System Requirements for EFS (Electronic Filing System) This manual supersedes all previous versions. Version 3.1

Transcription

1 System Requirements for EFS (Electronic Filing System) This manual supersedes all previous versions. Version 3.1 A publication of:, The information in this document is subject to change without notice. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without the express written permission of Page 1 of 14

2 Recent Updates: System Requirements for EFS v3.1 32/64 Bit O/S: EFS v3.1 is certified for all Microsoft Operating Systems, 32/64 bit. Adobe: EFS v3.1 is certified for Adobe A basic installation consists of the following components: 1. Sever - The administrative part of EFS. The EFS Manager maintains and controls the Indexing Service(s). Each Indexing Service has its own set of Profiles, Lists, Indexes, and Labeled PDF Documents. The EFS Licensing Service Manager maintains and controls the EFS Licensing Service. The number of Indexing Services is licensed. EFS Server should be installed on a dedicated server. Its primary function is file (PDF) serving and indexing. It can be installed on a workstation for light duty standalone and very small workgroup installations. o Requires Server 2003/2008, 32/64 bit o If workstation - XP Pro/VISTA/7 Business Versions, 32/64 bit o Requires.NET 3.5 SP1 or higher o Requires IE 6 or higher o Requires Adobe Reader 8-10 Page 2 of 14

3 2. Labeler The EFS Desktop Scans, Labels, and Saves (Stamps) the PDF Documents. The EFS Desktop has the EFS Viewer built into it. The number of EFS Desktops is licensed (concurrent licensing). EFS Desktop should be installed on dedicated workstations. Its primary function is the scanning and labeling of documents. o Requires XP/VISTA/7 Business Versions, 32/64 bit o Requires.NET 3.5 SP1 or higher o Requires IE 6 or higher o Requires Adobe Reader 8-10 NOTE: The EFS Desktop contains all the basic functionality required to scan and label PDFs. As such, only Adobe Reader is required. If you desired advanced PDF processing/features such as Adobe s Sticky Notes, the EFS Desktop can Launch the PDF into Adobe Acrobat. When the processing is done, you save the modified PDF back into The EFS system. Any workstations that need this functionality will need the EFS Desktop and Adobe Acrobat 8-10).. After Acrobat is installed, we highly recommend installing Adobe Reader 8-10 so that Reader becomes the default PDF handler on that machine. 3. Viewer The EFS Viewer Searches and views the PDF Documents. The number of EFS Viewers is unlicensed (unlimited). EFS Viewer should be installed on workstations. Its primary function is searching for and viewing of documents. o Requires XP/VISTA/7 Business Versions, 32/64 bit o Requires.NET 3.5 SP1 or higher o Requires IE 6 or higher o Requires Adobe Reader 8-10 NOTE: The EFS Viewer contains all the basic functionality required to Search and View labeled PDFs. It uses only copies of the original PDFs, never the originals. As such, only Adobe Reader is required. While it can launch a PDF and pass it onto a full featured PDF program such as Adobe Acrobat; it is only a copy. Any changes WILL NOT be saved back into the EFS. You may install Adobe Acrobat 8 10 if you desire. After Acrobat is installed, we highly recommend installing Adobe Reader 8-10 so that Reader becomes the default PDF handler on that machine. Page 3 of 14

4 Functions Table: Functions EFS Viewer EFS Labeler EFS Server Search and View PDFs Yes Yes Yes * Launch PDFs Yes Yes Yes * Open PDFs Yes Yes Yes * PDFs Yes Yes Yes * Print PDFs Yes Yes Yes * Scan (if TWAIN Scanner attached) Yes Yes * Label PDFs Yes Yes * Add to Lists Yes Yes * Copy PDFs Yes Yes * Manage Indexing Services Yes Manage Profiles Yes Manage Lists Yes Manage Indexes Yes NOTE: * When EFS Desktop installed on Server Other required software: 1..NET 3.5 SP1 or higher 2. IE 6 or higher 3. Adobe Reader 8-10 NOTE: The EFS Viewer (contained in the EFS Desktop and the EFS Viewer) works best with Adobe Reader If Adobe Acrobat is desired, version 8-10 is certified. After Acrobat is installed, we highly recommend installing Adobe Reader 8-10 so that Reader becomes the default PDF handler on that machine. Other hardware: 1. Scanners with a TWAIN driver can scan directly into the EFS Desktop. 2. File Scanners (non TWAIN scanners) must convert the scanned images to a PDF format file and the PDF file needs to be saved to the EFS Indexing HOLD\ScannedPDF folder. C:\EFS Indexing Service\HOLD\ScannedPDF in a typical Standalone installation \\Servername\EFS Indexing Service\HOLD\ScannedPDF in a typical Server installation. Page 4 of 14

5 There are three basic installation scenarios: 1. Standalone One workstation performing all functions. 2. Workgroup (Peer-to-Peer) - Less than 7 workstations and servers in the network. operating systems (Microsoft XP/VISTA/7) allow limited connections to a shared folder or drive and do a poor job of managing these connections. Without a DNS server directing traffic, workstations sometimes lose their connections to the other computers in the workgroup. While small workgroups can function, they can experience disruptions due to lack of network connectivity. Therefore, only those networks with fewer than 7 workstations and servers and very light volume could use a workstation operating system for their EFS Server. While small workgroups can work within the limitations stated above, they are not recommended. 3. Client\Server (Domain) - More than 7 workstations and servers in the network. A server operating system (Microsoft Server 2003/2008, 32/64-bit) must be used. Page 5 of 14

6 EFS Stand Alone Installation Twain Scanner DIS-Imaging Server Server/ Install: EFS Manager, EFS Licensing Manager, EFS Desktop, EFS Viewer ========================== EFS Server Contains. ~Server Functions Manage Licensing Service Manage Indexing Service(s) Manage Indexes Manage Profiles Manage Lists PDF File Server ~All EFS Desktop Functions Scan/Import PDFs Label PDFs Add to Lists ~All EFS Viewer Functions Search Indexes View PDFs Page 1

7 EFS Workgroup Installation EFS Server Twain Scanner EFS Desktop Labeler s Twain Scanner Install: EFS Desktop ========================== EFS Desktop Contains. ~Labeler Functions Scan/Import PDFs Label PDFs Add to Lists ~All Viewer Functions Search Indexes View PDFs Server Install: EFS Manager, EFS Licensing Manager ========================== EFS Server Contains. ~Server Functions Manage Licensing Service Manage Indexing Service(s) Manage Indexes Manage Profiles Manage Lists PDF File Server MFP Install: EFS Viewer ========================== EFS Viewer Contains. ~Viewer Functions Search Indexes View PDFs EFS Viewer Viewer s Page 1

8 EFS Client/Server Domain Installation EFS Server Other Servers Twain Scanner Twain Scanner EFS Desktop Labeler s Twain Scanner Twain Scanner Install: EFS Desktop ==================== EFS Desktop Contains. ~Labeler Functions Scan/Import PDFs Label PDFs Add to Lists ~All Viewer Functions Search Indexes View PDFs Server Install: EFS Manager, EFS Licensing Manager ========================== EFS Server Contains. ~Server Functions Manage Licensing Service Manage Indexing Service(s) Manage Indexes Manage Profiles Manage Lists PDF File Server MFP EFS Viewer Viewer s Install: EFS Viewer ========================== EFS Viewer Contains. ~Viewer Functions Search Indexes View PDFs Page 1

9 System Requirements: EFS Server: (based on 1 to 3 Indexing Services) Minimum Standalone/Workgroup Minimum Client/Server Recommended Client/Server Processor Pentium 4 or above Pentium 4 or above Xeon or above RAM 1 GB - XP See Note 4 2 GB VISTA/7 See Note 4 Disk Space Operating System 100MB for software See Note 1 and Data Space Formula MS XP Pro or VISTA/7 Business/Ultimate 32/64 bit See Note 2 EFS Desktop (Labeler): Minimum Workgroup 2 GB See Note 4 4 GB See Note 4 100MB for software See Note 1 and Data Space Formula MS Server 2003/ /64 bit Minimum Client/Server 100MB for software See Note 1 and Data Space Formula MS Server 2008 R2 64 bit Recommended Client/Server Processor Pentium 4 or above Pentium 4 or above Pentium 4 or above RAM Disk Space Operating System 1 GB - XP 2 GB VISTA/7 100MB for software See Note 3 MS XP Pro or VISTA/7 Business/Ultimate 32/64 bit See Note 2 - EFS Viewer: Minimum Workgroup 2 GB - XP 3 GB VISTA/7 100MB for software See Note 3 MS XP Pro or VISTA/7 Business/Ultimate 32/64 bit See Note 2 Minimum Client/Server 2 GB - XP 4 GB VISTA/7 100MB for software See Note 3 7 Business/Ultimate 64 bit See Note 2 Recommended Client/Server Processor Pentium III and above Pentium III and above Pentium 4 or above RAM 1 GB - XP 2 GB VISTA/7 1 GB - XP 2 GB VISTA/7 2 GB - XP 4GB VISTA/7 Disk Space 100MB for software 100MB for software 100MB for software Operating System MS XP Pro or VISTA/7 Business/Ultimate 32/64 bit See Note 2 MS XP Pro or VISTA/7 Business/Ultimate 32/64 bit See Note 2 7 Business/Ultimate 64 bit See Note 2 Page 9 of 14

10 Minimum Requirements: The above guidelines provide information for the minimal requirements to run the EFS software. Although the software may run on hardware and software with lesser capabilities, it will not be supported in those configurations. The minimal requirements provide minimal capabilities allowing for minimal performance of the EFS system. Notes: Note All servers and workstations require:.net 3.5 SP1 or higher IE 6 or higher Adobe Reader 8-10 Note 1 Disk space numbers listed allow for the EFS software only. They are based on typical usage with headroom added to ensure enough disk space. For the EFS Server, see the formulas below to determine your file and index space. Based on your actual file sizes, your result may vary. Note 2 MS XP comes in Home and Professional versions. It is highly recommended that you purchase the Professional version. VISTA/7 comes in several versions and it is highly recommend that you purchase the Business or Ultimate version. XP Professional and VISTA/7 Business/Ultimate have advanced networking and security features that facilitate a more stable and secure network. Note 3 Software disk space requirements are 100 MB but scanning is a memory and processor intensive process. Large amounts of free disk space for temporary files may be required. Faster processors and large amounts of RAM will greatly increase your scanning performance. Note 4 The primary function of the EFS Server is the indexing of, and the file serving of the labeled PDF documents. The rate of new PDFs being adding to the system, the number of Indexing Services and the number of users actively using the system will directly impact the server s performance. It may be necessary to add more RAM and/or add a second processor depending on your requirements. If you are planning to utilize more than 3 Indexing Services, add another 1GB of RAM for each addition 3 Indexing Services. Page 10 of 14

11 Data Space: The following guidelines can be used to predict data space requirements: Documents: 1Mb = 1000Kb A = Average File Size in Kb for a single page, scanned PDF (we use 50Kb but your results may vary) B = Average Number of Pages per Document (File) C = Average Number of Documents (Files) Data Space Required in Mb = A x B x C 1000 Index: They size of the index files depends on the number of documents (files) and how much information is placed on the documents to be indexed. Our studies have shown that you can expect your index size per document to be between 2Kb and 15Kb. a. Minimum Index Space Required in Mb = 2 x C 1000 b. Maximum Index Space Required in Mb = 15 x C 1000 Page 11 of 14

12 Recommendations: Discussion: Moving data to a digital format provides tremendous advantages to a business. It can not be over emphasized how important it is to protect that data. In fact, the more advantages the data brings, the more important it is to protect it. Power Protection: At a minimum, the EFS Server requires a UPS or uninterruptible power supply. This acts like a battery that kicks in seamlessly if there is a power outage. In the case of a power outage and the Server is not protected, the server will shut down instantly with possible corruption of its hard drive(s). Often when the power goes off, it comes back on quickly, and causes a power spike. This can also occur from near lightning strikes and a number of other causes. A UPS will stop power spikes (like a surge protector but better) as well as compensate for power fluctuations. Antivirus: All networks are open to virus attack. Even if not connected to the internet, data is brought into the system, which makes it open to attack. Having antivirus software in place and updated is crucial. Every workstation and server in the network should have antivirus protection. Hardware failure: 1. Lost Data Hardware fails. Using top of line hardware minimizes the risk but all hardware can fail. The primary item that fails in a computer is the hard drive. Hard drives are composed of a number of moving parts, with the most important part, the platter, consisting of a disk which spins at very high speed on ball bearings. If a hard drive has a failure, usually the data on that hard drive is LOST. 2. Lost services In addition you also lose the services it provided until it is fixed and the data is replaced. Page 12 of 14

13 How do you protect yourself from hardware failure? There are a couple different ways to do this. One is redundancy and another is near line backup. Best practices incorporate both of these methodologies. 1. Redundancy Redundancy is a hardware solution that allows for uninterrupted or minimal interruption of services and no data loss in the event of a hardware failure. The three methods of achieving redundancy are RAID 1, RAID 5 and Failover technology. a. RAID 1 is called mirroring. With Mirroring there is an additional hard drive for each hard drive in the computer. Every bit of data written to the primary hard drive is also written to the mirror hard drive. In the case of a hard drive failure the primary hard drive can be replaced by the mirror hard drive. This causes a minimal interruption of services. A properly maintained mirror installation can be recovered within minutes. b. RAID 5 uses multiple disks to store data. Each disk holds part of the data as well as a copy of the data on the other disks. In the case of a hard drive failure the computer continues to operate normally. The backup data on the other hard drives is used until the faulty hard drive is replaced. This is more or less the industry standard. c. FAILOVER uses another computer to provide redundancy. Specialized software is used that copies everything that happens on the main computer to be copied to the failover computer. In the case of the main computer failing (from hard drive or any other reason) the failover takes over the main computers functions allowing your network to continue functioning without interruption. Raid 1 and 5 only protect you from hard drive failure while Failover protects you from hard drive and any other (mother board, controller, power supply, etc.) failure. 2. Near Line Backup Near line backup is a process where the data is copied to another device or computer on the network. This could be a separate server, workstation, or it could be an external USB drive. A near line backup can be very effective on a small network especially because with our system, you only need the documents themselves to have full functionality. If the main Server had a catastrophic failure and if the documents are in near line backup, they can be placed on a different computer and can be re-indexed. NOTE: The time loss for interrupted services depends on the number of documents to be indexed. Page 13 of 14

14 Disaster: Disasters are just that, disasters. This can include theft, fire, flood, hurricanes, tornadoes, and who knows what else. In this case the site where the network is located has been destroyed or compromised. The only way to protect yourself from a disaster is to have a copy of your data OFF SITE. There are a number of ways to maintain a backup of your data off site. 1. Tape backup Data is backed up to a tape each night and that tape is taken off site daily. 2. Other hardware backup Similar to a tape backup, a system using USB drives could be used. 3. Off Site online backup service Backups of you data can be taken over the internet. This has the advantage of not requiring an individual to physically take tapes or disks off site. 4. Off Site mirroring Using technology similar to failover - the data on the main server can be replicated to an off site location in real time, meaning that as soon as data changes on the main server it is replicated to the mirror site. 5. Off Site Failover Using the same technology as the failover discussed in the redundancy section, the main server can be copied to a server in a different location. In the case of a disaster that server could then operate as the main server. This is an option for offices with multiple locations. If the main server is kept in location A, a failover server could be located at location B. In the case of a disaster at location A, users could work at location B using the failover server. Page 14 of 14