For installations that will support multiple production plants, there are several configuration scenarios to choose between as described below.
Single-Server, Single-Instance
In this scenario, as illustrated below:
- A single Windows server is used
- A single Instance is created in the Server Manager
- The one Instance contains all Plants which are interdependent – schedule changes in one Plant can dynamically affect schedules in other Plants that depend on the materials produced in the upstream Plant.
Single-Server, Single-Instance
Single-Server, Multi-Instance
In this scenario, as illustrated below:
- A single Windows server is used
- A separate Instance is created in the Server Manager for each Plant. (Each Instance can actually contain any number of Plants so, for example, two inter-dependent Plants could be in one Instance and one independent Plant could be in the second Instance.)
- The Plants that are in separate Instances are independent – changes in one Plant’s schedule do not affect the other Plants. (Note that independent Plants in separate Instances can potentially be made “loosely inter-dependent” by passing material dependences through the ERP system.)
Single-Server, Multi-Instance
Multi-Server, Multi-Instance
In this scenario, as illustrated below:
- Multiple Windows servers are used
- One or more Instances is created in each server’s Server Manager
- Inter-dependent Plants are placed in shared Instances while independent Plants are placed in their own Instances.
Multi-Server, Multi-Instance
How to decide between these scenarios:
| If… | Then choose… | |
| Plants are interdependent (They share resources or materials.) and can share a common set of integration mappings. | Single-ServerSingle-Instance | |
| Else if… | Then choose… | |
| Data volumes are not excessive* and a lower cost, lower server admin is desired | Single-ServerMulti-Instance | |
| Else for maximum performance choose… | ||
| Multi-ServerSingle-Instance |
* Actual performance depends on many factors such as the routing structures, BOM structures, constraints, scheduling rules, etc. However, as a general estimate, if more than 25,000 operations will be scheduled then a Multi-Server design should be used for better performance (if practical given inter-plant constraints). For the most accurate appraisal, it is highly recommended that sample data be created prior to committing to a given system design.
