novaHost - Getting Started

Nova Host is distributed as a zip file.  For the purposes of this document we'll assume you have unzipped the archive on the desktop of a Nucleus system.

Quick Start

You can run the packaged Nova Host executables to test several pC-Nova features from a host using CIGI.

1. Start the IG in CIGI mode using the aeAdmin tool.

   1. It's assumed the IG is configured to receive packets on 127.0.0.1:5000 and send packets to 127.0.0.1:5001.

2. Double click the runNovaHost.bat file in the root directory to run Nova Host.

3. Use the Database tab to jump to a position in the database.

   1. The first time you run Nova Host, you'll default to position 0,0,0.  The first time you exit Nova Host, your position will be cached and set on the next run.

   2. Set the Region to HAWAII and the Position to 0224_Sec_Oahu_PHNL_Honolul_INTL.

   3. Press Jump to Position.

4. Use the Environment tab to manually set the time of day.

   1. Nova Host sends the system clock time by default. You may want to override this.

5. Test some other features.

   1. Use the Entities tab to add a moving model and test its articulations. Introspection returns will allow you to see the available types.

   2. Use the Environment tab to add cloud layers and weather effects.

   3. Use the Database tab to enable Auto Traffic. The required data for Oahu if included in your Nucleus installation.

   4. Use the Sensors tab to enable and slew configured sensor channels if applicable.

Building Plugins

It is recommended that you first try to compile and run the novaHostEntityPlugin from your copy of Visual Studio 2019 to ensure we have a compatible build environment.

1. Open build\novaHost.sln in Visual Studio 2019 and build the novaHostEntityPlugin project.

2. Note that the example solution builds a Release x64 version of the plugin.

   1. This is intentional and matches the Nova Host SDK GUI's build. If you try to change this you will encounter errors. Please contact support@aechelon.com if you think you require a debug build.

3. Save a copy of bin\novaHostEntityPlugin.dll and copy build\x64\Release\novaHostEntityPlugin.dll (your build) to the bin folder.

4. Run Nova Host as described above and confirm the novaHostEntityPlugin loads properly.