Everest "Application server does not exist" error

This post may only end up being of interest to about 10 people in the world, but hopefully those people find it and it saves them some of the hair-pulling time that I wasted.  I've been working on installing Everest's business software, Everest Advanced Application Server, for a client.  We were installing both server and client modules on Windows Server 2003.  The server module also automatically installs Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express.  After installation, we would open the client and try to log in but would get the "Application server does not exist" error.

The first thing we were advised by support was to make sure to type in the whole machine name and SQL Server name instead of just trying to use a . dot like they say you can.  So for example, server name is "ourserver" and database instance is "ourserver\SQL2005".  That didn't fix it, so not sure if that was necessary or not.

The real fix had to do with the fact that we had set it up to run as an interactive user, meaning the user who is logged on to the machine.  This wasn't their recommendation, but this was just a development server, so we didn't think that part mattered much.  Turns out it did.  Maybe it had to do with the fact that we were only logging in using Remote Desktop and that wasn't recognized as an actual login???  But anyway, the document that finally gave me the right info about how to change that was only available after logging into their knowledge base, so I've pasted the contents below.

And we were also installing the Everest SDK aka the Everest API and it was giving connection errors.  That ended up being the same problem with the same solution.  You can't run as interactive user.  That is set up in a COM package as described in their API Guide, but the fix is the same procedure as the server one described below, just for the API COM package instead of the main Everest COM package.

Here is the document from Everest:

PROBLEM

While logging into Everest, I receive an error message "Application Server does not exist."

Possible Causes

This error message can occur for the follow known reasons:

n         The Everest Application server name is misspelled.

n         The Everest Application server is not installed in the given application server.

n         The “Enabled Distributed COM on this computer” property (path: Component Services > My Computer > Properties > Default Properties tab) may not have been selected in either the client, server, or both.

n         The Client and the Server are on different versions of MDAC. If you do not know how to check this, contact Everest Software Support for assistance.

n         If the Everest application server (COM+ components) is configured to use "Interactive User", a windows users must be logged in to the Everest application server.

n         If the Everest application server (COM+ components) is configured to use "This User", the user ID or password details are incorrect for the specified windows user in your COM settings.

n         The presence of a virus can also cause COM applications to not automatically start after a system reboot.

Solution 1

In order to overcome the problem with the last three possible causes listed above, do the following:

1         Go to the server that that has the Everest Application server installed.

2         Go to Start > Settings > Control Panel > Administrative Tools. 

3         Double-click Component Services.

4         Expand Component Services > Computers > My Computer > Com+ Applications.

5         Right-click Everest and select Shut Down.

6         Right-click Everest and select Properties. Select theIdentity tab. Check if the option is set to Interactive. If it is, we recommend you select This User option and specify a valid Windows Account that has Local Administrative rights. This will ensure that the Everest COM+ components start using this account and there is no need to log in to the server after reboot of the server.

7         Click OK.

8         (Optional step) To test if the Everest Application Server is working correctly, right-click Everest and select Start. If it does not work correctly, you will receive an error message explaining why it cannot start. If it works correctly, there will be no messages.

If the application service is functioning properly, you should be able to log in to the company.

Be sure to scan the system for the presence of any Viruses. The presence of a Virus may prevent the DCOMCNFG services from starting automatically each time the system is restarted.

Solution 2

If your server operating system is Windows 2003, refer to knowledge base article 87580 – Installing Everest Advanced Edition on Windows Server 2003 for more information. See the “Common Technical Issues Windows 2003 Server SPI and R2” section, Issue #1 – Application server does not exist.     

Everest is a registered trademark of Everest Software, Inc. All other product names and services referenced herein are trademarks of their respective companies.

Disclaimer:

The third-party product that this document confers is created by companies that are independent of Everest software. Everest Software makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding the performance or consistency of this product.