Setting Up a WebFOCUS Environment

In this section:

A WebFOCUS environment consists of a web server, a WebFOCUS Client, and Reporting Servers. To add a WebFOCUS environment, you specify a web server that includes host name and port number. The HTML alias/context root is needed for Developer Studio to access the WebFOCUS Client to determine if the environment is available and retrieve basic information, such as release information. Depending on the web server authentication, information may need to be provided in the Web Authentication component. Depending on the security configuration of WebFOCUS the Developer Studio user may to sign in so user permissions can be validated, or sign on will be used to access information that is secured, such as the Reporting Servers.

You can add new WebFOCUS environments and edit existing environments in Developer Studio using the WebFOCUS Environment Properties dialog box. This lets you create and manage environments, such as development, test, and production instances. An environment can be on the same machine as Developer Studio or elsewhere in your enterprise. One environment can be set as the development environment and is used in the Projects area of Developer Studio. By default, Project-based development is done on the local machine (localhost). Once a WebFOCUS environment is defined, you can tell Developer Studio to perform Project-based development on a remote machine instead of localhost.

Note: An environment can be set as the Development Environment if its configuration allows project development.


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Working With Environment Properties

How to:

When you set up access to WebFOCUS environments, your settings are retained when you restart or even reinstall Developer Studio. WebFOCUS environment settings are normally stored in the following location for XP:

drive:\Documents and Settings\user_id\
     Application Data\Information Builders\wfscom.xml

where:

user_id

Is your logged on Windows ID.

For Windows 7:

drive:\Users\user_id\
     AppData\Roaming\Information Builders\wfscom.xml

where:

user_id

Is your logged on Windows ID.

Note:



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Procedure: How to Add a WebFOCUS Environment

  1. Select the File menu and choose Show Environments. The Environments List dialog box opens, as shown in the following image.

    Environment List

    This dialog box lists all WebFOCUS Environments defined for Developer Studio. If you previously installed Developer Studio, WebFOCUS Environments may already be defined. Otherwise, only the localhost environment appears. To edit an existing environment, click Properties.

    Tip: You can also add a WebFOCUS Environment by right-clicking WebFOCUS Environments on the Developer Studio Explorer and selecting Add. An environment can be set as the Development Environment if its configuration allows project development.

  2. Click the Add button.

    The WebFOCUS Environment Properties dialog box opens, as shown in the following image. At the top part of the dialog box is the Description text box followed by the Environment Settings section, which contains a series of buttons that each represents a component in a WebFOCUS environment. At the bottom part of the dialog box are fields to set up a connection to the web server (Host Name, Protocol, Port, and options to set if Web Authentication is used).

    Use the WebFOCUS Environment Properties dialog box to define which components make up the environment. You can optionally enter authentication information for components that require logon credentials.

  3. On the top of the window, type a Description for the WebFOCUS environment. This description will appear in the Developer Studio Explorer under WebFOCUS Environments.

    The following image shows the top area of this screen. This area contains a series of buttons that each represents a component in a WebFOCUS environment. The Web Components button is selected by default. The Project Development button is only available in the full edition of Developer Studio.

    Note: The description cannot contain special characters, such as ., /, \, ?, *, and others. A message with characters not allowed will display if one of the restricted characters is detected during validation.

  4. On the bottom of the Web Components page, specify the information needed to access the web server.

    For some environments, once you specify the web server, all other settings default. If the WebFOCUS environment you are accessing does not use default settings or components require authentication, click the appropriate button in the top pane to provide parameters. The sections that follow explain the parameters available for each component.

    Note: WebFOCUS environment properties must be entered in a specific order. For example, if web server security is enabled, you cannot set the WebFOCUS Client Path until you have provided valid web server credentials. Similarly, you cannot retrieve a list of Reporting Servers until you have provided a valid WebFOCUS Client Path. As you select a component button in the dialog box, Developer Studio ensures that it has the necessary information before it displays the properties of that component in the lower part of the dialog box. If the required information is not available, you will not be able to proceed to the next component or save the environment.


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Local Machine Properties

Local Machine properties are optional. You can select the Local Machine button to indicate whether to cache files when accessing a WebFOCUS environment.

The following image shows the WebFOCUS Environment Caching section of the WebFOCUS Environment Properties dialog box.

WebFOCUS Environment Caching

In caching, copies of files or information stored on a remote machine are temporarily stored on your local Developer Studio machine. Developer Studio then works with the locally stored files. Caching speeds Developer Studio performance because remote machines are not accessed and queried every time you request information. This is especially useful when accessing mainframes or when a network connection is slow. However, caching should not be used when multiple developers are working with the same files because the possibility exists that you may overwrite the changes made by the other developer. By default, caching is not enabled.

Two properties are available:

Developer Studio retrieves information and files the first time you request them and then caches them locally. Developer Studio then uses the cached copies until Developer Studio is restarted or you click the Clear buttons for each level. You can perform a manual refresh and clear all cache files by clicking View, then Refresh, or by pressing F5. Refresh is performed for the area that is selected in the Explorer when you perform this action.

Note:


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Web Component Properties

The Web Components button is selected by default when you create a new environment or edit an existing one. Web Component properties specify how Developer Studio accesses the web server. The web server must be identified before any other components. The following image shows the Web Server section of the WebFOCUS Environment Properties dialog box.

The following properties are available:


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WebFOCUS Properties

When you click the WebFOCUS Client button, Developer Studio makes a connection to your web server to retrieve information about the WebFOCUS environment. Therefore, you must first specify Web Component properties and your web server must be running. The following image shows the WebFOCUS Client section of the WebFOCUS Environment Properties dialog box.

Note: If the Client Path field is empty and the Use Default option is selected, there is a problem connecting to the WebFOCUS Client. Ensure your web server is started and that you typed the correct properties on the Web Components page. If you cannot connect, contact your WebFOCUS administrator.

The following properties are available:

When the correct WebFOCUS Client Path is provided, you can specify properties for the remaining component.


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Managed Reporting/ReportCaster Properties

This option is enabled only when connecting to a WebFOCUS 7.x environment.

If you plan to work with Managed Reporting (MR) and/or ReportCaster, you can optionally select the Managed Reporting/ReportCaster button. This allows you to set logon credentials or change the default Managed Reporting repository.

The following image shows the Managed Reporting Repository section of the WebFOCUS Environment Properties dialog box.

Managed Reporting Repository

The following properties are available:


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Data Server Properties

This object allows you to see Reporting Servers that are configured with the working WebFOCUS environment. This information is secure and users will be prompted to sign in to WebFOCUS in order to access this information. From this area, you can add a user Id/password to be used when connecting to a specific Reporting Server.

The following image shows the WebFOCUS Data Servers section of the WebFOCUS Environment Properties dialog box.

Data Servers

The following property is available:


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Project Development Properties

Note: These properties only apply to self-service application development, and when performing project development.

This object allows you to see Reporting Servers that are configured with the working WebFOCUS environment. This information is secure and users will be prompted to sign in to WebFOCUS in order to access this information.

If you use remote Project-based development and your remote environment has multiple WebFOCUS Reporting Servers, click the Project Development button to specify which server to use when processing requests. This server is referred to as the Project Development Server. The Project Development Server and the WebFOCUS Client must be installed on the same machine or use the same Application Root directory (APPROOT directory) as each other.

The following image shows the Project Development Server section of the WebFOCUS Environment Properties dialog box.

The following property is available:


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Changing the Development Environment

How to:

To use remote Project-based development, you must change the development environment. If you do not plan to use remote Project-based development, you can skip this procedure.

After you set up connections to WebFOCUS environments, you can add, edit, and delete files on remote machines through the WebFOCUS Environments folders. However, you may want to use the organizational tools available in the Projects folders to manage applications on remote machines. This is known as remote Project-based development and it allows developers on different desktops to share files and work on the same application.

Remote Project-based development requires that all WebFOCUS components in the remote environment reside on the same machine as each other or if installed on different machines, they have the required configuration to allow Project development. For Project development, the remote WebFOCUS environment must have the same Application Root directory (APPROOT directory) for its WebFOCUS Reporting Server and WebFOCUS Client.

You can change the development environment using the Environments List.



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Procedure: How to Change the Development Environment
  1. Select File and then Show Environments to bring up the Environments List, as shown in the following image.

    Environment List

    Note: If an environment appears as unavailable, click Refresh Status.

  2. Select the WebFOCUS Environment that you wish to use for Project-based development.
  3. Click Set Development Environment.
  4. Click OK.

The Developer Studio Explorer now shows Projects on the WebFOCUS environment you chose. Resources will be stored on the remote machine. If multiple Reporting Servers are defined, reports are run using the Reporting Server that is set for project development in this environment.


WebFOCUS