Enterprise Guide and VPN

[ckx]

We're currently using Enterprise Guide 4.3 with SAS 9.2 on a remote server but we've found that this doesn't work very well over a VPN connection. For remote working, we're using VMWare, which is acceptable but not a great solution. Since we're considering upgrading to a newer version of EG and SAS, I was wondering if this situation has improved. Googling only turns up this link on EG 4.3: https://communities.sas.com/message/128263. Have things improved since then?

[Jagadishkatam]

Not sure if SAS EG doesn't work well in remote server with VPN connection. Because i am using SAS EG 5.1 with 9.3 SAS on remote server with vpn access and its working well. Even SAS EG 4.3 with 9.2 works well in the same situation.

I believe it depends on the how SAS EG was installed, if it is not installed well then it could result in poor performance.

Thanks,

Jag

[ckx]

Hello Jag,

Thanks for your input. Could you clarify what you mean by EG not being installed well? EG works, has never crashed but it's much slower over VPN. This isn't just me, my co-workers have had the same experience as well.

[Jagadishkatam]

i thought SAS EG is not working well on VPN connections. if this is not the case then i am not particularly sure. Probably upgrading could help, because i am working on SAS EG 5.1 with 9.3 sas without much problem.

Thanks

Jag

[ChrisHemedinger]

SAS Enterprise Guide works with VPN -- I use it this way quite often.  When I connect my laptop (via the Internet) to my corporate network via VPN, my SAS Enterprise Guide session can reach the metadata server and workspace servers that are hosted at my company.  (Of course, it so happens that my company is SAS...) 

SAS Enterprise Guide uses TCP/IP sockets to connect with the remote servers.  In a VPN situation, your TCP/IP connections are routed though your corporate network...so mechanically it should be "just like being there" at the office.

However, VPN connections often come with slower network performance, and this network latency can cause some things to work slower in EG.  For example, when I work from home (where I have a fast Internet connection), it's much better than when I work from the free WiFi connection in a hotel lobby.

EG interacts with your remote SAS session quite a bit and brings back rich results such as program logs, ODS output, and data records (to view in the grid).  You can use Tools->Options: Results options to limit the types and amount of information that is transferred back into your project, and therefore improve the responsiveness.

Chris

[ckx]

Hi Chris,

The problem boils down to the interaction between EG and the remote SAS session. Because of this, EG performance is affected by latency and a VPN connection means more latency. We've circumvented this problem by using VMWare, where EG runs on the server and all that needs to be sent back and forth from the office to my home is the display of EG and other programs I have running on the one hand and whatever I type on the other.

But VMWare's a bit of a hassle,so I'm curious as to whether the interaction between EG and the remote SAS session has become less for newer releases of EG and SAS.

[ChrisHemedinger · Accepted solution]

No, I would say that the interaction/communication has not been reduced.  The interactivity is something that users look for in EG (especially when coming from an all-local scenario such as PC SAS).

However, there are those options you can use in Tools->Options to squelch some of the communication, and thus see better response.  For example, if you don't care about rich results, use Listing (text) output instead of HTML or SAS Report.  It's much faster, if a bit boring looking...

But a slower network connection is always going to affect the experience.  Many customers have done what you've done to mitigate latency on WAN topologies: used a VM or Citrix-style setup to put the EG app closer to the actual data center, and use remote desktop technologies to work with it. 

Chris

[Fugue]

Using EG via RADMIN has not been a problem for us, in the main. As Chris points out, network connectivity willl affect how quickly and crisply the interaction is. However, processing still happens on the server side so the main limitation is responsiveness of the video output..

Running EG on VMWARE also works for us, with some performance trade-offs. Since EG (VMWARE version) is running on a server that is sharing CPU, RAM and disk resources with other virtual machines, the need to balance those resources may mean that EG/SAS is not getting peak resources.