COGNOS Business Intelligence Series 7

Chapter 3: Control Processes
Server Groups
7. Click OK.
A server group is a gateway and associated dispatchers. Server groups can provide failover
protection. You can reference a server group by its name.
You can make changes to the central configuration using the Cognos Configuration Manager. For
server groups, these changes can include defining a name for the group, adding or removing
servers in the failover list, and changing the port number for a server. For more information about
using the Cognos Configuration Manager, see the Cognos Configuration Manager User Guide.
You can choose a server group or a specific server and port combination for drill-through servers
in the Server Properties box.
You can name and use server groups for multiple purposes, including
• drill-through targets
• gateway to dispatcher communication
Multiple Server Groups
Multiple server groups are an advanced installation option that offers solutions for a variety of
reporting environments. You can implement multiple server groups to manage and deliver
different content for different user groups, and to reduce system maintenance requirements.
Before you install and configure multiple server groups you should be familiar with planning
considerations for advanced installations, and the procedures related to server group
configuration in a distributed environment. For more information see the Planning Advanced
Installations Guide.
For Cognos products, a multiple server group consists of more than one server group running
concurrently on one or more server computers. Multiple server groups may share some
components, such as an Upfront NewsIndex and directory server. There are three general types of
implementations for multiple server groups:
• multiple server computers using a shared Upfront NewsIndex
• multiple server groups on a single server computer using a shared Upfront NewsIndex
• multiple server groups on a single server computer using separate Upfront NewsIndexes
Ppservertemp
You can set the ppservertemp location as a shared location across several servers. PowerPlay
Enterprise Server caches the ppx files that are created when users save or publish PowerPlay
reports. The ppservertemp directory stores these reports for 30 days. Subsequent requests received
for one of these reports are serviced from the ppservertemp directory, rather than being rebuilt.
By default, the ppservertemp location is on the machine where PowerPlay Enterprise Server is
installed. To locate the directory behind a firewall, or share it across a multiple machine
installation, change the ppservertemp directory location in the Properties dialog box.
Steps
1. In PowerPlay Enterprise - Server Administration, click a server.
2. From the Edit menu, click Properties, and then click the Settings tab.
3. Under options in the Temporary Files location box, type the shared location for the temporary
files.
4. Click Apply.
5. Click OK.
Mount At
When reports are published from PowerPlay for Windows or PowerPlay Web Explorer, PowerPlay
Enterprise Server creates a folder that has the cube name in the imported_reports folder.
28 Cognos PowerPlay (R)