Installation Resource

This resource is targeted towards users who are looking for advanced options in deploying Acctivate. It's recommended that the standard installation process is followed for most environments and users.

It's strongly recommended that you review the information below and determine if the steps below apply to your use cases.

Folder Permissions

Server/Host computer folder permissions
A shared folder named AcctivateData (C:\ProgramData\Alterity\Acctivate) will be created on your server. This folder contains configuration and license files. This directory will have the following share and security permissions:

  • Share permissions

    • Everyone: Full control

  • Security permissions

    • Administrators: Full control
    • Users: Modify
    • SYSTEM: Full control

    If the Acctivate Mobile web service is running on the server then the Log directory must give Modify permissions to the Acctivate Mobile app pool (IIS AppPool\DefaultAppPool by default).

    Note

    The AcctivateData and Update directory permissions will not be modified during Acctivate Updates.

    Note

    Domain Administrators and Domain Users groups will be selected in a Windows domain environment. For workgroups, the local computer groups will be selected.

Workstation folder permissions
Acctivate writes to a local Log folder in the ProgramData directory of the workstation. C:\ProgramData\Alterity\Acctivate requires the following permissions:

  • Security permissions

    • Administrators: Full control
    • Users: Modify
    • SYSTEM: Full control
    Note

    Domain Administrators and Domain Users groups will be selected in a Windows domain environment. For workgroups, the local computer groups will be selected.

Install Components

Third Party Components
The Acctivate installer will download and install required components when necessary. Below is a list of the component files that may be installed and the link to the install package or site where the package can be obtained.

Note

Some components, such as Microsoft SQL Server, have their own component requirements which may result in additional files being installed.

Tip

In order to download required components and register Acctivate, certain sites may need to be whitelisted. If you are having problems downloading or registering Acctivate, you may need to whitelist the following domains:

Silent MSI Install

The Acctivate installer is used to install the Acctivate.msi package and various third-party components required by Acctivate.

A non-interactive MSI install can be used to deploy Acctivate, however, prerequisite components files (see Third Party Components above) must be installed first.

To obtain the correct .msi package, download the current Acctivate version from the Downloads page and run the installer. The MSI will be extracted to one of the following locations:

  • Temp folder for the Windows user
  • The Update folder found in the AcctivateData share

Silent Server install
Run the following command line in an admin instance of Command Prompt:

msiexec /i AcctivateQB.msi /qn /l*v install.log INSTALLFOLDER="C:\Program Files (x86)\Acctivate" INSTALLDESKTOPSHORTCUT="true" ACCTID="loginid" ACCTPASS="password" SERVERNAME="SERVER" INSTANCENAME="ACCTIVATE" SQLUID="sa" SQLPASS="Password" INSTALLATIONTYPE="Server"

Silent Workstation install
To perform a silent workstation install, you must provide the Acctivate Data Path argument (AcctDataPath) and the installation type should be set to Workstation. Run the following command line in an admin instance of Command Prompt:

msiexec /i AcctivateQB.msi /qn /l*v install.log INSTALLFOLDER="C:\Program Files (x86)\Acctivate" INSTALLDESKTOPSHORTCUT="true" AcctDataPath="\\servername\AcctivateData" INSTALLATIONTYPE="Workstation"

Silent Database Upgrade

Some Acctivate updates require an update to the database (see Database Updates for more information).

When a database update is required, the user will be prompted to begin the update when logging into an Acctivate company. Some users and hosting providers may prefer to script the database upgrade to more efficiently upgrade multiple company files.

From a command line, you can run Acctivate Database Maintenance and then add the necessary switches and company names to complete the database upgrade.

Start by calling the Acctivate Database Maintenance application and then add the necessary Update command arguments. You can find the application in the root of the Acctivate master directory, named AcctivateDBMaint.exe.

Update Command Arguments:

  • /U = Update database
  • /C = Company ID
  • /QUIET = Errors will be displayed but no informational messages
  • /SILENT = Suppress all errors and informational messages

An example of the command to upgrade the company DEMO:

"C:\Program Files (X86)\Acctivate\AcctivateDBMaint.exe" /U /C DEMO

"Database update completed" will appear when the update has finished, unless the /SILENT command is used.

Upgrade SQL Server using the Acctivate Installer

Acctivate updates can be installed on any computer where Acctivate is currently installed.

Typically, this offers the best experience for installing updates as server access is not required.

However, when an Acctivate update is installed on the server where Microsoft SQL Server is installed, the Acctivate installer can attempt to also upgrade SQL Server.

The Acctivate installer will attempt to upgrade 64-bit versions of SQL Server Express running on Windows Server 2016, Windows 10, or later, to SQL Server 2022 Express 64-bit.

32-bit versions of SQL Server Express running on Windows Server 2012, Windows 7, or earlier, will be upgraded to SQL Server 2014 Express 32-bit (the latest 32-bit version available).

The automatic upgrading of SQL Server by the Acctivate installer can be bypassed by running the installer with the command line option /NoSQLUpgrade.

  1. Download Acctivate and save the installation file.
  2. Locate the Acctivate installation file and rename the file to setup.exe (NOTE: Simply rename to “setup” if the file extension (i.e. exe) is not visible)
  3. Open a new Command Prompt window from the Start Menu
  4. Change Directory (CD) to the location of the Acctivate installer file
  5. Execute the Acctivate installer using the command:
setup.exe /NoSQLUpgrade

Install using an existing instance of SQL

The Acctivate installer will install the Express edition of Microsoft SQL Server and create an instanced named "ACCTIVATE", unless a previously installed SQL Server instance exists that is specifically named ACCTIVATE.

If you wish to install Acctivate against an existing instance of SQL not named ACCTIVATE, you can perform a command line installation.

  1. Download Acctivate and save the installation file.
  2. Locate the Acctivate installation file and rename the file to setup.exe (NOTE: Simply rename to “setup” if the file extension (i.e. exe) is not visible)
  3. Open a new Command Prompt window from the Start Menu
  4. Change Directory (CD) to the location of the Acctivate installer file
  5. Execute the Acctivate installer using one of the commands below.

SQL Authentication (Preferred for Acctivate)

setup.exe /sqlserver=SERVERNAME\INSTANCE /sqluid=sa /sqlpwd=password

Windows Authentication

setup.exe /sqlserver=SERVERNAME\INSTANCE /sqltrusted

Install IIS Components

IIS must be installed on the server where Acctivate Mobile will be installed. Refer to the install guide below.

Server OS
If the mobile server is running a Windows Server OS (refer to the System Requirements for supported server operating systems), perform the following steps:

  1. Open Server Manager
  2. Click Manage → Add Roles and Features and click Next.
  3. Select Role-based or feature-based installation and click Next.
  4. The local server is selected by default. Click Next.
  5. Select Web Server (IIS) and click Next.
  6. No additional features are needed for IIS, click Next.
  7. On the Web Server Role (IIS) screen, click Next.
  8. On the Select role services dialog box, verify that the web server components listed below are enabled. Click Next.
  9. Click Install.
  10. When the installation completes, click Close to exit the wizard.

Required IIS Components (enabled on the Select role services screen)

  • Web Server
    • Common HTTP Features
      • Default Document
      • Static Content
    • Security
      • Request Filtering
      • Basic Authentication
      • Windows Authentication
    • Application Development
      • .NET Extensibility 4.8
      • .NET Extensibility
      • ASP.NET 4.8
      • ASP.NET
      • ISAPI Extensions
      • ISAPI Filters
      • WebSocket Protocol
  • Management Tools
    • IIS Management Console
    • IIS 6 Management Compatibility
      • IIS 6 Metabase Compatibility
    • IIS Management Scripts and Tools
    • Management Service

Workgroup Host OS
If the mobile server is running a Windows Workgroup Host (refer to the System Requirements for supported workgroup operating systems), perform the following steps:

  1. In the Windows search bar, search for Turn Windows features on or off.
  2. Under Internet Information Services, enable the following features:
    • Web Management Tools → IIS Management Compatibility
    • Web Management Tools → IIS Management Console
    • World Wide Web Services → Application Development Features → ASP.NET 4.8
    • World Wide Web Services → Common HTTP Features → Static Content
  3. Click OK.