How to Choose

Enterprise Edition is a fully-featured noise mapping system ideal for those with small to medium projects, especially where there is a limited collaborative working.  It stores projects in ‘flat’ files, so does not require the use of a database server.  It can read digital maps in DXF format, but not in Shapefile format.

Server Edition can model vast projects (for example, a project could stretch over the whole of the UK).  It is ideal for collaborative working with users in many locations, and can allow many computers (including multi-core machines) to participate in calculations.  It also has sophisticated model–building tools that can be used to create models automatically from digital maps and GIS Shapefiles.

Server-side software is the software that creates and runs the databases used by Server Edition.  If you are using Server Edition, you either need to rent server space from us, or purchase the Server-side software.  In limited cases, it is possible to run the Server-side software in the same machine as the Client (User) software, but we usually recommend installing separate Server hardware.

You can transfer noise models between the two Editions, within the limitations of their capacity, although Server Edition is able to model certain features (such as building objects) that cannot be modelled in Enterprise Edition.  These would be lost when transferring to Enterprise.

Click on the links for further information on the Capacity of the various versions of the software and for advice on hardware.