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Salesware System Architecture
and Specifications
Version 4.4
accesso
302 Camino de la Placita
Taos, NM 87571
575.751.0633
www.accesso.com
Copyright
Copyright 2015 accesso Technology Group, plc. All rights reserved.
NOTICE: All information contained herein is the property of accesso Technology Group, plc. No part of this
publication (whether in hardcopy or electronic form) may be reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any
means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written consent of
accesso Technology Group, plc. The software, which includes information contained in any databases,
described in this document is furnished under a license agreement and may be used or copied only in
accordance with the terms of that agreement.
This publication and the information herein is furnished AS IS, is subject to change without notice, and should
not be construed as a commitment by accesso Technology Group, plc. accesso Technology Group, plc. assumes
no responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies, makes no warranty of any kind (express, implied, or
statutory) with respect to this publication, and expressly disclaims any and all warranties of merchantability,
fitness for particular purposes, and non-infringement of third party rights.
Introduction ....................................................................................................................................................................................... 2
Block diagrams showing typical Salesware configurations .......................................................................................................... 3
Overall Salesware architecture ...................................................................................................................................................................... 3
Fusebox architecture ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 4
Fusebox onsite..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 5
Fusebox online .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 6
E-Commerce architecture ............................................................................................................................................................................... 7
Web pages hosted externally .......................................................................................................................................................................................................... 9
Web pages hosted internally ........................................................................................................................................................................................................... 9
Rentals architecture...................................................................................................................................................................................... 10
Food Service architecture ............................................................................................................................................................................ 11
Scan access architecture............................................................................................................................................................................... 13
Axess Gates architecture .............................................................................................................................................................................. 13
Typical WAN architecture ............................................................................................................................................................................. 14
Network configuration ................................................................................................................................................................... 15
Salesware system specifications .................................................................................................................................................... 16
Using virtual servers ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 16
Recommended standard salespoint configurations .................................................................................................................... 17
Middleware ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 17
Basic guidelines ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 17
Number of SalesEZ application instances ................................................................................................................................................... 18
Database server ............................................................................................................................................................................... 19
Web (E-Commerce) .......................................................................................................................................................................... 20
Sizing recommendations: ............................................................................................................................................................................ 21
Hardware for the wwService / ww.dll machine: ....................................................................................................................................................................... 22
Hardware for the Ecommerce Pages IIS machine: ................................................................................................................................................................... 22
Assumptions:...................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 22
Examples: ............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................ 22
Rentals .............................................................................................................................................................................................. 25
Folio Charge ..................................................................................................................................................................................... 27
Reserved Seating ............................................................................................................................................................................. 27
Accounting Export........................................................................................................................................................................... 28
Introduction
Salesware features a fully modular, configurable, scalable, fault-tolerant and distributed architecture. This document describes that
architecture and presents its specifications. The document is organized as follows:
•
The first section provides block diagrams that show typical Salesware configurations.
Note: Salesware supports multiple Charge Card systems: Fusebox, DirectNET, Ingenico and Tender Retail, Chase PaymentTech,
VersaPay. (DirectNET and Tender Retail are not supported for E-Commerce applications.) accesso Siriusware documentation
discusses how to interface with these systems and how to use them from the Salesware product. For information regarding the
hardware requirements and specifications for Charge Card systems, please consult the documentation provided by Southern
DataComm, Inc. (Fusebox), DirectNET, Inc., Ingenico and Tender Retail.
Note: For information concerning accesso Siriusware Hardware compatibility, please see the Hardware Compatibility List document.
Block diagrams showing typical Salesware configurations
This section presents typical Salesware configurations.
Overall Salesware architecture
The following diagram presents the overall Salesware architecture.
Fusebox architecture
The overall Salesware architecture diagram shows how a credit card processor can be integrated into the Salesware architecture.
The majority of clients incorporate the Fusebox system. The following diagrams illustrate how the Fusebox system is configured. For
detailed information on Fusebox and accesso Siriusware see the Charge Card documentation.
Fusebox onsite
Fusebox online
E-Commerce architecture
The E-Commerce module environment includes one or more web servers, a Sales Host computer and an SMTP server. Two web
servers are recommended if you are hosting the E-Commerce pages internally or externally (e.g., with a web hosting company). See
Web pages hosted externally and Web pages hosted internally. If hosting the pages internally, then you have ww.dll on one web
server and the E-Commerce pages installed on the additional server. If hosting the pages externally, then you have ww.dll and
wwService installed on one web server and the E-Commerce pages installed on the other web server (e.g., at your web hosting
company).
In either scenario, the server that is running ww.dll needs to have access to ProtoBase and to the SiriusSQL database. The server that
is running the pages needs to have access to an SMTP server and, if hosted externally, to the ww.dll server. The Sales Host computer
needs to have access to ProtoBase, the middleware server and an SMTP server.
The computer where ww.dll (and wwService, if the pages are hosted externally) is installed requires either Windows Server 2008 or
Windows Server 2012, Microsoft .NET Framework version 4.0, Internet Information Services (IIS version 7) and ASP.NET 4.0.
The computer where the E-Commerce pages are installed also requires either Windows Server 2008 or Windows Server 2012,
Microsoft .NET Framework version 4.0, Internet Information Services (IIS version 7) and ASP.NET 4.0. This computer also needs to
have an SSL certificate in place so that the E-Commerce pages can be run under https when running live.
Note: ASP.NET 4.0 is not automatically installed; you must install this yourself in conjunction with the installation of Windows Server
2008 or Windows Server 2012.
Note: accesso strongly recommends that your web server not be a member of a Windows domain. Being a domain member is a
potential security risk and changes the way authentication is handled. This change in authentication could make the E-Commerce
pages not function correctly without additional configuration.
For optimum performance, the computer where Sales Host utility is installed needs to be a separate computer from the SQL Server,
the middleware server and the web server.
Note: a second web server (ww.dll) is required of you plan on using Print At Home Tickets module.
When running E-Commerce module, it is important to purchase a Processor License for Microsoft SQL Server. This is a Microsoft
requirement for web-based access of SQL Server and not doing this violates your license agreement with Microsoft.
accesso supports Fusebox, VersaPay (Orbital), Payment Express (AUS/NZ clients) and OCV (AUS/NZ clients) for E-Commerce
transactions, not DirectNet or Tender Retail.
Web pages hosted externally
The diagram below shows how E-Commerce web pages can be hosted externally.
Web pages hosted internally
The diagram below shows how E-Commerce web pages can be hosted internally.
Note: An SMTP server can be hosted externally even when the pages are hosted internally, though this configuration is not shown in
this diagram.
Rentals architecture
The Rentals module environment includes Self-Entry stations, Rental TechStations, salespoints and either a web/rental server or
separate web and rental servers. For most installations, a combined web/rental server is sufficient. The following diagram shows
separate web and rental servers.
Food Service architecture
The following diagram shows a Table Service Food and Beverage module installation that implements a FileSync server. The FileSync
server is only if operations are repeatedly interrupted due to connection loss to the database server. (Quick Service Food and
Beverage module does not implement a FileSync server, because all sales are finalized immediately.)
Scan access architecture
The following diagram shows a typical scan access (ScanMan module) hardware configuration.
Axess Gates architecture
The following diagram shows a typical Axess Gates hardware configuration:
Typical WAN architecture
The following diagram shows the recommended configuration for connecting a remote Salesware site to the data center over a
WAN connection.
Note: that accesso recommends a minimum 256 Kbps connection and use of a remote desktop connection to run SysManager and
ReportManager from the remote site. If SysManager and ReportManager are used directly on a salespoint at the remote site,
accesso recommends a minimum 1 Mbps connection. If a slower connection is used, performance may be poor. It is possible to
connect a small number of salespoints to the data center over a 56K dial-up connection, but performance may be extremely slow
and the process of downloading updates or rebuilding local data at a salespoint could take many hours.
Note: Salesware also supports WAN configurations where multiple Salesware sites are connected over a WAN. Each site has its own
data center (SQL Server database), but ticket and pass validation can occur between sites. These configurations are described in the
Salesware Validation document.
Network configuration
accesso requires a network domain. A domain setup offers easier control of your security and users. In addition, it works with SQL
Server Reporting Services for custom reports and facilitate PCI compliance.
Salesware system specifications
The following sections present recommended Salesware system specifications. Refer to the diagrams in the first section of this
document for information regarding configurations. Networking is required; this can be via an Ethernet or a wireless connection.
accesso’s policy is not to support operating systems not supported by Microsoft. These are the reasons why we don’t:
•
•
•
•
Microsoft is no longer providing security updates, so it is risky for anyone to use a non-supported operating system.
Clients are not in compliance with PCI if they use non-supported operating systems.
It may be impossible for us to resolve issues with an operating system we cannot get support on.
Third party products our software uses may not work.
Currently, Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows Me, Windows NT, Windows XP and Vista are not supported.
Note: E-Commerce module is not supported on non-server operating systems. E-Commerce module must be deployed on Windows
Server 2008 or Windows Server 2012.
The requirements for management stations running SysManager or ReportManager are the same as those for standard salespoints,
except less disk space is required.
Note: Failover clustering using Microsoft clustering software is in use by several accesso clients. Clustering is transparent to the
applications and users of the database.
Using virtual servers
Microsoft Virtual Server or VMware allows several “virtual” servers to run on a single, powerful server. accesso Siriusware software
may be installed and operated on virtual servers provided that the hardware requirements for each accesso Siriusware server be
met when configuring virtual servers. Additionally, accesso requires that you have qualified IT staff that can configure, support and
diagnose issues with virtual servers. As with all IT issues, accesso Siriusware Technical Support staff is not able to help diagnose and
resolve issues with virtual servers. Please be sure you have the in-house expertise before considering the use of virtual servers.
Recommended standard salespoint configurations
In addition to the requirements shown in the table, one or two empty PCI slots are useful for future expansion, but not a necessity. A
CD-ROM drive, as well as an uninterruptable power supply (UPS) keeps power up for at least fifteen minutes and are highly
recommended. Parallel, serial and USB ports are required as necessary to support peripherals specific to a salespoint.
Module
Standard salespoint
Component
Minimum - The minimum
hardware requirements
correspond to the minimum
OS; other OSes require higher
than minimum.
Recommended
Operating system
windows 7
Windows 7 or Windows 8
Processor
2 GHz or faster
2 GHz or faster
Free space on hard drive
40 GByte
160 GByte
RAM
4 GByte or more
4 GByte or more
Video
1024x768, 24-bit
video/monitor resolution
1280x1024 (or better) 24-bit
video/monitor resolution
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Middleware
Each hardware installation is different; there is not a single generic answer for all installations. This section is intended to give a few
basic guidelines. Please note that the Hardware Specialist will discuss any specific guidelines that are specific to you site.
Basic guidelines
A separate middleware server is required. That server adheres to the following requirements. In addition, a common strategy to
increase middleware response is to partition middleware components across multiple servers.
Example:
SalesEZ application can be deployed on one server while BookEZ application is deployed on another. Using this approach, each
server adheres to the following requirements.
Module
Pool/SalesEZ or Pool/BookEZ
Component
Requirements
Operating system
Windows Server 2012 / 2008
Processor
4 CPU cores per 20 connections, 3.0 GHz
Memory
8 GByte per 20 connections
Free Disk Space
80 GByte
Display
1024 x 768
Network
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Note: If you use ScanMan and/or GateKeeper modules, a separate Pool/SalesEZ application is used for those devices so they do not
compete for CPU time with regular salespoints.
For larger installations, we feel that having roughly twenty connections per CPU core are the maximum saturation. Some clients
have a higher ratio, but to find the magic number requires knowing what kind of transactions a typical. For instance, extensive use of
Max4Sale capability forces you to keep a lower ratio. You may be able to increase this number with experimentation, but be aware
that the risk is slowing down the response times of your salespoints.
Note: for the purpose of calculating the number of connections, you must add SalesEZ and BookEZ connections together. Therefore,
a single salespoint with bookings enabled connecting to a single middleware server counts as two connections.
Important: accesso recommends that your Middleware server be placed on a battery backup system (UPS) capable of lasting at least
forty-five minutes. This ensures that your operation continues to run smoothly when you experience power issues.
Number of SalesEZ application instances
The default number of SalesEZ application instances that start up running under Pool Management is three. We consider this the
normal minimum number. The optimal number is, according to some research, the number of CPU cores plus one. So, for a quadcore computer, the optimal number is five SalesEZ instances. This number comes with some conditions though. It assumes that
Pool/SalesEZ application is the only application running on that computer. So, if you have both Pool/BookEZ and Pool/SalesEZ
applications running on the same computer, that number is no longer valid. In that case, we would suggest leaving the default at
three instances.
Database server
Database server hardware is selected based on the number of salespoints that are supported. If more than seventy-five salespoints
are supported, special consulting services is used to determine the exact configuration for the network. In general, SQL Server must
be dedicated to Salesware applications only and not used by other applications. accesso supports SQL Server 2014, SQL Server 2012
and SQL Server 2008. For less than five salespoints, the middleware can be run on the database server. A backup strategy with the
necessary hardware to support it are required. A battery backup system (UPS) capable of lasting at least forty-five minutes helps
prevent a variety of potential database corruption problems. A DVD is highly recommended. Keeping your data on a separate drive
system from your operating system helps to improve the speed of the database server. Speed can be improved by utilizing RAID 10
and incorporating 15,000 RPM hard drives.
Number of
salespoints 1
Less than 20
salespoints
1
Component
Minimum - The minimum hardware
requirements correspond to the
minimum OS; other OSes require
higher than minimum.
Recommended
Operating system Windows Server 2008 with 64bit SQL
Server 2008
Windows Server 2012 with 64bit SQL Server
2014
Processor
8 CPU cores, 3.0 GHz or faster
4 CPU cores, 2.0 GHz or faster
The numbers provided are for Classic salespoints. For sites that implement the E-Commerce module, you adjust your calculations to accommodate for the
Sales Host utility. A good rule-of-thumb is that a Sales Host is equivalent to 1 – 5 Classic salespoints, depending on your application and load.
20 – 49 salespoints
50 – 75
salespoints 2
Free space on
hard drive
1 TByte
2 Tbytes with RAID 10 configuration
RAM
8 GByte
16+ GByte
Video
1024 x 768
1280/1024 or larger
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Operating system Windows Server 2008 with 64bit SQL
Server 2008
Windows Server 2012 with 64bit SQL Server
2014
Processor
8 CPU cores, 2.0 GHz or faster
12 CPU cores, 3.0 GHz or faster
Free space on
hard drive
2 TByte
4 Tbyte with RAID 10 configuration
RAM
8 GByte
16 - 32 GByte
Video
1024 x 768
1280 / 1024 or larger
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Operating system Windows Server 2008 or newer with
64bit SQL Server 2008
Windows Server 2012 with 64bit SQL Server
Processor
12 CPU cores, 2.0 GHz or faster
16 CPU cores, 3.0 GHz or faster
Free space on
hard drive
2 TByte
4 Tbyte with RAID 10 configuration
RAM
16 GByte
32 - 64 GByte
Video
1024 x 768
1280/1024 or larger
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Web (E-Commerce)
For web servers, a minimum 3 MByte Internet connection is required; a 10 MByte or greater connection is recommended. A UPS is
recommended.
2
With larger venues (over fifty salespoints), the specifications are increased. The server is an enterprise solution with a two-channel RAID controller and a RAID
1/5 split, dual-processors and 4 GByte RAM. High-speed drives (15K RPM) are recommended.
Important: These specifications are for an average volume of web transactions. For higher volume sites please contact accesso
Siriusware Client Services to determine your specific needs. Also, a second web server (ww.dll) is required of you plan on using Print
At Home Tickets module.
Server
Sales Host
Component
Minimum - The minimum
hardware requirements
correspond to the minimum
OS; other OSes require higher
than minimum.
Recommended
Operating System
Windows 7
Windows Server 2012
Processor
2 GHz or faster
3 GHz or faster
Free space on hard drive
60 GByte
160 GByte
RAM
4 GByte or more
8 GByte or more 3
Video
1024x768, 24-bit color
1280x1024
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Database
500 MBytes to 1 GByte per
year
500 MBytes to 1 GByte per
year
Bandwidth
3Mbps up /down
3Mbps up /down
Middleware
Quad Core
Quad core or better
Sizing recommendations:
All numbers are based on Requests per Second. One request per second translates to about twenty transactions per hour. The
existing SSRS performance report can be used to analyze previous sales data in the accesso Siriusware system.
Server
3
Component
Recommended
Print At Home Tickets module requires large amounts of memory. High-volume clients must consider using more than 4 GBytes. In some cases it may be
necessary to add more CPU cores to the ww.dll server as well.
wwService/ww.dll
Operating System
Windows Server 2012
Free space on hard drive
160 GByte+
Video
1024x1280
Network
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Hardware for the wwService / ww.dll machine:
•
•
•
•
•
Hardware sizing is based on CPU cores.
For each request per second, 1 core is needed.
4 worker processes per core
4GBytes RAM per core
At 2 requests per second or the use of Real Time Print At Home Tickets, a separate wwService/ww.dll for pages and ticketing
is necessary. Splitting the pages and ticketing support is preferable.
Hardware for the Ecommerce Pages IIS machine:
•
•
•
Computers have half the cores of the wwService/ww.dll machine(s).
4GBytes RAM per core
2 worker processes per core
Assumptions:
A SQL server configured properly with enough resources to handle the load.
Examples:
Extremely large Installation
•
•
600 Transactions per hour
All sizing numbers are based on Request per Second (RpS).
•
•
1RpS equals about 20 transactions per hour.
600/20 = 30 Requests per Second
wwService/ww.dll servers:
•
•
•
•
2 Servers (1 Server for pages support and 1 for P@H tickets)
16 CPU cores
64 worker processes
64 GBytes of RAM per server.
Important: Total resources must be split equally between both servers.
E-Commerce pages server:
1 Server (could be divided into 2 servers in a load balanced environment)
System Totals:
•
•
•
16 CPU cores
32 worker processes
64 GBytes of RAM.
Very Large Installation
•
•
300 transactions per hour
This works out to 300/20 = 15 requests per second.
wwService/ww.dll Servers:
•
•
•
•
2 Servers (1 Server for pages support and) 1 for P@H tickets.
8 CPU cores
With 32 worker processes
32 GBytes of RAM per server
Important: Total resources must be split equally between both servers.
E-Commerce pages server:
•
•
•
•
1 Server
8 CPU cores
16 worker processes
32 GBytes of RAM
Large Installation
•
•
160 transaction per hour design load
8 requests per second
wwService/ww.dll Servers:
•
•
•
•
2 Servers (1 Server for pages support and 1 for P@H tickets)
4 CPU cores
With 16 worker processes
16 GBytes of RAM per server
Important: Total resources must be split equally between both servers.
E-Commerce pages server:
•
•
•
•
1 Server
4 CPU cores
8 worker processes
16 GB of RAM
Medium Installation
•
•
80 transaction per hour design load
4 requests per second
wwService/ww.dll Servers:
•
•
1 Server
4 CPU cores
•
•
With 16 worker processes
16 GBytes of RAM per server
E-Commerce pages server:
•
•
•
•
1 Server
2 CPU cores
4 worker processes
8 GBytes of RAM
Small Installation
•
•
20 transaction per hour design load
1 request per second
wwService/ww.dll Servers:
•
•
•
•
1 Server
2 CPU cores
With 4 worker processes
4 GBytes of RAM per server
E-Commerce pages server:
•
•
•
•
1 Server
2 CPU cores
2 worker processes
4 GBytes of RAM
Rentals
A UPS is recommended.
Station
Self-Entry Station and Rental
Tech Station
Separate Rental Server (for
more than 25 connections)
Web Server and combined
Web/Rental Server
4
Component
Minimum - The minimum
hardware requirements
correspond to the minimum
OS; other OSes require higher
than minimum.
Recommended
Operating system
Windows 7
Windows 7 or 8
Processor
1 GHz or faster
Windows 7 - 2 GHz or faster
Free space on hard drive
20 GByte
160 GByte
RAM
2 GByte
Windows 7 - 4 GByte or more
Video
1024x768, 24-bit color 4
1024x768, 24-bit color
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Operating system
Windows Server 2008
Windows Server 2008 or 2012
64 bit
Processor
2 GHz or faster
2 GHz or faster, multicore CPU
Free space on hard drive
50 GByte
160 GByte
RAM
4 GByte
4 GByte or more
Video
1024x768, 24-bit color
1280x1024, 24-bit color
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Operating system
Windows 2008
Windows 2012 Server
Processor
2 GHz or higher
3 GHz or higher, multiple CPU
Cores
Free space on hard drive
50 GByte
160 GByte
RAM
4 GByte or more
4 GByte or more
Video
SVGA
XGA
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
A resolution of 800x600, 16-bit color, can be used for Self-Entry Stations if scrolling isn’t required and the number of controls displayed is not too great.
Folio Charge
Folio Charge module is deployed on a standalone workstation with the following requirements.
Component
Minimum - The minimum hardware
requirements correspond to the
minimum OS; other OSes require higher
than minimum.
Recommended
Operating system
Windows 7
Windows 7 or 8
Processor
1 GHz or faster
Windows 7 - 2 GHz or faster
Free space on hard drive
20 GByte
160 GByte
RAM
2 GByte
Windows 7 - 4 GByte or more
Video
1024x768
1280x1024
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Reserved Seating
Station
Salesware Service
Component
Minimum - The minimum
hardware requirements
correspond to the minimum
OS; other OSes require higher
than minimum.
Recommended
Operating system
Windows Server 2008
Windows 2008 or 2012 Server
Processor
1 GHz or faster
2 GHz or multiple core
Free space on hard drive
20 GByte
160 GByte
RAM
2 GByte
4 GByte or more
Video
1024x768
1280x1040
Station
Component
Minimum - The minimum
hardware requirements
correspond to the minimum
OS; other OSes require higher
than minimum.
Recommended
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Component
Minimum - The minimum
hardware requirements
correspond to the minimum
OS; other OSes require higher
than minimum.
Recommended
Operating system
Windows 7 running IIS7 5
Windows 8
Processor
1 GHz or faster
2 GHz or multiple core
Free space on hard drive
20 GByte
160 GByte
RAM
4 GByte
8 GByte or more
Video
1024x768
1280x1040
Network
100 Mbit Ethernet
100/1000 Mbit Ethernet
Accounting Export
Station
Accounting Export Server
5
Windows 7 OS allows for a minimum of ten users to connect at one time.