Shutting Down and Backing Up

Remember to make a back-up before shutting Books by HansaWorld down.

To shut Books by HansaWorld down, select 'Quit' from the Books menu (Mac OS X) or the File menu (Windows). You can also use the ⌘-Q (Mac OS X) or Alt-F4 (Windows and Linux) keyboard shortcuts. All open windows will be closed, and you will be asked if you want to keep any changes that have not yet been saved.

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Backing Up

When the day's work with Books by HansaWorld is done, we advise you to make a back-up. It is a good idea to save a copy of the file on a diskette and store it in a safe place. It might seem unnecessary to make a back-up every day, but the short time this takes is a good investment for the day something goes wrong with the hard disk.

To back up your data is particularly important when, as in the case of a Books by HansaWorld database, the financial information of your company is involved. If you should lose all your data, you will find yourself in a very awkward situation, missing all invoices, receipts, reports etc. Make sure you make a back-up each time you have been working with your accounts. Name your copies systematically with dates so that you can easily restore the database, should an accident occur.

If you get a virus on your computer, you must first try to establish the date when your computer was infected. In this case you must restore your data from a back-up created before the infection date. Otherwise you run the obvious risk of re-infecting the computer again.

Books by HansaWorld's method of backing up is fast and economical. The data will be saved in a back-up file that takes up a minimal amount of space, and the back-up files are independent of the program versions. This means that restoring from a back-up file will be successful, even if you have updated the version of your Books by HansaWorld application since making the back-up. This is known as the "text back-up" method of backing up. You can create text backups yourself (described below on this page), or you can have them created automatically every day at the same time (described here).

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Use Books by HansaWorld's built-in back-up feature to guarantee a successful restoration.

You can also copy the database file as it appears on your hard disk. While copying the database file can play an important part in your back-up strategy, note that restoring from a copied database will not be successful if you have updated the version of your Books by HansaWorld application since making the back-up.

You must also carry out regular checks to make sure you can restore your database from the resulting back-up files or database copies.

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Regularly check that you can restore from your back-up files.

To create a text back-up, follow these steps:

  1. Use the [Module] button in the Master Control panel or the ⌘-0 (zero) (Mac OS X) or Ctrl-0 (Windows) keyboard shortcut to go into the System module.

  2. Click the [Routines] button in the Master Control panel and then [Exports]. Alternatively, use the ⌘-E (Mac OS X) or Ctrl-E (Windows) keyboard shortcut. The 'Exports' window will be opened:

  3. Double-click 'Company Text Backup' (if you wish to back up the data in the database relating to the single Company currently selected) or 'Database Text Backup' (if you wish to back up the whole database).

    Usually you should use the 'Database Text Back-up' option, as this is the only choice that backs up the entire database. You must use it regularly for your safety and peace of mind. Some registers and settings (e.g. the Configuration setting) are stored at database level, not Company level. These will not be exported by the 'Company Text Back-up' option, even if your database only contains a single Company. Attachment links also will not be exported by the 'Company Text Back-up' option. This option is intended for use in the situation where you need to move all the information relating to a specific Company from one database to another.

  4. The 'Specify Text Backup' window appears. Here you can enter a description of the back-up file that you are about to create. You can use up to 40 characters. If you later need to restore from a back-up, this description will be shown in the list of importable files to help you select the correct one.

    Enter an appropriate description and click [Run].

  5. If you have chosen to back up the whole database and you have more than one Company, you will now be asked to log in to any that you have not yet used in this work session. For reasons of security, if you are not able to log in to every Company, the back-up procedure will be halted. After logging in to every Company, return to the 'Specify Text Backup' window illustrated in step 4 to continue the backing-up procedure (the 'Specify Text Backup' window will be hidden behind the Master Control panel).

  6. A dialog box will open, allowing you to name and place the export file. Enter the name of the file in the filename area and locate it in the appropriate folder or directory in the usual way. The name of the back-up should include the date the back-up was made. For ease of importing later, it is recommended that you do not include spaces or other non-alphabetic characters in the name of your back-up file, and that you give it a .txt extension. Then, click [Save].

    A message window informs you about the progress of the export.

When the export is finished, you are brought back to the 'Exports' list. Close it using the close box.

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Under no circumstances should you edit or change a back-up file with another program.


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Automatic Timed Back-ups

The importance of establishing a regular routine for backing up cannot be emphasized enough. Like all financial systems, Books by HansaWorld uses a single file database in which all your data about customers, invoices, general ledger etc. is stored. If you lose that file, you have lost not just a single document, but all your accounting and customer information.

To make this task easier, Books by HansaWorld contains a timed back-up feature allowing a database text back-up file to be created automatically every day. To specify when the back-up files are to be created, and where they are to be stored, follow the steps outlined below.

  1. Select 'Technics' using the [Module] button in the Master Control panel or the ⌘-0 (zero) (Mac OS X) or Ctrl-0 (Windows) keyboard shortcut. In multi-user systems, if you are working on a client machine, you should log in as a system administrator (i.e. as a Person that has access to the Technics module), as described at the bottom of the Access Groups page.

    If 'Technics' is not included in the list of modules when you click the [Module] button in a single-user system, this will probably be because you have not granted yourself access to the Server module in the Configuration setting.

  2. Click the [Settings] button in the Master Control panel or use the ⌘-S or Ctrl-S keyboard shortcut. In the subsequent list, double-click 'Timed Operations'. The following window appears:

  3. Set the Start Time (the time when the backup is to take place) to the appropriate time, when it is likely that you will not be using Books by HansaWorld. Use the 24-hour clock, and place a colon (:) between the hour and the minute. The back-up file will be created at the specified time, even if you are still logged in to Books by HansaWorld. However, you will find the speed of operation to be much reduced while the back-up is being carried out. It is therefore highly recommended that you specify a time that is outside working hours, to minimize such inconvenience.

  4. Specify the Database Backup Path, which determines where on your hard disk the back-up files are to be saved. If you leave this field blank, the back-up files will be saved in the folder containing the Books by HansaWorld application.

    The following examples show the correct syntax for the Database Backup Path. You can use either \ or / as a separator between folder names. Note that the separator appears as the final character in the path.

    It is recommended that you save the back-up file in a folder or directory named "Backup" which will be inside the "books.hdf" file (Mac OS X) or in the same directory as the Books by HansaWorld application (Windows). You can do this using a relative path:

    backup/
    If you want to store the back-up file somewhere else, use absolute paths with the following syntax:
    Mac OS X
    /samplefolder1/samplefolder2/Backup/

    Windows
    c:/samplefolder1/samplefolder2/Backup/
    Note that if you make a mistake (for example, you make a syntax error or specify a non-existent folder) there is a risk that the back-up file will not be created.

  5. Click the [Save] button in the Button Bar to save the back-up specifications.
Once you have set up the timed back-up feature as described above, a new back-up file will be created automatically every day at the same time. It will be given the name "TBYYMMDD.TXT" where "YYMMDD" represents the current date. The file will contain a back-up comment stating that it was created by timed back-up and showing the date and time this occurred.

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Restoring from a Back-up

Restoring from a back-up is a non-destructive process, i.e. the back-up file is not affected by the reading process. This means that you can use the same back-up file more than once.

Follow these steps:

  1. If you are using Mac OS X:

    1. Locate the "Books.hdf" file on your hard disk. It will be stored in one of two places, as follows:

      • If you have placed the Books by HansaWorld application in your 'Applications' folder as is recommended, the "Books.hdf" file will be stored in Home/Library/Application Support/HansaWorld.

      • If you have placed the Books by HansaWorld application somewhere else (i.e. not in the 'Applications' folder or in a sub-folder in 'Applications'), the "Books.hdf" file will be stored in the folder containing the application.

    2. Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard and click on this file. When the menu appears, choose 'Show Package Contents'. A window will open, listing the contents of the "Books.hdf" file. Move the "HANSA.HDB" file out of the package. If you need to restore your database using a text back-up file stored in the "Backup" folder in the package, move this text back-up file out of the package as well.

    If you are using Windows, remove the Books by HansaWorld database file (named "HANSA.HDB") from the directory containing your Books by HansaWorld application. Ensure, however, that the "DBDef.txt" and "Default.txt" files are present.

    In both cases (Mac OS X and Windows), leave the "Attach" folder and its contents in place, otherwise all attachment links will be lost after restoring.

  2. Double-click the Books by HansaWorld application. As there is no "HANSA.HDB" file in place, a new database will be created.

    !

    It is important to restore to a new, empty database, to avoid mixing the restored data with the old, damaged database.

  3. When the 'Welcome' window appears, click the [Import backup] button:

  4. When the 'Open File' dialog box opens, locate and open the back-up file in the normal way. The back-up data will be imported.
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Updating from Previous Versions of Books by HansaWorld

The latest version of Books by HansaWorld is always available for downloading at books.hansaworld.com. Clicking the [Books by HansaWorld.com] button in the top right-hand corner of the Master Control panel will take you to this site.

Inevitably, new versions of Books by HansaWorld will incorporate significant structural changes. Because of this, it cannot be guaranteed that they will be able to use database files created by previous versions. You must export a text back-up file from the old database and import it to a new database created using the new version of the program.

Follow these steps to update:

  1. Before installing the new version, create a Database Text Back-up as usual and as described here using the old application.

  2. Install the new version of Books by HansaWorld.
If you are using Mac OS X, follow steps 3-5 below and then proceed to step 8. If you are using Windows, follow steps 6-7 and then proceed to step 8.
  1. Locate the "Books.hdf" file on your hard disk. It will be stored in one of two places, as follows:

    • If your old Books by HansaWorld application is in your 'Applications' folder as is recommended, the "Books.hdf" file will be stored in Home/Library/Application Support/HansaWorld.

    • If your old Books by HansaWorld application is somewhere else (i.e. not in the 'Applications' folder or in a sub-folder in 'Applications'), the "Books.hdf" file will be stored in the folder containing the application.

  2. Hold down the Ctrl key on your keyboard and click on the "Books.hdf" file. When the menu appears, choose 'Show Package Contents'. A window will open, listing the contents of the "Books.hdf" file. Move the "HANSA.HDB" file out of the package. If the text back-up file that you created in step 1 is stored in the "Backup" folder in the package, move this text back-up file out of the package as well.

  3. You should only follow this step if your old Books by HansaWorld application is not in the 'Applications' folder. Make a copy of the "Books.hdf" file, and place the new copy in the folder containing your new Books by HansaWorld application. Make sure the new copy is also named "Books.hdf".

    Proceed now to step 8 below.

If you are using Windows, follow these steps:
  1. Locate the directory containing your old Books by HansaWorld application.

  2. Make a copy of the "Attach" directory, and place the new copy in the directory containing your new Books by HansaWorld application. Make sure the new copy is also named "Attach".

  3. On both platforms, launch the new Books by HansaWorld application. As there is no "HANSA.HDB" file in place, a new database will be created.

  4. When the 'Welcome' window appears, click the [Import backup] button.

  5. When the 'Open File' dialog box opens, locate the back-up file from step 1 in the normal way and open it. The back-up data will be imported.
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