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How Siebel Assignment Manager Uses Server Key Mappings to Load Rules to a Particular Siebel Server

This topic is part of About Assignment Rule Administration.

For each Siebel Server, you use server key mappings to define multiple rule groups that you want that server to load and process. Using server key mappings allows you to use different servers for different business purposes.

After you define server key mappings in the assignment administration views, each Assignment Manager (AsgnSrvr) process looks for the server name in the key mappings during startup and only loads rules from those rule groups. The AsgnSrvr component also registers the rule group row IDs as keys. When you submit a request to a server, you must submit the AsgnKey parameter set to one of the rule group row IDs assigned to that server.

The server key mapping process uses an internal key-based routing mechanism to route requests to a particular server, however, this is done in the background and is not apparent. You can specify multiple servers to load the same rule group. In this case, the Server Request Broker component routes requests, based on load balancing metrics, to one of the Assignment Manager components that loaded that rule group.

You can mark certain rule groups for use only with server key mappings. These rule groups are not loaded by any Assignment Manager component operating in default mode.

The server key mappings feature is supported only in certain environments when you are using specific functionality, as follows:

• Script or workflow process calling a business service. You can invoke Assignment Manager through a business service from within a workflow process, or from a script, using one of the following predefined business services:
  • Server Requests business service. Use this generic business service to submit requests to a particular component using the Server Request Broker. With this business service, you can use the Assignment Manager server mapping feature. If you are using this business service to invoke rules based on rule groups, then pass the AsgnKey parameter as the input parameter, and pass the ReqKey parameter as a request parameter (in the child property set for the component). Then, set both the AsgnKey and ReqKey parameters to the rule group ID of the relevant rule group.
  • Synchronous Assignment Manager Requests business service. This business service has one method available: Assign. This method sends a request to the Assignment Manager server component using the AsgnObjName and ObjRowId parameters. All active rules in the database are processed. Use this business service:
    • To submit requests to assign a single object row
    • With the Default Group (when no server key mappings are defined)

      For more information about business services, see Siebel Business Process Framework: Workflow Guide. For more information about scripting, see Siebel Object Interfaces Reference and other applicable documentation.

• Interactive assignment. In the default configuration, interactive assignment runs in default mode. However, interactive assignment can be customized to use the server key mappings feature using the SetAsgnKey method on the business component base class CSSBCBase.

  Using a script, a workflow process, or a business service, you call the method to pass the row ID of one of the rule groups as the parameter. The interactive assignment feature uses this parameter as the AsgnKey and ReqKey parameters when submitting requests to the AsgnSrvr component.

  You invoke the method only once for one session, but subsequent requests in the same session reuse the rule group row ID. However, when the session is logged out or the server is restarted, you have to call the method again to set the AsgnKey parameter. Otherwise, Assignment Manager reverts to running in default mode.

  NOTE:  When you operate Assignment Manager in default mode, rules from rule groups that have the Key Based flag checked are not loaded.

  Batch assignment and dynamic assignment do not read server key mappings.

  For more information about interactive assignment, see Running Interactive Assignment.

NOTE:  You cannot run default mode and server key mappings mode on the same Assignment Manager, because the two tasks are mutually exclusive functionalities. If you require the assignment functionality of both modes, then you have to run Assignment Manager components on a separate server for each mode.

TIP:   Siebel Marketing is specifically designed to use the server key mappings and rule group features. For more information about Siebel Marketing, see Siebel Marketing Installation and Administration Guide.