Adding a cluster to a bus without using messaging engine policy assistance

You can add a cluster as a member of a service integration bus without using messaging engine policy assistance. One messaging engine with default properties is created for the cluster. After you add the cluster, you can create more messaging engines and you can create and configure new core group policies to customize the way that the messaging engines are managed.

Before you begin

Ensure that you have defined the resources listed in Adding a cluster as a member of a bus.

About this task

When you add a server cluster as a member of a bus without using messaging engine policy assistance, one messaging engine is created for the cluster. The messaging engine uses the default SIBus core group policy with default properties, such that the messaging engine can fail over to any server in the cluster.

After you add the cluster, you can customize the configuration. You can create more messaging engines and you can create and configure new core group policies to customize the way that the messaging engines are managed. To do this, you must know how to create and configure a core group policy for messaging engines, and know how to use match criteria to associate a messaging engine with a core group policy.

Use the following procedure if you are already familiar with this procedure. Otherwise, use messaging engine policy assistance.

[AIX Solaris HP-UX Linux Windows][IBM i]You can optionally tune the initial and maximum Java™ virtual machine (JVM) heap sizes. Tuning the heap sizes helps to ensure that application servers hosting one or more messaging engines are provided with an appropriate amount of memory for the message throughput you require.

If you are working in a mixed-version cell, a service integration bus running in this version of the product can only include WebSphere® Application Server Version 6 bus members that are running in the following versions of the product:
  • 6.0.2 (Fix Pack 23 or later)
  • 6.1.0 (Fix Pack 13 or later)

If security is enabled, and the bus has mixed-version bus members, the bus members establish trust by using an inter-engine authentication alias. If you add a server cluster as a bus member at WebSphere Application Server Version 6, and it is the first bus member at this level, you must select or create an authentication alias during this task. This action sets the inter-engine authentication alias.

Procedure

  1. In the navigation pane, click Service integration -> Buses -> bus_name -> [Topology] Bus members.
  2. Click Add to start the Add a new bus member wizard.
  3. In the first pane, select Cluster and, from the drop-down list, select the cluster that you want to make a member of the bus.
  4. In the Messaging engine policy assistance settings pane, ensure that the Enable messaging engine policy assistance check box is not selected.
  5. Select the type of message store that you have already defined.
    • If you use a file store, specify the directory paths for the log files, the permanent file store, and the temporary file store. Do not use the default path, and ensure that you use a unique path for each messaging engine.
    • If you use a data store, specify the JNDI name of the data source that provides access to the database that holds the data store.
  6. Optional: [AIX Solaris HP-UX Linux Windows][IBM i]In the Tune performance parameters pane, you can view the current settings of the initial and maximum Java Virtual Machine (JVM) heap sizes. If you want to tune performance by changing the current settings, select the Change heap sizes check box and enter the required changes in the Proposed heap sizes fields.
  7. If security is enabled, and adding this cluster bus member creates a mixed-version bus, the wizard prompts for an authentication alias. Do one of the following:
    • Select an existing authentication alias.
    • Create a new authentication alias. Specify a unique alias name and password.
    This action sets the inter-engine authentication alias.
  8. When the Add a new bus member wizard is finished, save your changes to the master configuration.

Results

The cluster is now a member of the bus and has a single messaging engine, named cluster_name.nnn-bus_name. The messaging engine uses the default SIBus core group policy with default properties (One of N with no preferred servers), such that the messaging engine can fail over to any server in the cluster. This cluster configuration provides a highly available messaging engine.

What to do next

If you require high availability, you might want to do further configuration, for example to specify preferred servers for the messaging engine, or enable the messaging engine to fail back. If you require scalability or workload sharing, add as many messaging engines as you require to the cluster. To customize the messaging engine behavior, create and configure a new core group policy for the messaging engines and use match criteria to associate the messaging engines with the core group policy. It is advisable to create a new, separate, core group policy for each new messaging engine, including the first one. It is not advisable to alter the default SIBus core group policy. For more information, see the related tasks.