PSICapture Mailroom Load Balancing Server Setup
Introduction
The PSIcapture Mailroom backend architecture enables your operations to scale and meet the demands of larger user workloads. This is achieved using conventional load balancing technology (e.g., Microsoft Azure Application Gateway) for installations with users in excess of 200. Follow the steps below to configure PSIcapture Mailroom to use a Load Balancing Configuration that allows you to scale operations across multiple web servers and serve hundreds of concurrent user sessions.
Prerequisite Considerations
To load balance the application, multiple servers will be required. There are three (3) primary architectural configurations supported in PSIcapture Mailroom 3.3+
- Single Server Configuration (default deployment model): Database, File, Web/API services all reside on a single machine.
- Distributed Configuration: File and Web/API services reside on separate machines. DB services may reside on file server or another server.
- Load Balanced Configuration: Database services reside on a dedicated machine. File services reside on a dedicated machine. Multiple Web/API servers are deployed on separate machines. A load balancing application is deployed as a single, customer-facing endpoint.
Load balancing is achieved using a load balancing application that serves as a single endpoint to which customers may connect (e.g., a single URL). The load balancing application is configured to load balance two (2) or more servers hosting the PSIcapture Mailroom Web Server application (including the API).
Instructions to configure your load balancing application are considered out of scope. Please note that session management on your load balancing application should treat user sessions as "sticky" or "persistent" for the PSIcapture Mailroom application.
Please also refer to the Systems Requirements document to ensure your hardware requirements are sufficient. The Web/API server component performance is directly tied to the processor and memory capacity.
Download and Run Installer
These instructions assume you have already deployed your Kofax PSIcapture File Server and the first PSIcapture Mailroom Web Server per the instructions.
Note: When using load balancing, follow the Load Balancing Configuration (#3) noted in Prerequisite Considerations.
If needed, download the installer with assistance from PSIGEN or Kofax Support staff.
Run Kofax.PSIcapture.Mailroom.WebServer.Setup.x.x.x.exe, which displays the following screen:
Check “I agree to the License terms and conditions” checkbox, and then click the "Install" button.
Once the installation completes, open "Deployment Manager" via the Windows Start menu or by browsing to the location of the application (default location: C:\Program Files (x86)\PSIGEN\Fusion) and proceed to the next steps to license the Load Balance Server.
Licensing the Load Balance Server
When the Deployment Manager opens, the following screen will appear:
Select “Load Balance Server” and fill out the following details as described below:
Deployment Path - Set this to the UNC path for the deployment folder, in either IPv4 Address or IPv6 Machine Name format, e.g. 10.1.1.12\Fusion or DOC-PC7\Fusion. The default Mailroom Deployment folder is:
C:\ProgramData\PSIGEN\Fusion\Deployments
UNC UserName and Password - Use the credentials specified in prior installation steps. The user account should be granted full read/write access to the deployment folder above, in the exact same fashion as the standard installation guide describes, or as configured in Active Directory by an IT Administrator, who has been granted access to the folder.
NOTE: In some cases when opening the Deployment Manager for the first time, the product key will not display as intended. Simply close the deployment manager and reopen it again, making sure to verify your product key.
Verify the following before proceeding:
- Deployment path should be accessible from the original installation machine (Web Server or Web Server 2, depending on your configuration).
- If the deployment path is properly accessed and the secondary machine reads the original deployment's configuration files without issue, the "Add New" button should be disabled. This is because a deployment already exists in that location, so there is no need to create a new deployment for this secondary Load Balancing Server.
- As noted above, in some cases the Product Key will be empty/null for when opening the Deployment Manager for the first time. Simply close and reopen the deployment manager and the product key area of the licensing sections will be displayed as intended.
- Restart the Application pool from IIS Manager before proceeding, as pictured in the screenshot below:
- After successfully saving your deployment licensing information, open IIS Manager, and browse to the Web application as seen below:
Which subsequently displays the PSIcapture Mailroom Web Portal login page:
Update Load Balancing Server URL
Browse to the path below on both the original installation (Web Server 1) and the Load Balancing Server (Web Server 2):
C:\Program Files (x86)\PSIGEN\Fusion\Deployments\[Deployment Name]\App
In above path, [Deployment Name] refers to the given name determined in the Licensing Step for the deployment, typically when the licensing is performed on the original installation (Web Server 1).
Once the above path is open in Windows Explorer, locate “Web.config”, as seen below:
Right-click and open the Web.config file in Notepad or similar text editor.
Search below setting in configuration file by searching “PSIGEN.Fusion.Services.IReactorService”
As seen in the screenshot above, the default URL is "localhost", which needs to be changed to our new Load Balancing Server URL, typically the IPv4 Address within the local network/domain, but in some instances the IPv6 Machine Name can be used.
Default address = http://localhost:13681/Handlers/Reactor.svc
Example updated address = http://40.90.210.56/Handlers/Reactor.svc
Save the file and, when complete, be sure to restart the application pool in IIS manager for the Mailroom website on all load balanced web servers, as well as the original installation.
Now, configure your Load Balancing applications as recommended by its provider and enter the addresses of the Web Servers to be load balanced.
This completes the Load Balancing Server installation process. For more information, see the following links:
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