Upgrading from Readerware 3 to Readerware 4 is very simple and will be transparent
for most users. Just install Readerware 4 and start it. Everything will
be taken care of.
Installing Readerware 4
The default installation directory for Readerware 4 is different from earlier versions so you
can have both versions installed on the same computer.
The first time you run Readerware 4 it will detect your existing installation. It
will automatically migrate your Readerware preferences to Readerware 4 format so that Readerware
4 looks the same as your current Readerware 3 installation. The table view will consist of the same
columns as it does now, any additional views you have created will still be there etc.
Converting your database
Your Readerware 3 database also needs to be converted to Readerware 4 format. This
is done by backing up your existing Readerware 3 database and restoring it to Readerware 4 format. Your existing
Readerware 3 database is not touched and is still available. The database upgrade wizard will be
launched automatically whenever you open a Readerware 3 database in Readerware 4 and step you through the conversion process
If you have several Readerware 3 databases, you will need to open
each one in Readerware 4 to convert it. Readerware 3 databases will not automatically
show up in the Readerware 4 open database dialog, by default Readerware 4 only displays
Readerware 4 databases. To open a Readerware 3 database, change the file type
drop down list at the bottom of the open dialog to select Readerware 3
databases, you will then be able to open and convert the database to the
new format. On a Mac there is no file type selection, you will able to open
either a Readerware 4 or Readerware 3 database.
Once you have your database in Readerware 4 format it is a good idea to back it up for
safe keeping.
Readerware Database Upgrade Wizard
The Readerware database upgrade wizard will guide you through the process of upgrading
your Readerware 3 database to Readerware 4 format. Most users will just click the Next button to proceed
through the conversion process as Readerware makes default choices for you which will be
appropriate in most cases.
The actual conversion is pretty quick but the speed will depend on the size of
your database. Readerware will keep you posted on the progress.
3.0 Database Upgrade
This is the first page of the wizard and will be displayed automatically whenever
a Readerware 3 database is opened in Readerware 4. It will display the name and location
of the Readerware 3 database. The conversion process will backup your Readerware 3 database and restore it
to Readerware 4 format creating a new Readerware 4 database. Your existing Readerware 3 database is not touched.
Confirm that you want to convert this database by clicking on
the Next button.
If you decide not to convert the database at this point, click on the Cancel button.
4.0 Database Selection
This is where you tell Readerware where to create the new database and what to call it.
Readerware has already set the Readerware 4 database for you based on the Readerware 3 database name. The new
database will be stored in the same folder as the Readerware 3 database and will have the same name.
Readerware uses a different file type for Readerware 4 databases.
If you want to use another name or location for your new database, click on the Browse button.
The standard file selection dialog will be displayed.
Verification
Readerware now has all the information it needs to convert your database to Readerware 4 format.
Click Next to begin the conversion.
Converting...
As Readerware converts your database it will display the progress.
Once the conversion is completed the Next button will be enabled, click it
to continue.
Done!
This final page of the database upgrade wizard displays the number of rows converted.
Click Finish to exit the wizard and open your new database.
Readerware automatically opens your new Readerware 4 database once the conversion is completed. You should
see your records and Readerware 4 is ready to go.
Converting an external database
The process for converting an external database like a MySQL database is practically the same
as converting a standard Readerware database. The same upgrade wizard is used with external databases,
The difference comes when you select your new Readerware 4 database name.
Readerware cannot create a new external database. You must use
the utilities provided with the external database to create a new empty database.
When you get to the 4.0 Database Selection page of the wizard, the database field contains the
name of your existing Readerware 3 external database. Launch the utility that came with the database and
create the new empty database. Return to the wizard and change the name to the new database name.
You can do this by typing it in on by clicking on the Browse button to display the external database
selection dialog.
Installing Readerware 4 on a new computer
If you are installing Readerware 4 on a new computer, then there is no existing database to convert.
Start by backing up your existing Readerware 3 database on your old machine.
Now transfer the backup file to your new computer.
Install Readerware 4 and when the program starts
select the Restore function. Select your Readerware 3 backup file. Readerware 4
will recognize that it is a Readerware 3 backup file and will let you now that it will be
restored to a Readerware 4 database. As there are no existing preferences on your new
computer, be sure to check the option to restore preferences too.
Complete the wizard as described above.
Upgrading Client/Server Edition
There is a little more involved in converting a Readerware Client/Server Installation to Readerware 4.
The way we communicate with the server has changed so you must upgrade both the server and the client computers
to Readerware 4.
Start by running the Readerware 3 RWServer Config utility on the server machine. Shutdown the Readerware 3 server.
If you are running on Windows you should also uninstall the Readerware 3 server Windows service by selecting
from the Service menu.
Now install Readerware 4 on the server machine and run the appropriate Readerware client programs,
i.e. Readerware 4 (Books), Readerware 4 (Music) etc.
You may see an error because the server is not running.
Click OK
on the error and the Database Chooser will be displayed. Select the option to Open an Existing Database
and open your Readerware 3 databases locally. On Windows and Linux you will need to select the
Readerware 3 database type in the file
selection dialog. As the Readerware 3 databases are opened the database conversion process will be triggered
as described above.
The Readerware server cannot convert the databases so this must be done in the Readerware client
programs. Each database must be converted separately using the appropriate client program.
Once the databases have been converted, start the Readerware 4 RWServer Config utility. The database tabs
will still be referencing the Readerware 3 databases. Click on the Browse button and select
the appropriate Readerware 4 database. Save the server configuration.
When you save the new server configuration you may be prompted to select a borrower database. This only applies
if you will be using the Readerware Loan Client. If you do not plan on using the Readerware Loan Client you
can ignore this message. In Readerware 4 the loan client lets you checkout all media types, books, music and videos.
You have to pick one of the databases as the borrower database and the borrowers will be stored in this database.
If you have been using the loan client in Readerware 3, then the borrowers are in your book database and you
should select the book database now. It is best to select the database you will be using most in the loan client.
If you will be primarily loaning videos for example, select the video database as the borrower database. Save
the server configuration after specifying the borrower database.
If you are running on Windows you must install the new Readerware 4 server as a Windows service. Select from the
Service menu. If when using the Readerware 3 server you changed the properties of the RWServer Windows
service, you will need to make those changes again for the new server.
See Running the server as a Windows service.
Now you are ready to start the new server.
Once the Readerware server is running, the next step is to run the Readerware client programs
on the server machine again. When you used these to convert
the databases, the new Readerware 4 databases were saved as the current databases. We need to reset them to
connect to the Readerware server. Start each client program in turn. You should receive an error saying
that the database is in use. This is because the databases have been opened by the server. Click OK on
this error and the Database Chooser will be displayed. Select the option to Connect to a Readerware Server.
Now the Readerware client programs are configured to connect to the Readerware server again.
Finally on the other client machines install Readerware 4 and run the clients. They should connect to the new Readerware 4
server as normal. No special configuration is required, these clients should already be configured to
connect to the Readerware server. If the clients cannot connect to your Readerware 4 server,
it is probably your firewall software. As Readerware 4 is installed in another folder, the firewall rules
on the server machine may need updating.
A final note about the Readerware Loan Client. In Readerware 4 the loan client can checkout all media types,
books, music and videos. It must now be run in client server mode and when it connects to the server it will
access all databases that have been configured on the server. If you have configured all three
databases, the Readerware loan client will connect to the three databases and you will be able to search for any media
type and checkout any item. If you have only configured the server for the books database, then you will
only be able to checkout books.