My TimeClock Client Cannot Connect to Server

On the second Wednesday of some months we've seen an increase in support requests for our Network Edition customers receiving a "Virtual TimeClock Server is not responding" error. After a little investigation, we've determined that the firewall exceptions for Virtual TimeClock have been eliminated, preventing communication between the Virtual TimeClock Clients and Server. What happened?

The answer is that the firewall was reset during an event called "Patch Tuesday". Patch Tuesday (a.k.a. Update Tuesday) is an unofficial term used to refer to when Microsoft releases updates for its software products. It occurs on the second (and sometimes fourth) Tuesday of each month in North America. Windows users will often report that, after the update, aspects of their system are affected. This can include network settings and firewalls.

The solution to this problem is to re-open the firewall ports for Virtual TimeClock. Here are the directions: Opening Ports On Your Firewall

If your firewall settings are fine, and you still can't connect, check out some other hints below:

Tips:

• Static IP on Server Computer: Check to make sure the IP address on your Server Manager has not changed. If it is not set to "static" it may have received a new address. Learn more about setting a static IP for Windows or Mac.
• More Troubleshooting: If you are still having trouble, we have resources to help you troubleshoot local client and remote client connections.
• Login Error - Unauthorized: Check to make sure that the password being entered in the Virtual TimeClock Client Login window belongs to a group, manager, or administrator. Passwords for users will not work to reconnect a client.