Installation guide for IBM Connections Docs 2 on a single server

1. IBM Connections Docs
2.0 install guide
Roberto Boccadoro – ELD Engineering
Martti Garden - IBM

2. What is IBM Connections Docs ?
With IBM Docs, teams can simultaneously collaborate
on word processing, spreadsheet and presentation
documents inside and outside the firewall to improve
productivity.
IBM Docs authors will be able to store and share
documents in IBM SmartCloud, IBM Connections on
premise or Filenet, co-edit documents in real time or
edit the most up-to-date version on the server
regardless if the editing session is concurrent,
asynchronous or individual... this greatly decreases the
management of multiple revisions from multiple authors
in team-based documents.
IBM Docs requires only a browser. There is no other
desktop software to install. Utilizing the web browser,
users will be able to easily create professional looking
documents and share them with others. IBM Docs is
designed to be simple yet powerful, allowing users to
get started quickly and easily.
Web-based collaborative editors for creating, sharing and collaboratively
authoring word processor documents, spreadsheets and presentations.

3. IBM Connections Docs components
• An IBM Connections Docs deployment consists of six components:
• Docs Editing server (document service)
This component provides the core logic for processing of the documents.
• Document Format Conversion server (conversion service)
This component performs document type transformations.
• Docs extension plug-in and daemon library
These components are the integration elements which enable IBM Connections users to open and edit a document
within the Connections Docs context.
• File Viewer server (viewer service)
The viewer service enables viewing of the latest published version of a document.
• File Viewer extension plug-in and daemon library
These components are the integration element which enable Connections users to view a document within the
Connections Docs context.
• Docs proxy
The proxy is used for session affinity in Connections Docs. Session affinity routes requests for the same document
from different clients to the same Docs server node.

4. Architecture (medium to large)
*
**
*Also suppports Oracle & MS SQL
**Also supports CIFS on Windows

5. Shared storage
• Connections Docs shared storage is used by each of the Connections Docs components to store
drafts or transfer files between servers. There are three shares that need to be configured for
Connections Docs.
• The Connections Docs and Conversion components share storage for the editing and publishing of
documents. This shared storage is supported for either NFSv3 or CIFS (SMB). This share is
referred to as DOCS DATA.
• The File Viewer and Conversion components share storage for the viewing of documents. If File
Viewer and Conversion are installed on the same server, this storage can be local. If they are
installed on different servers, this shared storage is supported for either NFSv3 or CIFS (SMB).
This share is referred to as VIEWER DATA.
• The File Viewer and Connections Files components share storage for the viewing of documents. If
File Viewer and Connections Files are installed on the same server, this storage can be local. If
they are installed on different servers, this shared storage is supported for either NFS or CIFS
(SMB). This share is referred to as the Connections Files Content Store.

6. Installation Steps

7. Software needed
Before the installation you will need to download the following
software:
• IBM Connections Docs V2.0 (Partnumber CN7ZLML)
• IBM Connections Docs 2.0 iFix 001
• Python 2.7.x
It is assumed, that you already have IBM Connections 5.0 or 5.5
installed and have access to the Connections database server (this
guide will use DB2).
Since in this case it is a single server installation the IBM Installation
Manager of IBM Connections will be reused.

8. First we need to create two shares for IBM Docs. We create them in C:IBM
and name them DocsShare and ViewerShare.

9. Now we need to Install Python, use version 2.7.x and not 3.x. With
3.x the installation *will* fail.
Select to install for all users

10. The default installation path is fine, so accept and click next

11. Make sure “Add python.exe to Path” is selected! Click Next again.

12. Click Finish

13. Check if the Python Path variable has been correctly set:
Open a command prompt and type “set”

14. If the variable is not set, right click on Computer and click on Properties
Then click on Advanced system settings ..

15. Click on Environment Variables

16. If Python is not present in Path, click on Edit.

17. At the end of the Variable value line add ;C:Python27 (pay attention to the
leading semicolon) and click OK.
Click OK again to close the window.

18. Click OK for one more time.

19. In the next step we need to create the IBM Docs database.
Unpack the file DOCS_2.0_WINLIN_ML.zip
It will create the following folders

20. Open a DB2 Command Window - Administrator

21. Navigate to the directory where you unzipped the files, e.g c:installSetupDBdb2
and run createDb.bat. You need to be patient, it may appear that nothing happens
for a few minutes.

22. Some minutes later you should see all commands have been completed
successfully. Now run the updateDBSchema.bat command.

23. At the end you will see this

24. The databases have been created with access rights to a user called
DocsUser. As we want to use the same user as we use with IBM
Connections, we need to grant access to lcuser. In the same folder edit
appGrants.sql.

25. Replace all occurrences of DOCSUSER with LCUSER and save the
document.

26. Now go back to the DB2 command line processor and run the
following command:
db2 –td@ -f appGrants.sql

27. You should see all command being run successfully.
Close the db2 Command Window

28. IBM Docs now comes with a new graphical installer based on IBM
Installation Manager. This will make the installation much easier for us.
Make sure that Connections is running
We now need to start the Installation Manager.
Click on File-Preferences

29. click on Add Repository

30. Click on Browse

31. Go in the directory where you have unzipped the files
..installIBMConnectionsDocs-repo ans select repository.config
Click Open

32. Click OK

33. Click Ok again

34. Now click Install
Select IBM Connections Docs and click Next

35. Accept the license terms and click Next

36. The default installation directory is fine so click Next.

37. As we have installed IBM Connections as CCM, meaning together with
Filenet select Connections and Content Manager.
Deselect the Editor Proxy, as it is only needed, when you have more than
one Docs Server. Click Next.

38. On the information panel, make sure to check User Account Control
Disabled and click Next.

39. Now enter the wasadmin and corresponding password and click on browse.

40. Go to C:IBMWebSphereAppServerProfilesAppSrv01
and click OK.

41. Click on Validate
You will get no confirmation pop up.
Once the Next button becomes available click it.

42. Now we need to map the Nodes to the Applications. Map all application
to the first node and the webserver by first selecting the nodename and
then the “>>” button at the proper application.
Scroll down

43. Click on Validate
Again you will get no notification popup when the validation is done.
Click on Next once it comes available.

44. Now we need to supply the local Admin username and password. This is necessary since it
is a remote deployment from the Deployment Manager. It just happens to be on the same
machine in our case. Enter Administrator and password in all instances. Then click Validate.
Click Next once it comes available.

45. On the next screen enter the following
values:
http://yourserver.com/fncmis
http://yourserver.com/dm
fadmin
http://yourserver.com/communities

46. We have no chat installed, so we just click Next.

47. In the following screen fill in the values for the database and click Next

48. The following panel is a bit confusing when installing everything locally. Fill it out as follows
and click Next:

49. Now it wants to know where to install the Conversion Server and how many
CPU cores to use. For the path choose C:IBMConversion and reduce the
cores to 2. The port should be fine.

50. Choose C:IBMDocs for the installation target for the Editor component
and click Next.

51. On the next Panel we don’t need to do anything and can click Next.

52. For the Extension directory browse to
C:IBMConnectionsdatasharedprovisionwebresources .
The Daemon should be installed in C:IBMConnectionsdatashared .
Click Next.

53. Now we can choose whether the Web and Connections server should be
restarted during the installation.
This is useful when installing IBM Connections Docs in production
environments because it allows you to do the Docs installation at any time
and to restart of the production Connections environment in a specific
maintenance time frame. Of course setting both to No will also decrease
the installation time a lot, since the Connections Server do not get restarted
once with each feature installed.
Since time does not matter we choose Yes for both. Click Next.

54. Click Next on the configuration file overview panel.

55. Now you click on Install and grab a coffee or two (or even have
lunch).

56. During the installation two black windows will pop up. This is expected (and
annoying, as they pop up every few minutes). These are the conversion
tasks running. At the end of the installation we will alter the Task Scheduler
to have them started hidden. So long just minimize them once they pop up.
In the end you should see the following screen:

57. Verifying the Docs installation
Log in to Connections at http://yourserver.com/homepage/login

58. Go in Apps - Files
Select New - Spreadsheet

59. Choose a filename and click Create
This tells us, that the Docs Editor works.

60. Now enter some data and then click on File / Publish Now.

61. Enter a description and click Publish.
This message shows you, that the version has been published. For this to
work the Conversion Server needs to be working properly, which we tested
and proved now.

62. Now upload a new file:
Click Browse and upload a file

63. Go in My Files and click the name of the file you uploaded

64. The file will be opened by the Viewer, click on the down arrow near the
Blue box on the right
Select Edit inDocs

65. The file will be opened in edit mode
This shows that the Viewer and the Editor of Connections Docs work

66. Now there is only one last thing to do: Change some settings in the Task
scheduled in the Task Scheduler
Go to the Windows Task Scheduler:

67. Click on Task Scheduler Library on the left, then double click on
the kill_timeout task
Change it to run whether the user is logged on or not and select
Do not store password. Also select hidden and then OK.

68. Do the same with the sym_monitor task
From the next reboot on the two black windows should not appear anymore.

69. I hope you were successful in installing everything!
If you have any comments please feel free to contact us!
roberto.boccadoro@eldeng.it
martti.garden@de.ibm.com