Dictadoc

Installation guide

Install Dictadoc Server

This guide is for the person who installs the server and sets up the workstations, on Windows, on macOS or with Docker. Follow the steps in order.

  • About 30 minutes for the server
  • 5 minutes per workstation
  • Windows, macOS or Docker
On this page

Before you start

Get these ready before you install.

  • A dedicated computer, switched on all day, that meets the tech specs.
  • A fixed IP address for this computer, or a DHCP reservation on your router.
  • The server installation files, from the downloads page.
  • Your licence code, which we send you by e-mail after you order.
  • An administrator account on this computer.
  • Internet access to activate the licence and download the models. If your network has no internet access, see Without internet access.
Protecting your data comes first. Dictadoc Server is designed to comply with the GDPR, and the software contains no analytics or statistics tools. Nothing is tracked, on the server or on the workstations.
Dictadoc isn't medical software. It isn't certified as a medical device or as medical software. Your IT team is responsible for running it on a secure network and in a secure environment. Dictadoc Server doesn't keep dictations or text: it transcribes them and sends the encrypted result back to the workstation. Only the workstation stores reports, and it encrypts them too.

Open the network ports

Dictadoc Server uses two TCP ports. Workstations only need the first one.

Port Used for Open to
9443/TCP Encrypted dictation between the workstations and the server All workstations
9080/TCP The administration page Computers that manage the server
Don't open either port to the internet. The administration page isn't encrypted, so only allow access to port 9080 from your local network.

Install the server

Choose the method for the computer that hosts the server.

On Windows

The installer is in French.

  1. Sign in with an administrator account, then open dictadoc-server-windows-<version>.exe.
  2. If Windows shows “Windows protected your PC”, click More info, then Run anyway. This message appears because the installer isn't digitally signed.
  3. Check the suggested network name and IP address (“Nom réseau de cette machine” and “Adresse IP sur le réseau du cabinet”). Workstations use one or the other to reach the server, so correct them if they don't match your network.
  4. Leave the box that opens the administration page ticked (“Ouvrir la page d'administration pour choisir le mot de passe”) and finish the installation. Then go to initial setup.
Dictadoc Server installs as a Windows service, so it starts with the computer, even when nobody is signed in. The installer also opens ports 9443 and 9080 in Windows Defender Firewall.

On macOS

  1. Open dictadoc-server-macos-<version>.pkg, then follow the steps in the installer.
  2. When macOS asks, enter an administrator's name and password for the Mac.
  3. If macOS asks whether dictadoc-server can accept incoming network connections, click Allow.
  4. The administration page opens when the installation finishes. Go to initial setup.
Dictadoc Server starts with the Mac, even when nobody is logged in. Workstations reach it by its IP address or by its local hostname, shown in System Settings > General > Sharing. A Mac with Apple silicon is recommended.

With Docker

There are two images: cpu, for any server, and cuda, for a server with an NVIDIA graphics card.

  1. Load the image you downloaded:
    cpu image 
    docker load -i dictadoc-server-docker-cpu-<version>.tar.gz
    cuda image 
    docker load -i dictadoc-server-docker-cuda-<version>.tar.gz
  2. Copy compose.yaml to a folder on the server, along with compose.cuda.yaml if you use the cuda image. In compose.yaml, replace the values marked CHANGE ME with the server's name and IP address. Workstations use one or the other to reach it.
  3. From that folder, start the server:
    cpu image 
    docker compose up -d
    cuda image 
    docker compose -f compose.yaml -f compose.cuda.yaml up -d
  4. Open the administration page, then go to initial setup.
The cuda image needs the NVIDIA driver and the NVIDIA Container Toolkit on the host machine. It supports the cards listed in the tech specs. Without the toolkit, the server transcribes on the processor, and the administration page tells you so.

Dictadoc Server keeps its data and models in the dictadoc-data and dictadoc-models volumes. Back up the first one: it holds the licence and the list of workstations.

On a Mac, use the macOS package instead of Docker. Docker won't have access to the Mac's graphics processor.

Initial setup

You set everything up from the administration page, in a web browser. This guide quotes its buttons exactly as they appear.

  1. Open http://server-address:9080/admin from a computer on the network, or http://localhost:9080/admin on the server itself.
  2. Choose an administrator password of at least 12 characters, then click Set it. Your browser now asks for a username and this password. Any username works.
    Choose the password as soon as the installation finishes. Until you do, anyone on your network can choose it for you, and no workstation can join the server.
  3. Activate the licence. In Activate with internet, paste the licence code from your e-mail, then click Activate. Your licence starts from that moment.
  4. Install a transcription model. In Models, click Install next to the model you want. The download happens only once and is about 3 GB for the large-v3 version.

The server is ready once the licence is active and a model is installed.

Without internet access

Dictadoc Server works on a network with no internet access at all. To activate the licence, open Activate without internet and send the ID it shows to dictadoc@proton.me. Paste the licence we send you, then click Install.

For the models, contact us and we'll explain how to copy them to the server from another computer.

Connect the workstations

Repeat these steps on each computer.

  1. Install the Dictadoc workstation app. You'll find it in Workstation updates on the administration page, or on the downloads page. On Windows, if “Windows protected your PC” appears, do as you did for the server.
  2. Open the app. In Join the practice's server, fill in the three fields:
    • Server address: the name or IP address set when you installed the server.
    • Enrolment code: the code shown in Enrolment code on the administration page. It's the same for every workstation.
    • Name of this workstation: a name that helps you recognise it, such as “Room 2”.
  3. Click Join, then dictate a sentence. When the text appears, the workstation is ready.
Each workstation uses one seat on your licence. To free a seat, click Revoke next to the workstation on the administration page.

Update the server

The administration page tells you when a new version is available. Nothing installs without your approval. Download the new version from the downloads page, then install it:

  • Windows: open the new installer. It replaces the installed version.
  • macOS: open the new package.
  • Docker: load the new image, then run the same docker compose command again.

Updating keeps the licence, the models and the workstations. If the option is turned on in Workstation updates, each workstation then offers the new version when it starts.

Troubleshooting

A workstation can't reach the server
Check that the address you entered is exactly the name or IP address set during the installation, and that port 9443 is open between the workstation and the server. If the workstation shows “This server is not the one the code came from”, the address leads to a different server.
The administration page doesn't open
Check that port 9080 is open from your computer, or open http://localhost:9080/admin on the server itself. On Windows, the Start menu also has a Page d'administration shortcut, in the Dictadoc Serveur folder.
The graphics card isn't used
The administration page shows what handles the transcription. With Docker, check the NVIDIA driver and the NVIDIA Container Toolkit, then start the server with compose.cuda.yaml.
You've lost the administrator password
We don't have access to your password, but we can guide you through changing it. E-mail us at dictadoc@proton.me.

Uninstall

  • Windows: in Settings > Apps, uninstall Dictadoc Server. Your data stays in C:\ProgramData\Dictadoc. To also erase the licence, the models and the list of workstations, delete this folder.
  • macOS: run the command below. Your data stays in /Library/Application Support/Dictadoc. To also erase the licence, the models and the list of workstations, delete this folder. 
    sudo "/Library/Application Support/Dictadoc/uninstall.sh"
  • Docker: from the folder that contains compose.yaml, run docker compose down. To also delete the data and the models, add -v.

Discover Dictadoc Server