FileMaker Reconnect to Server

One of the nicest–and least mentioned, it seems–new features of FileMaker 14 is the automatic “Reconnect to Server” capability. This feature does exactly as described:

Basically FileMaker reconnects you automatically if you’ve lost your connection to the server, such as when you close your laptop then open it up again some time or place later… With ‘reconnect’ FMP will carry on where you left off without the need to log in all over again.

FileMaker Go has always had this great feature but as of FM14 it’s now in the desktop products too, i.e. FileMaker Pro 14 and FileMaker Pro Advanced 14. And it works with Server 13 or 14 so it’s an instant win even if you’re still running a 13 server.

Now you might think this would make for a short article, but you, like me, would be mistaken.  There are a few caveats and some work arounds covered by Craig Saunders, the head honcho at Digital Fusion who wrote this blog post:

  • How it works with multiple file solutions
  • The fact that is works with FileMaker 14 even if your server is Version 13
  • How it interacts with fmauthenticate, an extended privilege that used to apply only to FileMaker Go
  • How the process works under different circumstances (if you click the dialogue box or don’t)
  • Some workarounds to address some of the issues he discovered

Bottom line: read the whole article.

Digital Fusion are leading web and FileMaker developers with offices in Christchurch and Sydney

Source: 14 for 14: FileMaker Reconnect to Server

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