Manage DBServer

Overview

Managing a DBServer installation consists of managing the server's configuration and its operations. When managing the server configuration, you perform tasks such as update the server database data or modify the user or group lists. When managing server operations, you perform activities such as monitor server operations and back up SQL and template files to another server.

Procedures

Change database settings

Change server settings

Change users and user data

Change groups

View group membership

Change group rights

Connect to and disconnect from the database

Start and stop DBServer monitoring

Monitor server log data

Secure DBServer

View or work with statistics

Balance request loads

Change Database Settings

From the Configuration menu, click Edit Server.
Update the Server Properties dialog box for the settings you want to change.

To do this	Update values under
Change database type, server name or IP address, server port, or user name and password for logon	Database Properties
Add or remove a database, or change the number of database connections	Database Connections

Change Server Settings

From the Configuration menu, click Edit Server.
Use the Server Properties dialog box to update the appropriate values.

To change this

Update

Port used by DBServer

Alias for servlet manager application

Startup mode for server processes (automatic or manual)

DBPanacea Properties

Change Users and User Data

From the Configuration menu, click Edit Users.
Update the following values as needed using the appropriate dialog boxes.

To do this	Use
Add a user	User Editor dialog box Edit User dialog box
Remove a user	User Editor dialog box
Associate a user with a different group or with multiple groups	User Editor dialog box Edit User dialog box
Change a user's password	User Editor dialog box Edit User dialog box

Change Groups

From the Configuration menu, click Edit Groups.
Use the Group Editor dialog box to update the following values as appropriate:

Add a group
Delete a group
Change the name of a group

View Group Membership

From the Configuration menu, click Edit Groups.
Under Group Editor, click Show Users.
In the User Editor dialog box, the members of the group appear under Current Users.
Click Done to exit the dialog box.

Change Group Rights

From the Configuration menu, click Edit SQL Ranges.
Use the SQL Range Selection dialog box to update the range of commands, listed by command ID, that a group can access.

Connect to and Disconnect from the Database

From the Execution menu, click DB Connect.

To stop database connections, from the Execution menu, click DB Disconnect.

Start and Stop DBServer Monitoring

From the Execution menu, click Start Listener.

To stop DBServer from monitoring for requests, from the Execution menu, click Stop Listener.

Monitor Server Log Data

To view server log data, from the Configuration menu, click Display Output.

Selecting this option consumes system memory. For best performance, select the Display Output check box only when you are actively monitoring server operations.

Secure DBServer

To lock DBServer:

From the Execution menu, click Lock.

To unlock DBServer:

Click a DBServer menu command.
When the Server Unlock dialog box appears, type your administrative password and click Submit.

Perform a Server Backup

From the Configuration menu, click File Backup Manager.
In the File Backup Schedule dialog box, click the time you want DBServer to back up files and click Submit.
The options are: 6:01 A.M., 12:01 A.M., 6:01 P.M., and 12:01 P.M.

You must have already configured a backup server to run this command.

When DBServer completes the backup process, it displays a confirmation message indicating that the process was successful.

View or Work with Statistics

To view template usage statistics, from the Configuration menu, click Template Statistics.
To view SQL statement usage statistics, from the Configuration menu, click SQL Statistics.
To modify the display of statistical data, update the following values as needed in the Template Statistics dialog box or SQL Statistics dialog box, as appropriate:

Time Frame
Call Spacing for SQL statistics; Pull Spacing for template statistics
Truncate Log

Manage Server Loads

You can use either software or hardware solutions to support load balancing and failover among your server computers. DBPanacea recommends the following solutions:

Product name	Type of solution
Foundry Networks ServerIron Internet Traffic Management Switches	Hardware
Cisco Systems LocalDirector	Hardware
Resonate	Software

When using a hardware-based solution, you set up a virtual IP address and determine how to direct requests among the servers.

The following diagram illustrates distribution of incoming requests across multiple servers.

Click to expand image

Reference

Server Operations

Server Data

Server Backups

Server Operations

In auto-start mode, DBServer automatically establishes database connections and starts monitoring ("listening for") requests. Users can manually connect to and disconnect from the database and start or stop server monitoring ("listening") when necessary (for example, for testing new configurations).

Server Data

After it establishes database connections or begins monitoring for requests, DBServer continuously records data about its status and its operation. DBServer logs this data to the Logs folder created by the DBServer installation. DBServer stores this data in a file named with the format HostLog_MonDDYYYY (where Mon represents the first three letters of the name of the month). DBServer automatically creates a new log file daily.

In order to conserve system memory, by default, DBServer does not display log data interactively. Instead, the log window appears greyed and log data is unavailable. However, when you select Display Output, you can view messages from the server log dynamically in DBServer window. The messages report data such as:

Database drivers found.
The database names and number of database connections established.
Templates folders retrieved and available.
TCP/IP communication ports tested.

DBServer tests database connections every 15 minutes and reconnects automatically if necessary. DBServer retests TCP/IP ports every 10 minutes. You cannot modify either of these testing intervals.

As clients communicate with the server and make requests, and as the server responds, the log lists these events as commands with internal identifiers (IDs). Negative-numbered command IDs indicate requests from the client. Positive-numbered commands describe a server activity or request. These command IDs do not correspond to command IDs used in SQLEditor. If the client request contains an error, the log displays a database error mesaage along with the text of the problem statement. A large number of SQL errors might mean a problem with the network connection.

DBServer clears the log display every 30 minutes but continues to writes data to the log stored on the disk. If logs accumulate and disk space becomes limited, you can remove the log files by backing them up for archiving or deleting them as appropriate.

In addition to database and network events, you can display usage statistics for the templates and SQL statements run against the server. Depending on whether you choose the Template Statistics or the SQL Statistics display, you can view the names of templates or the ID numbers of statements that made server requests over a specified time frame.

Server Backups

You can configure the File Backup Manager process to run automatically each day at a predefined time. The backup process updates a computer you configure as a backup server with the current versions of SQL statements and templates that reside on the production server. The backup (destination) server can run a different database application from the production (source) server but must contain the same database fields and tables. In addition, the destination server must contain statements with the same names or numeric IDs as those in the source server. The backup process replicates statements that use the INSERT, MODIFY, or DELETE operations and update the database; it does not replicate SELECT statements.