Server-Client Communication in C

This is a README file for a C code that demonstrates server-client communication. The code consists of different pairs of servers and clients, each with unique functionality. The clients (clientv1, clientv2, clientv3) are designed to interact with their respective servers (server, servermulti, servermutlichat).

Code Structure

The code is organized as follows:

• client.c: Client repository.
• server.c: Server repository.
• clientv1.c: Client implementation for server.
• clientv2.c: Client implementation for servermulti.
• clientv3.c: Client implementation for servermutlichat.
• serversolo.c: Server implementation for clientv1.
• servermulti.c: Server implementation for clientv2.
• servermutlichat.c: Server implementation for clientv3.
• message.h: Header file for the message implementation and information.
• client.h: Header file for the clients.
• server.h: Header file for the servers.

Server-Client Pairings

• clientv1 - serversolo: This pairing allows the client (clientv1) to send a single command to the server (serversolo). The server will process the command and provide a response.
• clientv2 - servermulti: The client (clientv2) communicates with the server (servermulti). Multiple clients can connect to the server simultaneously, and the server handles each client's requests in a separate thread. The server also includes a queue (with a capacity of 1) to handle situations when it is already serving the maximum number of clients. If the queue is full, the server rejects new client connections.
• clientv3 - servermutlichat: The client (clientv3) interacts with the server (servermutlichat). The server prompts the client to provide a name and stores it to represent the client. Unlike the previous pairing, this server does not include a queue.

Platform Compatibility

The code is currently designed to run on Windows. However, you can adapt the code to work on Linux and macOS platforms. Please make the necessary modifications to the code, including changing libraries and compilation commands, to ensure compatibility with your target platform.

Compilation

To compile the code and generate the executable files, you can use the following commands:

For Windows (MinGW required):

• gcc clientv1.c client.c -o clientv1.exe -lws2_32
• gcc clientv2.c client.c -o clientv2.exe -lws2_32
• gcc clientv3.c client.c -o clientv3.exe -lws2_32
• gcc serversolo.c server.c -o serversolo.exe -lws2_32
• gcc servermulti.c server.c -o servermulti.exe -lws2_32 -lpthread
• gcc servermultichat.c server.c -o servermultichat.exe -lws2_32 -lpthread

For Linux or macOS:

• Ensure that you have the necessary libraries and dependencies installed for successful compilation on your platform. (socket and pthread)
• You have the instruction after in the commantary as ########## : [instruction] for linux or Mac

Usage

To run the compiled executables, you can use the following commands: Please note that the usage and functionality of each client and server are specific to their respective pairings. Follow the prompts and instructions provided by each program to interact with them effectively.

For Windows:

• clientv1.exe [COMMAND] [ORDER]
• clientv2.exe
• clientv3.exe
• serversolo.exe
• servermulti.exe
• servermutlichat.exe

For Linux or macOS:

• ./clientv1 [COMMAND] [ORDER]
• ./clientv2
• ./clientv3
• ./serversolo
• ./servermulti
• ./servermutlichat

This project consists of different pairs of clients and servers and each pair has specific instructions.

Pair: clientv1-serversolo

The clientv1-serversolo pair allows communication with a single server.

Instructions

0. Launch the server typing serversolo in the terminal and open an other terminal for the client
1. Use the following command format to interact with the serversolo: clientv1 [COMMAND] [ORDER]
2. Replace [COMMAND] with the desired command and [ORDER] with the corresponding order for that command.
3. Available commands:

• print: Print a message on the server terminal. Enclose the message in double quotation marks.
• sort: Sort a series of numbers (positive or negative integers). Separate the numbers with spaces.
• Examples:
  • clientv1 print "Hello World"
  • clientv1 sort 5 4 3 2 1

Pair: clientv2-servermulti

The clientv2-servermulti pair supports multiple clients connecting to a server simultaneously.

Instructions

0. Launch the server typing servermulti in the terminal and open an other terminal for the client
1. Launch the client using the command: clientv2
2. In the terminal, enter a command:
   • Use print to print a message on the server terminal.
   • Use sort to sort a series of numbers.
   • Use close to close the client.
3. For the print command, enter the message you want to print (without " ").
4. For the sort command, enter a series of numbers to be sorted (positive or negative integers), separated by spaces.

Pair: clientv3-servermultichat

The clientv3-servermultichat pair enables chat-like communication with the server.

Instructions

0. Launch the server typing servermultichat in the terminal and open an other terminal for the client
1. Launch the client using the command: clientv3
2. Enter your name and press ENTER.
3. In the terminal, enter a command:
   • Use print to print a message on the server terminal.
   • Use sort to sort a series of numbers.
   • Use close to close the client. Press ENTER when you have finished entering the command.
4. For the print command, enter the message you want to print (without enclosing it in double quotation marks).
5. For the sort command, enter a series of numbers to be sorted (positive or negative integers), separated by spaces.

Note: Ensure that you follow the specified command formats and provide the required arguments as mentioned above.

Problems

Common to all pair

Pair: clientv1-serversolo

Pair: clientv2-servermulti

• if the client enter a wrong entry : client continue running

Pair: clientv3-servermultichat

• if the client enter a wrong entry : client continue running

Sources

• Windows lib for socket: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/67726142/how-can-i-use-sys-socket-h-on-windows

• copy a struct in a buffer: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/5589136/copy-struct-to-buffer

• compare string: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/8222495/how-to-compare-strings-in-an-if-statement

• separate a string in arguments: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/9210528/split-string-with-delimiters-in-c

• get the next token with strtok: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/3889992/how-does-strtok-split-the-string-into-tokens-in-c

• bubblesort: https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/bubble-sort-in-c/

• bubblesort: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYvibCOZEWY&ab_channel=Algomius

• MinGW: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyKTt5_K-ak&ab_channel=HamdiBEJI