Database Sharing
The database sharing feature was introduced in version 1.1. The reason it came about was
because I was using UPM at home and at work and was finding it a real pain trying to keep the
databases on both machines in sync. With database sharing UPM uses a remote copy of your
database to keep all the local copies in sync. It does this by downloading the remote copy
before you make local changes and by uploading your local copy after you've made changes.
Server Side Steps
To use database sharing you need to specify where you want your remote database stored. At
present UPM only supports HTTP locations (both password protected by basic authentication and
non password protected).
To upload your database UPM comes with a PHP script (upload.php) that needs to be placed in the
directory where you want to store the database. You'll find this script in the .\server\http
directory of your UPM installation.
Database Configuration
To configure your database with the remote location open your database and go to the
Database -> Database Properties menu item. In the URL field enter the URL of your remote
location. If you put the upload.php file at http://www.mydomain.com/securedir/upload.php then
enter http://www.mydomain.com/securedir in the URL field. If this URL is password protected
then select the account in your database that has the relevant username and password. When you
click OK UPM will upload your database to this URL.
Application Prompts
When the text "Revision x - Unsynchronised" appears in red in the status bar this means that
your local database and the remote database may by out of sync. To synchronise them press the
Synchronise button or the menu item Database -> Sync with Remote Database. When the
databases are in sync the status bar will read "Revision x - Synchronised".
Once you've configured your database to use a remote copy UPM will download the remote database
before you make any changes to your local copy. This ensures that any changes you made on
another machine will be downloaded to your current machine so that they're not lost. When
you exit UPM (via the Database -> Exit menu item) UPM will upload your database if you've
made any local changes. Be aware that UPM will not upload your database if you exit the application
any other way.
|