FileMaker Server 16 Network Install Setup Guide
Network Install Setup Guide
This document explains how to configure the installation of FileMaker® Server 16 for Windows or macOS over a network.
Your electronic download contains FileMaker Server installers for Windows and macOS. All use of this software is subject to the terms of your license agreement.
Before you begin
Before you configure your installation, do the following:
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Find your unique, 35-character license key for your software.
FileMaker Server software comes with a unique, 35-character license key. You received an email message with a link to your Electronic Software Download page. Your license key is on that page.
You must have a valid license key to install the software. Don't lose your license key. Keep it in a safe place in case you need to reinstall the software.
Important: If you purchased a license that specifies your organization name—for example, a volume or site license—when installing the software, enter the organization name exactly as it appears on your Electronic Software Download page, including capitalization.
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Determine how the license key and other personalized information will be entered when users install FileMaker Server. There are two ways to enter this information:
- You can set up an assisted installation, which uses a personalization file named Assisted Install.txt to supply information to the installer and standardize your FileMaker Server installations. This method lets you customize the installation and eliminates the need to distribute and administer license keys. (FileMaker, Inc., recommends this method.)
- Users can personalize the software by entering their name and the license key when installing FileMaker Server on their computers.
Important: To install FileMaker Server, users must have administrator privileges.
Where to find FileMaker documentation
- In FileMaker Server Admin Console, choose the Help menu.
- Click the links on the FileMaker Server Admin Console Start Page.
- To learn about, view, or download additional FileMaker documentation, visit the Product Documentation Center.
For information about the product or deploying FileMaker Server, see FileMaker Server Installation and Configuration Guide.
About assisted installations
Assisted installation makes it easier to install multiple deployments of FileMaker Server. You enter required information (such as a generic user name, company name, license key, and various installation options) in a personalization file and then make the file available on your network. The file is used to install FileMaker Server on computers in your organization.
You can also set up a silent (unattended) installation, which suppresses display of the installation screens. See About silent assisted installations (Windows) or About silent assisted installations (macOS).
After you edit the personalization file and make it and the FileMaker Server installation files available on the network, users can perform an assisted installation. See How users perform an assisted installation.
After an assisted installation of FileMaker Server, users must use the Deployment assistant to set up their single- or multiple-machine deployments of FileMaker Server. Instruct users to see FileMaker Server Installation and Configuration Guide.
Set up assisted installations
To set up a networked volume so that users can install FileMaker Server for both Windows and macOS, perform the steps in the following sections.
Copy installation files to a networked volume
- Create a folder on a networked volume for the FileMaker Server installer files.
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Locate the following folder and files, and copy them to the folder you created on your networked volume:
- Windows: The Files folder, which contains the personalization file, Assisted Install.txt, and other required installation files.
- macOS: The FileMaker Server 16 installer application and the personalization file, Assisted Install.txt.
- To use a personalization file, continue with Customize the personalization file. If you don’t want to use a personalization file, continue with How users perform an assisted installation.
Customize the personalization file
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Use a text editor to open the Assisted Install.txt file on your networked volume.
Note: The Assisted Install.txt file is a cross-platform file. The same Assisted Install.txt file can be used for installing on both Windows and macOS systems.
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Modify the following variable settings as needed.
To Do this Enter a user name for all installations Type a name after Name=
If you leave this variable blank, the installer defaults to the name that was used to register Windows (Windows) or the account user name (macOS).
Enter an organization name for all installations Type a name after Organization=
Windows: If you leave this variable blank, the installer defaults to the name that was used to register Windows.
When specifying a variable for Organization=, type the organization name exactly as it appears on the software download page.
Enter a valid license key for all installations Type your license key after License Key=
The license key is not case sensitive.
For information about the license key, see Before you begin.
Specify the deployment options Type one of the following after Deployment Options=
0 (zero) to install a server machine (default)
1 (one) to install a FileMaker WebDirect™ worker machine
If you are setting up a multiple-machine deployment, you need to provide an Assisted Install.txt file for installing on the master machine and an Assisted Install.txt file for installing on the FileMaker WebDirect worker machines.
Specify the port to use for HTTP connections Type an available port number after HTTP Port=
If you leave this variable blank, the default HTTP port is 80.
If the specified port is not available, the software will not install.
Specify the port to use for HTTPS connections Type an available port number after HTTPS Port=
If you leave this variable blank, the default HTTPS port is 443.
If the specified port is not available, the software will not install.
Specify the FileMaker Server user account Type one of the following after FileMaker Server User=
0 (zero) to run FileMaker Server under the default account (fmserver for macOS, Local System for Windows)
1 (one) to run FileMaker Server under a different account
Specify whether the installer automatically starts the Deployment assistant after installation Type one of the following after Launch Deployment Assistant=
0 (zero) to suppress starting the Deployment assistant after installation
1 (one) to start the Deployment assistant after installation (default)
Suppress or display the personalization, deployment options, ports, and user account dialog boxes during installation Type one of the following after Skip Dialogs=
0 (zero) to display the dialog boxes during installation
1 (one) to suppress the dialog boxes
When you specify 1 (one), users don't have to enter information in the Name and Company variables, and they don't see the license key you specified in the Assisted Install.txt file.
If the key or user name you specified is invalid, the personalization dialog box still displays.
If you enter FileMaker Server User=1, then the FileMaker Server user account dialog box still displays.
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Save the changes you have made to Assisted Install.txt as plain text.
- Windows: Assisted Install.txt and Setup.exe must be in the Files folder during installation.
- macOS: Assisted Install.txt must be in the same folder as the FileMaker Server installer application during installation.
How users perform an assisted installation
To install FileMaker Server, instruct users to mount the volume containing the installation files, then double-click Setup.exe (Windows) or the FileMaker Server installer application (macOS).
Windows: Instruct users who see the Open File – Security Warning dialog box to click Run to continue installing.
If the file, Assisted Install.txt, is present in the same folder as the installer, the installer uses information in the file during installation. If this file is not present or is incomplete, users have to supply required information.
After installation is complete, users must use the Deployment assistant to set up their single- or multiple-machine deployments of FileMaker Server. In the Assisted Install.txt file, you can specify whether the Deployment assistant starts automatically after installation. If you choose to suppress starting the Deployment assistant, then instruct users to open the Deployment assistant manually by using a shortcut (Windows) or alias (macOS), or using a web browser:
- On the master machine, open a web browser and enter
http://localhost:16001/admin-consoleto open the Deployment assistant. - On a worker machine, open a web browser and enter
http://localhost:16003to open the Deployment assistant.
Windows: A shortcut pointing to the Admin Console Login page (master machine) or FileMaker WebDirect Worker Deployment Assistant (worker machine) is created in Start menu > All Programs > FileMaker Server, or Start menu > Programs > FileMaker Server, or Start menu > All apps > FileMaker Server. On Windows versions that have the Start screen, the shortcut is available on the Windows Start screen.
macOS: An alias pointing to the Admin Console Login page (master machine) or FileMaker WebDirect Worker Deployment Assistant (worker machine) is created on the desktop.
Notes
- To install FileMaker Server, users must have administrator privileges.
- In Windows, you can choose the language displayed in the installer. In macOS, the installer displays in the same language as the current macOS system language. In Windows and macOS, the language that users see when they use FileMaker Server Admin Console is the same as the language of the base operating system installation on the master machine.
About silent assisted installations (Windows)
During a silent (unattended) installation, user interaction with the FileMaker Server installer is kept to a minimum. Required installation information is read from the personalization file, Assisted Install.txt, and installation screens are not displayed.
There are two ways to perform a silent installation. Users can:
- Double-click the Setup.exe file, which is located on the mounted volume. This method requires that you modify the Setup.ini file. See Modify Setup.ini for silent installation (Windows).
- Type the installation command and applicable options at the command line. See Perform a silent installation using the command line (Windows).
Important
- By default FileMaker Server uses ports 80 and 443 on the user’s machine. If ports 80 and 443 are not available, you must specify replacement ports that are available, or the software will not install.
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FileMaker Server requires the following components:
- Java Runtime Environment
- Bonjour for Windows
- Microsoft Visual Studio C++ Redistributable Package
- Microsoft Application Request Routing
FileMaker Server installer automatically installs these components if they are not on the user's machine. If you plan to install FileMaker Server without an Internet connection, review the Knowledge Base article on manually installing Microsoft Application Request Routing. For information about FileMaker Server hardware and software requirements, see the FileMaker Server system requirements.
Modify Setup.ini for silent installation (Windows)
If you make the following changes to the Setup.ini file, a silent installation begins when users mount the networked volume and double-click Setup.exe.
- Locate the Setup.ini file in the Files folder inside the FileMaker Server folder.
- Open Setup.ini using a text editor.
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Locate the [Startup] section. Then:
To Add the options as shown after CmdLine= Install FileMaker Server without a user interface (silent install) CmdLine=/q Display a progress bar and Cancel button during installation CmdLine=/qb - Save and close the Setup.ini file.
Perform a silent installation using the command line (Windows)
Users can install FileMaker Server from the command line. When you use this method, the installer can inform users whether installation was successful.
A command line silent installation requires you to run the Command Prompt as administrator.
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To run as administrator on Windows versions with the Start menu:
- Choose Start menu > All Programs > Accessories, Start menu > Programs > Accessories, or Start menu > Windows System.
- Right-click Command Prompt, then choose Run as administrator.
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To run as administrator on Windows versions with the Start screen:
- Right-click the Start screen, and choose All apps.
- Right-click Command Prompt, and choose Run as administrator.
- To run as administrator on Windows Server 2016, right-click the Start menu, and choose Command Prompt (Admin).
The following table describes options you have when performing an assisted installation from the command line.
| To | Instruct users to open a command window, then type |
|---|---|
| Install FileMaker Server without a user interface (silent install) | "pathname\setup.exe" /s /v/qn |
| Display a dialog box indicating whether FileMaker Server was successfully installed | "pathname\setup.exe" /s /v/qn+ |
| Display a progress bar and Cancel button during installation | "pathname\setup.exe" /s /v/qb |
| Uninstall FileMaker Server without a user interface (silent uninstall) | "pathname\setup.exe" /s /x /v/qn |
Note: pathname is the location of the installer folder you created on the networked volume.
About silent assisted installations (macOS)
Users can perform a silent installation using the Terminal application.
- Create the Assisted Install.txt file with your preferences, and place it in the same folder as the FileMaker Server installer.
- In the Terminal application, enter the macOS
installercommand, using-pkgto specify the FileMaker Server .pkg name and-targetto specify the target volume where you want FileMaker Server installed. For example:sudo installer -pkg FileMaker\ Server\ 16.pkg -target /