Can I work remotely?
Yes, there are a number of options for working with the SI Client when physically away from your network where your SI Server is installed.
We offer a Hosted Solution through Amazon Web Services (AWS) that will house your SI Server.
The D-Tools hosted solution is a “plug and play” option for users that are looking for mobility and to store their D-Tools SI Server on the Cloud. Each customer has their very own D-Tools Server instance powered by the latest generation Windows Server 2012.
The D-Tools Hosted Solution includes the D-Tools SI server management application and comes completely configured with SQL Server 2012. The D-Tools Hosted Solution is powered by Amazon Web Services™ for the ultimate in scalability, security, and performance
The D-Tools Hosted Solution offers users the option to purchase the software and host the server instance in the cloud which enables them a lower cost of entry and removes the need for costly in-house IT infrastructure.
For security, the pre-configured firewall only allows traffic from the D-Tools SI application, and the only ports opened to traffic are 9010, 1433 and 1434. For enhanced security, the connection to those ports can be tied to your specific IP address therefore only computers on your network can connect to your cloud server. Our technical support team performs the installation and setup for you.
Click here for more details.
If you want to be able work on a laptop away from the network where your SI Server is installed, you can use the Work Offline feature in SI. In this case, "offline" means not connected to your SI Server AND running a local database. This feature requires an initial setup that is detailed below to establish your local database.
The first time you select "Work Offline", you will get the following prompt:
Followed by this one:
This will open the SI Offline Database Configuration Manager:
We recommend that you use the Express Configuration option that will automatically download and install an instance of SQL 20012 Express on your machine. If, for some reason, you feel like you know better than our software installer and want to install to a specific instance of SQL, you can use the Custom Configuration option. When you choose the Custom option, you will either select and existing SQL instance or choose to create a new one:
Once the configuration is complete (both Express or Custom), you will see the following prompt:
Now that you are configured, the next time that you choose to "Work Offline", you will get a prompt warning you to make sure that you check out any projects that you want to work on while offline:
Once you click OK, your SI Server database will automatically synchronize to your newly created local database:
When you return to your office/network that is running the machine with your SI Server, you will want to Connect to the SI Server and then check in any projects that you have checked out prior to working offline or that were created while offline.
You will not have complete functionality when working offline.
Functionality available when "Offline" in Projects
Functionality NOT available when "Offline" in Projects
Other Functions available when "Offline"
The following UI can be viewed "read only" when offline.
When working offline, one of your SI licenses will be "cached" locally and will not be available to other users still on your network.
Make sure you Check Out any Projects you wish to edit/view prior to choosing to work offline.
This option is probably the quickest and safest way to work remotely as you would be connecting to a computer on your network running the SI Client from a remote computer. All data transfer within SI then takes place within your network.
If you have a VPN set up, you can use standard Remote Desktop Connection feature in Windows. If you don't have a VPN set up, you could use some third-party software like LogMeIn or GoToMyPC.
If you have a VPN set up, you can simply connect to your network prior to opening the SI Client. If your VPN is configured properly, this should be seamless as your remote computer will appear to be on your network.
SI has been tested and certified to work in a Windows Domain environment that is running Routing and Remote Access (RRAS).
These instructions assume that the user already has an existing Windows Domain and a user account with VPN access via an existing Routing and Remote Access Server (RRAS).
The most common use case for this type of setup would be a company that has one or more users who have installed the SI Client on a laptop and would like to access project information while away from the office without having to work offline.
Disclaimer: D-Tools has tested VPN operation in a Windows Domain environment running RRAS. While it should be possible to set up another type of VPN using the steps outlined below, D-Tools cannot guarantee the outcome. D-Tools technical support cannot assist with setting up a VPN.
Since Routing and Remote Access has already been installed and configured on one of the domain controllers there is little to no configuration that is required on the SI Server. The steps to configure the SI Server most likely took place during installation but just to be sure, review the requirements below to ensure that there won’t be any problems.
There are some special steps required to configure the SI client for VPN operation.
The steps required are:
Example: If the servers IP address is 192.168.0.1 and servers machine name is SIServer.domain.com, the entry would look like:
192.168.0.1 SIServer.domain.com
CAUTION: There are anti-virus and anti-spyware programs that will detect that the host file was changed and change it back. You may need to deactivate this functionality to implement this solution.
You will also need to set the "Use default gateway on remote network" option for your VPN properties. To do this:
Now, if you don't have a VPN set up on your office network...or don't even have a network, then you may be able to use a third-party VPN software. The only third-party VPN software tested by D-Tools is LogMeIn Hamachi. Although tested, this is not an endorsement for Hamachi and D-Tools does not offer Support for this solution. Click here for a document showing how we configured Hamachi during testing.