4 Replies Latest reply on Nov 3, 2004 4:13 PM by jeffzoot

    Few newbie admin questions...

    jeffzoot

      I have been set with a task of build a development environment for our programmers to utilize Jboss with our Apache servers. I have a few questions involving the architecture.

      I am going to have 3 servers, one as a webserver (outside of the firewall accessible to the public) and two Jboss application servers on the inside utilizing clustering. We are planning on utilizing Jboss 4.x and java 1.5. Which brings me to my first question? Are these two version considered production stable when used together?

      On the webserver side, there is a debate of whether to install just Apache/Tomcat or also include JBoss on the webserver as well. I'm somewhat looking at this from a security perspective... Is it wise to have Jboss/Apache/Tomcat running on the external webserver? Are there any limitations if Jboss is not on the webserver?

      Also, since we have a limitation in having to use Apache 1.3, is there any problems with using the 1.2.6 modjk with Apache 1.3/Tomcat 5.x/Jboss 4.x/jdk1.5?

      Since this is my first attempt at configuring Jboss w/ Apache/Tomcat I'll probably have a few more questions but if anyone could answer these couple it would be greatly appreciated.

      Thanks from a newbie to the world of administering Jboss...

      -Jeff

        • 1. Re: Few newbie admin questions...
          frankgrimes

          Hi jeffzoot,

          For what it's worth, I have found mod_jk to be a little flakey at times.
          If you don't need to rely on it for load balancing, then simply using mod_rewrite/mod_proxy might save you some hassles.

          As for Jboss 4.x/jdk1.5, if I were planning a new deployment I might consider starting out with that target, but have a 1.4.2 JVM or two as backup.
          Also, we've found that building Jboss from source against your target VM(s) can often help catch problems early.

          In case you're curious, in production we currently use Apache 1.3.31/Jboss-3.2.3/Jetty-4.2.20.
          IBM 1.3.1 SR7P on AIX 4.3, 5.x (32-bit and 64-bit).
          IBM 1.4.1 SR2 on Redhat ES 2.1.

          • 2. Re: Few newbie admin questions...
            anil.saldhana

            For Apache with JBoss/Tomcat, stay with mod_jk1.2.x. So go with mod_jk1.2.6.

            There are some new connectors coming over the next few months. But the supported connector currently for Apache is mod_jk1.2.x

            • 3. Re: Few newbie admin questions...
              jeffzoot

              Sounds good, I'll probably go ahead and give the Jboss 4.x/ jdk1.5 a try. As for the security side of things, are there any security concerns with having Jboss on the web server with Apache/Tomcat?

              Thanks for the info!

              -Jeff

              • 4. Re: Few newbie admin questions...
                jeffzoot

                One more question in addition to the security one from above. Is there any documentation that talks about the actual hardware system requirements/recommendations? Is there any benefit to having multi-processor machines or just having multiple single proc machines in the clustered environment? Also RAM recommendations in a production environment? Thanks for any insight!

                -Jeff