Troubleshooting the FMP URL Protocol

When opening the aACE Calendar under certain conditions, you may receive an error message that the FMP URL protocol is not working:

This error message means that the aACE Calendar will not be able to display data properly. You must resolve the protocol issue before continuing to use the Calendar.

Understanding the FMP URL Protocol

The FMP URL protocol is a hidden setting stored on your machine that tells the aACE Calendar which version of FileMaker to use in opening the calendar's web viewer. For the aACE Calendar to load properly, the protocol must be set to the same version of FileMaker that you are using to access aACE (e.g. opening aACE in FM 17 requires the protocol to be "17").

Setting the FMP URL Protocol

The FMP URL protocol is set when you install or uninstall FileMaker on your machine. The logic that determines the protocol settings is based on the version of FileMaker:

• Installing: 
  • FM 17 or Later — Sets the FMP URL protocol to the version being installed only if the protocol is not already set. 
    • Example 1: Your machine only has FM 15 installed on it and the FMP URL protocol is set to "15". Upon installing FM 17, the protocol remains set to "15". 
    • Example 2: Your machine does not have any version of FM installed on it. Upon installing FM 17, the protocol is set to "17".
  • FM 16 or Earlier — Sets the FMP URL protocol to the version being installed. This overwrites any previous setting stored on your machine. 
    • Example: Your machine only has FM 18 installed on it and the FMP URL protocol is set to "18". Upon installing FM 16, the protocol is overwritten and set to "16".
• Uninstalling:
  • All Versions of FileMaker — Clears the FMP URL protocol out and leaves it blank. 
    • Example: Your machine has FM 15, FM 16, and FM 17 installed on it. Upon uninstalling FM15, the protocol is cleared out and will not be set again until you install a new version of FileMaker.

Resolving Protocol Issues

If you are running the latest version of the aACE Calendar in FileMaker 18 or later, the protocol should be bypassed, allowing the web viewer to open in whichever version of FileMaker you are using.

To determine how to resolve the protocol issue, find out how many versions of FileMaker are installed on your machine.

• Only one version of FileMaker installed — Uninstall and re-install it.
• Multiple versions of FileMaker installed — Uninstall the oldest version of FileMaker already installed.
  • If you wish to use a newer version of FileMaker that is not currently installed on your machine, install it. 
  • If the latest version of FileMaker currently on your machine is the version you wish to use, uninstall and re-install that version.