Introduction
This section describes how to install PhixFlow.
Pre-conditions
Before installation starts it is assumed that all system pre-requisites have been completed as documented in PhixFlow System Planning, specifically that
- you have installed a database server,
- you have configured a database instance / schema and user / login credentials
- you have installed a (Linux or Windows) server to act as the web-application (webapp) host
and, optionally, that
- you have installed a Linux or Windows server to act as the reverse proxy / HTTPS proxy
Installation
For a complete installation, follow these instructions as given.
Install Tomcat
Download and install the Apache Tomcat web-application (webapp) server.
Download / Unpack PhixFlow
If you have not been given the PhixFlow package to install, you can download any published version from our support FTP site. Please contact PhixFlow Support for details.
Logon to the webapp host and unpack the PhixFlow release package.
Configure the Database
Use the installer to populate the database.
Install the PhixFlow Web Application
Copy the PhixFlow webapp from the unpacked release package into Tomcat and configure it. See Install PhixFlow Webapp for details.
Start PhixFlow
You should now be able to start Tomcat, start the PhixFlow client and login as the startup user (password: 'Startup').
System Configuration
Configure the directories under System Directories. See System Configuration for details.
The Temporary File Location is especially important as it is used when Exporting / Importing files.
Create Users
You should immediately create new users, including at least one administrator, then disable or delete the startup user.
Import Component Templates (if required)
Import the component templates file if this is your first PhixFlow instance.
See Import Templates and Formats for more information on when and how to install the templates.
Configure HTTPS
PhixFlow should always be configured to allow HTTPS connections to the webapp and to disable HTTP access.
Using default ports on Linux
If you want to make your web server visible on the default ports (http: 80, https: 443) on Linux, we recommend using a reverse proxy.
In this configuration, the reverse proxy runs as root, which allows it to use privileged ports (up to 1000), and forwards requests to the web server which runs as a non-privileged user (normally 'tomcat'), on non-privileged ports (above 1000).
Tomcat on Linux
Do not run Tomcat as root on Linux as this constitutes a security risk.
Reverse Proxy
We recommend using a reverse proxy to terminate the HTTPS session and to forward web requests using HTTP to the Tomcat server. This solution requires that the proxy and tomcat servers run on a private network (or on the same server), and that the tomcat server is not directly accessible by normal users.
To install a reverse proxy on Linux, see Install the 'pound' reverse proxy.
To configure IIS as a reverse proxy on Windows, see here.
Tomcat
It is also possible to configure HTTPS directly in tomcat.
Configure for Resilience (optional)
PhixFlow can be configured to have a hot stand-by webapp shadowing the active webapp, such that the standby webapp will automatically take over in the event that the active server fails.
See Configuring for Resilience for details.
Configure for Active Directory Users (optional)
PhixFlow can be configured to allow users to be validated against one or more Active Directory servers in addition to users that are defined locally within the PhixFlow database.
See Configure Active Directory Integration for details.
Configure for SAML / Single Sign-on Users (optional)
PhixFlow can be configured to allow users to be validated against a single SAML Identity Provider in addition to users that are defined locally within the PhixFlow database.
See Configure SAML Integration for details.
Other Resources
The following pages may contain additional useful resources.
SQLServer Integrated Authentication