Methods of configuration for Content Based Routing

There are four methods you can use to configure Content Based Routing (CBR): the command line, scripts, the graphical user interface (GUI), and the configuration wizard. The Information Center assumes use of the command line.

There are four basic methods of configuring the Content Based Routing component:
Restriction: To use CBR, Caching Proxy must be installed. Caching Proxy is a service that starts automatically by default after installation. Stop Caching Proxy before starting the CBR server function (cbrserver) and modify the Caching Proxy service to start manually rather than automatically.

Command line

This is the most direct means of configuring Content Based Routing. The command parameter values must be entered in English characters. The only exceptions are host names (used, for example, in site name and server commands) and file names.

To start the Site Selector from the command line:
  1. Start cbrserver:
    • [AIX][HP-UX][Linux][Solaris] Go to the <install_root>/cbr/servers/bin directory and issue the following command from the command prompt:
      cbserver
      To stop the service, type:
      cbserver stop
    • [Windows] Click Start > Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Services. Right-click IBM Content Based Routing and select Start. To stop the service, follow the same steps and select Stop.
  2. Issue the Dispatcher control commands you want in order to set up your configuration. The command is sscontrol.
You can use a minimized version of the cbcontrol command parameters by typing the unique letters of the parameters. For example, to get help on the file save command, you can type
cbcontrol he f
instead of
cbcontrol help file

To start up the command line interface issue cbcontrol to receive an cbcontrol command prompt. To end the command line interface issue the commands exit or quit.

Scripts

You can enter commands for configuring Content Based Routing into a configuration script file and run them together. See Sample Load Balancer configuration files. To quickly run the content of a script file (for example, myscript), use either of the following commands:
  • To update the current configuration, run the following executable commands from your script file:
    cbcontrol file appendload myscript
  • To completely replace the current configuration, run the following executable commands from your script file:
    cbcontrol file newload myscript
To save the current configuration into a script file (for example, savescript), run the following command:
cbcontrol file save savescript

This command will save the configuration script file in the install_root/servers/configurations/ss directory.

GUI

To start the GUI, follow these steps:
  1. Ensure cbserver is running:
    • [AIX][HP-UX][Linux][Solaris] Run the following as root user:
      cbserver
    • [Windows] cbserver runs as a service that starts automatically.
  2. Start the GUI:
    • [AIX][HP-UX][Linux][Solaris] Run the following:
      lbadmin
    • [Windows] Click Start > Programs > IBM WebSphere > Edge Components > IBM Load Balancer > Load Balancer

To configure the Site Selector component from the GUI, you must first select Content Based Routing in the tree structure. You can start the executor and manager after you connect to a Host. You can also create clusters containing ports and servers, and start advisors for the manager.

The GUI can be used to do anything that you would do with the sscontrol command. For example, to define a cluster using the command line, you would enter cbcontrol cluster add cluster command. To define a cluster from the GUI, right-click Executor, then in the popup menu, left-click Add Cluster. Enter the cluster address in the popup window, then click OK.

Pre-existing Site Selector configuration files can be loaded using the Load New Configuration (for completely replacing the current configuration) and Append to Current Configuration (for updating the current configuration) options presented in the Host popup menu. You should save your Dispatcher configuration to a file periodically using the Save Configuration File As option also presented in the Host popup menu. The File menu located at the top of the GUI will allow you to save your current host connections to a file or restore connections in existing files across all Load Balancer components.

In order to run a command from the GUI:
  1. Highlight the Host node from the GUI tree and select Send command... from the Host pop-up menu.
  2. In the command entry field, type the command that you want to run, for example:
    executor report
    The results and history of the commands run in the current session and appear in the window provided.
You can access Help by clicking the question mark icon in the upper right corner of the Load Balancer window.
  • Help: Field level -- describes each field, default values
  • Help: How do I -- lists tasks that can be done from that screen
  • InfoCenter -- provides centralized access to product information

The configuration wizard

The wizard guides you step by step through the process of creating a basic configuration for the Site Selector component. You will be asked questions about your network. You will be guided through the setup of a cluster for Site Selector to load balance traffic between a group of servers.

If you are using the configuration wizard, follow these steps:
  1. Go to the <install_root>/cbr/servers/bin directory and issue cbserver at the command prompt as root user or administrator.
  2. Start the wizard function of Content Based Routing by issuing the following the cbwizard command:
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Last updated: January 17, 2013 11:24 AM EST
File name: ccfg_configmethcbr.html