FM4 on Win98 and TCP/IP

[[email protected]]

I have just taken over this position and I do not know a lot about Filemaker.

There is a Filemaker 4.0 installed on a Windows 98 machine. There is a Novell server. People can see the host when everybody has his Filemaker configured for IPX/SPX.

The Novell server is only used by this application and I would like to switch FM4 to TCP/IP.

But it does not work. The Win98 can see the network. Everybody is configured for TCP/IP, but none of the clients, PCs or Macs can see the host.

Is there any solution? Upgrade to FM5? Move this Filemaker to an NT machine? Or something that I have to configurein the Network settings?

Thanks a lot!

[slbr549]

Have you tried specifying the IP address when opening FileMaker? You can do this within the Host menu by clicking "specify host" then type in the ip address of the server.

Hope this helps.

[slbr549]

Have you tried specifying the IP address when opening FileMaker? You can do this within the Host menu by clicking "specify host" then type in the ip address of the server.

Hope this helps.

[Kurt Knippel]

quote:

---

Originally posted by [email protected]:

Thank you for your help.

Actually we have tried specifying both the host name AND the IP address.

None worked

---

You either do not have TCP/IP setup on the Filemaker machine, do not have it setup in the Filemaker Preferences or the Novell server does not support TCP/IP.

Check those three spots.

------------------

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Kurt Knippel

Senior Filemaker Developer

http://www.database-resources.com

mailto:[email protected]

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

[[email protected]]

Thank you for your help.

Actually we have tried specifying both the host name AND the IP address.

None worked

[[email protected]]

Well, actually, TCP/IP is set up on this machine and I am trying to get rid of the Novell server, because Filemaker is the only application that uses it...

[Kurt Knippel]

quote:

---

Originally posted by [email protected]:

Well, actually, TCP/IP is set up on this machine and I am trying to get rid of the Novell server, because Filemaker is the only application that uses it...

---

Can you please explain how FMP is using the Novell server?

Is this where the files are stored? If so, then just move the file, which should be located on the same local drive as the system that is hosting FMP anyway.

It is most likely that the Novell server is not passing the TCP/IP (which it does not normally support) and that is why it works with IPX, which is Novell's default and standard protocol.

------------------

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Kurt Knippel

Consultant

Database Resources

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.database-resources.com

=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

[[email protected]]

Weirdly enough, a Filemaker 4.0 Pro under WIn98 is working as a server to which several clients are connected.

The Novell network is there only to provide network connectivity for the Filemaker clients and server.

Now, when I choose TCP/IP on ALL of the Filemaker, no client can see the server. When I switch back to IPX/SPX, the clients see the server.

It's really incredible, but true.

Maybe the machine on which the server runs has a problem...

What do you think? SHould I try running a Filemaker on a clean NT 4, use it as a server and see what happens?

[Vaughan]

I think that you'd better get yourself a dedicated FileMaker Pro server -- a machine set up *just* to host FileMaker Pro databases. It can be a Macintosh or a Windows box, any thing that FileMaker Pro will run on (which at the moment counts out Unix, Linux and NetWare).

If you are going to use Web Companion to share the databases over the web, don't run any other web server software on the machine (technically you can if you change the port number but it's easier not to).

OK. You got a box. Now follow these steps to set up the SERVER:

1) Get the TCP/IP networking thing happening. Make sure the box has a fixed TCP/IP number and if possible get a nice easy domain name for the users to remember.

2) Install FileMaker Pro on the server and upgrade it to the latest patch level.

3) IMPORTANT: get all the FMP databases off the NetWare and other servers and on to the FMP server's hard disk. You want all shared databases local.

4) Start FMP on the server, set its networking to TCP/IP (restart FMP if it was set to IPX).

5) Open all the databases. You might want to add their shortcut or alias to the startup foldr so they are automatically open every time the server is booted.

6) Set all the shared databases to "multiuser" and assign passwords if security is an issue (it should be).

7) If any of the databases are to be shared over the web, activate the Web Companion plugin In FMP on the server; configure each of the shared databases to use the Web Companion. Put the custom web format files inside the "Web" folder inside the FileMaker Pro folder.

On each user's machine:

1) Make sure TCP/IP networking is happening.

2) Ensure their copy of FileMaker Pro is set to use TCP/IP and is the current patch level.

3) Give each of the users the FMP Server's TCP/IP number or domain address and show them how to connect into their database. Ideally create an "opener" file that users can click to transparently open their database (the opener file just runs a script that opens the remote db, then closes itself).

--

There. Easy when you know how.

[This message has been edited by Vaughan (edited September 14, 2000).]