It really depends on how you are using Mapguide as to which option would be the
best. I’ll outline the 2 methods I have used in the past but of course there
are multiple ways of dealing with the issue.
Option 1 – out of the box approach with a single, outward facing, server and a
number of slave map rendering servers.
This is what you get with MapGuide, with no customization, just a bit of
configuration. It’s been awhile since I have done this but from memory the
process is:
1) Install all of MapGuide (server and web components) as per normal on
server A.
2) On server B install only the MapGuide server component and when asked
either enter the static IP address of Server A or its name if using dynamic
IP’s.
3) On server C install only the MapGuide server component and when asked
either enter the static IP address of Server A or its name if using dynamic
IP’s.
I think I am missing one step but that is basically it. Server A will then
handle all the web service calls and server B, C, etc will handle the map
generation. Just make certain that you have the same FDO providers on all the
servers. There used to be some examples of this process on the MapGuide Wiki
but I couldn’t find them.
Option 2 – Using a load balancer, to control multiple MapGuide servers.
This option allows for failover and I’ve find it the best option if you are
using a tiles. There are a lot of load balancers out there so I’m not going to
name any products, it all depends on your budget and preferred OS. The basic
process is this;
1) Install all of MapGuide (server and web components) as per normal on
server A.
2) Install all of MapGuide (server and web components) as per normal on
server B.
3) Install all of MapGuide (server and web components) as per normal on
server C.
4) On Server A create your data connections, layers, maps, tiles, custom
code, etc, etc.
5) Create a package on server A and copy it and customizations to servers
B C
6) Import the package on servers B C, and tiles, code, etc.
7) Install the load balancer on server D and configure a common base URL
which will point to the same shared folder on Servers A, B, C i.e.
http://serverD/maps will point to http://serverA/mapguide;
http://serverB/mapguide, http://serverC/mapguide
8) The load balancer will then automatically switch the user between A, B,
C depending on server’s status and current load
The problem with both of the above options is a potential for file lock issues
if you are using file based data sources. This can be resolved by having a
central file share which updates local copies of the files on each of MapGuide
installations.
Hope that helps.
Mark
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