options. To try compiling some of your
own programs, you will most likely need to include the -C switch to tell
the compiler where to find your copy files.  For example, if they are
located in "c:\mycpys", just add "-C c:\mycpys" to the command line.  You
can give up to 16 different directories to be searched.  If your source
is in card format, you will need to add the "-F c" switch.  In order
to see all the switches and their possible settings, from a command
prompt give the command:

        icobol -h | more


ICPERMIT -  ICPERMIT runs as a service to provide licensing.
To find the status of ICPERMIT, go to Control Panel, ICOBOL Services.
In order to use the compiler or to start a runtime, ICPERMIT must show
as started.  If it shows as stopped, highlight ICPERMIT and click on start.
If this fails, click on Auditing, then click on View current file.  This will
bring up the icpermit.lg file, which should indicate any errors.  If
there is no icpermit.lg file available, then you probably have an
access problem.  Make sure that System has permission for full control
access to the SystemRoot directory "C:\Windows", or
change the location for the file to another directory.

ICEXEC -  ICEXEC runs as a service and serves as a process manager and
coordinator for ICOBOL.  In order to start an ICRUN session, ICEXEC must
already be running in addition to ICPERMIT.  If you attempt to start ICRUN and get
an error about 'shared memory area could not be accessed', then
ICEXEC is not running.  As with ICPERMIT, go to ICOBOL Services under
Control Panel to see the status.  If it will not start, look at the log
file under Auditing.  If there is no Icexec.lg available, then you
probably have the access problem described above under ICPERMIT.
ICEXEC does not have to be running in order to use the compiler.

ICEXEC manages the configuration and the printer queue.
NOTE WELL: Any time a change is made to the configuration file, that
change will not take effect until ICEXEC has been stopped and restarted.


------------------
PROBLEM RESOLUTION
------------------

E-Mail support is available at: support@icobol.com.  With a valid
support contract, we do our best to answer within 1 business day.
Otherwise it may be 2-3 days, unless you request paid per-incident
support.

Make sure to include the exact revision of the product being used,
the exact text of any error messages (a copy of the log file is the best),
and the output from the running of the ICINFO program.

Icinfo -a can be used to create an audit log as icinfo.lg.  The standard
installation will create a shortcut for icinfo that has the -a option.


End of readme
