Load Balancing for the Gateway Server

Create two virtual host names. The virtual host name must be a fully qualified domain name (FQDN), in the format <servername>.<domainname>. This requirement is necessary to support Lightweight Single Sign On (LW-SSO) authentication.

The first host name is for accessing the OMi website on the gateway server. This URL can be distributed to OMi users. The second host name is for the data collectors to access the gateway server. This URL must be used when configuring data collectors to communicate with OMi.

Alternatively, create one virtual hostname and assign two ports to route the user and data traffic to OMi.

Enter the relevant load balancer host names in the infrastructure settings for the virtual servers. To do so, select:

Administration > Setup and Maintenance > Infrastructure Settings

Alternatively, click Infrastructure Settings.

Choose Foundations, select Platform Administration - Host Configuration table:

• Default Virtual Gateway Server for Application Users URL. Virtual host name for the OMi website. The gateway server you are working on must be able to resolve this virtual IP address. This means that nslookup for the virtual host name for the application users should return name and IP address when executed on this gateway server.
• Default Virtual Gateway Server for Data Collectors URL. Virtual host name for data collectors. All data collectors must be able to resolve this virtual IP address. This means that nslookup for the virtual host name for the data collectors should return name and IP address when executed on data collector server.

In the Reverse Proxy Configuration table, set the following parameters:

• Enable Reverse Proxy. Set this parameter to true.

• HTTP Reverse Proxy IPs. Add the internal IP addresses of the load balancers to this setting.

  • If the IP address of the load balancer sending the HTTP/S request is included, the URL returned to the client is either the Default Virtual Server URL or the Local Virtual Server URL (when defined).

  • If no IP addresses are defined for this parameter (not recommended), OMi works in Generic Mode. This means that you will only be able to log into OMi using the Virtual URL and not directly to the gateway.

  Note If your load balancer and OMi gateway servers are not in the same domain, you must add the IP of the reverse proxy to the HTTP Reverse Proxy IPs parameter. For more details, see LW-SSO configuration for multi-domain and nested domain installations.

To determine the internal IP of your load balancer:

1. Log in to OMi through the load balancer.

2. On the gateway server, open the following log file:

   <OMi_HOME>/log/jboss/UserActions.servlets.log

3. The IP that appears in the latest log-in line in this log is the internal load balancer IP. The entry should have your user name.

After changing the reverse proxy settings, restart the OMi service on the gateway and data processing servers.

Configure the load balancer for data collector access.

All data collectors must be able to access the virtual IP of the load balancer. Use the standard settings for the load balancer, but set the following:

• Set persistence to IP based stickiness or Destination Address Affinity (depending on the load balancer). If neither of these options are available and the choice is between Cookie based stickiness and stickiness by session enabled, then HPE recommends trying stickiness by session enabled.

• The load balancing method should be sticky.

• Use the following KeepAlive URL:

  • Send String: GET /ext/mod_mdrv_wrap.dll?type=test

  • Receive String: Web Data Entry is up

  Note If your OMi environment includes a firewall between the load balancer and the gateway server, and you are using the KeepAlive URL, make sure to open the port used to access the UI (usually port 80 or port 443).

• Configure the load balancer for BBC channel on port 383.

  • Port 383 needs to be open in both directions, meaning from the data collector through the load balancer to the gateway server, and from the gateway and data processing servers (not necessarily through the load balancer) to the data collectors. In this case, the data collector is any connection sending data on port 383, for example the Operations Agent, another instance of OMi, or the OpsCx.

  • The load balancing method should be “sticky session by IP address” for port 383.

  • Traffic on port 383 should be passed through on network layer 4 (not layer 7, no TLS offloading on the load balancer).

    With layer 7 balancing, the load balancer must do certificate validation. For details, see Hardening.

  • The load balancer's data connector address used for load balancing must be reachable and resolvable from all the OMi servers (gateway and data processing server ) as well.

Configure the load balancer for user access.

• Use the standard settings for the load balancer, but set persistence to stickiness by session enabled or Destination Address Affinity (depending on the load balancer). If neither of these options are available and the choice is between Cookie based stickiness and IP based stickiness, then HPE recommends trying IP based stickiness. If this is not done properly, you may experience intermittent user interface failures.

• Use the following KeepAlive URL:

  • Send String: GET /topaz/topaz_api/loadBalancerVerify_centers.jsp

  • Receive String: Success