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WebFOCUS unobtrusively integrates into your existing network by connecting your web server to your data. End users access WebFOCUS applications through a web browser, so they need only the following elements:

• Web browser. To access WebFOCUS applications, users simply need a browser and a TCP/IP connection to a web server.
• Web server. Web servers handle requests by returning files to a browser or by executing processes that provide additional functionality. You can provide WebFOCUS functionality by connecting to the web server using Java servlet calls.
• Data. WebFOCUS can access data from almost anywhere. Once data access has been configured and your data is described, reporting on it is simple.

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There are two main WebFOCUS components.

• WebFOCUS Client. The WebFOCUS Client resides on the web server and connects WebFOCUS to the web through Java servlets. When a user makes a request from Developer Studio or a browser, the WebFOCUS Client receives and processes the request by passing it to the Reporting Server.

  Note: When you perform a full Developer Studio installation for stand-alone development, you do not have to install the WebFOCUS Client separately because it is packaged with Developer Studio.

  A stand-alone development environment is typically one in which all software components (the web server, WebFOCUS Client, and Reporting Server) are installed on the same local machine. This configuration gives you access to all your application files and data from a single machine. You do not need a physical network connection to access any other machine in order to accomplish your development tasks.

• WebFOCUS Reporting Server. The Reporting Server resides on machines that can access your data. The Reporting Server provides data access, number crunching, and report generation functionality.

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The following steps accompany the figure and describe how WebFOCUS processes requests:

1. A user requests a report and passes parameters by calling a WebFOCUS Servlet through links and forms on a webpage or through Developer Studio.
2. The request and parameters come to the WebFOCUS Client on the web server, which processes the parameters and creates a request for the Reporting Server.
3. The Reporting Server receives the request, processes it, and accesses any necessary data.
4. Data is retrieved from data sources to process the request.
5. The Reporting Server processes the user request using the retrieved data.
6. The response is returned to the WebFOCUS Client on the web server.
7. The response is returned to the user.

   

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WebFOCUS employs a distributed architecture, so the WebFOCUS Client, Reporting Server, and your data can be located on any platform in your network. You can easily connect to an Apache™ web server running on UNIX to SQL Server data on Windows or DB2 data on z/OS. There can be any number of Reporting Servers connected to the WebFOCUS Client. WebFOCUS can report on all of them. The requirements are the following:

• The WebFOCUS Client must reside on a machine with a web server.
• An instance of the Reporting Server must be installed on machines with your data or machines that have access to your data.

For more information on WebFOCUS configuration options, see the WebFOCUS and ReportCaster installation manuals and the server configuration manuals.