Introduction to the Db2 Mirror GUI

Recommended configuration

The GUI interface is a client that is running on an IBM i. The Db2 Mirror GUI interface does not need to run on either of the nodes in the Db2 Mirror pair. It is recommended that you run the GUI on a third node, not on one of the production nodes. This third node could be a node dedicated to just running the Db2 Mirror GUI, a test node, or even a development node. However, the third node should have access to a full processor (shared or dedicated) and sufficient memory.

The base operating system 5770-SS1 Option 3 (Extended Base Directory Support) ships as part of the operating system. This option contains the necessary web server infrastructure needed by the Db2 Mirror GUI. The GUI runs in the ADMIN3 admin web container job. ADMIN3 will be running the IAS server that is based on the latest version of Liberty. The ADMIN3 job only needs to be running on the node that will be used to manage the mirrored pair. The web container job is Java™ based and will run on the latest level of Java that has been installed on that node. The GUI requires Java 1.8 64 bit or newer.

The default URL to the Db2 Mirror GUI is: http://hostname:2001/Db2mirror. The default URL is routed to the ADMIN HTTP Apache web server running on the GUI node. The default URL is not case sensitive. This URL is listened for by the default admin Apache server and will route this web request to the ADMIN3 server using the URL below.

Once the ADMIN HTTP Apache web server receives the Db2 Mirror GUI request, it redirects the request to the Db2 Mirror Application server using the following URL: http://hostname:2006/Db2Mirror. This URL is case sensitive.

The Db2 Mirror GUI is shipped with TLS/SSL not enabled. You can easily configure the Db2 Mirror GUI for HTTPS by using the TLS/SSL Wizard from the Web Admin GUI. The Web Admin GUI can be accessed at http://hostname:2001/HTTPAdmin. Manage the ADMIN3 server and click the Configure SSL wizard link from the left navigation pane.

This interface will reconfigure the ADMIN3 server to use HTTPS using the certificate of your choice. It will also handle all the necessary configuration within the Digital Certificate Manager (DCM) in addition to configuring the server correctly.

Supported browsers

When installing a PTF that updates the GUI, it may be necessary to update and clear the cache on your browsers to ensure all the latest code is activated.

Sign on

The sign on for Db2 Mirror GUI is accessed from the following URL: http://hostname:2001/Db2Mirror, where hostname is the name of your partition.

You must enter a valid IBM i user and password for the partition.

Access authority

Any user profile used to access the Db2Mirror environment requires the correct level of authority to the various Db2 Mirror services. See Security and auditing for details on how to set the correct authority.

When a wrong user name or password is entered, the user is disabled, or the password has expired, an error message will be displayed. The user cannot change their password from this interface. The 5250 or the web navigator interface will need to be used to change the password.

After you have signed on to the GUI interface, you can run the setup wizard to start configuring a new Db2 Mirror pair or you can add an already configured Db2 Mirror pair.

Use the Add New Pair button from the dashboard tray at any time to add more mirrored pairs to your dashboard.

You can choose one of the following authentication methods to connect to the mirrored pairs on your dashboard:

• Use the login information of the user currently signed on to the GUI node.
• Prompt for the login information each time a node is accessed.
• Store the login information to an encrypted file on the GUI node.

To change the dashboard authentication method, select GUI Preferences from the left navigation management menu.

Working with list displays

Within the Db2 Mirror GUI, you can customize the appearance of lists. This includes selecting which columns are shown, the order of the columns, and the width of each column. The actions described here apply to the RCL rules, the Object Tracking List, the list of NRGs, and the compare tools. To demonstrate some of the actions, the RCL is used in this section. Similar interfaces exist for other lists.

To see a list of all the columns that can be selected and arrange the order of the columns, click on the icon that looks like three dots stacked upon each other in the upper right corner of the table as seen below. A pull down menu is shown.

Click on the Customize Columns option in the pull down menu. The Customize Table Columns interface is opened as seen here.

After clicking on a column name, use the control arrows to move the column up or down in the list or to move the column between the list of Available Columns and the list of Selected Columns.

A reset button is provided to reset the columns back to their default settings.

When looking at a list, you can drag and drop columns to change the viewable order. Simply click on a column title and drag the column to where you want it to appear. In the following figure, the Object Name column is being moved. If it is released where it is shown, it will be located before the Action column as indicated by the visible up and down arrows.

Columns can be resized directly within the table. Hover over the line separating the column headings, grab the line, and slide it to the right or left to make the column wider or narrower.

When viewing a list, more information can be accessed by right clicking on a cell. A customized list of options is shown based on the context. The following figure shows the list of options available from a right click on the object name cell for the DATA output queue.