Server management overview

Crystal Enterprise includes two key administrative tools that allow you to view and to modify a variety of server settings. These two tools are the Crystal Management Console and the Crystal Configuration Manager:

• Crystal Management Console (CMC)

  The CMC is the web-based administration tool that allows you to view and to modify server settings while Crystal Enterprise is running. For instance, you will use the CMC when you need to change the status of a server, change server settings, access server metrics, or create server groups. Because the CMC is a web-based interface, you are able to configure your Crystal Enterprise servers remotely over the Internet or through your corporate intranet.

• Crystal Configuration Manager (CCM)

  The CCM is a program that allows you to view and to modify server settings while Crystal Enterprise is offline. It also allows you to accomplish tasks that require you to take Crystal Enterprise offline. For instance, you use the CCM to stop the Web Component Server (WCS) or the Automated Process Scheduler (APS), to start Crystal Enterprise after you have stopped the system completely, and to change the default server port numbers. This tool also allows you to configure Crystal Enterprise remotely over your corporate network.

You can accomplish some configuration tasks with both tools, while other tasks must be performed with a specific tool. This section takes a task-oriented approach to server management by first explaining the server settings that are available to you, and then by showing how to accomplish each task with whichever tool(s) are appropriate.

Click the appropriate link to jump to that section:

• Viewing current metrics
• Viewing and changing the current status of servers
• Configuring the intelligence tier
• Configuring the processing tier
• Logging server activity
• Advanced server configuration options

Related topics

• For an overview of the multi-tier architecture and the Crystal Enterprise server components, see Crystal Enterprise Architecture.
• For information about creating groups of servers, see Server group overview.
• With the Crystal Enterprise Software Development Kit (SDK), you can now access and modify server metrics and settings from your own web applications. For details, see the Crystal Enterprise Web Developer's Guide.