System Requirements

Owned by Karen McDonald
Last updated: Feb 05, 2024 by Gemma Heidemann
8 min read

Minimum System Requirements

Wise Owl Legal has specific requirements to function correctly and optimally. If your computer does not meet these requirements, Wise Owl Legal may function with reduced speed, functionality or not function at all. The Wise Owl Legal Helpdesk cannot provide support unless your computer meets these requirements.

Web Browser

Your web browser is the most important component to consider when using Wise Owl Legal. With the latest web browser, even a relatively old computer can use Wise Owl Legal.

Important: You should always keep your web browser up to date. New versions are released frequently and contain important security fixes, performance improvements and additional features. But always check with your IT department before upgrading your web browser, as the upgrade may cause problems with other websites you use.

Wise Owl Legal is developed using the current HTML5 web standards. It should work on any modern web browser supporting HTML5. However, the following web browsers are officially supported in Wise Owl Legal (on desktop and mobile devices):

  • Internet Explorer 11 or Microsoft Edge

    • Internet Explorer 11 in Windows 7 and Windows 8.

    • Microsoft Edge in Windows 10.

    • Note that Internet Explorer 11 is the last version of Internet Explorer. All new features and development from Microsoft is being made to Microsoft Edge. We recommend Wise Owl Legal users using Internet Explorer develop a migration plan to Microsoft Edge on Windows 10, or use an alternative browser.

    • Automatic spell checking may require a 3rd party add-on for Windows 7. Windows 8 and 10 include spell checking support. Please see Spell Checking Support.

  • Mozilla Firefox versions up to 6 months old

    • As new versions of Firefox are released every 6-8 weeks, we only support versions released in the last 6 months. We recommend upgrading to the most current version as soon as it becomes available.

    • The most current Firefox Extended Support Release is also supported for 12 months after release.

    • There are portable versions of Firefox available from PortableApps which do not require administrative rights to install. 

    • Australian English dictionaries are available for download. We recommend installing the en-GB version of Firefox for best language support. Please see Spell Checking Support for more details.

  • Google Chrome versions up to 6 months old

    • As new versions of Chrome are release every 6-8 weeks, we only support versions released in the last 6 months. We recommend upgrading to the most current version as soon as it becomes available.

    • Chrome does not require administrative rights to install.

    • Australian English dictionaries are installed by default, but may require manual activation. Please see Spell Checking Support.

  • Apple Safari 7.0 or newer

    • Safari is recommended for Macintosh computers and iPhone / iPad devices. 

    • Safari version 7.0 is installed with OS X Mavericks

    • Safari is not supported under Microsoft Windows as Apple has discontinued support.

Other web browsers may work with Wise Owl Legal, but they have not been extensively tested. You may receive a pop-up warning screen if you use an unsupported or untested web browser. Wise Owl helpdesk staff may not be able to provide support if you are using an untested web browser; you will be asked to use a supported browser instead.

Javascript and cookies must be enabled in your web browser for the Wise Owl Legal site.

Documents Module Integration

Wise Owl Legal uses a web browser independent technology to launch Microsoft Office Documents directly in the approprate Microsoft Office application. No special installation or plugins are required. However, for the best experience, some additional configuration of your web browser is highly recommended.

To avoid security prompts when opening documents from various browsers, you will need to complete the following: 

  1. Open Control Panel

  2.  Go to Internet > Security > Trusted Sites > Sites




  3. Enter in the URL of your Wise Owl Legal page and select add





  4. Close Control Panel and continue using Wise Owl Legal

On mobile devices, MS Office documents are view-only. Editing is not supported.

Non-Office documents (eg: images, plain text files, html files, mp3 files, etc) are displayed in your web browser in a view-only mode. The exact display and functionality is dependent on your Web Browser. A download option is always available.

Wise Owl Legal uses WebDAV technology to support editing of Microsoft Office Documents. Although Wise Owl Legal only supports editing documents via the web browser interface, other WebDAV technologies may be used to access your documents. The Wise Owl Helpdesk cannot provide support for 3rd party WebDAV applications.

Microsoft Office

Microsoft Office 2010 desktop version and newer is supported in Windows and Mac.

Documents may be edited using the appropriate MS Office application (Word, Excel and Powerpoint). Other applications are not supported (Eg: Visio, Publisher, OneNote).

Office 365 is supported only if you install the current desktop version of Microsoft Office. Documents are not stored in the Office 365 cloud. The web-based Online Office 365 products are not supported.

32 bit version of MS Office is supported. The 64 bit version of MS Office should work, but has not been formally tested by the Wise Owl Helpdesk. 

TODO: testing using a mac

Document Module Email Support

Microsoft Outlook MSG email files are supported as read-only documents. They must be exported from Outlook as MSG files, then loaded into Wise Owl Legal via the normal document upload page. They may be viewed in your web browser from Wise Owl Legal, but may not be edited. 

Wise Owl Legal does not support automatic receipt of emails directly into the documents module. You must manually export emails from Outlook as MSG files.

Wise Owl Legal does not support replying to emails in the documents module. We recommend a bcc of all outgoing emails to an internal email address. These emails may then be imported as normal MSG files.

Spell Checking

Australian English dictionaries are available for most major web browsers. Some require a 3rd party add-on.

Spell Checking in MS Office documents must be configured in MS Word and associated applications. Your web browser spelling settings will not affect MS Word.

Please see Spell Checking Support for more details.

Operating System

Minimum Operating Systems for desktop environments:

  • Microsoft Windows 7 or newer. 

    • 32 and 64 bit operating systems are supported. We recommend 64 bit operating systems on all newly purchased computers.

    • Windows XP Extended supported ended in March 2014. This means no new updates are being released for Windows XP, ever. As such, we do not support Windows XP and highly recommend all clients upgrade to a newer version of Windows immediately.  

  • Mac OS X Mavericks or newer

Linux based systems may work if a recent web browser is installed, however some functionality will not be available. Wise Owl Legal has done only basic testing on Linux systems, as such, Linux based systems are not supported by the Wise Owl Helpdesk.

Tablet and Phone Devices

Wise Owl Legal is primarily designed for use on desktop system. While some support for iOS and Android based devices is available, we do not recommend using mobile devices for day-to-day usage. Support is best on tablet sized devices. Data entry is particularly troublesome and we recommend using tablet devices for viewing and accessing documents only.

In particular, the following modules are not supported on tablet and phone devices:

  • Trust Accounting

Supported devices:

  • Any device that has access to a browser, including:

    • Tablets (e.g. Apple, Microsoft, Samsung, Amazon, Google) 

    • Smart Phones

End User Hardware

Wise Owl Legal does not have any particular hardware requirements in terms of CPU, RAM or hard disk. In general, you should consult the minimum hardware requirements of your web browser. Obviously, more powerful computers and larger screens will improve speed and productivity.

As a general guide, the following hardware is recommended as a minimum, but you should consult your IT support provider or the Wise Owl Helpdesk for exact requirements:

  • CPU: 2 cores, 2 GHz

  • RAM: 4GB

  • HDD: solid state disk (SSD)

  • 22" monitor

Server Hardware

Wise Owl Legal is a web based product. You may host Wise Owl Legal on your own server, a dedicated server or a cloud based server in our secure data centre. Virtual and physical servers are supported.

You must contact the Wise Owl Legal Helpdesk to confirm your server will be able to run Wise Owl Legal. We cannot guarantee Wise Owl Legal will run on your server without reviewing your purchase order or existing environment.

The following hardware requirements may be used as a guide for purchasing a server for Wise Owl Legal.

Minimum Server Hardware (for up to 6 users):

  • Operating System: Windows Server 2012 R2 Essentials

  • CPU: 2 cores, 2GHz+, 64 bit. Intel Core i3 is supported, Intel Xeon recommended

  • RAM: 3.5GB (for virtual servers), 4GB (for physical servers). ECC RAM is required.

  • HDD: 200GB RAID 1 (mirroring for data security) - 120GB for base operating system, 80GB for Wise Owl Legal database and documents

  • Backup: Windows Server Backup to external HDDs (minimum 3 disks, 500GB in capacity)

  • Internet: a broadband connections is required for verifying license, downloading updates and remote support

  • Admin Access: administrative access to the server is required for installation, subsequent updates and remote support

  • Database: MS SQL Server 2012 or 2014 Express Edition

  • SSL Certificate: required for remote access

  • UPS: a 30 minute battery backup is highly recommended

  • Important: a server only meeting the minimum requirements must be dedicated to hosting the Wise Owl Legal database and must NOT be used as a workstation for staff.

Recommended Shared Workstation Hardware (for up to 6 users):

  • Operating System: Windows 10 Pro / Professional x 2 (Windows 7 is not supported)

  • CPU: 4 cores, 2GHz+, 64 bit. Intel Core i5, i7 or Xeon (recommended)

  • RAM: 16GB. ECC RAM highly recommended

  • HDD: 1TB RAID 1 - 250GB for host operating system (workstation), 120GB for Wise Owl operating system (server), 80GB for Wise Owl Legal database and documents

  • Local Backup: Windows Backup to external HDDs (minimum 3 disks, 1TB in capacity)

  • Internet: a broadband connections is required for verifying license, downloading updates and remote support

  • Admin Access: administrative access to the server is required for installation, subsequent updates and remote support

  • Database: MS SQL Server 2012 or 2014 Express Edition

  • SSL Certificate: required for remote access

  • UPS: a 30 minute battery backup is highly recommended

  • Important: the shared workstation configuration must remain running 24/7, if the workstation is turned off each night important updates and maintenance will not happen

Recommended Server Hardware for best performance or more than 6 users:

  • Operating System: Windows Server 2012 R2 Standard

  • CPU: 4+ cores, 2GHz+, 64 bit. Intel Xeon

  • RAM: 16GB, ECC RAM is required.

  • HDD: 500GB RAID 1 - 120GB for base operating system, 380GB for Wise Owl Legal database and documents

  • Local Backup: ShadowProtect backup to external HDDs (minimum 3 disks, 1TB in capacity)

  • Remote Backup: ShadowProtect backup to remote location

  • Internet: a fixed, high speed broadband connections is required for verifying license, downloading updates and remote support

  • Admin Access: administrative access to the server is required for installation, subsequent updates and remote support

  • Database: MS SQL Server 2012 or 2014 Standard Edition

  • SSL Certificate: required for remote access

  • UPS: a 30 minute battery backup is highly recommended

 





TODO: printers