This guide describes the role of the administrator, the person responsible for designing and running an iPlanet Compass Server system. The administrator determines what material the system will cover, how often that material is updated, and how much flexibility users have in searching for and displaying information.

Topics covered in this guide include

• The components of a Compass system


• Planning the Compass system


• Understanding the Compass database


• Filling and updating the database


• Categorizing resources in the database


• Guidelines for document authors

iPlanet Compass Server is designed to bring information to network users. Like a real compass, the iPlanet Compass helps you to know where you are and how to get to the things you want.

The main purpose of iPlanet Compass Server is to gather information about the resources available on a network and store it in one place for users to access. In addition, iPlanet Compass Server can "push" information about the resources it finds to interested users.

Future enhancements to iPlanet Compass Server and other iPlanet products will enable even easier access to network resources. Compass Server Concepts describes the elements that make up a Compass Server system.

You can use this guide in two different ways. Before setting up a Compass system, you can use this material to understand the components of such a system and how you might set them up for your particular needs. Once you have installed the software, you can use this material to actually design and customize your Compass Server.

These other aspects of iPlanet Compass Server are described in other manuals:

• Installation and troubleshooting--These topics are described in the iPlanet Compass Server Installation Guide. This small book is designed to get you up and running quickly.


• Using the administration server--General tasks applicable to administering all iPlanet servers, including groups of servers, are covered in Managing Netscape Servers.


• Customizing robots--The iPlanet Compass Server Programmer's Guide explains how to customize the way your robots find resources and generate descriptions of them for your Compass Server.


• Using the Compass Server--This subject is covered in an online manual, the iPlanet Compass Server User's Guide and also in Help screens accessible directly from the user screens.

All these manuals are available online from the Manuals screen in the Server Manager.

To understand the different parts of a Compass Server and the other programs and servers that work with it, you should read Compass Server Concepts before you start setting up your system.

For more detailed information on the mechanics of gathering resource information and importing it into the Compass Server database, you should read at least the descriptive parts of the chapter on filling the database: About Robots and Controlling the Robot.

The remainder of this guide covers the different aspects of administering a Compass system:

• For information on general operation of the server, such as turning it on or off and configuring its network settings, see Configuring Server Preferences.


• For information on locating resources, gathering information on them, and customizing which sites are indexed and what information is gathered on them, see Filling the Database.


• For information on importing resource descriptions from other servers and maintaining the Compass Server database, see Managing the Compass Database.


• For information on categorizing the resources in the database, including creating new categories and modifying existing ones, see Setting Up Categories.


• For information on changing the user interface for your Compass Server, see Customizing the User Interface.


• For information on tracking server usage, see Monitoring the Server.


• Migrating from Catalog Server 1.0 explains how to move from an existing Netscape Catalog Server installation to Compass Server.

There are also a glossary and an index for the manual.

The Administrator's Guide, the Programmer's Guide and the User's Guide for this product, and the manual Managing Netscape Servers, are available to you online through the Server Manager.

To read the online manuals, do the following:

1. Choose either Compass Server or Admin Server in the left frame.

For the Administration Server, you will see the manual Managing iPlanet Servers, which covers tasks common to all iPlanet servers. For the Compass Server you will see a list of different manuals available.
 

2. Click the name of the manual you want to read.

This section explains the conventions used in this guide.

Element	Meaning
Monospaced font	This typeface is used for any text that appears on the computer screen or text that you should type. It's also used for syntax, examples, and filenames.
Italic	Italic type is used to introduce new terms and for emphasis.
Sidebar text	Sidebar text marks important information. Make sure you read the information before continuing with a task.
|	The vertical bar is used as a separator for user-interface elements. For example, File|New means you should click the File menu and then choose New; Server Status|Log Preferences means you should click the Server Status button in the Server Manager and then click the Log Preferences link.