Whether you want to use TimeNet Law with a team, or simply access it remotely from your laptop when not in the office, TimeNet Law offers a very simple and powerful cloud syncing mode that leverages the advantages of cloud software:

• Work in the office, from home, or while traveling
• Use multiple computers seamlessly
• Work with multiple people at the same time
• Keep data in sync and see changes as they happen

Cloud software also has some significant disadvantages. TimeNet Law eliminates all of them:

• You can only work when online
• If the server/company holding your data has issues, you can’t access your data
• Working in non-native (web, Electron, etc.) environments is slow and clunky
• As soon as you stop paying your “rent” for the software, your data becomes locked away from you

The TimeNet Law Solution

By providing you with a native application that lives on your Mac, your data is stored on your device and always accessible to you. Whether online or not, you can always access your data, and we can never lock you out of it — nor would we want to.

Using Dropbox or iCloud to sync your data, you have offsite cloud backup of your entire database, and all of your data is seamlessly synced across all devices in your firm and fully encrypted.

Learn more about data security here.

How to Use Dropbox or iCloud

First, you’ll need to decide whether you want to use Dropbox or iCloud Drive. Both are free and provide plenty of space for TimeNet Law’s data.

Dropbox provides more robust undelete and recovery options, but iCloud Drive is built-in to your Mac. You can create a free Dropbox account here or learn more about iCloud Drive here.

Once you’ve chosen a syncing provider and set it up on your computer, you just need to tell TimeNet Law where to store your data.

1. Open TimeNet Law on your first computer (the one that shows all of your TimeNet Law data)
2. Select File > Configure Network from the menubar
3. Choose the Dropbox/iCloud option and click Next
4. By default, TimeNet Law offers to store your data in the root of your Dropbox folder. If using Dropbox, click Finish
5. If using iCloud Drive, or you want to store TimeNet Law’s data in a separate folder inside of the Dropbox folder, click Choose Another Location, select your iCloud Drive folder or any other folder in Dropbox or iCloud Drive, and click Finish

You’re All Set!

It’s as simple as that. Now, TimeNet Law will store your data in Dropbox or iCloud Drive. To access that data from other computers, simply open TimeNet Law and repeat the steps above to select the same “TimeNet Law Data” in Dropbox or iCloud Drive.

If the other computers aren’t signed into the same Dropbox or iCloud account, then you just need to share the “TimeNet Law Data” folder inside your Dropbox or iCloud Drive folder before they complete the steps above. Right-click the folder and select Share (use the second Share option with the Dropbox icon if using Dropbox) and enter the other user’s email address(es).

Now you can work from anywhere, with anyone, and rest easy knowing your data is securely stored with encryption on your computer, and backed up offsite.

Over time, your law practice may change. Clients and timekeepers come and go, and matters eventually get finished and (hopefully) paid. TimeNet Law makes it simple to keep things tidy, while still retaining all of your historical data.

Making Clients Inactive

If you’ve completed all work for a client, and they’ve settled their accounts with you, it’s no longer necessary to see their name in your system all the time. By making a client Inactive, they will be hidden from windows and reports, but you can still easily look at their data, or make them active again later.

1. Edit a client by right-clicking their name in the main window and selecting Edit Client, or hold Option on your keyboard and double-click the client.
2. Select Inactive from the Status popup under the Name field.

Once a client is inactive, it will be hidden from the main window and excluded from reports. You can include inactive clients in reports by checking the Include Inactive Clients checkbox.

Viewing and Re-Activating Inactive Clients

Once you’ve made clients Inactive, they no longer appear in the main window. To view them, select View > Show Inactive Clients from the menubar, or click the gearwheel button at the top of the client list and select Inactive Clients under the Show section of the popup menu.

When inactive clients are visible, you can repeat the steps above to edit the inactive client and change their Status to Active.

Making Matters Inactive

Once you’ve completed a matter, you can make it inactive so it no longer appears in the matter list under that client. It will also be excluded from reports unless you check the Include Inactive Matters checkbox.

1. Open the matter you wish to make inactive.
2. Select Matter > Make Matter Inactive from the menubar.

Viewing and Re-Activating Inactive Matters

Once you’ve made matters Inactive, they no longer appear in the main window. To view them, select View > Show Inactive Matters from the menubar, or click the gearwheel button at the top of the client list and select Inactive Matters under the Show section of the popup menu.

When inactive natters are visible, you can open the inactive matter and select Matter > Make Matter Active to re-activate it.

Making Timekeepers Inactive

If a timekeeper leaves your law firm, do not delete them from the Timekeepers list. You’ll want to keep them in the system for historical purposes. Instead, make them inactive.

1. Open the main Preferences and click the Timekeepers pane in the toolbar.
2. Double-click the timekeeper you wish to make inactive.
3. Select Inactive from the Status popup under the Position field.

Re-Activating Inactive Timekeepers

Inactive timekeepers will always appear in the Timekeeper list in the Preferences window. Double-click them and change their Status back to Active.

By making clients, matters and timekeepers inactive in TimeNet Law, your software will remain uncluttered and be much easier to navigate. Hidden away but easy to access, your historical data will remain intact and your software will be more focused.

TimeNet Law has a lot of options and settings. You can learn about them using QuickHelp. It is available anywhere in the program, and can easily be turned on or off by clicking the blue circular ? icon in any window, or by selecting Help > Show/Hide QuickHelp Guide from the menubar.

When QuickHelp is on, a small floating window will appear and give you details about whatever button, text field, or control your mouse cursor is hovering over. It’s a great way to learn about new options quickly.

So, you just got yourself a fancy new computer and you want to move TimeNet Law from your previous workhorse to the new one. Good news! It’s very simple. Just follow the steps outlined below.

1. Open TimeNet Law on the old computer and select File > Backup Data from the menubar. When prompted, save it to a new folder on your desktop. Quit TimeNet Law on the old computer.
2. Copy this folder from your desktop onto the new computer using file sharing or AirDrop.
3. Download TimeNet Law on the new computer by visiting https://www.timenetlaw.com/download on the new computer.
4. Move TimeNet Law from the Downloads folder into your Applications folder on the new computer and open it.
5. Exit out of the Setup Assistant and select File > Restore Data from the menubar. When prompted, select the TimeNet Law Data folder you copied over in step 2.

That’s it! Now you should see all of your data in TimeNet Law on your new computer. Be sure to enter your license information into TimeNet Law on the new computer by selecting TimeNet Law > License from the menubar.