2 Planning an IP Service Activator Installation

This chapter describes how to plan an Oracle Communications IP Service Activator installation.

About Planning an IP Service Activator Installation

Before beginning the IP Service Activator installation, you need to plan the installation and overall system configuration, gather information, and set up your hosts (servers and workstations).

For later reference, you need to gather and record important installation information, such as settings, account names, and passwords. This document provides checklists and a worksheet in "Installation Checklists and Worksheet".

Server and workstation preparation can include the installation and configuration of:

Operating systems, including the creation of user accounts
Oracle Database software
Other required third-party software components

After the servers and workstations are correctly configured, you run the Oracle Universal Installer. Depending on system configuration, IP Service Activator server software is installed on at least one, and possibly multiple, hosts. IP Service Activator client software is installed on each Windows host.

After software installation, post-installation activities may be required. These are described in this guide and in IP Service Activator Administrator's Guide.

Overview of IP Service Activator Architecture

This section provides an overview of the IP Service Activator distributed architecture. It includes the following topics:

IP Service Activator components and modules
Additional software recommendations and requirements

IP Service Activator Components and Modules

IP Service Activator has a modular software architecture that supports deployment across multiple hosts in a network. This section describes components and modules with a brief overview of how they are deployed in a production installation.

IP Service Activator consists of the core product components described in Table 2-1.

Table 2-1 IP Service Activator Components

Component	Description
Policy Server	The Policy Server is the central component of the system and is responsible for the following: Coordinates access to the data repository from the client components Performs network topology discovery Validates and transmits policy configurations to the proxy agent, or network processor components, or both. Two sub-components, the Naming Service and the System Logger, maintain the naming and location information for the other system components and log system messages. One Policy Server is installed per IP Service Activator installation.
Network Processor	The network processor provides an XML-based alternative to existing proxy agent/device driver software used to deliver cartridges supporting vendor- specific device configurations. The network processor is capable of supporting higher volumes of devices, and is far more flexible when introducing new device and service features.Cartridges enable you to support your existing services, and support emerging services and business needs. Cartridges operate in conjunction with IP Service Activator core product.
Cartridges	Cartridges enable you to support your existing services, and support emerging services and business needs. Cartridges operate in conjunction with IP Service Activator core product.
Proxy Agent Device Drivers	The proxy agent/device drivers configure the individual managed devices with the policy configurations it receives from the Policy Server. Sub-components, called device drivers, translate the high-level policy configurations sent from the Policy Server into the low-level configurations required by the different types of managed devices, such as Juniper M-series. Several instances of this component can be installed on additional hosts to distribute the processing load when managing many devices within a network.
Windows-based client	The graphical user interface (GUI) provides access to the database and Policy Server. This component is supported on systems running Windows 2000 and above. Multiple instances of the GUI can be used concurrently, by adding additional Windows GUI hosts and installing the IP Service Activator client.
Component Manager	The component manager starts all system components, and monitors and reports their status. The component manager is required on each host system on which one or more IP Service Activator components are installed (except the client).
Configuration Management Engine	The Configuration Management Engine manages the configuration files of the devices managed by IP Service Activator. Configuration Management is an extension/feature of IP Service Activator. Oracle WebLogic Server is installed with the Configuration Management Engine and is used to manage the Configuration Management Engine
Configuration Management Collector	The Configuration Management Collector collects device configuration changes as they occur and archives these changes in the IP Service Activator repository.
Database	The Oracle database management system is used for the data repository for IP Service Activator and must be running on your network. The database stores data related to the network topology and all configured services.

In most production environments, IP Service Activator components are installed on multiple hosts in order to distribute the processing requirements. IP Service Activator resource requirements are CPU core-centric and all hardware resource requirements are expressed in terms of CPU- core requirements.

Most current servers are constructed around CPUs that contain two or more cores, and it is these cores that are referenced. An example of this would be a Sun Enterprise M5000 Server. This server can be configured with the SPARC64 VI processor, which is a dual (or split) core processor. While this server can contain up to 8 processors, those 8 processors represent 16 CPU-cores when configured with the dual-core SPARC64 VI. Configuring the M5000 Server with the quad-core SPARC64 VII processor could represent 32 CPU-cores, when 8 processors are present. This IP Service Activator planning section focuses on the number of the CPU-cores.

This reduces the total cost of ownership because multiple IP Service Activator components are deployed on a single, appropriately-sized server.

Optional Integration Components

Table 2-2 describes the integration components that can be installed as part of the base product.

Table 2-2 IP Service Activator Optional Integration Components

Component	Description
OSS Integration Manager (OIM)	Consists of an open API that enables easy integration between the core system and external systems such as flow-through provisioning, fault management, and performance monitoring.
Event Handler	Enables configurable, software-driven control of event and fault reporting.
Web Services	An optional component of the IP Service Activator installation that allows IP Service Activator to integrate with Order and Service Management (OSM). In order to use the Web Services with IP Service Activator, you must complete the following tasks in sequential order: install a WebLogic server, install Oracle Application Development Framework (ADF), and create a WebLogic domain. For information about installing WebLogic and ADF, see Order and Service Management Installation Guide.

Component

Description

OSS Integration Manager (OIM)

Consists of an open API that enables easy integration between the core system and external systems such as flow-through provisioning, fault management, and performance monitoring.

Event Handler

Enables configurable, software-driven control of event and fault reporting.

Web Services

An optional component of the IP Service Activator installation that allows IP Service Activator to integrate with Order and Service Management (OSM).

In order to use the Web Services with IP Service Activator, you must complete the following tasks in sequential order: install a WebLogic server, install Oracle Application Development Framework (ADF), and create a WebLogic domain. For information about installing WebLogic and ADF, see Order and Service Management Installation Guide.

Optional Service Modules

Table 2-3 describes the optional modules that are installed separately from the base product.

Table 2-3 IP Service Activator Optional Service Modules

Component	Description
Configuration Template module	The Configuration Template module streamlines the activation of services on network objects. Through the use of pre-defined or customized templates, the module extends the capability of the IP Service Activator to configure devices and interfaces.
MPLS LSP module	The Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) Label Switched Path (LSP) module allows you to provision LSPs on supported Cisco devices.
Micromuse module	The Micromuse module allows you to export the IP Service Activator object topology into a format that can be imported by the Micromuse product.
TACC module	The Threshold Activated Configuration Control (TACC) module, along with device level Thresholding, allows you to accept or reject transactions that exceed the configuration removal threshold.

The currently supported software versions are found in "Supported Devices and Operating Systems".

Additional Software Requirements

The Oracle Instant Client connection (OIC) is required for Policy Server, System Logger, Proxy Agents and Device Drivers, Network Processor, and Event Handler. The OIC is installed as part of the IP Service Activator installation.

Although the OIC is required for parts of the IP Service Activator client, such as viewing system logs, it is not automatically installed during client installation. Select the OIC option for installation during the client installation process.

Oracle Real Application Clusters in IP Service Activator

As of IP Service Activator 7.0, connectivity to Oracle Real Application Clusters (Oracle RAC) instances is supported. An Oracle RAC deployment allows for improved IP Service Activator reliability because the Oracle RAC deployment can contain multiple nodes, and continues to support database access as long as at least one node is active and available. When IP Service Activator is connected to an Oracle RAC instance, failover activity, within the database deployment, is invisible to IP Service Activator.

IP Service Activator uses database resources such that multiple nodes within an Oracle RAC deployment do not positively impact performance, but safeguard that IP Service Activator deployment against most database failure issues.

Planning Guidelines and Engineering Considerations

This section describes the hardware and system configuration considerations applicable to establishing a functioning IP Service Activator system in a network. It includes the following topics:

System configuration overview
Component configuration recommendations
Hardware requirements

System Configuration Overview

This section describes key roles and responsibilities in configuring and maintaining an IP Service Activator deployment, and provides an overview of the IP Service Activator components and the concepts to be considered when planning a deployment.

Assistance in the Sizing Process

This section will help you correctly identify the hardware necessary for a successful IP Service Activator implementation. The implementation should be performed with the aid of Oracle Global Customer Support or Sales Engineering representatives.

Customer Responsibilities

After an IP Service Activator system has been deployed, it is the responsibility of the deployment owner to monitor the managed network growth and resource use of the various IP Service Activator components.

Relevant IP Service Activator metrics include the number of devices and the number of network sites. This information is available through the System Statistics view in the client.

Relevant operating system metrics include CPU utilization and real memory consumption. There are many third-party tools, including SunSolve Solutions and command-line processes, that provide this information. Consult Oracle Global Customer Support for further details.

IP Service Activator Component Architecture

A typical IP Service Activator system consists of the following components:

Policy Server
Network Processors
Cartridges
Proxy Agents and equipment- vendor-specific device drivers (one or more)
Graphical User Interfaces (one or more)
System Logger
Component manager
Naming Service
Database to persist the Object Model
Supplemental software components (See "Supported Devices and Operating Systems" for details.)

Optionally, IP Service Activator systems may also contain one or more instances of:

OSS Integration Manager (OIM)
IP Service Activator application extensions
Event Handler
Configuration Management (Engine, Collector(s), Oracle WebLogic Server)
Web Service

A typical IP Service Activator implementation has specific CPU-core requirements for the following groups of components:

Policy Server, OIM, System Logger, Event Handler, Naming Service, Component Manager: Four CPU-cores (two cores for Policy Server, one core for System Logger, Naming Service, Event Handler, Component Manager, and so on, and one core for OIM. If Configuration Management is being deployed, OIM will require two cores.)
Network Processor: Two or more CPU-cores per instance
Database Server: Two to four CPU-cores
Client: May be multiple workstations

Table 2-4 lists the components of IP Service Activator and their CPU-cores. The following optional modules are installed separately from the base product.

Table 2-4 Component CPU-core Requirements

Component	CPU-cores
Policy Server	2 (minimum)
System Logger, Naming Service, Event Handler, and Component Manager	1 (minimum)
OSS Integration Manager	1 (per OIM instance)
Network Processor	2
Database Server	2 (minimum)

A component manager must be present and active on each server to manage all components except the Naming Service, the database, the client, and the application server. If the Event Handler is deployed, it must reside with the Policy Server.

With Oracle Solaris 10 or Oracle Linux 6. OS containers allow for fewer larger servers to host complete IP Service Activator deployments over multiple containers as opposed to deploying many smaller servers to accomplish the task.

Oracle Database, for performance reasons, should be running on a separate server from the Policy Server, Network Processor, and/or Proxy Agent.

For required operating system and peripheral component system (for example Solaris and Oracle Database) versions, refer to "Supported Devices and Operating Systems".