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Installation

gView.Pipe needs the .NET 10 runtime (ASP.NET Core). The Docker image brings its own.

ZIP (Windows and Linux)

Download gview-pipe-win64-<version>.zip or gview-pipe-linux64-<version>.zip and unpack it into a folder of your choice, for example C:\gview-pipe. The ZIP contains one folder per version:

gview-pipe\
  0.1.0\
    pipe\                 the app and its plugins
    gview-pipe.bat        start script (gview-pipe.sh on Linux)
  data\                   created at the first start: workflows, executions, credentials, keys
  files\                  folder for Read File / Write File
  scripts\                folder for Run Script

data, files and scripts live next to the version folders, so they survive an update. The start script sets their location for you.

Start the app with the start script. It listens on http://localhost:5100. Open that address in a browser.

Note

The start script binds to localhost only. To reach the app from other machines, put a reverse proxy in front of it (see Operations) or set urls in <root>\_config\pipe.config (see Configuration). By default there is no login: switch one on before others can reach the app (see Authentication).

On the first start with an empty data folder, gView.Pipe copies the sample workflows into the group Samples.

Docker

docker run -d --name gview-pipe -p 8080:8080 \
  -v gview-pipe-data:/app/data \
  ghcr.io/jugstalt/gview-pipe:latest
  • The app listens on port 8080 inside the container.
  • /app/data holds all runtime state: mount a volume or a folder, or the data is lost with the container.
  • The image contains git (for Run Scripts Repo) and python3 (for .py scripts). It has no PowerShell and no Windows shell, so .ps1, .bat and .cmd scripts don't run in it.
  • For Read File / Write File and script folders, mount the folders and name them in the configuration, for example -v /srv/pipe/files:/app/files -v /srv/pipe/scripts:/app/scripts. The defaults are files and scripts below /app.
  • For a login with the user admin, add -e PIPE_ADMIN_PASSWORD=<password> (see Authentication).

Settings are passed as environment variables, see Configuration.

Starting automatically

The start script runs the app only as long as you are logged on. To keep it running on a server, run it as a Windows service, in IIS, as a systemd unit or in Docker. In every case, run it under an account with restricted rights, because scripts run with the rights of that account (see Security).

Active workflows with a Cron or Webhook trigger are armed again when the app starts.

Windows service

The version folder contains gview-pipe-service.bat. Run it in a command prompt as administrator:

gview-pipe-service.bat install [name] [port]
gview-pipe-service.bat uninstall [name]

install creates the service and starts it:

  • Service name gview-pipe, or gview-pipe-<name> with a name. It starts automatically (delayed) and is restarted after a crash.
  • It listens on http://localhost:<port> (default 5100), like the start script.
  • It runs as the virtual account NT SERVICE\gview-pipe[-<name>], which may write only to data, files, scripts and _config.
  • data, files, scripts and _config next to the version folders are set as environment variables of the service, like in the start script.

Several instances on one server, for example production and test: unpack the ZIP into one root folder per instance and give each a name and a port.

D:\gview-pipe-prod\0.1.0\gview-pipe-service.bat install prod 5100
D:\gview-pipe-test\0.1.0\gview-pipe-service.bat install test 5200

install refuses a name whose service belongs to another root folder.

Update: unpack the new version into the same root folder and run its gview-pipe-service.bat install with the same name and port. The script stops the service, points it to the new version and starts it again. To go back, run install of the old version.

Own account: for network shares or Git with Windows authentication, the virtual account is not enough. Enter a domain or local account in the service properties (tab Log On) and give it write access to the same folders.

The log goes to the Windows event log (application log, source gView.Pipe, warnings and errors).

IIS

gView.Pipe runs in IIS like any ASP.NET Core app:

  • Install the ASP.NET Core Hosting Bundle for .NET 10.
  • Create a site or application whose physical path is the pipe folder of the version.
  • Set the application pool to No Managed Code and give its identity write access to data, files, scripts and _config.

The start script does not run in IIS. Set PIPE_CONFIG_PATH=<root>\_config as an environment variable of the application pool (not in the web.config of the version, which an update replaces), and set the folders as absolute paths in <root>\_config\pipe.config (see Configuration).

Linux and Docker

Use a systemd unit that runs gview-pipe.sh or dotnet gView.Pipe.Shell.dll with the same environment variables, or a Docker restart policy (--restart unless-stopped).

Documentation

The app serves this documentation itself under /docs (for example http://localhost:5100/docs), in the language of the browser (English or German). The Docs link in the top bar opens it. It works offline and always matches the installed version.

Check the installation

  • The start page opens and shows the sample workflows.
  • The log at the start says Plugins: <n> node types from <m> assemblies. If a plugin could not be loaded, a warning follows (see Troubleshooting).