The information in this article applies to:
This article describes the steps involved in moving Tabs3 and PracticeMaster software from one computer to another (e.g., from one server to another, or from a workstation to a server).
Note: If your firm is using Client Server Version (CSV) software, refer to the Knowledge Base article R11227, "Moving CSV Software from One Computer to Another," for step-by-step instructions.
Sometimes it becomes necessary to move all Tabs3 and PracticeMaster software applications from one location on the network to another location. For example, a firm may purchase a new file server and therefore will need to move everything from the old server to the new one. As another example, firms that run the Tabs3 or PracticeMaster software applications locally may at some point want to move the applications to a file server to take advantage of multi-user capabilities.
Note: The information in this article assumes that you are familiar with Windows Explorer, data paths and drive mappings. If you are not comfortable with basic file and folder operations in Windows, please consult your network administrator or a qualified technician for assistance.
The first step is to make sure that no users are in any Tabs3 or PracticeMaster software application. All users must remain out of all systems for the duration of this procedure. It is recommended that you physically verify that none of the workstations have the software open. After you do this, if the Active User List still shows that a user is in the system, reset that User ID.
Note: A User ID should NEVER be reset unless you are certain no one is logged in to the system with that User ID.
Before moving the systems to a new location, run the Data File Integrity Check program (Utilities | Data File Integrity Check) in ALL systems. If the systems to be moved include Tabs3, run the Archive Data Integrity Check program (Utilities | Archive Integrity Check) as well. If GLS is among the systems that will be moved, be sure to run the Data File Integrity Check for each GLS client. Any errors reported by the integrity checks MUST be resolved before proceeding.
The next step is to make sure you know where all program files and data files are located. To determine the current working directory for each system, log in to each system and select Help | About from the menu. Either write down the location or click Print at the bottom right corner of the window, then select the Print option and click OK to print the information shown. The Current Working Directory field is the third field from the top of the page.
Although most data files must reside in the current working directory or in a subfolder inside the current working directory, the following are exceptions:
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GLS Client Data Files |
Each GLS client can have its own data path. To get a list of all clients and their data paths, log in to GLS and select Reports | GLS Client List. Select the Print option and click OK to print the list. For each GLS client listed, the data path is provided. |
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PracticeMaster Area of Practice Documents |
For each PracticeMaster Area of Practice (AOP), a document path can be specified in File Maintenance. It is a good idea to check the document path for each AOP that might have associated document templates and assembled documents. To print an AOP List showing all AOP document paths
Note: If you are certain that the document assembly features in PracticeMaster are not used by anyone at your firm, you can skip this step. Note: Keep in mind that document assembly templates and assembled documents can be stored anywhere; PracticeMaster document assembly only offers the \DOCS\ subfolder inside the AOP folder as a suggestion. |
After you have determined the locations of the program and data files, use Windows Explorer to determine how much disk space is taken up by the applications and data. Then, check the target location (i.e., the location to which everything will be copied) to ensure that there is sufficient hard disk space available there. If there is not enough disk space at the new location, you will have to free up additional space before you move the systems.
It is critical that any and all data paths specified in the systems still refer to valid folders once everything has been moved to the new computer. As a result, it may be necessary to modify the data paths in the systems before moving everything to the new location. The following sections include procedures to modify data paths and examples of data paths.
It is recommended that all data paths be subfolders of the current working directory. If you determine that this is the case after reviewing the data paths as instructed in the Determine Current File Locations section above, you can use relative paths to address the subfolders, which is the easiest way to ensure that the move to the new computer will go smoothly. Specifying a relative path means excluding drive letter and current working directory information from the path since the data folder is located inside the current working directory. If the data folder and the current working directory are one and the same, the data path can be left blank entirely. The following table illustrates some examples of different situations you may encounter when examining the data paths. All of the examples are based on a firm whose current working directory is F:\TABS3.
IMPORTANT: If one or more non-relative data paths are left unchanged, serious consequences including loss of time and productivity may result.
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If the Data Path Is... |
Then... |
|
(blank) |
You can leave the path as it is, and the associated data will be transferred to the new location without a problem. Any data path that begins with the name of a folder is a relative path, meaning that the data is stored in a subfolder of the current working directory. Contrast this with the next example in this table. |
|
\STI\ |
Because the data path begins with a backslash (\), the
associated data is stored in a subfolder of the root of the drive
mapping. In this case, the data is stored in F:\STI (i.e., outside the
current working directory). BEFORE you move the current working
directory to the new location, you need to create a new folder in the root of the new location's mapping, named
STI. Then, when you move the current working directory to the new location, remember to copy all files out of F:\STI to the
STI folder at the new location. |
|
F:\TABS3\ |
Because F:\TABS3 is also the current working directory, you can delete the data path and leave it blank. A blank data path is a relative reference to the current working directory. |
|
F:\TABS3\STI\ |
You should change the data path to just STI\. The program will look for the associated data in a folder named STI located inside the current working directory. Since F:\TABS3 is the current working directory, STI\ means the same as F:\TABS3\STI\. The difference is that when you move the current working directory (TABS3) to a new location (along with all its subfolders), the STI\ path will work regardless of where the current working directory resides at the new location. For example, if the current working directory on the new computer had to be mapped as G:\TABS3 from each workstation, F:\TABS3\STI\ would no longer be a valid path--but STI\ would be just fine. |
|
F:\STI\ |
The specified folder is located outside the current
working directory. BEFORE you move the current working directory to the new location, you need to create a new folder in the root of the new location's mapping, named
STI. Then, when you move the current working directory to the new location, remember to copy all files and folders from F:\STI to the
STI folder at the new location. |
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System |
Instructions |
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GLS |
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PracticeMaster |
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Tabs3 |
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Once you have prepared the new location to receive the systems by checking the available disk space and creating any additional folders required (for any data stored outside the current working directory in the current location), you are ready to begin the transfer. If a network connects the computers, you can use Windows Explorer to copy the files from the current location to the new location. If a network does not connect the computers, you can copy all files onto a CD or other removable media, and then copy from the media to the new location.
Note: Because of the read only nature of CD and DVD media, files copied from such media may be flagged with the read only attribute by default. If you use a CD or DVD to copy the data, you must remove the read only attribute from all files after they are copied to the new location. This can be accomplished in Windows Explorer, or by executing the following MS-DOS command inside the current working directory:
ATTRIB /S -R *.*
You will also need to ensure that sharing is enabled for the new folder, and that users who will be accessing the folder have all rights to the current working directory.
After copying all files to the correct folders at the new location, run the Data File Integrity Check (DFIC) program (Utilities | Data File Integrity Check) in all systems to ensure that the transfer process was successful. If the systems that you moved include Tabs3, run the Archive Data Integrity Check (Utilities | Archive Integrity Check) as well. If GLS is among the systems that were moved, be sure to run the DFIC for each GLS client. Any errors reported by the integrity checks MUST be resolved before proceeding.
Note: If there were no DFIC errors prior to moving the systems, there should be no errors after moving them. Therefore, if you receive DFIC errors at this point in the procedure, something has gone wrong and you should remove the systems from the new location and start over beginning with Step 6.
If multiple users on a network will access the new location of the systems, go to each workstation and do the following:
Once you have confirmed that everything has been moved successfully, access the old location of the systems and remove all program files therein.
You can temporarily retain the old data files in the old location as a backup.
Visit our Web site at http://www.Tabs3.com/support/update.html to update the program files to the most current release. This will verify that you are running the most current version of Tabs3 and PracticeMaster CSV software.
Note: As always, you can only download version updates for programs that were on maintenance at the time of the version release, and all programs must be on the same version in order to integrate.
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