PC-DCE Configuration Overview

Review the information in this help topic before you begin using the PC-DCE Configuration panel.

Notice on Reconfiguring PC-DCE

Reconfiguring PC-DCE on a system overwrites all existing PC-DCE configuration data, including the cell configuration if the system is running cell servers. This data includes the security database, which contains account information about all users in the cell.

The specific action that reconfigures PC-DCE is clicking OK in either the DCE Client, DCE Cell, or Custom panel. Notice that clicking OK in the Options or More Servers panel adds to, rather than overwrites, the existing configuration.

It is not necessary to configure the client runtime on a server system in order to obtain runtime services. Configuring a server automatically configures the necessary runtime services. Configuring a client on a server system will overwrite the server configuration.

Understanding Cell Server Configurations

This help system uses the term cell servers to refer to the Security and CDS servers, which provide the essential services required for DCE cell operation. PC-DCE lets you set up your cell servers in a number of different ways:

Note: To maintain the highest level of protection from unauthorized access to the cell servers, avoid configuring security, cell directory, audit, and password strength servers; and the global directory agents on Terminal Server systems.

 

·      Full cell — A Windows system (Windows 98 excluded) running a primary CDS server and primary (master) security server. This is the most common PC-DCE cell configuration.

·      Split cell — Configuration in which the primary CDS and security servers run on different Windows systems (Windows 98 excluded).

·      Replica — Configuration in which a Windows system (Windows 98 excluded) runs a slave security server and/or a backup CDS server. The primary servers may be PC-DCE servers running on other Windows systems or DCE servers provided by another vendor (example: servers that run on UNIX systems). Use this configuration if you need to take advantage of Gradient Security Server features, but do not wish to run the PC-DCE security server as the master. In this case, you can configure a Windows 2000 or Windows NT system to run the PC-DCE security server as a slave.