System Requirements

Escape Online 5 was developed using Microsoft .Net architecture. It uses a thin Windows client (a true EXE file!) with an SQL Server backend.

This FYI is designed to describe the hardware and third-party software required to implement the most recent version of Escape Online 5.

System Requirements for Escape Online 5

Escape Online uses a three-tier architecture model.

Client or presentation tier - Presents data to the user and permits data entry and manipulation. The client tier does not impose any limit on the number of computers it contains, or how fast you can add computers.
Application or business services tier - Hosts the application's components, providing the execution of the business logic.
This tier is comprised of one or more servers. It is not tied to a specific client, so it can be moved and upgraded, as response time and other rules require. However, due to files created and used by individual users, Escape Online users must have access to certain directories on the application server(s).
Data tier - Hosts the database, accessed through the business services. Typically, access to this server is limited to the application servers and the database administrator workstations.

This architecture makes Escape Online more flexible, manageable and scalable. Other advantages include:

The database is hosted on a server that is not connected directly to the Internet.
A large number of users with their own computers can access the database.
Business logic is shared, allowing numerous clients to execute transactions against a single database.
Each tier can be scaled separately, depending upon your requirements.

The following graphically represents the architecture of Escape Online.

The database server is dedicated solely to the Escape Online database. No Escape Online software resides on the database server.

To make sure that Escape Online runs with adequate performance, you should observe the following requirements for the database server:

Type	Requirements
Operating System	Microsoft® Windows Server 2003 Standard or Enterprise Server
SQL Server	SQL 2005 with service pack 2.
SQL Server .NET Data Provider	Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) 2.7.
Processor	Intel Xeon at 2 GHz or higher.
RAM	See the section Determining Workload below.
Storage space	Storage requirements for Windows and SQL, plus at least 1 Gb per fiscal year of data, including years from previous system. To optimize disk access and to provide fault-tolerance capabilities to the storage subsystem, it is recommended that you use high-quality SCSI disks and RAID configurations.
Network	Network requirements are based on expected workload and bandwidth utilization. The management of these requirements relies on pure network administration.

TIP: For the best results, we recommend the following:

The application server houses the Escape Online software. Some implementations require more than one application server.

Type	Requirements
Operating System	Microsoft® Windows Server 2003 Standard or Enterprise Server (We do not support 64 bit Windows servers at this time.)
SQL Server .NET Data Provider	Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) 2.7.
Processor	Intel Xeon at 2 GHz or higher.
RAM	See the section Determining Workload below.
Storage space	Storage requirements for Windows, plus 1gb for Escape Online. To optimize disk access and to provide fault-tolerance capabilities to the storage subsystem, it is recommended that you use high-quality SCSI disks and RAID configurations, if possible.
Network	Network requirements are based on expected workload, bandwidth utilization and number of remote clients. The management of these requirements relies on pure network administration.

TIP: For the best results, we recommend the following:

To make sure that your servers will adequately support the users of your implementation, you should observe the following requirements:

Application Server

For every 50 concurrent users, we recommend one dual-processor server with 4+Gb of Ram.

For more than 50 concurrent users, a content switch (layer 4) will be needed to load balance users between the application servers.

Contact your hardware vendor for more information about which content switch will work best with your system.

Note: These requirements are subject to change due to changes in the software.

TIP: Microsoft says this minimum will allow a user to run Windows programs under XP.

Type	Power User Recommended Requirements	Minimum Requirements
Processor	Intel Core Duo at 2.13 GHz with 2 Mb L2 cache	Intel Pentium 4 or higher, running at 2.8 GHz
RAM	2 Gb DDR2-RAM Non-ECC	512Mb
Operating System	Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional	Same
Storage space	There are no special requirements about storage space, other than the usual requirements for the Windows version installed and 25 Mb for Escape Online application.	Same
Network	Network requirements are based on expected bandwidth utilization.	Same
Monitor	The minimum display is 1024x768.	Same
Add'l Software	The following software is necessary to take full advantage of Escape Online functions. Microsoft Office for exporting Adobe Acrobat Reader for report PDFs Microsoft Internet Explorer for HTML Home Page Adobe Flash Player for additional functionality	Same

Setup of the Escape Online 5 server requires a number of steps, as outlined below:

Purchase the server hardware and Microsoft software described above.
Install the Microsoft software on the server, including Microsoft .Net.
Set up a terminal services connection on the server that has administrator authorities. This is necessary for the installation process performed by Escape Customer Care.
Schedule the Escape Online 5 software installation. Once you have set up the server, we can install the Escape Online 5 software remotely, via terminal services.

Following installation: