Installation

Automatic

ActiveXPowUpload installs itself automatically when you first time visit a page containing the ActiveX object. (What should contain a page to install ActiveX automatically? See here.) The installation procedure is the same as with any other ActiveX object. For example, you opened http://www.element-it.com/Examples/ActiveXPowUpload/SimpleUpload.html. Here are the steps you go through in order to install ActiveXPowUpload.

Internet Explorer shows Information Bar that asks to install the ActiveXPowUpload control.

Information Bar appears at the top of the page. Click "Install ActiveX control..." in the pop up menu of Information Bar.

If you're running Windows Vista or Windows 7, and User Account Control is turned on, you'll see the following dialog box.

Click "Continue" to proceed.

You see a security warning dialog box.

You may click on the publisher link to familiarize youself with the creator of the control and check a digital signature.

Make sure the publisher is Element-IT Ltd.

Return to the security warning dialog box. Click the Install button.

You'll see a sample page with the ActiveXPowUpload control. ActiveXPowUpload is installed.

On 64-bit Windows you need to install ActiveXPowUpload in both 32- and 64-bit Internet Explorer separatly. That is open the web page with ActiveXPowUpload in Internet Explorer 32-bit first and install the control then do the same with Internet Explorer 64-bit. Of course, if you only work with one version of Internet Explorer you may install ActiveXPowUpload only once.

Manual

You can install ActiveXPowUpload manually, though it is not recomended. This is how.

Acquire ActiveXPowUpload distribution cab file. There are two versions: 32- and 64-bit. On 64-bit Windows you normally need both.
Unpack the cab file into some folder. The cab file contains a single dll file named ActiveXPowUpload-x86.dll or ActiveXPowUpload-x64.dll depending on version.
- The folder you used to unpack the dll must be permanent. Do not move or delete it because otherwise Windows will not be able to find the ActiveXPowUpload component you registered here.
- You may delete the cab file now.
Register ActiveXPowUpload running the command "regsvr32 ActiveXPowUpload.dll". On successful registration you'll see the message "DllRegisterServer in ActiveXPowUpload.dll succeeded".
- You usually open the command prompt window to execute the command. The current directory of the command prompt must match the directory where DLLs reside or you must specify the full path to DLLs.
- You must have administrative privileges to register the component.
- Under Windows Vista and Windows 7 you must explicitly run command prompt with administrator privileges, it's not enough to be logged as administrator. To do so select "Run as administrator" when you run the command prompt.
- On 64-bit Windows you normally need to register both DLLs. You use the same regsvr32 utility to do that. Invoke it twice with different DLLs. On 32-bit Windows you can register only 32-bit ActiveXPowUpload.

Extra steps

The following steps are optional, without them ActiveXPowUpload will work anyway, but maybe with reduced functionality.

GDI+

ActiveXPowUpload uses GDI+ library (when it is available) to display images. The control can display images without GDI+, but in this case the range of supported formats is more limitted.

GDI+ library is included in Windows XP and above. You do not need to do anything if you use only these operation systems. It does not included in Windows 2000, but may be installed manually.

To install GDI+ in Windows 2000, download GDI+ distribution from Microsoft Download Center, for example, Platform SDK Redistributable: GDI+. Follow installation instructions. You need Gdiplus.dll library to be somewhere in the search path. Put it into C:\Windows\system32 or C:\WINNT\system32.

Updating

From time to time new versions of ActiveXPowUpload are released. You can perform manual updating or set up your html code to perform updating automatically.

Manual updating

Method 1

If you have an ActiveXPowUpload cab file and want to install that exact version of the control, you may proceed with the following simple steps:

Create an empty folder

Create a file named Install.html in that folder with the following content.

<HTML>
<body>
<OBJECT codebase="ActiveXPowUpload.cab" 
  CLASSID="CLSID:FB98CEED-9DE1-4517-B30C-CDA19C6D150B">
</OBJECT>
</body>
</HTML>

Copy ActiveXPowUpload.cab distribution file in the folder (rename it if necessary).
Double-click the Install.html to open it in Internet Explorer. You do not need to have a web-server, open the file on the hard drive.
You'll be asked to install the control. The following steps described in the Installation section of this manual.

Method 2

Upgrade procedure depends on the Windows version.

Windows XP, Windows server 2003

Close all Internet Explorer instances that use ActiveXPowUpload control. Close all IE windows to be sure.
Open the "C:\WINDOWS\Downloaded Program Files\" folder in Windows Explorer.^[1] You should see an "ActiveXPowUpload class" item.
Click Update in pop-up menu of the "ActiveXPowUpload class" item.
A security warning dialog box pops up. Starting from here, the update procedure reminds the installation procedure.

Update command checks for a new version of the component at the locations from where it was installed the first time. To remember where that place is examine the CodeBase property. This property and much more reside on an ActiveXPowUpload Class Properties window. Click "Properties" in the pop-up menu to open it.

If CodeBase does not point to place where new version resides, you other move destribution to a corect place or deinstall ActiveXPowUpload and install it again with a different code base.

Windows Vista, Windows 7

To update ActiveXPowUpload on Windows Vista or Windows 7 you need to remove the component and install it again.

Close all Internet Explorer instances or tabs that use ActiveXPowUpload control. Close all IE windows to be sure.
Remove ActiveXPowUpload ActiveX control.
Install a new version of ActiveXPowUpload.

Setting up automatic updating

To set up automatic updating you should specify a codebase attribute of the object tag. That attribute must contain the URL referring to ActiveXPowUpload cab file with version number appended. For example, "http://www.activexpowupload.com/ActiveXPowUpload.cab#Version=1,0,1,0". A component version number is represented as four non-negative integers separated by commas. These numbers specify the minimum component version required. When Internet Explorer encounters an object tag, it checks the version of the installed control. If the installed version is older than the one required, then IE upgrades the control to a higher version. If no version of the component is installed on the user's computer, the component is downloaded and installed.

The version number may have a special value "-1,-1,-1,-1". For example, "http://www.activexpowupload.com/ActiveXPowUpload.cab#Version=-1,-1,-1,-1". This value instructs Internet Explorer to download and install the latest version of a component. If the component is not installed on the client computer, Internet Explorer downloads and installs the component. If the component is installed on the client computer, Internet Explorer downloads the component if the release date is later than the installation date on the client computer. If the component is installed on the client computer and the release date is the same or earlier than the installation date, only an HTTP header transaction occurs. If the client computer has a newer version installed, no download occurs.

See CODEBASE Attribute and Managing Versions of a Component for more details.

There are two versions of the control: 32- and 64-bit for Internet Explorer 32- and 64-bit respectively. You need to set the codebase attribute dynamicaly to handle the both cases. See Putting ActiveX on a web page for example.

Removing

Windows 2000, XP, Windows server 2003

On 64-bit Windows there are two versions of Windows Explorers: 32- and 64-bit. Windows Explorer 32-bit can remove only 32-bit version of the control, while Windows Explorer 64-bit can remove only 64-bit version of the control. You need to use the appropriate version of Windows Explorer in the steps below. If you need to remove both versions of the control, repeat the steps for each version of Windows Explorer.

By default Windows 64-bit use Windows Explorer 64-bit. To invoke the 32-bit version you need to do the following:

Open Control panel, Appearance and Themes category (skip this step in Classic view), Folder Options.
In the Folder Options dialog switch to the View tab, in the Advanced settings tree check "Launch folder windows in a separate process", click OK.
Close all Windows Explorer windows.
Start the "C:\WINDOWS\SysWOW64\explorer.exe"^[1] application using command line. You should not open the "C:\WINDOWS\SysWOW64" folder in Windows Explorer at least. The application that starts is a 32-bit Windows Explorer.

To make sure the process is really 32-bit you may do the folowing.

Locate the Windows Explorer window in Windows Task Manager on the Applications tab. By default the My Documents folder is opened. The title is My Documents as well.
In the context menu select "Go to process" to switch to the corresponding process. You switched to the Processes tab. Make sure that image name is "explorer.exe *32".

Removing the control

Close all Internet Explorer instances that use ActiveXPowUpload control. Close all IE windows to be sure.
On Windows XP or 2003 open the "C:\WINDOWS\Downloaded Program Files\"^[1] folder in Windows Explorer.
On Windows 2000 open the "C:\WINNT\Downloaded Program Files\"^[1] folder in Windows Explorer.
Select the "ActiveXPowUpload class" item. Click Remove in the pop-up menu. Confirm removing.

Windows Vista, Windows 7

On 64-bit Windows there are two Internet Explorers: 32- and 64-bit. IE 32-bit can remove only 32-bit version of the control, while IE 64-bit can remove only 64-bit version of the control. You need to use the appropriate version of Internet Explorer in the steps below. If you need to remove both versions of the control, repeat the steps for each version of Internet Explorer.

Close all Internet Explorer instances or tabs that use the ActiveXPowUpload control.
Open a new IE window or switch to an already opened window.
Click Tools in the main menu, click Internet Options, click Programs tab, push the "Manage add-ons" button.
In the "Show" combobox select "Add add-ons".
Select "ActiveXPowUpload class" in the list. Click "More information" link, click the Remove button.
If User Account Countrol is turned on, a confirmation dialog pops up. Click Continue.

Version of ActiveXPowUpload

How to determine the version of ActiveXPowUpload installed.

Windows XP, Windows server 2003, Windows Vista

Open the "C:\WINDOWS\Downloaded Program Files\" folder in Windows Explorer.^[1]
Select the "ActiveXPowUpload class" item. Click Properties in the pop up menu. Click Version tab.

In script

Starting from version 1.0.1 ActiveXPowUpload supports a Version property. It returns ActiveXPowUpload version as a string.

Putting ActiveX on a web page

To put ActiveXPowUpload on a web page use an object tag. The minimal code looks like:

<OBJECT CLASSID="CLSID:FB98CEED-9DE1-4517-B30C-CDA19C6D150B">
</OBJECT>

The CLASSID attribute is required. It specifies what control you want to use. Everything else is optional.

Some other useful attributes:

Width and Height — width and height of the control on the page in pixels.
id — control's identifier. It is used in script to refer to the control.
codebase — URL. It refers to the location of ActiveX distribution. You may use relative URLs. Relative URLs are resolved relative to the URL of the web page the control is placed on.

ActiveXPowUpload is distributed in cab archives. There are two versions 32- and 64-bit. 32- and 64-bit versions of the control are used with Internet Explorer 32- and 64-bit respectively. Cab archives are usually named ActiveXPowUpload-x86.cab (for 32-bit version) and ActiveXPowUpload-x64.cab (for 64-bit version). If the codebase attribute is set to a correct value, and the ActiveX component is not installed, Internet Explorer installs the component automatically when you visit that page. The installation process is described here. The codebase attribute is also useful for updating the component.

Here is another example:

<OBJECT width="600" height="300" id="ActiveXPowUpload" 
	codebase="http://www.activexpowupload.com/download/activexpowupload.cab"
	CLASSID="CLSID:FB98CEED-9DE1-4517-B30C-CDA19C6D150B">
</OBJECT>

This code has one problem related to codebase attribute: you need to know the version of the control you need in advance. So installation and updating will not work with both versions of Internet Explorer. For example, if you point codebase to a 32-bit version of ActiveXPowUpload, installation and upgrading will work with 32-bit Internet Explorer, but will fail with 64-bit Internet Explorer. To handle both cases you need to generate the codebase property dynamically. You can do that either on client or on server. Here is client code that uses JScript to detect Internet Explorer type. You need to generate the complete object tag dynamically.

<script language="jscript">
	document.write("<OBJECT width='600' height='300' id='ActiveXPowUpload' " 
		+ "CLASSID='CLSID:FB98CEED-9DE1-4517-B30C-CDA19C6D150B' ");
	if(navigator.cpuClass.toLowerCase() == "x64") {
		document.write("codebase='ActiveXPowUpload-x64.cab'>\n");
	} else {
		document.write("codebase='ActiveXPowUpload-x86.cab'>\n");
	}
	document.write("<param name='UploadURL' value='http://hostname/path/to/upload/script.aspx' />\n");
	document.write("<param name='EnablePopupMenu' value='false' />\n");
	<!-- other parameters -->
	document.write("</OBJECT>\n");
</script>

You can set the codebase attribute on server. You can detect Internet Explorer architecture inspecting the user-agent http header. For 32-bit Internet Explorer it looks like "Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.2; WOW64; SV1)", for 64-bit Internet Explorer it is "Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.2; Win64; x64; SV1)". Notice the x64; substring in the 64-bit version. If it presents, it is 64-bit Internet Explorer, otherwise it is 32-bit Internet Explorer. In ASP.NET you may write the following code.

<%@ Page Language="C#" ... %>
<!-- ... -->
<script runat="server">
	enum IE_Architecture { x86, x64 };
	IE_Architecture InternetExplorerArchitecture()
	{
		/* Example of user agent string:
		 * Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; MSIE 6.0; Windows NT 5.2; Win64; x64; SV1; .NET CLR 2.0.50727) */
		string user_agent = Request.UserAgent;
		int begin_ind = user_agent.IndexOf('(');
		int end_ind = user_agent.LastIndexOf(')');
		if (begin_ind < 0 || end_ind < 0)
			return IE_Architecture.x86;
		string IE_prop_str = user_agent.Substring(begin_ind + 1, end_ind - begin_ind - 1);
		string[] IE_prop_arr = IE_prop_str.Split(new Char[] { ';' });
		foreach (string prop in IE_prop_arr)
		{
			if (prop.Trim().ToLower() == "x64")
				return IE_Architecture.x64;
		}
		return IE_Architecture.x86;
	}
	string ActiveXPowUploadCodebase()
	{
		if (InternetExplorerArchitecture() == IE_Architecture.x64)
			return "ActiveXPowUpload-x64.cab";
		else
			return "ActiveXPowUpload-x86.cab";
	}
</script>
<!-- ... -->
<object height="300" width="600" id="ActiveXPowUpload" 
	codebase="<% = ActiveXPowUploadCodebase() %>" 
	classid="CLSID:FB98CEED-9DE1-4517-B30C-CDA19C6D150B">
	<param name="UploadURL" value="http://hostname/path/to/upload/script.aspx" />
	<param name="SerialKey" value="" />
	<!-- other parameters -->
</object>

Details

Where does ActiveXPowUpload component resides?

ActiveXPowUpload is distributed in the form of .cab file archive. It contains a single dll library named ActiveXPowUpload-x86.dll or ActiveXPowUpload-x64.dll. If Internet Explorer installed ActiveX as described in the Installation section of this manual, the dll is placed in the "C:\WINDOWS\Downloaded Program Files\" or "C:\WINNT\Downloaded Program Files\" directory.^[1] It's also possible to install ActiveXPowUpload with the help of regsvr32.exe utility. In this case, dll is registred at the place you want. Sometimes it's hard to remember where that dll resides. Windows registry may help. Open Registry Editor and move to "HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{FB98CEED-9DE1-4517-B30C-CDA19C6D150B}\InprocServer32". The default value contains a full path to the ActiveXPowUpload.dll. If you can't find this key, ActiveXPowUpload is not installed or your registry is damaged. Reinstall ActiveXPowUpload.

On 64-bit Windows there are two versions of Registry Editor: 32- and 64-bit. The 32-bit Registry Editor shows information about 32-bit controls, while 64-bit Registry Editor shows information about 64-bit controls. "C:\WINDOWS\regedit.exe" is the 64-bit Registry Editor, "C:\WINDOWS\SysWOW64\regedit.exe" is the 32-bit Registry Editor.

Internet Explorer settings

To install ActiveXPowUpload control and to work with it Internet Explorer must be configured properly. Most of the time default settings are acceptable but if you encouter problems it's worth to check them.

Open Tools menu, click Internet options. An Internet options dialog will pop up. Go to the security tab.

Select the web zone you want to configure, most probably it is "Internet". Push the "Custom level" button. Scroll to the "ActiveX controls and plug-ins" section of the list.

Check that the following options are configured properly.

Download signed ActiveX controls: Prompt or Enable.
Run ActiveX controls and plug-ins: Prompt or Enable.
Script ActiveX controls marked safe for scripting: Prompt or Enable.

32- and 64-bit versions of ActiveXPowUpload

ActiveXPowUpload has two versions 32- and 64-bit. There are destined for Internet Explorer 32- and 64-bit respectively. On 32-bit Windows you need only 32-bit version of the control. On 64-bit Windows you typically need both.

The 32-bit version of the control is distributed in ActiveXPowUpload-x86.cab file. Here x86 stands for x86 processor architecture. The 64-bit version of the control is distributed in ActiveXPowUpload-x64.cab file. Here x64 stands for x86-64 processor architecture often shortened to x64.

Both version are functionally identically. They have all the same properties, methods and so on. You do not have to do any changes in code to use either 32- or 64-bit version.

^[1] It's assumed that Windows is installed on the drive "C", otherwise change the drive letter appropriately. "Downloaded Program Files" is a hidden folder, to see it Internet Explorer must be configured to show hidden files and folders.