Working in a Stand-Alone Session

Definitions: Thick and thin clients

Thick client

A client is considered thick if the personal database and Personal Express are installed on the PC and a majority of processing takes place on the PC.

Thin client

A client is considered thin if the personal database and express server are installed on the server and a majority of processing occurs on the server.

About working stand-alone

You can work without being attached to the shared database if your PC is set up as a thick client. When you start the software while working on a stand-alone workstation, the software warns you that you are not able to connect to the shared database and asks if you want to work unattached. If you choose Yes, you will be running in a stand-alone session, where you are unable to receive distributions or submit your work. During a subsequent work session when you are attached to the shared database, you can submit the data that you worked on during your unattached session.

You can specify a setting in the Options dialog box that tells the system to automatically ask if you want to work unattached to the shared database. Setting this option enables users who are working away from the office to bypass a set of message boxes requesting passwords and providing warning messages.

Conditions that must be met

You can work in a stand-alone session unattached to the shared database if the following conditions are met:

• You are working on a Super administrator, Administrator, or Budget workstation.

• You installed a personal copy of Financial Analyzer code.

• You are working on a PC that is set up as a thick client.

When you can work stand-alone

Using this feature, you can continue to work productively even if:

• You have to be away from your office and do not have the ability to communicate with the shared database.

• You are unable to connect to the shared database because of communications problems within your normal working environment.

When you cannot work stand-alone

You cannot work stand-alone if:

• You are using an Analyst workstation. This is because Analyst workstations must always attach directly to the shared database.

• You are on a workstation that does not have a copy of personal code installed.

• You are working on a PC that is set up as a thin client.