Metadata Server setup on existing SAS Foundation Environment

[sasprofile]

Hello Friends 

Can you please advise and answer my below questions :

We have an existing Single tier SAS Foundation environment on Windows Server which been using by users logging to Windows Server remotely. users will logging to Windows server remotely to use Base SAS, SAS Enterprise Guide  (Connects locally to Foundation).

We  recently purchased license just for Metadata Server to set it up on existing SAS Foundation on Windows Server, So that  users can use SAS Enterprise Guide to connect to SAS Foundation from their local machines instead of logging to Windows Server to use SAS EG.

My Questions are :

1) While Installation of Metadata Server, Should  I choose the existing SASHome location (E:\Program Files\SASHome) where SAS Foundation was setup  or should I choose a different drive. For configuration of course I need to choose different drive.

2) Will there be any impacts to the existing SAS Foundation Environment after Metadata Server Setup

3) Prior to Metadata Server setup what are the different backups I should take from the existing Foundation.

4) Are there any other tasks to perform or things need to take care prior to this Metadata Server Installation/Configuration

5) Prior to the Installation I should be creating below External Id's if am ot wrong ?

SAS Installer Id - sas - We have a service ID which was used for SAS Foundation and SAS Studio basic installation and configuration, So I don’t think I need to create SAS Installer Id separately for this Metadata Server Installation.

SAS Spawned Servers Account - sassrv id - This Id is compulsory need to be created and should mimic the same permissions of Service ID/sassrv ID right

sasdemo which is optional which does not required?

Below are internal accounts will be created during Metadata server Deployment

sasadm@saspw

sastrust@saspw

Thank you all in advance

[SASKiwi]

With all due respect, trying to retro-fit a SAS metadata server into a single SAS Application server is simply a bad idea. For one thing you don't mention a mid-tier (web) server that will be used to provide SAS web-based applications such as SAS Studio and SAS Environment Manager.

Best practice would be to create a new SAS Infrastructure design, based on the standard three-tier approach of metadata, application and mid-tier, based on your organisation's requirements. If you don't have experience doing this then I would strongly recommend getting a specialist design and/or implementation help from SAS or a recognised third-party. To give you some idea, our main SAS infrastructure is based on a 100 page design document that specifies server names, addresses, ports, traffic flows, number of cores, memory used, software used etc, etc. Employing a specialist who does this all the time is the best way to go.

[sasprofile]

SASKiwi

Thanks for your prompt response
I totally agree with you the best practice would be to create a new SAS Infrastructure design based on the standard three-tier approach of metadata, application and mid-tier.
But to you let you know we don't have many SAS users in our organization and usage is very minimal/limited just sas foundation level.
Our users usage is very minimal/limited just sas foundation level, they don't need BI server basee environment webbased or other client tools.
Fyi we had already setup sasstudiobasic web version tool using which users connect to SAS foundation.

We already have an license purchased for Metadata server, so now requirement is users don't want to login to remote windows server to use base SAS and SAS enterprise guide to connect to foundation. Instead they want to install SAS enterprise guide on their local machine to connect to foundation which exists on remote server, so that's why I want to use existing license to setup metadata server.
Hope you understand why we don't need now complete BI server setup except just metadata server deployment.

Could you please answer to my questions posted earlier about SAS metadata server setup.

Please let me know if you have any further questions

[Kurt_Bremser]

The metadata + compute server + necessary connection layers needed for remote access with Enterprise Guide IS the core of a BI server. No way around that.

Ideally, you have a new VM set up and do a "green field" install there. It will be much easier than grafting additional parts onto your current fully local installation.

[sasprofile]

Kurtbremser thanks for your reply

When I opened a track with SAS explaining about our problem they suggested the solution to setup metadata server, even I told samething that ours is just a SAS foundation and not a BI server environment (metadata + compute server + Midtier) and how users can connect SAS enterprise guide from their local machine to SAS foundation on remote server, but they said since we have a license for Metadata server so by just deploying metadata server on window server users can connect from SAS EG on their local machine to remote server.

Below is the SAS doc SAS tech shared for the Metadata server deployment

http://support.sas.com/techsup/technote/implementing-a-metadata-server.pdf

So as per this doc seems like with this setup users can connect, please let me know if this is something you don't agree or advise.

[SASKiwi]

That document in your link is for SAS 9.2, dated 2010. I'd be surprised if there isn't some additional stuff given we are two SAS versions past that and 9 years later. Yes you can give it a try, but at the very least I suggest you talk to your management to explain your options: a green field best practice install, or a retro-fit version without a robust design and proper monitoring.

[sasprofile]

Yes the doc link is SAS 9.2, SAS told to use same doc as it applies to 9.4 also. They said there is no separate doc for 9.4.
Btw the suggestion you are giving "explain your options: a green field best practice install, or a retro-fit version without a robust design and proper monitoring"
I never heard about that green field, could you please briefly explain about that and provide if any documentation available.

[SASKiwi]

Sorry, green field simply means you start from nothing (an empty field) and design and build a completely new SAS environment. Here is a link to SAS Install Center for SAS 9.4 to explain how to go about it.

https://support.sas.com/en/documentation/install-center/94.html

As already mentioned if you don't have previous experience with this, then hiring an installation specialist is the best option. This is what we do. In days gone by I used to do a lot of SAS installing, but with the complexity of modern SAS multi-tier architecture it is best left to a specialist who does installs all the time. Applying fixes or installing SAS client tools I'm still happy to do but a specialist is more productive for full installs. 

[sasprofile]

Ok for now based on our users limited usage requirement, I will deploy the Metadata Server on existing Foundation Software.

Could you please answer to the original questions I posted below for this deployment

My Questions are :

1) While Installation of Metadata Server, Should  I choose the existing SASHome location (E:\Program Files\SASHome) where SAS Foundation was setup  or should I choose a different drive. For configuration of course I need to choose different drive.

2) Will there be any impacts to the existing SAS Foundation Environment after Metadata Server Setup

3) Prior to Metadata Server setup what are the different backups I should take from the existing Foundation.

4) Are there any other tasks to perform or things need to take care prior to this Metadata Server Installation/Configuration

5) Prior to the Installation I should be creating below External Id's if am ot wrong ?

SAS Installer Id - sas - We have a service ID which was used for SAS Foundation and SAS Studio basic installation and configuration, So I don’t think I need to create SAS Installer Id separately for this Metadata Server Installation.

SAS Spawned Servers Account - sassrv id - This Id is compulsory need to be created and should mimic the same permissions of Service ID/sassrv ID right

sasdemo which is optional which does not required?

Below are internal accounts will be created during Metadata server Deployment

sasadm@saspw

sastrust@saspw

[SASKiwi]

Are you planning to install the SAS metadata server on a physically separate server from your SAS Application server or not? A separate server is best and then you would install SAS on a new disk of that server.   

[sasprofile]

I have not decided yet, but I might install on new VM SAS Foundation and Metadata Server.

But if I want to proceed with installing Metadata Server on existing SAS Foundation on VM, Could you please answer my questions for that

My Questions are :

1) While Installation of Metadata Server, Should  I choose the existing SASHome location (E:\Program Files\SASHome) where SAS Foundation was setup  or should I choose a different drive. For configuration of course I need to choose different drive.

2) Will there be any impacts to the existing SAS Foundation Environment after Metadata Server Setup

3) Prior to Metadata Server setup what are the different backups I should take from the existing Foundation.

4) Are there any other tasks to perform or things need to take care prior to this Metadata Server Installation/Configuration

5) Prior to the Installation I should be creating below External Id's if am ot wrong ?

SAS Installer Id - sas - We have a service ID which was used for SAS Foundation and SAS Studio basic installation and configuration, So I don’t think I need to create SAS Installer Id separately for this Metadata Server Installation.

SAS Spawned Servers Account - sassrv id - This Id is compulsory need to be created and should mimic the same permissions of Service ID/sassrv ID right

sasdemo which is optional which does not required?

Below are internal accounts will be created during Metadata server Deployment

sasadm@saspw

sastrust@saspw

[SASKiwi]

I would recommend doing a full server backup of all drives prior to starting installation. It is then a simple process to restore the server back to exactly its pre-installation state.

Please note that since your OS is Windows there will be C drive changes, such as Windows Registry updates.

[AnandVyas]

Hi @sasprofile,

My views on the questions you have posted:

1) I think it's good to have a single SAS/Home for all the binaries since it's quite a small deployment.

2) If there are version differences between the existing deployed software and the new licensed depot, I think deployment wizard would try to upgrade binaries to the latest version as in the depot.

3) While there are no user sessions running its good to take a cold backup of the current SAS binaries.

4) The link shared by TS already have the pre-requirements listed to be done before setting up this configuration. please follow that.

5) Yes, you are right.
SAS - Installer Account
sassrv - SAS Spawned Servers Account
I would suggest to have sasdemo, as it could be helpful to test out some scenarios/issues faced by users.

Hope this help!

-AV