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Install the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 components

This section provides a high-level overview of the architecture and the steps to install, configure, and update the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 components: Experience API, Content Composer, and Digital Asset Management.

Video : Install HCL WebSphere Portal components (Experience API, Content Composer, and Digital Asset Management) on RedHat OpenShift

Architecture

Topology


Prerequisite

DX Administrators can choose to install the DX Core containers then proceed to install Content Composer and Digital Asset Management containers to the supported Kubernetes container platforms as outlined in the steps below. See the Deployment section for the latest DX 9.5 container file listings. Deploying the HCL Digital Asset Management or Content Composer components is supported on Kubernetes or OpenShift platforms and is not supported for deployment to Docker platforms. For initial deployments, HCL recommends installing the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 components (Experience API, Content Composer, and Digital Asset Management) to a non-production (test) HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 environment.


Instal the HC Digital Experience 9.5 Container components

Follow these steps to install the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 or higher components (Experience API, Content Composer, and Digital Asset Management):

If installing in conjunction with HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 or higher, follow the instructions in the Container Deployment topic. This page lists the latest HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 or higher product images available and how to obtain and load the images into your Docker repository before continuing with these instructions.

If installing to an existing HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 or higher Kubernetes environment:

  1. Verify that we can access the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 or higher Practitioner Studio by logging in to the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 Practitioner Studio interface. See the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 Practitioner Studio topic for information.

  2. Download and extract the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 components from your Digital Experience entitlements from the HCL Software License Portal to the local file system.

    Sample download package name : hcl-dx-kubernetes-v95-CF181-other.zip or higher, depending on the DX 9.5 Container Update version we are installing.

    Example :

      hcl-dx-kubernetes-v95-CF181-other.zip:

    HCL Experience API (Docker image) hcl-dx-ringapi-image-v1.0.0_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz
    Postgres hcl-dx-postgres-image-v1.0.0_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz
    HCL Digital Asset Management (Operator) hcl-dx-medialibrary-operator-image-v95_CF181_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz
    HCL Digital Asset Management (Image processor) hcl-dx-image-processor-image-v1.0.0_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz
    HCL Digital Asset Management (Docker image) hcl-dx-digital-asset-manager-image-v1.0.0_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz
    HCL Content Composer (Docker image) hcl-dx-content-composer-image-v1.0.0_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz

  3. Extract the images to the local file system.

  4. Open a terminal window and change to the root directory of the extracted package images.

  5. Load the images into your Docker environment.

    Example:

      Docker load < hcl-dx-ringapi-image-v1.0.0_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz

      Docker load < hcl-dx-medialibrary-operator-image-v95_CF181_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz

      Docker load < hcl-dx-digital-asset-manager-image-v1.0.0_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz

      Docker load < hcl-dx-content-composer-image-v1.0.0_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz

      Docker load < hcl-dx-image-processor-image-v1.0.0_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz

      Docker load < hcl-dx-postgres-image-v1.0.0_xxxxxxxx-xxxx.tar.gz

    Either -i or < works for the load command. In case you encounter an error when using one, try running the command using the other.

  6. Get the Docker images in your local Docker repository to the target Kubernetes system by tagging and pushing them appropriately. If we used docker load to get your images on the target environment, proceed to the next step.

  7. Install the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 or higher Experience API, Content Composer, and Digital Asset Management components using the following steps. Container Update CF_182 or higher is required if deploying to Microsoft Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS).Notes:

    • The config map name value used must be the same as the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 and higher deployment. By default, the config map deployment name value is dx-deployment.

    • The HCL Experience API must be installed to access and use the HCL Content Composer and the HCL Digital Asset Management features.

    If we are currently running an HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 or higher Kubernetes deployment in production, adding new components will require an outage and setup time so plan it carefully. If we are creating the dx-deployment config map, we can use the following content (adjusting the image tag values to match the environment) to create a YAML file and use a command line client to create the config map which will be used to deploy the HCL Experience API, HCL Content Composer, and HCL Digital Asset Management CF_181 and higher components.

    It is possible to deploy the services for the HCL Experience API and HCL Content Composer and/or Digital Asset Management, if either of those combinations is preferred, by removing either the HCL Content Composer or HCL Digital Asset Management service lines from the YAML file.

  8. Confirm the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 and higher container instance is up and running on Amazon EKS, Microsoft Azure (CF_182 or higher), or Red Hat OpenShift platform.

    If we are adding components for HCL Content Composer, HCL Digital Asset Management, and HCL Experience API to an existing HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 environment (must be at level 9.5 CF_181 or higher) deployment, we must stop the deployment and restart it with one (1) replica.

    For an initial deployment, it is not advisable to deploy these components to a production HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 deployment.

  9. Update the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 or higher container deployment configuration map to deploy the HCL Experience API, HCL Content Composer, and HCL Digital Asset Management CF_181 and higher components.

    Note: The config map name value used to support the CF_181 or higher components must be the same as the HCL Digital Experience 9.5 CF_181 and higher deployment. By default, the config map deployment name value is dx-deployment.

  10. Create a YAML file with the following config map settings:

      kind: ConfigMap

      metadata: name: dx-deployment

  11. Use the following example YAML (dx-deploy-config-map.yaml) to deploy the HCL Experience API, HCL Content Composer, and HCL Digital Asset Management CF_181 or higher components. If deploying HCL Content Composer and HCL Digital Asset Management CF_181 components, replace their file names in the sample YAML file services lines used.

    It is possible to deploy the services for the HCL Experience API and HCL Content Composer and/or Digital Asset Management by removing either the HCL Content Composer or HCL Digital Asset Management service lines from the YAML file.

      kind: ConfigMap

      metadata: name: dx-deployment

      data: dx.deploy.dam.persistence.tag: v1.0.0_20200622-1806 dx.deploy.dam.persistence.image: portal/persistence/postgres dx.deploy.dam.volume: volume name dx.deploy.dam.imgprocessor.tag: v95_CF181_20200622-1550 dx.deploy.remotesearch.tag: v95_CF181_20200622-1550 dx.deploy.dam.imgprocessor.image: portal/image-processor dx.deploy.dam.storageclass: dx-deploy-stg dx.deploy.remotesearch.image: dxrs dx.deploy.openldap.tag: v1.0.0-release_20200622_1592846796 dx.deploy.openldap.image: dx-openldap dx.deploy.contentui.tag: v1.0.0_20200622-1709 dx.deploy.contentui.image: portal/content-ui dx.deploy.remotesearch.enabled: 'true' dx.deploy.dam.tag: v1.0.0_20200622-1718 dx.deploy.experienceapi.tag: v1.0.0_20200622-1719 dx.deploy.experienceapi.image: portal/api/ringapi dx.deploy.dam.image: portal/media-library dx.deploy.openldap.enabled: 'true' dx.deploy.contentui.enabled: 'true' dx.deploy.experienceapi.enabled: 'true' dx.deploy.dam.enabled: 'true' dx.deploy.dam.operator.tag: v95_CF181_20200622-1756 dx.deploy.dam.operator.image: hcl-medialibrary-operator dx.deploy.remotesearch.volume.storageclass: gp2

    The dx.deploy.contentui.enabled and dx.deploy.experienceapi.enabled configurations tell the operator to deploy HCL Content Composer and HCL Experience API components. This defaults to using the same repository as the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 or higher container core deployment. Notes:

    • The deployment of HCL Content Composer and HCL Experience API components create:

      • The dx.deploy.contentui.enabled and dx.deploy.experienceapi.enabled configurations tell the operator to deploy HCL Content Composer and HCL Experience API components. This defaults to using the same repository as the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 or higher container core deployment.

      • Services dx-deployment-service-content-ui and dx-deployment-service-ring-api, and a route for each.

    • Administrators can override the repository by adding the following to the config map entries:

        dx.deploy.contentui.repository

    • The dx.deploy.dam.enabled tells the operator to deploy the HCL Digital Asset Management component. Note that there are 4 required sets of image/tag parameters:

      • The HCL Digital Asset Management operator component uses prefixdx.deploy.dam.operator.
      • The Postgres datastore component uses dx.deploy.dam.persistence.
      • The HCL Digital Asset Management library services use dx.deploy.dam.
      • The Image processor uses dx.deploy.dam.persistence.

      To override the repository values for the components above, use dx.deploy.COMPONENT.repository

      The last two parameters in the example YAML file provide the storage class and volume (must be ReadWriteMany ) for the HCL Digital Asset Management component. This is where the persistence layer maintains the datastore layer.

      The dx.deploy.dam.volume: volume name setting is optional if the storage class used/specified by dx.deploy.dam.storageclass is self-provisioning.

      A dx.dam.config.cors config map setting is auto-generated and provides the ability for Cross Origin Resource Sharing across Content Composer and Digital Asset Management resources.

      In the Digital Experience 9.5 core deployment, the dx.config.cors setting is set in the DX configuration map. Reference the Containerization Deployment pages for additional details.

      An additional self-provisioning volume is created for each of the HCL Digital Asset Management Persistence (Postgres) pods. The access mode of these self-provisioning persistent volumes must include ReadWriteOnce. If this volume is not present the images are lost and will show blank if/when the HCL Digital Asset Management library is restarted.

      Administrators can override the repository by adding to:

        dx.deploy.contentui.repository

      In addition, the following default settings are configurable:

      • dx.deploy.contentui.resources.cpurequest, the default is 1.
      • dx.deploy.contentui.resources.cpulimit, the default is 3.
      • dx.deploy.contentui.resources.memoryrequest, the default is 2G.
      • dx.deploy.contentui.resources.memorylimit, the default is 4G.
      • dx.deploy.experienceapi.resources.cpurequest, the default is 1.
      • dx.deploy.experienceapi.resources.cpulimit, the default is 3.
      • dx.deploy.experienceapi.resources.memoryrequest, the default is 2G.
      • dx.deploy.experienceapi.resources.memorylimit, the default is 4G.

      Additional configuration options are currently not supported.

  12. Deploy the YAML (dx-deploy-config-map.yaml) by issuing the following:

    • Kubernetes command:

        kubectl apply -f dx-deploy-config-map.yaml -n your-namespace

    • OpenShift command:

        oc project your-namespace
        oc apply -f dx-deploy-config-map.yaml

    • Stop and restart the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 CF_181 and higher container deployment.

      If we are adding components for HCL Content Composer, HCL Digital Asset Management, and HCL Experience API to an existing HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 environment (must be at level 9.5 CF_181 or higher) deployment, we must stop the deployment and restart it with one (1) replica. Once it is fully started, we can safely scale it to N instances.

      As outlined in this section, adding new components to a production deployment requires an outage and some setup time. It is advisable to plan carefully if we are currently running a Digital Experience container deployment in a supported Kubernetes environment.

    • Change to the extracted hcl-dx-cloud-scripts directory.

        ./scripts/removeDx.sh NAMESPACE

      This script will remove resources from the existing deployment (pods, statefulsets, etc) but will not remove persisted data or existing configmaps.

    • Remove the claimRef from the PersistedVolume.

      Instructions to re-use the Persistent Volume may also be viewed in the Deploy HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 Container to Amazon EKS topic.

    • Open the persistent volume in a visual editor (vi) using the Kubernetes or OpenShift command line client command:

        kubectl edit pv <pv name>
      or

        oc edit pv <pv name>

    • Remove the claimRef section:

        claimRef:
        apiVersion: v1
        kind: PersistentVolumeClaim
        name: dx-deploy-pvc
        namespace: awseks-demo
        resourceVersion: "488931120"
        uid: ebd58361-0e2a-11ea-b02e-02f8fe687954

    • Ensure you get the 'persistentvolume/your_namespace edited' message.

    • Change to the extracted hcl-dx-cloud-scripts directory.

        ./scripts/deployDx.sh NAMESPACE REPLICAS REPOSITORY IMAGENAME IMAGETAG VOLUMENAME STORAGECLASS DBTYPE

      ...or...

        ./scripts/deployDx.sh NAMESPACE REPLICAS REPOSITORY IMAGENAME IMAGETAG VOLUMENAME STORAGECLASS DBTYPE INGRESSIMAGE INGRESSTAG

      Note: You must restart the deployment with one (1) replica. Once it is fully started, we can safely scale it to N instances.

      Add new components to a production deployment requires an outage and some setup time. Plan carefully if we are running an existing Digital Experience container deployment.

    • Access the HCL Content Composer and HCL Digital Asset Management components by navigating to...

        Practitioner Studio > Web Content > Content

      ...or...

        Practitioner Studio > Digital Assets

        https://your-portal.net/wps/myportal/Practitioner/Web Content/Content Library

        https://your-portal.net/wps/myportal/Practitioner/Digital Assets

    • Access the HCL Experience API Explorer at the following URL:

        http://<HOST>:<PORT>dx/api/core/v1/explorer
      For example,

        http://127.0.0.1:3000/dx/api/core/v1/explorer


HCL WebSphere Portal Solution Feedback

HCL WebSphere Portal is interested in your experience and feedback working with HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 release software. To offer comments or issues on your findings, please access the HCL WebSphere Portal 9.5 Feedback Reporting application.

Parent topic: Deployment

References: