- The Retail Solution
- Network Setup
- One station will act as the information distribution point for all other stations. This station can be a standalone system (dedicated file server) or one of the systems you will be using in your store (workstation/file server). Whether you’re using a dedicated file server or a workstation/file server, from this point on we will call it your file server. All stations (including your file server) connect to a hub, router or switch using CAT 5 or CAT 6 cable.
- The next step is to tell your file server to share its information with the other stations. This is called “Network Rights” and FULL rights must be granted to The Retail Solution data folder. Look at some of the links below for more information on how to do this with your version of Windows. If you’re using Novell, Linux or some other file server operating system, refer to your OS manual for more information. Also note that most file server rights are granted on a per-user basis. This is not The Retail Solution user but the user used for login when starting the station. The most important thing to understand is that if you don’t grant FULL rights to all files in The Retail Solution data folder for the user that logs into the remote station, it will not work correctly.
- The next step is to create a drive letter that points to your data on the file server. Hopefully you can remember back to your High school algebra (X=1) days. In the network world, it’s called “Drive Mapping”. For example, drive “N:” on the remote station equals drive “C:” on the file server. If you saved a file to the “N:” drive on your remote station, the file would be on your file server. Drive mapping is done using the “Tool” option in “My Computer”. Each remote station needs a mapped drive to the file server. Its important to note that ALL stations MUST point to the same data. If drive “N:” is mapped to “C:\TRS” on one station and drive “N:” is mapped to “C:\TRSDATA” on another, the two stations will NOT be sharing the same information.
- The following is a simple test to confirm that all stations are sharing the same information: From the PowerStation, select the “Help” menu option. Then select “Start Station Test”. A red screen will appear. Repeat this set on ALL remote stations. On the file server, start the Manager’s Workstation. Select “Control:Company Information” from the Main Menu. At the Company Information window, select “Send Station Test” from the Help menu. All remote station screens should turn green. If not, the station is not pointing to the same data.
- Setting up your network is not part of our support service, but we hope this information is helpful. We have also included the following links for more information. If you find other links that were helpful, please let us know.
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