Documentation forWeb Help Desk

Configure multiple instance Tomcat daemons

You can configure multiple instance Tomcat daemons by editing the tomcat_web_template.xml file located at:

<WebHelpDesk>/conf

For multiple-instance Web Help Desk installations, use the following guidelines:

  • Configure one instance to provide either dedicated or background daemon services. Having more than one instance provide daemon services can result in duplicate tickets and unnecessary use of system resources.
  • Set the single daemon instance to either dedicated or background. Set the remaining instance to none.
  • Ensure that all but one instance is running without daemon services.

    For example: 

    WHDDaemonMode=none

Configuration options

When you configure your daemon settings, use the following options: 

  • Dedicated. The Web Help Desk installation instance functions only as a daemon, and the login page is disabled.
  • Background. The Web Help Desk instance functions as a daemon, but users can also log in to it.
  • None (default). The Web Help Desk instance does not execute daemon tasks.

To configure a multiple instance installation, set the memory, the Tomcat deployment descriptor, and the WebObjects daemon mode.

You can configure only one Web Help Desk instance to run as the daemon—either in dedicated or background mode. SolarWinds recommends running the instance in background mode so that it can be restarted when required—on a more frequent basis than the front-end instances—without interfering with the front-end application. For information about configuring the daemon, see the SolarWinds knowledge base article entitled How to Implement Large Deployments with Web Help Desk.

Memory allocation

Allocate at least 256MB of RAM to your daemon processes. If the Web Help Desk DaemonMode parameter is set to background, allocate an additional 256MB RAM beyond the amount allocated to other instances. This RAM configuration will support the daemon services memory resources in addition to supporting the application user interface.

See the following sections to set the daemons required for multiple Tomcat instances: 

Upgrade Web Help Desk

Beginning in 12.4.0, Web Help Desk upgraded to Apache Tomcat 7.0.68 for improved security. When you upgrade your Web Help Desk software, the upgrade procedure replaces the tomcat_web_template.xml file with an updated file that includes the new Tomcat settings. See the Web Help Desk Installation Guide for the latest Tomcat requirements.

Before you upgrade your Web Help Desk software, back up your current tomcat_web_template.xml file to an external directory. When the upgrade is completed, add your personal settings to the updated file from your backup file, and then restart Web Help Desk.