Winsock Help needed....... (Part 1)

Hi all,
         I am developing a system in which I will have a central server....... There will be some clients (at the maximum 10)..
These clients will connect to the Server and will get updated..... The updation is  simply the updation of a  text file that is present both at the Server and Client (Server will alway have the most updated text file).....I decided to use a Winsock Control for the Data Transfer and the Server-Client will communicate with the following sequence........

Server                                                                                       Client
                         
    <------------------------------Establish a Connection--------------------

    <----------------------------(Update Me)

                                        (Ready to Send File)------------------------->

   <----------------------------( I have x Lines/Bytes)                                   (So that only changes are transmitted)

                                        (Ok) ------------------------------------------>

                                       ("###") -------------------------------------->      (Tells to the client start of sending Data)

                                        (Data)---------------------------------------->      (Actual Data to be send)

                                      ("***") --------------------------------------->      (Tells the client End of sending Data)


  <------------------------------( I have Received x Lines/Bytes)


                                           (Ok) ---------------------------------------->

                  <---------------------------End Connection-------------------->


I have done some coding for this but I am stuck in some points.........So I want you people to help me out in this problem...
and let me tell u I am almost a novice as the Network Programming (Winsock Control ) is concerned


Connection Establishment......

I think that at the client side the connection establishment is very simple.......
Here is some of my code......

Private Sub Form_Load()

        WskClient.Connect "LocalHost", 1001
        If Err <> 0 Then
            WskClient.Close
        End If
WskClient.SendData "Msg_Update"

End Sub



Private Sub WskClient_DataArrival(ByVal bytesTotal As Long)
    Dim recBuffer As String
   
    WskClient.GetData recBuffer
    MsgBox recBuffer
        Select Case Left(recBuffer, 10)
    Case "Msg_RdySnd"  'Block Received
        xLines = CalculateNoOfLines()
        WskClient.SendData "Msg_xLines" & xLines
   
    Case "Msg_OKLine"
        xLines1 = Right(recBuffer, 10)
           
    Case "##########"
         StartOfFIle=True  

    Case "**********"
          EndOfFile=True
    Case "Msg_OkS"  'Ok you can begin to send file
        ReceiveFile( )
    Case Else
       
    End Select
End Sub

But the problem is at the Server SIde.......
Here is my code at the server side.....

Private Sub Form_Load()
    WskServer(0).Protocol = sckTCPProtocol
    WskServer(0).LocalPort = 1001
    WskServer(0).Listen
    intMax = 0
   
End Sub


Private Sub WskServer_ConnectionRequest(Index As Integer, ByVal requestID As Long)
    If Index = 0 Then
        intMax = intMax + 1
       
        Load WskServer(intMax)
        WskServer(intMax).Accept requestID
    End If
    lblInfo.Caption = "Connection Estabilished..."
End Sub

Private Sub WskServer_DataArrival(Index As Integer, ByVal bytesTotal As Long)
    Dim RecBuffer As String
    Dim j As Integer
    On Error GoTo GLocal
   
    WskServer(Index).GetData RecBuffer
    Select Case Left(RecBuffer, 10)
        Case "Msg_UPdate"
       
                WskServer(Index).SendData "Msg_RdySend"
               
        Case "Msg_xLines"
                NoOfLinesClient = Right(RecBuffer, 10)
                WskServer(Index).SendData "Msg_OKLine" & NoOfLines
                'xLines = LinesToSend(NoOfLines)
                WskServer(Index).SendData "##########"
                Call SendFile(NoOfLinesClient)
                WskServer(Index).SendData "**********"
        Case "Msg_RcvLin"
                RecLines = Right(RecBuffer, 10)
                'If not received all lines then send again
                WskServer(Index).SendData "Msg_OK_Snd"
        Case "Msg_Thanks"
                WskServer(Index).Close
        Case Else
       
        End Select
    Exit Sub
GLocal:
    MsgBox Err.Description
    Unload Me
   
End Sub


This code is almost the same as the one in MSDN......

Problem 1::

Since I donot know much about Winsock so here are a few questions that are stuck into my mind......

1) As the code illustrates that WskServer(0) is always in listening mode and whenever a new Request arrives it simply creates a new instance of of WskServer which accepts the connection.......So if my Server is running 24hrs/ 7 days then intMax=intMax+1 will cause the intMax value to be out of bounds of Long within a couple of Weeks.....How to avoid that?

2) Since I will have fixed no. of Clients that can communicate with my Server say only 3 then do I need to use it in this way that I have shown in the example?
How can I use it like this "if Client1 connects with me then Load WskServer(1) similarly for Client2 load WskServer (2) and when it disConnects UnLoad its respective Control i.e like Unload WskServer(1)  after Client 1 is being updated completely.....

3) How do the Server knows that Client1 is still connected with me  ?

4) How do the Client1 knows that it is still connected with the Server ?


Note:::::

This is the first Part of this series of Questions almost all of which will be focussing around Winsock.......

Imran Arshad