Concepts

Entire Net-Work Client includes its own code as well as making use of a number of other Software AG products to achieve its goals: the Directory Server and the Adabas Manager.

Once you have installed the Entire Net-Work Client components, you must manually make updates in the System Management Hub to support the Simple Connection Line Driver. For more information, read Required Post-Installation Updates for Simple Connection Line Driver Support.

This document covers the following topics:


Entire Net-Work Client

An Entire Net-Work Client uses the Entire Net-Work 7 e-business message protocol to access Adabas databases. A Kernel does not need to be installed on the same system as a client.

Simply install an Entire Net-Work Client on any machine from which you wish to access Adabas databases. Only one Entire Net-Work Client installation is needed on the machine. Assuming the appropriate Kernels have been defined in your enterprise and the Adabas Directory Server entries have been migrated for Entire Net-Work, your client should be immediately able to access the Adabas databases it needs.

When you install Entire Net-Work Client, its Windows service or UNIX daemon is installed. Using the Adabas Manager (AMN), you can define multiple client configurations within Entire Net-Work Client. Multiple client configurations allow you to control how clients use your network. Each client configuration can have its own partition, filter, database, trace, user exit, and Directory Server settings. In other words, by directing client requests to particular client configurations, you can control which databases are accessible and what trace and user exit settings are used for the client request. For information about using partitioning and filtering, read Understanding Partitioning and Understanding Filtering.

When you receive your Entire Net-Work Client package, it includes installation code for a default client configuration.

Note:
If you attempt to install and use Entire Net-Work Client in a system with a firewall in place, be sure that your system administrator has set up the firewall so that the Entire Net-Work Client component applications can access the ports they need (including the Adabas Directory Server port and those Entire Net-Work dynamically assigns during its own processing). For more information about Entire Net-Work ports, read Port Number Reference. For information about configuring Entire Net-Work components for Windows personal firewall, read Configuring Product Components for Windows Personal Firewall.

Directory Server

Entire Net-Work uses information stored in a Directory Server to send and receive messages from the client to the database and back. The Directory Server contains an entry for each Kernel and database in the network.

Warning:
The Directory Server is critical to the functions of Entire Net-Work 7. It should be on a dedicated system that is operational 24 hours a day, with a UPS. The location of the Directory Server must be specified to the Kernel and clients when they are installed. In addition, the location of the default Directory Server may be defined in the SAGXTSDSHOST entry in the DNS. You may need to consult with your Information Technology department to make updates to the DNS. If no Directory Server can be found for your enterprise, Entire Net-Work cannot function.

All Directory Server data is stored in the form of a Universal Resource Locator (URL) that is familiar to any Internet user. The Directory Server allows complex URLs to contain management data for Entire Net-Work using this standard industry-wide syntax. More importantly, an Entire Net-Work Kernel can dynamically add, modify, or delete client access URLs in the Directory Server.

Entire Net-Work 7 also supports communications using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) target entries in the Adabas Directory Server. For more information about target entries in the Directory Server, read Directory Server Target Entries in the Software AG Directory Server Installation and Administration Guide. In addition, an SSL Toolkit is provided that allows you to set up a certificate authority that you can use to create security certificates for test purposes only. For more information about the SSL Toolkit, read Using the SSL Toolkit in the Encryption for Entire Net-Work User Guide, available from your Software AG support representative.

An Entire Net-Work Client only needs to be able to extract the location of the Adabas database it is trying to access from the Directory Server. Consequently, a single Directory Server URL is required for each database in the enterprise in order for all e-business clients to access that database. If Entire Net-Work partitioning is used, more than one Directory Server entry may exist for a given database. For more information, read Understanding Partitioning.

When operational changes occur for a database (startups, shutdowns, and movement between machines), the Entire Net-Work Kernel automatically maintains the URLs in the Directory Server: it adds a URL to the Directory Server when it discovers a database (and can accept Adabas calls intended for that database); likewise it can remove the same URL when a database becomes unavailable.

At least one Adabas Directory Server should be installed in your enterprise; we recommend that you install only one Directory Server to ensure centralized administration. However, your enterprise network configuration may require more than one. For example, you may want to install more than one Directory Server to fully direct requests to specific databases. While partitioning can also be used to restrict database access, all entries (in all partitions) of a Directory Server can be maintained via the Adabas Manager, so restriction is not complete. If, however, you use multiple Adabas Managers, you can limit what entries are available for viewing in the Directory Server portion of the Adabas Manager.

Directory Server administration is performed using the System Management Hub. The Directory Server administration function allows you to populate this directory with entries that identify the address of each target in your network.

Note:
If you attempt to install Entire Net-Work in a system with a firewall in place, be sure that your system administrator has opened the firewall for the Adabas Directory Server port or the installation may not complete successfully.

The port number used by the Directory Server can be changed, but must be changed with care. For complete information on changing the Directory Server port used by Entire Net-Work 7 components, read Changing the Adabas Directory Server Port Number.

Adabas Manager (AMN)

The Adabas Manager (AMN) provides centralized management of all Software AG products installed in the enterprise, using a Web-based graphical user interface. The use of Adabas Manager eliminates the need for a system administrator to visit individual machines or maintain multiple product windows on the desktop.

Warning:
Adabas Manager should be on a dedicated system that is operational 24 hours a day. If Adabas Manager is not available, you cannot maintain and control Entire Net-Work or the Adabas Directory Server.

Adabas Manager is used by Entire Net-Work 7 to manipulate configuration information. Using Adabas Manager, you can easily change the URLs stored in the Directory Server without fully understanding the syntax. In addition, the Entire Net-Work Servers and Entire Net-Work Clients can be examined and controlled via SMH. The status of classic nodes and databases for which connections have been defined can be determined. Statistics can be examined and various control functions, such as node disconnection, Kernel shutdown, and trace settings can be performed.

For more information about performing these tasks, read Entire Net-Work Client Administration.

SSL Support

Entire Net-Work 7 also supports communications using Secure Sockets Layer (SSL). This support is provided using SSL protocol target entries in the Adabas Directory Server. For more information about target entries in the Directory Server, read Directory Server Target Entries in the Software AG Directory Server Installation and Administration Guide.

In addition, Software AG has an SSL Toolkit you can use, for testing purposes, to set up a certificate authority. You can then use the certificate authority to create security certificates for test purposes only. For more information about the SSL Toolkit, read Using the SSL Toolkit in the Encryption for Entire Net-Work User Guide, available from your Software AG support representative.

Note:
Due to export restrictions, the SSL Toolkit is not included on the installation CD. If you plan to use SSL in your enterprise and want to use the SSL Toolkit, please contact your Software AG support representative.