VPRM Operating Environment Guide - Avevasupport.aveva.com/support/United_Kingdom/products/vprm/...the LAN – the Oracle Application Server is recommended where VPRM is the only application

VPRMOperatingEnvironment Guide

VPRM Workbench Release 9.7Issue 1

AVEVA Solutions Ltd, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0HB, UK

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VPRM Operating Environment Guide Contents

Issue 1 i

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................................................. 1

TECHNICAL ARCHITECTURE..................................................................................................................................... 2

ARCHITECTURE DIAGRAM ................................................................................................................................................ 2Oracle Database Server............................................................................................................................................... 2Oracle Application Server............................................................................................................................................ 2Client (PC) tier ............................................................................................................................................................ 3Flexman Server ............................................................................................................................................................ 3

ARCHITECTURE CONSIDERATIONS .................................................................................................................................... 4Flexman ....................................................................................................................................................................... 4Achieving flexibility when running VPE and VPRM.................................................................................................... 4Location of webdata folder .......................................................................................................................................... 4Static IP Address.......................................................................................................................................................... 5

HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE..................................................................................................................................... 6

INTERNATIONAL OPERATING SYSTEM SUPPORT ............................................................................................................... 6CHARACTER SET SUPPORT ................................................................................................................................................ 7ORACLE DATABASE SERVER............................................................................................................................................. 8

Hardware and Operating system ................................................................................................................................. 8Software ....................................................................................................................................................................... 8Disk Space.................................................................................................................................................................... 8Configuration............................................................................................................................................................... 8

ORACLE APPLICATION SERVER ......................................................................................................................................... 9Hardware and Operating system ................................................................................................................................. 9Software ....................................................................................................................................................................... 9Disk space .................................................................................................................................................................... 9Configuration............................................................................................................................................................... 9

CLIENT PC ...................................................................................................................................................................... 10Hardware ................................................................................................................................................................... 10Display ....................................................................................................................................................................... 10Disk space .................................................................................................................................................................. 10Operating System ...................................................................................................................................................... 10Browser ...................................................................................................................................................................... 10Software ..................................................................................................................................................................... 10Optional Software ...................................................................................................................................................... 11

INTEGRATION AND INTERFACES ........................................................................................................................... 12

COMMUNICATIONS ..................................................................................................................................................... 13

SINGLE DATABASE SERVER ............................................................................................................................................ 13MULTIPLE DATABASE SERVERS ...................................................................................................................................... 13CLIENT CONNECTION ...................................................................................................................................................... 14

Bandwidth and Delay................................................................................................................................................. 14Connection Type ........................................................................................................................................................ 14VPRM@site................................................................................................................................................................ 14IT skills in remote office............................................................................................................................................. 15

VPRM Operating Environment Guide Introduction

Issue 1 1

Introduction

This guide is intended for IT managers and support staff who are planning to implement VPRM.

Technical Architecture gives an overview of the major hardware, software and networkcomponents

Hardware & Software gives detailed requirements of the hardware, operating system, softwarepackages & version numbers

Communications identifies the network requirements

This issue of the Guide identifies the platforms which AVEVA is planning to support for VPRM9.7. Where AVEVA has current reservations about specific component releases these arehighlighted in the text. AVEVA reserves the right to modify this document to reflect anyadditional findings during final testing of the VPRM 9.7 release.

VPRM Operating Environment Guide Technical Architecture

Issue 1 2

Technical Architecture

This section gives an overview of the major hardware, software and network componentsrequired to implement VPRM.

Architecture Diagram

VPRM is implemented using the Oracle three-tier architecture, which consists of the followingcomponents:

Oracle Database Server

The database server runs 10gR2 database, which contains the data and a portion of theapplication logic.

Oracle Application Server

The Application Server contains the bulk of the application logic, and runs the Oracle ApplicationServer product, which consists of the following key components:

Web Cache, which improves server performance and hands-over requests to the Oracle HTTPServer.

Oracle HTTP Server, which provides a listening service using the Apache web servertechnology. This hands-over requests to the Forms Server

Forms Server, which deploys Forms applications with database access to Java running in aweb browser. Once request has been passed to the Forms Server all communication is thendirect to the web browserThe Forms Server Runtime process executes the application logic.

The Reports Server, which provides an easy to use and administer solution for reporting.VPRM reports run by initiating a request to the Oracle Reports Server process. The reportoutput is returned to the client, normally in PDF format for viewing/printing using AcrobatReader.

The Application Server communicates with the database server via the Oracle Net protocol.

Dial-up Locationeg Material Inspector

Extranet or Internet VPN

Laptop / PCclient

Main Locationeg Design Office

LAN

Oracle Net

traffic

ApplicationServer

Application softwareSoftware executionDatabase

Server

Database

PC clients – minimal local software

Linked Locationeg Design Sub-Contractor, Construction Site, Client Office

Intranet (WAN) or Internet VPN

PC clients

HTTP

traffic



Laptop / PCclient



Laptop / PCclient

Laptop / PCclient


LAN

Oracle Net

traffic

ApplicationServer

Application softwareSoftware executionDatabase

Server

Database




PC clients



PC clientsPC clients

HTTP

traffic


Issue 1 3

Client (PC) tier

The client runs a web browser and downloads the Java-based Forms client (Java applet) ondemand. These forms are rendered and controlled in the browser using the Oracle Jinitiator .This simply presents the user interface for the server-side application. It communicates with theApplication Server using a HTTP connection.

Flexman Server

VPRM licensing is managed by the Flexman Server using the Flexlm product. Prior to runningVPRM the Flexman 3SP1 software should be installed and license keys obtained. This isdescribed in the document flexman.pdf on your product CD.


Issue 1 4

Architecture Considerations

This section gives general recommendations for common architecture questions.

Flexman

Where Flexman is already implemented it is recommended that the existing license file isextended to include the VPRM licenses.

For customers new to AVEVA products, Flexman can be installed on any robust server withinthe LAN – the Oracle Application Server is recommended where VPRM is the only applicationpresent.

Achieving flexibility when running VPE and VPRM

VPE and VPRM are web-enabled products, making use of the Oracle 3-tier architecture. Bothproducts require an Oracle Application Server and an Oracle Database Server.

AVEVA Product development roadmaps are planned in order that compatible versions of VPEand VPRM are available at around the same time, in order that customers can install bothproducts on the same servers, minimising the hardware and Oracle costs.

However, recent experience has shown that for some customers a more flexible approach isneeded, particularly when the customer wishes to benefit from new features provided in oneproduct, but is unable to upgrade the other product. Examples of this are:

Upgrading both products at once is considered too large a change. The customer wouldprefer to stagger the upgrades to reduce risk and allow staff to absorb the changes.

A project is at a critical stage and the customer is unwilling to upgrade one product.

AVEVA is unable to synchronise release dates owing to commitments for othercustomers

AVEVA recommends that as a general rule, customers should implement VPE and VPRM onseparate servers.

What are the options ?

A customer implementing both VPE and VPRM, or wishing to upgrade one or other product hasthe following options.

2 Application Servers, 2 Database Servers

o Complete flexibility

o Higher cost of hardware and Oracle licenses

2 Application Servers, 1 Database Server

o Reasonable flexibility

o Moderate cost of hardware and Oracle licenses

1 Application Server, 1 Database Server

o Inflexible – upgrading requires careful planning taking into account all projects.Unlikely to benefit from new product features immediately

o Minimise hardware and Oracle licenses

Location of webdata folder

When planning the VPRM 9.7 implementation IT staff will need to consider whether the“webdata” folder can be located in the standard configuration, on the Application Server under<VPRM Home>.

In a production environment, the webdata folder should have (at least) daily backups.


Issue 1 5

Static IP Address

It is recommended that the Database Server and Application Server are configured with a staticip address (as for any production server). For Oracle Application Server 10gR2 this is now morecritical than in the previous AS product. For Off-Network installations and support for DHCPplease review the document Oracle® Application Server 10gR2 Forms and ReportsServices Installation Guide 10g (10.1.0) for Microsoft Windows

The document is available on the CD: Oracle Application Server Forms and Reports Services10gR2 (10.1.0.2.0) Documentation Library.

VPRM Operating Environment Guide Hardware and Software

Issue 1 6

Hardware and Software

This section gives detailed requirements of the hardware, operating system, software packages& version numbers required to implement VPRM.

International Operating System Support

Where the text identifies operating systems (e.g. Windows XP) or 3rd party packages (e.g.Office 2007) then VPRM has been comprehensively tested with the English versions. Supportfor other specific languages is identified in the specific VPRM Release Notes – ‘Statement onInternationalisation’, and bulletins will be issued as new platforms become supported.


Issue 1 7

Character Set Support

Customers installing VPRM should consider:

What language(s) the database will need to support

Whether data will need to be imported using the Excel import feature

The following table identifies the options available for the languages tested by the VPRM team,and the configuration settings required.

Notes:

(A) UTF8 is recommended for all new databases, allows storage of all characters, single-byteand multi-byte

(B) WE8ISO8859P1 is supported for existing databases, allows storage of Western Europeanlanguages e.g. accented characters, “£”

(D) Configuring the Language and Territory for the NLS_LANG in the additional configurationwill localise the VPRM session (i.e. the Date Format, Oracle Error messages) for the users whoselect this language as their preference

NativeLanguage

Databasecharacter set

Font aliasreq’d

Additional configuration needed for UserLocale

1 EnglishUTF8

(Note A)No No

2 EnglishWE8ISO8859P1

(Note B)No

Yese.g. AMERICAN_AMERICA.

WE8ISO8859P1

3

WesternEuropean

(e.g.Spanish,German)

UTF8

(Note A)No

Yese.g. SPANISH_SPAIN.UTF8

4

WesternEuropean

(e.g.Spanish,German)

WE8ISO8859P1(Note B)

No

Yese.g. SPANISH_SPAIN.

WE8ISO8859P1

(Note D)

5

Other(e.g.

Japanese,Korean)

UTF8Yes

Yese.g. JAPANESE_JAPAN.UTF8


Issue 1 8

Oracle Database Server

Hardware and Operating system

Either

Recommended: Dual Core Processor Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition SP2- or -Sun Sparc or UltraSparc running Solaris 10

Software

Oracle Database 10g Standard Edition Release 2 (10.2.0.1)+ Oracle Database 10g Release 210.2.0.3 Patch Set 2 (5337014) + Latest OPatch for 10.2.0 (6880880) + October 2008 criticalpatch for 10.2.0.3 Patch set 27 (7353782 Windows Only)

Recommended: Character Set UTF8

- or –

WE8ISO8859P1

Disk Space

Oracle Database Software: 1GB approx

VPRM Training Database: 2GB approx

VPRM Production Database: (see Configuration below)

VPRM Database Server components: 30 MB approx.

Configuration

Sizing of the server is very dependent upon the number of concurrent VPRM users, the numberof Oracle instances running and what, if any, other software and user communities are usingthe server. Recommended configurations are given below, for assistance in sizing a systemplease contact AVEVA support.

In a production environment, the database server should have archivelog enabled and (at least)daily backups.

Recommended Test/Demo Configuration

Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition SP2

1 Dual Core Processor or Equivelent

2GB RAM

SATA2 Disk min 40GB

Recommended Minimum Production Configuration


1 Dual Core Processor or Equivelent min 2 GHz

2GB RAM

Approx 50 concurrent end-users

Disks SCSI or SAS RAID-0+1 recommended, 4 disk array (e.g. 4*72GB disks)


Issue 1 9

Oracle Application Server

Hardware and Operating system

Dual Core Processor Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition SP2 (recommended) (Note A)

Note A. See topic Location of Webdata Folder.

Software

Oracle Application Server 10g (10.1.2.0.2) Forms and Reports + Oracle Application Server 10g(10.1.2.3.0) Patch set 3 (5983622) + Focus Patch (7351564)

- Forms and Reports Services Install (Note B)

Note B. VPRM is supported for use with the Oracle Application Server “Forms and Reports”install only. A complete Application Server Enterprise install could also include the“Infrastructure” component which makes for a more complex environment; in particular some ofthe configuration files are stored in the infrastructure environment and would not be updatedusing the VPRM Installation program.

Disk space

Oracle Application Server: 820MB

VPRM application software: 330MB

Webdata folder: This area contains all VPRM Project documents and report output files, sizewill be dependent on the number and size of Projects.

Configuration

Recommended configurations are given below, for assistance in sizing a system please contactAVEVA support.

In a production environment, the application server should be backed up after any configurationchanges but a daily backup is not necessarily required. However also see topic Location ofWebdata folder.

Recommended Test/Demo Configuration



2GB RAM

SATA2 Disk 40GB

Recommended Minimum Production Configuration



2GB RAM

Approximately 50 concurrent end-users

Disks SCSI or SAS RAID-1 recommended, 2 disk array (e.g. 2*72 GB disks) or Raid 0 +1 ifwebdata is stored on the AS (e.g. 4*72 GB disks)


Issue 1 10

Client PC

Hardware

1 Dual Core with 1GB RAM (recommended)

Intel Pentium 4 with 512 MB RAM or better (minimum)

Display

The recommended environment is a 19" monitor or better running in 1024 by 768 (XVGA)resolution or better using Normal size (96 dpi) fonts.

It is possible to configure VPRM to use large size (120 dpi) fonts which affects all users. This isdescribed in the Installation Guide.

Disk space

Oracle Jinitaitor: 30MB

Client Jar Cache: 5MB

Operating System

Windows XP Professional SP2 or SP3 (recommended) or SP1a or SP1- or -Windows 2000 SP3 or SP4

Browser

Internet Explorer 7.0

Internet Explorer 6.0 SP2 or SP1

as appropriate to the Windows operating system version

Software

Adobe Acrobat Reader 6.0.1 or higher

Microsoft Office Excel & Word:

Microsoft Excel 2003 SP3 + compatibility pack

Microsoft Word 2003 SP3 + compatibility pack

--or--

Microsoft Excel 2007

Microsoft Word 2007


Issue 1 11

Optional Software

Business Objects is the recommended report-writing tool for custom reports. VPRM is suppliedwith a comprehensive set of universes to support the writing of custom reports at customer sites.

The universes are supported for use with the following Business Objects product versions:

Business Objects xi Client/Server product. Preferred

Database VPRM database

Client Business Objects xi

Oracle 10gr2 Client Rel 2 (10.2.0.1.0)+ patch set 10.2.0.3.0

Business Objects 6.1a Client/Server product. Preferred

Database VPRM database

Client Business Objects 6.1a

Oracle 9i Client Rel 2 (9.2.0.1.0) +patch set 9.2.0.8.0

WebIntelligence This is a 3-tier architecture productwhich accesses universes in aBusiness Objects repository. VPRMuniverses are supported for use withWebIntelligence versions which arecompatible with the BusinessObjectsclient/server product versions listed.

VPRM 9.7 universes are compatible with Business Objects 4.1.3 although this release is nolonger supported, and future compatibility cannot be assumed.

Report Tables Users who wish to create and/or run customised reports based on the ReportTables will require the following software components. For further details see Report TablesUser Guide.

An ODBC compatible application, such as MS Excel

MS Query (an optional component of MS Excel and other MS products)

Microsoft ODBC (installed with Windows or MS Query). Note that the standard driverMicrosoft ODBC for Oracle has been trialled by the VPRM team.

Oracle 10gR2 client

VPRM Operating Environment Guide Integration and Interfaces

Issue 1 12

Integration and Interfaces

At the time of release, VPRM 9.7 is compatible with the following AVEVA products:

AVEVA PDMS 12 , 11.6.SP4 and 11.5.SP2 on Windows Platforms only

AVEVA PDMS-VPRM Gateway version 5.1.0.3 (future release) 5.1.0.2

AVEVA VPE Workbench 5.7 (future release), 5.6.SP1, 5.5.SP1(Note: 5.6.SP1 & 5.5.SP1 cannot be on the same Application Server as VPRM)

PDS 7.3 and 6.1.1

Flexman 3.1 or 3.1.SP1

For more information and updates refer to the Compatibility Matrix on the AVEVA CustomerSupport Web Site.

VPRM Operating Environment Guide Communications

Issue 1 13

Communications

This section identifies the network requirements

Single Database Server

The Oracle Database Server and Oracle Application Server must be in close proximity (innetwork terms) preferably on a common high-bandwidth backbone within the same computerroom.

Multiple Database Servers

VPRM allows multiple projects to be located on different database servers, sharing a commonmaterial catalogue and vendor database, using the Oracle Snapshot feature. Where thisarchitecture is used, the database servers must be connected either within a Local AreaNetwork, or via a high bandwidth, low delay, Wide Area Network. Each database server willrequire an Oracle Application server on the same Local Area Network.


Issue 1 14

Client Connection

Bandwidth and Delay

VPRM has been tested satisfactorily using a delay simulator on line speeds down to 200ms andbandwidths down to 64kbps. AVEVA is confident that VPRM will run satisfactorily using a56kbps USA dedicated link. When using slow lines it is recommended that the Oracle Jinitiatorcomponent is pre-installed rather than being downloaded on demand when VPRM is firstinvoked.

During "real use" benchmarking, the following ‘per-user’ transfer rates were observed:

Forms data entry and queryAverage of 8 kbps

Forms data entry and query with Word and Excel interactionsAverage of 20 kbps

SITE data entry and query, some Excel and reportsAverage of 12 kbps

Based on these trials AVEVA believes that a 128kbps dedicated line would support 5-8 highlyactive users, or 6-12 real users.

Further testing is ongoing. AVEVA’s understanding is that there is wide, and reasonablysatisfactory, experience of running similar applications in this architecture over dial-up lines.

Connection Type

VPRM requires that the Application Server is configured for HTTP connections.

This means that VPRM can be used in the following environments:

Local Area Network

Company Intranet/Wide Area Network

Via the internet using Virtual Private Network (VPN) - this is AVEVA’s recommendation whenconnecting via the internet.

It is also possible to configure VPRM for use over the internet using HTTPS, however this setuprequires strong Oracle Application Server/Apache skills and may have contractual implications.Please contact AVEVA support for further information.

VPRM@site

Inaccessible Location(or poor communication)

eg Construction Site

LAN

DB & Appservers


LAN

Oracle Net

traffic

ApplicationServer

DatabaseServer

Database


Regular updates

HTTP

traffic

Application softwareSoftware execution



LAN

DB & Appservers



LAN

DB & Appservers


LAN

Oracle Net

traffic

ApplicationServer

DatabaseServer

Database


Regular updates

HTTP

traffic

Application softwareSoftware execution


Issue 1 15

This option is available where the project is executed in two offices (home and remote) andthere is no suitable communications available. The home office carries out design andprocurement activities, and the remote office carries out site activities. The home office exportsmaterial requirement and purchase order information, which is transferred to site at regularintervals, e.g. by sending a CD via courier. A complete VPRM installation is required in bothoffices (Database Server, Application Server, PCs).

IT skills in remote office

The remote office will require local applications support and Oracle DBA/Application Serversupport during office hours, preferably based in the remote office.

Documents

VPRM Operating Environment Guide - Avevasupport.aveva.com/support/United_Kingdom/products/vprm/...the LAN – the Oracle Application Server is recommended where VPRM is the only application