Timeslips Troubleshooting

How to Fix Timeslips Link Errors

Most Abacus customers link with no trouble to Timeslips, but since it is a complex connection some situations can be more difficult. The majority of errors are returned from Timeslips use of the Borland Database Engine, and in roughly 85% of problematic links the problem will be resolved by going through the steps listed below. Another 15% of cases may have a corrupt Timeslips file, or other low-level problems, and for those you need to check Timeslips license files and some low-level settings. In those rare instances the link setup may take more than two hours and require more than one session.

Get the Timeslips Service Releases

If you are experiencing any problems getting the link to work, verify that you are running the latest Timeslips version Maintenance Release. To do this, start Timeslips and go to Help > About. The first item should tell you what service release you are running. If you do not have the latest release according to their web page, download and install it according to their instructions.

Sharing Violations

If errors occur saying "files are used by another process" but you are sure no such process is using the Timeslips data files, it may be because the Borland Database Engine used by Timeslips has lost track of who has the files open. Close all programs, then delete all files named PDOXUSRS.NET, PDOXUSRS.LCK and PARADOX.LCK in any folder.

To do this, go to Start > Find > Files or folders. Where it says Named type in *.LCK and make sure it is set to search 'My computer.' Make sure you have a backup before you begin deleting files. Delete any instances of these files by highlighting the file and hitting your delete key. Change the 'look in' section to your server drive that contains Timeslips and repeat the search and delete process.

Next, delete all the PDOXUSERS.NET files and FULSES folders using the procedure described above.

Timeslips License Issues

Verify that you have one license for each workstation that is going to be running Abacus (for users that do not need to run Timeslips, you can purchase a less expensive "API license"). If you try to run it from a workstation that does not have a license, you will see an 'Illegal Operation' error message.

Note that if you do not want to pay for a Timeslip license for a given workstation, you can turn off the link for that station, but then it will not be able to post names or billing information over to Timeslips. To disable the link from a workstation, run Abacus and select Tools > TimeslipsLink > User Options , then un-check Use Timeslips.

Understand Abacus Matters and Timeslips Projects

A simple Timeslips setup has all records representing clients. These are all equivalent to Abacus Names. There are no "matters", or they are simply noted in the Reference field. You can still bill for Abacus Matter notes and Events: Just link Abacus Matters to a Timeslips client record by pressing Ctrl+L.

But Timeslips also offers a Projects feature to track Matters as separate records related to a Master Client (see the Timeslips Help file under "Client Projects").

  • If you wish to use Client Projects and be able to import Matters from Abacus to Timeslips, you must set up a Project Separator in Timeslips before you import or export data.

  • If you are creating a new database, continue until you get to General Settings. Click on the Nicknames tab and select a valid client separator (anything except for <None>, the usual is a period ".").

  • If you have an existing Timeslips database: Before you attempt to link the programs, start Timeslips and go to Setup > General. Click on the Nicknames tab and select a valid client separator (anything except for <None>).

Clear Existing Links to Start Over

On just one station, start the Timeslips program and go to Special > Database Connections to clear any Abacus database connections. Highlight the Abacus connection and select the 'Disconnect' button. (In TS v.10.5 and later, Database Connections is on the File menu).

If you continue to get a BDE Initialize error, re-install the BDE. Use the Timeslips CD-ROM install disk and browse to the \TIMESLIP\BDE32 directory, then run the Setup there.

If the link is still not initializing contact Abacus Technical support again. You may need to be referred to Timeslips to verify your license files are not corrupt.