Autodesk 46304-050008-1600A - Vault R4 Essentials Aotc, Vault 2011 Implementation Manual

Autodesk Vault 2011

Implementation Guide

January 2009Part No. 569B1-050001-PM01A

©

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Contents

Vault Fundamentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Chapter 1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Book Organization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Conventions Used In This Book . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Key Terms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Chapter 2 Understand Autodesk Vault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Vault Architecture . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Web Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Database Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

File Store . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Vault Workgroup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Vault Collaboration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Vault Professional . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

How Vault Works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Autodesk Vault Clients . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Autodesk Vault Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Autodesk Vault Add-ins for Design Applications . . . . . . . . . . 11

Microsoft Office Add-in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Content Center . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

License Manager Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

iii

Network License Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

FLEXnet Configuration Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

SAMreport-Lite . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Installation Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Operating System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Microsoft SQL Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Hardware Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Other Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Chapter 3 Plan the Vault Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Information Check List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Use the Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Number of Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Number of Servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Server Hardware Specifications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Server Operating Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Firewalls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Applications on Servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Microsoft SQL Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Access Frequency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Network Speed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Install Vault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Chapter 4 Build the Vault Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Options for Installing Vault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Install FLEXnet for Vault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

How to Install the Network License Manager . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Configure a License Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Install and Use SAMreport-Lite (Optional) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Install Vault Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Pre-Install Microsoft SQL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Set Up Remote SQL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Windows XP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

Windows Vista . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Windows 7 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Windows Server 2003 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Windows Server 2008 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Upgrading Vault Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Migration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Before You Upgrade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Install Vault Server 2011 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Upgrade Microsoft SQL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

iv | Contents

Chapter 5 Install the Vault Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Data Management Client Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61

Client Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

Add-in Integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Configure and Maintain Vault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Chapter 6 Configure Basic Vault Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Log In the First Time . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Use Vault with a Proxy server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Manage User Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Add or Edit User Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Assigning Roles to User Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Grant Vault Access to Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Disable User Accounts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Assign Users to Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Chapter 7 Configure Vault Workgroup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Revision . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Choose the Revision Scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Create a New Revision Scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Lifecycles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Import and Export Configurations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81

Chapter 8 Configure Vault Collaboration and Vault Professional . . . . . . 83

Windows Authentication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83

Set Up Multiple Site Environments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

What is a Multiple Site Environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Is Multiple Site Environment Right for You . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Pre-Install Checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Install Vault Server on Additional Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Manage Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Connected Workgroups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Replication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Workgroups Fixing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Setting up Connected Workgroups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Chapter 9 Data Management Server Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

About Autodesk Data Management Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

Perform Vault Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

Contents | v

Back Up Vault Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

Windows Vista User Account Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Creating Tape Backups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101

Restore Vaults from Back Ups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Manage Vaults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Delete Vaults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Move File Stores . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

Attach and Detach Vaults . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

PurgeVault Data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

Re Index the Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Add New Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Full Content Indexing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Enable Full Content Indexing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Microsoft Indexing Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Manage Content Center Libraries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 109

Maintain Libraries in Server Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Learning and Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

Learn to Use Autodesk Vault . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Get Training . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Train Other Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

Appendix A Performance Enhancements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Tune Server Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

Operating System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

Server Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

Disk Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

Aggressive Anti-virus Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

CPU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124

Vault Client Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Client Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Memory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Disk Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Troubleshoot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Server Diagnostics Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

View Diagnostic Log Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128

Recheck Operating System Environments . . . . . . . . . . 128

Common Installation Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128

Error 404: File Not Found . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Error: ASPX failed to run... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Error: ASPX file failed to run... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Error 29001. Performance counter... . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

ISAPI Filter error while running... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Advanced Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

vi | Contents

Vault Fundamentals

1

2

Introduction

1

This book is intended to help users who have a basic understanding of Microsoft® Windows
to install and implement Autodesk® Vault successfully in a Microsoft Windows network
environment. We assume that you understand Windows® navigation as well as installing
and uninstalling software in a Windows environment.

In the following chapters, we explain the best practices for implementing Autodesk® Vault,
and the recommended methods for deploying the data management server. Although these
methods are not the only methods for deploying the software, they are the most robust and
easiest to maintain.

Use this guide as a starting point. If your business needs demand it, you can change the
configuration later.

NOTE If you have any questions about this document, contact your reseller to perform
a professional implementation of the Autodesk data management server.

Book Organization

The Autodesk Vault Implementation Guide is divide into three sections. The
first section is intended to help understand the different versions of Vault. This
section presents guidelines for planning a Vault implementation. The second
section explains the steps to install the different components of a Vault
environment. The last section covers topics relevant to configuring and
maintaining all the components in a Vault environment.

®

3

Conventions Used In This Book

The following are different formats used in this book to make the text easier
to read and understand.

ExampleConvention

C:\Program Files\Files or Paths

www.autodesk.comWorld Wide Web Links

Support

Important Information

This book addresses the basic implementation of the Vault environment for
most systems. However, there are possible combinations of different software
and /or hardware interactions not listed. For more information, visit the
following sites:

■ www.autodesk.com/vault

■ www.autodesk.com/discussiongroup-vault

■ www.autodesk.com/vault-support

■ www.autodesk.com/vault-whitepapers

If you are an Autodesk Subscription member you can log support requests
through the subscription portal at www.autodesk.com/subscriptionlogin.

NOTE Additional information

@ECHO OFFProgram or Script Code

User NameUser Prompts

Key Terms

Data management server

4 | Chapter 1 Introduction

DefinitionTerm

The server used in conjunction with
Autodesk Vault and Content Center for
storing files and version data.

DefinitionTerm

Clients

Data management

Autodesk Vault Explorer

Microsoft® Internet Information Services

(IIS)

Vault

Applications that access the Autodesk data
management server. These include stand
alone applications such as Autodesk Vault
Explorer and integrated application add­ins such as Autodesk Vault for Inventor,

or Autodesk Vault for Microsoft® Office.

A means to organize and track files and
design modifications through the design
process.

The standalone client for Autodesk Vault
used to organize information in the vault.
This interface can be used to manage any
Microsoft Windows file in Autodesk Vault

A Microsoft® Web server necessary for do-

ing a full implementation of the Autodesk
data management server.

The logical combination of a vault database
and a vault file store that contains all the
information managed by Autodesk Vault.
Each installation of Autodesk Vault can
maintain several independent vaults. A
single client can connect to several differ­ent vaults, but not simultaneously.

Server Console

Web Server

Web service

An application that performs vault system
administrative tasks, such as data back up
and restore.

A server process running on the Autodesk
data management server that responds to
requests from vault clients.

An Application Programming Interface for
a client to communicate with a web server
application, such as the Autodesk data
management server.

Key Terms | 5

6

Understand Autodesk
Vault

This chapter explains the underlying Vault architecture and provides information essential
for implementing Vault successfully.

Vault Architecture

Three primary components make up the Vault server; a web server, a database,
and a file store. The following figure illustrates the basic configuration of the
components.

2

7

Web Server

Autodesk® data management server requires Windows Intnet Information
Services (IIS) to be installed.

NOTE If IIS is not installed on the computer that hosts the server, and you require
more than a single-user installation, install IIS before you install Autodesk Vault
server.

NOTE The original Microsoft® Windows® installation media might be necessary
to complete the IIS installation.

The Autodesk Vault server is actually a Web application that uses services to
manage the communication between the clients and the server with Web
services. The interaction between the clients and the server resembles the way
a web browser communicates with a site on the Internet. The Web services
use standard HTTP methods, communicating over the Web server port 80 by
default. Microsoft IIS is required for multiple-user configurations.

What Is a Proxy Server

A proxy server forwards requests of client computers to other servers. Some
networks force all client computers to use a proxy server for all web service
requests.

If you your network uses a proxy server, you can configure it to use a host
name or bypass the proxy server of your host clients.

NOTE For more information about configuring a proxy server, see Using Vault
with a Proxy server.

8 | Chapter 2 Understand Autodesk Vault

Database Server

The database server tracks all the relationships between data. It acts like a
library card catalog, containing indexes and pointers of where to find related
information. By default, the Autodesk data management server installs
Microsoft® SQL Server 2008 SP1 Express. Microsoft SQL Server 2008 SP1 Express
can be upgraded any time after the Autodesk data management server
components are installed. The SQL server can be upgraded to:

■ Microsoft SQL Server 2008 SP1 Enterprise

■ Microsoft SQL Server 2008 S1 Standard

File Store

The file store and the database server work with each other. The database
provides the index information for the location of files. The file store is the
secure location on the server where the files are located.

Vault Workgroup

Vault Workgroup helps teams create and share, design and engineering
information by securely organizing, managing, and tracking data in a central
location. Ease of administration enables workgroup control of data access and
security, and facilitates team-based design across disciplines. Because they can
quickly manage their designs and track changes over time, users gain
productivity without disruption to their natural design workflows. In addition,
Vault Workgroup delivers lifecycle and revision control processes directly in
the design application, which promotes faster cycle times and better-quality
engineering data.

Vault Collaboration

Vault Collaboration includes all of the functionality in Autodesk Vault
Workgroup and adds an advanced toolset that provides administrators with
the scalability needed to manage large workgroups. Users can share engineering
design data with downstream data consumers using the included web client
and expose design-related information to the extended enterprise by publishing
to Microsoft® SharePoint®. Scalable multi-site functionality enables companies

Database Server | 9

to synchronize design data among distributed workgroups, extending the
reach of the digital model to the entire project team.

Vault Professional

Vault Professional , previously known as Autodesk® Vault Manufacturing,
securely stores and manages engineering information, design data, and
documents-shortening the design-to-build and manufacture process. It includes
multisite tools to connect workgroups across discrete locations, helping the
entire design chain collaborate and share project information. Take full
advantage of advanced functionality by giving design departments the tools
they need to track change orders, manage bills of materials (BOMs), and
promote earlier collaboration through integration to expert business systems.
In addition, support for multi-CAD environments means that Vault clients
using non-Autodesk design products can aggregate and manage design data
throughout its lifecycle.

How Vault Works

As the previous diagrams have shown, each component can be configured to
run on its own server. When configuring a server for each component, refer
to the following workflow.

1 Client checks out a file.

2 Client sends a request for the file to the Vault server.

3 Vault server sends a query to the database.

4 Vault server copies the files from the file store to the client.

It is important to notice the client computer does not directly communicate
with another client computer at anytime.

NOTE The option to configure remote SQL is only available with Vault
Collaboration and Professional.

Autodesk Vault Clients

A vault client is any stand-alone application or integrated add-in that connects
to the Autodesk data management server to access files and perform vault
operations.

10 | Chapter 2 Understand Autodesk Vault

An example is the Inventor add-in. When data is added to a vault using the
Inventor add-in, the add-in preserves all the complex relationships that are
created by assemblies, drawings, presentations, and other files.

Autodesk Vault Client

The Vault Client is a general-purpose application for interacting with a vault
on the Autodesk data management server. You can browse the complete vault
structure, add any file to the vault, and perform most other file-based
operations, depending on your level of permission.

Autodesk Vault Add-ins for Design Applications

Add-in clients provide basic vault functions within the environment of a
parent application. Add-ins maintain application-specific data relationships
when adding files to a vault.

There are add-ins available for Autodesk and non-Autodesk design applications.

NOTE As a rule, if an integrated client is available for a particular application,
managing files using that client minimizes loss of data, such as the assembly
relationships. We recommend that you use integrated clients whenever possible.

Microsoft Office Add-in

The Microsoft Office add-in performs basic vault functions on documents,
spreadsheets, and other non-CAD data within any of the Microsoft Office
applications: Microsoft® Word, Excel®, and Power Point®.

Content Center

Content Center provides access to Autodesk Inventor Content Center libraries.
Content Center libraries are stored on the Autodesk data management server.

License Manager Components

Autodesk Vault Workgroup, Collaboration, or Professional require a license
for each client connection to the Vault sever. The following section describes
the components used to manage these licenses.

Autodesk Vault Client | 11

Network License Manager

The Network License Manager is used to configure and manage the license
servers. When installing Vault server for Vault Workgroup, Collaboration, or
Professional, the Installation wizard prompts you for information about the
license manager, such as license server model and server name.

FLEXnet Configuration Tools

The Network License Manager uses FLEXnet® license management technology
from Acresso Software. FLEXnet provides administrative tools that help to
simplify management of network licenses. You can use FLEXnet tools to:

■ Monitor network license status.

■ Reset licenses lost to a system failure.

■ Troubleshoot license servers.

■ Update existing license files on the fly.

NOTE For more information about FLEXnet configuration tools see the Vault
Network Licensing Guide.

SAMreport-Lite

While not part of the network installation, a version of SAMreport called
SAMreport-Lite is available to help you track network license usage. With
SAMreport-Lite technology from Acresso Software, you can monitor client
usage for Autodesk network licensed products.

SAMreport-Lite generates usage reports in various output formats including
HTML, text, and Report Interchange Format. For more information about the
SAMreport-Lite features, and for instructions on installing SAMreport-Lite,
see the SAMreport-Lite User's Guide.

Installation Requirements

Previous versions of Autodesk data management server installed Microsoft®SQL
2005 Express. Before installing the latest version of Vault, service pack 3 for
Microsoft SQL 2005 Express will need to be installed. If no previous version

12 | Chapter 2 Understand Autodesk Vault

of a SQL server is detected, or if you are not connecting to an existing remote
SQL instance, Microsoft® SQL Server 2008 Express service pack 1is installed
by default. When using SQL Express, Autodesk Vault server supports
approximately ten simultaneous vault clients. Additional users can be
supported using the full version of Microsoft SQL Server 2005 SP3or 2008 SP1.
Purchase the full Microsoft SQL Server software separately from Microsoft
or a Microsoft reseller.

For more information about system requirements, visit www.autodesk.com/vault
or the Autodesk® Installation online Help.

If a compatible local SQL database is detected during installation, you are
prompted to migrate the data once the installation is complete.

NOTE If a database is detected that is not compatible with the new version of
Autodesk server, you must remove it before the Autodesk server can be installed.

Operating System Requirements

Autodesk Vault server supports both 32-bit and 64-bit operating systems. All
operating systems listed in the following table are 32-bit. Supported 64-bit
operating systems are also indicated.

®

Operating System

Windows® XP Professional

Operating System

Windows Vista® Ultimate

Windows Vista® Enterprise

Windows Vista® Business

Operating System

Windows® 7 Ultimate

Ser­vice

64
bit

IIS32

bit

Pack

•••SP2,SP3

Ser­vice

64
bit

IIS32

bit

Pack

•••SP1,SP2

•••SP1,SP2

•••SP1,SP2

Ser­vice

64
bit

IIS32

bit

Pack

•••

Operating System Requirements | 13

Operating System

Ser­vice
Pack

64
bit

IIS32

bit

Windows® 7 Enterprise

Windows® 7 Business

Operating System

Windows server™ 2003 Server Standard

Windows server™ 2003 Server Standard R2

Windows server™ 2003 Enterprise

Windows server™ 2003 Enterprise R2

Windows server™ 2003 Small Business Edition

Windows server™ 2003 Small Business Edition R2

Windows server™ 2008 Server Standard

Windows server™ 2008 Server Enterprise

Windows server™ 2008 Small Business Edition

Ser­vice
Pack

64
bit

•••

•••

IIS32

bit

•••SP2

•••SP2

•••SP2

•••SP2

••SP2

••SP2

•••SP2

•••SP2

•••

Windows server™ 2008 R2 Small Business Edition

NOTE For Best performance on servers, we recommend a dedicated member
(non-domain controller) server

For data management client add-ins, the system requirements are that of the
design application.

14 | Chapter 2 Understand Autodesk Vault

••

Microsoft SQL Requirements

Vault 2010 installed Microsoft SQL 2005 Express. The minimum requirement
for Vault 2011 is Microsoft SQL 2005 Express service pack 3. Service pack 3for
SQL 2005 must be applied before install Vault 2011.

Microsoft SQL Version

Hardware Requirements

The following are minimum, recommended, and preferred requirements for
running Autodesk Vault server. If possible, meet the Recommended
requirements.

Vault Client Requirements

32

Ser­vice
Pack

ProcessorMemoryDisk Space

64
bit

bit

••SP3Microsof SQL Server 2005 Express5

••SP3Microsof SQL Server 2005 Workgroup

••SP3Microsof SQL Server 2005 Standard

••SP3Microsof SQL Server 2005 Enterprise

••SP1Microsof SQL Server 2008 Express5

••SP1Microsof SQL Server 2008 Standard

••SP1Microsof SQL Server 2008 Enterprise

1 GB1 GBMinimum

Intel® Pentium® 4, Intel® Xeon® AMD

Athlon® 64 / Opteron, 1.6GHz

Microsoft SQL Requirements | 15

ProcessorMemoryDisk Space

2 GB4 GBRecommended

Intel Pentium 4, Intel Xeon AMD Ath­lon 64 / Opteron, 2.0GHz

Vault Server Requirements

ProcessorMemoryDisk Space

2 GB100 GBMinimum

4 GB200 GBRecommended

Intel® Pentium® 4, Intel® Xeon® AMD

Athlon® 64 / Opteron, 2.0GHz

Intel Pentium 4, Intel Xeon AMD Ath­lon 64 / Opteron, 3.0GHz

Vault Server Replication Requirements (Vault Server and SQL Server)

ProcessorMemoryDisk Space

4 GB300 GBMinimum

8 GB500 GBRecommended

Intel® Pentium® 4, Intel® Xeon® AMD

Athlon® 64 / Opteron, 3.0GHz

Intel Pentium 4, Intel Xeon AMD Ath­lon 64 / Opteron, 3.0GHz

Vault Server Replication Requirements (Vault Server only)

ProcessorMemoryDisk Space

2 GB150 GBMinimum

Intel® Pentium® 4, Intel® Xeon® AMD

Athlon® 64 / Opteron, 3.0GHz

3 GB300 GBRecommended

Other Requirements

■ A DVD drive is required, to install off of disk.

■ Operating Systems installation media.

■ Internet connection for Web downloads and Subscription Aware access.

■ Microsoft Internet Explorer

16 | Chapter 2 Understand Autodesk Vault

®

Intel Pentium 4, Intel Xeon AMD Ath­lon 64 / Opteron, 3.0GHz

6 SP1 or later.

■ We recommend settings that allow Microsoft Windows to manage virtual

memory as needed. Keep at least twice as much free hard disk space as
system memory.

Other Requirements | 17

18

Plan the Vault Environment

3

A Vault implementation can be as simple as installing all components on a single computer,
or as complex as installing components on several computers in different locations. The more
complex the Implementation, the more information there is to consider. This chapter provides
an outline of information to consider to make the best decisions for your Vault
Implementation.

Information Check List

When Implementing Vault, consider:

■ Number of users.

■ The number of servers.

■ The hardware specifications for all the servers.

■ The Operating Systems for all servers.

■ All firewalls installed on servers.

■ List of other applications running on all servers.

■ The version of Microsoft

■ How frequently do users access information in the Vault?

■ The latency between all servers.

Use the Information

Every Vault implementation is unique, the following sections help you determine
the best configuration for your needs.

®

SQL is going to be used.

19

Number of Users

Knowing the number of users helps prevent access problems and slow response
times. For example, if you have more then ten concurrent users, use Windows
Server 2003 or 2008. For more than 25 user, consider upgrading to the full
standard edition or enterprise edition of SQL. Microsoft SQL express allows
only 25 concurrent connections. When implementing Vault for a single user,
you can load all the components on a single computer.

Number of Servers

When determining the number of servers keep in mind how information
flows from the client computer to the Vault server to the SQL server and back.
(See How Vault Works).

Server Hardware Specifications

For the recommended and preferred system requirements see Hardware

Requirements on page 15. Vault is more processor intensive than memory

intensive like some other applications. Avoid loading Vault components on
servers that already have a high CPU usage.

Server Operating Systems

Vault Server can be loaded on several different operating systems. When
deciding to use a non-server operating system, consider the limitations.

®

■ Windows XP has a limit of ten concurrent users.

■ Windows Vista has a limit of ten concurrent users and three concurrent

web service requests.

■ Windows 7 has a limit of ten concurrent users and three concurrent web

service requests.

Firewalls

Firewalls can block incoming requests. During the Vault Server installation,
the server is checked for known firewalls. Firewalls can require that you
configure them to allow the Vault Server to communicate correctly. Some

20 | Chapter 3 Plan the Vault Environment

system protection software can include firewalls. Check these tools for the
existence of firewalls.

Applications on Servers

Vault can be processor intensive. Loading the Vault Server on a server with
other processor intensive applications can cause Vault to run slower than
expected.

Microsoft SQL Version

Vault 2011 requires a minimum of Microsoft SQL 2005 Express service pack

3. If necessary, upgrade your previous version of Vault with 2005 Express to
service pack 3. See Installation Requirements on page 12.

SQL Express has a limitation of 25 concurrent users and a 4-GB size restriction.
If your Vault implementation requires more capacity, set up the Vault server
using the Standard or Enterprise versions of SQL.

Access Frequency

How often the Vault Server is accessed affects the server performance. For
example, a Vault implementation with 50 users and one or two users checking
out one or two files a day does not tax the server much. Using the same
configuration with 35 of users accessing the vault every 10 minutes, Vault
Server performance differs, running at the non-recommended requirements.

Network Speed

All though network speed is commonly equated to latency, you also consider
bandwidth and throughput. Network speed is an important factor to consider,
when trying to get the best performance for your Vault implementation.
Without running tests to measure your latency, bandwidth, and throughput
between all the servers, you can gain an idea of how fast the connections are.
Copy a few large files from one server to another. When performing this test,
copy from Server A to Server B and then copy from server B to Server A. Data
traveling from one server to another does not always take the same route when
traveling back.

Applications on Servers | 21

22

Install Vault

23

24