2.01. Requirements

Hardware requirements vary widely depending on what you want to use mSupply for.

Here's a rough guide:

• A connected printer is not absolutely necessary in every situation, but for most situations it is a requirement. A dot-matrix printer may be used, but an ink-jet or laser is preferable.
• Buy hardware for which you are able to obtain good support.
• Buy brands with a reputation for quality (even if it means buying a slower/older machine).
• We have clients running mSupply on a wide range of hardware. We are happy to discuss hardware options further via email or phone.

Once you start using mSupply, it is of crucial importance that you have a method of backing up your data. mSupply stores all its data in a file that rapidly becomes large. You need, therefore, to have a high capacity removable storage device. We strongly recommend the use of an external hard disk using either firewire (IEEE 1394) or USB2 to facilitate off-site storage of backups.

• See the section in Preferences that covers mSupply's built-in backup features that allow backup to another disk, and to an internet backup site… you'll find it here: Backup
• If not using our internet backup service, you need to be able to store backed up data off-site to prevent the risk of loss by fire, theft, etc.

Windows based operating systems are particularly prone to malware if precautions are not taken. We recommend the following precautions:

• Install a reputable anti-virus program, including web protection if the computer has access to the internet. We recommend F-Prot.
• Disable USB ports - refer to this site for suggested methods.

Ensure that access to passwords to allow exceptions to the above two measures are kept secure.

If you open a data file that was created with a previous version, it will automatically be updated to the new format. Please note that this process may take some time.

Note that if you are using a version earlier than v1.96 you must first upgrade to v1.96 and then to version 2 or 3.