Moka5 Engine User Guide - BareMetal

Introduction to LivePCs

• Overview
• The Moka5 Engine user interface
• Subscribing to LivePCs
• LivePC size and partial downloading
• The progress bar
• LivePC security
• LivePC maintenance
• RETURN to table of contents

Overview

A LivePC™ is a virtual machine image which can be automatically updated over the network: a creator generates or updates the image and publishes it to a server; a subscriber runs the latest version of the LivePC with a single mouse click.

In a LivePC, the system data is separated from an individual subscriber's data (documents and settings), so that personal data persists across updates.

To run a LivePC, you must first download and install the Moka5 Engine™. See the Startup Guide for details.

When the Moka5 Engine is started, it will automatically download the most up-to-date images of all the LivePCs to which you have subscribed. If you are connected to a LivePC's server on a fast network, you can start the LivePC as soon as you have subscribed to it. Otherwise, you should wait a little while for the LivePC to download.

The Moka5 Engine downloads the LivePC in the background; you just have to leave it alone for a little while. It is like having to charge the battery of a new gadget before using it. The good news is that you don't have to wait for the entire image to be transferred before running the LivePC, but only the most frequently-used pieces. The progress bar to the left of the LivePC's logo will tell you when the LivePC is ready to be used. Updates to already-subscribed LivePCs are also transferred incrementally, so they typically take much less time to download than newly-subscribed LivePCs. Updates are downloaded in the background, too -- subscribers simply start the LivePC to run the latest version.

For information about creating LivePCs, see the LivePC Creator Guide - BareMetal.

The Moka5 Engine user interface

The menu on the left-hand side of the screen allows you to interact with the Moka5 Engine and control your computer. There are three boxes:

1. 'LivePC Tasks': commands that apply to individual LivePCs -- start a LivePC, configure a LivePC, etc.
2. 'My Places': lets you easily access the LivePCs you have subscribed to, review product documentation, visit our support forum, and subscribe to new LivePCs from the Moka5 LivePC Library. You can also add your own internet bookmarks if you wish.
3. 'Moka5 Engine Tasks': lets you control your computer -- shutdown, restart, etc.

When the Moka5 Engine starts, the right side of the screen will display your LivePC library as 'My LivePCs'. It will display all the LivePCs to which you've subscribed.

Subscribing to LivePCs

You can subscribe to public LivePCs by visiting the Moka5 LivePC Library. To enter the library, start your Moka5 Engine. Under 'My Places' on the left side of the Moka5 Engine screen, click on 'www.moka5.com'. On the right side of the screen, you will see a list of public LivePCs. When you see a LivePC that you wish to subscribe to, click on the 'Subscribe' link next to the LivePC's name.

You will be returned to the "My LivePCs" page, where the LivePC you just subscribed will have been added.

LivePC size and partial downloads

LivePCs can be anywhere from ten megabytes to tens of gigabytes in size. Even after doing lots of tuning and optimization to reduce their size, LivePCs can still be large. Downloading them can take a long time, even with a broadband cable or DSL connection.

However, with the Moka5 Engine, you don't have to download the entire LivePC before you can use it. When you subscribe to a LivePC and run it, the Moka5 Engine will only download the pieces of the LivePC that you use. This can be as little as 10% of the total size of the LivePC.

You can find out the size of a LivePC and how much of it you have downloaded. Click on the LivePC in 'My LivePCs' and then click 'Configure...' under 'LivePC Tasks'.

This window includes a box labeled 'Local Storage Settings' that indicates the size of the LivePC and how much of it has been stored on your computer by the Moka5 Engine.

Don't be afraid of subscribing to a LivePC and trying it out! If you only try it a little and don't like it, then you will have only downloaded the pieces of the LivePC that you tried.

The progress bar

When you subscribe to a LivePC, the Moka5 Engine starts downloading it to your local storage. To the left of the LivePC's logo on the 'My LivePCs' page is a color coded progress bar. The bar indicats how much of the LivePC has been downloaded and the approximate performance you can expect during use.

When the bar is red, as in the example below, the LivePC will be quite slow to use.

When the bar is yellow, the LivePC should start quickly, but some applications may run slowly.

When the bar is green, the LivePC will perform best. The LivePC can also be used even if the computer is not connected to the network (assuming you are not trying to use network dependent features).

Please note that this process is limited by the amount of free cache space available, relative to the size of the LivePCs you have subscribed to. When all your subscribed LivePCs together have a larger total size than the size of the cache available, some or all of the LivePCs' progress bars may never turn yellow or green at all.

LivePC security

Each LivePC is run on the Moka5 Engine as a separate virtual computer, using virtual machine technology from VMware. A LivePC has no way of knowing what other LivePCs you are subscribed to. A LivePC is not able to access the personal data that you store in other LivePCs - it can only access the personal data that you store in that particular LivePC.

This means that you can feel free to play around with new LivePCs! Your other LivePCs and the personal files you store in them will be safe and secure.

LivePC maintenance

A LivePC is maintained and modified by its publisher. When the publisher uploads modifications to the LivePC, all of the Moka5 Engines which have subscribed to that LivePC will automatically download the changes. If you have subscribed to that LivePC the update will take effect the next time you start that LivePC.

If you are running a LivePC when an update arrives, you will continue using the previous version. The changes won't take effect until you shutdown the LivePC and start it again. Suspended LivePCs that are resumed and not reverted will also continue to use the previous version.

NOTE: If you want to have the Moka5 Engine keep your local changes to the LivePC (changes to the operating system or applications), then you will network updates will not be automatically applied. Either you can administer your LivePC, or the network publisher can administer your LivePC. To learn more about administering your LivePC, see the section on installing applications in a LivePC.