Preparing to Install Webtrends Visitor Data Mart

Preparation steps for a Visitor Data Mart installation. Intended for review prior to launching the installer.

System Requirements

Review the System Requirements for Analytics and Visitor Data Mart to determine hardware requirements. Webtrends Visitor Data Mart requires a dedicated SQL Server database used only by Webtrends Analytics for storing event data. When planning for Visitor Data Mart, consider the SQL Server requirements as well as the three Visitor Data Mart components you can install.

Understanding Visitor Data Mart Components

You must install Visitor Data Mart components on a system separate from the Webtrends Analytics components. During installation, you specify where you want to install these components:

Configuration Databases: These store additional information related to the web event data in Visitor Data Mart. Your organization populates this database by uploading data from external sources such as customer databases. When you install this component, the installer creates the Extended Attributes Master Database in Visitor Data Mart. You install only one Extended Attributes Database for each distributed architecture.
Event Database Loader: Creates the database where your Visitor Data Mart data resides and moves data from your SmartSource Data Collector log files into Visitor Data Mart. Typically, you install this component on one computer, but you can install this component on multiple systems.
Log File Management: Collects SmartSource Data Collector (SDC) files, prepares them for Visitor Data Mart, and adds GeoTrends and Domain Name Server (DNS) lookup data to the log files. This component includes the Event Database Splitter and the Log File Pre-Processor. The Event Database Splitter creates separate log files for each DSCID, and the Log File Pre-Processor adds domain name and geographical information to your SDC files. You can install the Log File Management component separately from the Event Database Loader.

Assessing Visitor Data Mart Storage Needs

When planning for Visitor Data Mart, consider your storage requirements for the SmartSource files that are the source for your Visitor Data Mart data. Because the Log File Management component modifies the SmartSource files to prepare them for Visitor Data Mart, you should store the files separately and copy them at regular intervals to a location where the Log File Pre-Processor can add GeoTrends and DNS data to the logs, and the Event Database Splitter can collect them and process them. By default, the Event Database Splitter deletes the processed log files after the Event Database Loader imports the event data into the Event Database. However, you can configure the Log File Management host role to keep the processed log files. For more information, see Configuring the Log File Management Role.

Setting Up Shares for Visitor Data Mart Data

Before you install Visitor Data Mart components, you need to create directories for SmartSource data and for Visitor Data Mart working directories. Because each path must be accessible by each computer in the distributed installation, be sure you share each folder and give the systems in your installation the full control permission before beginning the installation. You need to set up the following shared directories for your Visitor Data Mart implementation:

Log File Management Source Directory: Location for storing your unmodified SmartSource files before the Log File Management component processes them. For example, \\wtmain\modules\logpreproc\logsrc. After installation, you specify this directory when you configure the Log File Management host role.
Event Database Source Directory: Location for storing your SmartSource files after the Log File Management component has processed them. This is the location where they reside until they are loaded in the Visitor Data Mart. For example, Webtrends installation directory\storage\config\eventdatabase\src\.

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