NEOSYS Technical Support Wiki - User contributions [en]

User talk:Arya

2013-09-17T13:00:56Z

WikiSysop: Welcome!

'''Welcome to ''NEOSYS Technical Support Wiki''!'''
We hope you will contribute much and well.
You will probably want to read the [[Help:Contents|help pages]].
Again, welcome and have fun! [[User:WikiSysop|WikiSysop]] 13:00, 17 September 2013 (UTC)

User:Arya

2013-09-17T13:00:56Z

WikiSysop: Creating user page with biography of new user.

My name is Arya.

User talk:Nikhil

2013-01-07T12:25:52Z

WikiSysop: Welcome!

User talk:Nikhil Stephen

2012-12-20T13:52:32Z

WikiSysop: Welcome!

Main Page

2008-08-01T18:53:23Z

WikiSysop:

<big>'''This is the Technical Support NEOSYS Wiki.'''</big>

== Technical ==

[[Installing NEOSYS]]

[[Moving NEOSYS]]

[[Upgrading NEOSYS]]

[[Configuring NEOSYS]]

[[Administering NEOSYS Server]]

[[Troubleshooting NEOSYS]]

Installing NEOSYS

2008-08-01T18:50:59Z

WikiSysop:

[[Installing NEOSYS Service]]

[[Configuring Antivirus for NEOSYS]]

[[Benchmarking NEOSYS]]

[[Setting up HTTPS]]

[[Setting up TCP/IP filtering]]

[[Installing IE7 Download Blocker]]

[[Establishing Emergency Support Procedures]]

[[Technical / Hardware requirements]]

[[Setting up for non-latin characters]]

Upgrading NEOSYS

2008-08-01T18:49:37Z

WikiSysop: 9 revisions

== Upgrading NEOSYS fully ==

=== Backing up ===

If you have the time, backup the entire NEOSYS folder or

To backup just the programs copy Neosys\Neosys, Neosys.net, Neosys.mac

To backup the data copy DATA

=== Downloading ===

Get the latest version of NEOSYS

Save http://www.neosys.com/support/adagency.exe in downloads folder and then run it.

=== Downloading previous versions of NEOSYS ===

The 8 previous versions of neosys are stored at:

http://www.neosys.com/support/adagency2.exe

http://www.neosys.com/support/adagency3.exe

http://www.neosys.com/support/adagency4.exe

http://www.neosys.com/support/adagency5.exe

http://www.neosys.com/support/adagency6.exe

http://www.neosys.com/support/adagency7.exe

http://www.neosys.com/support/adagency8.exe

http://www.neosys.com/support/adagency9.exe

=== Installing ===

Closing NEOSYS processes should happen automatically during upgrade but you can also do it manually as follows:

[[Closing NEOSYS services]]

The installation procedure first creates a GLOBAL.END file in the NEOSYS programs folder causing all serving processes to terminate. Maintenance processes must be terminated manually.

Next, the installation procedure attempts to update the WAITING.EXE file and, if the processes haven’t terminated quickly enough, this will fail asking for retry or abort. Retry immediately or once all the processes have terminated.

The last step of the installation procedure is to delete the GLOBAL.END file to allow processes to start normally.

=== Troubleshooting ===

If you choose to abort the installation for any reason then the GLOBAL.END file will have to be deleted manually since its presence prevents any processes from starting up.

=== Post installation steps ===

New versions of the software sometimes perform quick or long database conversions.

Starting NEOSYS in maintenance mode immediately after upgrading leaves you more in control if anything goes wrong.

It not necessary to use the maintenance mode to start-up once after upgrading and before starting an automatic neosys process.

== Upgrading NEOSYS with patch files ==

Patch files can be used to update a very recent installation of neosys without doing a full install and without getting people out of NEOSYS.

If in doubt do a full install.

#Copy the file which is probably something like ADAGENCY.1 or ACCOUNTS.1 to the neosys\neosys folder
#F5
#INSTALL ADAGENCY
#Follow instructions

Technical / Hardware requirements

2008-08-01T18:49:36Z

WikiSysop: 5 revisions

=== Hardware requirements ===
#Entry level server computer
#1 GB RAM
#80 GB HDD

=== Software requirements ===
# Windows 2003 Standard Edition installed as a workgroup and not as part of a domain
# DO NOT assign any roles for the server (eg DNS or DHCP or FILE SERVER) – just deliver the server AS IT IS – but keep the OS cd in the tray
# All service packs and updates applied (except IE7)
# No Anti-Virus or any other program loaded

=== Installation requirements ===
# Two partitions on the hard disk (C & D)

=== Backup requirements ===
# 2 x 1 GB USB drives for backup

=== Router requirements ===
# Username and password for the router / or someone who can configure port forwarding / virtual server configuration

Setting up TCP/IP filtering

2008-08-01T18:49:36Z

WikiSysop: 4 revisions

Tcp/ip filtering is a simple but effective firewall but cannot distinguish between incoming and outgoing traffic or do port forwarding.

All dedicated Neosys client servers which are installed in future will have TCP/IP filtering enabled and we will drop installation of anti-virus programs. However it the client has a workgroup anti-virus installation than it can be installed in addition to TCP/IP filtering.

Note:
#Despite Windows telling you that it is necessary to reboot to activate any changes, it is probably NOT necessary.
#Don't do changes while critical users are working or you cannot get power cycle the server since changing filtering sometimes causes network failure.

The following ports need to be opened when TCP/IP filtering is enabled:

*80/8123 web
*443/4430 secure web
*22/19580 ssh
*25/2500 smtp
*5500/55000 vnc reverse connection

and optionally
*3389/33890 rdc
*5900/59000 vnc

On our own NEOSYS server, some standard ports which need to be opened:

*21 standard ftp
*80 standard http
*443 standard https
*3389 standard remote desktop connection

NEOSYS non-standard ports

*2500 neosys smtp
*4430 neosys https port
*55000 neosys ultravnc reverse connection
*19580 neosys ssh port
*8000 neosys wiki

TCP/IP properties, advanced, options

[[Image:tcpipfiltering1.png]]

Setting up HTTPS

2008-08-01T18:49:36Z

WikiSysop: 33 revisions

== Creating a single HTTPS web site ==

=== Creating a site in IIS ===

In order to run on the same port number, IIS sites need either unique ip numbers (set in tcp/http *and* ssh/https settings) or different host header values.

Therefore either the ip number has to be one of the available ones provided to neosys by leaseweb etc. or the host header value must be set to '''clientname'''.hosts.neosys.com.

The port number for tcp/http should be the neosys standard arbitrary port of 8123, not port 80 in order to prevent access via standard http. We could use various almost arbitrary ports for http since they are going to blocked by tcp/ip filtering or a firewall but it is better to know that port 8123 is the only one since IIS insists on having some port open for http.

The https options are only available after running selfssl (see below) at least once on the server.

[[Image:httpadvancedwebsitesetup.png]]

=== Install ssl/https on the site. ===

install selfssl.exe from Microsoft site (iis60rkt.exe available in neosys nl1 download folder) only the ssl utility is needed.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=56fc92ee-a71a-4c73-b628-ade629c89499&displaylang=en

then

[[Image:SelfSSL.png]]

C:\Program Files\IIS Resources\SelfSSL>selfssl /v:9999 /s:'''''866651215''''' /p:4430 /n:CN='''''clientname'''''.hosts.neosys.com
Microsoft (R) SelfSSL Version 1.0
Copyright (C) 2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
Do you want to replace the SSL settings for site 866651215 (Y/N)?y
The self signed certificate was successfully assigned to site 866651215.

/v:9999 means valid for 9999 days
/s:'''''866651215''''' is the site number in this case (site number is shown in IIS management screen)
/p:4430 is the non-standard port number neosys uses by convention for ssl/https instead of the standard 443
/n:CN='''''clientname'''''.hosts.neosys.com indicates the full domain name of the site

You probably made a mistake in the site number if you get the following message.

Error opening site metabase key: 0x80070003

=== Testing access to the new https web site. ===

Make a subdomain '''clientname'''.hosts.neosys.com

https://'''clientname'''.hosts.neosys.com:4430/neosys

If you get certificate error:

#check that the selfsll /n:CN='''clientname'''.hosts.neosys.com matches the domain name used in IE
#install the certificate into the client computer (double click the padlock, view certificates etc)

closing all internet explorer versions and restarting is necessary for installed certificates to become effective.

== Creating multiple HTTPS web sites ==

=== Bugs ===

SelfSSL allows only one website to have SSL at a time

IIS Diagnostics Toolkit which has fixed SelfSSL but doesnt allow full control
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserver2003/iis/diagnostictools/default.mspx

=== Solution ===

Use selfssl as follows:

#delete any existing certificate (IIS->directory security->server certificate wizard)
#create certificate for a site in selfssl following the normal procedure
#export the certificate to a pfx file (IIS->Site->directory security->server certificate wizard)
#remove the certificate (IIS->Site->directory security->server certificate wizard)
#import pfx certificate back (IIS->Site->directory security->server certificate wizard)

Continue adding sites this way and they should work perfectly fine. Just follow the sequence here for each site being added.

Certificates should be saved in d:\hosts\certificates preferably by name for easy reference otherwise by site number.

=== Re-installing Certificates ===

Sometimes due to an unknown issue, site/s stop working and hence there is a need to re-install the site certificate.

==== Re-installing Certificates from saved PFX files ====

Just do the first and last steps of the normal installation procedure.

#delete the existing certificate (IIS->Site->directory security->server certificate wizard)
#import pfx certificate (IIS->Site->directory security->server certificate wizard)

==== Re-installing Certificates from selfssl ====

Repeat the usual installation method above without missing the delete stage

If users have installed certificates in their browsers then they will have to reinstall them again to avoid the usual "certificate not trusted/matching" type problems.

Setting up for non-latin characters

2008-08-01T18:49:34Z

WikiSysop: 2 revisions

== Enabling non-latin characters in Excel output ==

Install neosys versionj dated 2008/07/20 or later

Run cygwin setup and install the package "icu"

Moving NEOSYS

2008-08-01T18:49:34Z

WikiSysop: 4 revisions

==== Changing drive letter to match old drive letter ====

[[Image:changepartitiondriveletter.png]]

==== Backup and restore of IIS configuration ====

[[Image:backupiis.png]]

==== How to deauthorisation a NEOSYS installation ====

Deauthorisation removes the authorisation and gives a pair of "authorisation numbers" that can be run through a check to prove that deauthorisation has been done.

After deauthorisation you cannot use NEOSYS. If you try then it will ask for authorisation again and you cannot use the original authorisation number to reauthorise it.

In NEOSYS Maintenance mode press F5 then type

DEAUTHORISE

... and answer all the questions properly.

At the final stage it will give you the "deauthorisation numbers" which consist of the original computer number plus another number. These numbers should not be lost and should be given to NEOSYS who will verify they are correct.

Installing NEOSYS Service

2008-08-01T18:49:34Z

WikiSysop: 18 revisions

= INSTALLING NEOSYS SERVICE =

== Main installation: ==

Make sure NOT TO COPY an existing NEOSYS installation to another location and ONLY do a
completely new install with a fresh database, because copying a folder will copy a variety of
hidden configurations.

=== Preparing server for installation ===
It is advised that the server is not connected to the existing domain controller.

=== Locating servers ===

Before installation, ensure that Clients servers should be placed out of public areas for safety and also to ensure that USB flash drives for NEOSYS backup cannot be misappropriated.

=== Moving NEOSYS to new servers ===

Make sure you disable old systems BEFORE you enable new systems.

You cannot count on users to pay attention to WHICH system they are using so its up to you to prevent access to the old system PRIOR to opening a new system for them.

Failure to follow this procedure OFTEN results in chaos in the clients procedures. Missing invoices, etc etc etc.

=== Installing NEOSYS on partitions ===

Good server management practice is to have separate partitions for operating system (C:) and data partitions (D:)

In the case of operating system reinstallation (which causes the loss of the C: partition) if NEOSYS programs and data were installed on D: can be preserved. If there is only one partition then NEOSYS programs and data will have to be backed up and restored.

==== Multiple Partitions ====

If there is more than one partition then NEOSYS should be installed on any partition (e.g. D:) except the operating system partition (usually C:).

==== Single Partition ====

If there is only one partition then depending on the level of sophistication of the client it may be advisable to go to the effort of reinstall the operating system or using third party repartitioning tools to create separate partitions.

Otherwise there is no overriding problem to have NEOSYS installed on the operating system.

=== Downloading and running installation files ===

# http://www.neosys.com/support/accounts.exe ... and install to X:\Neosys
# http://www.neosys.com/support/adagency.exe ... and install to X:\Neosys

=== Creating shortcuts ===

Make desktop shortcut ‘Maintenance’ to (or right click, send to desktop as shortcut)

x:\neosys\neosys\adagency.bat

or

x:\neosys\neosys\accounts.bat

=== Disabling network protocols in XP for client servers ===

Remove Windows protocols from ALL network adapters present in the machine whether in use or not. This is quick and easy since it does not require a reboot and provides a good degree of protection but does NOT replace the need for TCP/IP filtering for complete protection.

[[image:properties.jpg]]

Why should I remove the protocols which are not in use?

Not removing unnecessary protocols can result in slowin down the network communication or even pose as a security threat.

=== Disabling Autorun (All Drives) for client servers ===

As NEOSYS backup procedure involves using a USB flash drive, it has been noticed that the USB flash drives can be a source of virus entering the NEOSYS server due to the old USB AUTORUN WORM. This is best avoided by disabling the Autorun (for all drives) as follows:

* Login as Administrator
* Open the Run dialog box ( [Windows] - [R] ), then type gpedit.msc, hit [Enter].
* On the left pane, click "Administrative Templates", then "System".
* On the right pane, locate "Turn Off Autoplay" and double-click on it.
* Set it to "Enable" and choose All Drives

=== Activating NEOSYS using authorization number ===

Start NEOSYS Maintenance and it will give a “Computer Number” and ask for an “Authorisation No”

Send the computer number to NEOSYS admin to get the authorization no.

If you cannot get the authorization number immediately then you can close NEOSYS and when you reopen NEOSYS it will still give the same computer number and accept the same authorization number.

=== Installing initial Database ===

Download the initial database file from [[Media:backup.zip]] and place it in C drive.

Next, click on the Maintenance icon. The first time when you enter maintenance you will get a command box (like like when you do F5)

Type FILEMAN and then select Restore from disk or diskette (which is no 4), select C drive and follow the prompts ahead.

=== Creating a .CMD file to start NEOSYS Service: ===

In x:\neosys create a file startmain.cmd

x:
cd \neosys\neosys
Start neosys.js /system ADAGENCY /database databasecode

(where databasecode is the code of the database)

In x:\neosys create a file starttest.cmd

x:
cd \neosys\neosys
Start neosys.js /system ADAGENCY /database testdatabasecode

(where testdatabasecode is the code of the testdatabase)

=== Differences for Pure Accounts Module Only Installations ===

Accounts module only has a slightly different startup command. In the above, replace '''/system adagency''' with '''/system accounts''' to startup a service and use '''accounts.bat''' instead of '''adagency.bat''' to start up maintenance. Other than that, accounts module setup is identical. Pure accounts clients are very few and tend not to upgrade often so care needs to be taken when upgrading. Upgrade is perhaps surprisingly done using the adagency.exe file.

=== Creating a .CMD file to copy maindata to testdata ===

In x:\neosys create a file copymain2test.cmd

Xcopy x:\neosys\data\maindatabasecode x:\neosys\data\testdatabasecode /s /y

=== Setting up daily scheduled tasks ===

Automatic Schedules:
NEOSYS automatically shuts down at 1am (was 2am) every morning for backup. It closes all the running processes and backups up to the selected drive.

Manually Configured Schedules:

Automatic download & Install of Windows Update - to be configured at 3 am everyday

==== New Instructions ====

Main database 1 process starting at 6:00am.

Use Support Menu, System Configuration File to request 3 processes for main database and 1 for test database

==== Old Instructions ====

Maindata – 3 processes starting 6:00 am, 6:01 am, 6:02 am

Testdata – 1 process at 6:04 am

Copy Maindata to Testdata – 1 process at 1:45 am

For multiple sites on the same computer put the second site starting five minutes later at 6:05, third site starting five minutes earlier at 5:55, the third site starting five minutes later at 6:10 and so on.

=== Configuring NEOSYS to start automatically on server start-up ===

Unfortunately using this method the NEOSYS processes are not visible when you login as a user.

==== startall.cmd file ====

Make a startall.cmd file in the neosys folder something like this, where xxxx and xxxxtest are the names of the usual database start-up cmd files.

start cmd /c "start xxxx.cmd"
c:\cygwin\bin\sleep 5
start cmd /c "start xxxx.cmd"
c:\cygwin\bin\sleep 5
start cmd /c "start xxxx.cmd"
c:\cygwin\bin\sleep 5
start cmd /c "start xxxxtest.cmd"
c:\cygwin\bin\sleep 5

==== Windows scheduled task ====

[[Image:win_sch_task.jpg]]

Schedule a task to run the startall.cmd file whenever the computer starts

== Installing and upgrading NEOSYS pure accounting systems ==

Basic installation using ACCOUNTS.EXE and upgrades using ADAGENCY.EXE are identical to the normal adagency installation process.

Differences are as follows:

# Maintenance shortcut to ACCOUNTS.BAT
# Process startup file contains "/system ACCOUNTS" instead of "/system ADAGENCY"
# Internet address is http://server/neosys/accounts.htm although it auto converts to http://server/neosys/default.htm??ACCOUNTS. Although not to be relied upon, the login page stores a cookie so even plain http://server/neosys or http://server/neosys/default.htm works thereafter until the cookie is lost. To get back to adagency login you use http://server/neosys/default.htm??ADAGENCY
# BACKUP.ZIP files created by ADAGENCY systems and ACCOUNTS systems are slightly incompatible with the result that restoring one in the other type of system will not work. NEOSYS programmers can convert from one type to the other but it is almost never required since any ad agency that only requires accounts only module is given the adagency version of NEOSYS and accounting only clients becoming ad agencies never happened.

Installing NEOSYS

2008-08-01T18:49:32Z

WikiSysop: 28 revisions

[[Installing NEOSYS Service]]

[[Configuring Antivirus for NEOSYS]]

[[Benchmarking NEOSYS]]

[[Setting up HTTPS]]

[[Setting up TCP/IP filtering]]

[[Setting up remote backup]]

[[Setting up monitoring]]

[[Setting up Dynsite / Dynamic IP update client]]

[[Installing IE7 Download Blocker]]

[[Establishing Emergency Support Procedures]]

[[Technical / Hardware requirements]]

[[Setting up for non-latin characters]]

Installing IE7 & IE8 Download Blocker

2008-08-01T18:49:31Z

WikiSysop: 1 revision

=== Why to install the IE7 download blocker? ===

IE7 comes with high security settings which interferes with permissions relating to the functioning of Neosys on a server. Hence on Windows 2003 servers which Neosys is installed upon, we need to install this IE7 download blocker so that Windows Update does not automatically download IE7.

=== Procedure ===

Download an exe file from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=4516A6F7-5D44-482B-9DBD-869B4A90159C&displaylang=en

Once downloaded, run the file and it will create 4 files at a specified location (preferably C drive). The required file is IE70Blocker.cmd.

Go to the dos prompt (Start > Run > cmd) and run the following command:

IE70Blocker.cmd /B

This command creates a registry key and sets the associated value to block automatic delivery of IE7 on the local machine. The registry should show the following value after you have done this:

Registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Setup\7.0

Key value name: DoNotAllowIE70

Handling damaged files

2008-08-01T18:49:30Z

WikiSysop: 17 revisions

== Symptoms ==

"A Damaged file has been found..... ((the rest of this message to be completed))
Group format Error:
OS File : BOOKING.TEXTS
Group# : 00000932
Record length incorrect or frame linkage error.

== Cause ==
Rare but nasty problem on server 99% caused by power failure, killing NEOSYS or server hardware or operating system failure.

*Did somebody kill NEOSYS processes to reboot the server or any other reason?
*Was there a power cut?
*Any expected or unexpected reboots in the server log? (see Event Viewer > System Log)
*Enough disk free space especially on servers not dedicated to neosys?

== Solution==

Depends on the cause and usually often requires aggressive interrogation to discover the cause.

== Recovery==

It is URGENT to stop using NEOSYS and fix the damaged file because it will cause NEOSYS to crash everytime it happens to update that part of the file. NEOSYS crashing while updating often produces unrecoverable inconsistencies in the database that can only be fixed by programmers sitting for hours trying to edit the database .... or by restoring from a backup causing loss of work.

See the following sections how to patch the damaged files.

== Files that are automatically fixed ==

*LISTS
*LOCKS
*!INDEXING

The above files are automatically checked for corruption (and initialised to empty if so) when you
startup a NEOSYS process and do not require any manual intervention apart from locating and eliminating the initial cause of the damage.

If the !INDEXING file was damaged then strictly speaking you should also do REINDEXALL to reinstate any possibly missing index entries, but since this will take a long time
you should do this when everybody is off the system in the evening probably.

== Fixing damaged files that have no process for recreating them ==

Some damaged files can be rebuilt using NEOSYS utilities especially index files with filenames starting with !. Other damaged files can be “fixed” to prevent NEOSYS crashes as follows but some records will most probably be lost. Depending on the file loss of a few records may not be too bad compared to restoring a database but the client should be informed and make the decision. Depending on the file it is usually best to lose the records. We can make a list of files that one can afford to lose records and those files that can be rebuilt programmatically from other files. Booking order texts they can lose records but inform them and especially the numbers mentioned in FIXFILE

FIXFILE will not run if there are neosys services still running so before doing the FIXFILE command, shut down services from the Support menu or with the Global command:

F5

FIXFILE filename

(Select option 1 to update the file)

In case you get any Overwrite messages – type YES, as these are the actual files being updated.

The only alternative is restore from a previous backup in this case losing a days work. Nasty, and even worse, it will be impossible to reproduce the days work and especially the exact serial numbers of critical documents like orders, invoices, receipts and payments advices.

=== Using FIXFILE to repair corrupted files ===

Corrupt files will cause programs to abort every time they try to update that section of the file. Aborting programs causes possibly horrendous inconsistency in the database so it is important to stop all user activity and fix the corrupt file immediately.

You can freely use FIXFILE on any file but it cannot and does not recover any corrupted records therefore, for those files that have specific programs to rebuild them, FIXFILE is not the correct option. Many files do not have programs to rebuild them and FIXFILE is a quick way to get the system back in operation.

FIXFILE does not fix the consistency of information in the database. When the database is is being updated with a transaction, usually a series of files are updated for the one transaction. A damaged file causes the update program to abort in the middle of the series of updates. Therefore some of the updates are done and the remaining updates are not done. This means that the data in the database (even after fixing the corrupt file) is inconsistent.

FIXFILE merely fixes the technical structure of the file so that any further program accesses to that portion of the file do not cause immediate program termination and consequent likely catastrophic database inconsistency.

You must prevent anyone from accessing NEOSYS while FIXFILE is running.

=== Fixing Damaged DEFINITIONS file ===

==== Non-Solution ====

You will probably not be able to login if the DEFINITIONS FILE is damaged. You can press Alt+S and type EXECUTE to get a TCL command box but this still doesnt help because you cannot use FIXFILE on DEFINITIONS.

CAUTION: DO NOT USE FIXFILE TO TRY AND FIX THE DEFINITIONS FILE.

DOUBLE CAUTION: IN CASE YOU DECIDE TO IGNORE THIS EXPECT ALL KINDS OF HORRIBLE PROBLEMS IN THE DATABASE REQUIRING A COMPLETE RESTORE FROM A GOOD BACKUP AFTER A FEW DAYS OF PAIN BECAUSE RANDOM OLD DATABASE UPGRADE/CONVERSIONS WILL BE PERFORMED *AGAIN* WITHOUT YOU KNOWING IT.

==== Partial Restore ====

You can copy recent DEFINITIONS.LK and DEFINITIONS.OV files from the DATA\datasetcode\GENERAL folder.

CAUTION: All changes done in the Configuration File, Authorisation File, Users File and various other changes will be reverted to the date of the DEFINITIONS files being restored. If you are restoring from last nights backup or testdata then this will not be much but could cause serious confusion to people who have changed their passwords etc.

==== Full Restore ====

Restore from your latest backup losing all work done since that time and date.

=== Preventing users from accessing NEOSYS in order to do maintenance or repairs ===

On most systems you can simply stop the NEOSYS processes. On other systems where NEOSYS processes are automatically started in response to requests from the web, you need to disable the autostart by one of the following methods

# Stop the autostart program/script
# Put a file called NET.CFG with a single line saying AUTOSTART=NO in the neosys\neosys folder
# Stop the IIS server
# Stop/Pause the particular web in question

== Fixing damaged file that have a process to recreate them ==

ADS file can be recreated with F5 CREATEADS

ANALYSIS file can be recreated with F5 CREATEANALYSIS

== Fixing damaged index files (names starting with !) ==

Whilst backing up or using NEOSYS the following error message might appear:

"A Damaged file has been found.....
Group format Error:
OS File : !ADS
Group# : 00000932
Record length incorrect or frame linkage error.

#Ensure that no-one is using NEOSYS
#Log into NEOSYS on the server
#Press F5 to get a TCL command box
#Type REINDEXADS and press enter.
#Wait until it finishes and you get back to the command box
#Type OFF in the command box and you will quit NEOSYS.

Other reindex commands are:

*REINDEXACCOUNTS recreates !ACCOUNTS, !BATCHES and !VOUCHERS
*REINDEXADDRESSES
*REINDEXADS
*REINDEXBOOKINGS recreates !BOOKING.ORDERS
*REINDEXBRANDS
*REINDEXCLIENTS
*REINDEXINVS recreates !INVOICES
*REINDEXJOBS
*REINDEXMATERIALS
*REINDEXPLANS
*REINDEXPRODINVS recreates !PRODUCTION.INVOICES
*REINDEXPRODORDERS recreates !PRODUCTION.ORDERS
*REINDEXRATECARDS
*REINDEXSCHEDULES
*REINDEXSUPPLIERS
*REINDEXTIMESHEETS
*REINDEXVEHICLES

REINDEXMEDIA does all the following
*REINDEXPLANS
*REINDEXSCHEDULES
*REINDEXADS
*REINDEXMATERIALS
*REINDEXBOOKINGS

REINDEXFILES does all the following
*REINDEXCLIENTS
*REINDEXBRANDS
*REINDEXSUPPLIERS
*REINDEXVEHICLES
*REINDEXRATECARDS

REINDEXPRODUCTION does all the following
*REINDEXJOBS
*REINDEXPRODORDERS
*REINDEXPRODINVS
*REINDEXTIMESHEETS

REINDEXALL does all the following
*REINDEXMEDIA
*REINDEXPRODUCTION
*REINDEXFILES
*REINDEXINVS
*REINDEXACCOUNTS
*REINDEXADDRESSES

== Dealing with damaged files that cannot be fixed ==

If programmers are unable to fix the damage in a reasonably period of time and the damage is caused due to matters beyond NEOSYS control such as non-dedicated servers and power failures then data must be restored and client advised why they are going to suffer loss of data.

THIS DOES NOT RELEASE NEOSYS SUPPORT STAFF FROM THE OBLIGATION TO PROACTIVELY INFORM THE CLIENT OF MEASURES TO PREVENT THE RECURRENCE OF THE EVENT.

The following are the steps to follow:

# Ascertain the cause of the damage to the database by looking at the internal logs
# Create a new database from the damaged one as it will contain the up to date but damaged database.
# Restore the database from the backup media so that the database is in the last good known state.
# The client can see what work was done over the past couple of days from the damaged database and it will assist them to redo the work in the currently restored out of date main database.
# Next discuss with the client about the cause of the damage and (a) what to do to prevent the damage occurring again (b) to agree a procedure to perform a manual backup in case the automatic one is not performed for any reason overnight.

Establishing Emergency Support Procedures

2008-08-01T18:49:29Z

WikiSysop: 5 revisions

This article needs to be turned into a letter for acceptable by the client.

Dear xxxx,

It is advisable that we establish a procedure for provision of emergency support for out of hours support where necessary.

Emergency support procedure rest on having emergency telephone numbers known to people. This could either be a complete list given to everybody or different levels of people only knowing part of the chain.

EMERGENCY SUPPORT PROCEDURE

# Client Support - xxxxxxxxxx - Mobile number ? Landline number ?
# Client Management - xxxxxxxxxx - Mobile number ? Landline number ?
# NEOSYS Support - Ashwin Fernandes - Mobile UAE 00971 50 846 9411 Landline ?
# NEOSYS Management - Steve Bush - Mobile CYP 00357 99 653 695 or UAE 00971 50 450 7699 Landline UK 0044 1285 862 171

Notes:

# People could be instructed to try and obtain support according to the numbered priority.
# People do not have to be given the whole list.
# 1 and 2 could be reversed.

Configuring STARTALL.cmd command to auto start all processess

2008-08-01T18:49:29Z

WikiSysop: 2 revisions

=== Setting up the file ===

Create a .cmd file with the following command lines:

start cmd /c "D:\hosts\markone\Start MARKONE.cmd"
c:\cygwin\bin\sleep 3
start cmd /c "D:\hosts\orange\Start ORANGERIE.cmd"
c:\cygwin\bin\sleep 3

The c:\cygwin\bin\sleep 3 is to give a 3 second gap between each process startup.

Likewise you can add additional lines to start up additional processes.

Incase you need to disable a process startup temporarily, instead of deleting the line, you may add the word REM (meaning REMARK) before the start of the line and the line will be ignored till such time the remark is there.

Configuring Antivirus for NEOSYS

2008-08-01T18:49:29Z

WikiSysop: 6 revisions

== Norton / Symantec ==
Symantec and other especially older version AV software slow neosys down a lot. Excluding LK and OV files (and ALSO excluding the neosys folder and removing OV* from the list of files to be checked) improves the situation but only removal of the av solves the problem completely. ie the exclusion options DOESNT FULLY WORK in symantec and some other especially older AV software.

Ideally you should remove Symantec because it has a number of problems which are difficult or impossible to overcome.

Older versions of Symantec may require all the following options even to only partially exclude NEOSYS from checking. Running FILESPEED with Symantec disabled gives an idea of the possible slow down caused by Symantec but even disabling it often doesnt cause speed up compared to removing it completely.

It is advisable to do all the following to protect against non-NEOSYS system adminstrators reconfiguring the options.

#Check that it has no managing "parent server" otherwise you configuration will be overwritten by the parent server within hours or days.
#Check Selected Files Only instead of All Files
#Remove "OV?" from the list of Selected Files
#Add NEOSYS folder to list of folders to excluded
#Add OV and LK to the list of file extensions to be excluded

Important Note: Symantec / Norton Email Scanners (outgoing and incoming) can corrupt Neosys backup files if you email them as attachments.

== AVG Anti-Virus ==

It is best advisable to use AVG Anti-Virus program which does not interfere with Neosys files if they are excluded. Also the Email Scanner does not create any problem as noticed in using Symantec / Norton.

[[Image:avg_anti_virus.jpg]]

== Checking if disabling OV files speeds up Neosys ==

You can test the diskspeed in NEOSYS by pressing F5 and typing FILESPEED to see how long it takes to create and delete 1000 records in a temporary file. You can repeat this to get an average.

You can disable AV for a while to check if the AV is getting in the way despite neosys being "excluded" according to the av options. Even disabling the AV does not always get back all the speed. Sometimes removal of the AV completely gets back the speed.

AV is not really necessary on computers dedicated to NEOSYS and can be removed.

Using FILESPEED and AV disabling you can tell if your attempts to configure exclusion of NEOSYS are successful or not.

Benchmarking NEOSYS

2008-08-01T18:49:29Z

WikiSysop: 3 revisions

=== Measuring the speed of NEOSYS on the server ===

In NEOSYS maintenance mode press F5:

FILESPEED

Measures the speed at to create and delete a file with 1000x1Kb records - lower time is better

Example speed is 1 second on a high quality notebook 7200rpm Hitachi deskstar
Speeds less than 8 seconds are acceptable for small installations
Speeds less than 4 seconds are acceptable for larger installations
Antivirus usually needs to be configured to exclude OV or OV? files. See section [[Configuring Antivirus for NEOSYS]]

PROCSPEED

Measures the processor speed – higher speed is better

Example speed is 540K tests per second on an Intel Core Duo 1.8Ghz

MEMSPEED

Measures the memory speed – higher speed is better

Example speed is 27K tests per second on an Intel Core Duo 1.8Ghz with
667MHz DDR 2 SDRAM

=== Benchmarking the speed of NEOSYS over the network ===

=== Getting CPU characteristics ===

Intel Processor Identification Utility

http://downloadfinder.intel.com/scripts-df-external/confirm.aspx?httpDown=http://downloadmirror.intel.com/df-support/7838/eng/pidenu12.msi&agr=N&ProductID=528&DwnldId=7838&strOSs=All&OSFullName=All%20Operating%20Systems&lang=eng

Administering NEOSYS Server

2008-08-01T18:49:29Z

WikiSysop: 5 revisions

[[Closing NEOSYS services]]

[[Clearing File Locks]]

[[Scheduling a reboot of the server]]

Main Page

2008-08-01T18:43:47Z

WikiSysop:

<big>'''This is the Technical Support NEOSYS Wiki.'''</big>

== Technical ==

[[Installing NEOSYS]]

[[Moving NEOSYS]]

[[Upgrading NEOSYS]]

[[Configuring NEOSYS]]

[[Monitoring NEOSYS]]

[[Administering NEOSYS Server]]

[[Troubleshooting NEOSYS]]