Installation

BL Banking cannot be installed or there are problems starting files after the installation.

Security settings may possibly prevent the installation on the desired drive or security software is deleting executable programs (.exe) after the installation. This particularly applies to networks. Try installing on another drive, e.g. on c:\ or a USB stick or contact your IT department.

FAQ 1

I am using a USB stick on a previously not used PC and Internet communication is not possible.

BL Banking requires a working Internet connection. It establishes this automatically and also automatically searches for any required proxy settings. If you need a user ID and password for Internet access, a corresponding entry screen will be displayed and also repeated after an incorrect entry. Please first check whether the PC can establish a connection to the Internet by opening an Internet browser and opening an external Internet page e.g. https://www.business-logics.de. Do you enter the same access information here that you also use for BL Banking? If not, please also use this data for BL Banking. If the Internet browser is also not able to open an Internet page, please check the cable connection or contact the assigned IT department or your Internet provider.

FAQ 7

I have connected my USB stick to the PC but am unable to access it.

Depending on the system in use, it may sometimes take a moment before the USB stick is recognized and becomes accessible as a new drive on the system. Please wait a moment - Windows will display the successful USB installation of a new device (drive) in the status bar. Please close any standard applications that begin to run (e.g. image processing programs to transfer digital photos) to start special processing for a new drive. When the new drive is installed, Windows will ask whether you want to start BL Banking by executing the program located on the drive (= USB stick). Please select this option - BL Banking will then start running. Alternatively you can locate the new drive in the Windows Explorer and open the .exe file located on the drive. If you cannot find the drive, there is a problem with access to the USB interface. It may possibly be blocked by your Windows registration. In this case please contact your assigned IT department or check the system/device settings on the system or contact your dealer/manufacturer.

FAQ 8

What can I do, if BL Banking doesn't start anymore?

The reason for this might be that files were damaged or deleted after an interrupted software update or a program crash.

First please try the following simple repair.

In the installation directory of BL Banking there is a folder named configuration. Please close the program and delete all subdirectories in this folder, however not the file config.ini. When you then restart the program, the deleted subdirectories will be restored.

If thereby the problem is not solved, you need to reinstall BL Banking.

  1. In the installation directory delete everything except of the directory workspace. Note: From version 1.9.24 this is not necessary anymore.
  2. Download the installation program (Windows, MacOS) and install BL Banking into the previous installation directory.

When you then start BL Banking, the first initialization wizard will not start, as it would in a new installation. Instead the program is in the same state as before with all data and bank connections.

If you like to install the program into a new directory instead, please proceed as follows:

  1. Run the installation program and specify a new installation directory.
  2. On the last page of the setup wizard unset the checkbox Run BL Banking and click on Finish.
  3. From your defect installation copy the directory workspace into the new installation directory.
  4. Double-check if the shortcuts on your desktop and in the start menu point to the new or old directory.

See also FAQ 133.

FAQ 15

Where can I find the file eclipse.ini in MacOS? (Used to be BL Banking.ini)

In the installation directory click with the right mouse button on the program starter (BL Banking), then select Show Package Contents. A new window opens, where you can find the file under Contents/MacOS/eclipse.ini.

Since version 1.13.2 the file is located under Contents/Eclipse/ and is named BL Banking.ini again. This change will be done automatically during an update from a previous version.

See FAQ 154 if you don't find a eclipse.ini here.

FAQ 19

Which URLs does BL Banking invoke besides the URLs of the banks?

Often in corporate environments only pre-defined web addresses are allowed, which must be configured in a proxy server by the administrator.

During the initialization BL Banking checks the license via the following URL:

The program queries the upgradeability via the following URL:

After that the update downloads the data from here:

The synchronization of the application with the iPhone or Android app uses this URL:

Furthermore the following URLs are invoked:

FAQ 27

How can I move the keys, for example to a USB stick?

In the installation directory go to workspace and then into the folder keys. Then move the subfolder with the belonging user name into the new directory.

Upon start of BL Banking then the message appears: Your key files could not be found.

Then you can specify the new directory for the keys.

The same message also appears, when the drive letter of the USB stick, where the keys are located, has changed.

FAQ 28

How can I put the application data separate from the program files?

As described in chapter General - Installation - Destination directory the directory for BL Banking was specified during the installation.

By default the application data are stored in the workspace subdirectory below the program directory. However, depending on the installation scenario it might be necessary to put the application data separate from the program files. See chapter General - Installation - Installation scenarios.

After a successful installation you can move the application data to a different directory. The user must have write permissions on this directory. Then there are two ways to start BL Banking with the new location of the application data directory (the workspace directory): Either you use the file BL Banking.ini within BL Banking's program directory, or you start the program per shortcut using the -data parameter.

Note: For finding or creating the file BL Banking.ini, see FAQ 154.

For the first option you would add a new line at the end of file BL Banking.ini by using a text editor:

-Dosgi.instance.area=<file path to the new workspace>

Example:

-vmargs
-Dosgi.instance.area=D:\data\blbanking\workspace

Instead of specifying the file path as a fixed path you can also use the variable @user.home, which points to the home directory of the logged on user. Example:

-Dosgi.instance.area=@user.home\data\blbanking

The second approach to point the program to use the new workspace directory, you would create a shortcut to the program and add the parameter:

-data <file path to the new workspace>

Examples:

"C:\blbanking\BL Banking.exe" -data D:\data\blbanking\workspace
"C:\Program Files\BL Banking\BL Banking.exe" -data C:\ProgramData\BL Banking\workspace
"\\server\share\blbanking\BL Banking.exe" -data \\server\usershare\blbanking\workspace

Besides the program files and the application data there is also a temporary directory. Also here it might be necessary depending on the installation scenario to move this directory. See FAQ 111.

FAQ 34

Is it possible to start BL Banking via a UNC path from a file server?

Yes, you can start BL Banking both via a UNC path, e.g. \\server\share\blbanking, and via a drive letter, e.g. X:\blbanking.

If you are using an older version than 13.1, you must additionally specify the workspace directory for the variant with UNC path. For this, you use the parameter -data, followed by the path to the workspace directory, e.g.:

"\\server\share\blbanking\BL Banking.exe" -data \\server\share\blbanking\workspace

You can enter the command to start the program both in the command line, and in a shortcut.

FAQ 55

How can I run BL Banking in another language?

BL Banking is available in German, English, and French. By default, the program runs in the language of the operating system on your computer. The following describes how to set the language for the supported operating systems.

Windows

Please change the shortcut to the program file. Do so by right-clicking on the shortcut in your start menu or on the desktop and select Properties from the context menu. Then append the parameter -nl <language> at the end of the Target entry field, where <language> must be replaced with de, en, or fr, e.g. "C:\blbanking\BL Banking.exe" -nl de.

Mac OS

In the file eclipse.ini insert the line -Duser.language=de below -vmargs. Furthermore, with the line -Duser.language.format=de you can set the date formatting.

The file is located in the application folder BL Banking.app under Contents/MacOS. See FAQ 154 if you don't find the file there.

Note: This method also works for Windows and Linux. For MacOS also see FAQ 19.

Linux

Create a start script with the line /path/to/program/"BL Banking" -nl <LANGUAGE> and execute the program via this script. Thereby <LANGUAGE> must be replaced with de, en, or fr.

FAQ 60

How can I retroactively combine several single installations into a multi-user system?

This procedure works for encrypted local files too. If encryption is used, it doesn't have to be turned off.

  1. One installation is selected as the "master". The application data of this installation are taken over, the data of the other installations will be lost, however.

  2. The master installation is moved to a network drive, so that all users can access it.

  3. Then new users are added, whereby the actual password of the users are entered. This is particularly important, because the existing keys are taken over.

  4. From each user the subdirectory under workspace/keys/ is moved into the master installation.

  5. It has to be made sure that the banks list matches. The bank 0 in the master must match the bank 0 of the user, etc. If this is not the case, the files <N>.htd, <N>.keybag, <N>.pdf and <N>.properties of the users have to be renamed accordingly, whereby here <N> means the number of the bank. For example 0.keybag is the key file of the first bank, 1.pdf the INI letter of the second bank, etc.
    See also FAQ 77.

  6. In the file workspace/keys/users an entry KeyDir<Name> has to be added for each user, which points to the keys directory of the user.

As of version 1.10 the procedure is different, since here an SQL database is used.

  1. Make sure that all single installations have the same program version.

  2. Proceed as described above under items 1 and 2.

  3. Start the program and log on as the master user.

  4. From the Edit menu choose the item User administration.

  5. Click on Import users from another installation.

  6. Choose the workspace directory from each of the other users.

  7. The other user is displayed. Click on Finish.

  8. Proceed accordingly with the other single installations.

FAQ 61

How can I store my keys on a USB stick or another directory?

During the first initialization of BL Banking you can decide where to store the keys.

See chapter General - First initialization - Key directory.

You can also change the key directory retroactively.

For this see FAQ 28.

FAQ 84

How can I see in which directory BL Banking is installed?

There are two possibilities:

You can click with the right mouse button on the shortcut to BL Banking. Then the target of the shortcut is shown in the context menu under Properties.

Alternatively you can choose the item About BL Banking in the Help menu of BL Banking. A window opens where you click the Installation Details button. Then another window with two columns appears. There you can find in the rows Program directory, Data directoy, Key location the directories for the program, data and keys.

See also chapter General - General functions - Help.

FAQ 101

How can I see the license number of a BL Banking installation?

There are three possibilities:

1) From version 1.10 choose the item About BL Banking in the Help menu. A window opens where you click the Installation Details button. Then you see a table with the license number and other information about the installation.

2) Prior to version 1.10 there is no such table. Then you choose the Configuration tab in the same window and scroll to the bottom, where you can find the 11-digit license number.

See also chapter General - General functions - Help.

3) If the program doesn't start, use the file manager to navigate into the program directory and from there to the subdirectory workspace\keys\<username>. There is a file with the extension .license, e.g. 1a2b3c4d5e6.license, where here 1a2b3c4d5e6 would be the license number. This method only works prior to version 1.10.

FAQ 101 describes how to find the program directory.

FAQ 102

How can I move the temporary directory to a different storage location?

For its operation BL Banking needs a temporary directory, which by default is located in the program directory under workspace/tmp. The user must have write permissions on this directory. In certain cases it might be necessary to move the temporary directory to a different storage location.

For this purpose please add an instruction in the configuration file BL Banking.ini. See FAQ 154 if you don't find the file in the program directory of BL Banking.

In the instruction you can use either a relative or an absolute path, e.g.

-Dde.businesslogics.tmpdir=V:\blbanking\workspace\tmp

Instead of workspace/tmp please specify the new path to the moved temporary directory here. Thereby you can use either a relative or an absolute path.

Here it is not possible to use operation system variables, e.g. %Appdata%. However you can also pass the path as a parameter in the shortcut to the program, and then use operation system variables, e.g.

"C:\Program Files\blbanking\BL Banking.exe" -vmargs -Dde.businesslogics.tmpdir=%Appdata%\blbanking\workspace\tmp

Furthermore it is also possible to set the environment variable TMP of the operating system. Then you can also use operating system variables. However then the side effect occurs that also other programs, which use this environment variable, are affected.

See also FAQ 34.

FAQ 111

How can I migrate BL Banking?

A migration of BL Banking may be necessary for the following reasons, for example.

To migrate, please proceed as follows.

FAQ 113

Where can I download the installation file for BL Banking?

You received the link to the installation file in the mail that was sent to you by Business-Logics. Besides you can download the files via the following links:

FAQ 133

Where is the file BL Banking.ini located?

The global configuration file BL Banking.ini is located directly in the program directory of BL Banking, e.g. in C:\blbanking\. Here you can enter user-specific global settings. After a program update these settings are preserved.

As of version 1.10 the file is optional and does not exist in every installation. If you like to enter a setting, but the file doesn't exist, create it with a text editor in the program directory of BL Banking. Initially enter the line

-vmargs

into the file. Below add each setting on its own line.

Note: The name of the configuration file is derived from the file name of the executable program, e.g. BL Banking.ini for BL Banking. Accordingly, the configuration file has a different name for other variants of the program, e.g. BL-Bundesbank-Client.ini for the BL Bundesbank Client.

FAQ 154

Where is the workspace directory located?

Click on Help in the main menu and there on Open workspace directory. The workspace directory is then opened in the file manager of the respective operating system, e.g. under Windows in the Exlorer

C:\ProgramData\blbanking\workspace

or under MacOS in the Finder

/Users/<Username>/Library/Application Support/BL Banking/workspace

FAQ 207

How to install or update BL Banking unattended?

You can start the installation program with parameters using the command line. To do this, first download the setup file, open the command window and enter the following command.

blbanking_windows64_1_10_88.exe -q

In this example for Windows, the existing installation is updated to version 1.10.88. To ensure that you are installing to a specific directory, you must also specify the -dir parameter.

blbanking_windows64_1_10_88.exe -q -dir "C:\Program Files\blbanking"

You can also specify a relative path. You might need to run the command with administrator rights to have write permissions to the desired directory.

However, under Windows, a shortcust on the desktop and a program group in the start menu are created. If this is not desired, you need to create a text file with the following content

createDesktopLinkAction$Boolean=false
createQuicklaunchIconAction$Boolean=false
executeLauncherAction$Boolean=false
sys.programGroupDisabled$Boolean=true

and specify it with the parameter -varfile in the command.

blbanking_windows64_1_10_88.exe -q -dir "C:\Program Files\blbanking" -varfile vars.txt

A complete description of all possible parameters can be found on the website of Install4j, which is the software used to install BL Banking.

FAQ 212

Is it possible to access a network installation via a VPN?

Yes, it is possible to access a network installation of BL Banking via a VPN (virtual private network). This is necessary if you work from your home office or practice any other kind of telework.

Usually, in a network installation, the complete application including program and data is located on a network drive. In such a case, the program would start very slowly via a VPN connection. Therefore is is recommendable to install the programm locally and only access the data via the VPN.

It is important that the locally installed program and the network installation have the same version. This can be achieved easily by copying the program directory without the subdirectory workspace from the network drive to the local computer.

After that create a text file in the local program directory with the name BL Banking.ini and the following content.

-vmargs
-Dosgi.instance.area=X:\blbanking\workspace

In this example X:\blbanking\workspace is the path to the workspace directory on the network drive. You can find other ways to specify this in the FAQs 34 and 55.

If you have setup the program like this, it will start locally and accesses the data via the VPN. Tests with a connection of 50/10kbps have shown that it takes 3 to 5 seconds to retrieve an account statement of 100KByte size. Given that such big statements are unusual, you can work sufficiently fast with this setup.

FAQ 233