MANTRA

The Plant Management System

Version 4.04

Installation Guide

July 2017

Copyright © BMS Technology

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only in its entirety for use with the Mantra
software; it may not be copied, reproduced or
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permission of BMS Technology.

MANTRA is a registered trademark

www.bmstech.com/mantra/
MANTRA WHAT YOU NEED

1 WHAT YOU NEED

2 WINDOWS 64-BIT

3 HOW TO GET MANTRA

4 SINGLE-PC INSTALLATION

5 NETWORK INSTALLATION

6 PRINTERS

7 SCREEN

8 SECURITY

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WHAT YOU NEED MANTRA

1 WHAT YOU NEED

1.1 System Software
Mantra runs on any 32-bit version of Windows.
If you use 64-bit Windows (or other operating
systems such as Linux or OS X) please read
section 2.
Mantra includes a database management system;
there is no need for additional database software.

1.2 Printer
Most standard printers are suitable but avoid
Windows-only printers.
If you will be printing lots of jobs use a printer
with low cost consumables.

1.3 Network
Mantra runs on a single computer or on a
network. A peer-to-peer or server-based network
may be used. Your network must support the
Microsoft file system and file/record locking.

1.4 Your Agreement

Installing Mantra means that you have read and
agreed to keep the terms and conditions:
www.bmstech.com/mantra/terms.htm

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MANTRA WINDOWS 64-BIT

2 WINDOWS 64-BIT
Mantra is intended for 32-bit Windows. If you
are using a 64-bit version we recommend that
you run Mantra in a Virtual Machine (VM).
Linux, OS X and some other operating systems
can also run Mantra using a VM.
Free VM software is available from Oracle and
from VMware or Microsoft; it allows another
operating system (the guest) to run on your 64-
bit Windows operating system (the host).
We recommend either Windows XP (32-bit) or
Windows 7 (32-bit) as the guest.
A VM (guest) can also be created easily from an
existing computer using software available from
Acronis or Paragon Software. This means that
you can transfer all the software on your old
computer and run it on your new computer - so
all your existing applications continue to run,
and all your settings and preferences are
preserved.
The VM software from Oracle is called
VirtualBox and may be downloaded free from
www.virtualbox.org/wiki/Downloads

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HOW TO GET MANTRA MANTRA

3 HOW TO GET MANTRA

3.1 Download
Download the Setup program from
www.bmstech.com/mantra/download.htm
Do not run Setup yet.

3.2 Register
Register your copy of Mantra at
www.bmstech.com/mantra/register.htm
You will receive by e-mail a key file (named
Mantra.key) which lets Mantra run – it is not a
program so do NOT try to open or run it!

3.3 Upgrading
If you are installing an upgrade please go to
www.bmstech.com/mantra/404/upgrade.htm

3.4 Problem?
E-mail address If you registered an incorrect e-mail address it is
impossible for us to contact you. Register again.
No e-mail Check that your email and anti-virus software
does not block attachments and check that
bmstech.com is logged as a trusted domain.
Attached file If you cannot extract the key file from the e-mail
contact your IT support people.
Your details If you have registered with incomplete or silly
details you will not hear from us.

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MANTRA SINGLE-PC INSTALLATION

4 SINGLE-PC INSTALLATION
4.1 Run Setup
To install or upgrade Mantra run the Setup
program that you downloaded.
Setup shows the Destination Directory – you
should accept C:\Mantra.
If this is not an upgrade Setup shows the Data
Directory you will use – accept C:\Mantra.
See section 5.9 if you want to change directories.

4.2 Copy the registration file

Copy the file Mantra.key to C:\Mantra (this file
must be in the same place as Mantra.exe).

4.3 Shortcut
A shortcut should appear on your desktop. Some
Windows versions fail to do this – right-click
Mantra.exe, select Send to, Desktop.

4.4 User names & security

See section 9. Use the Manager program from
www.bmstech.com/mantra/products.htm

4.5 Backup
Check that a backup regime is in place.

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NETWORK INSTALLATION MANTRA

5 NETWORK INSTALLATION
5.1 Preparation
Network installation uses the Setup program.
Before you run Setup think about how you want
to use Mantra on your network.
Check that Mantra is given read, write and create
file access.
Check that a backup regime is in place.
All users must use the same version of Mantra.
If you are using a Virtual Private Network (VPN)
or remote server, make sure it is operational.
Read section 5.9.
Mantra program files and data files may be all
together in one network location or you may
distribute them. Data files include global data
and local data.

5.2 Mantra program files

These files include
– the program Mantra.exe
– the registration file Mantra.key
– a file called Mantra.ini created by Setup.
Normally you have only one set of program files
which are in the Destination Directory specified
in Setup. A full list of program files is in the
Mantra Manual.

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MANTRA NETWORK INSTALLATION

5.3 Global data files

Normally you have only one set of global data
files which are in the Data Directory specified in
Setup. The Data Directory may be the same as
the Destination Directory (section 5.2).
Setup records the location of these files in
Mantra.ini so you can change the location later
by editing Mantra.ini and moving the files. A full
list of global data files is in the Mantra Manual.

5.4 Local data files

You may have one or many sets of local data
files. Setup installs some example data in a sub-
directory of the Data Directory. Additional files
are created from within Mantra. A full list of files
is in the Mantra Manual.

5.5 Run Setup

Run Setup on the server or on a workstation; we
suggest that you run it on the workstation you
will most often use to run Mantra.
Setup shows you the Destination Directory –
enter a file path using a computer name or drive
letter: see section 5.9.
Setup shows you the Data Directory (unless you
are upgrading an existing installation) – enter a
file path using a computer name or drive letter.

5.6 Copy Mantra.key

Copy Mantra.key to the Destination Directory.

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NETWORK INSTALLATION MANTRA

5.7 Shortcuts
A shortcut should appear on the desktop. Some
Windows versions may fail to do this – right-
click Mantra.exe, select Send to, Desktop.
Create a desktop shortcut to Mantra.exe on each
computer that will be used to run Mantra.

5.8 User names & security

Set up security using the Manager program from
www.bmstech.com/mantra/products.htm
User names can be obtained from your network.
See section 8.6.

5.9 Path Names

Use short names (8 characters or fewer) and
avoid spaces and characters such as < > : * | ?.
In some circumstances it is possible to refer to
names longer than 8 characters by using a
shortened name. We do not recommend this
unless you are sure what you are doing because
Windows 9x series and NT series operating
systems shorten names in different ways.
Some examples:

C:\Mantra

This is the usual Destination Directory name for

single-user computers.

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MANTRA NETWORK INSTALLATION

\\Server01\Mantra

This is a Destination Directory name where

Mantra is installed in a place called Mantra on a
network server named Server01. This is the
preferred way of specifying a network path.

M:\

Mantra is installed on a network server - a

network drive M: has been mapped on every
computer that will run Mantra.

C:\Program Files\Mantra

Not recommended: "Program Files" is longer

than 8 characters and includes a space.

\\IBM23\Engineer\MantraProgram

Not recommended: "MantraProgram" is longer

than 8 characters - it works on Windows XP but
not on Windows 98.

5.10 Slow Networks

Normally, install just one copy of the Mantra
program to make upgrading easy. This means
that the Mantra program loads via the network.
Mantra gets data from the server only when
needed. So generally loading the Mantra

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NETWORK INSTALLATION MANTRA

program takes longer than working on your data.

Mantra contains a fast multi-user database
management system. Your network speed and
loading are outside the control of Mantra so
speak to your network administrator if there are
speed problems.
If your network is very slow (for instance via a
dial-up link) and loading the Mantra program
takes a long time, you can try installing the
Mantra program on each computer
– run Setup on each computer
– copy Mantra.key to each computer
– edit Mantra.ini to point to the network
location of your global data, for example:

GlobalDataPath=\\Server2\Workshop

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MANTRA PRINTERS

6 PRINTERS
6.1 Windows NT/2000/XP/Vista/7/8/10
Use your usual local or network printer. If it does
not work:
EITHER Run Mantra from a batch file which defines the
printer you want to use.
Setup installed a file MantraPR.bat in the same
directory as the Mantra program. Edit this file,
replacing <server> and <printer> with your
names as described below. Change your Mantra
icon properties to point to MantraPR.bat instead
of Mantra.exe.
OR Use the same printer that your operating system
uses for the Command Prompt. To set it up you
have to be logged in as an administrator.
The printer is specified in a file C:\Autoexec.bat.
Find C:\ using Windows Explorer. Check that
'Show hidden files and folders' is selected and
'Hide protected operating system files' is not
selected. Select Tools, Folder Options, View.
If Autoexec does not exist, right-click a blank
area in Windows Explorer, select New, Text
Document, name it Autoexec.bat.
Right-click Autoexec and select Edit. If it has no
line like the following, add it:

net use Lpt1 \\Server\Printer /persistent:yes

Server Server is the name of the computer to which the

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PRINTERS MANTRA

printer is attached. To find the computer name go

to the Windows Control Panel, select System and
look at the full computer name.
Printer Printer is the printer Share Name. To find the
printer name click Printers and Faxes, right-click
the printer and select Sharing. Make sure that
'Share this printer' is selected.
Lpt1 Lpt1 is the printer device name. Mantra also
supports Lpt2 and Lpt3.
Restart the computer before printing.

6.2 Windows 95/98/Me

Use your usual local or network printer. If it does
not work:
EITHER Ensure the printer is set to print from MS-DOS
programs. You may need to uncheck 'Spool MS-
DOS print jobs' and for a network printer click
Capture Printer Port.
OR Run Mantra from a batch file which defines the
printer you want to use – see section 6.1.
OR Specify a printer in a similar way to
NT/2000/XP/Vista above - edit Autoexec.bat:

net use Lpt1 \\Server\Printer /yes

Server Server is the computer name found in Control

Panel, Network, Identification.
Printer Printer is the printer Share Name. To get the
printer name click Printers, right-click the printer
and select Sharing.

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MANTRA PRINTERS

Lpt1 Lpt1 is the printer device name. Mantra also

supports Lpt2 and Lpt3.
Restart the computer before printing.

6.3 Examples

net use Lpt1 \\PC8\HP4550 /persistent:yes

This example is for a Windows XP computer

named PC8. The printer named HP4550 has its
software installed on PC8, is shared, and is
connected via the network.

net use lpt1 \\PC8\HP 4550 /PERSISTENT:YES

This will not work. The printer name includes

spaces – put the name in quotation marks:

net use lpt1 "\\PC8\HP 4550" /PERSISTENT:YES

You can also use lpt2 or lpt3:

net use lpt2 "\\PC8\HP 4550" /PERSISTENT:YES

The following example is from a Windows 98

computer with an Epson printer installed:

net use LPT2 \\192.168.2.17\Epson /yes

The number 192.168.2.17 is the IP address of the

network card installed in the computer. To find
the IP address of your computer type IPCONFIG
from the command prompt.

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PRINTERS MANTRA

6.4 Problem?
Printing is an operating system/network function.
To test from XP (other Windows versions are
similar) go to the Command Prompt and type:

print /D:Lpt1 Filename

Filename Filename is the name of a printable file such as

C:\Autoexec.bat
If the file is not printed, check the basics such as
printer power on, paper, ink, cables, network.

Some suggestions if you still have difficulty:

some firewalls block network printers;
information on printing may be found in the
Microsoft Knowledge Base on the Internet;
use Mantra's “print to disk” facility – see the
Mantra Manual
try a downloadable utility program
– www.dosprn.com easy to use shareware
– DOSprint from www.andtechnologies.com
freeware for some operating systems
– PrintFile from www.lerup.com freeware for
the technically minded.

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MANTRA SCREEN

7 SCREEN
7.1 Screen Size & Font
Right-click the Mantra icon on your desktop and
select Properties, click on the Screen tab, choose
either Full-screen or Window and tick Restore
settings at startup.
Click the Font tab to select a font and size to suit
your eyes and screen (eg Lucida Console 24).
When running Mantra press Alt+Enter to switch
between a window and full screen.

7.2 Non-Latin Languages

Go to your computer's Control Panel, Regional
and Language Options, Advanced and check that
your Language for non-Unicode programs is set
to English.
The appearance of Mantra may be incorrect if
the language is set to (for instance) Chinese,
Japanese, Thai or Vietnamese. One solution is to
run Mantra from a batch file which includes this
instruction:

MODE CON CODEPAGE SELECT=850

Setup installed a file Mantra.bat in the same

directory as the Mantra program. Change your
Mantra icon properties to point to Mantra.bat
instead of Mantra.exe.

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SECURITY MANTRA

8 SECURITY
8.1 Manager
Use the Manager program to set up security. You
can get Manager from
www.bmstech.com/mantra/products.htm
To restrict access to Manager we suggest that
you keep it on a removable disk.

8.2 Users & Passwords

Use the Manager program to set up a list of users
and passwords. This means that
– each user may be allowed or denied access to
Mantra features eg a user may be prevented
from confirming or deleting jobs, or denied
access to the stock control system
– each user may optionally be restricted to one
set of local data (called a File Group)
– the user's name is recorded for some
operations such as completing a job
– access to Mantra may optionally require the
user to enter a password
– Mantra can get a user's identity from your
network.
Passwords must have at least 4 characters.

8.3 User Log-In

Use the Manager program to set User Log-In on

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MANTRA SECURITY

or off. Manager is available from

www.bmstech.com/mantra/products.htm

8.4 Password Protection

Use the Manager program to set Password
Protection on or off. Manager is available from
www.bmstech.com/mantra/products.htm
If User Log-In is off and Password Protection is
on Mantra expects to read the user name from
your network.

8.5 Time-Out
Mantra times out after a period of inactivity. You
can set the time (1 to 999 minutes) to suit your
circumstances using the Manager program from
www.bmstech.com/mantra/products.htm

8.6 User Variable Name

If your network has log-in procedures Mantra
may get the user's name from your network.
The user name is usually stored in a variable (an
"environment variable") called USERNAME but
your network may have a different name. Set up
the variable name using Manager from
www.bmstech.com/mantra/products.htm
Ensure that the user names for your network
match entries in the user list (see section 8.2).
If User Log-In is turned on and the user is not
listed, the user has to log in manually.

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