10 Minute Guide to Lotus Notes Mail 4.5 - 26 - Configuring the Replicator Page In this lesson, you learn how to use the replicator page and how to configure it by adding call, hangup, and database entries. If you are a remote user who replicates databases in addition to your Mail database, you'll find this lesson very useful. What Is the Replicator Page? The Replicator page is the last page of your workspace, and it's the one workspace tab that you can't delete. The Replicator page provides a central location to handle all your replication needs. Using the features available on the Replicator page (see Figure 26.1), you can set options to control which databases replicate, which servers you are replicating with, and whether you want to receive full or truncated (shortened) documents when you replicate. Figure 26.1 The Replicator page. There are several rows, or entries, on the Replicator page: Start Replication at Sets a schedule for replication; you can't delete or move this entry. Most people do not schedule their replications, since that would require that you turn on your PC and run Notes during the scheduled time. You'll usually use replication on demand, so you don't need to set this option. Send outgoing mail Sends all pending messages from your mailbox. For each local database replica you have, there is a database entry on the Replicator page. You can select which databases you want to replicate in a particular session. To replicate only one database, click its entry to select it. Then click the Other Actions button on the Action bar and choose Replicate selected database. Database templates Refreshes the designs of any template-based databases you have. You can't delete this entry. Call and Hangup In addition to the automatic entry rows, you can create Call and Hangup entries for mobile locations. On many of the entry rows, you see action buttons. Use these to specify replication options relating to that entry row. Each entry row also has a check box. To select an entry, click the check box (a check mark appears). When you click the Start button on the Action bar, Lotus Notes performs the functions of each checked entry row in the order of the rows. The status bar at the bottom of the page shows information about the current replication, letting you know when Lotus Notes is attempting to call a server, what database is being replicated, the progress of the replication, how many minutes are left, and when the replication is finished. After replication, the status bar displays statistics for individual entries. Setting Replication Priority You can set a replication priority for a database entry on the Replicator page. Select the database entry and click it once with the right mouse button. Choose High priority from the menu; an exclamation point appears on high priority database entries. When you want to replicate high priority databases, click the Other Actions button on the Action bar, and select Replicate high priority databases from the menu. Configuring the Replicator Page Except for a couple of the fixed entries on the Replicator page, you can move and delete entries to suit your needs. To delete entries: 1. Click the entry you want to delete. This selects the entry. 2. Press Delete. 3. When asked if you want to delete the entry, select Yes. Be careful about deleting database entries. When you delete an entry from the Replicator page, it also deletes the database from all locations. Instead of deleting the entry, remove the check mark to deselect it from the replication process. Lotus Notes replicates the databases in the order they appear on the Replicator page. To move an entry: 1. Click the entry and hold down the mouse button. 2. Drag the entry to the position where you want it. 3. Release the mouse button. Making Call and Hangup Entries If you are a mobile user, you'll want to create call entries so you can automatically connect to servers via modem. To create a call entry: 1. Using the Location button on the status bar, select a location where you need to use a modem to connect to the server. Home or Hotel are possible settings. 2. Click the entry that you want to appear immediately below your call entry. 3. Choose Create, Call Entry. (Optional) By default, the call entry specifies your home server. To specify a different server, double-click the call entry action button; select the server you want to call, and then click OK. The list of servers that appears only includes those servers that have specified telephone numbers. If you need to add another server to the list or have to change a telephone number, choose File, Mobile, Server Phone Numbers. Once your replication tasks are complete, you need to disconnect the modem from the telephone line. A hangup entry will do this automatically for you. To create a hangup entry: 1. Using the Location button on the status bar, select a location where you need to use a modem to connect to the server. 2. Click the entry you want to appear immediately below the hangup entry (you can always move the entry if you get it in the wrong place). 3. Choose Create, Hangup Entry. Even if you have more than one call entry, you only need one hangup entry. The Replicator hangs up automatically from the first call entry when it encounters a new call entry, so you only need to hang up after the final call. Adding Databases When you add a new replica to your workspace, Lotus Notes automatically adds the database entry to your Replicator page. You can then delete the database entries you don't want to appear there. However, if you delete a database entry and want to put it back on the Replicator page, click the database icon on your workspace and then drag it to the Replicator tab. Then move the entry to an appropriate position on the page. Instead of deleting a database and having to put it back later, it may be easier to temporarily disable it. This is a particularly good idea if you think the database might be corrupt, and you don't want to replicate it with the server until you check it out. To temporarily disable a database: 1. Click the right mouse button on the database icon on the workspace or on the database entry on the Replicator page. 2. Choose Replication Settings. 3. In the Replication Settings dialog box (see Figure 26.2), click Other. Figure 26.2 The Replication Settings dialog box. 4. Check Temporarily disable replication. 5. Click OK. Configuring for Several Servers You can specify which server to use when replicating a particular database. 1. Click the database entry action button. The arrow on the button shows the current direction in which the database replicates. The Replication dialog box appears, as shown in Figure 26.3. Figure 26.3 The Replication dialog box. 2. Under Replicate with server, choose one of these options: Any available, try last successful first Tries to replicate first with the server with which you last replicated, and then tries with any available server it can find. Any available, try Server Name first Tries to replicate first with the server specified, and then tries with any available server it can find. Server Name Lets you choose that specific server name. 3. Select what you want to replicate by checking Send documents to server and/or Receive documents from server. 4. When you choose to receive documents from the server, select one of the options from the list box: Receive full documents, Receive summary and 40K of rich text only, or Receive summary only. The summary includes only basic information such as the author and subject. 5. Click OK. If you choose to receive less than the full documents, it doesn't mean you can't get the whole document later. 1. Open the document for which you need the complete text, or select several documents. 2. Choose Actions, Retrieve Entire Document. 3. Select Get documents now via background. 4. Click OK. 5. If more than one server has the full text, Lotus Notes prompts you to pick the server from which you want to retrieve it. Using Selective Replication In addition to limiting the replication of documents to only the summary or to the summary plus only 40K of rich text, there are other methods for limiting what part of a database you replicate. When you are working remotely, reduce the time allotted for replication, and save on telephone charges. Many of the options you have in replicating databases are in the Replication Settings dialog box (see Figure 26.4), which you can access by clicking on the database entry with the right mouse button and then selecting Replication Settings from the menu. Figure 26.4 The Replication Settings dialog box with Space Savers icon selected. Use the following settings to limit what you replicate in the selected database: With the Space Savers icon selected, check Remove documents not modified in the last and specify the number of days. This purges old documents from your replica. To receive only selected folders and views, check Replicate a subset of documents. Then select one or more folders and views. To receive only selected documents, check Replicate a subset of documents. Check Select by formula. Enter the formula. Do not attempt this if you are unfamiliar with Lotus Notes formulas. Click the Send icon and check Do not send deletions made in this replica to other replicas so you don't replicate documents you have deleted from the replica since the replica's last purge interval. With the Send icon selected, check Do not send changes in database title & catalog info to other replicas so you don't replicate any changes to anyone else that you made to the database title or database catalog entry for your replica. Also on the Send page, check Do not send changes in local security property to other replicas so you don't pass on changes you made to the security settings on your replica. With the Other icon selected, enter a cutoff date in the box below Only replicate incoming documents saved or modified after. This guarantees that you will only receive recent documents, and it doesn't purge old documents from the database. With the Other icon selected, enter a cutoff date in the box below Only replicate incoming documents saved or modified after. This guarantees that you will only receive recent documents, and it doesn't purge old documents from the database. To receive only selected portions of the database's design, click the Advanced icon (see Figure 26.5). Check Forms, views, and so on. Check Agents to get only the database agents or Access control list to receive the ACL. Check Replication formula to receive the formula the database uses to select the documents it receives. Figure 26.5 The Replication Settings dialog box with the Advanced icon selected. Also on the Advanced page, check Deletions to remove any documents from your replica that have already been deleted from the source database. In this lesson, you learned how to configure the Replicator page and how to use selective replication.

©Copyright, Macmillan Computer Publishing. All rights reserved.