Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions about Auto Close Idle(ACI):
- Do I need to do anything special to make ACI work in a
Terminal Server or under Citrix?
- I was just testing ACI with Notepad, but ACI doesn't close
it.
- I was trying ACI with Navision, but ACI doesn't seem to see
it. Is there a specific setting that I need to change?
- Do I need to change any shortcuts or modify the program
configuration in anyway?
- Can I manage the users from any workstation?
- Do I have to install ACI Server on the same computer as the
database server?
- What TCP/IP port does ACI use?
- Does it work over the Internet or behind a firewall?
- What happens when the user is working on another program
while keeping the application in question in the background?
- When the user moves the mouse over the application, will
it be considered active?
- Will it use a database session?
- Can ACI monitor multiple programs at the same time?
- Does ACI work with Navision native database? Navision with MS
SQL?
- What Navision versions does it support?
- Will it corrupt my database?
- Will it close Navision in all cases?
- Some users don't want their application closed. Is this
possible?
- Does ACI Client run standalone?
- Does ACI support multiple languages?
- How ACI is licensed?
- There is a feature I want to be implemented in ACI. Can you
do it?
- Do I need to do anything special to
make ACI work in a Terminal Server or under Citrix?
No, just install ACI Client on the terminal server, and it will auto start the
next time a user logs on, whether in full desktop mode, or by running an
initial application, or by clicking on a published application shortcut.
However, some versions of Citrix do not notify ACI when a new single
published application session is started. In this case, you will find that ACIClient.exe
does not start when the single published application session is started, which you can verify by using Task
Manager, and view the processes for all users. You should see one ACIClient.exe process for each user. In this case, you need to edit
the published application shortcut and prefix it with the following:
"C:\Program Files (x86)\Auto Close Idle Client\ACIClient.exe" /R
If the operating system is 32-Bit, use the following instead:
"C:\Program Files\Auto Close Idle Client\ACIClient.exe" /R
This will start ACI Client as the target application, and ACI Client would
start the target application that you specify after /R command line option.
Make sure that there is a space after "/R" above. The same applies if you are using ACI with an initial application under
terminal services without Citrix. See "Terminal Services in Single Application
Mode" under "Installing ACI Client" in ACI Help→Contents for details.
If you can't edit the path to the file, then you need to publish ACI Client itself, then add /R command line option as above, change the title and icon for the shortcut so it appears the same as the target application.
- I was just testing ACI with
Notepad, but ACI doesn't close it.
In Vista and after, Notepad is using a custom dialog that is not a
Standard Windows Dialog. Please try ACI on another application, such as the
one you plan to use ACI with.
- I was trying ACI with Navision, but
ACI doesn't seem to see it.
Is there a specific setting that I need to change?
This happens when the Application Title or executable file name is not set up correctly. It's case
sensitive, so use "Navision" or "NAV" instead of "navision". Also, using the word
"Navision" only, for example, could unintentionally monitor a program like
"Navision User Guide.pdf - Acrobat Reader". It's best to use EXE
Path wildcard option, and set the EXE to monitor to "\fin*.exe". This would
match both fin.exe and finsql.exe.
After setting the title or EXE path, you can look in the App Title column in ACI Manager
to see which application ACI Clients are actually monitoring, by default this
is updated every 10 seconds.
- Do I need to change any shortcuts or modify the monitored
program configuration in anyway?
No.
-
Can I manage the users from any workstation?
Yes, just go to any computer that you installed ACI Client on, and right click
the tray icon and select "Enter Admin Mode". The default password is "admin",
all lower case. You can also run ACI Manager in standalone mode by changing
ACI Client shortcut, and adding "/mo" command line option, which stands for
Manager Only mode.
- Do I have to install ACI Server on the same computer as
the database server?
No. You can install ACI Server on any computer that you like; however, choose
a computer that you normally leave on 24/7, as ACI Clients will not monitor
the target software unless they are connected to ACI Server to obtain their
configuration information.
- What TCP/IP port does ACI use?
It uses TCP/IP port 9400 by default, which can be changed to any port by
editing an INI file, or by specifying "/p:" command line option to the
installer/accumulative updater. See the Help file for more details...
- Does it work over the Internet or behind a firewall?
Yes. ACI Client can automatically detect the server if it's on the same LAN
using broadcast packets.
When ACI Client is behind a router, you can specify the IP Address and port
number to use in command line options to the installer/accumulative updater,
or by editing an INI file. See "Setting up ACI Client to work from behind a
router" under "Installing ACI Client" in ACI Help→Contents for details.
- What happens when the user is working on another program
while keeping the application in question in the background?
Any application other than the monitored application is ignored. If the idle
time limit is enabled for the user and is reached, ACI will close the
application, in most cases without bringing the application to the foreground.
- When the user moves the mouse over the application, will
it be considered active?
No, moving the mouse over the application is ignored. Only keyboard and mouse
activity on the target application are considered when determining the idle
time.
- Will it use a database session?
No. ACI does not connect to your database server in anyway.
- Can ACI monitor multiple programs at the same time?
Yes, however, monitoring additional applications may require additional ACI
licenses. Some applications consist of a main process that start other
processes or executables that does some aspect of the main applications. These
are considered to be part of the same application. If these run independently
from each other, then additional ACI licenses maybe required. Please contact us
for more details if you would like to use ACI with additional applications.
- Does ACI work with Navision native database? Navision with
MS SQL?
Yes. It works with both.
- What Navision versions does it support?
It supports all versions, this includes Navision Financials, Navision Attain,
and Dynamics-NAV.
- Will it corrupt my database?
No. ACI will simulate closing the application as any user does, by clicking on
the close button on the upper right corner of the application's main window. It will never
terminate the task which usually leads to data loss or corruption. In the case
of Navision, it will click Cancel at every pop window until the
application is closed.
- Will it close Navision in all cases?
No. It will not close Navision when there is a popup a window as a result of
the C/Side command CONFIRM(). This command shows a message to the user and 2
buttons: Yes or No, without cancel. Examples include "Delete Customer?", "Do
you want to update the sales lines?". It's a bad idea for ACI to answer all
Yes or all No to these dialogs. If any of these dialogs appear, you can
respond to them by using the "Remote Control" function. This allows
you to see the user's screen and use your keyboard and mouse to interact with
the application remotely. However, in most cases the user usually responds to
these dialogs quickly, so the application is left in closable conditions.
- Some users don't want their application closed. Is this
possible?
Yes. You can set both "Auto Close" and "Allow Close by Others" to "No" to
certain users. In this way ACI acts like in a "Read only" mode. You can see how long these users have been idle, but they will
not be closed automatically. You can still close the application used by these users by
right clicking on a user and select "Close this App".
- Does ACI Client run standalone?
Because ACI was designed to be centrally managed, the client cannot run in
standalone mode.
- Does ACI support multiple languages?
Not at this time. However, it works with non-English versions of Navision. The
user interface is currently available in English only. We are planning on translating the client side to other languages,
however, the server side or ACI Manager will remain in English only.
- How ACI is licensed?
ACI license allows unlimited number of clients and one server installation(ACI
Server copy)
plus unlimited free updates.
Click here for details.
- There is a feature I want to be implemented in ACI. Can
you do it?
Please feel free to contact us, and use "Suggest a
feature". We review all requests and based on your feedback we prioritize
these requests.
Note: Navision® is a registered trademark of Navision A/S;
which was acquired by Microsoft in 2002. We are not affiliated with Navision A/S
or Microsoft in anyway.
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