FMS Stops working when Service Pack 2 for Windows XP is installed.  This problem is caused by the built-in Windows Firewall.  There are two solutions that can be used.  Option 1 is to allow the SQL service to be an exception, option 2 is to switch off the Windows firewall.  Read on for more info.

I will start with the easiest option, this is to switch off the Windows Firewall, although it does mean that your computer will be unprotected against internet born worms that may be able to enter the schools network from a rogue machine.

Switching Off the Windows Firewall.

• Logon to the workstation as an Administrator user.
• Click on the Start Menu and choose Control Panel.
• The Control Panel may be displayed in Category View, if so switch it to Classic View by using the link in the left hand blue bar.  The Control Panel should now display a lot of icons.
• Locate the Icon that is labelled Windows Firewall and double click it.
• On the General Tab, there are 2 options, On or Off.
• Select the Off option and click OK.
• The Windows Firewall dialog will close automatically.  Now you will need to inform Windows that you do not wish to be reminded that the firewall is not running.
• In the Control Panel, locate the Security Center and double click it.
• Under the Firewall option, click the Recommendations button.
• Near the bottom of the dialog, place a tick in the "I have a firewall solution…" then click the OK button.
• Close the Security Center dialog be clicking the Red Cross in the top right corner.
• Close the Control Panel.

The other option is to create an exception rule in the Windows Firewall to enable the application to bypass the firewall.  Under the guidelines from Capita Education Services, they recommend opening the port 1498.  However this does not appear to work, as the FMS client uses a broadcast to locate the database service and because the firewall is switched on the database service can’t actually receive the broadcast.

The method below should allow FMS to function from a remote workstation without adding additional port configurations.

Creating an Exception rule in the Windows Firewall.

• Logon to the Workstation as an Administrator User
• Click on the Start Menu and choose Control Panel
• The Control Panel may be displayed in Category View, if so change it to Classic View by using the link on the left hand blue task bar.  The Control Panel should now display a long list of icons.
• Locate the Icon that is labelled Windows Firewall and double click it.
• Click on the Exceptions Tab
• Now click the button labelled "Add Program"
• At the dialog box, click the Browse button.  Browse to C:/SQLANY50/WIN32/ and select the file called DBSRV50.EXE, click Open.
• Click the button labelled "Change Scope" and select the option "My Network (subnet) only", then click OK.
• Click OK to finish selecting the application.
• Click OK to close the Windows Firewall application.
• Close the Control Panel.

FMS should now be tested on each workstation that needs to have access to FMS.  If FMS fails to run as expected you may need to switch off the Windows Firewall as described in the first section.

If you are still experiencing problems please contact your local support helpline for further advice.