Many clients wish to know what the hardware and operating system requirements are for a Delft-FEWS live system. On this page you can find a list of specifications. If you have any question about the list, or you do not see the operating system of your choice: please contact us. This list is not exhaustive.
Components
Central database
- Central database hardware and software requirements - 2024.01 and later
- Central database hardware and software requirements - 2023.02
- Central database hardware and software requirements - 2023.01
- Central database hardware and software requirements - 2022.01 - 2022.02
- Central database hardware and software requirements - 2021.01 - 2021.02
- Database connection count calculator
Operator Client
Forecasting Shell Server
Master Controller Server
Deltares Open Archive
Webserver
The webserver is an optional server that hosts and distributes the webpages generated by Delft-FEWS. Hardware requirements depend on the intended use.
FEWS Web Services
This is an optional service which allows SOAP/PI-REST clients to interact with and retrieve data from the Delft-FEWS system. Hardware requirements depend on the intended use, but a minimum of 1GB heap size is needed to start the FEWS Web Services. In general it is not recommended to have the PiService on the same machine as the master-controller.
Requirements overview
Component | Description | Hardware requirements | Operating system / Software requirements | Instances |
---|---|---|---|---|
Operator Client (Gui) | The Delft-FEWS client used by end-users. | client side, normal pc Screen resolution depends upon the hardware supplied not on the Delft-FEWS software | Windows 7 / 8 / 10, Server 2012(R2), 2016 Linux RedHat Enterprise (7 / 8), CentOS (7 / 8) | As many as there are clients |
ConfigManager | Control and distribute configuration via the Master Controller database. | client side, normal pc | Windows 7 / 8, Server 2012(R2), 2016 Linux RedHat Enterprise (7 / 8), CentOS (6.x 64 bit, 7.x 64 bit) | As many as there are application managers |
Forecasting Shell Server | Executes forecast models and stores the results in the central database. | Minimum 2 GB RAM and 1 one CPU core per Forecasting Shell Server instance. CPU typically Intel Xeon E5606 2.33 GHz or equivalent. Always reserve 1 CPU core for the OS. | Windows 7 / 8 / 10, Server 2012(R2), 2016 Linux RedHat Enterprise, CentOS (6.x 64 bit, 7.x 64 bit)
| recommended minimum 2, add more depending on computational load |
Master Controller Server | Dispatches tasks to the Forecasting Shell Servers. Maintenance of central database. Synchronisation between master-controllers. Sends system alerts. | Minimum 1 GB RAM per MC instance. CPU typically Intel Xeon 2.33 GHz or equivalent. | Windows 7 / 8 / 10, Server 2012(R2), 2016 Linux RedHat Enterprise, CentOS (6.x 64 bit, 7.x 64 bit)
| 1 or 2 |
Central Database | Central data repository | See Database vendor requirements + 8 GB RAM per DB server including 1 MC DB instance and. CPU typically Intel Xeon E5606 2.33 GHz or equivalent. Add 1 GB RAM per extra MC DB instance. | Oracle 12c, 18c, 19c for Delft-FEWS 2017.02 and later Oracle 10 / 11 / 12 for versions up to Delft-FEWS 2017.01, PostgreSQL 9.6, PostgreSQL 11 and 12 MS SQL Server 11 (2012) or higher. The database instance(s) can be a hosted on an existing database server or cluster. | One instance per Master controller see also: |
Admin Interface | Super-user monitoring, system control and task scheduling | Minimum 1 GB RAM | Requires internet browser with javascript and session cookies enabled. 2018.02 and higher requires Tomcat 9. Latest version is always used when installing or upgrading. Most recent version tested: Tomcat 9.0.44 Internet Explorer 10 or older is not supported. Supported browsers in preferred order :
2017.02 and before: Apache Tomcat 6 or higher The web application runs over the Internet, E.g. Internet Explorer, Edge, Firefox, Chrome. | One instance per Master-Controller machine |
"NFFS/FEWS" Web Server (optional) | For disseminating forecast data and data from other sources | Typically 1 GB RAM per server instance and CPU Intel Xeon 2.33 GHz or equivalent. | Weblogic 11g with an Oracle Database. Weblogic as Application Server . | One instance per Master-Controller machine (optional) |
PiService (optional) | Data access component. | Typically 1 GB RAM per server instance and CPU Intel Xeon 2.33 GHz or equivalent. | Apache Tomcat 6 / 7 or later Recommended: Tomcat 9. Latest version is always used when installing or upgrading. Most recent version tested: Tomcat 9.0.44 Preferrably not on the same machine as the master-controller / MQ server. | 1 (optional) |
JMS Server | Messaging communication between FEWS components | No longer present in 2017.02. Minimum 1 GB RAM per JMS instance. CPU typically Intel Xeon 2.33 GHz or equivalent. Minimum 1GB disk space for cache. | Windows 7 / 8, Server 2012(R2) (32bit, 64bit) Linux RedHat Enterprise, CentOS (6.x 64 bit, 7.x 64 bit) | One instance per Master controller |
Archive Server (optional) | Stores forecast data, performance indicator data and configurations on a longer time scale than in the central FEWS system. For new projects consider using the Deltares Open Archive instead. | No longer supported in 2017.02, please migrate to the open archive. Ample storage space for Archive files | Apache Tomcat 6 / 7 or later Separate database instance with same requirements as Central Database for Master Controller. | 1 (optional) |
Open Archive | New version of the Archive Server replacing the old one. Stores forecast data, performance indicator data and configurations on a longer time scale than in the central FEWS system. | Ample storage space for Archive files | for 2017.02 or earlier: Apache Tomcat 7 (or later) with JRE version 8 for 2018.02 or later: Apache Tomcat 9 with Amazon Coretto 11.0.3 | 1 (optional) |
All activities contribute to resource consumption on a computing box, whether that box is hardware or virtual and Delft-FEWS will consume resources when running.
Scalability, number of servers
The components mentioned above can all be located on one (powerful) server or each on an individual machine, with all possible configurations in between. It is however common practice to separate the Forecasting Shell server from the Master-controller server. When using multiple machines it is essential that all machines have matching clocks. This can be achieved by making use of one and the same ntp server.
A typical configuration is:
- Master Controller server running Master Controller(s), Apache Tomcat for Admin Interface
- Open Archive Server
- Database Server
- Forecasting Shell Server(s)
Typically in a dual master-controller setup every master-controller has its own machine so that maintenance can take place without offline time.
Virtualization
It is very well possible to deploy the master-controller components / forecasting shells in virtualized environments. The Deltares ICT team has most experience with Delft-FEWS on VMWare VSphere with in-depth knowledge but Delft-FEWS is also known to run on Microsoft Hyper-V. Virtualization of the Delft-FEWS back-end services can generally be done without problems. Take into account that (not Delft-FEWS related) modelling software may have other requirements or limitations with respect to virtualization of the Forecasting Shells.
Grid computing
FEWS can work with grid computing. Especially when working with heavy computations, e.g. ensemble forecasting or 3d hydraulic computing, this can be an interesting option to explore. It is recommended to contact the Delft-FEWS product management beforehand.
Windows VC redistributables
Security
Read more about the shared responsibility model. >>