RICOH ProcessDirector™ for AIX

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable laws, in no event will the manufacturer be liable for any damages whatsoever arising out of failures of this product, losses of documents or data, or the use or non-use of this product and operation manuals provided with it.

Make sure that you always copy or have backups of important documents or data. Documents or data might be erased due to your operational errors or malfunctions of the software. Also, you are responsible for taking protective measures against computer viruses, worms, and other harmful software.

In no event will the manufacturer be responsible for any documents created by you using this product or any results from the data executed by you.

• Some illustrations or explanations in this guide could differ from your product due to improvements or changes in the product.
• The contents of this document are subject to change without notice.
• No part of this document may be duplicated, replicated, reproduced in any form, modified, or quoted without prior consent of the supplier.
• Throughout this publication, references to directory paths indicate the default paths only. If you install RICOH ProcessDirector or any of its components in a different location, including a different drive, you must adjust the paths accordingly.

  For example, if you install RICOH ProcessDirector on the D: drive of a computer running a Windows operating system, replace C: with D: in the directory paths.

New functions and updates in Version 3.11.2

• New support for custom job properties

  With this release, you can create custom properties for jobs. In the past, RICOH ProcessDirector provided 20 job properties that you could use to store custom information. However, you could not rename the fields or change anything about them. With this new function, you can create your own job properties-- assigning unique field and database property names as you want to see them.

  To define custom job properties, use the Custom properties page on the Administration tab. Fill in the property notebook, activate the property, and you can start using it in your workflows!

• An easier way to define custom document properties

  The same Custom properties page used to define custom job properties can also be used to define document properties! This new function significantly reduces the overhead associated with creating custom document properties. You no longer need to update the docCustomProperties.xml file, run the DocCustom utility, or install the new property. Simply fill in the fields in the custom property notebook and activate. Your document properties are ready to use!

• Updated Adobe Acrobat Plug-in

  The RICOH ProcessDirector Plug-in for Adobe Acrobat has been updated to support the OpenJDK™Java® JRE Version 1.8 in addition to Oracle® Java. An appropriate JRE must be installed on your system before you install the Plug-in. With this update, we strongly recommend installing the 64-bit version of the JRE.

  In addition, you can now install the Plug-in with the 64-bit version of Adobe Acrobat Pro.

• Updates to translated publications

  Books and help systems containing translated information for function released in Version 3.11.1 are now available. To see the translated help content and updated books from the help menu, download and install the Language Pack for your language. PDF versions of the books are also available in the RICOH Software Information Center (https://help.ricohsoftware.com/swinfocenter/)

New functions and updates in Version 3.11.1

• Updated translations

  The content of the Version 3.11 product interface and the help system has been translated into these languages:

  • Brazilian Portuguese
  • French
  • German
  • Italian
  • Japanese
  • Spanish

  To see the translated user interface and help content, download and install the Language Pack for your language.

• Choose paper for banner pages using media settings

  If you're printing PDF jobs, you can now specify which paper to print banner pages on by media, instead of by specifying a paper tray. Your banner pages print on the correct paper, regardless of where that paper is loaded. This function is available for Ricoh PDF, Kodak PDF, and Xerox PDF printers.

• User interface updates

  The user interface has been enhanced to adjust the size of your portlets to fit inside your browser window. When you change the size of the window (by changing the dimensions of the browser or by moving it to a different screen), the portlets shrink or expand to fill the space available.

• Data capture improvements

  With this update, you can download a data capture file to your system directly from the data capture page, so you don't have to access the primary server to retrieve the file. You can also stop a capture that is already in progress.

• Operating system support changes

  In this release, we increased the minimum level of CentOS required to install RICOH ProcessDirector to version 7.9.

New functions and updates in Version 3.11

• Ability to restore to a previous installation of RICOH ProcessDirector

  With this version of RICOH ProcessDirector, you can restore a previous installation using Feature Manager. With this new function, you install a new feature and then effectively back it out if you decide that it does not meet your needs. Or, if you apply an update but something goes wrong during the install process, you can restore the installation from before the update to get back to a stable state before you try to update again.

• New data collector to collect information about processing durations

  Now, you can use the Job Step Duration data collector to collect information about how long each step was in the queued and processing states, as well as the total length of time it takes for each step in a workflow to complete processing. You can also select job properties to capture at the end of each step.

• Operating system support changes

  In this release, we have removed support for installing RICOH ProcessDirector application servers on Windows Server 2016.

• Include the Preset name in AFP print jobs

  If you send AFP print jobs to a printer that uses TotalFlow Print Server, you can now include the name of the printer preset to use for the job as a job property.

• Security vulnerabilities addressed

  Ricoh is committed to responding to results of vulnerability scans and will continue to include those fixes in each release that we deliver. In this release, various components were updated to address these vulnerabilities, including:

  • AFP Support
  • Avanti Slingshot Connect
  • Reports
  • Printer Connector
  • Ricoh PDF Printer
  • DB2
  • Product Update

Release notes for prior versions of RICOH ProcessDirector are available on the RICOH Software Information Center here: Release notes: RICOH ProcessDirector

The RICOH ProcessDirector base product is made up of these components:

RICOH ProcessDirector primary server

The RICOH ProcessDirector primary server manages all job activities, including input devices that create the jobs and printers that print the jobs. The server also processes jobs through workflows, some of which include other programs. It controls both the flow of jobs and the database tables that store system information.

The RICOH ProcessDirector primary server is installed on a pSeries computer with the AIX operating system.

In addition, you can set up your installation to have a standby computer to use as a backup (or failover) computer. RICOH ProcessDirector is installed on both the active computer and the backup computer, but it can only run on one computer at a time. Both computers must have access to an external storage system, such as a storage area network (SAN) or an NFS-mounted file system, where print jobs and systems objects are stored. In the event of an outage on the active computer, you can run scripts provided with RICOH ProcessDirector to move processing to the backup computer without losing objects or print jobs.

Note:
• You must purchase a license key for both your active and backup computers.

The RICOH ProcessDirector primary server contains these programs:

IBM DB2

RICOH ProcessDirector properties and their corresponding values are stored in an IBM DB2 database. You can:

• Install your own copy of DB2 on the computer that you plan to use for the RICOH ProcessDirector primary server before you install RICOH ProcessDirector.
• Install your own DB2 server on a different computer and a DB2 client on the primary computer before you install RICOH ProcessDirector.
• Let the RICOH ProcessDirector installation program install DB2. If you choose this option, you cannot use this DB2 installation for any other purpose.

You do not have to install DB2 or the DB2 client on computers where you install Secondary Server features; secondary servers share the database that is installed on the primary computer.

Print Services Facility

The Print Services Facility (PSF) is a print-driver program that manages and controls data transmitted to AFP printers that are TCP/IP-attached. PSF is used with the AFP Support feature. PSF is also installed with Secondary Server features on AIX or Linux, but not on application servers.

RICOH ProcessDirector user interface

The RICOH ProcessDirector user interface is a Web browser-based interface that lets you manage the printing process. Users can access the user interface from a supported Web browser on a Windows or Linux workstation as long as they have a RICOH ProcessDirector user ID. The workstation must have one of these Web browsers installed:

• Most recent version of Mozilla Firefox
• Most recent version of Google Chrome
• Most recent version of Microsoft Edge based on Chromium

The user interface also has a Web-based file viewer that uses the Adobe Acrobat Reader (or similar PDF viewer plug-in) to display AFP or PDF files so you can select pages to reprint.

To access the user interface, enter this URL in the address bar of a Web browser, replacing hostname with the hostname or IP address of the computer that the primary server runs on: http://hostname:15080/pd

After you are authenticated, you can explore the user interface. Highlights of the user interface include:

• The Main page includes portlets that show system health, job status, and device status in graphical ways by using colors and graphics. Users can tell at a glance the overall status of their system and easily drill down for more detail as desired.
• On the Main page, you can move portlets by clicking the title bar, dragging the portlet to a different position, then releasing the mouse button to drop the portlet. You can also maximize any portlet, so that it fills the entire browser window. The Fit portlets to window action, lets you resize all the portlets at once so they fill the available window size.
• You can customize the columns available in all portlets and object tables, using the Manage columns action under the Settings () menu. If a table appears on both the Main and Administration pages, you can save different columns on each page.
• Both the Main and Administration pages are automatically updated to show property and status changes. You do not need to refresh the browser to see the most recent information.
  Note:
  • If there are more than 1500 jobs in the Jobs table, property and status changes for jobs are not updated automatically. Other portlets continue to update automatically.

• You can add, copy, and delete all types of devices from the Main page as well as from the Administration page. On both pages, Copy and Delete are available on the More actions menu. On the Administration page, the Add action is available at the top of the table on the right side. On the Main page, the Add action is on the Settings () menu.

• The Jobs table displays up to 1500 jobs without using pagination controls. You can scroll through the entire list of jobs in the same table, instead of advancing through them page by page.
• Most portlets and tables include a filter that you can use to find entries easily. Click the Filter icon () and type in the box. The portlet or table displays only rows that include the text you entered.
• The Jobs portlet includes an Advanced filter. Click the arrow to the left of the Advanced filter title to expand the filter and specify the conditions that you want to use to filter the Jobs table.
• You can manage access to objects on both the Main and Administration pages based on location properties. If you assign objects such as printers, input devices, and jobs to specific locations, you can use the Allowed locations property for each user to define which locations they can see in the user interface.

  The Locations to show property lets users select which of their allowed locations to display in the user interface. If a user chooses to show a subset of the allowed locations, a location icon () displays in the banner area.

• The help window that opens when you click the button in a property notebook is now more flexible. You can move the window to a different position and resize it to see more or less information. You can also highlight text in the window, so that you can copy it.

The user interface is available in these languages:

• Brazilian Portuguese (pt_BR)
• English (en_US)
• French (fr_FR)
• German (de_DE)
• Italian (it_IT)
• Japanese (ja_JP)
• Spanish (es_ES)

RICOH ProcessDirector information center

The information center contains topics that help users learn about and use RICOH ProcessDirector.

You can open the information center by clicking ? ⇒ Help from the top task bar of the user interface. In addition, you can bookmark the location of the information center in your browser and open it outside of RICOH ProcessDirector.

As an option, you can use these products with RICOH ProcessDirector:

RICOH InfoPrint Manager for AIX

InfoPrint Manager for AIX (Program Number 5765-F68) is a print server that handles the scheduling, archiving, retrieving, and assembly of a print job and its related resource files. If you plan to install InfoPrint Manager for AIX with RICOH ProcessDirector, make sure that it is installed on a different computer from RICOH ProcessDirector.

You can use these products with RICOH ProcessDirector if you have installed the AFP Support feature:

AFP Download Plus

AFP Download Plus is a separately ordered feature of Print Services Facility for z/OS (IBM Program Number 5655-M32) that transforms line data to MO:DCA-P data and then transmits the print job with all required resources to RICOH ProcessDirector.

Download for z/OS

Download for z/OS is a separately ordered feature of PSF for z/OS (IBM Program Number 5655-M32) and is used to submit jobs to RICOH ProcessDirector. Download for z/OS automatically transmits output across the TCP/IP network from the host system to RICOH ProcessDirector for printing or archiving.

RICOH InfoPrint XT for AIX

RICOH InfoPrint XT for AIX (Program Number 5799-GTF) transforms Xerox metacode and line conditioned data stream (LCDS) jobs to AFP. If you plan to install RICOH InfoPrint XT for AIX on the same server as RICOH ProcessDirector, make sure that it is installed after RICOH ProcessDirector.

RICOH InfoPrint XT for Linux

RICOH InfoPrint XT for Linux (Program Number 5765-XTA) transforms Xerox metacode and line conditioned data stream (LCDS) jobs to AFP.

RICOH InfoPrint XT for Windows

RICOH InfoPrint XT for Windows (Program Number 5765-XTA) transforms Xerox metacode and line conditioned data stream (LCDS) jobs to AFP.

You can install RICOH ProcessDirector with various system configurations. The hardware configurations can include:

• Primary computer
• Primary computer with one or more secondary servers on the same computer
• Primary computer with an application server on a Windows computer
• Primary computer with one or more secondary servers on different computers
• Primary computer with a backup (failover) computer and an NFS-mounted file system

  In this configuration, only one primary server can be running at a time. System objects are created and stored on the mounted file system, so they can be accessed from the backup computer in case of a hardware failure or other outage.

• Primary computer with a backup (failover) computer and a storage area network (SAN)

  In this configuration, only one primary server can be running at a time. System objects are created and stored on the SAN, so they can be accessed from the backup computer in case of a hardware failure or other outage.

• Two primary computers running AIX Version 7.2, Technology Level 03 SP3 or later with PowerHA and an external storage system.

  In this configuration, only one primary server can be running at a time. System objects are created and stored on the external storage system. If the active system fails, PowerHA can automatically switch processing to the backup system.

Example of a system configuration shows a configuration of RICOH ProcessDirector with the AFP Support feature. The configuration has a primary server, a secondary server on a separate Linux computer, and a secondary AIX server. It also shows RICOH ProcessDirector components, including the optional RICOH Transform features, and the optional products you might use with RICOH ProcessDirector, including Download for z/OS, AFP Download Plus, and InfoPrint Manager for AIX.

The figure below, Example of a configuration with active and backup computers using a SAN shows a configuration with two primary computers (an active and a backup) connected to a SAN using a fibre channel connection.

Example of a configuration with active and backup computers using an NFS server shows a configuration with two primary computers (an active and a backup) and an NFS server that holds their shared file systems.

Different components and features of RICOH ProcessDirector are installed on separate computers. Those computers have different minimum requirements than the one that the base product and all other features are installed on. These components are:

• Application servers

  See Application server computers for hardware requirements.

• Secondary Server

  See Secondary computers for hardware requirements.

• RICOH ProcessDirector Plug-in for Adobe Acrobat (part of the PDF Document Support feature)

  See RICOH ProcessDirector: Installing Document Processing Features, G550-20312, for a description of the requirements.

The performance of RICOH ProcessDirector and its attached printers depends on the availability and efficiency of memory, processors, disk space, and network resources in the system configuration. Performance also depends on the content of the print data streams being processed and the overall load on the system. For example, complex print jobs, such as those containing images or bar codes, require more resources than those containing plain text. For help determining which hardware configuration meets your print requirements, contact your Ricoh representative to request a workload analysis and system sizing.

• On the AIX computers that the base product or a Secondary Server feature is installed on:
  • You need to set up file systems and mount the file systems on your computer before you install RICOH ProcessDirector.
  • We recommend creating enhanced journaled file systems (JFS2).
• On Linux computers that a Secondary Server feature is installed on:
  • A single partition is the simplest file system setup. The RICOH ProcessDirector installer can create directories in a single partition automatically.
  • Multiple partitions let the system continue functioning when it runs out of space in one partition. If you want to set up file systems in multiple partitions, you need to create and mount the file systems on your computer before you install RICOH ProcessDirector.
  • When setting up partitions of the Linux system for RICOH ProcessDirector, you can use Logical Volume Manager (LVM), Hardware RAID, or separate partitions. Hardware RAID 0 provides the best performance.
  • If you want to use Logical Volume Manager (LVM), you need to set up and mount the file systems on your computer before you install RICOH ProcessDirector.

  • RICOH ProcessDirector does not support file systems created with the 64-bit inode setting.

• On Windows computers that have application servers installed, you do not have to set up file systems before installation.

When you determine the size and location of file systems, consider these factors:

• Storage and backup needs
• Failure recovery

(See Note.)

(See Note.)

It is easiest to let the installer create the user groups and IDs using the default values. If the default names do not comply with user and group naming rules in your environment, you can choose different names and enter them in the installer when requested. The groups and users are created using the specified names as local system users and groups.

If you prefer to create the groups and users in advance (using either the default names or names that you specify), the installation program can find and use them. Create those groups and users according to the descriptions below and enter their names in the installation program when asked.

If you plan to install any Secondary Server features on AIX or Linux computers, you must create some groups and users on both the primary computer and secondary computers. The groups and users on the secondary computers must be identical to those on the primary computer.

Required groups

RICOH ProcessDirector requires these groups on the primary computer:

RICOH ProcessDirector group

The group that controls access to the RICOH ProcessDirector data directory. Members of this group can access the /aiw/aiw1 file system. This is the default or primary group for the RICOH ProcessDirector system user.

The default name for the group is aiwgrp1.

Print queue group

The group used for all users and applications that send jobs to printers. On some platforms, this is a system group that is created when the operating system is installed, but not on others.

The name for this group must be printq. You cannot create a group with a different name and have RICOH ProcessDirector use it. If the installer does not find a group named printq, it creates one.

Database group

The group used to give members DB2 sysadm authority for database operation. This is the default or primary group for the RICOH ProcessDirector instance user and for the Database client user (if needed).

The default name for the group is aiwdbgrp.

If you plan to use a DB2 server installed on a different computer with RICOH ProcessDirector, this group is created while running the script setupRemoteDB2.sh on the computer that DB2 is installed on and also on the computer that RICOH ProcessDirector is installed on.

Database fenced group

The internal group required by DB2; the default or primary group for the fenced user.

The default name for the group is aiwdbfgp.

If you plan to use a DB2 server installed on a different computer with RICOH ProcessDirector, this group is created during the installation on the computer that DB2 is installed on.

RICOH ProcessDirector also requires the RICOH ProcessDirector group and print queue group on any AIX or Linux secondary computers.

Required users

RICOH ProcessDirector requires these users on the primary computer:

RICOH ProcessDirector system user

The user ID that RICOH ProcessDirector runs under. This user must have the RICOH ProcessDirector group set as its default or primary group. It must also be a member of the Print queue group and the Database group. You can use the default values for the other user properties.

The default system user ID is aiw1.

Instance user

The user ID that the RICOH ProcessDirector database instance runs under. This user must have its default or primary group set to the Database group. It must also be a member of the RICOH ProcessDirector group. You can use the default values for the other user properties.

The default instance user ID is aiwinst.

If you plan to use a DB2 server installed on a different computer, this user is created on the computer that DB2 is installed on.

Fenced user

A second user ID that DB2 requires when you create an instance. This user must be a member of the Database fenced group. You can use the default values for the other user properties.

The default fenced user ID is aiwdbfid.

If you plan to use a DB2 server installed on a different computer, this user is created on the computer that DB2 is installed on.

Database client user

The user ID that the DB2 client uses. This user is only required if you install a DB2 server on a different computer and the DB2 client on the same computer as RICOH ProcessDirector. This user must have its primary or default group set to the Database group. You can use the default values for the other user properties.

The default database client user ID is aiwclnt.

RICOH ProcessDirector also requires the RICOH ProcessDirector system user on any AIX or Linux secondary computers.

Note:
• If you set up passwords with expiration rules for these user IDs, you must administer those IDs as needed. If you do not change the passwords as needed and they expire, RICOH ProcessDirector stops working.

RICOH Transform features users and groups

One additional group and two additional users are required if you install any of these RICOH Transform features:

• Ricoh AFP to PDF
• Ricoh PCL to AFP
• Ricoh PostScript/PDF to AFP
• Ricoh SAP to AFP

The default users are ipsitm and ipsejz; the default group is itm. The Advanced Transform feature does not require these users and group.

Important:
• Do not make either RICOH Transform features user ID the same as the RICOH ProcessDirector user ID. For example, if the RICOH ProcessDirector user ID is aiw1, do not enter aiw1 for either Transform feature user ID.

SSL and TLS are widely used to protect data on the Internet. The SSL and TLS protocols use digital certificates to establish a secure connection between a Web server and any client systems that interact with it. After the connection is established, data transferred between the systems is encrypted using security keys. Only the intended recipient of the information can decrypt the data.

You can also use SSL or TLS to protect data on a smaller scale, such as within a print system like RICOH ProcessDirector. You can activate SSL or TLS to provide a greater level of security for the print data that is exchanged between the primary server and user interfaces, as well as the data that is exchanged with other applications using the Web services that RICOH ProcessDirector supports.

To use SSL or TLS on a computer, you must obtain a digital certificate and install it on that computer. It is recommended that you get your certificate from a certificate authority (CA), because CAs are considered trusted third parties. You can use a self-signed certificate for testing, but using that certificate on production systems is not recommended.

When the certificate is issued, the CA sends it to you in an e-mail. You store the certificate in a keystore on the computer that the certificate is registered to.

After the Web server is configured to use it, SSL or TLS is automatically used for communications. The URL for the RICOH ProcessDirector user interface changes to use the https:// prefix. You can still access the user interface using the http:// address, but you can configure the Web server to forward all requests to the secure address.

To use SSL or TLS with RICOH ProcessDirector, you can get a digital certificate and install it on the primary computer before you install the base product. After the base product is installed, you must activate SSL or TLS in the RICOH ProcessDirector Web server component.

When configuring this type of system, the operating system prerequisites, memory and file system requirements still apply. Three other network configuration items are important:

• The hostname assigned to the RICOH ProcessDirector instance cannot change when the server is restarted. If this value changes over a restart, you will have a short grace period to update your license keys before the system stops running.
• If you are printing across an externally hosted or distributed network, you may need substantial network bandwidth to keep high-speed printers running at rated speed over long distances. Contact Ricoh Software Support for help with configuring your network capacity. If you are printing to AFP printers, you can use a secondary server to receive and buffer print jobs so that data transmission to the printers can keep up with high print speeds. After installing the secondary server, set these properties on the AFP printer:
  • Printer server: The secondary server name
  • Copy to secondary server: Yes
  • Destination directory on secondary server: The location on the secondary server file system where you want RICOH ProcessDirector to write print files.
• Securing data across your network and from cloud platforms to printers on the ground is your responsibility. Use of virtual private networks (VPNs) sometimes introduces performance degradation in file transfer. Involve your network and security administrators when planning to host RICOH ProcessDirector in these environments.

RICOH ProcessDirector requires this software on the primary computer:

• A supported AIX operating system
• DB2

  RICOH ProcessDirector includes a copy of DB2 in its installation package. To use this copy of DB2, you do not have to install any DB2 software in advance. If you already have DB2 installed on a computer in your network, you can configure RICOH ProcessDirector to work with that version instead. See Installing DB2.

If you plan to install a Secondary Server feature, this software is required on the secondary computer:

• A supported operating system (Linux or AIX)

If you plan to install an application server on a Windows computer, this software is required on the Windows computer:

• Windows Server 2019 64-bit operating system
• Windows Server 2022 64-bit operating system
• Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise 64-bit operating system
• Windows 11 Pro operating system

These features require additional software:

• Secondary Docker

  Docker Engine 19.03 or above is required on Linux computers that will host Docker container secondary servers.

• PitStop Connect

  Enfocus PitStop Server 10 or higher on an application server that is configured to work with the primary server.

• Ultimate Impostrip® Connect

  Ultimate Impostrip® Automation or Scalable on an application server that is configured to work with the primary server or on a separate Windows system.

  Note:
  • If your Windows computer runs in a language other than English, do not install Ultimate Impostrip® in the default install directory. The program does not work properly with non-English default install paths. We recommend installing Ultimate Impostrip® in C:\ImpostripOnDemand on non-English Windows computers.
• Quadient Inspire Connect

  Quadient Inspire Designer V8 or higher.

• The AFP Support feature includes RICOH Visual Workbench, a separate user interface that you can install on any Linux or Windows system in your network.

  Java 1.8 or later must be installed on the system that is used for RICOH Visual Workbench.

• The PDF Document Support feature includes RICOH ProcessDirector Plug-in for Adobe Acrobat, a separate user interface that you can install on a Windows system in your network. Java 1.8 or later and Adobe Acrobat Pro 2020 or DC must be installed on the system that is used for RICOH ProcessDirector Plug-in for Adobe Acrobat.
• RICOH Transform features

  WorldType Fonts version 8.13 for RICOH SAP to AFP files to transform correctly when IS/3 support is enabled.

  Java Runtime Environment 1.4 or higher.

  To install the PDF to AFP transform on an AIX operating system, XL C/C++ Runtime 16.1.0.3 or newer is required. Make sure that the fileset contains the install packages for both xlC and C++.

• Avanti Slingshot Connect

  Avanti Slingshot with the JDF Integration add-on installed on an application server that is configured to work with the primary server.

Other required software:

• A supported Web browser

  A Web browser is required to open the RICOH ProcessDirector user interface, so it is required on any system that is used to access the user interface.

• A PDF viewer

  A PDF viewer is used inside the RICOH ProcessDirector user interface to display the contents of print jobs. It should be installed on any system that is used to access the user interface, but it is not required. If you open the user interface from a computer that does not have a PDF viewer installed, you see an error message if you try to view a job. Using Adobe Reader is recommended as it provides the most functionality.

You can install optional software to be used with RICOH ProcessDirector. The categories of optional software are:

• Job submission
• Data transforms
• InfoPrint Manager for AIX
• Fonts
• Formatting changes to PDF banner pages

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