Netscape Application Server-- Installing and Configuring Multiple Servers

Administration Guide
Overview Guide
Installation Guide

About the Web Connector in a Multiple-Server Enterprise
The Web connector plug-in speeds users' requests to applications residing on the Netscape Application Server. In a multiple-server enterprise, you can specify to which Netscape Application Server the Web connector connects and to which Netscape Application Server the Web connector logs Web server requests.

The specified Netscape Application Server is the default server to and from which the Web connector exchanges requests and other application information. When the load balancer plug-in does not specify an alternate Netscape Application Server to which to forward application requests, this default server is chosen. For more information about specifying this default Netscape Application Server, see "Specifying the Netscape Application Server to Which the Web Server Connects."

You can also specify the Netscape Application Server to which the Web connector sends the application request information for logging. For more information about Web server logging, see "About HTTP Web Server Logging." For more information about specifying the logging Netscape Application Server, see "Specifying the Netscape Application Server Responsible for Logging."

About Configuring the Web Connector Plug-in
When you use multiple Netscape Application Servers to support your enterprise application or applications, there are many ways to configure how the Web server forwards requests to the Netscape Application Server. These configuration options are provided by the Web connector plug-in. Use the configuration scenarios described in the following table to help you decide how to configure the Web connector plug-in:


Configuration Scenarios	What to Do
One Web server supporting multiple Netscape Application Servers without load balancing	Presumably, you have the application partitioned. Configure the Web plug-in to forward requests to the Netscape Application Server that host the AppLogic objects that process the initial requests from the Web browser. Use the other Netscape Application Servers to host the AppLogic objects invoked by the objects on the first server.
Multiple Web servers supporting multiple Netscape Application Servers without load balancing	If the application is not partitioned, configure each plug-in to forward requests to each appropriate Netscape Application Server. If the application is partitioned, configure each plug-in to forward requests to a Netscape Application Server that host the objects that process the initial Web browser requests. You can have multiple plug-ins connect to a single Netscape Application Server.
One Web server supporting multiple Netscape Application Servers with load balancing	The load balancing plug-in forwards application requests to the appropriate Netscape Application Server. As a default, configure the Web connector plug-in to forward requests to a Netscape Application Server that either performs the best or hosts the AppLogic objects that process the initial Web browser requests.
Multiple Web servers supporting multiple Netscape Application Servers with load balancing	The load balancing plug-in forwards application requests to the appropriate Netscape Application Server. As a default, configure the Web connector plug-ins to forward requests to each Netscape Application Server, or to the Netscape Application Server that either performs the best or hosts the AppLogic objects that process the initial Web browser requests.

When you are balancing application loads, the Web connector plug-in works with the load balancer plug-in to automatically distribute requests across the multiple Netscape Application Servers. This prevents all requests from going to one Netscape Application Server. For more information about the load balancer plug-in, see "About the Load Balancer Plug-in."

If you are not balancing application loads, you have to configure to which Netscape Application Servers a Web server forwards application requests.

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