Alan,

Are you getting that info from the network installation docs? If so, they're leading you astray. What you need to do is install onto the server first using the network installation CD. If you have a SQL Server instance on there already, make sure you select it during the install process. Once this is done you should get a WorkstationSetip.exe in the Recorder 6 directory. You then need to run this (with admin privs) on each of the workstations you'd like to install on.

Documentation - I'm looking at the Network Installation Guide which is on the 6.7.29 CD. There is no description that I can see of the network install process as you describe. There is a page describing how to migrate from MSDE to SQL Server, and a listing of file and folder locations for standalaone and network installations. The only mention of WorkstationSetup.exe is in this latter section where it says "In addition
WorkstationSetup.exe, the installation file required to install a workstation to use this server folder."

I guessed (wrongly as you have explained) how the installation works from the "Welcome" screen listing of 3 steps.

To recap my situation now -

I've skipped Step 1, since I have an existing SQL Server 2005 installation

I've carried out Step 2 "Create the Recorder 6 database and attach it to your instance of SQL Server" on the machine running SQL Server

I've tried to carry out Step 3 "Recorder 6 Server installation (on the server) but when I try to select my SQL Server instance a dialog pops up "Failed to get data for LoginMode". The install then packs up.

Having looked at the documentation again I guess using Trusted Connection should be OK.

Any further help, please?

Alan

Thanks Rob for this. Somewhat discouraging, but best to be forewarned! 

Alan

Thanks Charles. I'll give this a whirl.

Alan

.. but if I enter the FULL server name, including host name, it goes ahead. Phew - one more hurdle overcome!

Hi Alan,

Compared with what you've just gone through, this bit should be simple.

First thing to do is map your workstation to the server. At this point ensure you have logged in as admin & have full permissions on all folders, sub-folders etc on both machines (and the network!).

Open your new mapped drive & you will see WorkstationSetup.exe at the bottom of the folder called, in our case 'Recorder 6 Server on B Drive', double-click & follow the now familiar setup screens.

If it's running properly, this should take no more than 10 mins before asking for a reboot.

Sorry to hammer on about permissions, but after the past 5 months, it's the key thing to screwing this setup into the ground!

Cheers now, Rob.

When you say it cannot connect to the server, what does it say exactly? Are there any error messages?

Charles

So why don't I just transfer the data files to te SQL Server 2005 instance, change the workstation registry entry, and forget about the MSDE instance?  I hear you ask. That's what I'm going to do (having sat out in the sun for 5 mins and thought about it).

The data files DID get attached, this was not the problem. And I've just swapped the data files over to the SQL Server instance, and everything seems to work.

One other thing I had to fix though - originally I changed the Registry entry on the workstation with the host name of the server in its DNS form - this didn't work. But when I cahnged it to give the host IP address + SQL Server name - this worked.

Phew!

In the light of Rob's comments though, I'm not complacent. This has all been done with full admin rights, and on VMWare, and with no file server involved - just client and database server. I foresee more complications ahead.

Thanks all for your help.

Alan

Yes, I'm back.

In my original network installation I did the worktation install from an admin account on the client machine. It seems like the install only works for the particular suer its done from, and you have to do a separate install for each (Windows) user on any one machine. Correct?

Now I want to check that I can set up a bog-standard user with the workstation. But when I try to do the workstation install it just freezes at "Editing Registry Settings: database password". Any suggestions please?

Also I've realised that there is no actual client application installed on the client machine - the appliction is run from the server via the mapped network drive. Can someone confirm this is the way it is supposed to work, or have I missed something? It does seem a rather primitive form of networking. Are there any plans for a separate client application (i.e. an exe actually running on the client machine)?

Cheers

Alan

Thanks once again Rob.

There's obviously a lot that's unsatisfactory about this. For a start off our systems administrators here won't be happy about giving a large chunk of staff admin rights in their Windows accounts. And our network admin is VERY unhappy about this architecture.

I assume there is a reason the following suggestio won't work - install Recorder onto the workstation, then manually move the database from a local MSDE to a remote SQL. This would leave  the Recorder application exe, etc on the "client" PC, but the database would be on the remote SQL Server. No go?

Alan

A few points I think I need to clarify:

1) In our setup at least, you should install Recorder 6 Server (obviuosly as administrator), then install the workstation (once) also as administrator.  Having done that, you can run Recorder 6 workstation on any account, even one that is not local machine administrator. It is possible that something else about your 'restricted' accounts is blocking something Recorder nees access to.  Charles (if you're reading this) did you ever get round to trying out the registry or file monitor tools to find out what access problems occur when running under a non-admin account?

2) Having the Recorder exe sitting on the file server does not mean that the exe does not run on the client, it just means that when you run Recorder it is brought across the network to the client.  This approach in fact it means there is less to install and less to do when you need to upgrade (i.e. you run the upgrade once, not once on each workstation). From a network admin point of view this is much better than having to upgrade all clients.