Table of Contents
- Introduction
- System Requirements
- Dodeca Deployment Steps
- Dodeca Framework Installation
- Dodeca WAR File Preparation
- Dodeca WAR File Deployment
- Completing the Setup - Importing an Application with dshell
- ClickOnce Deployment from an HTML Link
- Local Client Installation and Configuration
- The Dodeca Accelerator Utility
- Contact Us
Dodeca is an application development and deployment platform that can be used to create robust desktop applications that are deployed as simply as web applications. This guide will give you detailed information on the three tiers involved in the software installation process, along with step-by-step instructions for completing your installation.
Dodeca is architected to use three separate tiers:
- Smart Client tier
- Application Server tier
- Database tier
The Smart Client tier is architected as a .NET Smart Client that communicates with all external data and metadata providers using a web service paradigm. In other words, all communication between the Smart Client and the Application Server is performed via XML packets transmitted via HTTP/S. The Smart Client architecture provides for a very rich user experience, while avoiding the most common problem that occurs with traditional rich client applications. Installation has long been a significant issue for desktop applications. With the introduction of the Microsoft .NET Framework and its ClickOnce deployment paradigm, Smart Client applications can now be deployed as easily as any web-based application.
The Application Server tier serves as the endpoint for all data and metadata requests made by the Smart Client tier. The Application Server is responsible for unpacking the XML request, calling the appropriate service based on the arguments passed with the request, and then packaging and returning an XML response. The Application Server tier is architected to use Java 2 Enterprise Edition (J2EE) servlets to provide additional functionality. The servlets, one for Dodeca metadata services and one for Essbase services, are packaged in standard J2EE WAR (Web ARchive) files. J2EE Application Servers use WAR files as a standard deployment mechanism. This guide provides step-by-step instructions for creating the WAR file for your deployment along with instructions for the actual deployment in several leading application servers.
The Application Server tier also serves as the deployment mechanism for the Smart Client deployment using ClickOnce. ClickOnce deployments are accomplished using a URL to start the installation process. Dodeca is packaged with some innovative tools that automate the process of creating and digitally signing the ClickOnce deployment files, including any extensions you create for the Dodeca product. The tools also embed the ClickOnce deployment inside your WAR file.
Finally, the Application Server tier uses Hibernate Object-Relational Mapping (ORM) software to persist the Java metadata objects to a relational data source. The persistence engine creates SQL statements for your selected relational database engine and communicates with the relational database using Java DataBase Connectivity (JDBC).
The Database tier is responsible for data storage and retrieval. The Database tier consists of one or more relational databases and, optionally, one or more Essbase databases. These databases may reside on any number of physical machines in your computing environment. Typically, communication from the Application Server tier to a relational database is via standard JDBC methods. Communication from the Application Server tier to an Essbase database is via the Hyperion Essbase Java API. The following is a graphical representation of the architecture, showing the three tiers and a typical component configuration:
