matt40k

I think your maybe over thinking it, I took the first spreadsheet, ColumnA was the suppliers - ColumnB was the count from Autumn2012, ColumnC was count from the Autumn2013. =(C2-B2)/ABS(B2) Got no other data - 2010?? Does that exist in the public domain?

I see your point but I can't see the delay as a problem, schools don't change MIS suppliers regularly, when a school submits a census return via the new MIS system, they've 100% commit to it, you can't get a certain MIS supplier turn up and throw a spanner in the works when you sign the first agreement, normally which has a cooling off period. Also you have no way of easily validating the information is correct. As for creditability, that's the idea of the framework! You've basically been vetted by the DfE.

It's pull from the Autumn (Oct) 2013 census return for England. I'd say it's a pretty accurate status of the current market, well as clear as we're going to get. It's not fool proof, I mean an LA could go in and edit all their schools to say they're using JediMIS or something equally as silly. Also if the school doesn't do a census return for whatever reason, or like you say are in Wales etc, or if they are mid-transfer they might elect to use the old MIS. I'm planning on doing a bit more in depth analysis on it later.

Brief overviews of the market: [TABLE=class: grid, width: 192] [TR] [TD=width: 64]Arbor[/TD] [TD=width: 64, align: right]19[/TD] [TD=width: 64, align: right]1800%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Aspen[/TD] [TD=align: right]8[/TD] [TD=align: right]60%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Bromcom[/TD] [TD=align: right]41[/TD] [TD=align: right]86%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]SIMS[/TD] [TD=align: right]17912[/TD] [TD=align: right]-1%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]DatabridgeMiS Census[/TD] [TD=align: right]4[/TD] [TD=align: right]33%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]iSAMS[/TD] [TD=align: right]5[/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Pearson e1[/TD] [TD=align: right]297[/TD] [TD=align: right]-3%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]RM SMS G2[/TD] [TD=align: right]1746[/TD] [TD=align: right]8%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]ScholarPack[/TD] [TD=align: right]122[/TD] [TD=align: right]221%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]WautonSamuel[/TD] [TD=align: right]180[/TD] [TD=align: right]-4%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Advanced Learning[/TD] [TD=align: right]1212[/TD] [TD=align: right]-6%[/TD] [/TR] [TR] [TD]Other[/TD] [TD=align: right]45[/TD] [TD=align: right]80%[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE]

Haha, I'm sure you're right, but there is only 1 way that is ever going to happen!

Just put a call in for the installer files then, save you mucking about extracting them. Or copy the SIMS .net folder from a working machine.

It's just a database patch that enables some menu options, Capita send it to you on a CD normally, if you've got it via the LA they normally authorise it via SOLUS and apply it like any other patch \ SIMS upgrade. If they do it, get them to do it. Hopefully you've got it via the LA as they normally bundle training with it as setting it up, although straight forward enough, if it's not setup correctly from day 1, you can have problems down the line.

Just to check @Kaz77, you just downloaded it? I only ask as I only added in the support for Install queued in the latest version (it also has the version number at the bottom). I'm not surprised, as you've said, @tech-man advise worked so it sounds like you two had a slightly different error. PS: Weird the helpdesk didn't know what it was, surely that would be a Capita KB article - maybe the helpdesk person didn't have the KB search zen today

If it is Install Active that it's locked on - this tool will do the same thing as @robjduk mentioned without going into SQL Managment Studio - http://www.edugeek.net/forums/mis-systems/124621-solus3-reset-install-active-agents-utility-matt40k.html

I wouldn't recommend backing up your MIS to Google Drive, Dropbox, Skydrive, Amazon S3 - encrypted or not and definitely not to a FTP server! (must at least be SFTP) Also if it goes offsite you need to have the schools governers\SLT approval so they can sign off the risk, especially if it's going outside of the UK.

Cheers @vikpaw, you can download it from CodePlex - TidyBackups - Home - it's free and open-source, you don't need to purchase a WinRar license (not free) and you also get the preserve option, with means you keep at least a set number of backups for each database.

Personally, if the money went back into the actual government and not the party, I don't see the problem. You want to donate £2 million for a title I'm sure I know a few places that could use the money. Be a great way to raise some funds for what 10 mins work? Unfortunately it doesn't happen, it just goes to funding another term of some who pretends to care about us common folk but doesn't really.

You should only need to redeploy if it fails, fails, if a few workstations after offline you'll be ok. If a workstation fails, try a reboot*, then redeploy just to those workstations, it could get it into a bit of a pickle and do it twice. Historically it would cause it to reinstall - pretty sure they got it fixed now as it checks before running it. So you would just add to the "job" list and it would check twice and upgrade once so not really a biggy. I do also believe once it fails to install it won't try again until you tell it - I mean it's its stupid to try re-running it on a machine without a enough disc space or some other unknown fault, you'll just lock the machine up. No idea re-update the original screen, I remember talking to them about it but I'm not sure, I'll ask one of the developers - who I know from the field trial - I'll just keep saying this so people actually get involve in future field trials so when you want a change something isn't like Chinese whispers involving a lot of repetition and jumping up and down and (as much) waiting. * You can check if it needs a reboot - check the registry for the pendingfilerename key - it will list any files it couldn't update cause they had SIMS open - annoyingly because the way .NET works, it'll dynamically load the .dlls as it needs them so you may think your in SIMS say v1, but half the SIMS libraries \ dlls will be on v2 so it'll crash spectacularly when it trys loadings a v1 library and gets a v2. So really a force close is the only way forward. Because it's a wise installer it'll happily keep trying to install if you keep running it, so as you say, re-deploying will get it going if you close sims then redeploy - but you'll have pending file renames when you reboot - hopefully it'll be the same version and Capita won't do a 2 parter update like they did before - we had manually updated some\redeployed, didn't know about the pending rename, so the next day the windows machine put the part 1 files over the top of the part 2 files

They just need a reboot.

You should of been on the field trial!! How do you think that little school with 1 Winodws 7 workstation feels? Keeps me out of trouble I did ask How far do you take this, I mean it could get over complex - I think the "best" solution is a link to a KB article - oh wait, that sucks. Maybe a few macros might be nice maybe? Soemthing like a global %SCHOOL_ICT_MESSAGE% you can set so the staff nice a friendly message. Isn't really SOLUS, also surely you warn them about the update first? Still auto-save like in Word would be good, we all know what staff are like It isn't part of SIMS and it isn't included. It's a bolt on dispite what @PhilNeal says, it's a bolt-on as part of the assessment suite. Cheers, I did say this to them over a year ago. Ah, now I can do the "I told you so" dance to @JonathanWood

Hey @zag and @Rawns - Just updated it to 1.0.1 - basically now allows you to reset Install Queued. Download today from > https://s3unlock.codeplex.com/

If I was as cynical as @GREED I'd say this is why he hit the like button

Go wash your mouth out with soap for speaking of such a thing in 2014, it should die with XP. It annoys me almost as much as when I hear "turn off UAC"

What's the application?

Looks at sig AMD FX-8350 Ah, I see you're using your computer to heat your home

Define "support", I know a number of companies that offer "SIMS Support", however they have no support agreement with Capita, if they phone Capita directly, they will refuse to support them as the LA license was discounted because the LA would do the 1st line support. If the LA under funded, I suspect most small LA will be, they won't be able to deal with it if they are providing "license only" bases.

Forget sometimes Capita (SIMS) came from local government, they probably have to have it agreed in a meeting using the standard government procedure - signed in triplicate, sent in, sent back, queried, lost, found, subjected to public inquiry, lost again, and finally buried in soft peat for three months and recycled as firelighters - this is of course before they've had it signed on by the business arm who prob doesn't look at anything less then £100.

Really? I heard they couldn't full stop. No idea how they came up with £200 for what I would assume would be standard routine. Maybe someone put the decimal point in the wrong place?

That's silly, the only person that would win would be Capita. School isn't happy and stays, they don't have a good relationship, both suffer. School leaves, buys new license, Capita gets more money, School gets money from LA, both suffer. Wait a min, this was the whole Academy transferring of licenses subject where "Capita" put in a clause to protect the LEAs from schools running away once they invested the capital, can of worms, abort!! Abort!!

Eh? Would you be forced to re-purchase the license if you don't go with the LEA solution? If you aren't, I don't see a problem with buying top-up support surely? Sure even Capita offers this - @PhilNeal Sounds about right then The core license is a really good deal, they get you on all the "extras".