Connecting to a PTC Server
To access any of the objects stored in a PTC Server with Arbortext Editor, you must first connect Arbortext Editor to the PTC Server. You can connect to only one PTC Server at a time.
The connection process differs based on the setting of the UseNewAuthentication parameter in the userprefs.xml configuration file. The two authentication processes are described below. The default setting for the UseNewAuthentication parameter is true, and the Using the New Authentication process is the default.
Using the Default Authentication
For the default authentication process, use the following procedure to connect to a PTC Server:
1. In Arbortext Editor, choose > .
The Connect dialog box is displayed. If you are connecting to a PTC Server that uses forms-based authentication, the default User Name and Password options do not appear in the dialog. In this case, the login form for the PTC Server appears in a control on the dialog box.
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If PTC Server does not appear as a choice in the Connect to option, the PTC Server connection has not been properly installed. Refer to the release notes accompanying the PTC Server connection for installation instructions.
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2. In the Connect dialog box, ensure that you are connecting to a PTC Server, select the appropriate server, and enter your login information.
3. For a PTC Server that does not use forms-based authentication, select Next. For a PTC Server that uses forms-based authentication, entering the required information in the login form completes the authentication process.
Once your user information is verified, the Connect dialog box displays additional fields for your context and workspace. See the Arbortext Content Manager or Windchill documentation for more information about contexts and workspaces.
4. In the Connect dialog box, select the context and workspace in which you want to work.
If you do not have a workspace in the selected context, the
PTC Server connection displays a default new workspace name
user name on context in this option and will create the new workspace when you click the
Finish button. If you want to create the new workspace with a name you choose, click the
New button to open the
Create New Workspace dialog box.
5. Select Finish.
A message in the Arbortext Editor status bar will confirm that you are connected to the PTC Server.
Using the New Authentication
For the new authentication process, use the following procedure to connect to a PTC Server:
1. In Arbortext Editor, choose > .
The Connect dialog box is displayed.
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If PTC Server does not appear as a choice in the Connect to option, the PTC Server connection has not been properly installed. Refer to the release notes accompanying the PTC Server connection for installation instructions.
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2. In the Connect dialog box, ensure that you are connecting to a PTC Server, select the appropriate server, and click OK.
3. Enter your authentication information using one of the following methods:
If the PTC Server uses user name and password authentication, enter your user name and password in the Connect dialog box and click OK.
If the PTC Server uses forms-based authentication, enter the required information in the form provided by the PTC Server on the Connect dialog box and click OK.
If the PTC Server uses HTTPS client authentication, what is displayed next depends on how many client certificates are available in the designated Microsoft Windows certificate store or stores. If only a single client certificate is available, the PTC Server uses that certificate for authentication and no further action is needed. If multiple certificates are available, the
Authentication Required dialog box displays. In this case, select the appropriate client certificate to use for authentication and click
OK. Note that if the PTC Server only optionally requests an SSL client certificate, the authentication proceeds whether a certificate is available or not.
If the PTC Server uses Integrated Windows Authentication (IWA), the Connect dialog skips the step for entering login credentials. The Connect dialog directly displays the Context and Workspace fields for selecting your context and workspace.
Once your user information is authenticated, the Connect dialog box displays additional fields for your context and workspace. See the Arbortext Content Manager or Windchill documentation for more information about contexts and workspaces.
4. In the Connect dialog box, select the context and workspace in which you want to work.
If you do not have a workspace in the selected context, the
PTC Server connection displays a default new workspace name
user name on context in this option and will create the new workspace when you click the
OK button. If you want to create the new workspace with a name you choose, click the
New button to open the
Create New Workspace dialog box.
5. Select OK.
A message in the Arbortext Editor status bar will confirm that you are connected to the PTC Server.
Using Forms-Based Authentication
For a PTC Server that uses forms-based authentication, the login form is displayed in an Internet Explorer control on the Connect dialog box. To see the form on the dialog box, you might have to have to change the settings on your machine in the following way:
1. On your machine, open the Control Panel and select Internet Options.
The Internet Properties dialog box opens.
2. On the Internet Properties dialog box, select the Security tab.
3. On the Security tab, select the Trusted sites zone and click the Sites button.
The Trusted sites dialog box opens.
4. On the Trusted sites dialog box, enter the internet address for the PTC Server in the Add this website to the zone option and click the Add button to add the address to the list of Websites.
5. Close the Trusted sites dialog box.
6. On the Security tab, click the Custom level button.
The Security Settings – Trusted Sites Zone dialog box opens.
7. On the Security Settings – Trusted Sites Zone dialog box, select the Enable choice on the Initialize and script ActiveX controls not marked as safe for scripting setting.
8. Click OK to close the Security Settings – Trusted Sites Zone dialog box.
9. Click OK to close the Internet Properties dialog box.
Your machine can now use forms-based authentication with the specified PTC Server.
Note also that a PTC Server that uses forms-based authentication will time out an Arbortext Editor client session when there is no activity between the client and server for a time period specified in the PTC Server configuration. When a session times out, the PTC Server connection displays an information dialog box indicating that the server is not available. In this case, you must choose > to close the PTC Server connection session. You can then choose > to reestablish your session with the PTC Server.
Using an SSO-enabled Windchill Server with Arbortext Editor
Arbortext Editor works with a Windchill server that is configured with SAML/Shibboleth/Ping authentication.
Perform the following steps to enable the communication:
• Windchill — Set the property wt.auth.form.enabled to true as shown below:
xconfmanager -s wt.auth.form.enabled=true -p
• Shibboleth — Remove the HttpOnly flag from the cookieProps attribute.
When you connect to the server in Arbortext Editor, use the CTRL+M key combination to submit a user’s authentication credentials in the Ping Identity authentication form.
Related information
