How to get here
Either:
In Lab Manager, choose File menu > Exit, then tick 'Backup Transactor on Exit' and choose Yes to exit.
or
From the Windows Start Menu, choose All Apps (or All Programs) > Transactor Lab Manager 7 > Backup Transactor 7.
Network Lab Manager users (ie. multi-user installations) should read the help page here instead of this page.
Description
Transactor Backup will save all your Lab Manager data into a portable file. If necessary, the backup file can be used to restore a copy of your whole Lab Manager data onto any computer which has Lab Manager installed on it.
Transactor Backup can backup to your local disk (eg. C:\transactor\backups ), a removable device (eg. Memory Stick), or the Cloud (eg. Google Drive).
Quick Reference
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Backup Now button |
Start a backup to the 'Backup To' folder |
Backup To: |
Displays the selected Backup To folder with the Storage Space Free % in brackets. Hover the mouse to view the Storage Space detailed statistics. |
Low disk space warnings |
This is only visible if the target storage space is low: Less than 25% free: Orange 'MEDIUM-LEVEL BACKUP SPACE WARNING' Less than or close to the data size: Red 'CRITICALLY LOW BACKUP SPACE WARNING!' |
Change button |
Select a target backup location / folder. |
Company to backup: |
Your Lab Manager company name. Hover the name to view the full data folder location. |
Remember the settings on this device |
Leave this ticked to use the same Backup To settings next time. |
Cancel / Close button |
This button will close TBackup. If it is labeled Cancel then no backup has been done. |
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Using Transactor Backup
How often should I backup?
Each time you exit Lab Manager. It doesn't take long and you can never have too many backups. As a minimum though, at least once a day.
Where should I backup to?
You should backup to a removable device, or to the cloud using a cloud drive eg. Google Drive, Drop box.
Backing up to a local folder (eg. C:\transactor\backups) is also ok, providing you have procedures in place where you copy the backups regularly to a safe location such as a Cloud Drive or Memory stick.
Understanding the backup file
Each backup produces a file which is a uniquely named and date-time stamped self-contained package (a single compressed .zip file).
For example a backup made at 1632hrs on the 30sep2013 would produce a file named 2013_m09_d30_1632hrs.zip
It contains all your Lab Manager data including your company details, registration details, customer records, and all jobs and invoices etc. In fact, everything that you could see and access in Lab Manager before you exited and started the backup. Each backup file is compressed so the backups don't take up much storage space. Even a modest Cloud drive allowance (eg. 1 GB ) or a small Memory Stick will easily store 100s of days of backups.
How do I get the data back if i need it?
You use Transactor Restore which will prompt you for where your backup file is. If you've lots of backup files, then you'll probably want to pick the most recent one.
If your Backup To: location (see Quick Reference above) was set to say C:\transactor\backups then that's where you'll find the backup file to restore from.
If your Backup To: location was set to a removable device or cloud drive, then you'll need to have access to that location and tell Transactor Restore where it is.
How do I take my Lab Manager data home, use it there, then bring it back?
At your work, you'd exit Lab Manager and do a backup to a memory stick or cloud drive. Then at home you'd use Transactor Restore. Likewise in reverse when you're done.
Alternatively, consider working by remote access. Work from home or any other location is via a remote internet connection or virtual private network (VPN). Examples are Logmein, TeamViewer and MS terminal services. Ask your computer person to liaise with Transactor support.
You may find that you wish to be working on Lab Manager on a PC at work, or via remote access, at the same time as other staff. If this is the case you'll want to upgrade to multi-user networked.
Check out the Transactor Help Desk