Retrieving user id using IP address

[David_Mac]

Hi,

I am writing a small monitoring application for our helpdesk and am looking for an easy way to obtain a user id from a workstation using that workstations IP address. What I have in mind is a form that has buttons for each of the workstations mapped out. The IP addresses are static and so by clicking on the button for a specific workstation we can see who the user is that is currently logged on.

Our network uses Novell Netware.

Hope this makes sense.

David McNorton

[ahoodin]

I suggest that you index by MAC address.

record: MAC ADDRESS, USER_ID, IP ADDRESS.

Technologies such as DHCP that set the IP ADDRESS, tend to use the same IP for the same MAC ADDRESS day in and day out.

You can still look up the IP Address given the User Name, however multiple users may have multiple IP Addresses for different machines. Just be aware.

HTH,

Asher

PS IF THIS WAS HELPFUL RATE ME HIGH!

[David_Mac]

Thnx for your input but I'm not sure how this would help. The problem is this is an open access area meaning students are not allocated a set PC but can chose from available workstations. We need to be able to quickly identify the student at a given workstation.

We need to be able to take a screen shot of the workstation activity that includes the user ID for reporting abuse of the system.

[Cakkie]

Well, if you need to be able to take a screenshot, you will have to have a program running on that computer (preferable one that you can connect to through winsock or so). In that case, you could also use that program to give you the username of the loggon on user.

[David_Mac]

cakkie, thnx for this. We already have a remote view application which I can access through my application but unfortunately this doesn't display the user id. What would be neat would be for me to add a text box that displays the user id when I launch the remote view. I guess that's what I'm struggling with at the moment.

[Cakkie]

Maybe you can use an application like BGInfo

http://www.sysinternals.com/ntw2k/freeware/bginfo.shtml

[David_Mac]

Thnx cakkie I'll take a look.