Table of Contents
Installing Index Manager
09. September 2026
Table of Contents
Prerequisites
- If you are upgrading from a previous version, you must stop all Fotoware-related services on the server:
- Make sure the server meets the system requirements. For more information, see Index Manager system requirements.
- We recommend backing up your existing configuration before performing the upgrade. If you're running on a virtual server, you can take a snapshot of the system, allowing you to revert if necessary. If the software runs on a physical server, you can back up the server with its built-in backup software.
- Stop all running Fotoware programs.
- Go to Start > Start > Administrative Tools > Services.
- Locate and stop all Fotoware services.
Important note for upgrading from version 7.0 to 8.0
Fotostation 8.0 requires Index Manager 8.0. It cannot connect to Index Manager 7.0.
Therefore, in environments where you need to update both the server and the client to version 8.0, you should first update the Index Manager server, then migrate the client software. All version 7.0 clients (Fotostation, FotoWeb, and Color Factory) can connect to an Index Manager 8.0 server, but version 8.0 clients cannot connect to an Index Manager 7.0 server.
Installing Index Manager
To make sure you're installing the latest version of Index Manager, download the latest version of the software from the Fotoware website (http://downloads.fotoware.com/)
When starting the installer, you may be prompted to install additional components. If possible, these will be downloaded directly from the Fotoware website before the installation continues.
Tip
In the Download section of the Customer Portal, you can find web installers, hotfixes, and offline installers (labeled Complete installations) that can be used to install the software on closed networks where internet access is unavailable. These contain all the additional required components. Typically, the most recent builds (versions) are only available as web installers, so you can use an offline installer to get the required components in place, then update to the latest version via the web installer.
When you run the installer, it first downloads any required components to the server. Select Install to start downloading. If you are running an offline installer, these components are bundled in the installer package and installed without requiring an Internet connection.
If this is the first Fotoware server application installed on the server, the Fotoware Operations Center will be installed. Select Next to install it.
You are prompted to read the release notes. Select Next to continue.
Select Install.
When all required components are installed, the Index Manager software will be installed.
Select Finish when the installation finishes.
What's next?
When accessing the Operations Center for the first time, you will be required to choose a common process account for the Fotoware services that run on the server.
You also need to activate the Index Manager license if you have not already done so.
If you have already set up a process account and activated Index Manager, you can learn more about how indexes work.