Setting Up and Administrating KevPT


Table of Contents:


Different Editions of KevPT

KevPT comes in two editions.

The Standalone Edition is for running on one computer. There are no networking capabilities in this edition. It also does not require FileMaker Pro to run.

The LAN/Web edition is for serving to Web browsers and FileMaker Pro clients on a LAN (or across the Internet). It requires FileMaker Pro to serve to the Web, and/or FileMaker Pro or FileMaker Server to serve to LAN clients. Each client must be running a web browser or FileMaker Pro.

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Installing KevPT

About Passwords

FileMaker Pro Passwords

Standalone edition users can skip this section. There are no FileMaker passwords in the standalone edition.

KevPT has a FileMaker Pro Password that must be entered before using it with FileMaker Pro clients. Each staff member will also be assigned his/her own password which will be used in addition to this password. These two passwords are used to prevent unauthorised users from opening the KevPT databases. If you do not want your staff members to enter two passwords, you can have KevPT automatically enter the first FileMaker password for them.

The following are FileMaker Pro Passwords that are set by default in KevPT.

For security reasons, you may want to change these passwords. To change the password on the LAN/Web edition, start KevPT with the master password, log in as an administrator (the default username/password for the administrator is admin/admin), and choose Passwords from the Access Privileges menu in the File Menu. To change a password on the standalone edition choose Change Password from the File Menu. You must change the password for every .fp5 file belonging to KevPT. To do this, bring each .fp5 file to the front and go to Passwords under Access Privileges in the File menu.

If you are using the Web edition, you must also change the passwords in the Web Security Databases (see below on how to install the Web Security databases) if you change the webserver password. The field marked "database password" should match the FileMaker Pro password that is used as the web server. This password is originally set to "webserver", just like the password in the KevPT databases. Remember to set the database password in all entries in the Web Security databases.

Caution: If you forget and/or lose these passwords, only FileMaker can retrieve them for you, for a fee. I cannot retrieve lost FileMaker Pro passwords. I can, however, help you retrieve individual Staff Members' passwords.

Staff Member Usernames and Passwords

Staff Members also have their own individual usernames and passwords. Administrators can create staff member usernames and passwords. For more information, see Staff Members below:

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Installing The Standalone Edition

KevPT is simple to install. The standalone edition of KevPT can run from anywhere. Simply drag the KevPT folder to a folder or disk where you find it convenient.

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Installing the LAN/Web Edition

Using FileMaker Pro as a LAN and/or Web Server

The LAN and Web edition can be installed wherever you find it convenient. However, if you use the Web edition, the KevPTWeb folder must be dragged into the Web folder inside the FileMaker Pro folder on your server. You can also use an alias or shortcut in the Web folder instead of dragging the actual folder. The alias or shortcut must be named KevPTWeb. It is recommended, however, that the database files not be put in the Web or any other sharable folder for security reasons.

Go to the FileMaker Application Preferences (Edit menu, Preferences, Application). Click Plug-ins, select the Web Companion and click Configure. Make user the "Use Instant Web Publishing" checkbox is not checked.

To automate launching of KevPT (so you don't have to enter the password manually) place the "KevPT.fp5" file in your Startup folder. The first time you use it, you may have to locate your settings.fp5 file. You should only need to do this the first time. The KevPT.fp5 file uses the password "user" by default. To change this password (for example, to the "webserver" password), hold down the option key (shift key if using Windows), and enter the master password. Then go to Edit: Preferences: Document to change the default password to the password you want automatically entered.

KevPT ships with Web Security databases - these must be used and open in FileMaker Pro for Web clients to connect.

If you use this copy of FileMaker so serve other databases on the web, import the records from FileMaker's Web Security databases into these. The files are named Web Security.fp5, Web Users_.fp5, and Web Fields_.fp5. For each of these files, go to Import in the File menu and open the corresponding file from FileMaker's Web Security Databases folder. (the files are named exactly the same) FileMaker's Web Security databases are located in the Web Security folder in the FileMaker folder.

Using FileMaker Server

If you have FileMaker Server, simply open all of the .fp5 files, except KevPT.fp5, in FileMaker server. FileMaker Server can not serve web pages. One of your FileMaker Pro Clients will need to connect to FileMaker Server and serve web pages from there.

Using FileMaker Pro as a client

Copy the KevPT.fp5 to the client machine. Do not copy the other .fp5 files. You may also copy the help folder to give your users access to help.

Start KevPT on your Server.

Open the KevPT.fp5 file. The first time you use it, you may have to locate your settings.fp5 file. If so, select Open from the File menu and click on Hosts. Then, enter the host name and select the settings.fp5 file. You should only need to do this the first time. After the first time, the user only needs to open the KevPT.fp5 file to connect to the server.

The KevPT.fp5 file uses the password "user" by default. To change this password, hold down the option key (shift key if using Windows), and enter the master password. Then go to Edit: Preferences: Document to change the default password to the password you want automatically entered. Or uncheck the "Try Default Password" checkbox if you want the user to manually enter the FileMaker Pro password.

Using a Web Client

Start your web browser. Enter the following URL

http://your.server.address/KevPTWeb

where your.server.address is the address of your KevPT server. Your web browser will ask for a username and password. The staff member username and password should be entered. The user is then presented with the Home screen and can begin using KevPT.

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Setting Up KevPT

Upgrading from Problem Tracker 1.x

To upgrade from a previous version, start the old Problem Tracker 1.x with the master password. For the client.fp5, problem.fp5, and action.fp5, and problemtypes.fp5 perform choose Find All (or Show All Records in later versions of FileMaker Pro) from the Records menu. After you are finished, close Problem Tracker 1.x.

Open KevPT 2.x and go to the Prefs screen and click Import KevPT 1.x data and follow the onscreen instructions. Please note that because KevPT 2.x stores names as first and last, some names that contain two words in the last name may not be separated properly. Hyphenated last names will be preserved properly. You now must create usernames and passwords for each staff member. Don't forget to enable their privileges as well.

Upgrading from KevPT 2.x

To upgrade from KevPT, start your older version of KevPT with the master password and log in as an administrator. For each .fp5 file in KevPT (excluding the Web Security Databases) choose Show All Records from the Records Menu. Close KevPT.

Open the new KevPT and go to the Prefs screen and click Import KevPT 2.x data and follow the onscreen instructions.

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Preferences

KevPT comes with two staff member in the database - the administrative user. You can log in with the username "admin" and the password "admin". Once you have logged in, click the Prefs button to set up your users and other important settings. The other staff member is not used to log in with, see Default Staff Members for more information.

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Staff Members

Default Staff Members

KevPT ships with two default Staff Members. The first, Administrator, can be logged in with the username "admin" and the password "admin". You should change this password as soon as possible to prevent unauthorised people from editing KevPT preferences.

The second staff member named "All Users" should never be used or edited (with the exception of the password). It is present so that Problems can be assigned to All Users. You should also change this password as soon as possible.

Adding and Editing New Staff Members

To add a new staff member (a user of KevPT), click the "New Staff Member" button on the Prefs screen. Enter the user's name in the "Staff Member" field, and the email address in the appropriate field.

Privileges

To give a staff member administrative privileges click Yes in the field. Be careful, Administrative Privileges will allow the user to set privileges for all staff members, expunge deleted records, as well as edit the settings described on this page.

Each staff member has many database record privileges as well. Each database has settings for reading and writing (editing). You can set each privilege to All (user can access any record), Own (member can access own records, those which that member created), or None (member cannot access any record). In the case of Problem records, Own means the staff member can access records owned, or problems which have been assigned to that staff member (or All Users).

If the user logs in from the web, you must click "Enable Web Login" after making any changes. If you do not want the user to login via the web, click "Disable Web Login". The checkbox will be emply or full to indicate the status of web login.

Username and Password

Enter the user's username and password in the fields provided. All users can edit their own password, but they cannot enter their own username unless they have administrative privileges. Administrators can edit anyone's username and password.

Enabled

The enabled checkbox enables that user. If it is not checked, the user cannot log in. If you wish this user to be able to log in from the web, click "Apply Web Security". If you want to disable web logins, click "Remove Web Security". You also must click "Apply Web Security" after making any change to the staff member's password or privileges.

Returning to a Staff Member's Screen

To return to a staff member's screen, you can search for a user by clicking Find Staff Member on the Prefs screen, entering the search criteria, and clicking the Perform Find button . You can list all staff members by clicking List in the Header on the Home Screen, Prefs screen, or any staff members' details screen. In that screen click the Go To Details button beside the appropriate staff member.

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Other Preferences

Problem Types

Click the Problem Types button on the Prefs screen to edit the problem types. Problem types help categorise problems that your staff enters into the database. Some sample types have been entered already but you may change them to your own. They to do not have to be "contact" types. You can set them to be Priorities, Customer types, or whatever you choose. To add a new problem type, enter the name in the field at the bottom of the list and click the Add Problem Type button . To delete the problem type, click the Delete Problem Type button beside the problem type.

Asset Types

Click the Asset Types button on the Prefs screen to edit the asset types. Asset types help categorise assets and let you customise the fields assigned to the assets. This allows you to customise the types of assets you track. Some sample fields have been entered already but you are free to change them. You can also add your own checkbox items to the checkboxes items list. To add an item, enter the name of the checkbox in the field at the bottom of the list and click the Add Checkbox Item button . To delete an item, click the Delete Checkbox Item button beside the checkbox item.

Expunge Deleted Records

When staff members delete the records, they are not actually deleted from the databases, they are only hidden from view. Clicking the Expunge Deleted Records button on the Prefs screen. Once the records have been expunged, they have been permanently from the databases and cannot be recovered. You must be signed in with the master password to Expunge Deleted Records.

Recovering Deleted Records

If the Expunge Deleted Records procedure has not been performed, an administrator can recover a deleted record. You must open KevPT with the Master Password (you received this password when you registered or upgraded KevPT). To recover a deleted record, perform these steps:

  1. go to the database which contains the deleted record. Select Status Area from the View menu to show the FileMaker tools
  2. enter Layout mode. Choose the expunge layout
  3. enter Find mode, enter the search criteria for the record and click Find on the left of the window. If you have the Record ID (Client, Problem, Asset, or Action ID), this is the only field you need to enter in the search. Using the record browsing tool on the left, browse to the correct record if more than one record has been found.
  4. When you have found the record, change the 0 in the Exists field to a 1.
  5. enter Layout mode
  6. choose the browse_rw layout.
  7. hide the FileMaker tools by selecting "Status Area" from the View menu.
  8. enter Browse mode

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Web Email Settings

When using KevPT from a web browser, the user has the ability to send email to colleagues when editing problems. Click the Web Email Settings button and enter the address of your mail server, the address of the server serving KevPT, and the From address to be used when sending email to a client.