Quick list for setting up a new Aptify Web Server

Overall, you want to follow the steps detailed in Installing Aptify Web for Aptify 6.0. If you want to play around with Aptify Web, it might be easier to download the Community Virtual Machine (How to setup the Community Virtual Machines (BETA)) rather than go through the install process.

But for a quick checklist, if you're setting up a new Aptify Web server/client, make sure to follow these steps/verify these items are done.

This document assumes you have an APTIFY database server and desktop client has been installed. If you're looking to install the Desktop Client, Database server or other items, refer to links in the parent guide: Quick List for Setting up and Troubleshooting Aptify Infrastructure
These instructions are going to be using the CDB/local environment, but can be used for client servers as well.

Pre-requisites:

Make sure your environment has the following items installed:

  1. .NET 3.5 framework (325156342793)
  2. .NET 4.5 framework https://confluence.aptify.com/download/attachments/78611714/dotNetFx45_Full_setup.exe?api=v2
  3. MVC4 framework https://confluence.aptify.com/download/attachments/78611714/AspNetMVC4Setup.exe?api=v2
  4. Aptify Desktop client (instructions/download can be found on Quick list for setting up a new Aptify database server/desktop client)

Database-side Setup:

These steps are only required if you are setting up app pool user for the first time. If you are setting up an Aptify Web site in a test server and the app pool user and such already exist in the database, you can skip to the IIS Setup section.

  1. Make sure you've run the License Wizard so licenses match your database server. (This is required for your app pool user) If you haven't done it already, follow these steps:
  2. Login to the database as SA, and run the Licensing Wizard to update licenses to match this server

    The wizard can be found above the Licenses service (under User Administration)

    Run it with "Update Licenses to Match this Server".

    If that's grayed out, it may already have been run.
  3. User creation of app pool user:
    1. If doing this on a local environment: 
      1. Make sure you're connected to the Aptify VPN. Launch the Aptify desktop client.
      2. Go to Step 4.
    2. If doing this on a client environment: 
      1. You'll follow a similar path although you'll want to ask them who their app pool user should be, or if they've already created one. You'll need the password as well.
      2. Note, in a client environment, you do not want your app pool user to be the same as their e-Business user or app server user.
      3. Skip to Step 7 below.
  4. Create a new user- This will be your app pool user.
  5. Select Windows Integrated Security.
  6. Change the domain to APTIFY and search for your user- it may take a bit to search, if it doesn't find the user, you might need to close Aptify, make sure you're not on any client VPNs, and connect to the client VPN.
    1. If this doesn't work and if this is on your local environment, you can create your own Windows user (named AptifyWebUser or something) and then use your computer's domain and your newly created user.
      To do so, follow the below instructions:
    2. Type Users in the Windows search and select this option.
    3. Select Add someone else to this PC.

      Your version of Windows may vary- Windows makes it harder to add a true local user now.
    4. Select I don't have this person's sign-in information.
    5. Select Add a user without a Microsoft Account.
    6. Enter Username and Password.
    7. Save the user.
    8. Select Change Account Type.
    9. Change them to an Administrator.

      This security level is not required (and not recommended) in client environments, it is done here to make it a bit easier so you do not have to add the user to the appropriate IIS Users groups, as Admin automatically has those privileges.
    10. Log back into Aptify.
      Create a new user and search your local computer's domain for your newly created person. (Your local domain should show up by default)
  7. Assign your user an EndUser license. If you do not see licenses available, it may be one of several things:
    1. You may need to run the license import wizard to update the server type
    2. If dealing with a CDB environment and an all view of Licenses returns nothing, you'll need to import a license file
    3. In a client environment, you may not see one if all their licenses are assigned. You can free one up by either de-activating another user account (if it's not being used), purchasing a new license, or changing another users license assignment from End User to Administrator (if available)
  8. Grant your user access to the CRM and e-Business modules. Leave the settings on Step 5 as is.
  9. On step 6, if there's an existing record (like in a CDB environment) that has Aptify Web/SOA permissions, copy that profile. That'll automatically put them in the same security groups.
  10. On Step 8, it'll be prepopulated if you copied a profile. If you didn't, add the user to the AptifySOAAppPoolGroup, the Basic Group, and the Users group. Make the Users group their Primary Group.
  11. On Step 9, assign them an Employee and Person record. If you're doing this for a client, ask them which records to assign here- often it'll be the same as their ebusiness user.
  12. Click Finish.

IIS Setup:

  1. You'll need to enable certain IIS features to create a website.
    1. If on a local environment:
      1. Search "Add Features" in the Windows start menu. Select "Turn Windows features on or off."
      2. Expand the Web Server Management Tool and World Wide Web Services trees.
      3. Add each everything from each sub-tree.
    2. If on a server environment: (Note, most clients set this up for you, but in case you have to:)
      1. you can add Windows features by opening the "Server Manager" application and selecting "Add Roles or Features."
      2. On the Installation Type page, leave it at "Role-based or feature-based installation. Click Next.
      3. On the Server Selection page, you should see your server listed, choose it and click Next.
      4. On Server Roles, select "Web Server (IIS)." Open the tree.
        1. Under Web Server, add the above features. Select all items from within each tree.
        2. Under Management Tools, add the above features.

          Note, the client may wish to add other features depending on what the web server is used for, but this is the minimum.
  2. Save and Windows should apply the new features.
  3. Search IIS Manager within Windows start menu. Launch the IIS Manager application.
  4. At the top level, select Server Certificates.
  5. It'll load server certificates. If you're doing this on a local environment, you'll need to create a self-signed cert. On client environments, they should import their certificate to the server, however, you can set it up temporarily with a self-signed cert and swap it later if they need to purchase or import one later. To create a self-signed cert:
    1. Select Create Self-signed Certificate on the right Actions column
    2. Name your certificate whatever you'd like.
    3. Place it in the Personal Certificate store.
  6. You should see a Default Web Site on the top left. If you are installing multiple Aptify Web websites or multiple sites with HTTPS on this server, you'll need to setup new sites and bindings appropriately.
  7. Select it, and on the far right Actions column, select Bindings.
  8. If there is not an https binding, you'll need to add one. Add it like the above image, choosing your new self-signed cert. (If this is for a client, add their correct server cert). You can leave the IP address as all unassigned and host name blank unless you have a specific URL to assign it.
  9. Your site bindings should look similar to the above image.

Aptify Web Installation

  1. Download the latest version of the Aptify Web installer. Extract the zip file.

  2. Run the Setup.exe as a Windows Administrator. Login to the server as the SA account.
  3. Install it with the settings as given in the above image. You'll want to pick the correct SOA Pool Username/Password that you created before. You can fill in a site name if there's a specific URL to bind this to, or you can leave it blank to install on your local.
    1. If Aptify client is installed in a different folder from where the Object Cache Path is, navigate to the correct one.
    2. You may also change the Website Location if it should be located elsewhere.
    3. If you do not see the Default Web Site at the top of the installer and you cannot select it:
      1. Verify first that you have the right Windows features installed (step 1 of IIS setup)- This is usually the problem
      2. Launch IIS. If you have a default web site in IIS manager, but not in Aptify, make sure the Windows features are installed right, then verify that this site has a valid HTTPS binding and a correct certificate
      3. If you don't have a default web site in IIS manager, you may need to create one, although it's probably a missing Windows Feature at root. If you create one, make sure it has an HTTPS binding with the right cert.
  4. Click Next.
    It'll verify you have the necessary components installed, as detailed in the Pre-install requirements section.
  5. Click Finish, Aptify Web will install.

    Should take about 20-30 min, although it'll vary depending on server specs and client database size.

Try launching your site by going to https://desktop-fpmlf8n/Aptify/ in your browser, replacing desktop-fpml8n with your computer or server name. (It's best to test using Chrome Incognito to rule out any caching issues)

You may want to enable SQL authentication in Aptify Web. I'd suggest launching Aptify Web first, to eliminate an error with the updated javascript as a potential reason why it won't start, but you can do so by following these instructions. 325106339930

If your Aptify Web won't load

If your Aptify Web won't load, check this page for some basic troubleshooting steps: Checklist for basic Aptify Web/ebusiness 6 troubleshooting

Dealing with SSL errors in Postman (Optional)

You'll get an SSL certificate error each time you launch Aptify Web or Aptify Services API, except in client scenarios where presumably they have a valid certificate. Other than an annoyance, this can interfere with testing API calls with the tool Postman. By default, it blocks invalid SSL certs, so for testing purposes, you'll need to uncheck that setting as shown above.