Change Log On Account to Monitor Network Paths in Watch Folder Service

You need to change the Log On account for the Watch Folder Service when monitoring and converting files from shared or network folders. The Watch Folder Service Log On credentials need to use a log on account with the necessary permissions to access your shared or network folders.

The network folder may be one or more folders on your network. The folder may be accessible to all or limited to one or more user groups to drop files they need to convert. Or, you can share the folder between two or more servers running both DCS and the Watch Folder service to convert files faster with failover protection if one server needs to be taken offline for maintenance. One of Watch Folder Service’s strengths is the ability to set up clustered conversion from multiple computers and have all computers monitor the same shared or network folder containing the files to convert.

Changing the Watch Folder Service Log On Account

Before changing the Log On account, stop the Watch Folder Service if it is running. The widget at the top of the DCS Dashboard gives you easy access to starting and stopping the service.

If the service status says Running, click the green stop icon to stop it. The status will change to “Stopped” when the Watch Folder Service is no longer running.

Next, we need to edit the Log On account for Watch Folder Services. The Services app lists all installed services and allows you to edit their Log On account, startup mode, and other properties.

In the Windows taskbar, type “Services” into the search bar. Click the Services app that appears in the search results.

Find PEERNET Watch Folder Service in your list of services and double-click it to open the properties window for editing.

Click the Log On tab and change the user and password to an account that can access your shared or network folders. Click Apply or OK. The account will be given the Log On As a Service right if it does not already have it.

Setting Network Paths in the Watch Folder Configuration

Now, the Watch Folder Service runs under a Log On account with permission to access the shared or network paths containing the files to convert. The next step is to edit the Watch Folder configuration file to look for the files from that location.

To do this, go to the DCS Dashboard, click Watch Folder Settings, and then Edit Configuration. You can also open the configuration file by going to Start – All Programs – PEERNET Document Conversion Service 3.0 – Configure Watch Folder Settings in the Windows start menu.

The configuration file will open in the PEERNET DCS Editor.

The Watch Folder Service configuration consists of multiple watch folder sections. There is a separate section for each folder of files you want to monitor and convert.

Find the Watch Folder section you are working with, or if this is your first time setting up a watch folder, find the closest matching section for the type of file you want to create.

• For the InputFolder setting, change the folder to your network path URL. The input folder is a path your new Log On account can access.
• Do the same for the OutputFolder if you need to store the created files in a shared location.
• We recommend leaving the StagingFolder and WorkingFolder set to use folders on the local drive.
• FailedFolder and CompletedFolder can be local or shared folders, depending on your needs.

Save the updated configuration file using the Save button in the upper left.

With our changes made, the last thing we need to do is to restart the Watch Folder Service.

Go to the services widget at the top of the DCS Dashboard. Click the green play icon next to Watch Folder Service to start the service with your new settings.

Watch more Document Conversion Service Tutorials

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