This guide explains how to administer the Netscape Compass Server. After configuring your server, use this guide to help maintain your server.

Last updated August 1997.

What Is Netscape Compass Server?

Before You Start

Learning About Compass

Administering Your Compass Server

How Compass Server 3.0 Differs from Catalog Server 1.0

Reading Online Manuals

Conventions Used in This Guide

What Is a Compass Server?

What Is a Compass Server For?

Browsing for Information

Generating Navigational Aids

Using the Index

What Can You Index?

Choosing Compass Server Features

What Users Expect from an Index

User Features in Compass Server

Subscribing to Information

Advantages of the Compass Server

What Administrators Need in an Index

Administrator Features in Compass Server

Enabling Compass Server Features

Indexing Documents

Defining Categories

Maintaining the System

About Resource Descriptions

Examples

The Common Thread

Creating Resource Descriptions

Exchanging Resource Descriptions

Deploying a Compass Server System

Choosing User Features

Searching and Browsing

Deploying My Compass

Providing Information About the Server

Choosing Sites to Index

Designing Sites for Indexing

Controlling Robot Access

Using Document Metainformation

Getting Started Quickly

Starting and Stopping the Server

Restarting the Server

Restarting the Server for Unix

Restarting the Server for Windows NT

Starts and Stops at the Command Line

Unix Command Lines

Windows NT Command Lines

Viewing Server Settings

Customizing Compass Server Settings

Database Options

Directory Locations

Logfile Locations

Administration Preferences

Restoring Backup Configuration Files

Tuning Server Performance

Configuring Maximum Simultaneous Requests

Enabling Domain Name System Lookups

Configuring the HTTP Persistent Connection Timeout

Configuring Network Settings

Changing the Server's User Account

Unix Issues

Windows NT Issues

Changing the User Account

Changing the Server Name

Changing the Server Port Number

Changing the Server Binding Address

Changing the Server's MTA Host

Customizing Error Responses

What are the Errors?

Setting Up the Response

Scheduling Tasks

Activating a Schedule

Deactivating a Schedule

About Robots

About Extraction

About Indexing

Starting, Stopping, and State

Controlling the Robot

About the Robot Overview

Starting the Robot

Starting the Robot Manually

Pausing and Resuming the Robot

Stopping the Robot

Checking Robot Status

Controlling Where the Robot Goes

Defining Sites

Managing Site Definitions

Creating Site Definitions

Editing Site Definitions

Testing Site Definitions

Limiting Robot Discovery

Probing for Site Information

Controlling What the Robot Gets

Understanding Filters

Managing Filters

Creating a New Filter

Editing Filters

Filtering Files: An Example

Adding New Conversion Types

Supported Conversions

Adding and Removing Conversions

Scheduling the Robot

Tips on Robot Scheduling

Using Completion Scripts

Controlling What the Robot Generates

Setting Indexing Preferences

Setting Classification Rules

About Classification Rules

Editing Classification Rules

Handling Unassigned Resources

Checking Database Contents

Checking Starting Points

Checking Log Files

Checking Excluded URLs

Archiving Excluded URLs Reports

Configuring Crawling Settings

Speed

Completion Actions

Logfile Settings

Standards Compliance

Authentication Parameters

Proxying

Advanced Settings

Troubleshooting the Robot

Getting Detailed Status

Getting Summary Status

No Resources Indexed

No Sites Defined

Server or Network Errors

DNS Aliasing Errors

Server Redirection Errors

Too Many or Too Few Resources

Not Extracting Enough URLs

Robot Excluded from Sites

Resources Not Assigned to Categories

New Sites Added

Incorrect Aliases

Performance Problems

Slow Robot

Fast Robot

Importing Resource Descriptions

About Import Agents

Creating a New Import Agent

Editing an Import Agent

Deleting Import Agents

Running Import Agents

Running Import Agents Manually

Scheduling Import Agents

Editing the Database Schema

Understanding the Schema

Editing the Schema

Schema Attributes

Example: Adding a Searchable Attribute

Converting Schema Names

Optimizing the Database

Partitioning the Database

Adding New Partitions

Moving Partitions

Editing Resource Descriptions

Deleting the Database

Purging Expired Resource Descriptions

Reindexing the Database

Checking the Database

Understanding Categories

The Purpose of Categories

Categories in Online Databases

Assigning Categories

Category Strategies

Categorizing by Location

Categorizing by Matching

Categorizing by Annotation

Category Notation

Category Annotations

Annotations and Robots

Annotations and Netscape Composer

Creating a New Set of Categories

Creating a Set of Categories Manually

Copying an Existing Set of Categories

Locating taxonomy.rdm

Example: Copying a Sample Category Set

Editing Categories

Using the Category Editor

Starting the Category Editor

Adding Categories

Renaming Categories

Deleting Categories

Assigning Categories Manually

Reindexing Categories

Setting Search Preferences

Enabling End-User Access

Setting Search/Browse Preferences

Generating Search Statistics

Providing Information About the Server

Customizing Your About Screen

My Compass Administrator Tasks

Managing the Profiler

Configuring the Profiler Schedule

Immediately Activating the Profiler

Configuring the Email Notification

Managing My Compass Users

Checking Subscriber Information

Registering and Unregistering Users

Finding and Deleting Invalid Registrations

Finding a Specific User

Modifying a User's Interest Profile

Purging Personal News Pages

Upgrading to grapeVINE for Compass Server

My Compass Administrator's Reference

Profiler Schedule Editor

Profiler Control Panel

Manage My Compass Users Form

Example Search Results Form

Interest Profile Form

Purge Personal News Pages Form

Upgrade to grapeVINE for Compass Server Form

Profiler Scheduling Tips

Working with Log Files

Viewing an Access Log File

Viewing the Error Log File

Setting Log Preferences

Archiving Log Files

Monitoring the Server Using HTTP

Working with the Log Analyzer

What Is Access Control?

User-Group Authentication

Host-IP Authentication

Access Control Files

How Does Access Control Work?

Restricting Access

Setting Access-Control Actions

Specifying Users and Groups

Specifying Hostnames and IP Addresses

Setting Access Rights

Writing Customized Expressions

When "Access control on" Is Checked

Responding When Access Is Denied

Converting a 2.0 ACL File

Things to Do Before Migrating

Migrating the Server

Last Updated: 02/12/98 13:30:44