To set up clusters of engines, you store shared files on a system and set multiple
engines to use those files.
About this task
To set up blueprint design servers and engines in a clustered configuration, you install
them on separate systems and connect them to the same database and network storage. You can
install as many blueprint design servers and engines as you need. You can install a
blueprint design server and an engine on each cluster node, or you can install blueprint
design servers and engines on separate nodes.
You do not need to install the same number of blueprint design servers and engines. Most
high-availability setups need more engines than blueprint design servers.
Then, you configure a load balancer to distribute the traffic to the blueprint design
servers. Instead of accessing the blueprint design servers and engines directly, users
access the load balancer URL. To the users, that URL appears to host a single instance of
the blueprint design server or engine.
A complete high-availability system of blueprint designers and engines includes the
following systems:
- One or more blueprint design server nodes
- One or more engine nodes
- A database for the engine nodes and the RabbitMQ service
- A database for the blueprint design server nodes
- A shared file system for the blueprint design server nodes
- A load balancer
You can install each of these systems on a separate server, or you can combine some of
them to reduce the number of overall nodes. For example, you can use the same database for
the engine nodes and the blueprint design server nodes. You can also install one or more of
the databases, shared file system, and load balancer on the same server. However, for
greatest reliability, install the load balancer, databases, and shared file system on
separate servers. For example, the following topology diagram includes three blueprint
design server nodes, three engine nodes, and a single server that hosts the databases,
RabbitMQ, and shared file system.
Note: These instructions host the RabbitMQ service and engine database on a single
server, and the shared file system on a single server. For a truly high-availability
setup, you must ensure that these systems are stable and reliable. For example, you can
configure automatic backups and have a cold standby system
ready.
You can set up a cluster of blueprint design servers and engines independently of the
IBM UrbanCode Deploy
server. You do not necessarily have to have a cluster of IBM UrbanCode Deploy
servers.
What to do next
Add engines to the cluster. See
Adding engines to clusters.