FileMaker Cloud 2.18.0 Help

When a new software version or patch is available, you see an Upgrade link or a notification in Admin Console. Team managers also receive an email. Always keep your software up-to-date.

Notes

• FileMaker Cloud 2.18 is compatible only with FileMaker 18 Platform clients.
• The Upgrade link is available only after your preferred host name has been approved and applied.

When you upload an unencrypted file, FileMaker Cloud encrypts the file and creates an encryption password.

To show the encryption password for a database:

1. In Admin Console, click the Databases tab.

2. Click the down arrow to the right of the database name, then click Show Encryption Password.

   Note:This option is available only if you saved the encryption password, or the file was encrypted by FileMaker Cloud.

3. Enter your FileMaker ID user name and password.

For files hosted by FileMaker Cloud, users are authenticated by their FileMaker ID account. To invite users to a team and to add users to groups, see FileMaker Customer Console Help.

Before you upload a file, use FileMaker Pro Advanced to create FileMaker ID account access for groups or individual users. See FileMaker Pro Advanced Help.

1. Open FileMaker Pro Advanced, and use your FileMaker ID user name and password to sign in.
2. Click Allow if you are asked to allow using the page to open FileMaker Pro Advanced.
3. In FileMaker Pro Advanced, choose File menu > Sharing > Upload to Host.

4. In the Upload to Host window, click Show next to the team name, then click the FileMaker Cloud host name.

   You can also enter the host name in the search box.

5. Browse to the file or files, then click Open.
6. If the file is already encrypted, enter the encryption password.
7. Click Upload.

8. After the upload completion message appears, click Done.

   If you didn't choose the option to open the file automatically, continue to the next steps.

9. In Admin Console, click Databases.
10. Click the right arrow next to the database and choose Open.
11. If prompted, enter the encryption password to open the file.

To open the file in FileMaker Pro Advanced, on the Home page of FileMaker Customer Console, click the filename, then click Open in FileMaker Pro Advanced. You can also open the file directly in FileMaker Pro Advanced.

In the left pane of the Backups page:

• Click Auto-Backup to see a list of backups, to preserve backups, and to edit backup labels.
• Click Preserved to see the list of preserved backups, edit backup labels, and remove a backup from the preserved list.

Backups appear in timestamp order (in UTC time).

You can use the date box to filter backups by a specific date.

You can create a backup label to identify a specific backup.

1. Select one or more backups.
2. Click Edit Label.
3. Enter the new name.

To filter the backups list by the label, enter a label in the Filter by Label box. To reset the current filter, click Clear search results.

Notes

• If you have more than one backup selected, they all receive the same label.

You can preserve backups. Preserved backups cannot be automatically deleted by FileMaker Cloud.

You can remove preserved backups that are no longer needed. After you remove a backup from the preserved list, it is automatically deleted 30 days after the backup was created.

1. In the right pane of the Backups page, select a backup, then click Restore Backup.
2. Select the databases to restore, then click Restore.
3. If prompted, enter the database encryption password.

After each database is restored, you receive a notification. The restored backup is added to the list of databases in the Databases tab. Restored files are saved as new files with the filename <filename>_Restored_<backup_timestamp>.

Notes

• To download a restored backup, click the Databases tab. Click the down arrow to the right of the database name, then click Download.
• To rename a restored database, click the Databases tab. Click the down arrow to the right of the database name, then click Rename.
• To use the original filename for the restored database, go to the Databases tab. Rename the original file, then rename the restored file using the original filename.
• If you delete a database, the next scheduled backup will not include the database. To restore the deleted database, you must use the last available backup for the database.
• If you update a database after a scheduled backup, then delete the database before the next scheduled backup, your changes will not be saved.

1. In Admin Console, click Configuration > General Settings.
2. Click Change for Local Time Zone, then choose a different time zone.
3. Click Save.

Notes

• Changing the local time zone changes the auto-maintenance schedule.

In Admin Console, click Configuration > FileMaker Clients. Click Change for FileMaker Pro Advanced and FileMaker Go, or for FileMaker WebDirect, then choose a new session timeout. Changing the FileMaker WebDirect session timeout restarts FileMaker WebDirect and disconnects users. You can send a message from the Databases tab to warn users.

Notes

• Restarting FileMaker WebDirect takes several minutes. Do not make other FileMaker WebDirect changes until the restart completes.
• The session timeout for the FileMaker Admin API and FileMaker Data API is 15 minutes and cannot be changed.

FileMaker Cloud tracks activity, client access, and other information, and stores this information in log files.

1. In Admin Console, click Configuration > Logging.
2. Click Select the log to download.
3. Click the log name.

Notes

• User credentials and database entries are not logged.

In Admin Console, click Configuration > Auto-Maintenance.

Your FileMaker Cloud instance is automatically restarted once a day for auto-maintenance. You can't disable auto-maintenance. The Auto-Maintenance page displays the scheduled time for auto-maintenance in UTC time. Auto-maintenance starts within an hour after the scheduled time. To change the auto-maintenance schedule, you need to change the local time zone. See Setting the local time zone.

In general, auto-maintenance will not occur if clients are connected, but clients may be disconnected during auto-maintenance for critical updates. Make sure to save your changes before the scheduled auto-maintenance.

Note:Change FileMaker Data API settings only when the databases are not being used. Clients can lose unsaved work when the FileMaker Data API Engine restarts.

The FileMaker Data API allows you to share your data with applications via a set of REST-compliant API statements.

To host a database for access via the FileMaker Data API:

1. Prepare your database for FileMaker Data API access using FileMaker Pro Advanced. See FileMaker Data API Guide.
2. In Admin Console, click Connectors > FileMaker Data API, then set FileMaker Data API to Enabled.
3. Upload the database file to FileMaker Cloud. See Uploading, encrypting, and opening database files.
4. Use a REST-compliant web service to send HTTPS requests in the form of URLs that specify the FileMaker Data API statements.

Note:Disable OData only when the databases are not being used by OData clients.

OData allows access to a database file from an OData-capable provider via a set of REST-compliant API statements.

To host a database for access via OData:

1. Prepare your database for OData access using FileMaker Pro Advanced. See FileMaker Cloud OData Guide.
2. In Admin Console, click Connectors > OData, then set OData to Enabled.
3. Upload the database file to FileMaker Cloud. See Uploading, encrypting, and opening database files.
4. Use a REST-compliant web service to send HTTPS requests in the form of URLs that specify the OData statements.

In Admin Console, click Connectors > External ODBC Data to set up ODBC data sources for access by FileMaker Cloud clients. When you add an ODBC data source and choose the driver type, the default port number for that driver is selected. However, you can select any port number from 1 to 65535, except for the reserved ports used by FileMaker Cloud. For a list of the ports used by FileMaker Cloud, see FileMaker Cloud Getting Started Guide.

Note:To test the ODBC data source connection, you must know the user name and password for the database.

The Subscription Center in Admin Console displays information about discontinuing your subscription. Carefully review this information before discontinuing your subscription.

1. In Admin Console, click Subscription > Subscription Center.
2. Click Send Instructions to receive an email with instructions. (If you change your mind, click Keep Subscription.)
3. Follow the steps in the email to download client software, logs, and databases.
4. Click Databases.
5. For databases that were encrypted by FileMaker Cloud, retrieve the encryption passwords and save them in a secure place. Click the down arrow next to each database, then click Show Encryption Password. See About encryption passwords.
6. To download databases, click the down arrow next to each database, then click Download.
7. To download log files, click Configuration > Logging. Click Choose the log to download, then click the log name.
8. After downloading databases and log files, click Subscription > Subscription Center.
9. Click Stop Instance.
10. In the Cancel Subscription dialog box, click Stop Instance to confirm discontinuing the subscription.

Notes

• To access databases temporarily after you cancel your subscription (for example, to retrieve the encryption password or to download databases and log files), in FileMaker Customer Console, restart the instance temporarily. See FileMaker Customer Console Help.
• If your FileMaker Cloud license has not expired, restarting the instance temporarily reactivates your subscription. To deactivate the subscription, you need to cancel the subscription again.