Reflection for the Web Usage Metering Explained

Reflection for the Web Usage Metering Explained
Technical Note 2189
Last Reviewed 13-Nov-2008
Applies To
Reflection for the Web 2008 (All Editions)
Reflection Administrator 2008
Reflection for the Web version 8.0 through 9.x
Reflection Administrator version 8.0 through 9.x
Summary

This technical note explains the functionality provided by Reflection for the Web Usage Metering, describes how metering works, and then describes how to set up metering and view metering reports.

This information is provided in the following sections:

Usage Metering Features
How Usage Metering Works
Which Products Work with the Metering Server?
How to Set Up the Metering Server

Usage Metering Features

The Reflection usage metering servlet enables you to monitor host sessions using the following features.

License Pool Configuration

A license pool comprises the licenses for a given product, type (production, evaluation, pre-release), and VPA number. When the server receives a metering message from a new product/type/VPA, a license pool is automatically created in the server's list of license pools.

Usage Logging

Connection activity is recorded in daily log files. You can specify the number of days the log files are stored before they are automatically deleted. Reflection uses the log data to generate reports summarizing usage information, such as connection activity, hourly usage levels, and connections from a specific client or to a specific host. You can use the Reflection Metering Reports page to create a variety of reports that use the logged data.

Connection Monitoring

When the Reflection client and server are configured for metering, you can monitor the number of Reflection user workstations connecting to host computers. You can also choose to receive e-mail notification when the concurrent number of workstations using metered Reflection clients increases beyond a specified limit. This notification feature also allows you to monitor concurrent product usage without enforcing a license limit.

Connection Limit (Reflection for the Web Clients Only)

You can configure Reflection to limit the number of hosts that each Reflection for the Web user can connect to at one time. If you specify a maximum number of connections per user, Reflection blocks all additional connections from each workstation beyond the number you set. This limit is available for web-based sessions only.

Concurrent License Enforcement

The concurrent license enforcement feature allows you to control the total number of user workstations using Reflection to make host connections at the same time. When you configure metering, you can enter the maximum number of computers allowed to concurrently run Reflection; all attempted license use beyond this number can be blocked.

How Usage Metering Works

Administrators can use the Reflection for the Web metering server to audit both Windows- and Web-based Reflection sessions.

The following diagram shows how usage metering works in Reflection for the Web. Each of the steps is described in detail below the diagram.

Using a web browser, a Reflection user connects to a web server.
The terminal emulation applet is downloaded to the user's machine.
When the user initiates a host connection (3A), the applet notifies the metering server (3B), and the metering servlet begins logging the client connection.
While the user is connected to the host (4A), the applet sends periodic updates to the metering server (4B) until the user disconnects.

Metering of Windows-based Reflection sessions works in a similar way. When a user starts the Windows-based Reflection client, Reflection notifies the metering server, which begins logging the product usage. Reflection then sends updates to metering server at regular intervals until the user shuts down the client.

The Reflection usage metering server must be installed on a web server that has a servlet runner installed. This can be the same server that hosts the Reflection for the Web management server, or a different server.

Which Products Work with the Metering Server?

You can use the Reflection metering server to audit, control access to, and report the usage of Reflection sessions.

Product and Version	Metering Support
Reflection for UNIX and OpenVMS 2008 *	Yes
Reflection for UNIX and OpenVMS 12.0 - 14.x	Yes
Reflection for HP with NS/VT 12.0 - 14.x	Yes
Reflection for IBM 2008 *	Yes
Reflection for IBM 2007	No
Reflection for IBM 12.0 - 14.x	Yes
Reflection X 2008	No
Reflection X 12.0 - 14.x	Yes
Reflection FTP Client 12.0 - 14.x	No

* To meter Reflection 2008 products, note the following:

Reflection 2008 products require Reflection for the Web 2008 R2 or Reflection Administrator 2008 R2.
The Reflection for the Web 2008 login/links list does not currently support Reflection for UNIX and OpenVMS 2008, Reflection for IBM 2008, or Reflection X 2008 connections. These products can be metered, but cannot be started from the login/links list.

How to Set Up the Metering Server

This technical note steps you through the process to configure the Reflection metering server to work with Reflection for the Web web-based sessions or with Windows-based Reflection products.

Before You Begin

The Reflection management server and the metering server must be installed. The metering server is installed by default when you automatically install any of the following Reflection for the Web products:

Reflection for the Web 2008 (All editions)
Reflection for the Web 9.0 - 9.6
Reflection Administrator 2008
Reflection Administrator 9.0 - 9.6

For detailed information on installing the management server and the metering server, see the Installation Guide.

Reflection for the Web 2008: http://support.attachmate.com/manuals/rweb2008.html

Reflection for the Web 9.x: http://support.attachmate.com/manuals/wthdocs.html

The following steps are required to set up the metering server to meter web- and Windows-based sessions.

I. Start the Metering Server
II. Configure the Metering Server
III. Create a Metered Session
IV. Access and Configure the Metering Server Configuration Tool
V. Configure the Reflection License Pools
VI. View Metering Reports

I. Start the Metering Server

Note: This step is only necessary if you manually installed Reflection. If you used the automated installer the server runs automatically as a service. Go directly to II. Configure the Metering Server.

The Reflection usage metering server is a Java servlet that runs within a servlet runner or application server. If you choose to use a servlet runner other than the one automatically installed with Reflection (Tomcat), refer to the documentation supplied with your servlet runner for information on where to install web applications and what settings to configure.

These directions assume that you have already installed the Tomcat servlet runner (tomcat.zip). For more information about installing tomcat.zip, see the Installation Guide at the root of the appropriate product CD.

For details about installing the Tomcat servlet runner on non-Windows operating systems see Technical Notes 1824 and 1778.

Locate the rwebmeter archive files on the Reflection product CD for your platform in the /install/nonautomated/ directory.
Install either the .war or .zip file:

To install rwebmeter.war, create an rwebmeter directory within the webapps directory, and extract rwebmeter.war into the rwebmeter directory. The path to the rwebmeter directory will be usr/local/ReflectionServer/jakarta-tomcat-[version number]/webapps/rwebmeter/.
To install rwebmeter.zip, you do not need to create the rwebmeter directory; it will be created when you unzip the file.

Open the web.xml file in a text editor, such as Notepad. The path to the file is /usr/local/ReflectionServer/jakarta-tomcat-[version number]/webapps/rwebmeter/WEB-INF/web.xml.
In the web.xml file, replace the value for rwebdata_location_placeholder with /usr/local/ReflectionServer/ReflectionData. The resulting lines look like this:

<context-param>
<param-name>ReflectionData</param-name>
<param-value>/usr/local/ReflectionServer/ReflectionData</param-value>
</context-param>

Save your changes.

II. Configure the Metering Server

Before you can create a metered terminal session, the metering server must be added to the Administrative WebStation.

Note: This section is not necessary for Windows-based Reflection sessions.

Open the Administrative WebStation and click Settings.
On the Metering tab, under Current Metering Servers, verify that your metering server is shown.

Note: If you installed Reflection using the automated installer, and installed onto the same machine that houses the Reflection Management Server, the metering server was automatically added using the default settings (port 80 for HTTP or port 443 for HTTPS).

If your metering server is listed, you can skip to III. Create a Metered Session. If not:

In the "Metering web server name" field, enter the name of your metering server. This is the full name or IP address of the server on which the metering component is installed.
In the "Metering web server port" field, enter the port number. The default ports are 80 for HTTP and 443 for HTTPS. Or, if your web server is integrated with IIS, the default ports are 8880 (HTTP) and 8443 (HTTPS).

Note: If you plan to use HTTPS for the connection between client browsers and the metering server, a web server certificate is required. For further details, see Technical Note 1600.

In the "Metering servlet context" field, enter the name of the directory in which you installed the metering component. The default is rwebmeter.
If you are using HTTPS for metering, select the Use HTTPS check box, otherwise leave it cleared.
Click the Add to Table button.

Your metering server should now appear under Current Metering Servers.

III. Create a Metered Session

Creating and then running a metered Reflection for the Web session automatically creates the product license pools, which you will configure in V. Configure the Reflection License Pools.

The metering server can be used to meter both Reflection web-based sessions and Reflection Windows-based product sessions.

Meter Web-based Sessions
Meter Windows-based Sessions

Meter Web-based Sessions

To enable metering in Reflection for the Web web-based sessions, follow these steps:

In the Administrative WebStation, click Session Manager.
Click the Add button or click an existing session name to edit it.
Select a Web-based session type, enter a Session name, and then click Continue.
On the Configure a Web-Based Reflection Session page, click the Launch button.
In the applet, click Administration > Metering Setup.
Select the Enable usage metering check box, and make sure that the correct metering server is selected in the Metering web server box.
By default, the "Require metering host" check box is cleared so that connections are made even if the metering server is unavailable. Select this check box if you want connections to be made only when the metering server is available.
Click OK.
Click File > Save/Exit.
If your Access Control Setup is set to none, click "Map session access," select the session name, and then click Save Settings.

Meter Windows-based Sessions

To use metering with Reflection Windows-based products, you must configure the Windows-based clients for metering. For details, see Technical Note 2393.

IV. Access and Configure the Metering Server Configuration Tool

Use the Reflection Metering Configuration tool to configure the server for your environment. This setup step is not required. If you make no changes to the server options, the default metering configuration is used.

Start the metering server services (servlet runner).

In Windows:

If you installed as an NT service, the service starts automatically. Skip to step 2.
If you used the automated Windows installer, but did not install as a service, go to Start > Programs > Attachmate <Reflection product name> > Start Servlet Runner.
If you installed manually, run the startup.bat file in [Reflection management server installation]/jakarta-tomcat/bin/.

In UNIX/Linux or Mac:

If you installed using an archive file, run startup.sh in [Reflection management server installation]/jakarta-tomcat-[version number]/bin/.

To run startup.sh, at the prompt, enter the following command: ./startup.sh

Note: If you are installing to Mac OS X Server, log in as root.

In iSeries or AS/400:

In the HTTP server for AS/400, click IBM Web Administrator for <version>, click the ASF Tomcat Servers tab, and then configure and start the service.

Open the Metering Configuration tool.

In Windows:

If you used an automated installer, go to Start > Programs > Attachmate Reflection for the Web (or Reflection Administrator) > Metering Configuration.

If the metering tool does not open, make sure the metering service is running (Start > Control Panel > Services and start Reflection Server), then try again.

If you installed using an archive file or from a machine other than the server, open a browser and go to the metering configuration URL, which will be in this form:

http://<host name>:<port number>/<metering server
context name>/AdminStart.html

For example, if you used the default settings, the URL might be:

http://MeteringServer/rwebmeter/AdminStart.html

In UNIX/Linux or Mac:

To access the meter configuration tool, open a browser and enter the metering configuration URL:

http://[host name]:[port number]/[metering server context name]/AdminStart.html

For example, if you used the default settings, the URL might be:

http://MeteringServer/rwebmeter/AdminStart.html

The default password is admin.

In iSeries or As/400:

To access the meter configuration tool, open a browser and enter the following URL.

Syntax:

http://<myserver>:<default_port>/<context_root>/AdminStart.html

For example:

http://AS400.atm.com:3022/rwebmeter/AdminStart.html

A log on page opens. Enter the Metering administrator password, and click Submit.

The default password is admin. If you used an automated installer, use the password you entered during installation.

Click Configure (next to Change server settings).
Passwords: These are optional settings. The Administrator password provides access to these configuration pages and to the metering reports. The Reports password provides access to the metering reports, but does not provide access to the metering configuration. If you used an automated installer, the password you entered during installation is the default for both passwords here. If you installed the archive file, the default for both passwords is admin.
Metering logs: Specify the number of days to save log files. Reflection automatically deletes log files that are older than the value specified here. The default is 120. Specify the number of minutes between metering log entries or checkpoints. The default is 60 minutes; which means that entries are logged once per hour.
Metered client: Specify how often the client sends a heartbeat signal to the server to communicate that it is running. Select the check box if you want the hosts that users connect to included in the metering log. Host connection tracking is not available for Reflection X, Web-based AS/400 data transfer, and FTP sessions.
E-mail notification options: These are optional settings. To send e-mail notifications when the number of concurrent licenses is exceeded, enter the SMTP server to use and the e-mail account name that will be shown as the sender of the e-mail.
Click Submit to save your settings and return to the main configuration page, Cancel to discard your changes and return to the main configuration page, or Help for more information about these options.

V. Configure the Reflection License Pools

Note: Before proceeding, make sure that you followed the procedure in III. Create a Metered Session to create and then run your metered sessions. Doing so creates the product license pools.

In the Metering Configuration tool, (to access the tool, see IV. Access and Configure the Metering Server Configuration Tool), under License Pool Settings, click a link for the product you want to configure.

License pools are automatically created in the License Pool Settings list after a metered instance of the product has been run (see III. Create a Metered Session).

When you ran each metered session, the Product, Product type, and VPA number were specified, and appear here under as static text under "Reflection product."
Select the type of license (either nonconcurrent or concurrent).
Enter the number of licenses covered by the agreement.
Enter the Major version number of the product. For example, if you are using Reflection for the Web version 14.02, enter 14.
Optional: If you want to block users from running Reflection or making connections when the number of concurrent users exceeds the number of concurrent licenses, then select the "Limit number of concurrent users to number of licenses" check box.

Note: This feature dose not work unless you have also selected "Concurrent" in the License Type drop-down list and entered the number of concurrent licenses into the Number of licenses field.

Optional: If concurrent license limits have been exceeded, the management server can notify administrators you list here. (You must also configure the global SMTP and e-mail account name fields when you configure metering options. See IV. Access and Configure the Metering Server Configuration Tool for details.) Enter e-mail addresses separated by commas. E-mail notifications can be sent if Concurrent is selected as the license type.