Last Update: November 03, 2015

System Utilities

Create Training Database

To access: VOTER FOCUS ADMIN > System Utilities > Database Utilities > Create Training Database

This program creates a copy of your Voter Focus database that can be used for training or testing against the FVRS Training database. The name of the county Training database is Vr6T. The program creates Vr6T by making a copy of a full backup of the production (Vr6) database.

If you have an existing version of the Training database and you want to refresh it with the latest information, simply create the Training database as you did the first time. The existing Training database will be completely replaced.

You will not be able to recreate the Training database if there are users currently using the database.

Because your local Training database interacts with the Training database on FVRS, it is important that the local Training database be created as soon as possible after creation/refreshment of the FVRS Training database. Otherwise, you may have data-synchronization issues. You might need to work with your IT staff to ensure a backup is taken immediately after the FVRS Training database is created, so that you can use this backup to create the local Training database.

Note  State officials indicated in June 2010 that the "policy for refresh of the training database is that it will be refreshed the Monday after the FVRS maintenance window."

To create a Training database:

  1. On the server where the backup of the production database was made, ensure that you are using the production database. If not, in the top-right corner of the Console, click the Database drop-down list and select Normal Database.

  2. Go to VOTER FOCUS ADMIN > System Utilities > Database Utilities > Create Training Database.

This brings up a list of-recent backups of the production database with the most-recent one highlighted. You can change to an earlier backup, if there is some reason to not use the most-recent, but typically you will want to use the most-recent one. Below the backup list you'll see the default location where the two files making up the database will be stored when the Training database is created/recreated. Under normal circumstances, you don't need to change this location.

  1. Click Create Database.

If this button is grayed out, it means one or more users is using the Training database. To find out who they are, click Cancel and then click Show Current Usage on the Console to display a list of your databases and the users who are currently on them. Once the Training database users have exited Voter Focus or switched to another database, you can repeat this procedure from step 1.

  1. If a Training database already exists on your system, you will be asked to confirm you want to replace it with a new one. Click Yes to start the database-creation process. You'll see a progress bar for a little while and then, when you see the message Success!, you'll know the Training database is ready for use. Click Cancel to finish.

  2. To use the Training database, in the top-right corner of the Console, click the Database drop-down list and select Training Database.