SNNTP Class

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The SNNTP Class is used to read, search, and post articles on Usenet news servers.

Syntax

ipworkssmime.snntp()

Remarks

The SNNTP Class is the S/MIME enabled equivalent of the IPWorks NNTP class. In addition to standard NNTP functions the SNNTP class can sign, encrypt, decrypt, and verify message signatures. The methods and properties for encrypting, signing, decrypting, and verifying signatures are identical to those provided with the S/MIME class. After setting the certificate properties, and specifying ArticleText, call the Encrypt, Sign or SignAndEncrypt method before posting, and the result will be stored in ArticleText. When attempting to verify a signed message or when decrypting a message, call the Decrypt, VerifySignature, or DecryptAndVerifySignature methods and the resulting text will be replaced in ArticleText.

The SNNTP Class implements a standard Usenet news reader as specified in RFC 977. It can be used to browse Usenet news groups and to read and post articles.

The CurrentGroup property sets the current newsgroup. From then on, news articles from that group can be read by setting the article number in CurrentArticle and then calling the appropriate method. Properties, such as ArticleCount, FirstArticle, and LastArticle, provide information about the current state.

The headers and text of the articles are received through the Header and Transfer events, respectively. Additionally, up to MaxLines from the article body are provided in the ArticleText property. The GroupOverview event returns information about a range of articles (OverviewRange) in CurrentGroup, and the GroupList event is used when listing newsgroup names. The PITrail event provides a trace of the interaction with the server.

The class supports posting of articles through the ArticleText and AttachedFile properties. The article text is specified in one or both of the above, and then the PostArticle method is called. Article headers are given in a series of properties, such as ArticleFrom, ArticleSubject, and Organization, that map directly to the Usenet article header with the same name.

Property List

The following is the full list of the properties of the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

Method List

The following is the full list of the methods of the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

Event List

The following is the full list of the events fired by the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

Config Settings

The following is a list of config settings for the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

SNNTP.ArticleCount Property

This property includes the estimated number of articles in CurrentGroup .

Syntax

getArticleCount(): number;

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property contains the estimated number of articles in CurrentGroup. The value of this property is 0 if there is no current group (CurrentGroup is ""). Otherwise, when CurrentGroup is set, it is the number of articles in the group as shown by the news server. For most news servers, this is an estimated value of the number of the articles, rather than the exact value.

This property is read-only.

SNNTP.ArticleDate Property

This property includes the date of the current article.

Syntax

getArticleDate(): string;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the date of the current article. If the class is not connected or CurrentArticle is empty, the value of this property is an empty string. Otherwise, it contains the date of the article as reported by the server. The NewsServer is asked about the headers of the article only if the CurrentArticle property has changed. If CurrentArticle has not changed, the class returns a cached value.

This property is read-only.

SNNTP.ArticleFrom Property

This property includes the email address of the author (for posting articles).

Syntax

getArticleFrom(): string;
setArticleFrom(articleFrom: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the email address of the author (for posting articles). The string in this property is posted with a From article header to the news server.

If the resulting header is longer than MaxHeaderLength, then it is folded according to RFC 850 specifications.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.ArticleHeaders Property

This property includes the full headers of the article as retrieved from the server.

Syntax

getArticleHeaders(): string;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the full headers of the article as retrieved from the server. If the class is not connected or the CurrentArticle is empty, the value of this property is an empty string. Otherwise, it contains the full headers of the article as reported by the server.

The NewsServer is asked about the headers of the article only if the CurrentArticle property has changed. If CurrentArticle has not changed, the class returns a cached value.

This property is read-only.

SNNTP.ArticleId Property

This property includes the message identifier of the current article.

Syntax

getArticleId(): string;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the message identifier of the current article. If the class is not connected or the CurrentArticle is empty, the value of this property is an empty string. Otherwise, it contains the message identifier of the article as reported by the server. The NewsServer is asked about the headers of the article only if the CurrentArticle property has changed. If the CurrentArticle has not changed, the class returns a cached value.

This property is read-only.

SNNTP.ArticleList Property

This property includes a collection of articles collected through GroupOverview or GroupSearch .

Syntax

getArticleList(): ArticleInfoList;

Default Value

Remarks

This property contains a collection of articles collected through GroupOverview or GroupSearch. This collection consists of a list of ArticleInfo objects. The returned list contains information about each article in the OverviewRange or SearchRange when either GroupOverview or GroupSearch is called.

ArticleInfoLimit can be used to control the number of articles saved.

This property is read-only and not available at design time.

SNNTP.ArticleReferences Property

This property includes articles to which the posted article follows up.

Syntax

getArticleReferences(): string;
setArticleReferences(articleReferences: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains articles to which the posted article follows up. If this property contains a nonempty string, a References article header is created for the article. This header shows the article identifiers for the posted article to which it refers.

The references must be separated by space characters.

If the resulting header is longer than MaxHeaderLength, then it is folded according to RFC 850 specifications.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.ArticleReplyTo Property

This property includes the address to reply to (for posting articles).

Syntax

getArticleReplyTo(): string;
setArticleReplyTo(articleReplyTo: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the address to reply to (for posting articles). If this property contains a nonempty string, a Reply-To article header is created for the article. This header shows the address to use for replies, which is useful if this address is different from the one in ArticleFrom.

If the resulting header is longer than MaxHeaderLength, then it is folded according to RFC 850 specifications.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.ArticleSubject Property

This property includes the article subject (for posted articles).

Syntax

getArticleSubject(): string;
setArticleSubject(articleSubject: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

The string in this property is posted with a Subject article header to the news server.

If the resulting header is longer than MaxHeaderLength, then it is folded according to RFC 850 specifications.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.ArticleText Property

This property includes the full text of the article (without the headers).

Syntax

getArticleText(): string;
setArticleText(articleText: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the full text of the article (without the headers). If the class is not connected or CurrentArticle is empty, the value of this property is an empty string. Otherwise, it contains the full text of the article as reported by the server.

The NewsServer is asked about the text of the article only if the CurrentArticle property has changed. If CurrentArticle has not changed, the class returns a cached value.

When posting articles, this property contains the full text of the article to post.

It is advisable that the text contained in this property be a collection of lines with lengths less than or equal to 80 bytes separated by . The text in the article lines must contain 7-bit characters so that the article can be successfully transferred through the various Usenet news servers on the Internet.

The class automatically escapes lines that start with a "." by adding another "." as specified in RFC 977. The article text is unescaped by the news server, so the process is fully transparent.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.AttachedFile Property

This property includes a filename for which the contents will be appended to the ArticleText when posting articles.

Syntax

getAttachedFile(): string;
setAttachedFile(attachedFile: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

The content of this property is appended to the text in ArticleText (if any) and sent to the news server. This property is useful for posting arbitrarily large articles or sending MIME attachments.

It is advisable that the text contained in the file be a collection of lines with lengths less than or equal to 80 bytes separated by . The text in the message lines must contain only 7-bit characters so that the message may be sent successfully through the various Usenet news servers on the Internet.

The class automatically escapes lines that start with a "." by adding another as specified in RFC 822. The article text is unescaped by the news server, so the process is fully transparent.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.Certificate Property

This property includes the current selected certificate.

Syntax

getCertificate(): Certificate;
setCertificate(certificate: Certificate): void;

Default Value

Remarks

This property is populated when a specified certificate is found or loaded by the class. This property is used to specify private keys. Set this property to a valid Certificate object to perform different operations, such as Sign, Decrypt, SignAndEncrypt, or DecryptAndVerifySignature.

SNNTP.CheckDate Property

This property includes the date (format YYMMDD HHMMSS) to check for the creation of new groups. If the group was created after the date specified, it is considered new.

Syntax

getCheckDate(): string;
setCheckDate(checkDate: string): void;

Default Value

"000101 000000"

Remarks

This property contains the date (format YYMMDD HHMMSS) to check for the creation of new groups. If the group was created after the date specified, it is considered new. The value of this property is used as an argument for the ListNewGroups method.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.Connected Property

This shows whether the class is connected.

Syntax

isConnected(): boolean;

Default Value

FALSE

Remarks

This property is used to determine whether or not the class is connected to the remote host.

Note: It is recommended to use the Connect or Disconnect method instead of setting this property.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.CurrentArticle Property

This property includes the number or message identifier of the current article.

Syntax

getCurrentArticle(): string;
setCurrentArticle(currentArticle: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies either a message identifier or an article number uniquely identifying a particular article. It is then used as an argument to methods such as FetchArticle.

SNNTP.CurrentGroup Property

This property includes the name of the current group.

Syntax

getCurrentGroup(): string;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the name of the current group. When this property is set to a valid group name, the class sends a Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP) GROUP command to the NewsServer and enters the specified group. If the command is successful, FirstArticle, LastArticle, and ArticleCount are set to the reported values for the group. This property is then used for all references to articles (until it is changed to another group).

Note: It is recommended to use the ChangeCurrentGroup method instead of setting this property.

SNNTP.EncryptingAlgorithm Property

The property includes textual description of the encrypting algorithm.

Syntax

getEncryptingAlgorithm(): string;
setEncryptingAlgorithm(encryptingAlgorithm: string): void;

Default Value

"3DES"

Remarks

This property contains either the name of the algorithm (such as 3DES or AES), or an object identifier (OID) string representing the algorithm.

Possible values are as follows:

• "3DES"
• "DES"
• "RC2CBC40"
• "RC2CBC64"
• "RC2CBC128" or "RC2"
• "AESCBC128" or "AES"
• "AESCBC192"
• "AESCBC256"
• "AESGCM128" or "AESGCM"
• "AESGCM192"
• "AESGCM256"

SNNTP.Firewall Property

A set of properties related to firewall access.

Syntax

getFirewall(): Firewall;
setFirewall(firewall: Firewall): void;

Default Value

Remarks

This is a Firewall-type property, which contains fields describing the firewall through which the class will attempt to connect.

SNNTP.FirstArticle Property

This property includes the number of the first article in CurrentGroup .

Syntax

getFirstArticle(): number;

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property contains the number of the first article in CurrentGroup. The value of this property is zero if there is no current group (CurrentGroup is "").

This property is read-only.

SNNTP.GroupList Property

This property includes a collection of newsgroups listed by ListGroups or ListNewGroups .

Syntax

getGroupList(): GroupInfoList;

Default Value

Remarks

This property contains a collection of newsgroups listed by ListGroups or ListNewGroups. This collection consists of a list of GroupInfo objects. These objects contain information about each group such as the name, first and last article, and whether or not you can post to the group.

GroupInfoLimit can be used to control the number of groups saved.

This property is read-only and not available at design time.

SNNTP.Idle Property

The current status of the class.

Syntax

isIdle(): boolean;

Default Value

TRUE

Remarks

Idle will be False if the component is currently busy (communicating and/or waiting for an answer), and True at all other times.

This property is read-only.

SNNTP.IncludeCertificate Property

This property specifies whether to include the signer's certificate with the signed message.

Syntax

isIncludeCertificate(): boolean;
setIncludeCertificate(includeCertificate: boolean): void;

Default Value

TRUE

Remarks

If this property is set to True, the certificate used to sign the message will be encoded and included in a message signature when calling Sign or SignAndEncrypt.

Including a certificate is the preferred method of building signed messages. If you do not include a certificate, the message recipient may not be able to verify the sender's signature.

SNNTP.IncludeChain Property

This property specifies whether to include the signer's certificate chain with the signed message.

Syntax

isIncludeChain(): boolean;
setIncludeChain(includeChain: boolean): void;

Default Value

FALSE

Remarks

If this property is set to True, the entire certificate's chain that was used to sign the message will be encoded and included in the message signature when calling Sign or SignAndEncrypt.

Note: To include the chain, the IncludeCertificate property must also be set to true.

SNNTP.LastArticle Property

This property includes the number of the last article in CurrentGroup .

Syntax

getLastArticle(): number;

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property contains the number of the last article in CurrentGroup. The value of this property is zero if there is no current group (CurrentGroup is "").

This property is read-only.

SNNTP.LastReply Property

The last reply from the server.

Syntax

getLastReply(): string;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property indicates the last reply received from the server. It can be used for informational purposes. The same information and more can also be retrieved through the PITrail event.

This property is read-only.

SNNTP.LocalHost Property

The name of the local host or user-assigned IP interface through which connections are initiated or accepted.

Syntax

getLocalHost(): string;
setLocalHost(localHost: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

The LocalHost property contains the name of the local host as obtained by the gethostname() system call, or if the user has assigned an IP address, the value of that address.

In multi-homed hosts (machines with more than one IP interface) setting LocalHost to the value of an interface will make the class initiate connections (or accept in the case of server classs) only through that interface.

If the class is connected, the LocalHost property shows the IP address of the interface through which the connection is made in internet dotted format (aaa.bbb.ccc.ddd). In most cases, this is the address of the local host, except for multi-homed hosts (machines with more than one IP interface).

NOTE: LocalHost is not persistent. You must always set it in code, and never in the property window.

SNNTP.MaxLines Property

This property includes the maximum number of message lines aside from headers to retrieve.

Syntax

getMaxLines(): number;
setMaxLines(maxLines: number): void;

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property is used to limit the number of text lines aside from headers retrieved for messages. This property is used in conjunction with the ArticleText property.

Note: Because of the Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP) limitations, the full text of the article is always retrieved from the server, but only MaxLines will be stored in ArticleText.

The default value of the property is zero. In this case, the entire message will be retrieved, without interruptions.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.Newsgroups Property

This property includes a comma-separated list of newsgroups in which to post the article.

Syntax

getNewsgroups(): string;
setNewsgroups(newsgroups: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

The string in this property is posted with a Newsgroups article header to the news server. It specifies the list of groups where the article is posted (comma separated).

If this property contains "" (empty string), then the value of the CurrentGroup property is used to specify the target newsgroup for the posted article.

If the resulting header is longer than MaxHeaderLength, then it is folded according to RFC 850 specifications.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.NewsPort Property

This property includes the server port for the secure Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP) (default 119).

Syntax

getNewsPort(): number;
setNewsPort(newsPort: number): void;

Default Value

119

Remarks

For implicit Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), use port 563 (please refer to the SSLStartMode property for more information).

A valid port number (a value between 1 and 65535) is required for the connection to take place. The property must be set before a connection is attempted and cannot be changed once a connection is established. Any attempt to change this property while connected will fail with an error.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.NewsServer Property

This property includes the name or address of a news server.

Syntax

getNewsServer(): string;
setNewsServer(newsServer: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies the IP address (IP number in dotted internet format) or the domain name for the news server. It is set before a connection is attempted and cannot be changed once a connection is in progress.

If this property is set to a domain name, a DNS request is initiated. Upon successful termination of the request, this property is set to the corresponding address. If the search is not successful, an error is returned.

If the class is configured to use a SOCKS firewall, the value assigned to this property may be preceded with an "*". If this is the case, the host name is passed to the firewall unresolved and the firewall performs the DNS resolution.

SNNTP.Organization Property

This property includes the organization of the author (for posting articles).

Syntax

getOrganization(): string;
setOrganization(organization: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the organization of the article's author. If this property contains a nonempty string, an Organization article header is created for the article. This header shows the organization of the author and is used for information purposes only.

If the resulting header is longer than MaxHeaderLength, then it is folded according to RFC 850 specifications.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.OtherHeaders Property

This property includes an RFC 850-compliant string consisting of extra headers (for posting articles).

Syntax

getOtherHeaders(): string;
setOtherHeaders(otherHeaders: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains a string of headers to be appended to the message headers created from other properties like From and Subject.

The headers must be of the format "header: value" as specified in RFC 850. Header lines should be separated by .

Use this property with caution. If this property contains invalid headers, article posting might not be successful.

This property is useful for extending the functionality of the class. A good example is posting of MIME attachments.

Special Case: If this property starts with an empty line (e.g., carriage return line feed, CRLF), then the value of this property is used instead of the normally computed article headers.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.OverviewRange Property

This property includes the range for the GroupOverview method (first-last).

Syntax

getOverviewRange(): string;
setOverviewRange(overviewRange: string): void;

Default Value

"-"

Remarks

This property specifies a range of articles for which to retrieve article overviews from the server. The format is 'first-last' where first is "" (empty string) or a positive number, and last is "" (empty string), a positive number, or the token end.

The default value of this property is '-', meaning 'all articles in the group'.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.ParsedHeaders Property

This property includes a collection of headers returned from the last article retrieval.

Syntax

getParsedHeaders(): HeaderList;

Default Value

Remarks

This property contains a collection of headers returned from the last article retrieval. This property is populated when either FetchArticle or FetchArticleHeaders is called. It contains a list of all of the headers from the article fetched.

If the header line being retrieved is a continuation header line, then the field parameter contains "" (empty string).

MaxHeaders can be used to control the number of headers saved.

This property is read-only and not available at design time.

SNNTP.Password Property

This property includes the logon password for the NewsServer .

Syntax

getPassword(): string;
setPassword(password: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains a logon password for the NewsServer. If this property is set to a nonempty string, then when connecting to the NewsServer an AUTHINFO PASS command is sent to provide authentication information for the user. This command is not part of the Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP), but it is widely used by popular news servers.

SNNTP.RecipientCerts Property

This property includes a collection of recipient certificates of the message.

Syntax

getRecipientCerts(): CertificateList;
setRecipientCerts(recipientCerts: CertificateList): void;

Default Value

Remarks

This property is used to specify the certificates of the intended recipients of the encrypted message. This property must be set before calling Encrypt or SignAndEncrypt methods.

This property's collection must be filled out with valid public key Certificate type objects. To set a certificate, you may set the field to the encoded certificate. To select a certificate, use the and fields.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.SearchHeader Property

This property includes a header for the GroupSearch method.

Syntax

getSearchHeader(): string;
setSearchHeader(searchHeader: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies the header to search for SearchPattern (e.g., Subject).

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.SearchPattern Property

This property includes a search pattern for the GroupSearch method.

Syntax

getSearchPattern(): string;
setSearchPattern(searchPattern: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains a search pattern for the GroupSearch method. The format of the pattern is the same as the patterns used by the UNIX Find command.

As an example, "* new *" will match all headers that contain the word "new".

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.SearchRange Property

This property includes the range for the GroupSearch method (first-last).

Syntax

getSearchRange(): string;
setSearchRange(searchRange: string): void;

Default Value

"-"

Remarks

This property specifies a range of articles for which to do a search on the server. The format is First-Last where First is "" (empty string) or a positive number, and Last is "" (empty string), a positive number, or the token End.

The default value of the property is "-", meaning "search all articles in the group".

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.SignerCert Property

This property contains the certificate of the message signer.

Syntax

getSignerCert(): Certificate;
setSignerCert(signerCert: Certificate): void;

Default Value

Remarks

This property contains the certificate of the message signer. When calling VerifySignature or DecryptAndVerifySignature, this property will contain the certificate of the sender, if attached.

To verify messages without an attached certificate, set this property before calling VerifySignature or DecryptAndVerifySignature.

SNNTP.SigningAlgorithm Property

This property includes a textual description of the signature hash algorithm.

Syntax

getSigningAlgorithm(): string;
setSigningAlgorithm(signingAlgorithm: string): void;

Default Value

"SHA256"

Remarks

This property specifies the hash algorithm used to prepare the message digest for signature.

This property must contain either the name of the algorithm (such as MD5 or SHA1), or an object Id (OID) string representing the hash algorithm. Possible values are as follows:

• sha1
• md5
• sha-256 (default)
• sha-384
• sha-512
• sha-224

When read, the value of the property always contains the OID of the algorithm, or an empty string if the algorithm is unknown.

SNNTP.SSLAcceptServerCert Property

Instructs the class to unconditionally accept the server certificate that matches the supplied certificate.

Syntax

getSSLAcceptServerCert(): Certificate;
setSSLAcceptServerCert(SSLAcceptServerCert: Certificate): void;

Default Value

Remarks

If it finds any issues with the certificate presented by the server, the class will normally terminate the connection with an error.

You may override this behavior by supplying a value for SSLAcceptServerCert. If the certificate supplied in SSLAcceptServerCert is the same as the certificate presented by the server, then the server certificate is accepted unconditionally, and the connection will continue normally.

Please note that this functionality is provided only for cases where you otherwise know that you are communicating with the right server. If used improperly, this property may create a security breach. Use it at your own risk.

SNNTP.SSLCert Property

The certificate to be used during SSL negotiation.

Syntax

getSSLCert(): Certificate;
setSSLCert(SSLCert: Certificate): void;

Default Value

Remarks

The digital certificate that the class will use during SSL negotiation. Set this property to a valid certificate before starting SSL negotiation. To set a certificate, you may set the field to the encoded certificate. To select a certificate, use the store and subject fields.

SNNTP.SSLEnabled Property

Whether TLS/SSL is enabled.

Syntax

isSSLEnabled(): boolean;
setSSLEnabled(SSLEnabled: boolean): void;

Default Value

FALSE

Remarks

This setting specifies whether TLS/SSL is enabled in the class. When False (default) the class operates in plaintext mode. When True TLS/SSL is enabled.

TLS/SSL may also be enabled by setting SSLStartMode. Setting SSLStartMode will automatically update this property value.

This property is not available at design time.

SNNTP.SSLProvider Property

This specifies the SSL/TLS implementation to use.

Syntax

getSSLProvider(): SnntpSSLProviders;
setSSLProvider(SSLProvider: SnntpSSLProviders): void;

enum SnntpSSLProviders {
  sslpAutomatic,
  sslpPlatform,
  sslpInternal
}

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property specifies the SSL/TLS implementation to use. In most cases the default value of 0 (Automatic) is recommended and should not be changed. When set to 0 (Automatic) the class will select whether to use the platform implementation or the internal implementation depending on the operating system as well as the TLS version being used.

Possible values are:

In most cases using the default value (Automatic) is recommended. The class will select a provider depending on the current platform.

When Automatic is selected the platform implementation will be used by default in all cases in the JavaScript edition.

Note: The Internal provider is not support at this time.

SNNTP.SSLServerCert Property

The server certificate for the last established connection.

Syntax

getSSLServerCert(): Certificate;

Default Value

Remarks

SSLServerCert contains the server certificate for the last established connection.

SSLServerCert is reset every time a new connection is attempted.

This property is read-only.

SNNTP.SSLStartMode Property

Determines how the class starts the SSL negotiation.

Syntax

getSSLStartMode(): SnntpSSLStartModes;
setSSLStartMode(SSLStartMode: SnntpSSLStartModes): void;

enum SnntpSSLStartModes {
  sslAutomatic,
  sslImplicit,
  sslExplicit,
  sslNone
}

Default Value

3

Remarks

The SSLStartMode property may have one of the following values:

SNNTP.Timeout Property

A timeout for the class.

Syntax

getTimeout(): number;
setTimeout(timeout: number): void;

Default Value

60

Remarks

If the Timeout property is set to 0, all operations will run uninterrupted until successful completion or an error condition is encountered.

If Timeout is set to a positive value, the class will wait for the operation to complete before returning control.

The class will use DoEvents to enter an efficient wait loop during any potential waiting period, making sure that all system events are processed immediately as they arrive. This ensures that the host application does not "freeze" and remains responsive.

If Timeout expires, and the operation is not yet complete, the class .

Please note that by default, all timeouts are inactivity timeouts, i.e. the timeout period is extended by Timeout seconds when any amount of data is successfully sent or received.

The default value for the Timeout property is 60 seconds.

SNNTP.User Property

This property includes a user identifier to login as in the NewsServer .

Syntax

getUser(): string;
setUser(user: string): void;

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains a user identifier to login as in the NewsServer. If this property is set to a nonempty string, then when connecting to the NewsServer an AUTHINFO USER command is sent to provide authentication information for the user. Although this command is not part of the Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP), it is widely used by news servers for authentication purposes.

SNNTP.addRecipientCert Method

This method is used to add recipient certificates used to encrypt messages.

Syntax

async snntp.addRecipientCert(certEncoded : Uint8Array): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method is used to add recipient certificates to the internal MessageRecipients properties used to encrypt the Message. The recipient certificate must be a valid PKCS-encoded certificate. If the certificate provided is Base64 encoded, it will be decoded first by the object.

The CertMgr class may be used to retrieve the appropriate certificate from the system.

This method is used to add recipient certificates to the internal MessageRecipients properties used to encrypt the Message. The recipient certificate must be a valid PKCS-encoded certificate. If the certificate provided is Base64 encoded, it will be decoded first by the object.

The CertMgr class may be used to retrieve the appropriate certificate from the system.

SNNTP.changeCurrentGroup Method

This method changes the current group.

Syntax

async snntp.changeCurrentGroup(group : string): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method changes the current group. When calling this method, the class sends a Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP) GROUP command to the NewsServer and enters the specified group. If the command is successful, FirstArticle, LastArticle, and ArticleCount are set to the reported values for the group.

SNNTP.config Method

Sets or retrieves a configuration setting.

Syntax

async snntp.config(configurationString : string): Promise<string>

Remarks

Config is a generic method available in every class. It is used to set and retrieve configuration settings for the class.

These settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the class, access to these internal properties is provided through the Config method.

To set a configuration setting named PROPERTY, you must call Config("PROPERTY=VALUE"), where VALUE is the value of the setting expressed as a string. For boolean values, use the strings "True", "False", "0", "1", "Yes", or "No" (case does not matter).

To read (query) the value of a configuration setting, you must call Config("PROPERTY"). The value will be returned as a string.

SNNTP.connect Method

This method connects to the news server.

Syntax

async snntp.connect(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method is used to connect to the news server. If the User and/or Password are set, then corresponding AUTHINFO commands are sent to the NewsServer as well.

SNNTP.decrypt Method

This method decrypts the current Message .

Syntax

async snntp.decrypt(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method attempts to decrypt the encrypted message using the certificate in Certificate.

SNNTP.decryptAndVerifySignature Method

This method decrypts and verifies the signature of the current message.

Syntax

async snntp.decryptAndVerifySignature(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method attempts to both decrypt and verify the signature of the message. All of the properties affected by calling the Decrypt and VerifySignature methods are affected in the same manner.

Note: This function does not attempt to check the validity of the signing certificate.

SNNTP.disconnect Method

This method disconnects from the news server.

Syntax

async snntp.disconnect(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method is used to disconnect from the NewsServer. The class first attempts to send a QUIT command, and if that fails, the connection is broken.

SNNTP.doEvents Method

Processes events from the internal message queue.

Syntax

async snntp.doEvents(): Promise<void>

Remarks

When DoEvents is called, the class processes any available events. If no events are available, it waits for a preset period of time, and then returns.

SNNTP.encrypt Method

This method encrypts the message.

Syntax

async snntp.encrypt(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method encrypts the input message in a Public Key Cryptography Standards (PKCS)-encoded envelope with all of the recipient certificates specified in the MessageRecipients properties.

Note: The message headers, including the Sender, Recipient(s), and Subject, are not encrypted. If this is sensitive information, consider including these headers in the message body as a MIME entity, and providing other headers for the S/MIME wrapper.

SNNTP.fetchArticle Method

This method gets the headers and body of an article specified in CurrentArticle .

Syntax

async snntp.fetchArticle(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method gets the headers and body of the article specified in CurrentArticle. The headers are delivered through the Header event, and the article body is delivered through the Transfer event.

If a connection to the NewsServer does not already exist, a new one is created.

SNNTP.fetchArticleBody Method

This method gets only the body of an article specified in CurrentArticle .

Syntax

async snntp.fetchArticleBody(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method gets only the body of the article specified in CurrentArticle. The body is delivered through the Transfer event.

If a connection to the NewsServer does not already exist, a new one is created.

SNNTP.fetchArticleHeaders Method

This method gets only the headers of an article specified in CurrentArticle .

Syntax

async snntp.fetchArticleHeaders(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method gets only the headers of the article specified in CurrentArticle. The headers are delivered through the Header event.

If a connection to the NewsServer does not already exist, a new one is created.

SNNTP.groupOverview Method

This method receives an overview for the articles in range OverviewRange in the CurrentGroup .

Syntax

async snntp.groupOverview(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method receives an overview for the articles in range OverviewRange in the CurrentGroup. The overview data are delivered through the GroupOverview event.

If a connection to the NewsServer does not already exist, a new one is created.

SNNTP.groupSearch Method

This method receives an overview for the articles in the range SearchRange in the CurrentGroup .

Syntax

async snntp.groupSearch(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method searches the current newsgroup for articles in the range SearchRange in the CurrentGroup, where SearchHeader matches SearchPattern. The results are delivered through the GroupSearch event.

If a connection to the NewsServer does not already exist, a new one is created.

SNNTP.interrupt Method

Interrupt the current method.

Syntax

async snntp.interrupt(): Promise<void>

Remarks

If there is no method in progress, Interrupt simply returns, doing nothing.

SNNTP.listGroups Method

This method lists all newsgroups on the server.

Syntax

async snntp.listGroups(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method asks the server to list all of its newsgroups. Use this method with caution as listing groups may take quite a long time over slow links. The group names and other information are returned via the GroupList event.

If a connection to the NewsServer does not already exist, a new one is created.

SNNTP.listNewGroups Method

This method lists all newgroups on the server.

Syntax

async snntp.listNewGroups(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method asks the server to list all of the newsgroups created since CheckDate. The group names (if any) and other information are returned via the GroupList event.

If a connection to the NewsServer does not already exist, a new one is created.

SNNTP.localizeDate Method

This method converts a valid RFC 822 message date to a local date and time.

Syntax

async snntp.localizeDate(dateTime : string): Promise<string>

Remarks

This method can be used to convert an RFC 822 date and time string to the corresponding local date and time.

Note: Dates will be returned in the format: "MM/dd/yyyy hh:mm:ss".

SNNTP.postArticle Method

This method posts the current article and attached file.

Syntax

async snntp.postArticle(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method posts the current article and attached file (if any). If a connection to the NewsServer does not already exist, a new one is created.

SNNTP.reset Method

This method resets the class.

Syntax

async snntp.reset(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method will reset the class's properties to their default values.

SNNTP.resetHeaders Method

This method resets all of the article headers.

Syntax

async snntp.resetHeaders(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method resets all the article headers to "" (empty string). Use this method before posting a new article, so that headers from the previous article are not carried over to the next one.

SNNTP.sendCommand Method

Sends the exact command directly to the server.

Syntax

async snntp.sendCommand(command : string): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method sends the command specified by Command to the server exactly as it is provided. Use this method to send additional or custom commands directly to the server.

After calling this method check the LastReply property and/or monitor the PITrail event to obtain the server's response.

SNNTP.sign Method

Signs the current message.

Syntax

async snntp.sign(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method digitally signs the input data with the certificate provided. Certificates are provided by specifying the Certificate property. The IncludeCertificate property allows you to specify whether to include the certificate when signing the message.

SNNTP.signAndEncrypt Method

Signs and encrypts the current message.

Syntax

async snntp.signAndEncrypt(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method both signs and encrypts the input message into a single PKCS encoded envelope.

Please note that the message headers, including the Sender, Recipient(s), and Subject, are not encrypted. If this is sensitive information, consider including these headers in the message body as a MIME entity, and providing other headers for the S/MIME wrapper.

SNNTP.verifySignature Method

This method verifies the signature of the current message.

Syntax

async snntp.verifySignature(): Promise<void>

Remarks

This method attempts to verify the signature of the input message. If the message does not have a certificate attached, the class will attempt to verify the signature using the certificate supplied in SignerCert (if any). If no certificate is found, the class .

If this method is successful, the SignerCert property will contain the certificate information of the message signer.

Note: This function does not attempt to check the validity of the signing certificate.

SNNTP.ConnectionStatus Event

This event is fired to indicate changes in the connection state.

Syntax

snntp.on('ConnectionStatus', listener: (e: {readonly connectionEvent: string, readonly statusCode: number, readonly description: string}) => void )

Remarks

The ConnectionStatus event is fired when the connection state changes: for example, completion of a firewall or proxy connection or completion of a security handshake.

The ConnectionEvent parameter indicates the type of connection event. Values may include the following:

SNNTP.EndTransfer Event

This event is fired when the article text completes transferring.

Syntax

snntp.on('EndTransfer', listener: (e: {readonly direction: number}) => void )

Remarks

The purpose of the EndTransfer event is twofold: (1) during article retrieval, it fires when the article body finishes transferring from the NewsServer to the local host; and (2) during article posting, it fires after the article body has been sent to the NewsServer.

If ArticleText is not empty, the EndTransfer event is fired when the ArticleText finishes transferring from the local host to the NewsServer. If ArticleText is empty, the event is not fired.

If a file is attached to the ArticleText through the AttachedFile property, then EndTransfer fires again when the file finishes transferring. Please see the description of the AttachedFile property for more information.

The Direction parameter shows whether the client (0) or the server (1) is sending the data.

SNNTP.Error Event

Fired when information is available about errors during data delivery.

Syntax

snntp.on('Error', listener: (e: {readonly errorCode: number, readonly description: string}) => void )

Remarks

The Error event is fired in case of exceptional conditions during message processing. Normally the class .

The ErrorCode parameter contains an error code, and the Description parameter contains a textual description of the error. For a list of valid error codes and their descriptions, please refer to the Error Codes section.

SNNTP.GroupList Event

This event is fired while group data transfers (during group listings).

Syntax

snntp.on('GroupList', listener: (e: {readonly group: string, readonly firstArticle: number, readonly lastArticle: number, readonly canPost: boolean}) => void )

Remarks

The GroupList event is fired for every group reported by the NewsServer when the ListGroups or ListNewGroups method is called.

The Group parameter shows the name of the group.

The FirstArticle and LastArticle parameters contain the article numbers for the first and last articles in the group.

The CanPost is True or False depending on whether article posting is allowed in the group specified by Group.

SNNTP.GroupOverview Event

This event is fired for each line of article overview data (during group overviews).

Syntax

snntp.on('GroupOverview', listener: (e: {readonly articleNumber: number, readonly subject: string, readonly from: string, readonly articleDate: string, readonly messageId: string, readonly references: string, readonly articleSize: number, readonly articleLines: number, readonly otherHeaders: string}) => void )

Remarks

ArticleNumber contains the number of the article within the group.

Subject contains the subject of the article.

From contains the email address of the article author.

ArticleDate contains the date the article was posted.

MessageId contains the unique message Id for the article.

References contains the message Ids for the articles this article refers to (separated by spaces).

ArticleSize contains the size of the article in bytes.

ArticleLines contains the number of lines in the article.

OtherHeaders contains any other article headers that NewsServer chooses to display for the article.

SNNTP.GroupSearch Event

This event is fired for each line of group search data (during group searches).

Syntax

snntp.on('GroupSearch', listener: (e: {readonly articleNumber: number, readonly header: string}) => void )

Remarks

ArticleNumber contains the number of the article within the group.

Header contains the matching header.

SNNTP.Header Event

This event is fired for every article header being retrieved during article retrieval.

Syntax

snntp.on('Header', listener: (e: {readonly field: string, readonly value: string}) => void )

Remarks

The Field parameter contains the name of the header (In the same case as it is delivered). The Value parameter contains the header contents.

If the header line being retrieved is a continuation header line, then the Field parameter contains "" (empty string).

SNNTP.PITrail Event

This event traces the commands sent to the news server, and the respective replies.

Syntax

snntp.on('PITrail', listener: (e: {readonly direction: number, readonly message: string}) => void )

Remarks

The PITrail event is useful for debugging purposes. It shows all the interaction between the client and the server, line by line, except for group listings, group overviews, article header, and article body transfers.

The Message parameter contains the full text of the message. The Direction parameter shows the originator of the message:

SNNTP.SSLServerAuthentication Event

Fired after the server presents its certificate to the client.

Syntax

snntp.on('SSLServerAuthentication', listener: (e: {readonly certEncoded: string, readonly certEncodedB: Uint8Array, readonly certSubject: string, readonly certIssuer: string, readonly status: string, accept: boolean}) => void )

Remarks

This event fires with information about the server certificate. The Status property shows why verification failed (otherwise, Status contains the string OK). To manually accept an untrusted certificate, the SSLAcceptAnyServerCert setting must be set to True before initiating the connection.

SNNTP.SSLStatus Event

Fired when secure connection progress messages are available.

Syntax

snntp.on('SSLStatus', listener: (e: {readonly message: string}) => void )

Remarks

The event is fired for informational and logging purposes only. This event tracks the progress of the connection.

SNNTP.StartTransfer Event

This event is fired when the article text starts transferring.

Syntax

snntp.on('StartTransfer', listener: (e: {readonly direction: number}) => void )

Remarks

The purpose of the StartTransfer event is twofold: during article retrieval, it fires when the article body starts transferring from the NewsServer to the local host, and during article posting, it fires before the article body is sent to the NewsServer.

If ArticleText is not empty, the StartTransfer event is fired when the ArticleText starts transferring from the local host to the NewsServer. If ArticleText is empty, the event is not fired.

If a file is attached to the ArticleText via the AttachedFile property, then StartTransfer fires again when the file starts transferring. Please go to the description of the AttachedFile property for more information.

The Direction parameter shows whether the client (0) or the server (1) is sending the data.

SNNTP.Transfer Event

This event is fired while the article text gets transferred (to or from the NewsServer ).

Syntax

snntp.on('Transfer', listener: (e: {readonly direction: number, readonly bytesTransferred: number, readonly percentDone: number, readonly text: string, readonly textB: Uint8Array, readonly EOL: boolean}) => void )

Remarks

One or more Transfer events are fired during article retrieval. The Text parameter contains the portion of article data being retrieved.

The BytesTransferred parameter contains the number of bytes transferred since the beginning of the article, including header bytes.

One or more Transfer events are also fired during article posting. Articles consist of ArticleText and an optional AttachedFile. The BytesTransferred parameter shows the number of bytes sent starting from the beginning of ArticleText and/or AttachedFile.

The Transfer event is fired for every line of the article. For complete lines, there is no terminating newline at the end of the Text parameter, and EOL is True. The EOL parameter is False when a line is broken (usually for being too long).

The Direction parameter shows whether the client (0) or the server (1) is sending the data.

The PercentDone parameter shows the progress of the transfer in the corresponding direction. If PercentDone can not be calculated the value will be -1.

Note: Events are not re-entrant. Performing time-consuming operations within this event will prevent it from firing again in a timely manner and may affect overall performance.

ArticleInfo Type

This is an article listed as a result of a GroupOverview or GroupSearch .

Remarks

This type describes information about an article as returned by the server after a GroupOverview or GroupSearch. It includes fields to denote detailed information about the article.

Fields

Constructors

public ArticleInfo();

Certificate Type

This is the digital certificate being used.

Remarks

This type describes the current digital certificate. The certificate may be a public or private key. The fields are used to identify or select certificates.

Fields

 
 Copy
certmgr.CertStoreType = CertStoreTypes.cstPKCS11;
certmgr.OnCertList += (s, e) => {
  secKeyBlob = e.CertEncoded;
};
certmgr.CertStore = @"C:\Program Files\OpenSC Project\OpenSC\pkcs11\opensc-pkcs11.dll";
certmgr.CertStorePassword = "123456"; //PIN
certmgr.ListStoreCertificates();

sftp.SSHCert = new Certificate(CertStoreTypes.cstPKCS11, secKeyBlob, "123456", "*");
sftp.SSHUser = "test";
sftp.SSHLogon("myhost", 22);

Constructors

public Certificate();

Creates a Certificate instance whose properties can be set. This is useful for use with CERTMGR when generating new certificates.

public Certificate(String certificateFile);

Opens CertificateFile and reads out the contents as an X.509 public key.

public Certificate(byte[] certificateData);

Parses CertificateData as an X.509 public key.

public Certificate(int certStoreType, String store, String storePassword, String subject);

CertStoreType identifies the type of certificate store to use. See StoreType for descriptions of the different certificate stores. Store is a file containing the certificate store. StorePassword is the password used to protect the store. After the store has been successfully opened, the class will attempt to find the certificate identified by Subject . This can be either a complete or a substring match of the X.509 certificate's subject Distinguished Name (DN).

public Certificate(int certStoreType, String store, String storePassword, String subject, String configurationString);

CertStoreType identifies the type of certificate store to use. See StoreType for descriptions of the different certificate stores. Store is a file containing the certificate store. StorePassword is the password used to protect the store. ConfigurationString is a newline separated list of name-value pairs that may be used to modify the default behavior. Possible values include "PersistPFXKey", which shows whether or not the PFX key is persisted after performing operations with the private key. This correlates to the PKCS12_NO_PERSIST_KEY CryptoAPI option. The default value is True (the key is persisted). "Thumbprint" - an MD5, SHA-1, or SHA-256 thumbprint of the certificate to load. When specified, this value is used to select the certificate in the store. This is applicable to cstUser, cstMachine, cstPublicKeyFile, and cstPFXFile store types. "UseInternalSecurityAPI" shows whether the platform (default) or the internal security API is used when performing certificate-related operations. After the store has been successfully opened, the class will attempt to find the certificate identified by Subject . This can be either a complete or a substring match of the X.509 certificate's subject Distinguished Name (DN).

public Certificate(int certStoreType, String store, String storePassword, byte[] encoded);

CertStoreType identifies the type of certificate store to use. See StoreType for descriptions of the different certificate stores. Store is a file containing the certificate store. StorePassword is the password used to protect the store. After the store has been successfully opened, the class will load Encoded as an X.509 certificate and search the opened store for a corresponding private key.

public Certificate(int certStoreType, byte[] storeBlob, String storePassword, String subject);

CertStoreType identifies the type of certificate store to use. See StoreType for descriptions of the different certificate stores. StoreBlob is a string (binary- or Base64-encoded) containing the certificate data. StorePassword is the password used to protect the store. After the store has been successfully opened, the class will attempt to find the certificate identified by Subject . This can be either a complete or a substring match of the X.509 certificate's subject Distinguished Name (DN).

public Certificate(int certStoreType, byte[] storeBlob, String storePassword, String subject, String configurationString);

CertStoreType identifies the type of certificate store to use. See StoreType for descriptions of the different certificate stores. StoreBlob is a string (binary- or Base64-encoded) containing the certificate data. StorePassword is the password used to protect the store. After the store has been successfully opened, the class will attempt to find the certificate identified by Subject . This can be either a complete or a substring match of the X.509 certificate's subject Distinguished Name (DN).

public Certificate(int certStoreType, byte[] storeBlob, String storePassword, byte[] encoded);

CertStoreType identifies the type of certificate store to use. See StoreType for descriptions of the different certificate stores. Store is a string (binary- or Base64-encoded) containing the certificate store. StorePassword is the password used to protect the store. After the store has been successfully opened, the class will load Encoded as an X.509 certificate and search the opened store for a corresponding private key.

Firewall Type

The firewall the class will connect through.

Remarks

When connecting through a firewall, this type is used to specify different properties of the firewall, such as the firewall and the .

Fields

Constructors

public Firewall();

GroupInfo Type

This is a group listed by the Network News Transfer Protocol (NNTP) server.

Remarks

This type describes information about a group as returned by the server. The GroupInfo fields contain information about each group, such as the name, first and last article, and whether or not you can post to the group.

Fields

Constructors

public GroupInfo();

Header Type

This is an HTTP header as it is received from the server.

Remarks

When a header is received through a Header event, it is parsed into a Header type. This type contains a , and its corresponding .

Fields

Constructors

public Header();

public Header(String field, String value);

Config Settings (class ipworkssmime.snntp)

NNTP Config Settings

TCPClient Config Settings

SSL Config Settings

-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
MIIEKzCCAxOgAwIBAgIRANTET4LIkxdH6P+CFIiHvTowDQYJKoZIhvcNAQELBQAw
...
eWHV5OW1K53o/atv59sOiW5K3crjFhsBOd5Q+cJJnU+SWinPKtANXMht+EDvYY2w
F0I1XhM+pKj7FjDr+XNj
-----END CERTIFICATE-----
\r \n
-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
MIIEFjCCAv6gAwIBAgIQetu1SMxpnENAnnOz1P+PtTANBgkqhkiG9w0BAQUFADBp
..
d8q23djXZbVYiIfE9ebr4g3152BlVCHZ2GyPdjhIuLeH21VbT/dyEHHA
-----END CERTIFICATE-----

 
 Copy
obj.config("SSLEnabledCipherSuites=*");
obj.config("SSLEnabledCipherSuites=CALG_AES_256");
obj.config("SSLEnabledCipherSuites=CALG_AES_256;CALG_3DES");

 
 Copy
obj.config("SSLEnabledCipherSuites=*");
obj.config("SSLEnabledCipherSuites=TLS_DHE_DSS_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA");
obj.config("SSLEnabledCipherSuites=TLS_DHE_DSS_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA;TLS_DH_ANON_WITH_AES_128_CBC_SHA");

 
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server.Config("SSLNegotiatedCipher[connId]");

 
 Copy
server.Config("SSLNegotiatedCipherStrength[connId]");

 
 Copy
server.Config("SSLNegotiatedCipherSuite[connId]");

 
 Copy
server.Config("SSLNegotiatedKeyExchange[connId]");

 
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server.Config("SSLNegotiatedKeyExchangeStrength[connId]");

 
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server.Config("SSLNegotiatedVersion[connId]");

-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
MIIEKzCCAxOgAwIBAgIRANTET4LIkxdH6P+CFIiHvTowDQYJKoZIhvcNAQELBQAw
...
eWHV5OW1K53o/atv59sOiW5K3crjFhsBOd5Q+cJJnU+SWinPKtANXMht+EDvYY2w
F0I1XhM+pKj7FjDr+XNj
-----END CERTIFICATE-----
\r \n
-----BEGIN CERTIFICATE-----
MIIEFjCCAv6gAwIBAgIQetu1SMxpnENAnnOz1P+PtTANBgkqhkiG9w0BAQUFADBp
..
d8q23djXZbVYiIfE9ebr4g3152BlVCHZ2GyPdjhIuLeH21VbT/dyEHHA
-----END CERTIFICATE-----

 
 Copy
component.SSLProvider = TCPClientSSLProviders.sslpInternal;
component.Config("SSLEnabledProtocols=3072"); //TLS 1.2
component.Config("TLS12SignatureAlgorithms=sha256-rsa,sha256-dsa,sha1-rsa,sha1-dsa");

Socket Config Settings

Base Config Settings

Trappable Errors (class ipworkssmime.snntp)

NNTP Errors

TCPClient Errors

SSL Errors

TCP/IP Errors