Set up the Alfabet Web Application

  1. In the Windows® file explorer, navigate to the AlfabetAPIServer subdirectory in your Alfabet installation folder.
  2. Add a new subfolder config.
  3. Open the subfolder Examples , copy the file alfasettings.json and paste it in the subfolder config.
  4. Start the Alfabet Administrator from the Windows® Start Menu.
  5. Click the Alfabet Aliases node.
  6. In the toolbar of the table on the right, select Tools > Configure alfasettings.json.
  7. Click the three-dots button on the right of the Web Folder field and select the physical folder of the Alfabet Web Application. The alfasettings.config file in the config subfolder opens.
  8. Change the information in the following fields:
    • "msfile": Specify the absolute path to the alfabetMS.xml configuration file located in the Programs subdirectory of the Alfabet Installation directory.
    • "alias": Enter the name of the server alias configuration for the Alfabet Web Application.
  9. Optionally, change the additional settings in the file. Click for an overview of the settings which can be made in alfasettings.json.
  10. Save the file.
  1. Open the Internet Information Services® Manager as an administrator.
  2. Expand the web server node in the explorer and click on the sub-node Application Pools.
  3. In the Actions pane on the right, select Add Application Pool.
  4. In the dialog box that opens, define the following fields and then click OK:
    • Name: Specify a unique name without using whitespaces or special characters.
    • .NET CLR Version: Select .NET CLR Version v4.0.30319.
    • Managed Pipeline Mode: Select Integrated.
  5. Click OK to save your settings.
  6. In the table in the center pane, click the new application pool and select Advanced Settings in the Actions pane on the right.
  7. In the dialog box that opens, go to the Process Model section and set Idle Time-out (minutes) to 0.
  8. Go to the Recycling section and set Regular Time Interval (minutes) to 0.

    The application pool is represented by a worker process (as w3wp.exe visible in the Task Manager). This worker process is started on first access to the Web Application in the application pool. To make sure that potential errors in the Web Application do not affect too many requests, the Internet Information Services® can be configured to recycle the worker process. Recycling is done by starting a new worker process after a configurable amount of time. The re-initialization of the web application can take up to 1 minute. It is therefore recommended that you disable the automatic recycling of the worker process.

  9. If you want Windows Sign-on to be used for the connection between the Alfabet Web Application and the Alfabet database, go to the Process Model section and set Identity to the service account used to access the Alfabet database.
  10. Click OK to save your changes.
  11. In the explorer, right-click the Sites node and select Add Web Site.
  12. Set the following in the dialog window:
    • Site Name: Specify the name that will be used for the site in the explorer.
    • Application Pool: Click the Select button and select the application pool previously generated.
    • Physical Path: Click the Browse button on the right of the field and select the AlfabetWebApplication folder in your Alfabet 11 installation folder.
    • Binding > Type: Select https.
    • Binding > IP address: Select All Unassigned.
    • Binding > Port: Select a unique port for access to the web site.

      If you want to use the standard port for both the Alfabet Web Application and the Alfabet API server, you can alternatively ask your network administrator to create unique DNS entries for the web and API services and use these in the Host Name fields of the web configuration of the Alfabet Web Application and the Alfabet API server. With different host names, the port can be identical.

    • Binding > SSL Certificate: Select
    • Binding > Start Website immediately: Select the checkbox.
  13. In the section IIS in the center pane, double-click Authentication.
  14. Make sure that the authentication status is set according to the selected authentication method for access to Alfabet. To change the status of an authentication mode, right-click the status and select the required option in the context menu. The following settings are required:
    • Windows sign-on: Windows Authentication must be set to Enabled and Anonymous Authentication must be set to Disabled.
    • Standard login: Windows Authentication must be set to Disabled and Anonymous Authentication must be Enabled.
  15. In the explorer, click the application directory of the Alfabet Web Application.
  16. In the section IIS in the center pane, double-click MIME Types. A list of mime types is displayed.
  17. If Alfabet Expand Web shall be used and AMM files should be created with Alfabet Expand Web, click Add in the Actions pane to add a new mime type. A new window opens. Enter the following in the fields and click OK to save the mime type:
    • File name extension: .amm
    • MIME type: application/Alfabet Meta-Model
  18. In the explorer, select the application directory for the Alfabet Web Application.
  19. In the ASP.NET section in the center pane, double-click Session State. The session state settings open.
  20. Select the check box In Process.
  21. Click OK.
  22. In the explorer, select the root directory of the web server.
  23. In the Actions pane, click Restart.
  24. Start the Alfabet Administrator from the Windows® Start Menu.
  25. Click the Alfabet Aliases node in the explorer.
  26. Select the server alias which you want to configure in the table on the right.
  27. Click the Edit  Edit button to open the server alias editor.
  28. Enter the URL of the Alfabet Web Application in the following fields of the server alias:
    • Overview tab, Web Server field.
    • Expand tab, f Test Web Application field.
  29. Go back to the Internet Information Services® Manager.
  30. In the explorer, select the root directory of the web server.
  31. In the Actions pane, click Restart.
  32. Close the Internet Information Services® Manager.