KitchenDraw

Installing KitchenDraw

After downloading the file KD100.exe on your computer, simply double-click it and follow the installation instructions.

First check that your computer has at least 1 GB of free disk space and that it complies with the following requirements minimum specifications.

When KitchenDraw is first launched, it downloads the standard catalogs from our website. At the end of this operation, you have a functional version of KitchenDraw with catalogs, textures, an example scene, ... and a 20-hour trial period.

Our training page will help you learn how to use our software.

Please note: for the standard catalogs to download automatically and your 20-hour trial to be loaded, your computer must be connected to the Internet and there must be no Firewall or Proxy preventing KitchenDraw from accessing this site. The 20 trial hours are loaded only once per computer and never expire.

Networking KitchenDraw

In a sales outlet with several KitchenDraw-equipped workstations, it can be very useful to be able to open the same scene from any of these workstations. For this to be possible, the workstations must be connected to the same local network, and the KitchenDraw scene directories of the various workstations must be the same. The software installed on the different workstations will therefore all have to point their scene directories to a shared directory located on one of the workstations, which we call the server.

The server workstation hosting the common scene directory must be switched on before the others and switched off after the others, because when it is switched off, it is no longer possible to open or save scenes in the directory. In this case, KitchenDraw will automatically use the local directory of the workstation on which the user is currently working, as we'll see in more detail later.

To host your scene directory, you can also use a NAS (Network Attached Storage), i.e. a network-connected device for storing your data. Ideally, this device should remain switched on at all times.

The use of a common scene directory located on a network device implies :

1. Share the directory in question on the server carrying it. To do this, go to your server workstation and use File Explorer to find the directory in question. Right-click on it, then go to Properties > Sharing > Share and select the name of the workstations/users you wish to share it with from the list.
2. On your KitchenDraw software, open the directory tables by clicking on Configuration > System. In the 'Network directories' tab of the dialog box, fill in the line for the 'Scenes (.SCN)' directory.

To direct the scene directory to a directory on another machine on the network, the easiest way is to click on the

on the left part of the line. The dialog box Search a folder then opens.

At the top of the directory list, double-click on the 'Network' line.

La liste des ordinateurs connectés au réseau doit apparaître. Double-cliquez sur l'un des ordinateurs afin de voir la liste de ses répertoires partagés, et naviguez ainsi jusqu'à trouver le répertoire de scènes voulu. Une fois celui-ci sélectionné, cliquez sur 'Ok' ou appuyez sur la touche 'Entrée'.

The line displayed should look like this:

//ORDINATOR_NAME/Scenes

COMPUTER_NAME is the name of your server workstation, and Scenes is the name of the shared directory intended to receive scenes from all workstations on the network.

So far we've only mentioned the scene directory, but it's possible to share the catalog directory or any other directory listed in KitchenDraw's directory tables in the same way.

Warning: sharing the catalog directory may cause slowness if your local network is not efficient. However, it is possible to share other directories without sharing the catalog directory.

Directory synchronization

If you occasionally detach a workstation (laptop) from the local network for use outside the point of sale - for example, when visiting a customer, working from home, etc. - you may want to make sure that your laptop contains all the latest scenes and catalogs before you leave. - you probably want to be sure that your laptop contains all the latest scenes and catalogs before you leave.

Conversely, when you reconnect your laptop to the local network, you want to be sure that all scenes created or modified outside the network are reintegrated into the common scene directory.

To manage both connected and disconnected use, KitchenDraw uses two sets of directories:

Network directories when the computer is connected to the local network
Local directories when the computer is disconnected from the local network

KitchenDraw decides which set of directories to use when it is launched: if it can access the scene directory in the network directory set, then it will use these directories. Otherwise, it will use the local directory set.

If the synchronization of certain directories is enabled (to harmonize the contents of local and network directories), KitchenDraw will perform this synchronization automatically, either when it is launched or when it is closed.

You can select the directories you wish to synchronize and the direction of synchronization: local to network, network to local or bidirectional (the most frequently used mode).

This setting is made in Configuration > System by means of checkboxes in the directory tables (rightmost column). To request synchronization from network to local, in the 'Local directories' tab, check the box on the relevant directory line in the Loc. >> Res. To request synchronization from local to network, in the 'Network directories' tab, check the box on the relevant directory line in the Loc. >> Res. column. Bidirectional synchronization is activated if the boxes for the same directory are ticked in both tabs.

Remote scene synchronization

It's also possible to synchronize scenes between two workstations located at different sites, for example a workstation in the store and a computer at home.

You don't need to use a USB key or external hard drive to transfer your scenes from one workstation to another; you can simply use a service like DropBox, Google Drive or similar.

To set up this feature with DropBox :

Create a DropBox account on their website
Download and install the DropBox for Windows application on the workstations to be synchronized
Open the directory tables by going to Configuration > System and select the 'Network directories' tab, then fill in the 'DropBox scenes' line. Here you must enter the path to a subdirectory of your DropBox directory
Under the table, check the 'Incorporate scenes from Dropbox directory' box and/or the 'Save scenes in Dropbox directory' box, depending on the type of synchronization you want to achieve

Automatic scene backup in the Cloud

To set up an automatic backup in your DropBox directory, check the 'Save scenes in Dropbox directory' box and only this box on all your workstations.

Consolidating your scenes

If you wish to configure a workstation to consolidate all scenes created on remote workstations, check the 'Incorporate scenes from Dropbox directory' box on the workstation that is to consolidate scenes, and check only the 'Save scenes in Dropbox directory' box on all other workstations.

Note that consolidating your scenes also enables them to be automatically saved in the Cloud.

Bidirectional synchronization

If you check both the 'Incorporate scenes from Dropbox directory' checkbox and the 'Save scenes in Dropbox directory' checkbox, you will achieve bidirectional synchronization, i.e. all workstations will 'see' the scenes created on the other workstations.

Please note: this method of remote scene synchronization does not allow the same account to be shared between several remote workstations. Each workstation must be assigned its own KitchenDraw account, on which hours must be loaded and catalogs updated independently.