How does HAL store my data?
There are two places in your machine's file system where HAL stores data: the
main data store and the setup data store.
Main data store
All the data from the
Class and
Boat Registers, together with the
Race Schedule,
Tandem Races and all the
results is stored in a HAL file with extension .hrrx. You can put this file
anywhere on your machine or on your local network, provided you have read and write
access to it. You make a new .hrrx file either by using the
File / New
menu item or the
File / Save as menu item.
File association. When HAL is installed on your machine it tells Windows
that all files with extension .hrrx belong to it. You will see the HAL two-flag
logo
beside such files in Windows Explorer and HAL will open automatically if you double-click
on one.
Recent files. HAL keeps a list of the last five files you have opened and
displays it in the
Files / Recent files menu. If you open HAL from its
logo on the desktop or from the Windows Start menu (in other words, if you open
HAL in any way other than double-clicking a file) it will automatically open the
most recently used file from this list.
Open file display. So that you know which file you are working
on, the address of the file that is open is always displayed across the top of the
main HAL window in its title bar.
Save on close. When you close HAL it automatically stores your data in the
file that you have open, unless this is a read-only file in which case it asks you
to nominate a new file to store your data.
Recommendations to ensure that your main data store is safe
- Put your files in suitable locations and ensure that you always open the correct
file by checking its address in the title bar at the top of the HAL window. There
is a separate FAQ page about this.
- Keep back-ups of your data. The main way to do this is to make archive files using
the File / Archive / HAL Mk.2 read-only file menu item. You can put this
file anywhere on your machine, or on the local network, or on a removeable storage
medium such as a data stick. Archive files are the same as normal .hrrx files except
that they are marked as read-only, so that Windows will not allow you to overwrite
them with new data, and they are not added to HAL's list of recent files.
Another way to make back-ups is to use whatever system you use to back up all your
other files, making sure that your .hrrx files are included.
Setup data store
All the information on HAL's setup screen, which is what personalises your installation
of HAL, is kept on your machine in a location that is not under your direct control.
It is where Windows stores such data for all its applications. This means that the
setup of your machine is unique to it. If you open a HAL file that was made on another
installation of HAL the setup will not be transferred with it, only your actual
data will come across to the new machine. In particular this means that the administrator's
password is unique to the machine, not to your data file, as is your club name and
your login details for
HAL's Club Results Service.
