STXAdminTool

STXAdminTool

Purpose

The STXAdminTool is a powerful utility that will enable you to safeguard the information in your STX database. Using it, you can create backups of your data at any time, even when STX is in use, and can schedule automated unattended backups daily, weekly or monthly. Backups are automatically stored on your server (main) computer, and may also be saved to a CD, flash drive, iDisk or other destination. You can restore the data from any backup and optionally recreate transactions entered after the being restored backup was created.

The STXAdminTool can export your data and then restore it, allowing seamless transfer of data between Intel and PowerPC Macs, should you need to change server computers.

The STXAdminTool allows a multi-location company to analyze each location from a central office. Each site would create a backup on a scheduled basis and transmit the backup to the central office. The central office could then restore a location's data, perform analysis and/or print reports, restore the next location's data and continue until all locations have been processed.

Please be careful when using this powerful tool. We have built in safeguards to protect your data, but it is still possible to damage your data if you do not follow these instructions, especially if you are a Mac OS X Admin User. Please contact STX Software Technical Support if you have any questions by calling 800.766.4778 ext. 2 or by emailing support@stxsoftware.com.
 

An Effective Backup Strategy

Your data is valuable and you must take the necessary steps to protect it in case of an emergency. Please don't assume that problems only happen to others.  Doing so risks losing all of your data and starting from scratch or being without STX for a few hours or days while your data is repaired (a very costly alternative.)

An effective backup strategy includes multiple steps and can vary depending on the size and scope of your business. Following is a list of recommended steps:
  1. Your server computer must be protected by an uninterruptible power supply (UPS), especially if you leave your server running at times when the business is closed.
  2. You should schedule automated daily or weekly backups using the STXAdminTool. We recommend daily backups, but weekly backups may be a reasonable alternative for single employee companies.
  3. We don’t recommend backing up more than once daily because a daily backup can be restored and rolled forward using the transaction logs maintained by STX. This means your restored data will be current to the time of the last data entry prior to the event that damaged the database.
  4. You need to copy the backup files, which are stored on the server, to another drive to protect against hard drive failure. This can be a portable flash drive, an external hard drive, removable disk, CD or a mirrored (RAID) drive, which maintains the exact same data on both drives. You may also purchase third party applications that will allow you to schedule automated copying of your backups and the related transaction logs.
  5. You need to maintain saved copies of backups off-site to protect against fire, theft or act of nature. Keeping a flash drive on your keychain is a simple solution. Backing up to an external server such as Apple’s iDisk is another option. The ultimate solution is to subscribe to STX Online Services, which includes automatic remote backup services. The remote online backup server updates all transactions (data entries) every 3 to 5 minutes and current data can be restored to your server if required. If you are not currently subscribing to STX Online Services, but would like more information, please contact our Online Services Sales Team at 800.766.4778, ext. 1. If you are currently subscribing to STX Online Services, there is no need for you to continue taking backups through the STXAdminTool.

We recommend that you contact an STX Certified Specialist for assistance in designing and implementing your backup solution.

It is very important to make regular daily backups of your STX data. The ONLY way to backup is through the STXAdminTool. Just copying the STX folder to some removable media is not actually making a backup copy of your data. The data within the STX databases is controlled, therefore protected against a “drag and copy” type of backup. If you are currently using an automatic backup system, you may continue to use that, as long as you use the STXAdminTool to backup with first.

The STXAdminTool takes a backup of the data contained in the STX databases. Once a backup is taken, the STXAdminTool automatically compresses the backup into a smaller file size. The compressed backup is stored deep inside your hard drive, but should also be saved somewhere by you, the user. It is not necessary to quit STX while taking a new backup of the data, which makes it convenient to take several backups throughout the day. However, it is recommended that you quit STX before taking the final backup of the day. Backups can only be taken on the Server, or stand-alone, computer.

Your STX data contains extremely important information that is vital to the success of your business. Always safeguard your STX data by routinely doing nightly backups using the STXAdminTool at the end of each and every business day. Failure to properly back up your data may result in lost or corrupted data. 

STX Software can provide only limited data recovery, for a fee, should your data be compromised and you have no recent backups. This could result in your business being "down" for several days without access to your STX program.
 

The User Experience

Following is an overview of the windows, menus and keyboard shortcuts associated with STXAdminTool.

Keyboard shortcuts are available for several menu items and are listed to the right of the given menu item, if available. Pressing the keys in combination is the same as selecting the associated menu item.

Shortcuts begin with the Command key, also known as the Apple key, usually found on either side of the space bar on Macintosh keyboards.
 

STX Administrator Tool Menu

  1. Move your cursor over STX Administrator Tool to view the menu choices.
  2. Select the About STXAdminTool menu item by clicking on it.
  3. Check the current version of the STXAdminTool installed on your computer.
  4. Close the window by clicking on the RED gumdrop in the upper left corner of the window.
  5. Choose the Preferences… menu item to open the Administrator Tool Preferences window.
  6. Click the Lock icon if you wish to make changes to the preferences. Once you have clicked the Lock, the following will appear.
  7. Enter an OS X Admin User name and password and click OK. If this is your first time using the STXAdminTool, you may get a second authentication window. 
  8. Make sure the Automated Backup tab is selected.
  9. Use the popup menu to view your choices for backing up your data. The following options are available.
    1. Select manually if you will use the STXAdminTool to create backups on your own schedule.
    2. Select every day if you want the STXAdminTool to automatically create a backup once each day.
    3. Select every week if you want the STXAdminTool to automatically create a backup once each week.
    4. Select every month if you want the STXAdminTool to automatically create a backup once each month.
  10. If you have selected automatic backups and would like to receive an email notification that each backup was successfully performed, check the box labeled Email automatic backup status to and enter the email address you wish to have the notification sent to. If you click the Test button, the following email message will be sent to the email address you provided.
    1. If it does not arrive within a few moments, please make sure the address is entered correctly and your email program is set up correctly.
  11. If your server (main) computer is set to never sleep (the recommended setting), the daily backup will run at 3:15 am, the weekly backup will run at 4:15 am and the monthly backup will run at 5:15 am. These times are fixed by the OS X operating system and cannot be changed. If you select every day, every week or every month, you will need to leave your server (main) computer running at all times. 
    1. We highly recommend that you select every day so you may be certain that your data is being backed up on a regular schedule. These backups are only stored on the hard drive of the server (main) computer, so you will need to save them to external media manually, or schedule an automated backup of the /Library/STX/FrontBase/Backups and Transaction Logs folders to an external volume. There are commercial backup programs that you may purchase to automate this task.
    2. Note: You must schedule backups using the STXAdminTool as well as the automated copying of the Backups and Transaction Logs folders to ensure you have a reliable backup.
    3. The ultimate solution is to subscribe to STX Online Services, which includes automatic remote backup services. The remote online backup server updates all transactions (data entries) every 3 to 5 minutes and current data can be restored to your server if required.
  12. Click the Interface tab for additional preference settings. 
  13. Check Automatically offer to save new backups if you would like to be prompted to save the backup to another location each time a manual backup is performed. This operation requires authentication by an OS X Admin User, so it should only be selected if the person doing the backup is an Admin User or knows the logged in Admin User’s password. This option would normally be left unchecked if automated backups are selected.
  14. Check Confirm before deleting backups if you want to be warned that you are about to delete a backup. We recommend you leave this item checked. 
  15. The After restoring: preference determines if and how the database server is restarted after restoring any STX data from a backup. We recommend you leave it clicked on the Automatically start DB server option.
  16. Click the Automated Backup tab to return to that preference screen.
  17. Click the Lock icon to prevent further changes to the Administrator Tool Preferences window, protecting the items you have just selected. Authentication by an OS X Admin User will be required to make additional changes.
  18. Close the window by clicking on the RED gumdrop in the upper left corner. 
  19. Choose the Hide STXAdminTool menu option from the STX Administrator Tool menu to keep the program running – this hides it from view on your display screen. You can make it reappear at any time by clicking the STXAdminTool icon in your dock.
  20. Choose the Quit STXAdminTool menu option from the STX Administrator Tool menu to quit the program.

Backups Menu

Choose the New Backup menu option to create a current backup of your data. See Creating New Backups, beginning on page 9 in this chapter, for complete instructions.

Choose the Manage Backups menu option to open the Database Backups window. All previous backups taken will be listed.

The following management functions may be performed from within this window.
  1. New Backup creates a backup of your current data. See Creating New Backups, beginning on page 9 in this chapter, for complete instructions.
  2. Delete removes the highlighted backup. If you selected Confirm before deleting backups when setting up the STX Administrator Tool Preferences, the following Alert will appear.
  3. Click Don’t delete to keep the backup without removing it from the list of backups. Click Delete to remove the backup from the listing. Authentication by an OS X Admin User will be required to delete backups.
  4. Save As… creates a saved copy of the highlighted backup on another volume. See Saving Backups, beginning on page 10 in this chapter, for complete instructions.
  5. Restore restores the data contained in the highlighted backup back into your database. You may also select the Restore from Backup… menu option to perform a restore on any backup you wish. See Restoring Backups, beginning on page 11 in this chapter, for complete instructions.

Database Menu

Each of the Database menu options would normally be used with an STX Software Technical Support recommendation. 

Stop Database
stops the database.

Start Database
starts the database.

Export Database…
exports your data in preparation for changing server computers from a Mac Power PC format to a Mac Intel format. See Exporting The Database, beginning on page 11 in this chapter, for complete instructions.

IMPORTANT: Please do not attempt to export the database on your own. It is vital this only be done at the recommendation from an STX Software Technical Support team member.


Starting, stopping and exporting the database might require authentication. Enter your OS X administrative user name and password and click OK to continue.
 

Help Menu

Search
allows you to search for any Menu Items within the STXAdminTool application, or you can search the Apple help files for any Apple related Help Topics. 


STXAdminTool Help
opens the STXAdminTool Help system.

 

Creating New Backups

You may start a new manual backup in one of 3 ways: 
  1. Select New Backup from the Backups menu.
  2. Use the keyboard shortcut Command-N.
  3. Click the New Backup button in the Database Backups window.

The new backup will appear in the Database Backups window and the size will increment to show the progress.

Operation in progress… 
shows the bytes of data being backed up.

The new backup will be verified to make sure it was successfully created. If the new backup does not verify, you will need to create another new backup.

If the STX Administrator Tool Preferences are set to Automatically offer to save new backups, you will be presented with the above screen. Use the Where: popup menu to select the destination you want the new backup to be saved to. Click Save.

Saving Backups

You need to copy the backup files, which are stored on the server, to another volume to protect against hard drive failure or theft of the server computer. The other volume can be a portable flash drive, external hard drive, CD or removable disk, or iDisk.

Before saving, make sure the other volume is connected, or loaded, and that the server computer recognizes the other volume. Its related icon should appear on the desktop for you to see.

Highlight the desired backup and click Save As…

The name of the highlighted backup will appear in the Save As: field. Keep the name as it appears because it tells you the date and time the backup was created. For instance, in the above example the 2008 is the year, followed by the month of 11, the day of 21, and the time of 10:12:58 (hour, minutes and seconds). This can come in handy when you are searching for a particular backup.

Choose the backup volume from the Where: popup menu and click Save.

Enter the OS X administrative user name and password and click OK. Your backup will be copied to the selected volume.

Restoring Backups

You can restore the data from any backup and, optionally, recreate transactions (data entries) entered after the backup being restored was created. 

You may start the restore process in one of 4 ways:
  1. Select Restore from Backup… from the Backups menu to restore any previous backup.
  2. Use the keyboard shortcut Command-R to restore any previous backup.
  3. Click the Restore… button in the Database Backups window to restore the selected backup listed in the window.
  4. Double-click on a saved backup to restore.


Starting from the Menu or Keyboard Shortcut

Using either the menu option Restore from Backup… or the keyboard shortcut will not know which backup you wish to restore from, and therefore will give you options from which to choose.

Click Continue.

OPTION 1:

Click Database Backups… to select a backup stored in the Backups folder on the server computer.

Highlight the backup you wish to restore from and click Select.

OR

OPTION 2:

Click Saved Backups… to select a backup that was saved to another location or volume.

Navigate to and select the backup file you wish to restore from and click Open.

The file will verify. If the verification fails, start the restore process over using a different backup file. Contact STX Software Technical Support if you need assistance.

If the verification succeeds, click Continue.

Starting from the Restore Button or by Double-Clicking

Clicking the Restore… button from the Database Backups screen, or by double-clicking on a saved backup, will know you wish to restore from a specific backup previously taken.

The file will verify. If the verification fails, start the restore process over using a different backup file. Contact STX Software Technical Support if you need assistance.

If the verification succeeds, click Continue.

The backup file you had selected to restore from will automatically show next to Selected backup file: so there is no need to click either buttons under the Or select a backup file from: area. Click Continue.

Attempt to roll-forward using transaction logs is a way to ensure any data entered into the database AFTER the last backup was made will be restored. If the backup you are restoring from is an older one and there had been new data entered after that backup was taken that you do not wish to lose, this option will ‘roll-forward’ the information that wasn’t contained in the backup being restored.
 

Continue to Restore a Backup WITHOUT the Roll-Forward

This option would be used if you wanted to restore your database as it was at the time of the last backup, discarding changes/additions you don’t wish to keep. It would also be used to restore the database and continue working if restoring and rolling forward the transaction logs did not complete successfully and you did not want to have your data recovered.

If you are certain you do not wish to have changes/additions made to the data since the backup you are restoring from was taken, uncheck the Attempt to roll-forward using transaction logs box and click Restore.

Type in the OS X administrator name and password and click OK.

Click Stop Database. Clicking Proceed Anyway could damage the data being restored without stopping the database first.

Click Cancel to return to the previous screen.

These 3 progress panels will appear in order if Automatically start DB server after restoring was selected when setting up the STX Administrator Tool Preferences screen. If this option was not selected, the following will appear.

This will appear instead of the 3rd progress panel above. Click Restart Database.

Click Done.

Continue to Restore a Backup WITH the Roll-Forward

This option would be used to restore a backup and read in changes/additions that were entered after the backup was created. Let's imagine you created a backup at closing yesterday and needed to restore the backup this afternoon. By using this option, the backup would be restored and all data entered ‘today’ would be read from the logs, saving you the effort of remembering and re-entering today's appointments, transactions, new clients, purchase orders, etc.

Note: This option works most efficiently if you create backups on a daily basis.
You must open the Console application before continuing so you will be able to tell when the rolling forward of transaction logs is completed.


Open Hard Drive: Applications: Utilities and double-click the Console application.

When the Console application opens, click the Clear Display icon in the toolbar to begin with an empty log.

Check Attempt to roll-forward using transaction logs and click Restore.

Type in the OS X administrator name and password and click OK.

Click Stop Database. Clicking Proceed Anyway could damage the data being restored without stopping the database first.

Click Cancel to return to the previous screen.

These 3 progress panels will appear in order if Automatically start DB server after restoring was selected when setting up the STX Administrator Tool Preferences screen. If this option was not selected, the following will appear.

This will appear instead of the 3rd progress panel above. Click Restart Database.

Click Done.

WARNING: Do NOT quit the STXAdminTool until the rolling forward of transaction logs is complete.

This process may take from several minutes to a few hours depending on the scope of the transaction logs, how long it has been since you created the backup you are restoring from, and the performance of the computer you are restoring the data to.

The following Console log entries are an example of what to look for in the Console to determine when the rolling forward of transaction logs has finished. The actual log will be plain black text and there may be system log entries in addition to these lines. The formatting of the text might be a little different than what is pictured here, depending on the version of OS X you are using.
  1. The first 10 lines (in plain black) represent the restoring of data with the STXAdminTool.
  2. The next 3 lines (in bold blue) show the progress as transaction logs are being read.
    1. Note: The number of Executed Transaction lines will vary depending on the scope of the transaction logs.
  3. The final 2 lines (in bold red) represent the successful completion of rolling forward transaction logs.
You may quit the STXAdminTool and launch STX once the final 2 lines are written to the Console Log.

If the rolling forward of transaction logs fails, please contact STX Software Technical Support to discuss your options for recovering your data. 


Exporting The Database

The STXAdminTool can export your data in preparation for changing server computers from a Mac Power PC format to a Mac Intel format.

Please do not attempt to export the database on your own. It is vital this only be done at the recommendation from a STX Software Technical Support team member.


Using the Database menu, select the Export Database… option.

The name appearing in the Save As: field is coded with the date and time of the export. Keep the name as it appears so it is easier to find later. For instance, in the above example, the 2008 is the year, followed by the month of 11, the day of 21, and the time of 12:48:31 (hour, minutes and seconds).

Choose Desktop from the Where: popup menu and click Save.

Enter the OS X administrative user name and password and click OK. Your export will be saved to the Desktop.

These 3 progress panels will appear in the above order.

The exported data will be located on your Desktop. With every Export performed, there will usually be a subsequent Import performed. If you have exported the data to be imported onto a new server, you will need to copy the exported file onto a flash drive, external hard drive, CD, or other removable media.


Importing The Database

Once the data has been exported, the following are instructions for importing the database, also referred to as Restoring Exported Data.

Double-click on the exported data icon located on your Desktop. 

Click Continue.

The exported file you had double-clicked on will automatically show next to Selected backup file: so there is no need to click either buttons under the Or select a backup file from: area. Click Continue.

Uncheck the Attempt to roll-forward using transaction logs box and click Restore. Transaction logs cannot be applied to exported data being imported.

Type in the OS X administrator name and password and click OK.

Click Stop Database. Clicking Proceed Anyway could damage the data being imported without stopping the database first.

Click Cancel to return to the previous screen.

Four progress panels will appear in the above order.

This may take from several minutes to several hours depending on the amount of data being imported and the performance of the computer you are importing the data to.

This window lets you know the process is completed and the database has been automatically restarted. Click Done. 


Frequently Asked Questions

Q: When the STXAdminTool asks me to Authenticate with the Admin password, it wants a password that I do not have.

A: The password it is looking for is the OS X Administrator password. If you don’t know or can’t remember the password, please contact Apple (800.275.2273) for assistance with resetting the password.

 

Q: What type of drive should I save the backups to?
 

A: You have several options:

  1. Copy to a USB Flash Drive. (Recommended for Off-Site Backups)
    1. Insert the Flash Drive.
    2. Create a New Backup.
    3. Save the Backup to the Flash Drive.
    4. Eject the Flash Drive.
    5. Remove the Flash Drive after the volume disappears from the finder.
  2. Copy to an External Hard Drive. (Recommended for On-Site Backups)
    1. Create a New Backup.
    2. Save the Backup to the External Hard Drive.
  3. Copy and Burn to a CD.
    1. Insert the CD.
    2. Create a New Backup.
    3. Save the Backup to the CD.
    4. Highlight the CD and pull the File menu down to Burn Disc.
    5. Follow the prompts.
    6. Eject the CD.
  4. Copy to a Zip Disk or Other Removable Media.
    1. Insert the Media
    2. Create a New Backup.
    3. Save the Backup to the Media.
    4. Eject the Media.
  5. Copy to the iDisk Server. (Requires High Speed Internet)
    1. Mount the iDisk Volume.
    2. Create an STX Backups Folder on the iDisk. (1st Time Only)
    3. Create a New Backup.
    4. Save the Backup to the iDisk STX Backups Folder.
    5. Eject the iDisk Volume. (Optional)

Q: A large number of backups are showing in the Database Backups window. Can I get rid of them, especially the older ones?

A: You may delete the oldest backups, but should keep at least the last 5 backups at all times.

Q: I have an automated backup system (such as Retrospect) that I would like to continue to use. How would I set that up to copy my backups?

A: You must create new backups with the STXAdminTool that may be copied by Retrospect. The easiest way to do this is to set the preferences to perform a daily backup automatically.

These backups are stored at /Library/STX/FrontBase/Backups and the transaction logs are stored at /Library/STX/FrontBase/Transaction Logs. Have Retrospect automatically copy these 2 folders to another volume.

Note: The STX database is always running, so you may not get a good backup if you attempt to have Retrospect copy the actual database. Always copy the created backups and transaction logs instead.


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