Introduction

This manual has two main purposes for the c-treeACE Server Administrator:

1. To provide a quick, easy way to see what responsibilities you have, and
2. To provide the information needed to manage c-treeACE Server operation.

The c-treeACE Server supports high-level database management, including:

• client/server computing - increases performance and provides the ability to maintain database integrity, especially in multi-user environments. The basic principle of client/server computing is: applications, or “clients”, interact with the server, which manages file operations and communicates with clients.
• online transaction processing (OLTP) - the c-treeACE Server can group a specified set of operations, called a “transaction,” and ensure either all of them are done or, if there is a problem, none will be done, e.g., either all of an invoice is processed, or none of it.
• security controls - c-treeACE Server access is controlled with user IDs, passwords, file permissions, and encryption. Users and files may be added to Administrator defined “groups”, e.g., shipping department, payroll department.
• database maintenance and utilities - the c-treeACE Server automatically saves necessary information for use in automatic, or Administrator-specified, backups and for recovery from problems.
• configuration flexibility - from basics such as which communication protocol the c-treeACE Server uses and memory allocations to enforce for specific users, to a wide range of advanced controls.

Further technical details concerning the c-treeACE Server are available in "Overview of The c-treeACE Server" and other FairCom documents.

The c-treeACE Server Administrator has the following six areas of responsibility, each of which could be divided among several people:

Installation

Someone, not necessarily the Administrator, must physically load the c-treeACE Server software onto the computing environment. Once completed, installation issues usually are no longer a concern unless the c-treeACE Server needs to be re-installed, e.g., to install a new version. See "c-treeACE Server Installation" for details

Operating the Server

Starting and stopping the c-treeACE Server. Any user can start the c-treeACE Server by running the executable module, ctsrvr, as any other program in the environment. See "Operating the c-treeACE Server" for details.

Controlling access to the c-treeACE Server

Begin by setting up valid User IDs and passwords (including your own). Establish rules of access to given database files. Establish groups where users and files can be associated and control access according to membership in those groups.

Use ctadmn, the c-treeACE Server Administration Utility, to control access with user IDs, file passwords, file permissions, and Administrator defined groups with specified access rights to particular files. This utility also monitors user status and/or disconnects users from the c-treeACE Server.

ctpass is used by the Administrator or any other authorized user to change the password associated with their User ID.

ctfile is used by the Administrator or any user to change file security information on any file owned by the user. See "Controlling c-treeACE Server Access" for details.

Maintaining Database Integrity

Schedule and conduct backups or dumps of system generated files for later use in recovering from problems or returning a database to its status at a prior time.

Use the utility ctdump to schedule Dynamic Dumps that can be used at a later time to restore database files or to roll back to a state at a previous point in time.

ctrdmp works with information saved in a Dynamic Dump to either recover from a catastrophic system failure by restoring specified files to a consistent, well-defined state or to roll back specified files to their state at a specified time.

Use the utility ctfdmp to recover from a catastrophic failure using a previously saved dynamic dump or complete backup, which may be made using any standard backup utility. This allows you to restore backups then ‘roll forward’ to a given time using preserved log files.

(For programmers) Use the utility ctldmp to carry out a transaction log dump, which records partial log related information, for use in application development. See "Maintaining Database Integrity" for details.

Configuring the c-treeACE Server

Understand how the c-treeACE Server is currently configured and, optionally, change configuration settings (e.g., to set memory allocation limits, to select communication protocols, to activate a particular dump description script).

The c-treeACE Server is started by any user authorized to start ctsrvr. Routine starting of the c-treeACE Server is not necessarily a major responsibility for the Administrator.

The User ID “ADMIN” (default password is “ADMIN”) and members of the ADMIN group are the only users who can access ctstop, the utility for stopping the c-treeACE Server, so stopping the c-tree Server is always a major Administrator responsibility.

Customize the c-treeACE Server

No configuration file is required, but if the c-treeACE Server is to be reconfigured to replace any default settings, a file named ctsrvr.cfg must be created for the Server to load at startup. See "Configuring the c-treeACE Server" for details.

Note: Utility names and methods of executing them may vary slightly in different environments, so see "c-treeACE Server Installation" for specifics. The utilities covered here are not the only ways to carry out Administrator duties and the utilities listed here are not necessarily the only ones available.

The basic topics covered here are for orientation only. "c-treeACE Server Installation" and "Operating the c-treeACE Server", are considered required reading for c-tree Server Administrators. "Controlling c-treeACE Server Access", "Maintaining Database Integrity", "Running a Configuration Script File", "Configuration File Format", and "Basic Configuration Options" are recommended reading. "Advanced Configuration Options", "Server System Event Log Keywords", "Server Memory Calculations", and "Advanced - Faster Auto-Recovery" are optional and intended for advanced users.

Some issues may require the assistance of others with specialized knowledge relevant to the operating environment (e.g., configuring memory access allotments, defining dynamic dumps).

Additional information can be found in the following appendices:

• "User’s Control of Security Options" contains user password control information.
• "Overview of The c-treeACE Server" contains a conceptual overview of the c-treeACE Server.
• "Glossary" defines terms.