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Prerequisites

Yellowfin requires that the customer has installed the following products prior to installing the Yellowfin product:

Java JRE

The server hosting the Yellowfin application MUST have Java 7 or higher installed on it. The Java JRE is sufficient for this purpose. Refer to the Sun web site for download and installation instructions (http://www.java.sun.com)

Database

The database software which will contain the Yellowfin database should already be installed. Suitable jdbc drivers to enable the database to communicate with the Yellowfin application should also be installed. It is not necessary for the database server to reside on the same machine as the Yellowfin application.

 

Installation Steps

Yellowfin is provided as a java archive file called Installer.jar. Copy the file to a temporary directory on the server onto which the application is to reside.

Language Selection

Before you can begin you will be asked to select a language for the installation process.

Welcome Screen

The welcome screen is the first screen in the installation process. It mentions installation pre-requisites and other information. Click the Next button to continue, or click the Quit button at any time to exit the installation process.

Terms & Conditions

The terms and conditions page lists the Yellowfin Software License agreement.

When you have read the license agreement check the "I accept the terms of this license agreement" radio button to agree and click the next button to continue.

Required Components

You will have to install the core software for Yellowfin but you do have the option of installing the tutorial database, sample usage reports, and Language translation files.
Click the next button to continue.

Licence File

The Yellowfin Installer will ask for a licence file. You will have received a licence file that uses computers host name. This will be delivered to you as a .LIC file.

Select the licence file from your file system using the browse button. Once selected click the next button to continue.

General Options

This screen enables you to select the application server port that Yellowfin will listen to for HTTP requests. As per standard internet conventions it will default to port 80. If there are already web servers installed on the machine that Yellowfin is being installed on then there may be port clashes and Yellowfin will fail to function correctly.

Select a port number which is not in current use by a Web Server on the machine. Port numbers like 8080, 8081 and so on are good candidate port numbers. If there are no other web servers on the machine that Yellowfin is being installed on, accept the default port number of 80.

This screen will also enable you to install Yellowfin as a Windows Service on the server. This will mean that it will automatically start up whenever the Windows Server is booted and save having to be manually started.

Once you have selected you port, click the next button to continue.

Database Selection

Choose the database that you wish to install the Yellowfin Repository database into.

You will be able to select from: DB2, Oracle, PostgreSQL, Progress, SQLServer / MSDE

Based on your selection the next few steps will vary. Click the next button to continue.

Database Details (Sample)

As an example, if you selected Microsoft SQL Server, these are the options you would have to populate in order to set up the Yellowfin Configuration Database. This is the database that stores all the Yellowfin content definitions, configuration information, and event details.

Installation Path

You will have to define the installation directory for Yellowfin. This will default to different directories based on the operating system you are installing to.

You can change the default installation directory by directly typing in a new path, or using the browse button to navigate the file system.

When you have chosen your installation destination click the next button to continue.

Note: Windows users installing into a 64bit version will need to ensure they choose a path outside of the Program Files directory.

Installation Progress

This screen will enable you to observe the progress of the software installation. Depending on the server hardware and software capacity this could take a few minutes.

You will be able to click next to move to the next window once the installation is complete.

Shortcuts

This screen enables you to select the Windows Program Group that Yellowfin 'shortcuts' will be installed into.

Select the Program Group for the shortcuts by selecting the options from the List Box. You can override the name for the Program Group by entering a name in the text box at the bottom of the Window.

Select whether you wish the shortcuts to be provided to only the current user or all users by selecting either the 'current user' radio button or 'all users' radio button respectively.

Click the next button to continue.

Installation Completion

This screen will be displayed at the end of a successful installation of the Yellowfin Application Server.

Note: an uninstall function has been created for you under the directory nominated in Step 7. Select the Installation Path.

If you do not see this Window, contact your Yellowfin representative or contact Yellowfin Support.

Click the Done button to complete the installation procedure.

 

Troubleshooting

Most problems related to the Yellowfin application server installation relate to database connectivity and administration issues.

As mentioned previously, a log is kept of the database installation and can be found in $INSTALL_DIRECTORY\uninstall directory.

The most likely problem will be the incorrect setting or misspelling of the parameters entered in Step 7 Configure the Database Connection and User parameters eg. database name, port, IP address etc.

Customers using Microsoft SQLServer or Microsoft MSDE should ensure that the IP addresses and configuration are consistent with the parameter values entered. The Microsoft program svrnetcn.exe (SQLServer Network Utility) can be used to check that the SQLServer IP stack (including the JDBC port number) has been configured correctly. It can be used for both SQLServer and MSDE.

Example

Network error IOException: Connection refused: connect()
This error means that the installer cannot connect to your MS SQL server instance. This error occurs before authentication takes place. This means that either:

  1. SQL Server is stopped on the server you are trying to connect to.
  2. The connection details you entered were incorrect.
  3. You have a network problem that stops the computer you're running the installer on connecting to the SQL server host (Unlikely if you are connecting to your localhost).

Verify these settings on the Configuration DB Parameters screen on the installer.

  1. Database Server Name - This will probably be the "localhost".
  2. Database Server Port - This should be 1433
  3. Database Name - This is the name of the database you want Yellowfin to install to. This should be "yellowfin". This is used for Yellowfin configuration and operational data. It is not the database you wish to report off.
  4. Create Database - Click this to create the new Yellowfin database. We suggest removing the Yellowfin database if your installation failed previously.
  5. DBA User: This could be "sa"
  6. DBA Password: This could be "sa"
  7. Reports UserId:Set this to "yellowfin_user"
  8. Reports UserId password: Set this to "yellowfin_user" or whatever you prefer.
  9. Create user id - Check this checkbox.

Additional Resources

If you are experiencing other installation issues the Yellowfin forum is a good place to look for answers. Go to http://www.yellowfinbi.com/YFForum.i4 to explore previous posts or seek help from other users and Support Members. Some useful troubleshooting posts include:

  1. http://www.yellowfinbi.com/YFForum-ERROR-Yellowfin-Installation-on-MS-Server-08-?thread=103838
  2. http://www.yellowfinbi.com/YFForum-install-Yelliowfin-on-SQL-Server-2005-?thread=89809
  3. http://www.yellowfinbi.com/YFForum-New-installation-of-Yellowfin-but-it-s-not-launching-?thread=105437

If the above posts do not solve the issues you're experiencing, please send an email to support@yellowfin.bi with a clear description of the issue, along with the following:

  1. Screenshots (if applicable)
  2. YellowfinInstallLog-date.log (this can be found in the Yellowfin directory)
  3. All log files found in Yellowfin\appserver\LOGS (if you have any)