And do this before you use it in an uncontrolled environment.
\end_layout
-\begin_layout Chapter
-The LyX Server
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Section
-Introduction
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-The `LyX server' allows other programs to talk to LyX, invoke LyX commands,
- and retrieve information about the LyX internal state.
- This is only intended for advanced users, but they should find it useful.
- It is by writing to the LyX server, for example, that bibliography managers,
- such as JabRef, are able to
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-push
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
- citations to LyX.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-Please note that, at present,
-\emph on
-the server does not work on Windows
-\emph default
-®.
-\begin_inset Foot
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-There is no reason it cannot do so.
- But none of the developers on Windows® have yet implemented this functionality
- there.
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
-
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Section
-Starting the LyX Server
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-The LyX server works through the use of a pair of named pipes.
- These are usually located in
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-UserDir
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
- and have the names
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-lyxpipe.in
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
-
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
- and
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-lyxpipe.out
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
-
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
-.
- External programs write into
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-.lyxpipe.in
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
- and read back data from
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-.lyxpipe.out
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
-.
- The stem of the pipe names can be defined in the
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:MenuItem
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-
-\bar under
-T
-\bar default
-ools\SpecialChar \menuseparator
-
-\bar under
-P
-\bar default
-references
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
- dialog, for example
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-"/home/myhome/lyxpipe"
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
-.
- You
-\emph on
-must
-\emph default
- configure this manually in order for the server to start.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-LyX will add the '
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-.in
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
-' and '
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-.out
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
-' to create the pipes.
- If one of the pipes already exists, LyX will assume that another LyX process
- is already running and will not start the server.
- This means that if LyX crashes, or if for some other reason, a
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-stale
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
- pipe is left in existence when LyX closes, then LyX will not start the
- server.
- (This is bug 641.) You will need to delete the pipes manually and then restart
- LyX.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-To have several LyX processes with servers at the same time, you have to
- use different configurations, perhaps by using separate user directories,
- each with its own
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-preferences
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
- file, for each process.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-If you are developing a client program, you might find it useful to enable
- debugging information from the LyX server.
- Do this by starting LyX as
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-lyx -dbg lyxserver
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
-.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-Other than this, there are a few points to consider:
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Itemize
-Both server and clients must run on UNIX or OS/2 machines.
- Communications between LyX on UNIX and clients on OS/2 or vice versa is
- not possible right now.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Itemize
-On OS/2, only one client can connect to LyXServer at a time.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Itemize
-On OS/2, clients must open the input pipe with
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-O_WRONLY
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
- mode.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-You can find a complete example client written in C in the source distribution
- as
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-development/lyxserver/server_monitor.c
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
-.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Section
-Normal communication
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-To issue a LyX call, the client writes a line of ASCII text into the input
- pipe.
- This line has the following format:
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Quote
-LYXCMD:
-\emph on
-clientname
-\emph default
-:
-\emph on
-function
-\emph default
-:
-\emph on
-argument
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Description
-clientname is a name that the client can choose arbitrarily.
- Its only use is that LyX will echo it if it sends an answer---so a client
- can dispatch results from different requesters.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Description
-function is the function you want LyX to perform.
- It is the same as the commands you'd use in the minibuffer.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Description
-argument is an optional argument which is meaningful only to some functions
- (for instance, the
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-self-insert
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
- LFUN will insert the argument as text at the cursor position).
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-The answer from LyX will arrive in the output pipe and be of the form
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Quote
-INFO:
-\emph on
-clientname
-\emph default
-:
-\emph on
-function
-\emph default
-:
-\emph on
-data
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-where
-\emph on
-clientname
-\emph default
- and
-\emph on
-function
-\emph default
- are just echoed from the command request, while
-\emph on
-data
-\emph default
- is more or less useful information filled according to how the command
- execution worked out.
- Some commands, such as
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-font-state
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
-, will return information about the internal state of LyX, while other will
- return an empty data-response.
- This means that the command execution went fine.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-In case of errors, the response from LyX will have this form
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Quote
-ERROR:
-\emph on
-clientname
-\emph default
-:
-\emph on
-function
-\emph default
-:
-\emph on
-error message
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-where the
-\emph on
-error message
-\emph default
- should contain an explanation of why the command failed.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-Examples:
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout LyX-Code
-echo "LYXCMD:test:beginning-of-buffer:" >~/.lyxpipe.in
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout LyX-Code
-echo "LYXCMD:test:get-xy:" >~/.lyxpipe.in
-\begin_inset Newline newline
-\end_inset
-
-read a <~/.lyxpipe.out
-\begin_inset Newline newline
-\end_inset
-
-echo $a
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Section
-Notification
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-LyX can notify clients of events going on asynchronously.
- Currently it will only do this if the user binds a key sequence with the
- function
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-notify
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
-.
- The format of the string LyX sends is as follows:
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Quote
-\begin_inset Flex CharStyle:Code
-status collapsed
-
-\begin_layout Plain Layout
-NOTIFY:
-\end_layout
-
-\end_inset
-
-
-\emph on
-key-sequence
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-where
-\emph on
-key-sequence
-\emph default
- is the printed representation of the key sequence that was actually typed
- by the user.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-This mechanism can be used to extend LyX's command set and implement macros.
- Bind some key sequence to
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-notify
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
-.
- Then start a client that listens on the output pipe, dispatches the command
- according to the sequence, and starts a function that may use LyX calls
- and LyX requests to issue a command or a series of commands to LyX.
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Section
-The simple LyX Server Protocol
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-LyX implements a simple protocol that can be used for session management.
- All messages are of the form
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Quote
-LYXSRV:
-\emph on
-clientname
-\emph default
-:
-\emph on
-protocol message
-\end_layout
-
-\begin_layout Standard
-where
-\emph on
-protocol message
-\emph default
- can be
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-hello
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
- or
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-bye
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
-.
- If
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-hello
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
- is received from a client, LyX will report back to inform the client that
- it's listening to it's messages, while
-\begin_inset Quotes eld
-\end_inset
-
-bye
-\begin_inset Quotes erd
-\end_inset
-
- sent from LyX will inform clients that LyX is closing.
-\end_layout
-
\end_body
\end_document
projects / features.git / commitdiff