Manage the Identity of a Triaster Server

Introduction:

In the context of this article, a Triaster Server's identity could be its computer name or an alias. Perhaps the most obvious manifestation is in the addresses of the process library websites, e.g.

http://processlibraries.triaster.co.uk/processlibraries 2011/triaster sample library

Minimise the dependency on identity

Wherever possible, it's best to avoid the explicit use of a Triaster Server's name or alias when configuring Triaster Server or forming links between maps or documents within a process library. Doing so will mean maps and associated data can easily be copied to another Triaster Server, and links will remain valid. This is important when copying data to Disconnected Servers, which host read-only copies of process library data. It also simplifies the changing of a Triaster Server's identity, whether its computer name or the changing or adoption of an alias.

Some explicit references to a host are necessary. For example, an alert e-mail that contains a link to library content would need that link to be fully-qualified. Any item that is outside of a Triaster Server but needs to link in would require it; items that reside within a Triaster Server shouldn't.

Hyperlinks to maps

Hyperlinks between maps, such as drill-down links, should automatically be changed to relative links by the export engine, if necessary, when maps are published. Hence, if a set of maps is transferred from one server to another, the links between them should remain valid.

Hyperlinks to documents

A hyperlink from a map or a Flash Menu XML file to a document could be of the form:

http://processlibraries.triaster.co.uk/Documents/My Document.doc

but would be better expressed as:

/Documents/My Document.doc

Note the preceding forward-slash, which denotes the path is relative to the root of the website. Not only is this URL independent of the host identity, it would remain valid if the protocol were to change from HTTP to HTTPS. A slight disadvantage is that such a link is unlikely to work from a Visio file, but that's only relevant when developing maps, not when they are published.

Changing a server's identity

A server's identity may be changed where:

An alias is to be used in website URLs.
The server's computer name is to be changed.
One Triaster Server is created as a copy of another (creating a production server from a test server, or vice versa), and the copy's identity needs to change.

When changing a server's identity, these are the configuration changes that would need to be made.

Settings.xml

Triaster\TriasterServer2011\Settings\Settings.xml

This is the main configuration file, and any changes should be preceded by taking a copy that could be restored.

Settings/PublicationServer/ServerName

This is the server's identity as a Publication Server as seen by Triaster Server's Token Server service, and should correspond to an entry in the Token Server's Server List. It doesn't have to correspond to a server's computer name, but for consistency and clarity, it should. This needn't change if just adopting the use of an alias for website URLs.

Settings/TokenServer/ServerList/ServerName

This should correspond to the 'ServerName' above.

Settings/PublicationSettings/<Library>/<Site</URL

The fully-qualified URLs are pertinent to the construction of links from e-mails to a process library. These should change whether changing the computer name or using an alias.

Settings.xml

Triaster\TriasterServer2011\ProcessLibraries\Libraries.xml

URLs need to change.

Keyoti Search

Triaster\TriasterServer2011\KeyotiSearch\IndexDirectory\IndexableSourceRecord.xml

The URLS for each of the DataSources needs to be updated

<DataSource ID="1" type="FileSystemDocumentStore" location="C:\Triaster\TriasterServer2011\ProcessLibraries\Triaster Sample Library\Live\html\"

query="http://myserver/ProcessLibraries%202011/Triaster%20Sample%20Library/Live/html/" uniqueColumn="" resultURL="" ExtensionData="@_files@True@">

<t:Categories>

<t:Category>Process Maps</t:Category>

</t:Categories>

<t:Locations>

<t:Location>triaster sample library\live:desktop</t:Location>

</t:Locations>

</DataSource>

flash-menu.xml

Triaster\TriasterServer2011\ProcessLibraries\<Library>\<Site>\static html\flash-menu.xml

These may contain explicit references, but needn't.