Cognos ReportNetTM Installation and Configuration Guide

Chapter 4: Configuring ReportNet
When you change the port used by the local dispatcher, you must change the value of the
Internal dispatcher URI property. Because the change affects all the URIs that are based on the
local dispatcher, you must change the URIs of all local components. By default, local
components contain localhost in the URI.
For example, if you install all components on one computer and you change the dispatcher port,
you must also change the port in the local Content Manager URI and local SDK URI.
If you change the dispatcher port in the local Dispatcher URI, ensure that you specify the new
port numbers when you configure remote computers that use the Dispatcher URI, Content
Manager URI, and SDK URI properties.
Steps
1. Start Cognos Configuration.
2. In the Explorer window click the appropriate group or component:
• To change the port number for the dispatcher, click Environment.
• To change the port number for the local log server, under Environment, click Logging.
3. In the Properties window, click the Value box next to the property that you want to change.
4. If you change the dispatcher port, ensure that you change the ports in other URIs that
contain localhost.
5. From the File menu, click Save.
Using an Authentication Provider
ReportNet runs with or without authentication providers. By default, anonymous access is
enabled.
You can configure multiple namespaces for authentication and then choose at run time which
namespace you want to use. For more information, see the Administration and Security Guide.
If you enable security, you must configure security settings immediately after you complete the
installation and configuration process. For more information, see the Administration and
Security Guide.
Important: We recommend that you do not disable security after you enable it. If you previously
configured a namespace that is no longer in the current configuration, when you start
ReportNet, the namespace, including the user accounts, are permanently deleted from the
content store. Restoring the namespace definition, by using a previously saved crnstartup.xml
file for example, does not restore the user accounts. This means that for the users defined in the
deleted namespace, their preferences, My Folders and My Pages entries are permanently lost.
Existing policies will continue to refer to users, groups or roles that no longer exist. While this will
not affect how the policies work, a user administering the policy may see "unknown" entries.
Because these entries refer to users, groups, and roles which no longer exist, you can safely
delete them.
To use an authentication provider and to require users to authenticate:
❑ Disable anonymous access.
❑ Configure ReportNet to use an authentication provider.
Disable Anonymous Access
By default, ReportNet does not require user authentication. Users can logon anonymously.
You can use Cognos Configuration to disable anonymous access.
Steps
1. On the computer where you installed Content Manager, start Cognos Configuration.
2. In the Explorer window, under Security, Authentication, click Cognos.
The Cognos resource represents the Cognos namespace. The Cognos namespace stores
information about Cognos groups, such as the Anonymous User, contacts, and distribution
lists, and refers to objects in other security namespaces. For more information, see the
Administration and Security Guide.
Installation and Configuration Guide 41