FIMS System Requirements

ASP software
NPO Solutions offers FIMS through Host*Net, our application and data hosting service. This service affords organizations low overhead and cost-effective access to essential programs. Subscribers use browsers or other "thin" clients running on inexpensive PCs, laptops, or even PDAs. The promise of headache-free software, whenever and wherever needed, explains the lure of this model. Clients can upgrade to Host*Net premium and use FIMS, as well as office productivity software such as Microsoft Word 2002 Professional and Exchange/Outlook, via the Internet.  

Operating Systems
The majority of community foundations using FIMS run Windows 2000 and Windows XP. These operating systems are stable, productive and work well with FIMS. We recommend Windows XP Professional for new machine purchases.

Internet
The majority of NPO's customers have Internet access and Web pages. An increasing number of foundations are moving to dedicated Internet connections over a DSL, ISDN, or T1 line instead of a dial-up modem connection. This enables a higher quality and faster connection to the Internet and to NPO for training, upgrading and problem solving. NPO offers technical support and FIMS upgrades over the Internet. We recommend Microsoft Internet Explorer for access to the Internet.

Modems and remote-control software
NPO uses WebEx for modem-based training and support. Customers using a modem for the Internet should have at least at 56K BPS or better connection.

Office productivity software
FIMS integration and merging has been tested and is compatible up to and including Microsoft Office 2003. Microsoft Exchange running on Windows 2000/XP in conjunction with Outlook allows for centralized e-mail and staff calendars.

PC/desktop computers
A Pentium 4 with a 2.0 GHz or higher processor is a logical choice for new hardware. We suggest 256MB SDRAM as a minimum of memory.
Although not required, we recommend a minimum screen resolution of 1024 x 768 for most systems running FIMS.

Servers and networks
Peer-to-peer Network: Organizations with two or three computers running Windows might consider implementing a peer-to-peer network. On a Windows peer-to-peer network, printers and other resources are easily shared and a single user FIMS license is accessed (one at a time) from any networked computer. PCs with faster processors and a lot of RAM are recommended for this network setup.

Novell: Progress Software is not supporting versions of Novell past 4.11. Because of this, NPO Solutions recommends that your organization consider switching to Windows 2000 Server (or greater), which is supported by Progress. 

Suggested Hardware FIMS Network Workstation PCs Pentium 4 processor at 2.0 GHz or higher 256MB SDRAM (up to 1.0GB) 40 GB (minimum) 7200 RPM hard drive 19-inch monitor 3D graphics with direct AGP Integrated 3Com 10/100 NIC 48X/32x/48x CD-RW Drive Sound Card Speakers Microsoft Windows XP Professional Antivirus Software Keyboard and Mouse Remote Control WebEx Internet-based application		File Servers Intel Xeon Processor, 2.4GHz or higher (Dual Processors are not necessary) 2GB SDRAM (minimum 1GB) Windows 2000 Server, Advanced Server, or Windows 2003 Server software RAID 0 or RAID 1** 36GB Hard Drive (minimum) Tape Backup / Backup Software Keyboard and Mouse ** Progress Software does not recommend RAID 5. Please call NPO Solutions for more information.