2. Installation

This document describes how to install the d3VIEW platform on a Linux server, configure the application, and perform basic setup operations.

2.1. Install d3VIEW

The installation process includes downloading the installation build, choosing an architecture, performing the installation, starting the server, and completing application-level configuration.

2.2. Steps to Install d3VIEW

This section explains the complete install workflow from obtaining the build to starting the application server.

Downloading d3VIEW Build

  1. d3VIEW supports Linux systems such as RedHat, CentOS, Suse, and Ubuntu.
  2. Contact your distributor or email support@d3view.com to obtain the installation build (d3VIEW.run) for your target OS.

Architecture

d3VIEW supports three deployment architectures:

  1. The minimum architecture that can be used to run d3VIEW-Platform is a all-inclusive LAMP stack in which a single Linux server supports running Apache and Database. This is the simplest method to run d3VIEW and can support 1-5 users depending on the server capacity.
  2. The second method is to host d3VIEW-Platform using two servers that each run Apache and Database server separately. This is most commonly used for small-to-medium loads and is highly recommended. The two servers can be independent with local storage to each of the servers.
  3. The third method is high-availability and reducdant system in which the Database is run in a clustered environment and the Apache is run behind a load-balancer with multiple servers hosting the application

Variables

SL NO Variables Description
1 D3VIEW_RUN_FILE This is the .run file that contains Apache, Mysql, and other packages required by d3VIEW. This is provided by d3VIEW.
2 D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR This is the directory where d3VIEW will be installed. Typically, this would be /opt/d3view.
3 D3VIEW_BINARY This is the .tgz file that contains the d3VIEW web application. Typical names include d3view_master_xxx.tgz. You can receive this file from d3VIEW Inc.
4 D3VIEW_APP_DIR This is the directory where d3view binaries are placed and untarred. This is usually D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/app.

Installation

Follow these commands on your Linux host to install d3VIEW:

  1. Copy and run the installation script:

Navigate to the d3VIEW installation directory (/opt/d3view). Copy the installer file (d3VIEW.run) provided by d3VIEW into this directory.

cp d3VIEW.run /opt/d3view

The above command copies the d3VIEW.run installer file into the /opt/d3view installation directory.

Next, change to the installation directory.

cd /opt/d3view

This command moves the terminal session to the /opt/d3view directory, where the installer file is located.

Run the installer using the following command.

./d3VIEW.run

This command executes the d3VIEW.run installer script, which starts the installation process and installs the required components.

  1. Verify that the installation files are present

    Navigate to the d3VIEW installation directory.

    cd d3VIEW

    This command changes the current working directory to the d3VIEW directory.

    List the files and directories to confirm the installation contents.

    ls

    This command displays all files and folders in the d3VIEW directory. Verify that the required installation files are present.

    If the tmp directory is missing, create it using the following command.

    mkdir tmp

    This command creates a tmp directory inside the current d3VIEW directory.

  2. Start the application server

    Run the following command to start the d3VIEW application server.

    ./d3view_server.sh start

    This command starts the d3VIEW server and initializes the required application services.

  3. Retrieve the Host IDs for licensing

    Open a web browser and navigate to the following URL.

    http://D3VIEW_SERVER:3080/hostids.php

    Replace D3VIEW_SERVER with the hostname or IP address of the machine where d3VIEW is installed.

    This page displays the Host IDs, which are required to generate the d3VIEW license.

    Below Image shows the host IDs info.

Host IDs info



Installing/configuring license

  1. Configure the license file

    After receiving the valid license file, open the php.ini configuration file located in the following directory:

    /D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/amp/php/bin/php.ini

    This file contains the configuration settings used by the d3VIEW application.

  2. Update the license path

    Edit the php.ini file and update the license_path parameter so that it points to the location of the new license file.

  3. Restart the d3VIEW server

    After updating the license path, restart the d3VIEW server to apply the changes.

    /D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/d3view_server.sh stop
/D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/d3view_server.sh start

    The first command stops the running d3VIEW server, and the second command starts it again with the updated configuration.

    The image below shows an example of the configured license path.

License path



Application Installation

  1. Start the server using /D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/d3view_server.sh

  2. Open the link  http://D3VIEW_SEVRER:3080 ,which will open the installation page. Click on ‘Install’

    http://D3VIEW_SERVER:3080

Install



  1. The next step in Installing is Database connection, and this will tell us how to connect to the Database.
    1. Provide Host name
    2. Username
    3. Password
    4. Database name

Database connection



  1. Next step is to Create Administration account by providing - user name , email ID and Password.

    Click on create account after adding the credentials.

Administration



  1. Once the d3VIEW installation is complete and the account is created
  2. Login page will be navigated, and User can login to d3VIEW with the credentials.

Login to d3VIEW



After successful login, the user will be directed to the d3VIEW dashboard, where you can start visualizing and analyzing simulation data.

2.3. Updating

  1. Copy the new build file to the application directory

    Place the new build archive file d3VIEW_NEW_BUILD_FILE.tgz into the d3VIEW application directory.

    /D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/app/

    This directory stores all extracted d3VIEW build versions.

  2. Extract the new build archive

    Navigate to the app directory and extract the build file.

    tar -xzf d3VIEW_NEW_BUILD_FILE.tgz

    This command extracts the archive and creates a new directory:

    /D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/app/d3VIEW_NEW_BUILD_FILE/

    Inside this directory, there is a folder named web which contains the new d3VIEW application build.

  3. Navigate to the d3VIEW installation directory

    Return to the main d3VIEW installation directory.

    cd /D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/

  4. Update the web symbolic link

    Remove the existing web link and create a new symbolic link that points to the newly extracted build.

    rm web
ln -s /D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/app/d3VIEW_NEW_BUILD_FILE/web web
    • rm web removes the existing symbolic link that points to the previous d3VIEW build.
    • ln -s ... web creates a new symbolic link named web that points to the web directory inside the newly extracted build.

2.4. Set up SSL Keys

  1. Generate a Certificate Signing Request (CSR)

    On the server where d3VIEW is installed, generate a CSR and private key using the following command:

    openssl req -new -newkey rsa:2048 -nodes -keyout d3view_server.key -out d3view_server.csr

    This command generates: - d3view_server.key – the private key for the server - d3view_server.csr – the certificate signing request that must be submitted to the certificate provider.

  2. Submit the CSR for SSL certificate generation

    Share the generated d3view_server.csr file with your network or security team (or certificate authority) to request the SSL certificate.

  3. Convert the issued certificate (if provided in .p7b format)

    If the SSL certificate is provided in .p7b format, convert it to .cer format using the following command:

    openssl pkcs7 -print_certs -in ssl_certificate.p7b -out ssl_certificate.cer

    This command extracts the certificate chain from the .p7b file and saves it as a .cer file.

  4. Configure Apache to use the SSL certificates

    Open the Apache configuration file:

    D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/am/httpd/conf/http.conf

    Add or update the following SSL configuration entries:

    SSLCertificateKeyFile /path/to/d3view_server.key
SSLCertificateFile /path/to/ssl_certificate_from_network_team.cer
SSLCertificateChainFile /path/to/ssl_certificate_chain.cer
    • SSLCertificateKeyFile – Path to the private key generated in Step 1.
    • SSLCertificateFile – SSL certificate provided after submitting the CSR.
    • SSLCertificateChainFile – Certificate chain extracted from the .p7b file.

2.5. Additional Information

  1. Start Apache with root privileges (if port 80 is restricted)

    Port 80 typically requires root privileges. To start the Apache web server on this port, switch to the root user.

    When starting Apache at this stage, ensure that MySQL is not started yet. This step only starts the Apache web server.

  2. Switch back to the regular user

    After Apache has started successfully, switch back to your normal user account.

    Running the remaining services as a regular user ensures that MySQL and other d3VIEW processes operate with the correct user permissions.

  3. Start the MySQL server

    Start the MySQL server as your normal user (not root).

    This ensures that database services run under the appropriate application-level permissions.

  4. Access the d3VIEW application

    Once Apache and MySQL are running, open a browser and access the d3VIEW application using the server URL.

2.6. FAQs

What happens in the scratch directory?

The scratch directory is used to create temporary files during data extraction processes. These files are typically intermediate files generated while processing simulation data.

What is the database directory?

The default database directory is:

D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/amp/mysql/data

This directory stores all database-related information used by d3VIEW.

How do I set up HPC integration?

Detailed instructions for configuring HPC integration can be found in the d3VIEW administration documentation:

https://www.d3view.com/docs/master/getting_started/Administration.html

What is ``FILE_TRANSLATORS``?

FILE_TRANSLATORS is used to convert LS-DYNA d3plot files into a compressed format for efficient storage and processing.

What is ``SIMLYZER_HOST``?

SIMLYZER_HOST specifies the host where data extraction processes can be performed in certain configurations.

How does LDAP authentication work?

By default, authentication is handled using the d3VIEW database. LDAP can be configured as an alternative authentication mechanism.

What is FORA?

FORA specifies the location of the FORA server. Example:

fora3.d3view.com

What is ``LUCY_EXE``?

LUCY_EXE should point to the Lucy executable location:

D3VIEW_INSTALL_DIR/lucy/bin/lucy