Introduction

Installing Cockpit 10 on a Web server makes available many features and functions of Cockpit 10 on a simple Web browser.

Cockpit 10 is operated on the Web via an HTML thin client, which means that the application in the Web browser is pure HTML with Javascript. No local software - other than the Web browser - is required or installed on the client. The application itself runs on the Web server as Cockpit 10 and communicates, as does Cockpit 10, directly with the CSP Server and the OLAP databases.

This document provides installation, configuration and administration instructions for Cockpit 10.

Web users of Cockpit 10 are provided with the same integrated online help as in the Windows version of Cockpit 10.

Supported Web Software

Supported Web Servers

Cockpit 10 supports the following Web servers:

• Microsoft IIS

Note: SSO ("single sign-on") with Kerberos is only supported for Microsoft IIS.

The principles of the architecture are the same for each Web server. Please refer to Architecture for details.

Supported Web Browsers

Cockpit 10 supports the following Web browsers:

• Mozilla Firefox (68x)
• Google Chrome (75x)

Due to rapid development cycles in the browser market, there is a slight chance that -- in rare cases -- a recently introduced browser feature or enhancement does not properly work with our products. In this case, please contact our product support at https://support.cubeware.com. Thank you for your understanding.

Architecture

An installation of an environment with Cockpit 10 always has the following basic architecture:

Web and Application Layer

The Web layer and the Application layer together form Cockpit 10:

• Web Layer

  The Web layer represents the interface between the Web server and the actual application.

• Application Layer

  The application itself runs in the Application layer. This application hosts the clients for the CSP Server.

Repositories (former report environments)

Repositories are administered by the CSP Server.

OLAP Data

The OLAP data is stored in the database server.

Note: These 4 components can be run on separate machines. For many configurations, however, this is not possible.

The details of the architecture depend on the Web server used:

• Microsoft IIS

Planning the Hardware

Planning the hardware is a very important aspect of a successful installation.

Note: Since the exact requirements cannot be calculated to cover all cases, the information given here can only be regarded as a recommendation. The actual requirement will depend heavily on the databases used, the data models and the reports generated.

Hard Drive Capacity

Installation of the Cockpit 10 components requires a total of 200 MB of hard drive space. Each user who is logged in requires an additional 2 MB of space in the temporary folder. If the Export of reports function is used, additional space for the temporary storage of the generated export files will be needed.

Memory Requirements

Main memory (RAM) is an important element of planning an installation. Since each session runs in a Worker process in the Web engine, the computer on which it is installed (application layer) must have sufficient main memory.

The following values apply for each user logged in concurrently.

• OLAP data model: The larger the model, the more memory for data caching is required. It can always be assumed that 60 MB is required for each user.
• Reports: If very large reports are available, or reports which contain a very large number of null lines or which have a large nesting depth, the memory requirements increase accordingly. For an open report containing more than 1000 lines (lines which occur in a query, not just the visible lines), an additional 10 MB must be added on.

Examples:

• Medium-sized data model, simple reports, 20 concurrent users: 20 users x 60 MB = approx. 1.2 GB memory requirements.
• Large data model, simple reports, 20 concurrent users: 20 users x 85 MB = 1.7 GB memory requirements.
• Large data model, complex reports, 100 concurrent users: 100 users x 85 MB = 8.5 GB memory requirements.

Memory Requirements When Using the Layout Component Map

If you use the layout component Map, you should allow an additional 100 MB in general plus 60 MB per parallel active user:

Examples:

• Medium-sized data model, simple reports, 20 concurrent users:
  • 20 users x 60 MB +
  • 20 users x 60 MB +
  • 100 MB = 2.5 GB memory requirements.
• Large data model, simple reports, 20 concurrent users:
  • 20 users x 85 MB +
  • 20 users x 60 MB +
  • 100 MB = 3 GB memory requirements.
• Large data model, complex reports, 100 concurrent users:
  • 100 users x 85 MB +
  • 100 users x 60 MB +
  • 100 MB = 14.6 GB memory requirements.

Note: In order to use maps in a report, you need to have an edition of CSP Server (Professional or Enterprise) installed, which supports Interactive Maps, and you also need appropriate shape files.

Cockpit 10 is a 32-bit application. The traditional 2 GB memory limit for each application does not apply here, as each Webworker process can use 2 GB. Note the configuration settings in the file webengine.cfg in this respect.

Processor

The machine on which the application layer is installed serves all logged-in users concurrently. Depending on how many users are using the system simultaneously and the intensity of use, it may make sense to deploy a multi-processor machine.

You should be aware that alongside the application layer, the database itself must also be able to serve several users, which means that both machines should be equipped with the same number of processors. Using processors that do not provide equal capacity means that the application can only reach the performance afforded by the machine with the lowest number of processors.

It is important to note that doubling the number of processors does not mean that the performance of the application is also doubled. A database query or a processing step in the application is only ever carried out by ONE processor, which means that the performance for a given user remains the same despite multiple processors; the overall performance, on the other hand, is almost doubled.

Network Data Transfer Rate

We recommend LTE for communication between a browser and the Web server.

Operating System

You will find details on the supported operating systems in the section Requirements.

Licensing

No licenses are required in order to install the application layer and the Web layer. The application layer can be installed on as many servers as are required.

In the case of CSP Server, Web access to repositories via a Web browser is available with any CSP Server Edition.

For information on licensing, refer to the online help for Cockpit 10 in the section on Licensing and activation.

Requirements for Report Export

Export

Certain requirements need to be met on every computer on which the application layer is installed to be able to export reports in Cockpit 10 from the Web.

Excel Export (via OpenXML) and PowerPoint Export (via OpenXML)

Microsoft .Net Framework 3.5 SP1 must be installed on each application layer to allow export to Excel 2007 / 2010 or PowerPoint 2007 / 2010 via OpenXML. Excel or PowerPoint do not need to be installed.

Office Export (via VBS)

For an export to Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint or Microsoft Excel, the following applies (as a result of the distribution mechanism):

• If the Office export cannot be performed under the "local system" account, the WebEngine must be running under a dedicated domain user to allow the Office applications to be addressed correctly.
• Microsoft Office must be installed on every application layer server.
• Windows Script Host (WSH) as of Version 5.1 is required on every application layer server in order to run VB scripts. Make sure that the local groups "Users", "Power Users" and "Administrators" have the necessary permissions to use the Windows Script Host on the computer on which the Application Layer Server is running.

Temporary Folder

"Full Control" permissions are required on the temporary folder specified for export in cockweb.cfg (configuration file (Microsoft IIS)).

Sending Mail

To export reports in the Web version of Cockpit 10 and send them by email, certain conditions must be fulfilled.

Sending Mail via MAPI (Microsoft IIS)

Certain conditions determine whether it is possible to send email via MAPI. The following principle applies: It is only possible to send mail via MAPI if the Web session has been started under a suitable account and it is possible to impersonate login to the mail server. If the Web session has been started under the "Local System" account, it is not generally possible to send email.

• Windows login

  If you log into the CSP Server using the Windows login, it is possible to send emails via MAPI without difficulty provided that the profile set in the user settings (Repository -> Mail settings (user settings)) is correct.

• Integrated authentication

  If you log into the CSP Server using the integrated login, the settings made in the IIS and the way in which the components are distributed over the different computers determine whether mail can be sent via MAPI. The following principle applies: Because login can only be impersonated once when using NTML as the network protocol, it is possible that the Web session will be started under the "Local System" account. As a rule, it is not possible to send mail via MAPI under this account.

• Normal login

  If you log into the CSP Server using the normal login, the settings made in the IIS and the way in which the components are distributed over the different computers determine whether mail can be sent via MAPI.

If you are having problems sending mail via MAPI, we recommend you to switch to SMTP for sending mail. This setting is made in Cockpit 10 in the User Settings > Email tab.