Installation help

[Tony Richards]

I could use some advice on installing FM Server. The manual is a bit sketchy on setting things up. I'm running FM Pro 6 on three iMacs, one of which is the host, where I'm going to install FM Server. Now will I be able to run FM 6 on the host computer and work with the database? Or must it be dedicated? As for installation, I take it that Server should be installed while logged in as the root user. So I'm guessing that the server folder must go in the root directory/folder along with the database files, rather than inside a User folder.

Am I getting this right? Help!

[Ender]

Welcome Tony,

If you're actually using FM Server and not just hosting from FM Client, then to install, just run the FM 5.5 Server installer while logged in as an administrator. It will create a FileMaker Server folder on the root directory of the hard drive. Leave the folder where it is and run the Server 5.5v4 updater. After the update you can move the folder if you wish.

FM Server must run on a dedicated machine. You cannot open the databases on that machine with FM Client while FM Server is sharing the databases (it will corrupt your files.)

If instead you use FM Client to host the files, you can work in the databases on the machine while the databases are being shared. However, using FM Client as a host has limitations and issues.

[Tony Richards]

Thanks for the feedback. We have been running FM 5.5 in OS 9 and one of the three machines was the host. But the files are getting bigger and the guest machines are slowing down too much. Hence the upgrade to FM Server.

I have another machine which is only used for email, word processing and running Excel. What if I were to install FM Server on it, along with the database files?

Tony

[Ender]

>> I have another machine which is only used for email, word processing and running Excel. What if I were to install FM Server on it, along with the database files?

I'd recommend against using your server for anything else if your business depends on the databases. You don't want someone accidentally closing the server process or freezing up the machine.

[Tony Richards]

Just been going through some posts from last year on the subject of OS X Server and FMS 5.5. I already have a dedicated server running AppleShare IP. I gather from those posts that I should be able to run FM 6 on OS X on the individual machines, with the database files on an OS 9 server with FMS 5.5v.4 installed.

What do you think?

[Ender]

Yes, FMS 5.5 can be installed on OS9. I would not recommend running it on your AppleShare IP server, however. Both apps are resource hogs, especially with hard drive access.

I was running FM Server on OS9 for a couple years, but experienced occasional freezes. Stability is much better in OS X (Panther).

[Ender]

Hmm, could be FMS 5.5 is for OS X, and FMS 5.0 was for OS9. I can't remember.

[Tony Richards]

So I guess I should bite the bullet and upgrade from AppleShare IP to OS X Server and run FMS 5.5 under that. Probably about the same cost as buying another eMac to run as the dedicated FMS machine. And I'll want to go to OS X Server at some point anyway.

[Steven H. Blackwell]

Under no circumstances should you run FMS on any OS 9 machine that has **ever** had ASIP on it without completely reformatting the drive and reisntalling the OS but withoutn ASIP.

Steven