13-E09 V2 - EiS Kent

13-E09 V2 

ACTION: 

This update must be completed before upgrading to the Spring 2014 Release of SIMS/FMS 

AUDIENCE: 

All Secondary Schools and Secondary Academies who use SIMS and/or FMS and have not yet 

installed SOLUS3. 

ATTENTION OF: 

SIMS System Manager, School Network Manager 

PRODUCT: 

SIMS SOLUS3 

SUBJECT: 

Installation of the new Capita SIMS Online Update Service (SOLUS3) which will replace the 

current version (SOLUS2) 

DESCRIPTION: 

This information notice will guide secondary schools through installing the new SOLUS3 

software. 

SOLUS3 is designed to streamline the updating of a range of Capita SIMS products and 

dependencies such as SIMS, FMS, Discover. After the initial configuration of SOLUS3, the 

deployment service is set to retrieve the details of new updates released by Capita SIMS. 

These updates can then be automatically downloaded to the repository folder on the server 

and then deployed via the User Interface to the server/workstations at a convenient time of 

your choice. 

As this process can be complex, it is recommended that you contact EiS to let us know 

when you will be completing this update – that way we can ensure the relevant support 

officers will be available if you need assistance. 

Support 

If you have any questions about any procedure in this notice please contact EiS Kent. 

Telephone: 01622 672779 | Faxback: 01622 673441 | Email: support@eis.kent.gov.uk

EiS Kent Information Notice 13-E09 V2 June 2013 

Before you begin, it would be useful to find out the following information as you will need 

to enter this during the installation: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The name & IP Address of the server that hosts your SQL2008/SIMS: 

The SQL 2008 Instance Name: 

The SA (SQL2008 Administrator) password: 

The administrator login details to the server (user id & password): 

School DfE Number: 

School Address and Post Code: 

Email address of the person to receive SOLUS 3 alerts about deployments and downloads: 

The time of your scheduled daily backup: 

The time the Discover transfer is scheduled to run (if installed): 

The details of the proxy server (if you use one): 

A list of workstations names for those using SIMS/ FMS/ Discover: 

Workstation Name SIMS FMS Discover 

© EiS Kent Page 2


PART I - Installing SOLUS 3 at version 3.5.20 

Pre-Installation checklist/information: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Microsoft .NET Framework 2 must be installed on all devices in the Solus3 environment 

Microsoft .NET Framework 4 must be installed on all devices in the Solus3 environment 

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 (full or express) must be installed on the device that will host the 

SOLUS3 Deployment Service database (normally the server). 

Windows Task Scheduler must be enabled on all devices in the SOLUS3 environment 

To run the SOLUS3 installers you must login to the server as a Domain Administrator 

You must have write access to the machine keys folder on the deployment service device 

(server), found in the following location: 

Windows Server 2003 

We would recommend that any school still using Windows Server 2003 waits until they have 

moved over to Windows 2008 Server before carrying out this installation. 

Windows Server 2008 and 2008 R2 

Drive:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Crypto\RSA 

More details in Appendix 1 (page 52) 

Some Domain Controllers might require that TCP 389 be opened for LDAP. 

 

Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) must be enabled on the firewalls of all 

devices in the deployment environment. 

NOTE: If you will be installing the SOLUS3 agents to devices manually, you do not need to 

enable WMI. 

 

 

 

 

If you would like SOLUS3 to create backups of your Capita SIMS databases before 

deploying updates, ensure there is sufficient disk space available to SQL Servers to 

accommodate these backups. 

Set up a network share to host the Update Repository for SIMS update downloads. The 

Deployment Service must have write access to this network share – see point 1 on page 3 

below. 

Ports TCP 52965 (deployment service), TCP 52966 (S3 agent) and TCP 8739 (agent 

notifier user interface) must be open on the firewalls of all devices in the deployment 

environment. NB Ports 52965 and 52966 can be changed when installing the Deployment 

Service. 

TCP port 139, UDP port 137 and UPD port 138 must be open on the firewalls of all 

devices in the deployment environment to enable browsing of the network (NetBios) 

Please make sure that the policy to open the firewall ports has been applied on the server and all 

SIMS/FMS/Workstations before installing SOLUS 3. These firewall exceptions can be added 

manually to each workstation if necessary but will be very time consuming if you have many 

stations running SIMS/FMS/Discover 

More details in Appendix 2 (page 53/54) 



INSTALLING SOLUS3 at Version 3.5.20 

1. Apply the policy to open the firewall ports on the server and all SIMS/FMS Workstations 

before installing SOLUS 3 (for manual instructions see page 53-54). 

NOTE: if you do not know how to write a policy to make these firewall changes, please contact 

the EIS Service Desk and ask for a call to be logged with the Technical Admin team. 

2. Create a new folder on the server within the SIMS folder called SOLUS3Setups. This Folder 

must be SHARED and System user must have Full Control to the share and also on 

security tab. 

3. Downloaded latest SOLUS 3 software from: 

http://dl.capitasolus.co.uk/Solus3Release/SOLUS3-3.5.20.ZIP (unzip password is 

$olu$3520). Unzip into a folder on the server i.e. \EIS_SIMS\SOLUS3.5.20 

4. Install the SOLUS 3 Deployment Server Database from the SOLUS3.5.20 folder, run 

SOLUS3Deploymentserverdatabase.exe 

Any items needing to be installed will be ticked – click the Install button to apply them (the 

items listed on your server may differ from those shown here) 

At the Welcome Page - click next 



At the licence agreement screen, tick to accept the terms and click next 

Enter the Server Name and SQL Instance i.e. ADMIN-DC01\SIMS2008 

Select the option to Use a Trusted connection 

Click on Test Connection 



At the SQL Server Connection was successful message click OK and then click Next - If the 

connection is not successful, please contact the EiS Service Desk before proceeding any further. 

At the Database Setup Screen – Do NOT setup a separate SQL account for SOLUS3 User 

Interface, just click on Next 

Click Install on the Ready to Install SOLUS3Deployment Server Database 

As the files install, a black DOS screen will be appear 



Once completed the following screen will appear, click on Finish 

And then click OK at the SOLUS3 Deployment Server database installed successfully message 

5. Install SOLUS3 Deployment Service 

From the SOLUS3.5.20 folder, run SOLUS3Deploymentservice.exe. At the installer screen 

please click Install. 

Any items needing to be installed will be ticked – click the Install button to apply them (the 

items listed on your server may differ from those shown here). 



At the SOLUS 3 Deployment Service Setup Wizard screen Click on next 

Tick to accept the terms and next to accept the terms and conditions 

Enter the Server Name and SQL Instance i.e. ADMIN-DC01\SIMS2008 

Select the option to Use a Trusted connection and click on Test connection 



When the Connection Successful message appears on screen click OK and then Next to 

continue - If the connection is not successful, please contact the EiS Service Desk before 

proceeding any further. 

Leave port 52965 as default – and click on Next 

Enter the path to the .net Framework v4.0 support files - this will be located within the 

\EIS_SIMS\SOLUS3.5.20 folder created earlier (the path may differ from the screenshot below), 

click Next 

Install the SOLUS3 service to the default path of c:\program files\solus3\deploymentservice\ and 

then click Next to continue 



Click on install to begin the installation 

Once the Deployment Service has completed successfully, click on Finish 



At the SOLUS3 Deployment service installed successfully click OK 

6. Once installed please check under services that the “Solus 3 Deployment Service” has 

started 

7. Install SOLUS3 Deployment Server User Interface 

From the SOLUS3.5.20 folder, run SOLUS3DeploymentserverUI.exe - any items needing to 

be installed will be ticked – click the Install button to apply them (the items listed on your 

server may differ from those shown here) 

At the welcome screen click on Next 



Tick the box to Accept the licence agreement and click on Next 

Enter the Servername and SQL Instance i.e. ADMIN-DC01\SIMS2008 

Use a Trusted connection and then click on the Test Connection button 

At the Successful connection message click on OK and then Next to continue 



At the Setup Shortcuts Screen, tick both boxes – as below and click on next: 

Leave the destination folder for the User Interface as the default i.e. c:\program 

files\Solus3\DeploymentServerUI and then click Next 

© EiS Kent Page 13


Click on Install to install the SOLUS3 User Interface 

Click on Finish at the completed screen 

And at the SOLUS3 Deployment Server UI installed successfully click OK 



PART 2 - CONFIGURING SOLUS3 

Now that SOLUS3 has now been successfully installed, you need to configure the settings: 

1. Run the SOLUS3 Deployment Server UI from the server desktop 

Complete the registration settings in My Site for your school by entering the following: 

Enter the school DfE (no spaces) i.e. 8861234 

And the Post code (with a space) i.e. ME15 8AW 

Click on Verify and this will populate the address details 

NOTE 1: If you get an error message displayed – “unable to reach 

http://s3ws.capitasolus.co.uk/packageserverservice.svc”, try this url from a browser and then try 

the verify again 



2. Once verified you need to register the site. Click on the Register button which displays 

the User credentials dialog - Enter the password (use the SA password) and 

confirmation password, SAVE and then Close 

NOTE 2: If you get a “primary key” error, click on the register button again and this should 

successfully register the site. If this does not work then check the machine keys access as per 

NB3 below. 

NOTE 3: If the administrator does not have full read/write access to the machine keys directory 

on the deployment server, they will be unable to register the site with Capita - See Appendix 1 

3. If your school is using a Proxy for internet connection then go to the Proxy Settings tab and 

complete, then Save and Close 



Those schools not using a proxy just click Close and you should be at the main SOLUS3 

Setup Screen. 

For Medway schools using the Medway proxy please enter: 

Address: https://filtpol3.medway.org.uk 

Port: 8080 

Leave the domain, username and password blank. 

4. If the SOLUS3 Setup screen is not displayed, run the SOLUS3 UI from the desktop and go 

into SYSTEM SETTINGS and select SOLUS3 tab, if the fields are not already populated, 

they need to be competed as per the example in Screen shot below but using your own 

school server details: 

To complete the SOLUS3 tab enter details as follows: 

Adding the Deployment database host computer – if this field is not already populated click on 

Select computer, Browse network computers on the left hand side of the page, highlight the 

SIMS server (i.e. Admin-DC01) and click on Add (this moves the Servername to the bottom half 

of the screen) and then click on Save to take you back to the SOLUS3 tab. 



Adding the Deployment database instance name – (if not already populated) manually enter 

the instance name i.e. \SIMS2008. NB you will need to add a \ before the instance name, and 

then click on the Save Settings button 

Adding the Deployment service host computer – (again , if not already populated), click on 

select computer, Browse network computers and then highlight the SIMS server and click on Add 

(which moves the Servername to the bottom half of the screen) and then click on Save. 

Please note you may only have the computer name showing (Admin-DC01) and not the full 

computer name plus domain as above. 



Deployment server port – leave as default of 52965 

Agent port – leave as default of 52966 

Agent heartbeat – tick to poll every 5 mins 

Deployment server URL – leave as default i.e. net.tcp://Servername.domain:52965. You 

should only need to use this option if you have to manually install SOLUS3 agents on a 

workstation. 

5. Complete the Updates Tab (still under the system settings area) 

In the field Check for new updates make sure it is set to check every 30 minutes 

Under the section “Specify the network share where the SOLUS3 updates will be downloaded to” 

enter the Update Repository path (the path to the newly created “repository” folder called 

SOLUS3Setups - see point 2 on page 4) using the format of the UNC path i.e. 

\\Admin-dc01\sims shared$\SIMS\SOLUS3Setups and then click on Validate 

Auto download to repository - tick the box to allow auto downloads between preferred times 

i.e. 03:00 and 05:00 

Maximum concurrent connections – set to 5 

Tick the box to Auto download to agents, between your preferred times i.e.12:00 and 14:00 



Once completed click on save, if the System configuration message is displayed click OK 

At the agent definitions message click ok 



6. From the Main SOLUS3 UI select System Settings, then the Deployment Tab 

In the field for Task time out (minutes) enter 30 

And tick the box to Rollback deployment on failure 

Click on the Save button (if active) then click the Auto Deployment tab 



7. Auto Deployment Tab (under System Settings) 

This tab is used to schedule upgrades to FMS / SIMS / Discover and the Deployment service – 

please leave this blank for now and click on the Alerts tab 

8. Alerts Tab 

In order for your System Manager to receive email notification that updates have been released 

or deployment plans has successfully completed, please enter the SMTP information 

Enter your SMTP details i.e. if you are using KCN enter SMTP.KCN.ORG.UK and port 25 



If you are a Medway school using the Medway mail server enter 

mail.medway.org.uk and port 25 

And if you are a Bromley/Bexley school using LGFL2 please enter 

mailrelay.lgfl.org.uk and port 25. 

If your school is using its own mail server, enter the relevant details here. 

If you need to add a user name and password to access the mail server enter them in the 

relevant fields. 

Add the email address of the “person” who will send the SOLUS3 alert emails to the 

school – the sender email address does not have to be a proper email address, it can be a 

fictitious one i.e. solus3logs@yourschool.kent.sch.uk. – this way when the alert email appears in 

the users inbox it can easily be identified as coming from SOLUS3. 

Once the information has been entered, click on the Send Test Email button to make sure the 

connection is working. 

Now click on Save 

If you are taken back to the SOLUS3 main menu, select the System Settings, Alerts tab. 

Click on the Alert Settings button on the left hand side 

You will now need to setup the two email messages – one to notify of new updates and the 

second to email when a deployment plan status changes. 

Tick the box next to Update and then enter the email address of the person you want to receive 

these messages and the default message you want to send and click on save. 



Next tick the box next to Distribute Deployment and then enter the email address of the 

person you want to receive these messages and the default message you want to send and click 

on save and close at the end of the screen 



PART 3 - SETTING UP A DEFAULT INSTALLATION PATHS SO THAT SOLUS 3 CAN 

BE USED TO AUTO INSTALL SIMS / FMS 

Create a new folder within the network SIMS folder named “Default SOLUS 3 ini files”. Into this 

folder, copy the full version of the CONNECT.ini (from the \SIMS directory on the server), the 

FMSConnect.ini from the FMSSQL folder on the local C:\ drive of the server (i.e c:\program files 

(x86)\sims\fmssql) and the SIMS.ini file from C:\windows folder on the server. 

Once a copy of the SIMS.ini has been saved into this folder, remove the entries in the [Setup] 

area of this copy which points to the location of the SIMSDotNetDirectory and the 

FinanceDirectory 

[Setup] 

SIMSDirectory=S:\SIMS 

SIMSSetupsDirectory=S:\SIMS\Setups 

SIMSDotNetDirectory=C:\Program Files (x86)\sims\ remove this line 

SIMSSQLAppsDirectory=C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft SQL 

Server\MSSQL10_50.SIMS2008\MSSQL\Binn 

Folder=SIMS Applications 

FinanceDirectory=C:\Program Files (x86)\SIMS\FMSSQL -remove this line 

From the main SOLUS3 menu, go to System Settings, select Workstation Settings from the 

left hand side of the screen, and then click on the SIMS.ini tab 

You do not need to add the installation path for SIMS or FMS if you are using the default paths – 

SOLUS3 is intuitive and will work out via the network BIOS whether the pc is 32 or 64 bit and will 

install to the relevant location accordingly (i.e C:\Program Files\SIMS\SIMS .net or C:\Program 

Files(x86)\SIMS\SIMS .net) 

SIMS.ini Tab 

Click on the browse button (…) next to the default SIMS.ini path and browse to the location of 

the previous saved SIMS.ini file (D:\Administration\SIMS Shared\SIMS\Default SOLUS 3 ini files), 

click on Save then click OK to the target definitions message. 

Connect.ini 

Click on the Connect.ini tab 



Default connect.ini file path - browse to the location of the previously saved connect.ini file 

(S:\SIMS\ Default SOLUS 3 ini files) 

Do not tick the box “if all entries in the local connect.ini file should be overwritten tick this box” 

Do not tick to Redirect or enter anything in the redirect file location as you have selected to use 

a default connect.ini 

The Server\Instance name i.e. Admin-dc01\sims2008 and database name i.e. SIMS will be 

displayed below 

Click on the Connection type drop down and select undefined (if not already selected) 

Click on Save 

At the message “target definitions have been saved” click OK 

Now click on the FMSConnect.ini tab 

Default FMSconnect.ini path - browse to the location of the previously saved default 

FMSConnect.ini (S:\SIMS\ Default SOLUS 3 ini files) 

Do not tick the box “if all entries in the local connect.ini file should be overwritten tick this box” 

Do not tick to Redirect or enter anything in the redirect file location as you have selected to use 

a default FMSConnect.ini 

As you have added a default FMSConnect.ini the Server\Instance name i.e. Admindc01\sims2008 

and Database name i.e. CCSFMS, will be displayed below, Click Save 




Click Close 



PART 4 - You now need to setup the SIMS/ FMS/ Discover Channels 

From the main SOLUS3 User Interface, go into SOLUS3 Agents and select Update 

Environment from the menu on the left hand side 

Select the SIMS channel from the drop down list on the left hand side of the screen. Here you 

will need to go through each option listed and add details of the SIMS SQL Server, SIMS 

Database, SIMS Document Management Server, SIMS File server and all SIMS workstations. 



1. Add the SIMS SQL Server: 

In the section SIMS SQL Server, click on the Select Computers button – click on Browse for 

SQL Servers and the following will be displayed (your screen may display different information) : 

Click on the Browse network computers, highlight your SIMS SQL server i.e. Admin-DC01 



Click on the Add button and the servername will drop down to the bottom half of the screen 

When you click on Save you will be prompted to enter the SIMS SQL Server Parameters: 

At the bottom of the page, enter the instance name and the SQL Binn folder i.e. SIMS2008 (no 

\ before it ) and d:\administration\server applications\ms sql server 

2008\mssql10_50.sims2008\mssql\binn, and then click on Save (underneath the Instance name) 

and the instance name and Binn folder location will appear at the top of the page next to the 

computer name and instance. 



Next click on save at the bottom of the screen - at this point you will need to enter the server 

domain name and the administrators username and password i.e. admin\administrator 

Click Save. 

At the message “target definitions have been saved” click ok 

2. Add the SIMS Database: 

From the Target Definitions screen go to thte SIMS Database section, click on the Select 

Computers button, Click on Add, then highlight the SQL Server name i.e. Admin-DC01, click 

on the Add button underneath the server name and the computer name moves to the lower half 

of the screen – under Selected SIMS SQL Server Definiton 

Click on Save 

You will now be prompted to insert the SIMS database parameters. 



Manually enter the database name (usually SIMS), the SA userid and the SA password and 

click on Save (under the password). Again, the database name and SA username will appear at 

the top of the page. If you have more than one SIMS database you can repeat this process to 

add your second database. 

Click on Save at the bottom of the screen 




3. Add SIMS workstations: 

From the Target Definitions screen go to the SIMS Workstation section, click on the Select 

Computers button, Click on the Add button 

then Click on Browse Network Computers (on the left hand side), to show list of workstation not 

currently part of the S3 environment for SIMS workstations. 



Highlight the one(s) you want to add as a SIMS workstation/agent (including the server) and 

click on ADD. The selected workstations move to the lower half of the screen and then click on 

the SAVE button to keep the changes. 

NOTE: – if you are wanting to add workstations from a different domain, please change the 

domain name on the left hand side of the screen under filters (you may be prompted to enter the 

administrator credentials for the curriculum domain i.e. curric\administrator) 

Once saved the SIMS workstations will be displayed and you will be prompted to enter the path 

for the locally installed SIMS .net program files: 



Do not enter an installation path as new SIMS installs will go to the default path, just click on 

Save, enter the Domain name\Administrator user id and password and click ok to the 

message and at the message “target definitions have been saved” click ok 

4. Add the SIMS Document Server: 

From the Target Definitions screen go to the SIMS DMS section, click on the Select Computers 

button. 

Click on Add, click on Browse Network Computers (left hand side of the screen), highlight the 

servername i.e Admin-DC01, click on the Add button in the middle of the screen (the server 

name will move to the lower half of the screen) 

Click on the save button at the bottom of the screen 

Again you do not need to add the path to the SIMS Document Server as it should have been 

installed into i.e. c:\program files\sims .net document server. 

Click on Save then close. 

5. Add the SIMS File Server 

From the Target Definitions screen go to the SIMS File Server section, click on the Select 

Computers button. 

Click on Add, click on Browse network computers, highlight the server i.e. Admin-DC01 and 

click on Add in the middle of the screen. 

Click Save 

Enter the path to the shared SIMS files i.e d:\administration\sims shared\sims, and click on Save 

(underneath the installation location) and then click on Save at the bottom of the page. 



Click on ok and at the message “target definitions have been saved” click ok 



If you use FMS you will now need to Setup the FMS Database, FMS SQL server and 

Workstations. 

Select the FMS Channel from the drop down list on the left hand side of the screen. Here you 

will need to go through each option listed and add details of the FMS SQL Server, FMS Database 

and all FMS workstations 

1. Add the FMS SQL Server 

Firstly setup the FMS SQL Server by clicking on the Select Computers button, click on Browse 

for SQL servers, then browse for network computers and select the computer that has SQL 

installed – highlight the SQL Server, Click on Add then Save. 

At the bottom of the screen, enter the Instance Name i.e. SIMS2008 and the location of the 

Binn folder i.e. D:\administration\server applications\ms sql server 

2008\mssql10_50.sims2008\mssql\Binn. 

Click on the Save button under the Instance name and then click the Save at the bottom of the 

screen. 


2. Setup the FMS database 

From the Target Definitions screen select the FMS Database section click on the select 

computers button, click Add, highlight the server, click on Add and then Save 

Now add the FMS database(s) – at the bottom of the screen enter the FMS Database Name i.e. 

CCSFMS 

Enter the username of SA and enter your SQL 2008 SA password into the password and 

confirm password fields and click on Save (under the password), and Save again (at the bottom 

of the screen). 

Click OK at Target Definition message. 



If you have more than one FMS database you will need to go through the above process 

again and add the second database name, add username sa and password and Save. 

3. Add the FMS workstations 

From the Target Definitions screen select the FMS Workstation section click on the Select 

computers button. 

Click on the Add button, Browse Network Computers (on the left hand side) to browse to the 

workstations – highlight those to use FMS (including the server) and click on Add to move the 

name top the lower half of the screen 

You may need to Browse AD computers to find any FMS stations not found in Browse Network 

Computers, click Administration | Computers | Workstations then Browse Computers 

button, select by clicking Add any stations running FMS. 

Click on Save (you do not need to enter anything in the Installation path as FMS is installed to 

the default location). 

Save again. 



At the message “target definitions have been saved” click ok. 

If your school does not currentely have Discover installed you can click on Close and exit the 

target definitions area. 



If you have Discover installed you will also need to setup the Discover Channel 

Please note, if you are not yet using Discover we would recommend that you do not install it at 

the time of the SOLUS3 setup – we would suggest waiting until SOLUS3 is up and running and 

then contact EiS for installation information on Discover. 

For those schools who have Discover installed, Select the SIMS- Discover Channel from the 

drop down list on the left hand side of the screen. 

Here you will need to go through each option listed and add details of the Discover Database, 

Discover Windows Services and Discover Clients 

1. Add the Discover Database – first click on Select Computer 

In Section 1, Computer name – click on the Select computer button then browse network 

computers (on the left hand side), highlight the admin server i.e. Admin-DC01. Click on the 

Add button in the middle of the screen, the Servername moves to the bottom half of the screen, 

click on Save 

Now enter the Instance Name i.e. SIMS2008 and the Discover Database name i.e. Discover. 

Leave the radio button in Use trusted connection (windows authentication) 

If the details for the SIMS database this Discover database relates to are not already 

populated, enter the SQL Server name by clicking on Select computer button and browsing to 

the admin server i.e. Admin-DC01. 

Enter the Instance name i.e. SIMS2008 and the name of the SIMS database that is linked to the 

Discover database i.e. SIMS. 



Click on Save 


2. Setup Discover Windows services definitions 

a) In the Discover Windows Services section click on Select Computers and in Panel 1 

click Select Computer button and browse to the Admin server by clicking Browse 

Network Computers button, highlight Admin server i.e. Admin-dc01 and click Add then 

Save. 

Enter the installation path of C:\Program Files\SIMS\Discover Services 

b) Panel 2 named Enter credentials for the data transfer service account and for Panel 3 

named Discover group synch service account make sure the option to Use built in 

account and select NT Authority\System Service is selected from the drop down arrow. 

c) In Panel 4 enter the time set for the Discover Data transfer & User synch scheduled 

task to run 

d) Panel 5 If the section Select the Discover database this service relates to if not 

populated, browse to the SQL server i.e. Admin-dc01, enter the Instance name i.e. 

SIMS2008 and the Database name i.e. Discover, and click on Save. 



At the message “target definitions have been saved” click OK. 

3. Setup the Discover Clients 

In the Discover Client section click on the Select Computers button, click on the Add button, 

Browse network computers, highlight the workstation(s) that run Discover (including the 

server) and click on Add, this will move those selected to the bottom half of the screen, now click 

on Save. 

It may be necessary to Browse AD Computers, go to Administration | Computers | 

Workstations then click Browse computers button select any other workstations running 

Discover by highlighting and clicking Add and then Save 

Panel 2 named - Enter the installation path for the Discover client to use - Leave the 

installation path for the Discover client blank and SOLUS 3 will use the default path 

Panel 3 named - Select the Discover Databse the client definitions relate to - If not already 

populated, browse to the server with SQL 2008 installed, i.e Admin-DC01, enter the Instance 

name i.e. SIMS2008 and the Discover Database name i.e. Discover 



Click on Save, you may be prompted to enter the domain administrators credentials i.e 

admin\administrator 


Click on CLOSE 



PART 5 - ENABLE SOLUS3 

Once the setup is complete you will need to Enable SOLUS 3, from the main SOLUS3 screen 

click on the System Settings button and then click on the button Click here to enable Solus3 

Click Yes to activate the service 

Click on Save 

PART 6 - BACKING UP THE NEW SOLUS3 DATABASE 

Once you have installed SOLUS3, you will have to edit your daily backup routine to include trhe 

new SOLUS3 database (solus3_deployment_server.mdf and solus3_deployment_server.ldf ) 

If your school is using Attix 5 please contact EiS as we will need to edit the plug-in settings for 

you. 

PART 7 – “DISABLE SOLUS2” 

Now that SOLUS3 has been installed you do not need to use SOLUS2 any more. To stop 

confusion, with the setup files and the repository files in the SIMS folder, it is recommnded that 

you rename the network SIMS\Setups folder to Setups pre SOLUS3. 

Once this has been done you can also rename the “update and run solus” icon on the server to 

“Do Not Use update and run solus”. 



PART 8 - THINGS TO CHECK AFTER INSTALLING SOLUS 3 

Check workstations are showing correct versions of both SIMS & FMS (& Discover if already 

installed). 

From the main SOLUS3 menu select SOLUS3 Agents: 

Each workstation that was added as a SIMS/FMS or Discover workstation in the setup process 

should be listed in this Deployment environment 

Check to make sure each workstation listed has the correct agent version listed i.e. 3.5.20 and 

the Agent status of “on line”. 



If the Agent version number next to the workstation name is blank or the message panel shows 

installation failed, you can try re-installing the agent on the workstation by highlighting it and 

clicking on the Reinstall Agent button on the left hand side of the screen. 

If the Agent Status is showing as offline, please make sure the workstation is switched on and 

then try reinstalling the agent as above. 

As a further check, you can also highlight each station and server in turn and check the software 

versions installed by clicking View Agent Details (from the panel on the left hand side) 

Under the targets tab you will see what version of the SIMS/FMS/Discover client is installed on 

the workstation and also the version of the SOLUS 3 agent that has been installed 



PART 9 - CHECKING FOR UPDATES / PATCHES IN SOLUS3 

In the original setup we had setup Solus3 to check for updates and auto download them. But, if 

you want to force SOLUS3 to check for updates you will need to go to Manage Updates from 

the main SOLUS3 menu 

All previous updates that have been allocated/downloaded to the school will be listed. 

In the first part of the setup, SOLUS3 was set to auto download updates from the server, but if an 

update is not showing on this list, you can force SOLUS to check for updates by clicking on the 

Check for new updates button. A message will be displayed showing any new updates found: 



In this example, SOLUS3 has found an update to the deployment service, but it could be that 

FMS and SIMS upgrades are found. The new update(s) will be displayed in the list: 

Download the update file to the repository 

Before you can deploy the update, you need to download it – highlight the update and click on the 

Download Selected update button. When the file has successfully downloaded, the status will 

show as Downloaded. 



Scheduling an update to run overnight 

To schedule this update to run automatically overnight; first check the time the nightly Attix5 

/scheduled backup will be running so that the update can be applied after this. 

From the Main SOLUS3 menu select the System Settings button and then the Auto 

Deployment tab: 

This example shows how to schedule an update to the SOLUS3 Deployment Service but 

the same process can be applied to SIMS/FMS/Discover updates. 



Tick the module you want to update i.e. Deployment Service, enter the time span for the 

update to run (need to add at least a two hour slot) then tick the day you want the update to 

apply and click on Save. 

Once saved click on Close and exit the SOLUS3 console 



How to Check the update has applied successfully 

The upgrade will apply overnight at the time specified but you need to check the upgrade has 

completed successfully. 

From the main SOLUS3 menu select Deployment History - highlight the upgrade and make sure 

it is showing as Successful. 

If the update was not successful you can re-deploy the update again by highlighting the 

element that failed and clicking on Deploy now (please make sure all users are out of 

SIMS/FMS). 

Where the workstation upgrade has failed on a station(s), you can click on the symbol next to 

the workstation and select the stations which did not upgrade and redeploy the workstation files. 



Appendix 1 

Ensuring Access to the MachineKeys Directory 

If the Administrator does not have full read and write access to the MachineKeys directory on the 

Deployment Sever, they will be unable to register the site with Capita SIMS. If the administrator 

does not have the correct access privileges, the following error occurs during the site registration 

process: Unable to register site error. An error occurred saving the Deployment Service security 

keys, please contact your local support unit. Access is denied. To prevent this error during 

registration, complete the following procedure: 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the machine that hosts the Deployment Service, navigate to the C:\drive. 

From the Tools menu, select Folder Options. 

Select the View tab. 

In the Advanced Settings list, select the Show hidden files and folder option via Files 

and Folders | Hidden files and folders. 

Click the Apply button. 

Click the OK button. 

From the root of the C:\ drive, navigate to the RSA directory. For Windows Server 2008, 

Windows Server 2008 RS, Windows 7 and Windows Vista, this is accessed via 

ProgramData | Microsoft | Crypto. For Windows Server 2003 and Windows XP, this is 

accessed via Documents and Settings | all users | Application Data | Microsoft | 

Crypto | RSA | MachineKeys. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In the RSA folder, right-click the MachineKeys folder then select Properties from the popup 

menu. 

In the MachineKeys Properties dialog, select the Security tab. 

Click the Edit button. 

In the Group or user name panel, select the Administrators group. 

In the Permissions for Administrators panel, select the Full control check box in the 

Allow column. 

Click the Apply button. 

Click the OK button. 

Click the OK button again to exit the MachineKey Properties dialog. 

Try and register the establishment again with the Capita SIMS servers. 



Appendix 2 

Firewall Settings for XP Workstations 

Run all of these dos commands to setup the local firewall for SOLUS 3 to work and still allow the 

firewall to be turned on. If you set these commands to run as a batch file, you will need to copy 

the file to the workstation and run it from there 

Please note that this has locked down the changes so that the PC only talks to the SIMS\SOLUS 

3 server which is 192.168.1.1 - this would need to be changed to your schools SIMS\SOLUS 3 

server IP. 

These commands can be setup to run as a batch file but you, you will need to copy the file to the 

workstation and run it from there. 

netsh firewall set portopening protocol = TCP port = 52965 name = SOLUS-3-DS scope = 

CUSTOM addresses = 192.168.1.1 

netsh firewall set portopening protocol = TCP port = 52966 name = SOLUS-3-AGENT scope = 


netsh firewall set portopening protocol = TCP port = 8739 name = SOLUS-3--AGENT-UI scope = 


netsh firewall set service type = REMOTEADMIN mode = ENABLE scope = CUSTOM addresses 

= 192.168.1.1 

netsh firewall set notifications DISABLE 

netsh firewall set service type = FILEANDPRINT mode = ENABLE 

This is the outcome of the DOS commands: 



Firewall Settings for Windows 7 workstations: 

Run all of these dos commands to setup the local firewall for SOLUS 3 to work and still allow the 

firewall to be turned on. 

Please note that this has locked down the changes so that the PC only talks to the SIMS\SOLUS 

3 server which is 192.168.1.1 - this would need to be changed to your schools SIMS\SOLUS 3 

server IP. 

These commands can be setup to run as a batch file but you, you will need to copy the file to the 

workstation and run it from there 

netsh firewall set notifications DISABLE 

netsh firewall set service type = FILEANDPRINT mode = ENABLE scope = CUSTOM addresses 

= 192.168.1.1 

netsh firewall set portopening protocol = TCP port = 52965 name = SOLUS-3-DS scope = 


netsh firewall set portopening protocol = TCP port = 52966 name = SOLUS-3-AGENT scope = 


netsh firewall set portopening protocol = TCP port = 8739 name = SOLUS-3--AGENT-UI scope = 


netsh firewall set service type = REMOTEADMIN mode = ENABLE 

The outcome of these commands will show as :

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