Core Content Only

Archive for January, 2009

Out-of-the-box unauthenticated users that interact with Content Server have access to a special account called #none.  As a wise man MIGHT guess this is a way of saying "Here's your badge to access content with no account."

Great, but what if I wanted to grant read access to a particular account or accounts for guest?

For this, we need to add a configuration setting named "DefaultAccounts" to <install>/config/config.cfg.  When we add this setting we use the name of the account along with a set of parenthesis detailing the access level allowed.  Let's see this in action:

DefaultAccounts=Manuals(R),Contracts(R)

In this case guests accessing the system have read access to content with the Manuals or Contracts accounts.

So, don't forget:

#none grants access for content without accounts
#all grants access to content with any account

The idea for this component is not my own, I actually noticed this during a demo at one point.  The concept is to remove the <HR> (horizontal rules) on the check in and search pages and instead use Rule Groupings with headers.

Here we see a check in profile where groupings with headers were setup but the horizontal rules are still in place:

And with this component installed and enabled we can remove the horizontal rules:

This component has a preference variable that allows this functionality to be turned on and off without restarting the content server service/process.  Visit the component manager page in the admin server.  Select RemoveProfileHorizontalRules from the drop down next to the update button.  Click update.

By entering false in the box and clicking update the horizontal rules will be visible again.

Here is a sample component that removes the Profile Horizontal Rules as described above.

In part two of this series of articles about setting up a Fusion ECM Development Environment we will tackle some prep work as we near the actual installation of Content Server.

Fusion ECM Development Environment, Part One: SQL Server Express 2005

Apache

I use the 2.2.x vein of Apache which can be downloaded from http://httpd.apache.org. As of this writing the current version was 2.2.11. Remember, the content server has an embedded JSP/Servlet engine for executing JSPs, so this version of apache is all we need for basic content server operations. Download apache, run through the simple install process and we are pretty well all set to go from a web server perspective.

Now, if you have IIS7 installed as well you will need to perform some balancing acts here or change the ports for one or both of those web servers so that they can run at the same time. The general outlook in this series is that IIS7 is not installed.

Database

Additionally we will be using the installation of SQL Server Express 2005 that we already have setup. We are going to let the content server installer create the tables for us, but we need to create the database first. So, open the management console by using Start > All Programs > Microsoft SQL Server 2005 > SQL Server Management Studio Express. Once logged in right click databases and select 'New Database'. In the resulting form make sure to place a check mark in the 'Use full text indexing' checkbox. Fill out the other form fields as desired and click 'Ok'. There, now the database is ready.

JDBC

To use the database we are going to need to get the latest version of the jTDS JDBC drivers. These are free. Download a copy of the drivers and stash that with your content server installation software. At the time of writing the latest version was 1.2.2.

In this entry we will learn how to get SQL Server Express 2005 downloaded, installed and configured properly for use with Fusion ECM. We will also learn why you must select and download just the right version of the Express Edition to get the most search options.

The disclaimer: This is certainly not the only way to setup your Fusion ECM development environment. Hopefully we will get some opinions and additional information in the comments.  Why am I not using Oracle?  I could, I use SQL Server for .NET Development a lot as well, so this just happens to fit better for me.

Over the next several blog entries I will be detailing how to setup a Fusion ECM development environment using Apache, Windows Server 2008 and SQL Server Express 2005. There are several spots on the internet where people talk about running on IIS7, but I could not find anyone that has posted this for public knowledge yet.

First, the CORRECT download. Ultimately, the proper version to download is here. Why is this version correct? We select this from the other download options because this one contains Full Text Searching.

Install it. During the installation you will want to uncheck the box that says hide advanced options. Part of those advanced options will ask you for an instance name, make this the default instance instead of a named instance and you'll have an easier time later down the road. You may be prompted that you have successfully satisfied 14 of the 15 prerequisites. If the warning is about your lack of IIS you can skip over that unless you want to run reporting services, which is beyond the scope of this outline.

Finally, the configuration of the installed SQL Server Express 2005 database begins by running Start > All Programs > Microsoft SQL Server 2005 > Configuration Tools > SQL Server Surface Area Configuration. Once you have the UI loaded click the 'Surface Area Configuration for Services and Connections' option.

The trick here is to make sure that under remote connections you have selected 'Use both TCP/IP and Named Pipes' thereby enabling local and remote connections. This will require you to restart the SQL Server windows service.

The next step checks your port configuration. The port will eventually be used in your JDBC connection string. If you selected default instance during installation you're probably already done. To check the port we need to go back to the start menu with Start > All Programs > Microsoft SQL Server 2005 > Configuration Tools > SQL Server Configuration Manager. Expand SQL Server 2005 Network Configuration.

Right click on TCP/IP and then click the IP Addresses Tab. Ensure that the TCP Port entry is set, and in this case since I selected this as my default installation it is set for 1433.

The database is now ready.

There has been a fair bit of banter on the concept of Enterprise 2.0. If you want to find out more about what it is or the core concepts behind the subject then follow up over at Billy Cripe's blog. You will find his explanations and the links he provides a good place to get started. He has even collaborated on an entire book with a lot of information about it.

The problem as I see it lies less with whether or not Enterprise 2.0 is a good idea and more with how the economy is driving corporate structure away from adopting new process. Certainly everyone wants to hear about how to accomplish more with less or all about new ways of intelligence discovery. The crux, however, is not many feel like funding a foray into this new frontier.

With the economic uncertainty attaching itself like the proverbial 800 pound gorilla there will still be market leaders that forge ahead, willing to take risks like introducing new technologies and fundamentally different approaches to interoffice communications, but a majority will not at this time. Those that do make an attempt and survive may enjoy a competitive edge in the end.

Most will shy away. This may mean the sound of the death knell for Enterprise 2.0, a premature ending to a promising approach. I for one suspect this will only slow or postpone adoptions instead of kill this direction all together. Ultimately, I find the whole process fascinating and I find the fervor with which people discuss the usefulness or lack thereof even more fascinating.