ServiceLedger Portal Installation Guide

The ServiceLedger Tech Portal and ServiceLedger Customer Portal are valuable applications that allow your technicians, subcontractors, and customers to interact directly with your ServiceLedger system and save time that would otherwise be spent looking up, printing, or e-mailing records to your techs and customers or entering data on their behalf.

Because these systems must interact with your ServiceLedger database, the portals must be manually installed and configured. This document describes the installation process. In most cases, we recommend setting these portals up with the default values provided in this document. These defaults greatly simplify the setup process and can make it easier for us to support your portals in the future.

The portal installation process consists of planning, initial setup on your severs, and finally the actual installation for whichever portal or portals you will use. If you are using multiple portals, the preparation and setup steps only need to be carried out once, no matter which or how many web portals you install.

Note: If you have any questions about how to proceed during this process, please remember that we provide free installation and configuration assistance to all customers with an active support or maintenance plan.

The overall process for installing the portals is outlined below.

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Configuration Tracker
Contact Information



Servers



User Accounts






Tunnel Information


Planning

Before you make any changes to your computers, it's important to understand how the portals will fit into your existing computer network. The following sections talk about the overall layout of the ServiceLedger portal system so that you can understand what the installation steps below are trying to accomplish. Even if you're not a technically-inclined person, it can be very useful to know some of the terms below when speaking with support representatives or your IT staff about a problem.

In the contents section, a configuration tracker is provided so that you can keep track of the information you are gathering at this stage and use it later during installation. Please fill this out as you go and use the button to copy them into your installation job.

Choose your Servers

The first thing to understand when setting up a portal is which servers you are working with. There potentially up to three servers involved in any portal setup:

The Database Server hosts your ServiceLedger database. You will already have a database server set up before installing any portals. It is important to know which computer this is and how to access it. If you are using your own SQL Server and are using your own SQL Server username and password, you will need this information as well. On the other hand, if you used the ServiceLedger Installer to install your server, you should only need to know the server's computer name.

The Automation Server hosts a special copy of the ServiceLedger program which runs as a Windows Service and acts as a gatekeeper between the portal and your ServiceLedger data. Frequently, this service will run on the same computer as the database—that is, the database server and automation server are frequently the same physical machine.

The Web Server hosts your ServiceLedger portals and potentially any other web applications your company uses. Depending on your security needs, this may also be the same computer as your database and/or automation server. In the most secure configuration, it will be a separate computer or virtual machine.

Take a moment to decide or find out which computer or computers in your network will serve each of these roles, and fill them out in the configuration tracker.

Windows User Account

You will need to create or choose a Microsoft Windows user account for use during the installation process. This account will be used by:

By default, we recommend creating a new user account named ServiceLedgerSA for these purposes by following the instructions below. These directions cover how to create this user as a local user account, which is appropriate if you are keeping everything on one server. If you are using multiple separate servers, you may need to either create the user in Active Directory or create it as a local user account on each server.

After creating or choosing an existing account as your Windows User account for the portals, enter the account name and password in the configuration tracker for future reference.

Note: instead of using the Windows User Account for the ServiceLedger Application Pool, it is possible when using Windows Server 2008 R2 or later to use the built-in ApplicationPoolIdentity account. We do not provide directions for this configuration.

Note: the following steps will only work on computers that are not Active Directory servers. If you do not see "Local Users and Groups", you may be working on an Active Directory server. In this case, you will need to have the Active Directory administrator create or choose a Windows User Account to use instead of following these steps. We recommend creating a special account just for ServiceLedger, but any account will work as long as its password does not change or automatically expire.

Use the following steps to create the default ServiceLedgerSA local Windows user account:

  1. Open the Computer Management console
    • You can find this in the Administrative Tools folder in the Windows Control Panel
    • Alternatively, you can open it by right-clicking "(My) Computer" and choosing "Manage".
  2. In the tree on the left, click on System Tools > Local Users and Groups > Users
    • If you do not see "Local Users and Groups", the computer you are on is a domain controller and the administrator of this domain must create the ServiceLedger user account--see the note above. However, you may use the following steps to assist the domain administrator in creating an account. They will not apply exactly, but should be enough to help.
    • On an Active Directory server, accounts are created via:
      Start > All Programs > Administrative Tools > Active Directory Users and Computers
  3. In the area on the right listing users, right-click the empty area of the window and choose "New User"
  4. In the New User window, set the options as follows:
    • User name: ServiceLedgerSA
    • Full name: ServiceLedger Service Account
    • Description: Windows account used by ServiceLedger Automation Service and IIS Application Pool
    • Password: s1d#m0*1S1Sl
    • Uncheck "User must change password at next logon"
    • Check "User cannot change password"
    • Check "Password never expires"
  5. Click Create
  6. After creation, verify that the user is a member of the Users group
  7. If you are using a Windows Domain and have set up SQL Server with Windows Authentication, ensure that you grant the new account db_owner access to the ServiceLedger database.

ServiceLedger User Account

All portals use a ServiceLedger user account to make changes to the database. Changes made by anybody logged into any portal will be tracked to the user account that the portal is configured to use.

Typically, we recommend creating a special user account called "WebUser" for the portals, and provide one free license with your first portal that you can use for this account.

After creating or choosing an existing ServiceLedger user account for the portal, enter the account name and password in the configuration tracker for future reference.

Use the following steps to create the default WebUser ServiceLedger user account:

  1. Open ServiceLedger and create a new user account
  2. Set the User ID and password to WebUser and WebPassword (Case Sensitive for both)
  3. Under the Security tab, click "Check All" to grant full access to SL

Server Setup

Once you've completed your planning, you will need to install or verify the installation of the tools that the ServiceLedger portals will need in order to run. In many cases, these products will already be installed—if a product is already installed, you may only need to verify that all appropriate features were installed with it rather than installing it from scratch.

Security Notice

In order to host the web portals, you will be exposing a computer in your network directly to the internet. Although operating systems are more secure today than they have been in the past, it is still important to limit your exposure by using a router or firewall that only allows certain traffic to reach your server. For added security, you may choose to isolate your web server from the rest of your network completely and then add specific exceptions that allow the web server to communicate with ServiceLedger.

Because we support this secure configuration, the server setup steps are broken out into two sections: Automation Server and Web Server; however, if you do not need this added security, you may use the same computer for both of these roles. In this case, you should follow both of the following sets of steps on the same computer.

Automation Server Preparation

The automation server hosts a special copy of the ServiceLedger program which runs as a Windows Service and acts as a gatekeeper between the portal and your ServiceLedger data. Automation server setup consists of two steps:

  1. Install ServiceLedger if it is not already installed
  2. Install the ServiceLedger Automation service

Install ServiceLedger

If ServiceLedger is not already installed on the automation server, you must install a workstation copy. You can use the standard ServiceLedger installer to do this, and will need to know your database server name and connection credentials, if they are not the defaults. Contact ServiceLedger Support for up-to-date instructions or links to the installer.

Install Automation Service

The automation service is a special copy of ServiceLedger that runs automatically in the background and responds to requests from other programs, such as the tech or customer portal. You will need only one automation server, no matter how many portals or add-on modules you use. The automation server must be running at all times in order for your portals and/or add-on modules to work correctly.

ServiceLedger uses a program called srvany to host the automation service. This program is included in the Windows Resource Kit, but for convenience we provide a download which contains only the files you need to install the service.

Use the following directions to set up the automation service:

  1. Download http://download02.serviceledger.com/download/Automation.zip
  2. Copy "Resource Kit" from the zip file to:
    • "C:\Program Files" on 32-bit machines
    • "C:\Program Files (x86)" on 64-bit machines
  3. Copy "SLAutomationService.reg" from the zip file to the desktop
  4. Open a command prompt with Administrator priviliges
  5. Copy and paste the following 1 line into the command prompt
    • For 32-bit computers: 
      "C:\Program Files\Resource Kit\INSTSRV.EXE" "ServiceLedger Automation" "C:\Program Files\Resource Kit\SRVANY.EXE"
    • For 64-bit computers: 
      "C:\Program Files (x86)\Resource Kit\INSTSRV.EXE" "ServiceLedger Automation" "C:\Program Files (x86)\Resource Kit\SRVANY.EXE"
  6. Press the Enter key. The prompt should say "The service was successfuly added!"
  7. Right-click the SLAutomationService.reg file and adjust the command line to match the ServiceLedger folder, Tunnel Port, Tunnel Password, ServiceLedger User Account, and ServiceLedger User Password you are using
  8. Double click the SLAutomationService.reg file on your desktop and allow it to import into your registry
  9. Open the Services window (Start->Run: services.msc)
  10. Locate the ServiceLedger Automation service
  11. Right click the entry, and select properties
  12. Select the Logon tab
  13. Select "This Account"
  14. Enter in the windows user and password ServiceLedger should run under
    • please note this is not a ServiceLedger account, e.g. not the Admin account in ServiceLedger.
  15. Click OK.
  16. Start the ServiceLedger Automation Service

The automation service created here will be shared by all ServiceLedger portals.

Web Server Preparation

The Web Server hosts your ServiceLedger portals and potentially any other web applications your company uses. In many cases, your company will already have a web server. Depending on your security needs, this may also be the same computer as your database and/or server. In the most secure configuration, it will be a separate computer or virtual machine.

  1. Install ServiceLedger if it is not already installed.
  2. Verify IIS installation on the Web Server
  3. Verify that .NET 2.0 is installed on the Web Server
  4. Create the ServiceLedger Application Pool
  5. Register the ServiceLedger DLL

Install ServiceLedger

If ServiceLedger is not already installed on the web server, you may wish to install a workstation copy. Doing so will make the individual portal installations easier and will allow you to update your portal using the ServiceLedger updater.

You can use the standard ServiceLedger installer to do this, and will need to know your database server name and connection credentials, if they are not the defaults. Contact ServiceLedger Support for up-to-date instructions or links to the installer.

Install / Verify Internet Information Services (IIS)

You will need to install IIS on the target web server or, if it is already installed, verify that the current installation has the features we will require.

* Note that even if IIS is already installed you still need to verify that the correct features are installed under it.

  1. For Windows 7 / Server 2008 and above, make sure to include the following options:
    • ASP
    • ASP.NET (all available versions)
    • Server Side Includes
    • Everything under "Common HTTP Features" except WebDAV Publishing
      (no problem if it's already checked)
  2. For XP / Server 2003:
    • Install IIS with default options
    • If .Net was already installed, register ASP.net 2 with IIS (look up how to do this on Internet) e.g.
      • In a command prompt, change to the .NET Framework folder: 
        cd "C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727"
      • Then run the following command: 
        aspnet_regiis -i
    • You may need to enable 32-bit applications: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/894435, see: ASP.NET 2.0, 32-bit version
    • You may need to give the ASPNET and/or ServiceLedgerSA user account access to the 'IIS Metabase'
      If so, run one or several of the following commands from command line in same directory:
      aspnet_regiis -ga ASPNET
      aspnet_regiis -ga ServiceLedgerSA
      aspnet_regiis -ga MACHINENAME\ServiceLedgerSA
      In the last case, you would replace "MACHINENAME" with the actual name of the computer you're working with, e.g.: 
      aspnet_regiis -ga ABC-SERVER\ServiceLedgerSA

Install Microsoft .NET 2.0

If it is not already installed, you will need to install Microsoft .NET 2.0. In most versions of Windows, Microsoft .NET 2.0 is already installed. If you need to install it, instructions are available on the internet--in particular, there will be a download for the appropriate OS version on Microsoft's download website.

Create Application Pool

Note:If you are installing on Windows XP, skip this step

Use the following steps to create the IIS Application Pool that will be used by the portals:

  1. Open the IIS Management Console from Administrative Tools
  2. Click Application pools in the tree view on the left
  3. Choose "Add Application Pool..." under Actions on the right (IIS7+) or Right-click Application Pools and choose "New->Application Pool" in the tree view on the left (IIS6-)
  4. Enter the name "ServiceLedger" (all) and choose .NET 2.0 as the .NET version (IIS7+)
    1. Other than that, default options are fine.
  5. For IIS7+:
    1. Click "Advanced Settings..." under Actions on the right
    2. Under General: If on a 64-bit machine, enable the "Enable 32-bit Applications" option
    3. Under Process Model - Select the appropriate identity: Choose the Windows User account for Identip under Process Model. If desired, it is also possible to leave it at ApplicationPoolIdentity and grant that application pool access to the portal folders later, but this is unnecessary and more complex.
  6. For IIS6-:
    1. Right-click the application pool and choose Properties
    2. Click the Identity tab
    3. Change to the "Configurable" option and enter the windows username and password you are using for the application pool.

The application pool created here will be shared by all ServiceLedger portals.

Register ServiceLedger DLL

The ServiceLedger DLL is responsible for forwarding requests between ServiceLedger and external applications, such a the tech or customer portal. If you have installed ServiceLedger on your web server, a copy of ServiceLedger.dll will already be present in the ServiceLedger folder, but may need to be registered. If you will not be installing ServiceLedger on your web server, you must find it on another machine that currently has ServiceLedger installed and copy it to your preferred location on the web server.

To Register the ServiceLedger DLL, use the following steps:

  1. Open command prompt as Administrator and change the path of the DLL: 
    cd dirName
    Where dirName is the path, surrounded by quotes, e.g. 
    cd "C:\Program Files (x86)\ServiceLedger\ServiceLedger"
  2. Then run the following command to register the DLL: 
    regsvr32.exe ServiceLedger.dll

Once registered, the DLL will be used to forward requests from the web portals to your automation server via TCP on the configured automation port. Such requests are encrypted using the automation password as an encryption key.

Tech Portal Installation

Once the above steps have been completed, you are ready to install the tech portal. Typically, the tech portal is created as a virtual directory / application under your desired website in IIS. It is also possible to manually place the tech portal files in your own preferred location, such as under the IIS wwwroot directory; however, in most cases we recommend installing ServiceLedger directly on the web server and allowing ServiceLedger's updater to manage your tech portal files.

In several locations below, instructions will reference the "Tech Portal Folder". If you have installed ServiceLedger on your web server, this will be the "TechPortal" folder in the ServiceLedger folder. If you are using your own folder location, it will be at whatever location you've chosen.

Run Tech Portal Update

If you have installed the ServiceLedger on the web server, use the updater on the web server to add the approprate tech portal update code to your update list and run an update via internet. Otherwise, you may do the same on your main ServiceLedger server. Your tech portal update code should match your ServiceLedger code's version; for example, if you have the codes:

sl2015-5687
sl2015-quickbooks-3865

You would add the sl2015 tech portal code, e.g.:

sl2015-5687
sl2015-quickbooks-3865
sl2015-techportal-2345

For future versions of ServiceLedger, consider that the codes listed above may be out of date. Use the code that's appropriate for your version. Contact ServiceLedger if you need to know which codes to use.

Copy Tech Portal Folder

If you have installed ServiceLedger on your web server, the Tech Portal folder will already be present under your ServiceLedger installation folder and you may skip this step.

If you do not wish to install ServiceLedger on your web server, you may instead simply copy the TechPortal folder from any valid ServiceLedger installation folder to whatever location you prefer on the web server.

Create Application in IIS

The tech portal exists as one of potentially several applications on your web server. These directions cover how to add the application to the root of your web site.

  1. Open the IIS Admin console under Windows Administrative Tools
  2. Expand the default (or desired) website in the tree view on the left
  3. Add the TechPortal application. To do this:
    • On IIS7+:
      1. Right-click the site and choose Add Application:
        1. Alias should be "TechPortal"
        2. ApplicationPool should be "ServiceLedger"
        3. Physical path should be the Tech Portal Folder
        4. The rest is fine; click OK.
      2. Click on the newly-created application under the website in the tree view on the left.
      3. In the "ASP" settings dialog:
        1. Set "Enable Parent Paths" to true
        2. Under "Debugging Properties", Set "Send Errors to Browser" to true
        3. Remember to apply changes!
      4. In the "Authentication" settings dialog:
        1. Verify that Anonymous Authentication is the only enabled form of authentication
        2. In the settings for Anonymous Authentication, change the Anonymous user identity to "Application pool identity"
    • On IIS6.5 -:
      1. Right-click the site and choose New->Virtual Directory
      2. Alias should be "TechPortal"
      3. Path should be the Tech Portal folderl
      4. Permissions should include read and run scripts
      5. Next, right-click the new "TechPortal" folder in the folder tree and choose Properties
      6. Under the Virtual Directory tab:
        1. (For Windows Server 2003) set Application Pool (bottom of the window) to ServiceLedger
        2. (For Windows XP) set Application Protection (bottom of the window) to High (isolated)
      7. Under the Virtual Directory tab, click the "Configuration..." button and:
        1. Under Options, check the "Enable parent paths" box
        2. Under Debugging, verify that "Send detailed ASP error messages to client" is selected
      8. Under the Directory Security tab, click the "Edit..." button for Authentication and access control and verify that Enable anonymous access is the only box that is checked (you can ignore the User Name / Password area immediatlely below, but make sure 'Basic Authentication' and 'Integrated Windows Authentication' are NOT checked.)
      9. (ON XP, SKIP THIS STEP) Next, on the main tree, click Web Service Extensions, and then on the right, make sure that all ASP and ASP.NET extensions are enabled.

Configuring the application is the most difficult component of the portal setup. Remember that our support team is trained to assist you in this process if you have any trouble.

Verify Filesystem Access

Make sure that the chosen Windows User for the application pool (either the main windows user account or ApplicationPoolIdentity) has access to the Tech Portal folder.

Update ServiceLedger Registration

If you have not already, you may need to obtain an updated registration key from our support staff. You can verify your current licensing level using File -> Registration key from any ServiceLedger workstation. The registration program displays the number of users (Licensed Users & Server Licensed Users—these two should always be identical) and techs (Web Licensed Techs).

The number of users and techs should correlate with your ServiceLedger license as follows:

* Note that there is only a single extra user, no matter how many portals are installed. If you have purchased a second portal, your new registration key may include new tech licenses, but will not include an additional extra user, as the prior license already includes it.

For example:

* Note that even though you have both portals, the user count still only goes up by one.

Update Portal Settings

Once the portal has been installed and licensing is in place, you must at least configure the portal to match the settings you've determined in your Configuration Checklist. Information on additional settings can be found in the tech portal user's guide. To update the settings files:

  1. If you do not see files named 'settings.aspx' and 'global.asa' in the Customer Portal folder, locate the following files with names that begin with 'default_', copy these files, and rename the copies so that they do not include the 'default_' part at the beginning of the name:
    1. default_global.asa -> global.asa
    2. default_settings.aspx -> settings.aspx
    3. default_permissions.asp -> permissions.asp
    4. default_style.css -> style.css
    5. utility/default_header.asp -> header.asp
    6. utility/default_header.aspx -> header.aspx
  2. In both global.asa and settings.aspx files:
    1. Make sure that WebUser and WebPassword match the ServiceLedger User / Password you are using for the portal.
    2. Make sure any paths are addressed appropriately; i.e.:
      "C:\\Program Files\\ServiceLedger\\ServiceLedger\techportal" vs.
      "C:\\Program Files (x86)\\ServiceLedger\\ServiceLedger\techportal"
    3. Check the port--it should be the 16440 unless you're using a different tunnel port
    4. Check the database connection string.
      In most cases, you will not need to change this value.
      However, if you have customized the SQL Server sa password or are using your own SQL Server with alternate forms of authentication, you may need to change it.
      Examples of good connection strings include:
      • For global.asa, username and password:
          Provider=SQLOLEDB;data source=.\SERVICELEDGER;User ID=sa;Password=s1d#m0*1S1Sl;initial catalog=ServiceLedger
      • For global.asa, NT authentication:
          Provider=SQLOLEDB;data source=.\SERVICELEDGER;Integrated Security=SSPI;initial catalog=ServiceLedger
      • For settings.aspx, username and password:
          data source=.\SERVICELEDGER;User ID=sa;Password=s1d#m0*1S1Sl;initial catalog=ServiceLedger
      • For settings.aspx, NT authentication:
          data source=.\SERVICELEDGER;Integrated Security=SSPI;initial catalog=ServiceLedger

Verify Portal Operation

Lastly, you will want to log into the portal and verify that it is operating correctly. You may need to create a technician in ServiceLedger in order to do so--see the Tech Portal User's Guide for more information on how to do this.

We recommend the following four tests to ensure that the entire portal is working correctly:

  1. Verify that you can log into the portal
  2. Verify that you can open the schedule
  3. Verify that you can add notes to a job
  4. Verify that you can print a job

Each of these tests covers a different aspect of the settings and configuration you've performed up to this point. If all four tests succeed, the portal is correctly configured and ready to use.

Customer Portal Installation

Once the planning and Server Setup steps have been completed, you are ready to install the customer portal. Typically, the customer portal is created as a virtual directory / application under your desired website in IIS. It is also possible to manually place the tech portal files in your own preferred location, such as under the IIS wwwroot directory; however, in most cases we recommend installing ServiceLedger directly on the web server and allowing ServiceLedger's updater to manage your customer portal files.

In several locations below, instructions will reference the "Customer Portal Folder". If you have installed ServiceLedger on your web server, this will be the "CustomerPortal" folder in the ServiceLedger folder. If you are using your own folder location, it will be at whatever location you've chosen.

Run Customer Portal Update

If you have installed the ServiceLedger on the web server, use the updater on the web server to add the customerportal100 update code to your update list and run an update via internet. Otherwise, you may do the same on your main ServiceLedger server.

Copy Customer Portal Folder

If you have installed ServiceLedger on your web server, the Customer Portal folder will already be present under your ServiceLedger installation folder and you may skip this step.

If you do not wish to install ServiceLedger on your web server, you may instead simply copy the CustomerPortal folder from any valid ServiceLedger installation folder to whatever location you prefer on the web server.

Create Application in IIS

The customer portal exists as one of potentially several applications on your web server. These directions cover how to add the application to the root of your web site.

  1. Open the IIS Admin console under Windows Administrative Tools
  2. Expand the default (or desired) website in the tree view on the left
  3. Add the CustomerPortal application. To do this:
    • On IIS7+:
      1. Right-click the site and choose Add Application:
        1. Alias should be "CustomerPortal"
        2. ApplicationPool should be "ServiceLedger"
        3. Physical path should be the Customer Portal Folder
        4. The rest is fine; click OK.
      2. Click on the newly-created application under the website in the tree view on the left.
      3. In the "Authentication" settings dialog:
        1. Verify that Anonymous Authentication is the only enabled form of authentication
    • On IIS6.5 -:
      1. Right-click the site and choose New->Virtual Directory
      2. Alias should be "CustomerPortal"
      3. Path should be the Customer Portal folderl
      4. Permissions should include read and run scripts
      5. Next, right-click the new "CustomerPortal" folder in the folder tree and choose Properties
      6. Under the Virtual Directory tab:
        1. (For Windows Server 2003) set Application Pool (bottom of the window) to ServiceLedger
        2. (For Windows XP) set Application Protection (bottom of the window) to High (isolated)
      7. Under the Directory Security tab, click the "Edit..." button for Authentication and access control and verify that Enable anonymous access is the only box that is checked (you can ignore the User Name / Password area immediatlely below, but make sure 'Basic Authentication' and 'Integrated Windows Authentication' are NOT checked.)
      8. (ON XP, SKIP THIS STEP) Next, on the main tree, click Web Service Extensions, and then on the right, make sure that all ASP and ASP.NET extensions are enabled.

Configuring the application is the most difficult component of the portal setup. Remember that our support team is trained to assist you in this process if you have any trouble.

Verify Filesystem Access

Make sure that the chosen Windows User for the application pool (either the main windows user account or ApplicationPoolIdentity) has access to the Customer Portal folder.

Register the Customer Portal

The customer portal is registered separately from the ServiceLedger application, and the registration name and key are stored in the settings.aspx file, which you will configure below. To proceed, you will need to obtain a registration key from your sales representative or one of our support team.

Customer Portal registration keys are typically around 40 characters of letters, numbers, and symbols, and must match exactly with the registered company name you enter in the settings.aspx file.

Note: If you have a 16-character key containing only 0-9 and the letters A-F, this is a ServiceLedger registration key and cannot be used for the customer portal.

Note: If you have a very long key (about 5 lines of text) consisting of letters, numbers, and symbols, this is an add-on key and cannot be used for the customer portal.

Configure Portal Settings

Once the portal has been installed and licensing is in place, you must at least configure the portal to match the settings you've determined in your Configuration Checklist. At this time, information on additional settings can only be provided by our support staff. To update the settings files:

  1. If you do not see file named 'settings.aspx' in the Customer Portal folder, locate the following files with names that begin with 'default_', copy these files, and rename the copies so that they do not include the 'default_' part at the beginning of the name:
    1. default_settings.aspx -> settings.aspx
    2. default_style.css -> style.css
    3. default_header.aspx -> header.aspx
  2. In the settings.aspx file:
    1. Make sure that WebUser and WebPassword match the ServiceLedger User / Password you are using for the portal.
    2. Make sure any paths are addressed appropriately; i.e.:
      "C:\\Program Files\\ServiceLedger\\ServiceLedger\techportal" vs.
      "C:\\Program Files (x86)\\ServiceLedger\\ServiceLedger\techportal"
    3. Check the port--it should be the 16440 unless you're using a different tunnel port
    4. Check the database username and password. Typically these should be sa and s1d#m0*1S1Sl.
      Note: At this time, the settings file shipped with the customer portal ships with an older password and will typically need to be updated.

Verify Portal Operation

Lastly, you will want to log into the portal and verify that it is operating correctly. You may need to create a customer and set up their web password in ServiceLedger in order to do so.

We recommend the following three tests to ensure that the entire portal is working correctly:

  1. Verify that you can log into the portal
  2. Verify that you can create a job under the logged-in customer
  3. Verify that you can open and print the job that you created

Each of these tests covers a different aspect of the settings and configuration you've performed up to this point. If all three tests succeed, the portal is correctly configured and ready to use.

Router and DNS Configuration

Typically, after installing your portal or portals according to the directions above, you will be able to reach the portals from your web server directly via one of the following links:

In order to reach these portals from outside the office—for example, from a technician's tablet which connects wirelessly to a cell phone network—you will need to determine your public IP, configure your router and/or firewall to forward requests on port 80 (or whatever port your IIS web site is running on) to the web server, ensure that there is an exception for this port in the Windows Firewall on the web server, and optionally register a DNS name to associate with your public IP address, if it is static. Additional information on how to configure the portals for external access is available at:

(T0227) How do I access my web server for the customer portal or tech portal outside of my network?
http://support.serviceledger.com/kb/Default.asp?ToDo=view&questId=454&catId=5

Upgrading the Tech Portal

When upgrading the portal, there may be some pre- or post-upgrade steps in the procedures document that you will need to follow.

In addition, you will always need to do at least the following: