A:The following instructions will help you update your program using the Help | Check for Program Updates feature.
Update the first PC
When updating the PDS programs, on a Windows XP/2000/2003 PC you must be logged on as an Administrator (to the local PC, not the network). In other words, you must have local administrator privileges.
Temporarily disable any anti-virus software running on the PC to be updated. If you are unsure how to do this check the system tray in the bottom-right corner of the screen, by the clock. In the system tray, look for any icon that resembles a shield of any color. Use the mouse to hover over these icons to get a description. If one of these is anti-virus software, right-click on the icon and look for a setting to disable real time scanning. If right-clicking doesn't work, try double clicking the icon.
Start program and click File | List of Users Currently in Program. If there are other users in the program, everyone else must exit the PDS Office Programs.
Make a backup of the data. From the menu bar select Backup/Restore | Backup Current Data.
From the menu bar select Test/Fix | Fix Damaged Data. The update will make changes to the database. Resolve any issues first.
Connect to the Internet. If using a dial-up connection, the update may take 30 minutes or more to download completely.
Click Help | Check for Program Updates, then click on the 'Check' button.
If a newer version is available, click on the 'Yes' button to start the update.
A page on our website will appear on their screen indicating that their program is being updated. Click on the PDS Office program running on their taskbar to view the download/update progress.
When complete, the update process will indicate that the program must be restarted. Click on the 'OK' button and wait for the program to restart itself. DO NOT click the program icon. Wait for the program to restart itself.
Once the program restarts, a grey box should appear informing them that their program is being updated to the latest version. Now take a break. It may be up to an hour to update the database. Wait and do nothing until the program completely loads. DO NOT press Ctrl+Alt+Delete | End Task even if you think the program has locked up or the Task Manager reports that the program is Not Responding. The upgrade is working very hard. If you interrupt it, you will need to use the Rescue program to restore from your previous backup and wait again while the program updates the database. You must not try to skip this step!
Once the program has loaded, Click Help | About... Verify the version number and letter. The program should now be updated.
Exit the program, and restart using the icon. Again, double check the version on the Help | About screen. If you're back to the old version, the P= parameter in the icon target needs to be corrected. This must point to the copy of the program.
If you have other PCs on the network to update, go to the next PC to be updated and follow the steps below: Only launch one copy of the program at a time until all workstations are updated.
Updating remaining PCs on network after running initial 'Check for Program Updates' process
When updating the PDS programs, on a Windows XP/2000/2003 PC you must be logged on as an Administrator (to the local PC, not the network). In other words, you must have local administrator privileges
Temporarily disable any anti-virus software running on the PC to be updated. If you are unsure how to do this check the system tray in the bottom-right corner of the screen, by the clock. In the system tray, look for any icon that resembles a shield of any color. Use the mouse to hover over these icons to get a description. If one of these is anti-virus software, right-click on the icon and look for a setting to disable real time scanning. If right-clicking doesn't work, try double clicking the icon.
Start the program to be updated. You should see a dialog box informing you of a new update available on the network.
Click the 'Yes' button to start the updates. Note: The update no longer needs to download files from the Internet. The update files are in the Update folder (at the same level as the Data folder) on the server. Therefore, this should not take as long as the first PC.
When complete, the update process will indicate that the program must be restarted. Click on the 'OK' button and wait for the program to restart itself. DO NOT click the program icon. Wait for the program to restart itself.
Once the program has loaded, Click Help | About... Verify the version number and letter. The program should now be updated.
Exit the program, and restart using the icon. Again, double check the version on the Help | About screen. If you're back to the old version, the P= parameter in the icon target needs to be corrected. This must point to the copy of the program.
If you have other PCs to update, exit the program, go to the next PC to be updated, and repeat steps A though G above.
