Deployment Targets#
Critical Manufacturing MES can be deployed exclusively on containerized environments. The sections below outline the different deployment options available for each layer.
Database Component#
Critical Manufacturing MES requires a SQL Server installation running on Windows Server. For high-availability purposes, an Always On High Availability cluster configuration is recommended.
SQL Server for Linux or containerized versions of SQL Server are currently not supported for full MES workloads, including Operational Data Store (ODS) and Data Warehouse (DWH) transactions, since they offer several limitations on components required by the system, therefore the database component is required to be hosted on servers running Windows Server.
Managed SQL Server services like Azure SQL Database or Amazon RDS are also not supported due to features that are currently unavailable in those services.
There is limited support for Azure SQL Managed Instances. In this case, SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) and Reporting Services (SSRS) must be hosted separately. Please consult Critical Manufacturing for additional details on how to configure an installation using Azure SQL Managed Instances.
For additional details on the required configuration the database component, check the Database Component section.
Application Layer#
Critical Manufacturing MES application layer can be deployed as a containerized application on one of the following platforms:
- Kubernetes (check Application Layer - Containers for the supported containers)
- Red Hat OpenShift
- Cloud managed container orchestration services based on Kubernetes (Azure AKS, and Amazon EKS)
The deployment process for containerized installations is managed through Critical Manufacturing DevOps Center, which fully automates the deployment process. Installations can be done locally (by executing an installation package) or remotely, directly in a target infrastructure previously provisioned and according to the defined requirements.
In addition to the containerized components, there are currently optional components which, due to dependencies to Windows-specific libraries, are required to run on Windows servers. The table below describes these components and the associated modules.
| Component | Module | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Printable Documents Renderer | Advanced Layout and Printing | On containerized environments, this component supports printing documents to Windows printers. It is also possible to configure the container infrastructure to enable printing documents using a CUPS Server. On Windows environments, this is not required as the application host will be able to print directly to printers configured on the application servers. |
| ECAD Renderer | Core | Required to render CAD file visualizations. |
| Automation Managers | Core | Required to support Windows-based automation drivers. |
Table: Optional components and associated modules
On containerized installations, these components require a separate Windows Virtual Machine / server where they can be installed.
For additional details on the required configuration for a containerized deployment, check the Application Layer - Container Stack section.
Cloud Installations#
When deploying Critical Manufacturing on a cloud infrastructure, Critical Manufacturing recommends a containerized approach, targeting a managed Kubernetes service like Azure AKS or Amazon EKS. In the Critical Manufacturing Information Center, there are detailed guides on how to configure a Kubernetes cluster ⧉.
For cloud-based installations, the following concerns should be taken into account:
| Topic | Description |
|---|---|
| Latency | In order to ensure adequate user experience and performance, it's recommended that the latency between the application clients (web browser or mobile devices) and the application servers does not exceed 200ms. |
| Bandwidth | In order to ensure adequate performance of the user interface, a minimum throughput of 20 Mbps between the application clients (web browser or mobile devices) and the application servers is recommended. |
| Connection availability | Cloud-based installation rely on a stable connection to the data center hosting the application backend. The system does not offer any offline capability in case there is no connectivity to the cloud. |
| Database and application servers co-located | In order to ensure application performance, database servers running Windows Server VMs should be co-located in the same region to ensure low latency. |
| On-premises components | Components related with automation are recommended to be executed on premises, due to lower latency between equipment controllers and the physical equipment to which they are connected. Connectivity is required between on-premises components and the application servers. |
Table: Cloud-based installation concerns