1 Introduction to sharing FileMaker database files
2 Terminology
3 FileMaker Pro or FileMaker Server?
4 Sharing files using FileMaker Server
5 Sharing files without using FileMaker Server
6 Addenda
Introduction to sharing FileMaker Pro database files
This article explains how to set up FileMaker Pro and your FileMaker Pro database files so that the files can be accessed from more than one computer on your office network (LAN). Please note that the issues here relate entirely to FileMaker Pro and FileMaker Server and really don't have anything special to do with any particular solution. In other words, this info is good for all our clients. Note also that these instructions apply to FileMaker Pro 7, 8.x and 9, and also to earlier versions at least as far back as FileMaker Pro 5.
This information is provided as a convenience to our clients. We urge you also to read the information in your FileMaker Pro and FileMaker Pro Server users guides. Anything said by FileMaker, Inc., about the proper use of its products trumps anything said here. If you do notice an inconsistency between the info here and something stated by FileMaker, Inc., please let us know!
Terminology
This discussion can get confusing quickly if we are not careful about terms. Please note the following usages.
- "FileMaker Pro" or "FMP" or "the FileMaker client."
- The basic FileMaker Pro application. Requires one license for each workstation on which it is installed. FileMaker Pro allows an end-user to open files, enter data, print, etc. With this application, you will also be able to edit the structure (layouts, scripts, etc.) of solution files to which you have master access or create your own FileMaker databases from scratch. Suggested full retail cost of a single copy of FMP 8 as of late 2006 = US $300. NOTE: FileMaker Pro Advanced (formerly known as FileMaker Developer) is a special edition of FileMaker Pro that adds certain tools for professional developers. You do not need to buy FileMaker Pro Advanced unless you plan to do serious development work yourself. In the current context, FM Developer = FM Pro.
- "FileMaker Server" or "FMS"
- A program that runs on a dedicated machine and does nothing but serve up FileMaker Pro database files. Installed as a "service" on a Windows machine. You generally only need 1 license of FileMaker Server for your office, because you install it on only one computer. FileMaker Server in itself is useless unless you have client copies of FileMaker. Suggested retail cost of a single copy of FMS 8 as of late 2006: US $1000. NOTE: In summer 2004, FileMaker, Inc., added another product to its line called FileMaker Server Advanced. This provides everything in the basic FileMaker Server application, and adds web serving capability. In the current context, FileMaker Server = FileMaker Server Advanced, but if you are going to host FileMaker databases on the web, you will need to go beyond the info contained in this article. You probably do NOT need Server Advanced, but ask us if you are in doubt.
- The "server" and the client (lowercase)
- These terms are used when the files are shared on a network using FileMaker Server. The server is a piece of hardware: the machine on which FileMaker Server is installed and running. It may sometimes be used to refer to a file server on your network. The client is a particular copy of FileMaker Pro used to access files shared by FileMaker Server.
- The "host" and "guest"
- These terms are similar to server and client, but are used when the database are shared using FileMaker Pro's peer-to-peer file sharing instead of FileMaker Server. When files are shared using FileMaker Pro rather than Filemaker Server, the host is simply the first machine to open the files. This always should be the machine on whose hard disk the files reside physically, but it might not be. The guest is another copy of FileMaker Pro on the network that is accessing the hosted files.
To Server or not to Server, that is the question
There are two ways to give more than one user access to the same FileMaker database: (1) you can put the files on a dedicated machine running Filemaker Server, and have the client machines connect to that machine; or (2) you can put the files on a dedicated machine running an ordinary copy of Filemaker Pro, and have the other users connect to that computer. In other words, you can either use FileMaker Server, or you can do without.
So the big question is, should you use FileMaker Server or should you not? If you have FileMaker Server already, then the answer is yes, absolutely. You can skip to the next section. If you don't have Filemaker Server yet, then the question is, should you buy it?
The only reason not to buy FileMaker Server is that it costs $700 more than the standard copy of FileMaker Pro that you'll need to buy if you don't get FileMaker Server. FileMaker Server provides a bunch of advantages to users (and administrators) of FileMaker Pro databases, but these are the reasons that matter most to users of solutions developed by Polytrope:
- FileMaker Pro can only share files with 5 guests, while FileMaker Server can share files with 250 guests simultaneously. NOTE: This is not a factor for solutions (such as CMAssistant) that seldom needs to be accessed by more than two or three users at a time.
- Sharing under FileMaker Server is much faster and much more reliable than sharing using FileMaker Pro. Some functions in some of our database solutions (for example, creating a new issue in CMAssistant) involve manipulating large numbers of records. If the solution files are hosted using FileMaker Pro instead of FileMaker Server, these functions may be very slow - perhaps intolerably slow - when performed on a guest computer.
- FileMaker Server provides a built-in, automated solution to a very important problem: backing up your files. If you don't use FileMaker Server, you're going to have to come up with a backup routine on your own, and it's going to be a bit complicated, because you cannot back up files while they're being shared.
- If the files are shared under Filemaker Server and if you're properly set everything up, it becomes almost impossible for a user to open the files the wrong way. If you do not use FileMaker Server, there is a real possibility of opening the files the wrong way, and this has proven to be a significant cause of serious technical problems for our users in the past.
- Sharing under FileMaker Server is much more stable and for this reason, your files are much less likely to be damaged, even if there is a power outage.
So, what's the answer?
The answer is that, if you wish to let more than one user at a time have access to one of our database solutions (including CM Assistant), we strongly recommend that you run it under FileMaker Server.
If you decide not to buy Filemaker Server right away, you lose the advantages listed above. You can minimize the downside. If only one or two users are sharing the files (without FleMaker Server), speed may be acceptable, especially if you can host the solution files on your fastest machine. It is possible to design a reasonable backup schedule for the solution files even without FileMaker Server, although you will have to arrange to close the files properly before backing up. (FileMaker Server's backup routines take care of this very important task for you.) And you can train your users to open the solution files properly. In short, sharing FileMaker Pro database files without FileMaker Server is a more of a hassle, riskier, and less satisfying. But it can be done.
Sharing FileMaker database files using FileMaker Server
In the diagram below, machine X (the server) is running FileMaker Server. The FileMaker Pro solution files are stored on this machine's hard disk, normally inside a folder named "Databases."
Machines A, B and C are opening the solution files as clients of the server. Each machine has installed on it a standard copy of FileMaker Pro. To open the files, users 1, 2 and 3 open FileMaker Pro on their machines, then pull down in the File menu to "Open Remote..." This displays a dialog showing FileMaker files that are available for shared access; the user clicks on the main file for the solution in this list and hits the Open button.
Things to keep in mind when installing files to be shared under FileMaker Server.
1. System-level file sharing is turned off on Machine X (the server). FileMaker Server takes care of the file-sharing tasks itself using its own file-sharing tools. Leaving system-level file sharing on is dangerous, for two reasons. First, one of the surest ways to hose a FileMaker database file is to open it directly while it is (already) behing shared under FileMaker Server. But even if you do not allow access to the folder where the databases are stored, having operating system file sharing enabled on the server is a bad idea, because it diminishes the server's efficiency and increases the risk that the server will crash. A FileMaker database server should always be a dedicated machine. For the same reason, it is advisable to disable as many services as possible on the server, such as printer sharing, etc.
2. If users 1, 2 and/or 3 at machines A, B and/or C do not see the main solution file listed in the FileMaker Pro hosts dialog, then they should contact the network administrator or call Polytrope. They should not attempt to open the solution any other way (and if caveat in the preceding paragraph was taken to heart, they won't be able to do so even if they try).
3. Be sure to configure your client copies of FileMaker Pro so that networking with TCP/IP is enabled. This is done in the FileMaker Pro preferences dialog.
4. The server should be running FileMaker Server only. It should not have a copy of FileMaker Pro (standard) on it. NOTE: This is the official recommendation. You can disobey this recommendation if you dare, but you'd better be careful. Opening FileMaker Pro on a machine already running FileMaker Server can cause port conflicts; and as we have noted already, attempting to open a database file in Pro when it's already open under Server is almost certain to destroy the file.
5. When the files are shared under FileMaker Server, it does not make any difference which of the client users opens the files first, because the files are always "open" on machine X under FileMaker Server.
Sharing FileMaker database files without using FileMaker Server
If you don't buy FileMaker Server, you can still share your solution's files using FileMaker Pro's built-in, peer-to-peer file sharing capability. In this setup, the solution files reside physically on the hard disk of Machine A and each day, the files are opened on this computer before the users at machines B and C attempt to access them. This should be a machine dedicated to acting as host for one solution, in other words, nobody should actually be using this machine.
Users 1 (on machine B) and 2 (on machine C) should be trained always to open the files as guests of machine A. They open the files by first opening FileMaker Pro on their machines, then pulling in the File menu to --> Open Remote... They will now see a list of files available for shared access. They should see the main file of the solution listed and open it.
There are a number of possible "gotchas" to worry about when you share FileMaker database files without using FileMaker Server. Please read the following notes carefully.
1. The files being shared should always reside on the hard disk of the host machine! In order to make sure that this is the case, operating-system level file sharing should be disabled on the host (machine A). It is not needed, because FileMaker Pro has its own file-sharing technology. If operating-system level file sharing is left on, there is a risk that a user at one of the remote machines will access the files directly and open them first, thus becoming the host. FileMaker Pro's documentation states clearly that this is a serious no-no. Your files could be damaged and data could be lost as a result. Note that it is technically possible to store the files on, say, a Novell server, open them on one machine (which is now the "host"), then have another user onnect to the hosted files as a guest, using FileMaker's file sharing. This appears to work. It may even appear to work for a good while. But don't do it! Combining two file-sharing protocols is inherently risky, and doing this dramatically increases the risk of serious damage to the files in the case of network problems. Failure to observe the recommendations and caveats in this paragraph has been the primary biggest cause of nearly every instance of serious damage to our clients' files.
2. If the advice in the preceding note is followed, then the worst that can happen is that a user at machine B or machine C will go to the hosts dialog and the main solution file will not be listed. Users should know what to do when this happens (notify network administrator; or walk to machine A and open the files there; or call Polytrope Support).
3. In order to make sure that the problem described in the preceding note does not occur, the network administrator should set up machine A so that the files always open on that machine before the users at machines B and C need to access them. Configure machine A so that the solution is opened automatically. If you are requiring users to provide a password to get into the solution, contact Polytrope and we will give you a simple opener file that can be used on the host machine only to open the files without the password.
4. Can you share the files between two users without dedicating a third computer to the job of being host? Yes, you can, but it's a bad idea. Before you go this route, please contact Polytrope and give us a chance to scare a little sense into you.
Addenda
1. It is critically important that you have one and only one copy of any of the solution files on your computer or your network - anywhere - at a time. It is hard to overemphasize this rule.
2. When you devise a backup scheme, take some care not to violate the rule in paragraph 1 above. Backup to a removable medium such as tape, CD, or disk. Or backup to a file format that FileMaker can't open. You should also be careful not to backup the solution files while they are open. If you use FileMaker Server, create a schedule for backing up and let FileMaker Server take care of this for you. But if you don't use FileMaker Server, make sure that the files are closed before they are backed up. Copying FileMaker Pro files while they are open creates damaged archives.
3. Regardless of whether you decide to use FileMaker Server to serve the files or to go with FileMaker Pro's peer-to-peer file sharing ability, you will need to do a couple things the same.
- The files need to be configured for multiuser access. This must be done before you attempt to share the files. Put the solution files on a machine that has FileMaker Pro installed, open the files directly in FileMaker Pro, go to the solution preferences layout (NOT the same thing as the FileMaker application preferences), and use the command there to enable multiuser access. Since the location of the commands that enable and disable multiuser access varies from solution to solution, you may wish to contact Polytrope Support before attempting this.
- The networking protocol (TCP/IP) must be selected on each copy of FileMaker Pro individually, in the FileMaker Pro application preferences dialog.
4. Unless you really know what you're doing--meaning that you know everything that FileMaker Inc recommends and doesn't recommend-- then you should take a conservative approach to installing and sharing the files. Follow FileMaker Inc's fairly simple instructions, and observe all of its limitations.
Copyright © 2005, 2006, Polytrope LLC, Dallas, Texas. All rights reserved.
This article last modified: March 6, 2008