About the ReportCaster Server Configuration Tool

During ReportCaster installation, the ReportCaster configuration file (an encrypted XML file) is created. It contains ReportCaster environment information, including default configuration settings you entered during the installation. Once ReportCaster is installed, all changes to these configuration settings are made by a ReportCaster Administrator. This section describes how to change default settings and access specific configuration setting using the applet version of the ReportCaster Server Configuration tool.

Some configuration default settings, for example, the e-mail server name for e-mail distributions, appear in the Schedule user interface for your convenience, but you are able to override them when you create a schedule. (ReportCaster configuration default setting names begin with “Default”.)

Note: Several ReportCaster configuration parameters that appear in the ReportCaster Server Configuration tool can also be configured from the WebFOCUS Administration Console. These parameters are noted when they appear in this section. For information on accessing and using the WebFOCUS Administration Console, see the WebFOCUS Security and Administration manual.

To access the ReportCaster Server Configuration tool, from the WebFOCUS Welcome Page, click ReportCaster Administration in the ReportCaster section. In the ReportCaster Administration Interface, select the Configuration tab. The ReportCaster Server Configuration tool opens displaying the General tab, as shown in the following image.

The Applet ReportCaster Server Configuration Tool Icons

Along the top of the ReportCaster Server Configuration tool, menu items and a series of icons allow you to:

Save any changes made to the configuration. You can also select Save from the Action menu. You must save any changes to the configuration as part of the process to implement the change. For more information, see Changing Configuration Settings in the Applet.
Refresh the settings to reflect the last saved configuration settings. You can also select Refresh from the Action menu.
Create a new WebFOCUS Reporting Server. This option is only active when working in the Data Server tab.
Change the properties of a WebFOCUS Reporting Server. You can also select Properties from the Edit menu. This option is only active when working in the Data Server tab.
Caution: Information Builders does not recommend changing the name of a WebFOCUS Reporting Server, since all existing jobs on that server will no longer run.
Delete a specified WebFOCUS Reporting Server. You can also select Delete from the Action menu. You will receive a message asking you to confirm the deletion. This option is only active when working in the Data Server tab.
Test the connection to a specified server or repository. You can also select Test from the Edit menu. You may be prompted for a user ID and password to connect to a specified server. You will receive a message describing whether the test succeeded or failed.
Restart the Distribution Server and ReportCaster to implement changes to the server configuration. You can also select Restart from the Action menu. For more information, see Changing Configuration Settings in the Applet.
Note: This option is only available when accessing the configuration tool through the ReportCaster Web Application. It is not available when accessing the tool from the Windows Programs menu or by running editit.bat or the UNIX editit script file from the /utilities directory under the ReportCaster Distribution Server installation.
Help opens the online Help file. This option is only available when accessing the configuration tool through the ReportCaster Web Application. It is not available when accessing the tool from the Windows Programs menu or by running editit.bat or the UNIX editit script file from the /utilities directory under the ReportCaster Distribution Server installation.

The Applet ReportCaster Server Configuration Tool Tabs

The ReportCaster Server Configuration tool provides access to configuration parameters through the following tabs:

General. Includes the following general settings:
- Default settings, such as an e-mail reply address, an FTP user ID and password, and a WebFOCUS Reporting Server for running schedules.
- E-mail Delivery configuration.
- Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) security information.
- Default ReportCaster Repository settings.
- Security settings for a user-written plug-in or remote authentication.
- Tracing options and default trace file locations.
- User information, such as a default ReportCaster Administrator user ID and password. This section also enables administrators to change the polling interval for the ReportCaster Distribution Server.
For details on these parameters, see General Configuration Settings in the Applet.
LDAP Setting. Configure ReportCaster self-service users to be authenticated and authorized against an LDAP data source rather than the ReportCaster Repository. You can also configure ReportCaster to be able to retrieve e-mail address information from an LDAP data source. For details on these parameters, see LDAP Settings.
Data Server. Configure multiple WebFOCUS Reporting Servers, including cluster servers. For details on these parameters, see Configuring WebFOCUS Reporting Servers With ReportCaster in the Applet.
Two-Way. Specify settings for the optional Two-Way Email product. For details on these parameters, see Two-Way Email Settings in the Applet.
Library. Specify Report Library settings, such as the default URL that is needed to access content in the Library, and whether or not to compress files stored in the Library. For details on these parameters, see Report Library Settings in the Applet.
MR Info. Specify Managed Reporting settings, such as a default HTTP user and password, whether or not Managed Reporting was installed with ReportCaster, and the node on which the Managed Reporting Repository is located. For details on these parameters, see Managed Reporting Settings in the Applet.
Google Search. Specify settings for the optional Google Search Appliance product, which provides the ability to search for Report Library content using the Google search engine. For details on these parameters, see Report Library Integration With the Google Search Engine.

Changing Configuration Settings in the Applet

To implement changes to the ReportCaster server configuration settings, you must save the changes and then restart the Distribution Server and the ReportCaster Web application. The steps required to preform these tasks depend on how you accessed the ReportCaster Configuration tool.

If the ReportCaster Configuration tool was accessed through the ReportCaster Web application, use one of the following methods:

Save and restart using the Restart option:
1. Click the Restart icon (or select Restart from the Action menu).
  A window opens asking you to confirm the save.
  
  Note: If no changes were made to the configuration settings, then the window asks you to confirm a restart rather than a save. This is useful if you saved settings earlier, but did not restart the Distribution Server and ReportCaster at that time.
2. Click Yes.
  A window opens asking you to confirm that you want to stop all running jobs and do a restart.
3. Click Yes.
  A window opens with a message that the server has been restarted.
  
  Note: If failover or workload distribution is configured, all Distribution Servers are started.
4. Have all users currently logged on restart their sessions to obtain the new configuration information. (Since the user session does not have information cached pertaining to the ReportCaster configuration, the user interfaces must be restarted to obtain any updated configuration information.)
Save and Restart using the Save and Restart options:
1. Click the Save icon (or select Save from the Action menu).
  A window opens asking you to confirm the save.
2. Click Yes.
  A window opens explaining that you must restart the Distribution Server and the ReportCaster Web application in order for the changes that you saved to take effect, and that a Restart button is available in the Server Configuration tool toolbar.
3. Click OK.
4. Click the Restart icon (or select Restart from the Action menu).
  A window opens asking you to confirm that you want to stop all running jobs and do a restart.
5. Click Yes.
  A window opens with a message that the server has been restarted.
  
  Note: If failover or workload distribution is configured, all Distribution Servers are started.
6. Have all users currently logged on restart their sessions to obtain the new configuration information. (Since the session of the user does not have information cached pertaining to the ReportCaster configuration, the user interfaces must be restarted to obtain any updated configuration information.)

If the ReportCaster Configuration tool was accessed from the Start menu or a command line:

Save the change(s) using the Save icon or the Save option in the Action menu.
A window opens asking you to confirm the save.
Manually stop and restart the Distribution Server.
Reload the ReportCaster Web application (and Manager Reporting Web application, if applicable).

Changing Default User IDs

To change the various default user ID settings in the Server Configuration tool, click the icon that appears to the right of the setting field, . This opens the User dialog box, where you can type a password for the user ID.

Exiting the Server Configuration Tool

To exit the ReportCaster Server Configuration tool, select Exit from the Action menu.