Configuring general settings : Admin Console settings
 
Admin Console settings
Note  The following information is for server administrators.
The General Settings > Admin Console tab specifies the following configuration settings:
• Restrict running Admin Console to a specific system or a range of systems identified by IP addresses.
Using FileMaker Server Admin Console, you can remotely control, or administer, FileMaker Server from a different computer than the one on which FileMaker Server is installed and hosting databases.
You can restrict access to Admin Console to the system currently running the console or to systems with specific IP addresses.
• Change the FileMaker Server administrator’s user name or password, or allow members of an external authentication group to log in to Admin Console.
• Check for FileMaker Server updates.
To specify Admin Console settings:
1. Click the General Settings > Admin Console tab.
 
To
Do this
Restrict Admin Console to specific IP addresses
For Restrict Access:
• Select Enable access restrictions.
• Enter one or more IP addresses, separated by commas.
Note  Any changes to this setting require restarting FileMaker Server on the master machine. See Starting or stopping the FileMaker Server service (Windows) or Starting or stopping FileMaker Server background processes (OS X).
Important  You can run FileMaker Server Admin Console on the master machine even if you enable access restrictions.
Change the Admin Console account user name and password
For Authentication:
1. Click Change User Name/Password to open the dialog box.
2. For the Admin Console user name, enter the new name in New User Name. To keep the current user name, leave the field blank.
3. Enter the Current Password.
4. Enter a New Password, then enter it again in Confirm Password.
When you enter the password value, Admin Console determines the strength of the password. FileMaker recommends that you enter a strong password. For information on password strength, see Understanding password strength.
5. Enter a Password Hint that will help you remember the password.
The hint is displayed on the Start Page after three failed attempts to enter the user name and password.
6. Click OK.
This change is effective immediately.
Note  Admin Console passwords are securely hashed by the Database Server so the original text can never be retrieved. If you enter a new password, the Database Server checks if the password has changed and automatically hashes the new password.
Allow members of an external authentication group to log in to Admin Console
Select Use external group and enter an optional domain or local machine name followed by the external authentication group name. For example: groupname, domain\groupname, or groupname@localmachine. The external authentication group can be the fmsadmin group or another external authentication group that is not associated with an administrator group. See Adding administrator groups.
You can limit the number of external authentication groups FileMaker Server searches when authenticating users by specifying the domain or local machine name in either of the following formats:
• domain\group or localmachine\group
• group@domain or group@localmachine
If you do not specify a domain or local machine name, here is how FileMaker Server searches for the external authentication group on these platforms:
• OS X: searches the local machine only
• Windows: searches the domain, if the computer is a member of a domain, then searches the local machine
To test your external group setting, click Test External Group. If the test fails, verify the external group name information.
Check for FileMaker Server updates
For Check for Updates, select Enable FileMaker Server to check for updates.
You can also check for updates by choosing Help menu > Check for Update. See Checking for updates.
2. Click Save.
Important  To prevent unauthorized users from mistakenly logging in to Admin Console as the server administrator, make sure the Admin Console user name and password do not match any user name and password in any of the external authentication groups associated with Admin Console or any administrator group. Use a unique user name and a strong password that is at least 8 characters and a combination of letters and numbers. Note that the Admin Console user name and administrator group names are not case sensitive, but passwords are. For additional important guidelines for using external authentication groups, see External authentication for Admin Console and administrator groups.
Related topics 
Database Server security settings
Configuring general settings