DB2 OLAP Server Installation Guide

Starting and shutting down the server

You can start the server in the foreground or in the background.

Before you can access the server, you must be logged on to the UNIX server on an account that has at least Read/Write/Execute access to the Essbase directories. Ideally, this is the same account that was used to install DB2 OLAP Server.

Starting the server in the foreground

To start the server in the foreground:

1. From the command prompt, type:

   $ARBORPATH/bin/ESSBASE
   

   or, if your path includes $ARBORPATH/bin, type:

   ESSBASE
   

   If you encounter any errors during startup, check your path and environment settings.

2. If this is a first-time installation, Essbase prompts you for the following items:
   • Company name. The name that you type will be embedded in your server license registration.
   • Your name. The name that you type will be designated as the Essbase system supervisor. Use this name for your initial logon from the Essbase client to the Essbase server.
   • System password. The password that you choose is required every time you start the Essbase server.
   • You are asked to confirm your choices. Type 1 to verify your entries, or 2 to retype them.
3. If this is not a first-time installation, the system prompts you for the system password that you specified when you first ran the server.

   The Essbase Agent then displays the following message:

   Waiting for Client Requests...
   

You can now use the Essbase Agent to perform high-level supervisor operations.

Starting the server in the background

If you are starting the server for the first time after installing, you must start it in the foreground once before you can start it in the background. See Starting Essbase in the Foreground. If you installed Version 8.1 in the same directory as an existing installation, it is not necessary to start the server in the foreground before starting it in the background.

After you have started the server in the foreground and followed the prompts to enter your company name, Essbase administrator user name, and password, type EXIT to stop the server and follow the instructions to start the server as a background process.

To start the server as a background process:

1. If this is a first time installation, you must start Essbase in the foreground.
2. To start the server in the background on UNIX, or on Windows systems utilizing a UNIX-like shell such as MKS, enter the following command at the command prompt of your operating system:

   $ARBORPATH/bin/ESSBASE password -b &
   

   If your path already includes $ARBORPATH/bin, type this instead:

   ESSBASE password -b &
   

   You can start the server without using the ampersand (&) at the end of the command, but if you do not type the &, the command prompt is not returned after the server is started.

Securing a password script

To hide the system password from the UNIX process listing created by the ps -ef utility on Solaris and HP-UX, you must create a simple shell script and use it to launch the Essbase Agent. Create a shell script named essbase.secure, consisting of the following lines:

#!/bin/sh
PASS=$1
ESSBASE -b -secure << EOF &
${PASS}
EOF

After creating this script, launch the Agent to start the script in the background. The script obtains the password from process listing details:

essbase.secure password

Note:

On AIX servers, there is no need to hide the Essbase system password because it is hidden automatically.

Shutting down the server

To shut down the server when Essbase is running in the foreground, type EXIT.

To shut down the server from any terminal connected to it, use the SHUTDOWNSERVER command in ESSCMD.