ClayCentral

Some administration tips for ClayCentral, the Digital-Clay server application. ClayCentral is the middle-tier server sitting in front of the database, and it handles security, automation, and all the queries and requests from clients, managing its own connections to the database (see Maximum Threads Setting).

ClayCentral can be run both as a regular application, and as a Windows service. In the vast majority of cases, ClayCentral must be run as a service so that it is always available as soon as the server machine boots up, and regardless of whether a Windows user is logged in (see also ClayCentral Exits When Windows User Logs Off).

ClayCentral is installed as a Windows service by default, and runs automatically when Windows starts up. Developers may also choose to disable the Windows Service, and run ClayCentral as an application as necessary.

Some special issues to keep in mind when ClayCentral runs as a service:

• ClayCentral will only appear in the process list, not the Windows task list, and an additional 'service.exe' process will also appear in the list. This utility is what runs ClayCentral as a service.

• The ClayCentral system tray icon will not appear in most cases when it is run as a service, especially in Windows Vista/7 and up. See also Windows Vista (and up) and ClayCentral Issues.

• By default, Windows services run as a System user with limited or different permissions. This configuration may be changed if necessary using the Services control panel. Some problems may appear if the System user does not have enough permissions to read and write files and directories (e.g. the C:\DigitalClay folder). See also Automation/WebClayStation Create Document Errors.

To Move ClayCentral to another machine:

1. Install Digital-Clay on another machine.
2. Export/import all the registry settings from HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\DigitalClay\Central . Some settings, especially the locations/paths, may need to be adjusted if the new machine has a different configuration or drives.
3. Copy the C:\DigitalClay\ folder in its entirety to the new machine. If you configured a different location for Data, Attachments, Injection, or the MDB database, then these must be copied separately as well.
4. If you are using an SQL Server database as the backend then this database will also need to be moved unless the new ClayCentral can connect to the old SQL Server server machine from the new machine.
5. Test settings such as Automation mail and Data Injection to ensure that the new ClayCentral can connect to the locations and servers that it needs.
6. If you setup Windows Search for the Search in Documents feature, then this must be re-installed, configured and re-indexed on the new machine.

Important note regarding making copies of ClayCentral: If you are creating a duplicate of your ClayCentral setup for another machine or company, then it is strongly suggested that you remove the DBID in the new database. Explanation: When offline clients connect to ClayCentral, they use the unique DBID per database to ensure that they are connecting to a compatible database in order to avoid dumping inappropriate data in the wrong database. If the new machine is intended to be used as a new/alternative system, delete the value in the DBID table, and a new one will be generated.

It is possible to run multiple ClayCentrals on the same machine from version 9.0 and up, each with its own database, but this must be set up manually:

Each copy of ClayCentral needs the following:

• Its own registry branch for storing settings. These settings include the location of the database, attachments and profiles, connectivity information, as well as any company-specific configuration settings.

• Its own listening port for client connections. The clients must also be configured (in the Login window) to connect to this port.

• Its own database. This is critical: If two ClayCentrals run on the same database, this can cause data corruption and many unexpected issues.

• Its own Windows service.

To set up a second ClayCentral on the same machine:

1. Create a new registry folder/key underneath HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\DigitalClay\Central. For example, 'db2'.

2. Create a new ClayCentral Windows service. Using a command prompt, go to the \Program Files (x86)\Digital-Clay\Central\ folder, and if 'db2' is our example, run:

service -install -SName=ClayCentraldb2 -Command="C:\Program Files (x86)\Digital-Clay\Central\ClayCentral.exe /regkey db2" -Process=ClayCentral.exe -DisplayName=ClayCentraldb2

Alternatively, if you want to run the second ClayCentral manually, you can create a batch file that runs: “C:\Program Files (x86)\Digital-Clay\Central\ClayCentral.exe /regkey db2”

3. Next, you can either create and/or copy the registry settings yourself from the original ClayCentral, making the appropriate modifications (minimally, you must set a new LastServerPort, and set the new database with DBPath or DBSQLDB, and change AttachmentsLocation if it exists).

OR

Stop the original ClayCentral, run the new ClayCentral service, and make all the changes to the settings from the ClayStudio “ClayCentral Settings” tool (minimally set the listening port and database settings). Then restart the new ClayCentral, and then the old ClayCentral.

You must never run two ClayCentrals at the same time if they are both configured to use the same database.

To uninstall a ClayCentral service, run:

service -uninstall -SName=ClayCentraldb2

Note that Auto-updates must be turned off in this scenario with multiple ClayCentrals, because each ClayCentral would not be able to update itself when other ClayCentrals are running.