Technical Specification...ALB Technical Specification Version 2.7.1 The minimum and recommended technical environment specifications . REV1200417IS Advanced Computer Software Group

ALB Technical Specification Version 2.7.1

The minimum and recommended technical environment specifications. REV1200417IS

Advanced Computer Software Group Ltd Booths Park 4, Chelford Road, Knutsford, WA16 8GS

t: +44 (0) 844 815 5620

www.oneadvanced.com

Disclaimer Copyright © Advanced Computer Software Group Ltd 2017.

This document contains confidential and/or proprietary information. The content must not be disclosed to third parties without the prior written approval of Advanced Computer Software Group Limited or one of its subsidiaries as appropriate (each referred to as “Advanced”). External recipients may only use the information contained in this document for the purposes of evaluation of the information and entering into discussions with Advanced and for no other purpose.

Whilst Advanced endeavours to ensure that the information in this document is correct and has been prepared in good faith, the information is subject to change and no representation or warranty is given as to the accuracy or completeness of the information. Advanced does not accept any responsibility or liability for errors or omissions or any liability arising out of its use by external recipients or other third parties.

No information set out or referred to in this document shall form the basis of any contract with an external recipient. Any external recipient requiring the provision of software and/or services shall be required to enter into an agreement with Advanced detailing the terms applicable to the supply of such software and/or services and acknowledging that it has not relied on or been induced to enter into such an agreement by any representation or warranty, save as expressly set out in such agreement.

The software (if any) described in this document is supplied under licence and may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms of such a licence. Issue of this document does not entitle an external recipient to access or use the software described or to be granted such a licence.

The development of Advanced software is continuous and the published information may not reflect the current status. Any particular release of the software may not contain all of the facilities described in this document and/or may contain facilities not described in this document.

Advanced Computer Software Group Limited is a company registered in England and Wales with registration number 05965280 whose registered office is at Ditton Park, Riding Court Road, Datchet, Berkshire. SL3 9LL.

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Contents PART 1: Introduction.................................................................. 5

Before you begin ........................................................................................ 6

Revision history........................................................................................... 7

PART 2: Hardware specs ............................................................ 8

Server hardware, O/S and SQL requirements ......................................... 9

Terminal Services hardware, O/S and software requirements ............ 10

Client requirements ................................................................................. 11

Deployment considerations .................................................................... 11

PART 3: Software specs ........................................................... 13

Microsoft Operating Systems .................................................................. 14

Microsoft Office ........................................................................................ 14

Microsoft Exchange .................................................................................. 15

Microsoft SQL Server ................................................................................ 16

Server software ......................................................................................... 17

Browser access ......................................................................................... 17

Remote access .......................................................................................... 18

Document production .............................................................................. 18

Workflow ................................................................................................... 19

Word add-in .............................................................................................. 19

Time Tracker ............................................................................................. 20

PI Portal ..................................................................................................... 21

SQL agent ........................................................................................... 22

SMTP server ....................................................................................... 22

System parameters ........................................................................... 23

Other integration ...................................................................................... 23

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ALB TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION 2.7.1

5

PART 1: Introduction This document outlines the recommended environment specifications for running ALB successfully. Its purpose is to cover the hardware and software requirements, plus other important recommendations that you should be aware of before implementing ALB.

IMPORTANT This document contains confidential information and must not be disclosed in whole or in part to any third-party. Unauthorised copying, printing, or distribution is prohibited.

In this section:

• Before you begin • Revision history


6

Before you begin ALB is continually developed and increased functionality will inevitably lead to greater demands on hardware in terms of disk storage, processor, and memory resources. Given that most firms write IT hardware investments off over somewhere between 3-5 years it therefore makes sense wherever possible to exceed these specifications.

Some specifications in this document are intended for those who wish to re-use existing systems for ALB, and therefore may reflect items that can no longer be purchased as new. The recommended specifications have been built around currently available hardware and software.

For ALB database or application servers these guidelines are based on the assumption that the supplied server is dedicated to the use of ALB and that no other Microsoft server products/applications are installed on the same server unless otherwise stated.

Where hardware is supplied by a third-party, assurances must be given by them that the existing or proposed environment meets or exceeds the expected performance of our recommended environment specification. However, we will assist the third-party within reasonable limits in order that they can give this assurance.

Conventions

When new versions of ALB are released it is not possible to complete full regression test cycles on every combination of operating system platform. Therefore a reference test platform is selected which is intended to reflect the platforms most commonly used by our customers and is shown in bold. A lighter degree of regression testing is carried out on certified platforms which are shown in italics.

Supported platforms are those where Advanced is not aware of any issues in running ALB on such a platform, and will correct defects found in these environments, but will not explicitly test using them.

CHAPTER PART 1: INTRODUCTION

7

NOTES

• The operating systems and Microsoft Office versions listed in the software specifications are the only versions currently supported by ALB. Any product not mentioned here is not supported.

• For prospective customers, please complete the Environment Sign-off Form so that we are both clear that your environment is suitable for a successful installation.

• For more information on the hardware specifications in this document, please contact Advanced Technical Services.

Revision history Here's a summary of the changes in this release. It shows new or revised content in terms of usage, policy or procedure and should be reviewed.

• [20.04.17] — Support for Laserform 10 added.


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PART 2: Hardware specs In this section:

• Server hardware, O/S and SQL requirements • Terminal Services hardware, O/S and software requirements • Client requirements • Deployment considerations

CHAPTER PART 2: HARDWARE SPECS

9

Server hardware, O/S and SQL requirements The table below details the recommended server specifications and assumes that the server is for the sole use of ALB and related components. It is highly recommended that modern hardware is deployed (< 2 years) to ensure that maximum performance and benefit is achieved from the latest version of ALB and its components.

Server specification

<10 users <50 users <100 users >100 users

CPU: Intel E5-2620v3 series or similar

1 X 2 core 1 X 4 core 1 X 8 core 2 X 8 core

RAM: 8GB 16GB 32GB 64GB

Disk subsystem:

1 X RAID1 or 1 X RAID5

1 X RAID1 (O/S)1 1 X RAID10 (data)1



SQL Server version and edition

2012 STD3 2014 STD3 2016 SP1

2012 STD3 2014 STD3 2016 SP1

2012 STD3 2014 STD3 2016 SP1

2012 STD3 2014 STD3 2016 SP1

Windows Server version and edition

2008 (x64) STD4 2008R2 STD4 2012 STD 2012R2 STD 2016 STD



2008 (x64) Ent 2008R2 Ent 2012 STD 2012R2 STD 2016 STD

Microsoft .NET

4.5.1 with latest updates





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NOTES (1) Recommend 10k or 15k SAS drives connected to hardware RAID controller with battery backed cache. (2) Recommend SAS based SSD drives for maximum throughput. (3) Supports SQL Report Builder 3 only. (4) Maximum of 32 GB RAM supported. SQL Express is not supported for use with ALB.

Terminal Services hardware, O/S and software requirements

Server specification <15 users <30 users

CPU: Intel E5-2620v3 series or similar recommended

1 X 4 core 1 X 8 core

RAM: 16GB 32GB

Disk subsystem: 1 X RAID1 1 X RAID1

Windows Server version and edition



Free disk space available for ALB client install

5GB 5GB

Microsoft .NET 4.5.1 with latest updates 4.5.1 with latest updates

CHAPTER PART 2: HARDWARE SPECS

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NOTE (1) Maximum of 32 GB RAM supported.

Client requirements Client PC specification

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo, i3 or i5 (or similar)

RAM: 4GB

Network 1GB

Display 1280x1024

Client operating system version and edition

Windows 7 or above (32bit and 64bit supported)

Free disk space available for ALB client install

5GB

Microsoft .NET 4.5.1 with latest updates

NOTE Default font sizes of 115% and 125% are not supported.

Deployment considerations • Ensure a suitable backup solution is in place capable of backing up SQL

databases and ALB related data and documents/files. Management and monitoring of backups and maintenance of SQL is a customer responsibility unless there is a specific Managed Technical Services agreement in place for us to do so.


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• Setting server hardware BIOS settings to “Maximum performance” can increase the performance of applications running on the server.

• When using MS HyperV, setting virtual disks to “fixed size” is recommended for SQL servers.

• To maximise performance, SQL virtual machines should not span NUMA nodes.

• Review Anti-Virus settings to help optimise client and server performance.


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PART 3: Software specs ALB requires certain software to work (operating system, database) and optionally integrates with many other business applications. In this section we set out the supported versions of these products.

For the mandatory software, Advanced's policy is to follow that of Microsoft; when mainstream support ends we recommend that customers upgrade to a product which is in mainstream support. When extended support ends we will no longer support customers on that product. This does not necessarily mean that the product will cease to function at that date, but that we will not provide support if it does.

For other vendors' products, if a product is not listed here, then it is not supported. By this we mean that our team are not able to help you with queries about that third-party product.

In this section:

• Microsoft Operating Systems • Microsoft Office • Microsoft Exchange • Microsoft SQL Server • Server software • Browser access • Remote access • Document production • Workflow • Word add-in • Time Tracker • PI Portal • Other integration


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Microsoft Operating Systems Once the Microsoft extended period has been reached, we will be unable to support ALB installed on these versions.

Client operating systems Microsoft support ends

VERSION MAINSTREAM EXTENDED

Windows 7 Pro SP1 x86 (1) 13/01/2015 14/01/2020

Windows 7 Pro SP1 x64 (1) 13/01/2015 14/01/2020

Windows 8 Pro SP1 x86 (1) 09/01/2018 10/01/2023

Windows 8 Pro SP1 x64 (1) 09/01/2018 10/01/2023

Windows 10 for Business - -

(1) Or Ultimate

NOTE Windows Vista and XP are no longer supported.

Microsoft Office These are the versions of Microsoft Office that are supported by ALB. Once the Microsoft extended period has been reached, we will be unable to support ALB installed on these versions.

Microsoft Office Microsoft support ends


Office 2010 01/06/2015 01/06/2020

CHAPTER PART 3: SOFTWARE SPECS

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Office 2013 09/01/2018 11/04/2023

Office 2016 - -

Office 2016 365 - -

64-Bit Office Not Supported

In line with Microsoft's own recommendation, Advanced does not support the use of 64-bit Office with ALB, even on a 64-bit operating system. Microsoft's wording is as follows:

"If users in your organisation depend on existing extensions to Office, such as ActiveX controls, third-party add-ins, in-house solutions built on previous versions of Office, or 32-bit versions of programs that interface directly with Office, we recommend that you install 32-bit Office (the default installation) on computers that are running both 32-bit and 64-bit supported Windows® operating systems."

NOTE When integrating Office with ALB, Office and ALB must reside on the same client device (PC or Terminal Server).

Microsoft Exchange These are the versions of Microsoft Exchange Server supported by ALB. Once the Microsoft extended period has been reached, we will be unable to support ALB installed on these versions.

Microsoft Exchange Microsoft support ends


Exchange 2010 SP1 13/01/2015 14/01/2020


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Exchange 2010 SP2 13/01/2015 14/01/2020

Exchange 2013 10/04/2018 11/04/2023

Exchange 2016 13/10/2020 14/10/2025

Exchange 365 - -

NOTE

• Microsoft Exchange 2010 SP1 requires that:

• Client Access Server (Role) is installed • Unified Messaging is enabled • Auto-discover is enabled • Offline address book is available

Microsoft SQL Server These are the versions of SQL Server supported by ALB. Once the Microsoft extended period has been reached, we will be unable to support ALB installed on these versions.

SQL Server Microsoft support ends


SQL Server 2012 SP3 11/07/2017 12/07/2022

SQL Server 2014 SP2 09/07/2019 09/07/2024

SQL Server 2016 SP1 13/07/2021 14/07/2026


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Server software In order to facilitate support, scheduled reporting, and server backups, the following software is required:

• Microsoft Office (Server). All ALB servers need a local copy of Microsoft Word and Microsoft Excel for support and scheduled report generation. In most cases the most cost-effective way of providing this will be by providing a Microsoft Office Basic Edition license.

• Backup Software (Server). Where backups are performed locally on the server, Symantec Backup Exec is the preferred option. For servers backed up remotely, a Backup Exec Agent for Windows® Servers will be required. The latest version includes Advanced Open File and Intelligent Disaster Recovery. A backup agent for Microsoft SQL Server is also preferred to provide a complete backup of the data held in SQL Server.

Browser access These are the Web browsers supported by ALB for use with Fee Earner Desktop (FED) or Client Self Service (CSS).

Browser

VERSION

Internet Explorer 8.x




Edge

Mozilla Firefox 7.x


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Google Chrome 14.x

Apple Safari 5.x

NOTE

• In order to facilitate remote working (FED) or client access (CSS) the following must be installed:

• IIS 6.0 (or above) • .NET framework 4.1

Remote access Advanced needs remote access to your site to download files and allow our support department to update, maintain, and troubleshoot your software installation. This will need to be tested well in advance of an installation to ensure support will be available to advise the on-site engineers. The preferred method of access is:

• LogMeIn Installable Remote Control (with RDP being an alternative).

Document production To facilitate the production of client-ready documents based on the information stored in the ALB database, the following must be enabled. Document production uses pre-defined templates, typically created by administrators, to produce documents by merging them with your data, e.g. client name, matter description, etc.

• Distributed Transaction Coordinator (MSDTC) service enabled


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Workflow In order to facilitate workflow (a set of activities that are used to execute a business process in a structured way) the following must be installed/enabled:

• .NET 4.5 on the web server (4.5.1 for Microsoft Exchange customers) • Distributed Transaction Coordinator (MSDTC) service enabled

IMPORTANT The Windows "Themes" service must be enabled on sites running Case applications and/or workflow. Without this sites are limited to the Windows Classic theme, which has limitations in the way in which it represents the user interface of ALB. For example, Not Set values in check boxes are displayed as grey ticks which may lead to misinterpretation by the user.

Word add-in In order to support the Word add-in, which allows you to save documents into ALB document history, the following must be installed:

• .NET 4.5 on the web server (4.5.1 for Microsoft Exchange customers) • Distributed Transaction Coordinator (MSDTC) service enabled

NOTES

• The installer covers everything regarding the setup of the Word add-in (i.e. the Click and File feature). However, you must make sure that workflow is set up correctly.

• ALB login details must be entered to authenticate the add-in, but you will be prompted for this the first time the feature is used.


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Time Tracker ALB provides remote time recording using Time Tracker, a time capture solution powered by Rekoop. This functionality extends the desktop time recording abilities of ALB to mobile devices such as iPhone, iPad, and BlackBerry. In order to support Time Tracker, the following must be installed:

• IIS 6.0 (or above) • .NET 4.5 on the web server (4.5.1 for Exchange customers) • Fee Earner Desktop (FED)


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PI Portal The following section summarises the environment requirements for PI Portal integration.

In this section:

• SQL agent • SMTP server • System parameters


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SQL agent

One of the features of the PI Portal module is the ability to access the portal at scheduled intervals to check for updates to claims. This feature relies on SQL Agent together with a program that Advanced supply (as part of the installation) for running scheduled tasks. Please read the following requirements and considerations:

• SQL Server 2005 or 2008 are required, as they include SQL Agent. For more information about configuring SQL Agent please refer to Microsoft's SQL Server documentation.

• The TaskScheduler Windows service must be installed on the server in order to run certain nightly process conditions.

• Our system makes use of web services referred to by the portal provider as "the A2A (Application-To-Application) interface of the RaPId portal". PI Portal integration therefore requires a stable Internet connection. This is used by the PMS client software and by the task scheduler running under control of SQL Agent; there may be some firewall configuration needed to ensure that both can communicate with the PI Portal web service.

• It is possible for multiple large documents to be uploaded and downloaded during some operations (both manual and scheduled). Some consideration should be given to the speed of the connection depending on the number of active claims and the number of users on the system.

SMTP server

As part of the feature set offered by PI Portal integration the task scheduler has the ability to send email updates. This makes use of an SMTP email host server. The address of the server is configured in the ALB database. However, there may be some configuration of permissions needed on the server itself to allow this feature to run.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-US/library/ms178142(v%3dsql.90).aspx

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-US/library/ms178142(v%3dsql.90).aspx


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This is also required for Designer Studio installations to inform the case developer of the matters affected when a process is changed.

System parameters

In order to access the MoJ portal, there are a number of system parameters that hold relevant information such as the URL address, site user name and password, etc. For more information, please refer to the PI Portal Module manual (PDF).

Other integration This table shows the other (optional) integration products supported by ALB, which are available at an extra cost.

Integration products

PRODUCT VERSION/COMMENTS

Telephony integration (CTI)

ALB includes an option to integrate with digital telephone systems. To take advantage of this, please check with your telephony supplier that:

• A line is surfaced at each desk (the Caller Line Identification data is usually lost when a call is transferred from reception, so the "screen pop" feature of the integration will only work on calls to Direct Dialling Inward numbers).

• Your Private Automatic Branch Exchange supports Telephony Application Programming Interface 2.2. Your telephone provider may make a charge for this.

http://www.advanced-legal.co.uk/Resources/Documentation/ALB/WebHelp/Assets/PDFs/LCSALB-PI-Portal-Agenda-2-7-0.pdf

http://www.advanced-legal.co.uk/Resources/Documentation/ALB/WebHelp/Assets/PDFs/LCSALB-PI-Portal-Agenda-2-7-0.pdf


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• We do not support this in a hosted environment.

Office web apps Not supported, as these are "online companions" not full functional versions.

Laserform 10

BigHand 4.6

Capscan View XML

Equitrac -

Esendex View XML

Call ML 6.1

pdfDocs 4.4 (1)

Xerox -

eCopy 3 or 4

Rekoop 5.9.24

(1) Version 4 requires a minimum of 4.2 U3 with hot fix 47.1 (v4.2.302.4) to correctly bundle multiple documents into a single PDF.

http://www.capscanondemand.com/capscanondemand/capscanondemand.asmx?WSDL

https://www.esendex.com/secure/messenger/soap/SendService.asmx?wsdl

Advanced Computer Software Group Ltd Booths Park 4, Chelford Road, Knutsford, WA16 8GS

t: +44 (0) 844 815 5620

www.oneadvanced.com

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Technical Specification...ALB Technical Specification Version 2.7.1 The minimum and recommended technical environment specifications . REV1200417IS Advanced Computer Software Group