General questions

Installation

Q: Should I install the program on a server or on a workstation?

A: Both a server and a workstation can run Total Network Inventory. It’s just a matter of usage convenience. All you need is to have access to the graphical console of the computer it’s installed on, either directly or by using a remote desktop utility. However, if you run it under the domain admin account, you’ll be able to scan all computers as “current user” – otherwise you’d need to specify domain admin credentials explicitly. In the general case, we recommend installing the program on server systems or modern desktops.

Backup and restore

Q: How to backup/restore the Storage or move the program to another computer?

A: The Storage is located in a separate folder (file system directory). It can be located by right-clicking the storage root group and selecting Show in Explorer. Then go up one level and copy/archive the whole storage folder.

Program settings can be backed up by copying/archiving a folder entitled Total Network Inventory in your account’s AppData folder (which can be expanded using the %APPDATA% environment variable) if you chose Install for me during the program installation. If you chose Install for all, the settings are stored in “C:\ProgramData\Total Network Inventory“. You can also find this folder by clicking Open tasks folder in the Scanner tab and then going up one level.

To restore the program, install it on another computer (but don’t run it) and extract your backed-up settings to the Total Network Inventory folder in the AppData folder for your profile or all users, depending on your choice during the installation (after the installation, this folder is automatically created and contains one file: config.ini). Also, extract the storage folder locally: for instance, to Documents. Then run the program and browse to the storage folder when prompted (if its location differs from the path stored in previous settings).

Backup of the Storage to a .zip archive and its subsequent restoration can also be performed from the program’s Storage menu. Regular backups can be performed using the Scheduler.

Multiple access to the storage

Q: Can I open the same storage in several TNI copies at the same time?

A: In a single storage (general) mode you can connect several TNI installations to one storage which is located in a shared folder. However, the program does not provide any special mechanisms for simultaneous operation (simultaneous editing in particular). Therefore, while all users can read the information from the same storage, only one user should edit it to avoid critical errors.

Starting from version 6.2 you can work with Multi-user storage. This will allow working users with the storage without any data loss.

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