How to host your own databases for old Macs?

[MattS]

Hello, I'm new to FMP and want to set up a single database solution for a small team of 4 people. Our systems aren't running the latest MacOS to keep our older Macs reliable, so the server won't run on our system. I'm wondering what the best option might be for such a small team - can we a use a file sharing system to serve up the database to the other 3 people on my development team? Or do we need to buy into a cloud based server to do this?

Thanks in advance!

 

 

[Fitch]

Welcome to the forums. I split your question into a new topic because... it's a new topic. We generally encourage you to start your own topic rather than revive old discussions.

As for file sharing that's a hard NO -- use FileMaker Server on a dedicated machine to host the files, whether on your own network or cloud/ISP. If it helps, FMS supports clients up to two past versions, e.g. FMS 18 will support client versions 18, 17, or 16.

[comment]

22 hours ago, Fitch said:

As for file sharing that's a hard NO

OS file sharing is a no, but Filemaker's peer-to-peer file sharing is an option worth considering.

 

On 12/10/2019 at 2:46 AM, MattS said:

Our systems aren't running the latest MacOS

The problem you might run into is compatibility between your OS and the minimum requirements of the current versions of Filemaker.

 

[IdealData]

Or even consider HOSTING options - there's plenty around, just google "filemaker hosting".

Your single file requirement and low user count is ideal for this.

[John May - Point In Space]

Have a look at our services:

http://www.pointinspace.com/

We've been providing professional FileMaker hosting for over 20 years.  Let me know if you have any questions either here or off-list to jmay(at)pointinspace.com.

- John

[MattS]

Thanks everyone!

I've been successful in setting up a FM peer-to-peer file sharing option on our private network using the FMP client instead of the server. The solution was to use version v17 (I noticed it was provided with v18 with the development license), I was able to install it on our older Macs without any issues. However, I did get security warnings when I connected the other clients saying the connection wasn't secure. Considering we're working behind a secure firewall I don't think this is a concern... or should I? 

Also, while I was searching for a solution I purchased my own domain with a CloudFlare SSL certificate. Eventually I'd like to move the database to my own domain and host it for iPhone/iPad apps outside of our local network. But the hosting service that comes with my domain is only set up for MySQL databases - and I understand migrating FMP tables to MySQL is a bit of a nightmare (at least for my limited skills). I'm wondering if anyone can point me towards information on how to set up my FMP database on my own domain - does anyone have any experience with this?