Introduction to ClusterCATS Administration

ClusterCATS consists of three components:

ClusterCATS Server
ClusterCATS Explorer and ClusterCATS Web Explorer
ClusterCATS Server Administrator and btadmin

The components are described in the sections that follow.

All of the components are installed on a machine when you run the ClusterCATS for ColdFusion installation program.

You must run the installation program on each server that will be part of your cluster as well as on the Windows machine (NT, 98, or 95) from which you will use the ClusterCATS Explorer to administer the cluster. Even if your clusters run on Solaris or Linux platforms, you can use a Windows machine for running the ClusterCATS Explorer (recommended). You can also use the Web-based Explorer in conjunction with included server utilities to administer your clusters.

Note

Read the description of each component that is relevant to your installation in the sections that follow. These sections contain important configuration information.

ClusterCATS Server

The ClusterCATS Server is the heart of the clustering and load balancing of ClusterCATS. It must be installed on each server in your cluster. The server monitors the status of all other Web servers in a cluster and tracks application and transaction resource availability. ClusterCATS Server runs on Windows NT, Sun Solaris, and Linux platforms. To administer the ClusterCATS Server, use the ClusterCATS Server Administrator (Windows) or the btadmin utility (UNIX).

Each ClusterCATS Server component performs the following functions:

Intelligently manages HTTP load across Web servers
Proactively manages ColdFusion server load
Provides failover support for every server in your cluster
Proactively monitors ColdFusion servers and ColdFusion Web applications

ClusterCATS Explorer (Windows only)

ClusterCATS Explorer is a Windows-based administration utility that you use to create and manage clusters from a single machine. Using a Windows Explorer-like graphical interface, you perform management tasks, such as:

Creating and removing clusters
Adding and removing servers from a cluster
Configuring load balancing and high availability features
Enabling administrator authentication privileges
Configuring e-mail-based alarm notifications
Monitoring clusters

Note

You can run the ClusterCATS Explorer from any server in the cluster, or you can run it remotely. This flexibility allows administrators in different geographic locations the ability to administer distributed clusters. You can also use ClusterCATS Explorer to administer UNIX clusters from a single Windows machine. Multiple clusters can be viewed from a single Explorer.

The ClusterCATS Explorer presents a view of your cluster in much the same manner as the Windows Explorer presents a view of the files and directories that reside on a PC, as the following figure shows:

The ClusterCATS Explorer interface includes four distinct areas:

Menu Bar Menu access to all ClusterCATS functionality.
Toolbar Shortcuts to the most frequently used ClusterCATS functions.
Left Pane Contains views of cluster objects.
Right Pane Contains the view folder and files for the object currently selected in the left pane.

Each of the objects in a ClusterCATS cluster configuration-clusters, servers, monitors, and probes-is represented by a unique icon. You can manipulate these icons in much the same manner as you expand and collapse directory trees in the Windows Explorer application. For a list of which icons represent which objects in the ClusterCATS Explorer, click the Icon Legend button.

ClusterCATS Web Explorer (UNIX only)

ColdFusion Enterprise includes the ClusterCATS Web Explorer (btweb) for administering UNIX-only clusters. It is a graphical, cross-platform, Web-based utility used to create, configure, and administer ClusterCATS clusters.

Note

ClusterCATS for ColdFusion only installs ClusterCATS Web Explorer on UNIX servers but you can access it from any computer with an Internet browser.

The Web Explorer, like its Windows counterpart, is quite robust and lets you configure and administer clusters easily. However, it does not contain the identical functionality provided by the Windows-based ClusterCATS Explorer. The Web Explorer does not let you do the following:

Install the ClusterCATS Web Explorer on an NT server; it runs only from UNIX servers.
Create and administer NT servers that have security enabled.
Set or modify load thresholds via a graphical display.
Monitor the amount of load hitting the server via a graphical display; the server's load statistics are only displayed textually on the Cluster Member List and Server Properties pages.

If you require any of these capabilities, you should obtain a Windows machine and use the Windows-based ClusterCATS Explorer for your cluster administration.

Configuring the communications port on your Web server

Before you can open and use the ClusterCATS Web Explorer, you must ensure that a communications port is configured to listen for HTTP requests on the Netscape or Apache Web server for which you installed ClusterCATS. You can only access the ClusterCATS Web Explorer through the defined communications port on your Web server, which you configure using your Web server's administration utilities and not the ColdFusion admin utility.

Note

For availability and security reasons, be sure to only allow access to the ClusterCATS Web Explorer from a separate IP-based virtual host server on a port other than 80 and password protect access to it.

Netscape considerations

By default, Netscape Enterprise Server assigns your Web server a random, six-digit communication port number. You can either use this assigned number or change it to something easier to remember, like port 81.

If you are not familiar with configuring your Web server's communications ports, see the Netscape Enterprise Server Administrator online help for instructions.

Apache considerations

Make the following changes to the Apache Web server's httpd.conf file to enable the ClusterCATS Web Explorer (btweb). Replace the IP address specified in the example below (192.168.96.71) and the port (2222) with one appropriate for your system and enable authentication for the virtual directory.

###

###  BTWeb Administration
###
Listen 192.168.96.71:2222
<VirtualHost 192.168.96.71:2222>
        ServerAdmin root@localhost
        DocumentRoot /usr/lib/btcats/btweb
        DirectoryIndex default.htm
        ServerName btweb
        ErrorLog logs/btweb_error_log
        CustomLog logs/btweb_access_log combined
        ### BTWeb stuff ###
        AddHandler cgi-script .exe
        <Directory "/usr/lib/btcats/btweb/">
                Options FollowSymLinks
                Options ExecCGI
                AllowOverride None
                Order allow,deny
                Allow from all
                AuthName "btcats admin tools"
                AuthType Basic
                AuthUserFile /usr/local/apache/conf/users
                require user admin
        </Directory>
</VirtualHost>

Once you have configured your server, restart Apache. To access the Web Explorer, point your browser to the IP address you entered as the VirtualHost.

For information on using the htpasswd utility to create and manage your authentication file list, refer to the Apache documentation.

Opening the Web Explorer

The ClusterCATS Web Explorer can be used from a machine that runs either Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 4.0 or greater.

To open the Web Explorer:

Open a Web browser.
Enter the following URL in the browser's address field:
For Netscape Enterprise Server v3.x:
```
http://<server-name>:<admin-port>/admin-serv/btweb/default.html 
```
For Netscape Enterprise Server v4.0x:
```
http://<server-name>:<admin-port>/https-admserv/btweb/default.html 
```
For Apache:
```
http://<virtual_host>:<admin-port>/default.html
```
servername or virtual_host is the name of the Web server on which you installed ClusterCATS and <admin-port> is the communication port number that the Web server or virtual host has been configured to listen for HTTP requests.
The Enter Network Password dialog box appears:
Enter your user name and password in the appropriate fields and click OK.

Note
The default user name and password is admin.

The ClusterCATS Web Explorer opens:

ClusterCATS Server Administrator

The ClusterCATS Server Administrator is a Windows-based utility that lets you perform server-specific maintenance activities for each server in a cluster. Unlike the ClusterCATS Explorer, which let you administer your clusters from a single, central computer, you must run the ClusterCATS Server Administrator from each server in your cluster. The Server Administrator allows you to:

Change installation settings
Add and remove the ClusterCATS filter from the Web server service
Stop and start the ClusterCATS service
Reset a clustered server's configuration to its pre-clustered state

The ClusterCATS Server Administrator lets you accomplish these tasks by using an easy-to-use graphical user interface, as the following figure shows:

To open the ClusterCATS Server Administrator:

Select Start > Programs > ClusterCATS > ClusterCATS Server Administrator.

btadmin

btadmin is a scriptable utility that lets you perform server-specific maintenance activities for each server in a cluster. btadmin is available on both UNIX and Windows servers.

Unlike the ClusterCATS Web Explorer, which lets you administer your entire cluster from a single, central computer, you must use btadmin from each server in your cluster. btadmin allows you to:

Add and remove the ClusterCATS filter from the Web server service
Stop and start the ClusterCATS service
Place a cluster member in maintenance mode
Reset a clustered server's configuration to its pre-clustered state

For more information on btadmin, refer to "Using btadmin".

Advanced ColdFusion Administration
Configuring ColdFusion Clusters