Moving from your previous program

Move your laboratory's data from your previous program to Clarus

Patients and their visits, ordered tests and their results, your test catalogue with its own names, reference ranges and your priced packages: Clarus reads them itself from your previous program's files, in both its Access and SQL Server editions, on your laboratory's own computer, and shows you the counts before it writes anything. If your laboratory runs another program, see below what can be brought across from it.

Try the import on your laboratory's real data during a 14-day free trial with every feature.

Read directly

It reads your previous program's file itself, with no SQL Server or Access to install

Clarus reads the files of RealLab (Real Lab), in both of its editions: the Access edition (.mdb files) and the SQL Server edition (its .bak backup). It reads them directly, so you do not need SQL Server or Access installed on the computer.

Clarus is not RealLab and has no affiliation with it; the name is given here only so you know which files the program reads.

  • It runs from the "Import from a Previous System" screen in the System Settings Center, with an Administrator account.
  • The file is read on your computer: it is not changed, and the import does not upload it anywhere.
  • Files in the newer Access format (.accdb, Access 2007 and later) are not supported: the program refuses them.
  • The program does not read other programs' files directly; they have another route, described below.
What comes across

What the program brings across from your previous program's file

Patients

Your laboratory's patient records and their details.

Visits

Every patient's visits to the laboratory.

Ordered tests and their results

The tests ordered at each visit, and the result of each one.

Your test catalogue, with its own names

Your laboratory's catalogue, with the test names your staff wrote.

Reference ranges

The normal ranges your laboratory set for its tests.

Priced packages

The test packages your laboratory sells, at the price each package charges.

And it promises nothing it cannot read: before you agree, it shows you tables linked to patients that it does not read, and result columns it will not bring across. Payments, balances and SMS messages do not come across, and neither do a few other tables the program leaves out on purpose; those are not on that list.

How the move works

Four steps, and nothing is written before you agree

  1. 1

    Choose the folder

    Point to the folder that holds your previous program's data, and the program finds the database files of either edition in it and shows their sizes.

  2. 2

    Review what was found

    The program reads the file without writing anything, then shows you its counts: patients, visits, ordered tests, tests, reference ranges, packages, and the earliest and latest dates in it.

  3. 3

    Confirm and start

    The import starts only once you confirm it, and a second import cannot start while the first is running, so a repeated click never brings your data across twice.

  4. 4

    Follow the progress

    While the import runs you see what has arrived so far, and how long a file of your file's size usually takes.

How long: in development tests an import took about ten seconds per megabyte, so a 108 MB file took about 18 minutes.

Your test names

Coming from the program named above? The names your staff type are already there

Clarus ships with a catalogue that contains, word for word, the factory catalogue of the program named above, with its test names and fields, and adds more tests on top. So the names your staff are used to are in Clarus from day one, and your laboratory's own catalogue comes across with its names.

From other programs

If your laboratory runs another program

Clarus does not read other programs' files directly, but what you can export from them as CSV or Excel can still come across, in two ways.

Catalogue, price lists and inventory: import them yourself

Download ready CSV templates from inside the program for the test catalogue, price lists and inventory items, fill them from your previous program, and import them.

Patient records: with our team

If your patient records are in CSV or Excel (.xlsx) files, the Clarus team brings them across with you in an assisted migration. Message us on WhatsApp to arrange it.

Common questions

Questions about moving

Does the import change my previous program's file or delete anything from it?

No. The program reads the file on your computer and does not write to it, and the import does not upload it anywhere.

Can I try the import before I buy?

Yes. The trial copy is the same edition that is sold, and the import runs in it, from an Administrator account, throughout the trial, which lasts 14 days. After that the copy becomes read-only until you activate the licence, and the data you brought across stays in it.

Do I need the internet for the import?

No. The import runs on your laboratory's own computer, from a file that is on it.

My file is an .accdb file. Can it be read?

No. Files in the newer Access format (Access 2007 and later) are not supported: the program refuses them. Message us on WhatsApp so we can look at your case.

What if my file holds something the program cannot read?

Before you agree, it shows you tables linked to patients that it does not read, and result columns it will not bring across. Payments, balances and SMS messages are not brought across, and neither are a few other tables the program leaves out on purpose; those do not appear on that list.

Try the import on your own laboratory's data

Download the trial (a 14-day free trial with every feature), bring your previous program's data into it, and check the counts before you decide. For any question, message us on WhatsApp.

WhatsApp Send the download link to your computer