SUMMARY: How to print documents from a C&P database at a remote location.

Sometimes Clients & Profits users need to access their agency's database from a remote location. My C&P! is great for a number of uses, but it does not allow full access to all areas of a database, nor does it allow users to print the vast array of reports available from C&P. To get the full functionality of the program from a remote location, many companies use programs like Timbuktu or pcAnywhere. These programs allow a remote user to control the mouse and keyboard of a computer in the office and access data as if they were on the local area network. Note: Timbuktu offers a cross-platform version, but pcAnywhere is for PCs only. C&P does not have to be installed at the remote location, as the computer in the office is still doing all the work. It just sends the screen image to the remote location. While this allows a user to access all areas of the program that they have permission for, any reports printed would still print to the printer in the office.

Integrated Solutions

pcAnywhere has built-in support for remote printing. A how-to can be found on Symantec's website. Unfortunately, Timbuktu currently does not offer such a function. This is documented at Netopia.

Emailing PDFs

One of the simplest ways to print reports remotely is to save the report as a pdf file, then email it to the remote location and print normally. Though this process does take a couple steps, it requires the least amount of setup. This method is best for users who do not have extremely high remote printing needs. Instructions on generating PDFs in C&P can be found here.

1 Print the desired report to PDF and save to the desktop.

2 Open the email program on the remote program and compose a new message.

3 Save the PDF as an attachment to the email and send it to an email address accessible at the remote location.

4 Receive the email with the attached PDF and save the file.

5 Open the file using Adobe Acrobat (or Preview in OS X) and print as usual.

IP Printing

Users who need to print many reports or do not want to use the email PDF technique can setup the computer in the office to print to a remote printer via IP printing. Instead of sending reports to a printer on the network in the office, the report is sent across the internet to the remote location. Note: this option is not available on all printers. Look for printers designated as network printers. They should include thorough instructions on how to configure for IP printing. Also, certain ports may need to be opened in a company's firewall to enable IP printing. Check with your company's network administrator on how to set this up.