Best Practices of Qlik Sense Multi-Node Setup, Load Balancing & Maintenance(Let's Discuss Here)

[rohitk1609]

Hello Everyone,

First of all, thanks for reading! I found it is amazing to connect myself to people around the world and communicate with my writings.

This page is indented to discuss best practices for  Multi-Node Setup & Load Balancing primarily, You may drop your use case or problem in comment, we will provide you best possible solution instantly.

Below content guide you to set up Multi-Node Qlik Setup & Load Balancing. It will help you to know Qlik technical terms, ask question more precious way which will help usor anyoe to provide solution more accurately.

Business intelligence is an agile process, gradually BI solution changes and updates. Enterprise grows so are data and end users.

When data grows and business logic gets complex, we need more resources to calculate the result and serve to users. Afterwards, Single Node (small) site performance decreases with time which could lay down the credibility and quality of BI solution.

Multi node site is  Qlik site(could have multiple Qlik servers ) where load is getting managed between more than one system and could have more than one  Fai-lover Candidate which takes charge in absence of central node automatically.

Note: we can have multiple fail-over candidates in one site, we call it passive central.

There are certain parameter which help you to take decision whether we should move to multi node site or remain on single node.

https://help.qlik.com/en-US/sense/June2018/Subsystems/PlanningQlikSenseDeployments/Content/Deploymen...

So below content is for such users who have made mind to upgrade their Qlik site to multi node.

Few naming conventions we will follow in below content:

1. Consumer node: which must has proxy service enable
2. Scheduler node: which has scheduler and engine services are enabled
3. Central: which is controlling whole Qlik site.
4. Failover Candidate(Passive central)
5. Resources: RAM and Cores(virtual cores)

Since June 2017 , installation setup has shared persistence way only where Apps and RepoDB data stay at persistence layer and both are shared with other nodes (rim or child).

Now why do we need to share Apps and Repository data with child or rim nodes?

Answer: to manage load in simple

Next Question: what exactly we share to balance the load practically?

Answer: Resources in Qlik site.

Next Question: what will be achieved if we share the resources?

Answer: Reduce the resource consumption while end users are accessing apps from one node i.e. central to consumer node (proxy service is must) and reduce the resource consumption and distribute it to scheduler node (scheduler and engine service is must) while any app reloads.

There could be many scenario how you would design your multi node site:

1. You want one central and one consumer and one scheduler node.
2. Two scheduler and two consumer and central
3. Central and scheduler node.

Ideally: Two scheduler and two consumer and central node comes in best practice for extra large enterprise.

You can read about single node, small, medium , large and extra large Qlik shared site in detail:

https://help.qlik.com/en-US/sense/February2019/Subsystems/PlanningQlikSenseDeployments/Content/Sense...

Multi node site would increase your Qlik Sense site availability, how?

We have a concept fail-over candidate, which is one of the scheduler node or such node which has all services and take charge automatically while Central node is down. We can manipulate the sensing time of failover candidate to central node in latest version.

Solutions which will guide you to deply multi node side

1. How to Install multi node site:

Installation of Multi Node site

Installing Qlik Sense in a multi node site - Qlik Sense

Qlik Sense September 2017 - Installing Qlik Sense in a multi-node site

1. How to configure multi-node site:

         Configure a multinode installatio

       2.  Load balancing:

      Adding load balancing

       Load balancing

       Configuring load balancing to isolate development nodes

          3. Fail-over candidate

Fail- candidate or we can call it passive central node which is ping in a set time(you can customize it below 10 minutes) to central or master node and when it doesn't get response it will take charge and become active central or master node.

Note: Where you install your postgresDB during installation that server has one extra service Qlik Repository Database which is running the postgresDB. So in case you don't have a dedicated persistence layer and installed Repo DB on central node(any server which has Qlik Sense too) then if your central node get down due to power failure or blue screen then fail-over node won't take charge. 

Primary condition of fail over concept needs QlikSenseRepositoryDatabase to be run all time. if QlikSenseRepositoryDatabase is down then whole site is down. 

One important application is attached to article which helps you to review your Qlik site. If you  have any concern over Qlik repository size, QLogs DB size or any component which is accessing excess size than expected, then download the app, import to your Qlik Sense, open it on HUB, there will be three connection which come along with application i.e. PostgreSQL_postgres, PostgreSQL_QLogs and PostgreSQL_QSR. Update password with your super user password of postgresDB which you entered during installation and save it. 

If your user name added as postfix after updatation of connections , go to QMC and make it as they were earlier.

Please do above activities by RDP not from end user side. Reload the app and share it with me so I can review it.

After utilizing above solutions, please post your queries in comment section what is your use case i.e. how many servers are available, how your user comes to site, network load balancer is available or not, reloads are executing on scheduler nodes etc.

In general, multi node or load balancing concept is vast and vary with client to client, so I do believe you may ask question much better when you understand the right terms of Qlik, went through above articles and requirements are clear.

Consider this resource as a open form where we all can post our queries on load balancing and multi node site.

There are few other documents which would help you in Qlik administration

1.Dynamic Sheet Exception With Stream and App Level Security

2.Sheet or App Object Level Security Qlik Sense

Reach to me if there is need of any clarification or need assistance with kumar.rohit1609@gmail.com

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Thanks,
Rohit Kumar

[amrinder]

Hi Rohit,

User I am using for Qlik Sense installation should be Domain Admin or Local Admin???

[rohitk1609]

I prefer Local admin, but please use domain account with admin rights to run Qlik Sense services.

Thanks,

Rohit

[amrinder]

Okay,Thanks for the help! 🙂

[cdelafuente]

Hi Rohit,

I'm having an issue with the way we've configured our RIM environment. I have an environment composed by a Central Node and 3 RIM nodes. The services are distributed on this way:

Central Node: All services
RIM 1: Proxy, Engine, Repository and Dispatcher
RIM 2: Proxy, Engine, Repository and Dispatcher
RIM 3: Scheduler, Engine, Repository and Dispatcher

This distribution have as goal that the Users access to the RIM 1 and RIM 2 only but on both no executes any task. Only the Central Node and RIM 3 may execute tasks. I don't know if is the best configuration... but it Works for us.

The issue begin when we configured a NLB between the RIM 1 and RIM 2 over the Communications layer. If we Access to /hub or /qmc using the Virtual Proxy pointed to the Central node we have no problem. But, if i want access to /login ( a piece deployed on IIS used to connect to LDAP ) who calls to another virtual proxies pointed to RIM 1 and RIM 2 we receive sometimes an error response saying "Error retrieving web ticket".

We've configured persistence on the NLB to guarantee that the host who goes to the LDAP be the same that returns to the QlikSense's virtual proxies to get the ticket, but even , occasionally we receive the error mentioned. Do you know if we can avoid it using Load Balancing Rules instead a NLB on the communications layer over the nodes?

Thanks a lot in advance for your time!

[rohitk1609]

Few questions for you:

1. Are default load balancing rule are in operation or you have written any new rule and disabled ResourcesOnNonCentral ?

2. All servers central +rim nodes are in same LAN or network ?

3.  Service user is domain account ? if yes, same user is running Qlik Sense services on all servers ?

4. Auth method is ticket on both rim node(proxy or consumer nodes where user will fall by NLB) ?

5. Which proxies are listed in Load Balancing Nodes under rim1 and rim2 (proxy or consumer nodes where user will fall by NLB) ?

If I am right, you have active directory and all users are listed in it as AD\user1, AD\user2... , is there any chance that AD server is not accessible to rim nodes ?

Please take  help from your IT team too and answer above questions so I can know your config is correct or not ?

Thanks,
Rohit

[cdelafuente]

1.- We use the default Load Balancing Rules

2.- Yes they are on same network.

3.- Yes, the service account in on the same domain where is deployed the qlik, and all services on all servers are running with this one.

4.- Yes.

5.- The configuration is the same for all, and is:

No anonymus user
Ticket

6.- Yes, we have many user on the AD where QlikSense was deployed, and on others AD too. But also we use a connection to a global LDAP that contain all those AD and users .

Thanks for your quick answer!

[rohitk1609]

Where Qlik Sense deployed, that AD user face same kind of error too ?

[AguWolkovicz]

@rohitk1609

Would you please check this Post I created about an approach to achieve a Zero-downtime backup process?: https://community.qlik.com/t5/Qlik-Sense-Deployment-Management/Zero-downtime-Backup-in-Qlik-Sense/m-...

It may not be in the same direction as this Post, but I think it's worthy of discussion if you have experience or feedback.

Thanks in advance!

Agu.-

[cdelafuente]

No, we're experience this issue only when we use the LDAP piece.

[rohitk1609]

Can you please explain below your statement in bit detail :

if i want access to /login ( a piece deployed on IIS used to connect to LDAP ) who calls to another virtual proxies pointed to RIM 1 and RIM 2 we receive sometimes an error response saying "Error retrieving web ticket".?

Can you please tell me which virtual proxies are listed your rim node1 virtual proxy and rim node2 virtual proxy under "Load Balancing Nodes" section ?

Shot note for you, when any user hit the URL lets say https://Rimnode1/hub, it will going to virtual proxy of Rimnode1 and if you set it to windows it will redirect to AD and if the user is auth it will bring back with ticket. Now sometimes it works for you sometimes not, can you regenerate the issue if I ask you to show me ? if yes, mail me on kumar.rohit1609@gmail.com

Thanks,

Rohit