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Connectors

Last updated on May 30, 2024 | Also applies to ColdFusion

Overview

In the API Manager, connectors redirect the requests from web servers to application servers. Connectors also provide load balancing between various nodes in a cluster. Web server connectors in the API Manager manage the communication between the web server and the application server.

For Internet Information Services (IIS), the connector is isapi_redirect. On the other hand, for Apache web server, the connector is mod_jk.

In the API Manager, the connector communicates with a single cluster and a ColdFusion instance or cluster, if present.

Also copy the cluster.xml in the wsconfig folder file if you want to run wsconfig from outside the API Manager folder structure.

Connectors also refresh the information of a cluster dynamically. You need not restart the web server. There are some limitations:

You cannot add a cluster.
You can only add a node to a pre-configured cluster.
You cannot modify the information of an existing node.

Configuration files

Connectors in the API Manager use the following configuration files:

worker.properties: This file contains information about all application servers and clusters.
uriworkermap.properties: This file contains rules of when to redirect a client request. This file also contains uri prefixes and filename extensions mapped to application servers or clusters defined in the file worker.properties.

Configuring connectors using Wsconfig tool

You can use the Wsconfig tool to configure connectors. The Wsconfig tool supports both a Graphical User Interface (GUI) and a Command Line Interface (CLI). You can configure the connectors in the API Manager and ColdFusion, if installed.

The Wsconfig tool reads the configuration files and configures the connectors based on some parameters. You can use this tool to add or remove a connector. This tool can be run from any server, but it requires a configuration file to get the information about a cluster and its nodes.

You can refresh information in a cluster after adding a node. Enter wsconfig -help in the command prompt and view the parameters for refresh.

Note:

To serve PUT and DELETE requests through connector in IIS, remove the following:

webDAVModule from IIS > Modules
WebDAV from IIS > Handler Mapping in IIS Manager

Configuring IIS

Click Start > Control Panel. Select Programs and Features.
Click Turn Windows features on or off.
Select Internet Information Services > World Wide Web Services > Application Development Features.
Select the following check-boxes:
- ASP.NET
- CGI
In the <API Manager Installation Directory>/wsconfig/ directory, double-click wsconfig.exe.
Click Add.
From the IIS Web Site drop-down list, select Default Web Site. Click OK.
Restart the server. Click Yes.

The default IIS server becomes the default web site.
To verify the successful installation of the connector, enter <localhost>:80/portal in the address bar of a web browser.

Note:

The Administrator is blocked in the web server. To access the portal, use the port, 9000.

To configure a web server on a remote machine, copy the cluster.xml file to the folder <API Manager installation directory>/conf/. Start the API Manager first and then run the wsconfig tool.

Configuring Apache

In the <API Manager Installation Directory>/wsconfig/ directory, double-click wsconfig.exe.
Click Add. On the Add Web Server Configuration dialog box, select Apache from the Web Server drop-down list.
Restart the server. Click Yes.

The Apache server becomes the default web server.

You can configure connectors for a particular Apache Virtual Host, similar to IIS. The Virtual Host serves requests only to the API Manager, not to any non-API Manager configurations.

Note:

If you use the command line, specify - vhost <virtual_host_name>. The parameter is mandatory.

If you do not have a virtual host or you want to install Apache globally, use - vhost All in the command line.

Use the command wsconfig –usage to explore more on connectors.

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