In this section: |
The technology required to support the BI platform encompasses a wide range of resources.
WebFOCUS supports a broad set of core and extended product features. Depending on the product features and product usage required, resources may vary between customers. The following table describes the core product features.
WebFOCUS requires the following resources to run.
Core Product Components |
Description |
Resources Required |
---|---|---|
App Studio |
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WebFOCUS Client |
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ReportCaster |
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32-bit or 64-bit Java SDK or JRE (if installed on a separate machine from the WebFOCUS Client). |
WebFOCUS Reporting Server |
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WebFOCUS Workload Distribution Facility (CLM) |
Manages workload distribution. |
Any supported browser for access to the CLM Web Console. |
Resource Management |
Collecting application statistics. |
RDBMS repository for storing collected statistics. |
At the heart of an enterprise architecture and BI platform are the Operational Data Stores (ODS), Enterprise Data Warehouses (EDW), and Data Marts (DM) that supply the integrated, transformed, and cleansed data for reporting and analysis. For more information, see Understanding the Data.
Hardware choices are an important factor in achieving a scalable platform that performs optimally.
Choosing a Platform
Unless a platform has been pre-determined by company policy or by some other means, the most reliable way to make a choice is by:
Load Balancers and Proxy Servers
For a load-balanced architecture, a common approach is to cluster server components so it appears to be a single server. A hardware-based load balancer may be used by some customers to distribute requests to different web servers in a web server cluster. The same load balancer may act as a proxy server. A virtual IP is exposed to external users so it seems they are accessing a single machine. However, internally, the virtual IP is mapped to each of the web servers in the web server cluster. It is recommended that:
Identify software resources:
It is important to review the following aspects of your network when designing the architecture.
Network Speed and Availability
The speed of the network and availability of network bandwidth is one of the deciding factors in the placement of WebFOCUS server components.
TCP/IP Ports
TCP/IP ports are used in two ways:
Host Names and DNS Aliases
Before performing the WebFOCUS installation, you must know if the machines will be referenced by their Domain Name Service (DNS) physical name or DNS aliases (CNAME). Knowing this up front and entering the correct entries during installation will prevent a reinstallation or manual changes to WebFOCUS configuration files.
Network Restrictions
As a security measure, customers sometimes impose restrictions on TCP/IP ports so they cannot be accessed from certain machines. WebFOCUS server components use a number of TCP/IP ports to listen for incoming requests. Depending on which WebFOCUS features are part of the WebFOCUS solution, they can be changed or addressed during the design process.
Network Security
Any website exposed to the Internet must be protected. Common protections include the use of proxy servers, multiple firewalls (DMZs), and third-party software. Many companies deploying sensitive information over the web require a secure sign in prior to granting access to the website.
A crucial aspect in planning an implementation is knowing which services are required and ensuring that those services are available and functioning independent of WebFOCUS. Outlined below are common information services for WebFOCUS.
Information Builders |