Download Pharos Uniprint 8.4

Pharos Uniprint 8.4
Maintenance Guide
Document Version: UP84-Maintenance-1.0
Distribution Date: July 2013
Pharos Systems International
| Suite 310, 80 Linden Oaks | Rochester, New York 14625 | Phone: 1- 585-939-7000 | US/Canada Toll Free: 888-864-7768 | www.pharos.com
Copyright © 2013 Pharos Systems International, Inc.
Pharos®, Uniprint®, Secure Release Here®, Off-The-Glass®, and making every print an intelligent
decision™ are trademarks or registered trademarks of Pharos Systems International, Inc. The trademarks
and names of other companies and products mentioned herein are the property of their respective
owners.
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Maintenance Guide
Table of Contents
Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 5
About this document ................................................................................................................................ 5
Getting Help .............................................................................................................................................. 5
Pharos Website ..................................................................................................................................... 5
Contact Details ...................................................................................................................................... 5
Uniprint Maintenance Overview ............................................................................................ 6
Monitoring System Health ..................................................................................................... 7
Checking System Status ............................................................................................................................ 7
Services ................................................................................................................................................. 7
Critical Alerts ......................................................................................................................................... 8
System Checks....................................................................................................................................... 8
Monitoring Server Health ......................................................................................................................... 8
Viewing Server Status ........................................................................................................................... 8
Monitoring Alerts and Events Logs ....................................................................................... 10
Viewing Alerts Details ............................................................................................................................. 10
Managing Permissions ......................................................................................................... 11
Synchronizing User Accounts ............................................................................................... 12
Data Archiving ..................................................................................................................... 14
Archive Actions ....................................................................................................................................... 14
Archiving Alerts ....................................................................................................................................... 15
Archiving Computers............................................................................................................................... 16
Archiving Devices .................................................................................................................................... 17
Archiving Transactions ............................................................................................................................ 17
Archiving Users ....................................................................................................................................... 19
Archiving Currently Selected Users ..................................................................................................... 19
Batch Archiving ................................................................................................................................... 20
Managing Backups .............................................................................................................. 21
Pharos Database Backup on SQL Server 2005 ........................................................................................ 21
Scheduling Backup of Pharos Database on SQL 2005 Express................................................................ 21
Using Backup Software ................................................................................................................... 21
Using Volume Shadow Copy (Windows Server 2003)..................................................................... 22
Using a SQL Script ........................................................................................................................... 22
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Maintenance Guide
Writing the SQL script ..................................................................................................................... 22
Scheduling a task to run the script.................................................................................................. 23
Backing up other Pharos components .................................................................................................... 23
Backing up User account information............................................................................................. 23
Print, Popup and SignUp Servers .................................................................................................... 23
Pharos Stations ............................................................................................................................... 24
Client machines ............................................................................................................................... 24
Redundancy Strategies ........................................................................................................................... 24
RAID..................................................................................................................................................... 24
Offline Backup ..................................................................................................................................... 24
Online Backup ..................................................................................................................................... 25
Clustering ............................................................................................................................................ 26
Using Cluster Solutions with Uniprint ............................................................................................. 26
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Maintenance Guide
Introduction
Introduction
About this document
This Guide is intended to assist administrators in administering and maintaining Uniprint 8.4 after it has
been installed and initially configured.
This Guide describes the maintenance tasks required of an administrator such as monitoring services,
viewing alert logs, archiving transaction records, synchronizing user accounts and so on. This Guide also
includes tasks that an administrator must perform on a day-to-day basis.
Getting Help
Below is a list of options for obtaining support in the event you have questions or encounter issues
during or after your installation of Pharos Uniprint.
Pharos Website
The Pharos website (www.pharos.com) contains information about Pharos products, including product
updates, fixes and firmware releases. It also includes the Pharos Knowledge Base, which provides a
comprehensive source of solutions to known problems and issues as well as information around
frequently asked questions. The Knowledge Base is frequently updated to contain the latest
information.
Contact Details
Corporate Headquarters
Phone:
Post-Sales Technical Assistance
888-864-7768
Email:
(toll free US/Canada)
North America:
[email protected]
(585) 939-7000
(877) 848 0397 (toll free)
Fax:
(585) 249-9229
(585) 939-7099
Address:
Suite 310
80 Linden Oaks
Rochester, New York 14625
United States of America
Australia/New Zealand:
+64 9 523 0737
Rest of the world:
+1 (585) 939-7099
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Maintenance Guide
Uniprint Maintenance Overview
Uniprint Maintenance Overview
Once set up, Pharos Uniprint requires very minimal user intervention. However, just like any enterprise
system, performing maintenance activities is necessary to warrant the overall health of your system, to
ensure the accuracy of data on your system and to ensure that the Uniprint system stays up and running
all the time.
In addition to installing and configuring the Pharos system, the administrator is responsible for
administering and maintaining Pharos Uniprint. This section details the most common maintenance
tasks for an administrator. These include:







Monitoring Overall System Health
Monitoring Server Health
Monitoring Alerts and Event logs
Managing Permissions
Synchronizing User Accounts
Archiving Transactions
Managing backups
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Maintenance Guide
Monitoring System Health
Monitoring System Health
The Pharos Administrator provides you with a quick and easy way to monitor the overall health of your
system. The Dashboard context
(available at the top of the Context Tree) shows an overview of the
status of the entire Uniprint system.
The Dashboard context is divided into three sections: System Status, Graphs and Product Information.
The System Status section of the Dashboard screen is the only relevant section to this guide: it gives an
at-a-glance indication of the overall health of the Uniprint system. This information is updated
periodically; however, if you want to update the status information display, you can click the Refresh
button found under the System Status section.
Checking System Status
There are three System Status indicators available in Pharos Administrator: Services, Critical Alerts and
System Checks.
Services
This indicator show the status of the Pharos Services currently running in the system. Clicking this
indicator opens the System > Server Configuration screen where status information on each individual
server is displayed.
This status indicates that all Pharos Services are running.
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Maintenance Guide
Monitoring System Health
This status indicates that some Pharos Services may not be running. Clicking on the status
indicator opens the System > Server Configuration which shows stopped Pharos Services.
Critical Alerts
This indicator shows if any system Alerts with a “Fatal” severity have been received in the last seven
days.
This status indicates that no critical alerts are received.
This status indicates that there are critical alerts that need to be addressed. Clicking on the
status indicator opens the Alerts context which displays Alert details for the entire system.
System Checks
This indicator shows the result of a basic check of the printing system. A problem is indicated if no print
transaction data has been recorded in the last hour.
This status indicates that all system checks are successful.
This status indicates that there is something wrong with a Print Server or with network
communications.
Monitoring Server Health
The Pharos Database contains a record for each of the Pharos Services installed on a Server. Server
entries appear in the System > Server Configuration context of Pharos Administrator automatically
when Pharos Services are installed on them.
Viewing Server Status
Server health checks are performed automatically at regular intervals. To view the status of a server,
click the button next to a server's name. This expands the relevant information on that server and
shows details and statuses of the Pharos Services running on the server.
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Maintenance Guide
Monitoring System Health
The status of a server depends on the statuses of the Pharos Services running on it. The status of each
Pharos Service is indicated by the following icons:
The green icon indicates that everything is working fine. This indicates that all Pharos
Services are running.
The red icon indicates that one or more services in the server have stopped. Start the Pharos
Services that are reporting as Stopped in the Windows Services panels. Contact Pharos Support
prior to doing this as this may have serious repercussions.
The yellow icon indicates an unknown status.
An Unknown status indicates that Pharos Administrator could not receive any information from the
server. This could be caused by a number of things, for example:




Pharos Administrator is unable to connect to the remote server.
The server is taking too long to respond, and the communication attempt times out.
A domain trust relationship does not exist between the server and the PC that Pharos
Administrator is running on.
File and Printer Sharing is not enabled as an exception in the Windows Firewall.
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Maintenance Guide
Monitoring Alerts and Events Logs
Monitoring Alerts and Events Logs
Any system problems that occur are recorded in one of two places: the Windows Events log, and the
Pharos Alerts log. Problems that occur with a Pharos service on startup are written to the Events log;
any other problems with the Pharos system that occur at any other time are listed in the Pharos Alerts
log.
Viewing Alerts Details
Pharos alerts are displayed in the System > Alerts context of Pharos Administrator. There is no
configuration necessary to enable Pharos Alerts in Pharos Administrator.
A number of details are recorded for each alert, which can help to diagnose and remedy the problem
that caused the alert to be generated in the first place.
The following details are logged for each alert, and displayed on the General category of the Alerts
context:




The Logon ID of the user who was logged on at the time of the alert (if relevant).
The network name or IP address of the PC on which the Alert occurred.
The date and time when the Alert occurred.
The particular application or operation causing the Alert, if this information is available.
The following details about the error that resulted in the alert being generated are recorded on the
Error Description category of the Alerts context:



Severity of the error
The numerical error code for the Alert. Refer to the Alert Code Index in the Pharos Help for
more information.
The description of the error captured by the Alert.
In addition it also provides the details about the Server that generated the Alert. It includes the
following Server details:



The Server from where the Alert originated.
The Pharos Service running on the Server with which the problem was associated.
The operation at the time the problem occurred, for example, Startup or Logon.
All Pharos Alerts have an associated error code, which identifies the problem that has occurred. Extra
information for each error code is available in the Pharos Alert Error Codes topic of the Uniprint Help.
Using the Pharos Alert Error Codes search option, you can locate an error code and view the
information associated with it.
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Maintenance Guide
Managing Permissions
Managing Permissions
All user accounts have a role, which determines the permissions they have in the Pharos Uniprint
system. The Administrator user is responsible for assigning roles to user accounts.
For more information about permissions, please refer to the Permissions Technote found in the
Documentation folder of the Pharos disk image.
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Maintenance Guide
Synchronizing User Accounts
Synchronizing User Accounts
Pharos Administrator provides you with a way to synchronize the Pharos Database with an external
system such as Windows Active Directory. Using the Synchronize Users operation, recent information
for users already existing in the Pharos database is gathered from the source file or Windows domain,
and new users are added to the database. At the same time, users are deleted from the Pharos
Database if they no longer exist in the source file or Windows domain.
You can access the Synchronize Users option from the Batch Operations action of the Users > Accounts
context. This option allows details for multiple user accounts to be updated simultaneously from an
external source.
To synchronize user accounts:
1. Go to the Users > Accounts context and select Batch Operations > Batch User Load from the
Actions pane. This opens the Batch User Load Wizard.
2. From the list of operations to be performed, select Synchronize Users.
3. Select how user aliases should be generated. The available options are:

Pharos System Generated - Selecting this option means a default Alias is constructed by the
system from the user’s name details, according to the option selected at File menu >
System Properties > General tab.

Same as Logon ID - Selecting this option uses the Logon ID of the user as the alias.
4. Select the source of user records.

If you selected "ASCII Text File"
a) Enter the full path of the file that contains the list of Users, for example,
C:\temp.txt, or click the Browse button to search for the file.
b) Select how the batch loader should treat new User Groups. The options are
o
Create new User Groups that do not yet exist in the Pharos Database. This creates
new User Groups for any Group in the ASCII source files that are not yet present in
the Pharos Database.
o
Ignore users whose Groups do not match any group in the Pharos Database. This
means that all the users who belong to a User Group that is not yet present in the
database will be ignored and will not be imported to the Pharos Database.
c) Select whether you want to delete, retain, or deactivate user accounts that are not in
the import source.
o
o
o
Delete Pharos Users not included in import source.
Retain Pharos Users not included in import source.
Deactivate Pharos users not included in the import source.
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Maintenance Guide

Synchronizing User Accounts
If you selected Domain Controller Database
a) Enter or select the name of the domain controller PC for the domain you are loading
users from.
b) Select which domain group(s) to process.
o Process all users. Choosing this option will process all the users in the database
regardless of the domain group membership. Proceed to Step 3.
o Process One Group Only. This only adds the users which are part of the selected
group. Proceed to Step 5.
c) Select how users should be put into Pharos User Groups. The options are:
o Extract Group from User Description. Selecting this option obtains all the users with
a “Description” field from the Windows Active Directory and creates new group
using the “Description” as the Group Name. Proceed to Step 4.
o Assign Users to Selected Pharos Groups. Select the group that you want the users
to belong to. The drop-down list shows all the groups that are already in the Pharos
Database. Proceed to Step 5.
d) If you selected "Extract Group from the user description", select how the batch loader
should treat users with blank descriptions.
o Do Not Load User. This means that users with a blank “Description” from the Active
Directory will not be loaded to the Pharos Database.
o Load the user into the following group. This allows you to select the group which
you want users with a blank “Description” be added to.
e) Select whether or not you want to replace the Group membership of existing Users.
o Change existing Users’ Group
o Leaving existing Users in their current Groups
f) Select the users' name format (e.g. First names, a space, last name).
g) Select how the batch loader should treat users with blank Display names in the Active
Directory.
o If you choose Yes, any user that has a blank full name in the Active Directory will not
be included.
o If you choose No, the User’s ID will be taken as their Last Name and they will have
no First Names.
h) Select how user passwords should be generated.
i) Select a billing option.
o If you select Advance, set a default value for all users' balances.
o If you select Arrears, proceed to Step 5.
5. Select whether you want users which have been removed from the source file to be removed or
retained from the Pharos system.
6. Select whether you want to log the results of the batch load operation. Select "Yes" if you want
to keep a log file of the results and enter the name of the log file (or click Browse to locate it).
7. Click OK. The Batch Load User inserts all user accounts into the Pharos Database.
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Maintenance Guide
Data Archiving
Data Archiving
Records (e.g. transactions, devices, users) in the Pharos Database can accumulate over time, and as the
database grows bigger, data performance becomes less efficient. Pharos Administrator lets you archive
older records and/or remove them permanently from the Pharos Database. Archiving records helps you
conserve disk space and makes the remaining records easier to search.
This section describes the archive actions available in Pharos Administrator and the procedures for
archiving. Archiving is available in the following contexts:
 Alerts
 Computers
 Devices
 Transactions
 Users
Archive Actions
The following table describes the actions available in the Archive dialog box.
Archive Action
Copy to a CSV file
Description
Copies records to a Comma Separated Values (CSV) file format (or
series of CSV files) for importing into a database or spreadsheet. This is
appropriate if data is to be used in a spreadsheet for analysis or some
other purpose.
If you want to also delete the records from the database permanently,
select this option together with the “Remove records from the
database” action.
Copy to a text file
Copies records to a text file, which can be printed and easily read by
other users.
If you want to also delete the records from the database permanently,
select this option together with the “Remove records from the
database” action.
Remove records
from the database
This operation deletes records permanently from the database after
archiving is complete. Records can be permanently deleted from the
database along with all interdependent records, leaving the database
clean.
Often a record cannot simply be deleted, as it is referenced by other
records, e.g. a User record may have associated Transactions.
Archiving the record also removes any associated data, ensuring that
no loose ends exist.
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Maintenance Guide
Data Archiving
Archiving Alerts
Follow these steps to archive Pharos Alerts:
1. In the Alerts context Actions Pane, select the Archive option (
Alerts dialog box.
). This opens the Archiving
2. Select one or more archiving actions:

If you select "Copy to a CSV file" and/or "Copy to a text file", enter the path and the
filename for the generated files. You can also click the ellipsis to browse to the directory
path. By default, the directory path is set to C:\Temp\archive.csv or
C:\Temp\archive.txt.

If you select "Remove records from the database", no further action is needed.
3. In the Items to archive, select which Alerts you want to archive:

If you want to archive all the alerts from the Pharos Database, click "Select All Alerts".

If you want to archive alerts within a certain date range, click "Specify a time range".
This makes the Start Time and End Time active.
a. Click the ▼ button at the end of the Start Time and End Time properties. This
opens a calendar control which is used for selecting the date.
b. In the Start Time and End Time properties, specify the date range and the time
criteria.
4. Click OK. The specified records are archived off and written to the specified files, where
relevant.
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Maintenance Guide
Data Archiving
Archiving Computers
Interdependent records are archived along with the computers. This means any PC Reservation
transactions associated with those Computers.
Follow these steps to archive Computers
1. In the Computers context Actions Pane, select the Archive option (
Computers dialog box.
). This opens the Archiving
2. Select one or more archiving actions:

If you select "Copy to a CSV file" and/or "Copy to a text file", enter the path and the
filename for the generated files. You can also click the ellipsis to browse to the directory
path. By default, the directory path is set to C:\Temp\archive.csv or
C:\Temp\archive.txt.

If you select "Remove records from the database", no further action is needed.
3. In the Items to archive, select which Computers you want to archive:

Currently selected items

All Computers in this Branch

All Computers of Group

All Computers of Type
4. Click OK. The specified records are archived off and written to the specified files, where
relevant.
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Data Archiving
Archiving Devices
Interdependent records are archived along with the devices. This means any transaction records
associated with those devices.
To archive Devices:
1. In the Devices Actions Pane, select the Archive option ( ). This opens the Archive Device
dialog.
2. Select one or more archiving actions:
 If you select "Copy to a CSV file" and/or "Copy to a text file", enter the path and the
filename for the generated files. You can also click the ellipsis to browse to the directory
path. By default, the directory path is set to C:\Temp\archive.csv or C:\Temp\archive.txt.
 If you select "Remove records from the database", no further action is needed.
3. Under the Items to archive, select which Devices you want to archive:
 All Printers and MFDs. The archive action will be applied to every Printer and MFD in the
system.
 Currently selected Device(s). This archives currently selected Printers, MFDs or copiers only.
4. Click OK. The specified records are archived off and written to the specified files, where
relevant.
Archiving Transactions
Follow these steps to archive transaction records:
1. In the System > Transactions Actions pane, select the Archive option (
). This opens the
Archiving Transactions dialog box.
2. Select one or more of the following archiving actions: Copy to a CSV file, Copy to a text file, and
Remove records from the database.
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Data Archiving

If you selected "Copy to a CSV file" and/or "Copy to a text file", enter the path and the
filename for the generated files. You can also click the ellipsis to browse to the directory
path. By default, the directory path is set to C:\Temp\archive.csv or
C:\Temp\archive.txt.

If you selected "Remove records from the database", no further action is needed.
3. In the Items to archive section, select which Transactions you want to archive:


If you want to archive all the transactions from the Pharos Database, click "Select All
Transactions".
If you want to archive transactions within a certain date range, click "Specify a time range".
This makes the Start Time and End Time active.
a) Click the ▼ button at the end of the Start Time and End Time properties. This
opens a calendar control which is used for selecting the date.
b) In the Start Time and End Time properties, specify the date range and the time
criteria.
4. Click OK. The specified records are archived off and written to the specified files, where
relevant.
It is possible for an Offline Transaction to be archived before the billing service comes back online and
the Transaction is processed. In this case the Transaction will not be automatically charged back to the
user or card concerned. A Database Alert is raised for every Transaction archived in this way, so that the
Transaction can be processed manually.
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Data Archiving
Archiving Users
Interdependent records are archived along with the users. This means any transactions made by those
users, and any reservations made by those users that have not yet started.
There are two ways to archive Users:


Archive currently selected users
Batch Archiving
Archiving Currently Selected Users
To archive User Accounts using the Archive Action:
Using the normal archive action will only archive the currently selected users. Use the Batch User
Archive action to archive all users.
1. From the Accounts context, select the users that you want to archive. You can also filter users
by Group. Refer to the Pharos online Help for more information about filtering.
2. From the Actions Pane, select the Archive action. This opens the Archive Users dialog box.
3. Select one or more archiving actions:

If you select "Copy to a CSV file" and/or "Copy to a text file", enter the path and the
filename for the generated files. You can also click the ellipsis to browse to the directory
path. By default, the directory path is set to C:\Temp\archive.csv or
C:\Temp\archive.txt.

If you select "Remove records from the database", no further action is needed.
4. Click OK. The specified records are archived off and written to the specified files, where
relevant.
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Data Archiving
Batch Archiving
Batch User Archive allows you to archive all the users from the Pharos Database excluding special users
such as the edicashier, Offline User and the Administrator.
1. From the Account Actions Pane, select Batch Operations > Batch User Archive. This opens the
Archive Users dialog box.
2. Select one or more archiving actions:
 If you select "Copy to a CSV file" and/or "Copy to a text file", enter the path and the
filename for the generated files. You can also click the ellipsis to browse to the directory
path. By default, the directory path is set to C:\Temp\archive.csv or
C:\Temp\archive.txt.

If you select "Remove records from the database", no further action is needed.
3. Click OK. The specified records are archived off and written to the specified files, where
relevant.
Archived User data can be imported into the Pharos Database at a later date using the User Batch
Loader.
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Maintenance Guide
Managing Backups
Managing Backups
Regular and reliable backup of your Pharos system is a key strategy in a maintenance plan to minimize
the risk of losing important data. This section outlines the methods and policies for backing up Pharos
components, as well as providing redundancy solutions for selected components.
Backing up the information stored in the Pharos Database should be done frequently and regularly, to
prevent loss of data, should the Principal Server fail. Other Pharos components should also be backed up
– this includes all servers and client machines. This will be useful, if only to save time restoring them in
case of failure. Backup strategies specific to each type of Pharos component are discussed below.
Pharos Database Backup on SQL Server 2005
A backup process is implemented during the installation of the Pharos Principal Server. The installers
automatically schedule a full database backup to a file (occurs daily at 1:00am). For the backup to run,
SQL Server Agent must be running. This can be confirmed by checking the SQL Server Service Manager.
Scheduling Backup of Pharos Database on SQL 2005
Express
During an installation of the Pharos Database, the Pharos installers attempt to schedule a regular
backup task for the SQL Server database; however, this is not possible when installing on SQL 2005
Express. This section details several ways of manually setting up regularly scheduled backups for a SQL
2005 Express database.
SQL 2005 Express and SQL 2008 Express do not include the
SQL Agent, which is used by the Pharos installers to set up
regularly scheduled backups for the database. Although the
Pharos installers are unable to set up regular backups, it is still
possible to do so manually.
Note: Other editions of SQL Server
include the SQL Agent—this issue
applies to SQL Express only.
Several methods are available:
 Using Backup Software
 Using Volume Shadow Copy (Windows Server 2003 only)
 Using a SQL script
Using Backup Software
In the past, third-party backup software has been unsuitable for backing up SQL Server databases—the
backup images would be corrupted and unusable. SQL 2005, however, includes interfaces that allow
backup software to take usable backups of a SQL Server database, by providing support for the Volume
Shadow Copy Service (VSS). Any third-party backup software that can use the VSS framework will be
able to back up SQL 2005 Express databases.
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Managing Backups
In order to use third-party backup software to backup up a SQL 2005 Express database:


Set the SQL Server VSS Writer service’s Startup Type to “Automatic” and ensure that it is
running.
Instruct the backup software to back up data in the SQL Server directory.
For more information on SQL Server VSS Writer, see the following article:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/sql/2005/sqlwriter.mspx
Using Volume Shadow Copy (Windows Server 2003)
If the SQL 2005 Express database is installed on a Windows 2003 server, you can use Windows 2003’s
own Volume Shadow Copy Service (VSS) support to back up the database:
1. Set the SQL Server VSS Writer service’s Startup Type to “Automatic” and ensure that it is
running.
2. Make sure the SQL Server directory is shared (VSS only backs up shared directories).
3. In Windows Explorer, right-click on the volume that the SQL Server directory is located on and
select Properties.
4. On the Shadow Copies tab of the Properties dialog, click Settings.
5. Configure the location and maximum size of the storage area for backup images (this should be
located on a different volume/disk from the volume being backed up).
6. Click Schedule and configure a schedule of regular backups for the volume.
7. Click OK to close the Schedule dialog. Click OK to close the Settings dialog.
8. In the Properties dialog, click Enable to enable shadow copy for the selected volume.
9. Click OK to close the Properties dialog.
For more details on setting up and configuring Shadow Copy, see the following article:
http://www.computerperformance.co.uk/w2k3/disaster_volume_shadow.htm
Using a SQL Script
If you are not using Windows 2003 and do not have access to backup software, you can write a SQL
script to back up the database, then schedule this script to run at regular intervals.
Writing the SQL script
For information on writing a SQL backup script, see the following article:
http://www.sqldbatips.com/showarticle.asp?ID=27
As an alternative to writing a script manually, you can use the Backup dialog in SQL Server 2005
Management Studio Express to automatically generate a backup script:
1. Open the Backup dialog by right-clicking on a database and selecting Tasks > Back Up…
2. On the General page, select the “pharos” database to back up, and configure other options as
necessary.
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Managing Backups
3. Configure options on the Options page as necessary.
4. When all options are configured, select Script Action to file from the Script menu at the top of
the dialog to save the backup instructions as a SQL script.
For information on using SQL Server 2005 Management Studio Express, see the following article:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/sql/2005/mgsqlexpwssmse.mspx
Scheduling a task to run the script
After writing the script, you must create a Scheduled Task which runs the script using the SQLCMD
command line utility:
1. Start the Scheduled Task Wizard from the Start menu at Accessories > System Tools >
Scheduled Tasks.
2. Click Next on the first screen, then click Browse to locate the SQLCMD.exe utility (which is
usually located at Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\90\Tools\binn).
3. Enter a name for the Scheduled Task and specify how often the task should run, then click Next.
4. Enter a start time for the task and click Next.
5. Enter the details of the account that the task should run as, then click Next.
6. Tick the “Open the Advanced Properties for this task” box, then click Finish.
7. Enter the following text to the contexts of the Run text box, overwriting what is there:
SQLCMD -S .\[instance] -i"[script]"
Where:
[instance] is the name of the SQL Express instance, and [script] is the full name and path of the
SQL script.
8. Click OK. (You may need to enter the account password again.)
Backing up other Pharos components
Backing up User account information
On sites that use internal accounts only, backing up the Database will backup all user accounts. On sites
that use card readers or online billing systems, user account information may be stored elsewhere. In
this case, arrangements must be made to back up this data regularly as well, as it will not be backed up
with the Pharos Database.
Print, Popup and SignUp Servers
Should a Pharos Print Server fail, printing will be disrupted in the area controlled by that server. The loss
of a SignUp Server is less serious, as SignUp Clients are capable of running in standalone mode.
Nevertheless, steps should be taken to restore servers as quickly as possible.
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Maintenance Guide
Managing Backups
Creating backup images of Pharos servers with a tool like Norton Ghost allows machines to be restored
quickly in the event of failure, minimizing downtime. A separate image should be taken for each
machine.
Pharos Stations
Pharos Station software can be re-installed relatively quickly if need be, but a Ghost backup and restore
image should be created, in case of a more severe machine failure. If all Pharos Station machines have
the same hardware configuration, it may be possible to use a single common image and modify it for
each machine once it is installed; otherwise a separate image should be taken for each machine.
Client machines
How client machines are backed up on a site depends on the needs of the organization. If all client
machines have a common configuration, a common Ghost image could be of use.
Redundancy Strategies
As well as backing up machines to allow them to be restored with minimal loss of data, it is also good to
have a redundancy solution of some sort in place, which allows the system to continue functioning while
machines are in the process of being restored, thereby minimizing down time overall. The most
common methods of providing a redundancy solution are:




RAID
Offline backup
Online backup
Clustering
RAID
RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) solutions provide hard disk redundancy by storing data
across an array of connected hard drives, which collectively act as a single storage system. Should one of
the hard drives become corrupted or fail in any way, it can be removed without loss of data. A RAID
solution is recommended for the Principal Server on sites that use internal accounts.
Software and hardware implementations of RAID are available – Pharos Systems recommends a
hardware implementation.
Offline Backup
Creating an offline backup of server machines can reduce downtime. This is done by giving a machine
the same configuration as the server being backed up, including machine name and IP address. The
backup machine must have the exact settings of the original server (this configuration could be done
manually, or through the use of Ghost.)
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Maintenance Guide
Managing Backups
The machine is left disconnected from the network. If the server that it backs up fails, the server can be
disconnected from the network, and the backup connected in its place. This allows the system to
continue operating while the original server machine is restored. Once the original server is running
again, it can be reconnected in place of the backup. The system is only down while machines are being
switched over.
Note that in this system, the backup does not contain current transaction data, and is therefore not
recommended for the Principal Server on sites that use internal accounts.
Online Backup
Online backup solutions are similar to offline solutions, but in this case the backup machine is connected
to the network, and runs alongside the server it backs up. The backup must have a different name and IP
address from the server, which makes swapping the machines over more complicated, but it allows for
data to be backed up at regular intervals, which means that the data on the backup machine is not too
far out of date.
To swap the machines over if the server fails, either swap the names and IP addresses of the server and
backup machines, or reconfigure the other machines on the network to point to the backup.
Principal
Server 1
Principal
Server 1
DNS/ WINS
DNS/ WINS
Server
Online
Server
Online
Backup
Backup
Print Server/
Client
Print Server/
Client
Figure 1: Swapping to an online backup in case of failure of the Principal Server Clustering
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Maintenance Guide
Managing Backups
Clustering
A cluster is a group of independent servers working together as a single system. Using a clustering
solution such as Microsoft Cluster Server effectively creates an online backup, which is switched
automatically on the failure of one of the servers. Should one “node” of the cluster server fail, the other
will automatically take up the tasks it was performing (see Figure 2).
Figure 2: Diagram of a network with a cluster server
Using Cluster Solutions with Uniprint
Uniprint 8.4 supports Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, and Windows 2012 Cluster Server.
Installing server components on a Cluster Server uses the same installation process as a standard server.
However, some additional preparation and post-installation steps are required. For more information
about how to install server components on a Windows Cluster, see “Uniprint Planning and Installation
Guide”.
There are two basic types of cluster support:


ACTIVE/ACTIVE – where services are load balanced by the cluster service.
ACTIVE/PASSIVE – where a primary service runs until failure, when a secondary service
automatically starts and begins to run on the adjoining cluster node.
Note that Pharos services support the ACTIVE/PASSIVE mode of operation only.
For instructions on how to install Uniprint 8.4 in a Cluster, please refer to the "Uniprint 8.4 Planning and
Installation Guide".
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