Distributing FME Flow Components

You can distribute the components of an FME Flow installation to achieve an n-tier architecture. Both 2-tier and 3-tier configurations are supported:

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In a 2-tier architecture, an Apache Tomcat web application server runs the FME Flow Web Services, and is installed alongside the the FME Flow Core and FME Engines. Only the FME Flow Database is installed separately, along with a remote file system for the FME Flow System Share.

Installing the web application server on the same host machine as the FME Flow Core is the recommended architecture for a distributed installation.

A 3-tier architecture separates the web application server to another host machine, splitting the presentation and application tiers.

In a 2- or 3-tier scenario, you can provide and manage the following components:

The web application server provided by the installer is Apache Tomcat. Optionally, you can provide your own web application server, instead of using the one shipped with the installer.
The FME Flow Database can be hosted on a PostgreSQL database server provided by the installer, or you can configure the database on your own server using PostgreSQL (recommended), Microsoft SQL Server or Oracle. If using an Oracle database server, you must obtain the Oracle Database JDBC Driver.

Note PostgreSQL is the recommended database server with FME Flow, offering enhanced performance and stability through targeted optimizations.

A remote file system to host the FME Flow System Share, which includes Repositories and Resources.

Note Although the FME Flow Database and System Share will not have data redundancy by default, this can be set up by your organization.

Warning We recommend installing the web application server on a system that is synchronized to the same time zone as the FME Flow Core. Differing time zones may result in improper timing of FME Flow Schedule triggers.

Recommended 2-tier Architecture

This diagram demonstrates the recommended 2-tier architecture, with the web application server, FME Flow Core, and FME Engines running on the same host, and separate servers for the FME Flow Database and FME Flow System Share. Optionally, you can add FME Engines on a Separate Machine or access Remote Engine Services.

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Implementing a Distributed Architecture

Perform a distributed installation of FME Flow according to the 2-tier or 3-tier procedure:

Or, after an Express installation, perform the following reconfigurations, where necessary: