Qasper
IMPORTANT: For corporate/workgroup installations, read Administrator - Getting Started and Technical installation information first. That page contains information vital to properly setting up Qasper and managing users.
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Late additions (click here or scroll to bottom for details) The following functions/features were recently added/ updated to Qasper's administration function. |
Quick reference:
Administration
Click the Administration icon from the main menu to display the Administration menu. Select the Administration icon from that menu to access the Administration module. If you not logged in as administrator, clicking this button will have no effect (not applicable to Qasper Personal).
For Qasper Office online, this module can be accessed only by the administrator. The user name must always be administrator.
Use the Administration module to customize fields, lists and panels, and to change various settings, modify user profiles and merge contacts.
Administration
If you are using Qasper Personal, you can skip this section and go to the [Lists] tab section following.
As administrator, we recommend you change the default password for the administrator, so that others cannot access the administration module. The initial password is administrator.
To change the password, log in as administrator and go to the Admin module. Click [User profiles], locate the Administrator user in the list then click [Get the user].
Change the password to something fairly complex, not related to birthdays, license numbers and so on. It's best to use numbers and upper and lower case characters in the password, and to make it at least 8 characters in length.
After changing the password, click [Save changes].
For detailed information click here.
Periodically, users will be advised that there are updates to Qasper available and will request they contact the Administrator to download those updates.
1. Check Qasper central for system updates:
This action will require everyone currently using Qasper to close down and restart, so it's best done after hours.
a. Enter your registration code and registration EMail address and click [Check for Qasper system updates].
b. Qasper will then check for any updates, download and install them automatically.
c. After this is done, close Qasper and log in again.
Note: Qasper will perform a bit slower than normal as you move from module to module for the first time after updating, since it has to compile each module as it loads them.
2. Check local update files:
This action will check for any unapplied database definitions. Click [Check for database updates] to perform the check and have any new definitions applied.
[Settings] tab
Use the drop down list to select a setting. Enter the new value the the "Set the value" area. Click [Save settings] each time a value is changed.
Key settings:
Email path: the path name required by the host SMPT server.
Email name: the email name and address of the administrator.
StoreDocsAsFiles: designate whether documents are to be stored as files in a folder on the server or directly into the database as a field in a database record. If you are unsure, store the documents as files. Ensure a folder named documents exists in the web folder of the server.
Other settings are self-explanatory.
Customize the contents of various lists in Qasper Office. The list group displays as [module]:[field name]. For example, the administration list might be:
This corresponds to the Categories in Time and Charges:
Select a list group from the drop down list.
Click [Delete this item] to remove the list group and its list contents. Several list groups cannot be deleted. Several list groups mandate a minimum number entries. Several list groups mandate certain values in certain positions. Read the Notes section for more information.
Enter a value in the "List item description" box. Click [Add above to the list below] to add the value to the list.
Click on a value in the list. Click [Move up] to move it up in the list; [Move down] to move it down; [Remove] to delete it from the list.
Add or modify the Notes box by typing in reminder information.
Click [Update database] to save changes; [Cancel changes] to cancel changes.
Note: if you add a new custom field that is a list type, you should then return to this tab and populate the contents of the list.
Fields:
To customize fields, click the required table from the "Select the table to work with" drop down list. The "Available fields:" list will be automatically populated.
Contacts Table - If the table is Contacts, several custom areas will be available:
Contacts-Main: Choose this option to cause custom fields to be added to the main contact screen. In the following example, the fields "Spouse" and "Sub type" are custom fields and follow the standard fields on the contact form.
Note that "Sub type" is a drop down list. In the Lists tab the Administration module, the list is automatically added:
When selected, content can be added, like this:
Contacts-Custom1 through Contacts-Custom10: Choose one or more of these options to create custom groups that display in their own panel.
Select any option, add a Panel Label and fields to create a custom group of fields that display in their own panel.
For example, in the above and following, Contacts-Custom1 has been customized to produce a group for Home information:
Reassign a custom Contacts field to a different group by selecting a new destination from the "Move this field to: " drop down list, then clicking [Save changes to this field]:
Other tables:
Selecting a table other than Contacts and creating custom fields will cause those custom fields to be added to the main screen of the applicable module. For example:
And:
Produces this result on the Actions form:
Field handling:
Click on a field in the "Available fields:" list.
Click [Move up] to move the field up in the list; [Move down] to move it down. Where the field is located in the list determines where it appears when the custom fields are displayed in the applicable module.
Add/modify/delete fields:
Click [New field] to begin a new field definition. If a field is selected in the "Available fields:" list, click [Delete this field] to delete it (action is irreversible). Click [Cancel] to cancel all changes, or click into the checkbox beside the [Cancel] button to have all changes automatically cancelled when the next action is taken.
Enter a "Field name". The name should be short and descriptive. Use upper and lower case to identify words within a field name. For example, "SpouseName". Note: if spaces are left between words, Qasper will automatically remove them and capitalize each word. For example, if the field name is "spouse name", Qasper will change it to "SpouseName".
Select a "Field type" appropriate for the type of field you are defining.
Enter a "Field label" - the display name for the field.
Click the "Indexed field?" checkbox if the field is to be indexed.
Click the "Hide field?" checkbox if the field is not to be displayed.
Click the "Display as list?" checkbox if the field is to contain a list. After saving the field with this selection, click the [Manage lists] tab to select the field and enter list values.
Enter the "# of characters in this field" (expected size). This is required only if the Field type is "String".
Enter the "# of display lines to use on the form" (expected height). Where the field is a memo, it could contain several words and should have more height than a 1 line display has.
If the table is the Contacts table, a "Move this field to: " drop down list will display. Select from the list and click [Save changes to this field] to move the field to a different custom Contacts group.
Click [Save changes to this field] to save the changes.
The Grids section allows you to change the left to right order and column name of columns in various grids used in Qasper, set justification, width and to show or hide them.
Click on a column name in the list and click [Move up] and [Move down] to change the display order.
Use the drop down list to select a column. Enter a column name in the "Column label" area, and select the settings you require.
Always click [Save column settings] whenever you make a column change.
[User profiles] tab
Control users' and resources' information through this section.
A resource is a user that appears only in the appointment calendar and does not otherwise have any rights in Qasper. A resource has an authority level of "Resource" (a numeric value of 90) when selected from the Authority level drop down shown below.
Designating a user as a resource allows you to schedule assets and similar resources. For example, a resource might be your boardroom and you might have a first name of "The" and last name of "Boardroom", with a resource authority level.
Or you might have some leased cars available for others' use. You can add them as a resource then use the calendar to schedule their use.
For example, below is a boardroom resource.
All users can see the resources' calendars when a user opens his/her calendar by selecting from the drop down list:
User administration
Start a new user by clicking [New user]. Enter First name, Last name, User name, Password and Charge rate (if applicable).
Remove a user by selecting a user, clicking [Get the user] then clicking [Deauthorize this user].
Select a security level (to establish viewing privileges), change the user's name and/or password, if required. Change the offline status and set a charge rate for time and billing
Prevent user from changing allowed modules [ ]
If this checkbox is selected, it prevents the user from changing any module selections in his/her Home page.
To restrict the user's access to the modules you want:
1. [Get the user] to display the user.
2. Uncheck this checkbox and [Save changes].
3. Log in using that user's log in credentials.
4. Go to the Home page and select [Preferences, My Modules and other settings] > [My modules].
5. Select the modules you want the user to have access to.
6. [Save module settings].
7. Log back in as administrator and return to the Admin module.
8. Select [User profiles].
9. Reselect the user.
10. Click this checkbox.
11. [Save changes].
[Merge contacts] tab
Merge one contact and all related records into another contact.
Use this section to perform contact merges. For example, a duplicate contact may have been set up, along with Connection, Action, Help Desk, Document, Orders and Project records and it is required that the contact be merged with another contact.
The merge will reassign the aforementioned records to the designated contact.
Note: the merger will NOT merge any fields from the source contact record into the target contact record. It only merges the specific aforementioned records. If there is field information on the source contact that you require on the target contact, use the Memorize and Paste function (click the [Paste memorized] button in that function) in the Contacts module to move the information before carrying out the merge.
[Database] tab
Managing your database.
[Back up] tab
Click [Back up] to have your database backed up as an industry-standard XML file, including schema. The file is saved to the db_bak folder with the name backup_database_yyyy-mm-dd.XML where "yyyy-mm-dd" is today's date.
You can then access the db_bak folder to copy the file to a secure offsite location. Use an FTP program like http://www.smartftp.com for this purpose.
The file can also be used in the Restore process.
[Restore] tab
Restoring a database should be done only by a database expert. You can reach assistance through http://www.qasper.com/qasper_support.htm.
Restoring an XML file to a database requires both an XML backup file (created in the [Backup tab] explanation above) and a target database.
Target database:
The target database must be resident on your hosted server (either self-hosted or ISP-hosted). See the example later in this section. You MUST SPECIFY both a BackupDatabaseType and BackupConnectString.
Use extraordinary caution modifying web.config. You must be sure to keep the tags correct and ensure quotes are properly pre-pended and appended with quotation characters.
Unless you thoroughly understand tags and XML structures, do not attempt to modify web.config. Contact an expert to assist you with this function.
The target database is specified in the web.config file as BackupConnectString:
For example, a SQL Server connection string:
- <add key="BackupConnectString" value="DRIVER={SQL Server};SERVER=vbase-v01.prod.server1.net;
- DATABASE=DB_87374;Uid=qcom01;Pwd=abcDEF123;" />
Here are some examples for a Microsoft Access database:
Using DSN:
<add key="BackupConnectString" value="DSN=access_Qasper_Backup;Uid=sa;Pwd=" />
Using FileDSN:
- <add key="BackupConnectString"value=
- "filedsn=d:\hostfolder\mydomaincom\_dsnfiles\access_Qasper_Backup.dsn;
- DBQ=d:\hosting\mydomaincom\access_db\Qasper_Backup.mdb;UID=sa;PWD=;" />
The target database's type MUST BE specified in the web.config file as BackupDatabaseType:
For example: SQL Server:
<add key="BackupDatabaseType" value="MSSQL" />
For example: Microsoft Access:
<add key="BackupDatabaseType" value="MSACCESS" />
1. Click [Restore] to display the database restore option.
2. Click the drop-down list to select the XML backup file.
3. Click [Import the database].
Example 1: Both source and restore databases are on the same host
Your main database is SQL Server, and it's running on a hosted server.
Things you have done to get ready:
- You have created an XML-based backup file named backup_database_2006-07-07 and it is located in the db_bak folder.
- You have also set up a Microsoft Access database named Qasper_backup.mdb and it is resident in a folder named access_db under the host server's root folder.
- You have modified web.config to specify the Access database as a DSN:
<add key="BackupConnectString" value="DSN=access_Qasper_Backup;Uid=sa;Pwd=" />
- You have modified web.config to specify the database type:
<add key="BackupDatabaseType" value="MSACCESS" />
Procedure:
1. The drop-down list displays:
2. Select the applicable XML file and click [Import the database]. Restoring can take some time, particularly if you are importing into an Access database, so be patient.
3. You can then use an FTP program to copy the Access database from the host server to a location of your choice.
Example 2: The source databases is on one host, the restore database is on another.
Your main database is SQL Server, and it's running on a hosted server.
Your restore database resides on another host server (whether it's your own internal server or another ISP host's server) and your restore database is also SQL Server.
Things you have done to get ready:
- You have created an XML-based backup file named backup_database_yyyy-mm-dd and it is located in the db_bak folder on the source host server.
- On the destination host server (not the host server):
You have modified web.config on the destination host server to specify the Access database as a DSN:
<add key="BackupConnectString" value="DSN=access_Qasper_Backup;Uid=sa;Pwd=" />
- You have modified web.config on the destination host server to specify the database type:
<add key="BackupDatabaseType" value="MSACCESS" />
Procedure:
1. Use an FTP program (for example, http://www.smartftp.com/) to locate the XML file on the source host server. Copy the file to a local computer.
2. Ensure a current version of Qasper Corporate/Workgroup is up and running on the destination host server.
3. Ensure a folder named db_bak with no anonymous access and with write privileges exists under the root folder of the destination host server.
4. Using FTP, copy the XML file from your local computer to the db_bak folder of the destination host server.
5. Modify the web.config on the destination host server to specify the BackupConnectionString as explained in the On the destination host server (not the host server) area above. In this case, the BackupConnectString will be identical to the ConnectString property in the web.config file because the target restore database is the main database itself.
6. Run Qasper on the destination host server as administrator and follow the restore procedure above.
7. After restoring the database, modify the BackupConnectString so that it won't accidentally be used again. To do that, change the key name "BackupConnectString" to something like "BackupConnectStringX". For example:
- <add key="BackupConnectString" value="DRIVER={SQL Server};SERVER=vbase-v01.prod.server1.net;
- DATABASE=DB_87374;Uid=qcom01;Pwd=abcDEF123;" />
[Run Script] tab
Running a script should be done only by a database expert. You can reach assistance through http://www.qasper.com/qasper_support.htm.
Use this section to select a script (a file with the extension .SQL) and run it against the target database.