PortWeb - is Portfolio server needed?

PortWeb - do you need Portfolio Server?
Well, although PortWeb is not formally supported, ask Extensis and they'll say yes. Before dismissing this as a cynical way of selling product, do consider the options.

Stand-alone PortWeb
There is no doubt that there a plenty of happy users of PortWeb as a stand alone function with just PortWeb and a catalogue. In this mode you should treat the catalogue as stand alone. Don't try and access it via the client whilst it is being served - like as not you may upset the service. The implication of this is that:

• To update the catalogue you need to work on a copy of the active web catalogue and then swap the old for new. As the catalogues can be quite large consider the effect of having both catalogues in your server space - you may exceed your allowed space limit. If this might be an issue and you are on a hosted server do talk early on with your ISP.
• You can't update the catalogue or even a template typo without having to swap the catalogues as described above - so proof before going live (more on testing here).
• Running stand-alone PortWeb on a (physically) local server or intranet is clearly the easiest option here as changes can be effected quickly and without assistance. For remote servers more planning is needed and careful liaison with the server owners.

PortWeb with Portfolio Server
Portfolio server's main role is to act as a gatekeeper between the demands of multiple clients, assisting with more efficient record locking and the like. As all the web servers are one user there is a limit to the degree Portfolio Server can help here but general consensus is that you should employ Portfolio Server if you can. Some points about this combination:

• Online catalogue maintenance is possible, though as with the client-only access, administration is single user access. Thus a Server/PortWeb served catalogue must be un-served to allow it to be accessed in admin mode via client. However, maintaining web templates - available in Publisher mode - can be done whilst the service is live. As soon as the 'Save' button on the Edit HTML dialog is pressed the change is live for any PortWeb access.
• On some (but not all!) Portfolio Servers a newly served catalogue may not be accepted by PortWeb. If this occurs, re-start the Portfolio service and try PortWeb again.
• If you create a new catalogue via Portfolio Server, be aware it opens in Admin mode. Thus you need to switch to a lower access mode before attempting to use it with PortWeb. It is better to close the catalogue first. If still, no joy with PortWeb, you may need to re-start Portfolio Server as described above.

Portfolio, SQL and the web
If you need more control than PortWeb allows, and have MS-SQLServer or Oracle 8i, consider using Portfolio's SQL Connect module. This will turn your Catalogues into true SQL databases - which then replicate an FDB's internal structure - whilst allow you to use ASP/VBScript or your own COM programs to access your SQL database (i.e. Catalogue), offering greater web control and security. Clearly for smaller users this is not a low cost option. SQLConnect is a little sensitive to changes in IP address and can loose its ability to reserve catalogues if the PortWeb or Portfolio servers change IP numbers (so make sure everything in the chain is re-booted after such a change).

Question: PortWeb - is Portfolio server needed? [FAQ00329.htm]
Last Update:- 31 May 2006

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