VFIRS Help

NFIRS Account Reset

NFIRS accounts go inactive every 45 days and users can get locked out if they mistype or forget their password. If you need your account reset, please either email us at , or contact us by phone; Renee Tabb (804-249-1987) or Dwight Crews (804-249-1989).

NFIRS Software Download Instructions

  1. To download the software, go to www.nfirs.fema.gov.
  2. In the green bar at the top of the page, click on 'User Section'.
  3. Then, on the left, click on 'User Login'. If you get a Security Alert window, click ‘OK”.
  4. You should then see a logon screen. Login using your NFIRS account information. When prompted that you are about to access a U.S. Government information system, click ‘OK’.
  5. Once you have logged in, on the left, click on 'Download Software'.
  6. Then, to download the software, click on 'NFIRS 5.0 Client Version 5.8.1'.
  7. A new window should open with the title ‘File Download Notice: Application Executable File’.  Click on ‘Download Now’.
  8. When asked if you want to run or save the file, select ‘Save’ and change the ‘Save In’ location to your Desktop. Click ‘Save’.
  9. The program file is named ‘NFIRSv581.exe’ and is 13 MB in size.  When the download is complete, click ‘Close’.
  10. Locate the ‘NFIRSv581.exe’ file on your Desktop and double-click on the file to start the installation of the program.  When prompted, accept all the defaults and keep clicking 'Next' until the program finishes.

Note: If you are installing the software on a computer with Windows Vista or Windows 7, there are settings to change to make sure that the program with open. See the instructions below.

Windows Fix to Allow the USFA Data Entry Tool Program to Run

Fix #1 (Windows Vista, Windows 7)

If you have Windows Vista or Windows 7, NFIRS version 5.8.1 installs two folders on your computer with read only permissions, instead of full control permissions. Please see the instructions below for details with the steps to change these settings.

Instructions to Remove Read Only Permissions from the NFIRS 5.x Client Directory

You need to be logged in as an administrator to perform these steps. If you do not have administrator privileges on your machine, please contact your system administrator to perform these steps for you.

  1. Navigate to the directory where the NFIRS 5.8 client is installed. By default this is ‘C:\Program Files (x86)\NFIRSv58’.
  2. Right-click on the ‘logs’ directory and select the ‘Properties Option’.
  3. Click on the ‘Security’ tab.
  4. Find the line that says ‘Users (Your Computer Name\Users)’ under the ‘Group or user names:‘ area and click on it to highlight it.
  5. Click on the ‘Edit’ button.
  6. On the ‘Permissions’ screen find the line that says ‘Users (Your Computer Name\Users)’ under the ‘Group or user names:’ area and click on it to highlight it. (Please note that although the step is similar to the one before, it is a different screen.)
  7. In the ‘Permissions’ area make sure that ‘Full Control’ is checked under the ‘Allow’ column.
  8. Click on ‘Apply’ and make sure that the information is saved.
  9. Click ‘OK’ and close the windows.
  10. Repeat the steps 2 thru 9 for the ‘cache’ directory. On step 2, select the ‘cache’ directory instead on the ‘logs’ directory.

Fix #2 - (Windows 7)

Two Options for Configuring a Windows 7 Computer

Option 1:

  1. Right-click on the Desktop and choose ‘Personalize’ from the Menu.
  2. Scroll down the Themes until you see the ‘Basic and High Contrast Themes’.
  3. Click on ‘Windows Classic’. The Desktop should change to the Windows Classic view which will allow the Data Entry Tool program to run. Close the window.
  4. Logon to the Data Entry Tool.
  5. When you are done working in the program, go back to your Desktop and return it to the ‘Windows 7 Basic’ theme settings.

Option 2: (Preferred Method)

  1. Open the Computer Control Panel.
  2. Click on the ‘System & Security Tab’.
  3. Click on ‘System’.
  4. Click on ‘Advanced Systems Settings’.
  5. Click the ‘System Performance’ tab.
  6. Click ‘Adjust for Best Performance’ and ‘Apply’ settings.

Note: Option 2 will set your computer to run at the best performance for ALL programs being used. If you are a ‘power user’ and run multiple programs at the same time on a laptop while on battery power, you will most likely see a drop in battery time.

Running NFIRS Web-Based Reports

  1. To access the web-based reports website, go to www.nfirs.fema.gov.
  2. In the green bar at the top of the page, click on ‘Web-based Tools’.
  3. Then, on the left, click on ‘Summary Output Reports Tool’. If you get a Security Alert window, click ‘OK’.
  4. Login using your NFIRS account information. When prompted that you are about to access a U.S. Government information system, click ‘OK’.
  5. You should see a list of reports that you can run on the page. The 'Summary by Incident Type' and 'Monthly Incident Counts' reports are both good reports to run to check the current incidents showing in the system for your department. Click on a report title to run a report.
  6. Enter dates in the date range fields such as 01/01/2010 for the From Date, and 12/31/2010 for the To Date. For the dropdown boxes, select ‘All’ for Incident Status, ‘All’ for Version, and ‘All’ for Release Status. This ensures that you are getting all of your incidents in the report.
  7. In the ‘FDID Selection’ window, click the folder next to NFIRS - NFDC, then the folder next to Virginia, and then continue to expand out to your division, locality, and fire department. Click the box next to your fire department to select. You should see a check in the box.
  8. Click the ‘Generate Report’ button at the bottom of the page to submit the report to run on the server.
  9. On the top left of the page, click on ‘My Recent Reports’. Your report should be listed on the page. Keep clicking on ‘My Recent Reports’ to refresh the page. Once your report is finished, the status will show ‘Completed’. The time that it takes to run a report varies based on the total number of reports being requested.
  10. To view and save your report, click on one of the available report formats; PDF, Excel, Word, or HTML to download.
  11. When prompted ‘Do you want to open or save this file?’, select ‘Save’, change the ‘Save In’ location to your Desktop and enter a filename for the report. Then, click ‘Save’. When the download is complete, click ‘Close’.
  12. Locate the file on your Desktop to open. You now have a file that you can print and save for future reference.
  13. Click on ‘Available Reports’ at the top left of the webpage to go back to the list of available reports, if you want to run another report.

Incident Data Submissions Using Vendor Software

If your fire department is using vendor software such as Firehouse or ImageTrend to enter your incidents, you need to send us a data file to import your incidents into the national NFIRS database. Email data files to us at the following email address. After your file has been imported, you will receive a validation summary report back by email. Please see the ‘VFIRS Information’ webpage for a schedule of when incidents should be submitted.

VFIRS Data Submission Email:

Report Incidents Using Data Entry Browser Interface (DEBI)

  1. To access the Data Entry Browser Interface (DEBI) website for incident reporting, go to www.nfirs.fema.gov.
  2. In the green bar at the top of the page, click on ‘Web-based Tools’.
  3. Then, on the left, click on ‘Report Incidents (DEBI)’. If you get a Security Alert window, click ‘OK’.
  4. You should then see a logon screen. Login using your NFIRS account information. When prompted that you are about to access a U.S. Government information system, click ‘OK’.
  5. Click on ‘New Incident’ to add an incident for your fire department or click on ‘Incident Search’ to search for current incidents in the system.

Additional Assistance

If you need any additional assistance, please feel free to contact us anytime and we will be glad to help.  You may also contact us (toll-free) at 1-866-4VAFIRE (866-482-3473).

Dwight E. Crews
Information and Statistics Manager
Information and Statistics Section
Virginia Department of Fire Programs
1005 Technology Park Drive
Glen Allen, VA 23059-4500
Ph: (804) 249-1989
Cell: (804) 205-7275
Fax: (804) 371-3444
Email:

Renee H. Tabb
VFIRS Program Support Tech
Information and Statistics Section
Virginia Department of Fire Programs
1005 Technology Park Drive
Glen Allen, VA 23059-4500
Ph: (804) 249-1987
Fax: (804) 371-3444
Email:

 

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  • Last Updated: Monday, December 13, 2010