Common topologies

Review this information that describes common topologies for WebSphere Commerce components and the supporting software, such as the database server and the Web server.

Overview

The following topologies are the most common:

WebSphere Commerce is tested with all tiers in a given topology running the same operating system at the same level. This includes any patches, revisions, fixes required by WebSphere Commerce.

In the topologies, the following terms are used:
Database tier
A tier in a topology that only contains the database server. This tier is used by WebSphere Commerce.
Web server tier
A node in a topology that only contains the Web server. This tier is used by WebSphere Commerce.
WebSphere Commerce tier
A tier in a topology that contains the WebSphere Commerce server. The same tier can also contain the database server or Web server, depending on the topology. If a tier contains the WebSphere Commerce server it will be referred to as the WebSphere Commerce tier.

One-tier

In this topology, all WebSphere Commerce components and the supporting software are installed on a single tier. This includes the database server, Web server, WebSphere Application Server, and the WebSphere Commerce server.

Two-tier

A two-tier configuration includes the following topologies:
  • Database server is installed on one tier and the remaining components are installed on a different tier.
  • Web server is installed on one tier and the remaining components are installed on a different tier.

To install a two-tier topology you must use the custom installation option of the installation wizard.

The following diagram shows a two-tier topology:
2–tier topology diagram

Three-tier

In a three-tier topology, all WebSphere Commerce components are installed on one tier, the database server is installed on a second tier, and the Web server is installed on a third tier. In this case, the database server is called a remote database server. The Web server is called a remote Web server.

The following diagram shows a three-tier topology:
3–tier topology diagram

Introduced in Feature Pack 2

WebSphere Commerce search

Recommended: Large index size: Staging and cluster search server

The index-building is performed on the WebSphere Commerce staging database and search staging machine. Business users can test their new data in the staging database with the updated index. After successfully completing their tests, the data is propagated from the staging database to the production database, and the index is replicated from the search staging machine to the search production machines using the master indexing server. This is the recommended approach, as this option imposes the least amount of risk to the production environment and provides a more flexible environment for making incremental changes.

The following diagram illustrates a typical WebSphere Commerce search deployment for a large index size: Feature Pack 4Feature Pack 2Feature Pack 3
Large index size deployment
Feature Pack 5 or later
Large index size deployment

For more information, see WebSphere Commerce search index-building topologies and scenarios.