Beginner's guide to installing Flash Media Server 3.5

Starting the installation

If you have installed previous versions of Flash Media Server, you are about to discover that the installation process has undergone some changes. For example, some of the steps outlined in William Saunders' video tutorial for Flash Media Server 2 have been moved around. The other thing you should do before getting started is uninstall any previous versions of FMS on your computer:

Double-click FlashMediaServer3.5.exe to launch the installer. You will see the splash screen shown in Figure 1. All three versions of the server are listed. The next screen that appears tells you what is about to happen and suggests that you close all open applications. If you do have other apps open, now would be a good time to save the documents and quit those apps. To start the installation process, click the Next button.

Figure 1. Flash Media Server 3.5 splash screen
The usual legalese appears. This license agreement sets out the usage terms and so on for the software. Feel free to read it. Assuming you agree, click the "I accept the agreement" radio button and then click Next to move on with the installation process.
The next screen asks you to enter the serial number (see Figure 2). You don't need one to install the development version on your computer. If you leave it out and click Next, the installer understands that you are simply installing a local version.

Figure 2. Serial number not required to install Flash Media Server 3.5
The next screen confirms that you are installing Flash Media Development Server 3.5 (see Figure 3). Mind you, if you have purchased the server and you see this screen, it would be a good idea to click the Back button and enter the actual serial number. This isn't necessary for this tutorial, however. Go ahead and click Next.

Figure 3. Installing Flash Media Development Server 3.5
You now have to decide where to install the server on your computer. The default location on Windows systems is the Adobe folder found in the Program Files folder of your computer (see Figure 4). If you want to place the installation in another location, click the Browse button and navigate there. Now that you have decided where the server will be installed, click the Next button.

Figure 4. Default location of server installation
Having told the installer where the server will be located, you can see the fundamental difference between this version of Flash Media Server and all previous versions of the server. You are now asked (Figure 5) whether you would like to install an Apache 2.2 server along with FMS. If you go with this option, you'll have the best of both worlds: an HTTP server capable of delivering video content that is progressively downloaded or the ability to take advantage of all the features in FMS without having to spread your content between locations (anywhere from the server next to the FMS server to an ISP on the other side of the world).

Figure 5. HTTP server (new to FMS 3.5)
You are now prompted to decide where to put the shortcut for the server (see Figure 6). The default location is the Start menu but if you don't want a cluttered Start menu, feel free to click the Browse button and determine an alternate location. Click Next.

Figure 6. Where to place the shortcut?
At this point the installation process takes on a degree of seriousness. The Administration Services screen appears and prompts you to enter a username and password (see Figure 7). This information will be needed when you start using the Administration Console, which I will get to in a moment.

It would be a really good idea to enter something you will remember because every time you start the server you are going to be prompted for this information. I used my first name—if I forget that, I am in serious trouble—and a password that I regularly use for other purposes.

One other thing I do, because this really isn't a "high risk" situation like a PayPal account, is to e-mail myself the username and password. This way, if I ever have a "senior moment," I can easily find a written record of the information.

Figure 7. Choosing the login information you'll need to enter the server's Administration Console
Having told the installer where to put the software, and having created a username and password to access the Administration Console, you now need to tell the installer which ports the server will use (see Figure 8). Unless there is a compelling reason to do so, go with the defaults as presented. Although you can use multiple ports, unless you are really confident with what you are doing, it is best simply to click the Next button.

Figure 8. Unless you really know what you are doing, don't change the ports
Now that the installer has all of the information it needs to proceed, you have a second chance to review the settings and make changes (see Figure 9). There's no more Next button, so if everything is acceptable to you, click the Install button. The installation process is relatively speedy and you will be presented with the usual screens displaying the progress of the file extraction and the server initialization.

Figure 9. Your last chance to make changes
Once the installation is completed, you will be presented with the screen shown in Figure 10. You can make a couple of decisions ranging from having a peek at the Readme file to launching Flash Media Server 3 when you start your computer. Though you can manually turn the server on and off, I prefer to go to work when I need to, so I leave the third option selected. Having FMS running in the background while you go about your daily chores won't really slow things down. So click the Finish button.

Figure 10. Success! Now get to work