Using store-and-forward through a firewall

There are a series of steps you must follow to use store-and-forward through a firewall.

About this task

  1. Determine the port ranges that the shipping server can use and the IP addresses of the hosts that will send packets to your site's exposed host.
  2. Configure your firewall to limit the allowed port numbers and IP addresses. Remember that you must allow access to TCP port 371 in addition to the port ranges.
  3. Install the shipping server software on the exposed host.
  4. Set the CLEARCASE_MIN_PORT and CLEARCASE_MAX_PORT environment variables.
  5. On each replica server host at your site, specify the exposed host as the next-hop host for packets sent to other sites. For example, your company has three sites (SiteA, SiteB, SiteC), each with one exposed host running the shipping server (SSA, SSB, SSC), and three replica server hosts.

    Edit the shipping.conf file and add ROUTE options. For example, on each replica server host at SiteA add the following on a single line:

    ROUTE SSA SiteB_host1 SiteB_host2 SiteB_host3 SiteC_host1 
    SiteC_host2 SiteC_host3
    

    On Windows™, open the MultiSite Control Panel and set the appropriate values in the Routing Information section. For example, on each replica server host at SiteA, the Next Routing Hop is SSA and the Destination Hostnames are SiteB_host1, SiteB_host2, SiteB_host3, SiteC_host1, SiteC_host2, and SiteC_host3.

  6. On the exposed host, edit the shipping.conf file and add ROUTE options for the next destination of the packets.

    Using the same example as in Step 5, on the exposed host at SiteA, you add the following ROUTE options to the shipping.conf file:

    ROUTE SSB SiteB_host1 SiteB_host2 SiteB_host3
    ROUTE SSC SiteC_host1 SiteC_host2 SiteC_host3
    

    On the exposed host at SiteB, you add the following ROUTE options to the shipping.conf file:

    ROUTE SSA SiteA_host1 SiteA_host2 SiteA_host3
    ROUTE SSC SiteC_host1 SiteC_host2 SiteC_host3
    

    On the exposed host at SiteC, you add the following ROUTE options to the shipping.conf file:

    ROUTE SSA SiteA_host1 SiteA_host2 SiteA_host3
    ROUTE SSB SiteB_host1 SiteB_host2 SiteB_host3
    
    
  7. Configure the VersionVault scheduler to execute
    shipping_server -poll
    
    
    on a regular basis (for example, every hour).