Enabling failover on the plugin role - SiPass 3.2

SiPass Plugin Guide 3.2
Applies to
SiPass 3.2
Last updated
2017-09-28
Content type
Guides
Guides > Plugin and extension guides
Language
English
Product
SiPass
Version
3.2

To improve the availability of your plugin role, you can add a secondary server on standby. If the primary server hosting the role becomes unavailable, the secondary server is automatically used.

Before you begin

  • Make sure you have an expansion server available to use as a secondary server for your plugin role. If you do not have an expansion server available, add an expansion server to your system.
  • If your plugin role is hosted on the main server, you must first move it to an expansion server.
    NOTE: If you must host the plugin role on the main server, know that configuring the plugin role failover is not enough. You must also configure the Directory failover. Role failover is managed by the Directory role, and Directory failover is managed by the Directory Manager role. For more information, see Directory failover and load balancing.
  • Make sure that the plugin role database is not hosted on a server that is also hosting the plugin role. All servers hosting the plugin role must have write access to the remote database server. For more information, see Connecting roles to remote database servers.

What you should know

Failover is a backup operational mode in which a role (system function) is automatically transferred from its primary server to a secondary server that is on standby. This transfer between servers occurs only when the primary server becomes unavailable, either through failure or through scheduled downtime. For more information, see Role failover.
IMPORTANT: Security Center does not handle the failover of role databases. To protect your data, perform regular backups of the role database.

Procedure

  1. From the Config Tool home page, open the Plugins task.
  2. Select your plugin role from the entity tree and click Resources.
  3. At the bottom of the Servers list, click Add an item ().

    A dialog box opens, listing all remaining servers on your system that are not yet assigned to this role.

  4. Select the server you want to add as a secondary server and click Add.

    The secondary server is added below the primary server. The green LED indicates which server is currently hosting the role.

    IMPORTANT: The order in which the servers appear in the list corresponds to the order they are picked if a failover occurs. When the primary server fails, the role automatically switches to the next server on the list.
  5. To change the priority of a server, select it from the list, and click the or buttons to move it up or down the list.
  6. After a failover occurs, if you want the primary server to retake control of the role after it is restored, select the Force execution on highest priority server option.
    NOTE: By default, the role remains on the secondary server after a failover occurs to minimize system disruption.
  7. Make sure that the role is not connected to a database on the local machine.
    You can tell that the database server is local to your machine if the name of the Database server starts with "(local)". If it does, change it to the remote database server you prepared in advance for your plugin role.
    1. Back up your plugin role database and restore it on a server that is not hosting your plugin role.
    2. Enable remote access to the plugin role database you restored.
    3. Change the Database server to the server hosting your plugin role database.
      For example, REMOTESERVER\SQLEXPRESS.
  8. Click Apply.