Manage multi-instance queue managers

We must configure the IBM MQ Explorer to manage multi-instance queue managers using remote connections.

Use the Queue Managers > Add Remote Queue Manager menu item to add connections to a multi-instance queue manager. Alternatively, if you have already configured a remote connection to a queue manager, right-click the remote queue manager node in the IBM MQ Explorer navigator, then click Connection Details > Manage Instances to add, remove, test, and reorder connections.

We must connect all instances of a queue manager to its remote queue manager node, and then the node is able to monitor the status of all the instances of the queue manager. We can see which instance is currently active, and which instances are in standby or disconnected.

It is important that you test the connections to all the instances of the queue manager when they are in standby and in active status. Ensure that the listener is running on both the active and the standby instances of the queue manager. A standby-instance queue manager does not have access to the queue manager file system, and does not automatically start listeners until it becomes active. To test the connections of both active and standby instances, consider starting the listener for both instances from the command line.

Do not start listeners manually when they are configured to start with the queue manager. This produces errors when the queue manager starts because the listener service fails due to the port already being in use.

• Connect directly to a multi-instance queue manager
  Create direct remote connections to multiple instances of a queue manager to administer a multi-instance queue manager using IBM MQ Explorer.
• Create a multi-instance queue manager
  We cannot create all the instances of a multi-instance queue manager using the IBM MQ Explorer.
• Delete a multi-instance queue manager
  The IBM MQ Explorer does not provide a means to delete all the instances of a multi-instance queue manager.
• Starting a multi-instance queue manager
  We can start a multi-instance queue manager in two ways from a local queue manager in the IBM MQ Explorer.
• Stopping a multi-instance queue manager
  We can stop a multi-instance queue manager in two ways from a local queue manager in the IBM MQ Explorer.
• Manage connections to multi-instance queue managers
  We can manage the connections IBM MQ Explorer uses to connect to a queue manager for remote administration. You need multiple connections to monitor the status of all the instances of a multi-instance queue manager. We can also configure multiple connections to a single instance of a queue manager to make remote administration more reliable.

Parent topic: Configure IBM MQ using IBM MQ Explorer