Deltek Insight 2012: Deltek Cobra Deployments Explained

Deltek Cobra Deployments Explained

Neil Smith, Ten Six ConsultingGC-81

2 ©2012 Deltek, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Introduction

Deltek Cobra Architecture

Choosing the right deployment type

Setting up your n-Tier Environment for Schedule Integration

About ODBC Data Sources and APIs

Agenda


Presenter Introduction 20 years in EVM & Project Management Cobra Implementation Consultant Cobra Course Developer and Instructor

Drivers for this presentation Bridge some apparent knowledge gaps concerning n-Tier Help IT and PCE folks choose the right Cobra deployment Provide useful tips for integrating n-Tier Cobra deployments with

scheduling systems.

Stories from the field

Guidelines for the IT Department

Introduction



Clie

nt T

ier

App

licat

ion

Tie

r

Dat

abas

e T

ier

Interface layer provides user interface and interaction with the

application tier

Performs Cobra’s functional process logic based on requests from

the client tier.

Database servers hosting the Cobra data instance for project data storage

and retrieval.



Clie

nt T

ier

App

licat

ion

Tie

r

Dat

abas

e T

ier

All core Cobra 5 components are installed on a client workstation or Citrix/Terminal Server.

STANDALONE



Clie

nt T

ier

Clie

nt T

ier

Clie

nt T

ier

App

licat

ion

Tie

r

All core Cobra 5 components are extracted to a network folder from which individual Standalone installations can be performed (to either client workstations or

Citrix/Terminal Servers).

Dat

abas

e T

ier

CLIENT/SERVER


Deltek Cobra ArchitectureC

lient

Tie

r

Clie

nt T

ier

Clie

nt T

ier

App

licat

ion

Tie

r

All core Cobra 5 components are installed on an application server together with a service that provides processing functions for multiple clients.

Client workstations are installed from a shared folder on the application server.

App

licat

ion

Tie

r

App

licat

ion

Tie

r

Dat

abas

e T

ier

N-TIER


Cobra n-Tier ArchitectureC

lien

t Tie

r

Ap

plic

atio

n T

ier

Clie

nt T

ier

Clie

nt T

ier

Clie

nt T

ier

Clie

nt T

ier

Clie

nt T

ier

Clie

nt T

ier

Ap

plic

atio

n T

ier

Ap

plic

atio

n T

ier

Da

tab

ase

Tie

r


Choosing your Cobra Deployment

Single users or small deployments

A test sandbox environment

Secure environments or where the size of the implementation is not expected to grow significantly.

Local workstations with either a local or server based database.

Citrix/Terminal server with a separate database server.

Small (1-10 Users)

STANDALONE



Mid Size (11-20 users)



Mid Size (11-20 users)

Deployment Server or N-Tier ensures all users have same product version.

A dedicated database server will be required.

Deployment Server - if all users have adequate workstations and good network

N-Tier - if users have older hardware or poor network connectivity

Standalone deployment to a single Citrix/Terminal Server to leverage existing Citrix/Terminal server infrastructure.



Large (21-100 users)



Large (21-100 users)

Same as recommendations for Mid-size

Where users do not have Local Administrator rights consider a Citrix/Terminal Server farm with a Deployment Server or N-Tier deployment to reduce ongoing IT support effort.



Very Large (101-500 users)



Very Large (101-500 users)

The larger the implementation, the less likely it becomes that individual users will have local administration rights.

Consider using 3rd party installation options (like WinInstall), remote deployment solutions like System Management Server, or using a Citrix/Terminal server farm with a Deployment Server to reduce administrative overhead.



Enterprise (500+ users)



Enterprise (500+ users)

Enterprise deployments have their own challenges: complex Administrative procedures,

higher availability requirements,

typically larger geographical challenges, and

more complex data management requirements (legal separation, test, and production databases)

Consider creating Standalone installation images that can be automatically replicated across Citrix/Terminal server farms and are easier to configure for access to specific databases (compared to N-Tier).

Installing for Client/Server

Some general tips, screen shots and explanations for the Cobra installation process.


Installing a Client/Server Deployment

Create a Database Instance for the Cobra Schema.



Install Cobra on the Application Server.A

pplic

atio

n T

ier



Install workstation clients by accessing the shared ‘CobraWorkstation’ folder on the application server and running the DeltekCobraWorkstation.exe.



If the user is also a Cobra administrator, the Administrative Tools can also be installed on the workstation.



Going forward, client workstations will automatically prompt the user to update themselves whenever IT update the application servers’ software.

Note: this action typically takes less than one minute.

Schedule Integration within an n-Tier Deployment

Where to install the required ODBC and APIs for accessing an Integrated Master Schedule


In this section: Stories from the field. The challenges commonly faced by IT departments when

integrating Cobra Client/Server and n-Tier deployments with enterprise project scheduling systems.

Solutions and answers to the common questions IT departments have concerning schedule integration.

Schedule Integration with n-Tier



Clie

nt T

ier

App

licat

ion

Tie

r

Q: Where should the ODBC data source for the schedule system’s database be installed?

?



Clie

nt T

ier

App

licat

ion

Tie

r

A: ODBC data sources and API for scheduling systems should always be installed on the Cobra Application Server(s).



In the Integration Wizard, the Data source field is looking for data sources on the Application server, not the workstation client machine.

In this example, the ODBC data source was incorrectly setup on the workstation, so only the Cobra5DSN database is available, not the schedule database.



Scheduling system APIs should also be setup on the Application Server.

In this example, the API was incorrectly setup on the workstation. The ellipse button allows you to select the workstation API directory, but reports a “Directory not accessible from server” error when you attempt to test or close the dialog.



With the ODBC data source and API installed on the application server, the Integration Wizard’s New Connection dialog can access the required connectivity components for integration.



Cobra Database

EPPMDatabase

ODBCDriver

Integration API

Cobra Application TierCobra

Client Tier Cobra Database Tier

Schedule Database Tier

Cobra Integration Wizard

Thank You!

Technology

Deltek Insight 2012: Deltek Cobra Deployments Explained