Unix/ Linux installation: these instructions guide you to setting up tomcat to run as a service under the classic init mechanism on unix/ linux (System V) since this will be available on all platforms, but you should consider using Upstart, a more modern init mechanism that will be available on most modern unix/ linux distributions. Installation using upstart is widely covered on the web.

Further, at some versions of tomcat, on certain unix/ linux versions, a complete tomcat installation can be performed using a few simple package commands. Before you begin, a web search for tomcat installation at the desired version of tomcat, on the installed version of your unix/ linux distribution, may give you a much simpler installation method.

However you install tomcat, please note the settings that are needed under configuring tomcat

Download

The System Administrator should have set up a linked directory structure like [c:]/opt/tomcat. The details of this may differ between installations so from this point on, the “root” tomcat directory will be referred to as $TOMCAT.

Download the appropriate version of Tomcat from tomcat.apache.org and unpack (unzip/uncompress) into the $TOMCAT. (Refer to Compatibility Guide and Upgrade Planning for supported versions).

Install

Some instructions are given here for installing tomcat, and making it run as a service. You should ensure that any installation meets with your company standards.

Installing on windows

Follow these instructions.

Installing on unix/ linux

Follow these instructions.

Configure tomcat

Having completed the basic tomcat installation, stop the tomcat service then make the following changes:

conf/context.xml: cache settings

The default Tomcat cache settings are insufficient for PhixFlow:

Edit $TOMCAT/conf/context.xml:

Add <Resources ... /> to at the end of the <Context/> block so that the file looks something like this:

<Context>
    <!-- lines omitted -->
	<Resources cachingAllowed="true" cacheMaxSize="1000000" />
</Context>

conf/server.xml: Connector settings

Edit $TOMCAT/conf/server.xml:

Find the line starting <Connector port="8080"

Edit the <Connector block to

Use the required port number (port="8080"). Tomcat defaults to port 8080 for HTTP, but you may need to use a different port if you are running other web servers on the same host.
Enable compression (compression="force"). Compressing responses from the server is particularly important if you are going to access the PhixFlow server over a slow connection (e.g. a mobile data connection).

After editing, the <Connector/> block should look like this:

<!-- Define a non-SSL HTTP/1.1 Connector on port 8080 -->
<Connector port="8080" protocol="HTTP/1.1"
           connectionTimeout="20000"
           redirectPort="8443"
           compress="force"/>

Remember to enable this port in the server’s firewall (if enabled).

web.xml: Session timeout

The default session timeout period is 30 minutes.

We recommend that you change this to a longer period, e.g. 12 hours (720 minutes).

Edit $TOMCAT/conf/web.xml

Find the line containing <session-timeout.

Change the session timeout period from its default value (30 mins). Once changed, it should look something like this (this example shows a 12-hour timeout).

<session-config>
	<session-timeout>720</session-timeout>
</session-config>

Supplied Web Applications

Tomcat Manager Webapp

The Manager Webapp is disabled by default.

Do not enable the Manager Webapp unless explicitly advised to do so by PhixFlow Support.

Database JDBC Drivers

The drivers needed to connect to PhixFlow’s own database are included within the release pack and no action is needed.

If you want to connect, via a Datasource, to an external database, you can rely on the bundled drivers to connect to any database that is one of PhixFlow's supported technologies and versions for its own connection - see Compatibility Guide and Upgrade Planning. If the external database is not covered by these, you will need to install a JDBC driver to support these connections. These JDBC drivers are available from the database suppliers, and must be placed in:

[tomcat home]/lib

For information on using SQLServer with Integrated Authentication, see SQLServer Integrated Authentication.

Install Tomcat