DriveWorks Pro 22

How To: Microsoft Azure (KB19020401)

Microsoft Azure

Microsoft Azure is an ever-expanding set of cloud services.

Due to the number of Azure services available there are many ways in which DriveWorks can be hosted.

This topic documents the most common services DriveWorks can utilize.

DriveApps

DriveWorks v20 SP2 onwards support DriveApps being provisioned on an Azure database.

However, we have found Azure will default to a database that is over-provisioned and expensive to run.

We recommend you review the costs of the vCore purchasing model and select the model that matches your requirements.

We recommend switching this to the DTU based purchasing model, 10 DTU's is perfectly suitable for most scenarios

Virtual Machines

All DriveWorks modules are supported on Azure Windows Server based Virtual Machines.

Once a Virtual Machine has been provisioned it can be accessed remotely (using Remote Desktop Connection, or similar), and the required DriveWorks software can be downloaded and installed.

Any other third party software (SOLIDWORKS, Office, etc.) can be installed as required on an Azure VM, as long as the prerequisites of the application are met.

Hosting DriveWorks Pro Server on Azure

When DriveWorks Pro Server is hosted on an Azure VM, the following ports require to be added to the Windows Firewall exceptions:

• 8000
• 8025

Once the exceptions have been added, the same ports are required to be configured in the networking options for that VM.

1. In Azure, select the VM that is hosting DriveWorks Pro Server.
2. Select Networking from the Settings list.

   

3. From the Networking screen select Add inbound port rule.
4. Add Port 8000 as shown below, and repeat for Port 8025.

   

   These ports can be further configured to decide who has access to them.

   We recommend leaving it on anyone initially, to test the connection, and then locking it down from there.

Databases

The Azure SQL Database is fully supported for DriveWorks Shared Groups.

Once a database has been provisioned you will be given the server address to the database.

This address should be entered in the Server field of DriveWorks Pro Server.

Once DriveWorks Pro Server is connected to the Azure SQL Database you can:

• Create a New Shared Group and begin a new DriveWorks implementation using DriveWorks Administrator.
  There is a known issue when creating a New Shared Group in Microsoft Azure.

  Please see Known Issues for more information.

• Migrate an existing local implementation to Azure using the DriveWorks Data Management Copy Group task.

All DriveWorks database functionality is fully supported with Azure SQL Databases. This includes:

• Functions such as DbQuery, QueryDataValues, QueryData, etc.
  Ensure any database functions have the correct values entered in the User Name and Password fields.
• Data Documents - SQL Server Data Export

The Azure SQL Database server address should be included in the connection string when using this functionality.

Azure File Storage

Files related to the implementation, e.g. DriveWorks Project files, SOLIDWORKS models and documents can be stored in Azure File Storage.

Ensure the service is configured to premium, for the fastest read/write speeds.

Every machine in the implementation, e.g. Autopilot and Live will need access to these files.

Connect the machines to the file share over SMB. Azure provide a PowerShell script to enable this connection inside the portal (found under "connect" when viewing the file share). Execute this PowerShell script on the machines in the implementation.

Azure Networking

Azure offers services to connect cloud and on-premises infrastructure, such as:

• DNS domain hosting
• Provision of virtual and private networks
• Load Balancer

DriveWorks works with these services exactly like it would with any other network.

Azure Monitor

Azure offers a very comprehensive monitoring service.

See Azure Monitor - Overview for more information.

This is very useful for monitoring virtual machines, databases, load balancers, and any other Azure service.

It provides email alerts when problems occur and metrics to better understand your services.

Web Apps

It is not possible to host DriveWorks Live with an Azure web application.

This is because web apps do not allow 3rd party software to be installed.

DriveWorks Live must be ran from a virtual machine where the DriveWorks Live module can be installed and licensed.

DriveWorks PowerPack for Microsoft Azure

The DriveWorks PowerPack for Microsoft Azure allows DriveWorks to connect to Microsoft Azure and use Microsoft Azure features.

This facilitates the management of Microsoft Azure virtual machines (turning them off and on) as well as file sharing.

See DriveWorks Labs for download information.

See DriveWorks PowerPack for Microsoft Azure for more information on the PowerPack.

Further Integration

Microsoft Azure allows seamless integration between on-premises and cloud-based applications, data and processes through its API.

Combined with the DriveWorks Pro SDK you can make full use of all Azure services within your DriveWorks implementation.