Configure an external metadata repository (optional)

By default, InfoLink is configured to use the embedded metadata repository. Additionally, InfoLink supports storing its metadata in external databases such as SQL Server and PostgreSQL. Using an external metadata repository allows you increasing the performance and simplifies management as you can easily connect to the metadata database to perform advanced maintenance and reporting tasks.

Configure PostgreSQL

InfoLink requires PostgreSQL 9.6 or higher.

Step 1: Install PostgreSQL from https://www.postgresql.org/download/ . Select your operating system under Packages and Installers and follow the instructions.
Step 2: Connect to postgres database and create infolink user as follows:
- Start psql:
```
 Linux: sudo -u postgres psql postgres
 Windows: `"C:\Program Files\PostgreSQL\9.6\bin\psql" -U postgres postgres`
```
- In the psql console type: create user infolink with superuser password 'trust';
- Type \q<Enter> to quit psql console.
Step 3: Edit <path to Infolink>/conf/infolink.conf
- Set useDefaultEmbedded to no.
- Edit connStr, user, and password to access the PostgreSQL server. connStr should not include the database name. An example of connStr is:
```
jdbc:postgresql://138.128.245.128:5432
```
- [Optional] Add databaseName if you want to store the metadata in an existing database. Without databaseName, a new database named infolink_master will be created.
Step 4: Restart InfoLink.
Step 5: Perform Step 5 in the Installation Steps

Configure SQL Server

InfoLink requires Microsoft SQL Server 2016 or higher.

Preliminary steps to prepare SQL Server

Install SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) from SSMS Download .
If you plan to use SQL server authentication, enable it and create an SQL user for InfoLink:
1. Enable SQL server authentication: In SSMS right-click on the server -> Properties -> Security -> select SQL Server and Windows Authentication mode. Restart the server in SSMS.
2. Create an SQL user: in SSMS connect as Windows user -> right-click on Security -> New -> select Login/User. In the Login window, select SQL Server Authentication, enter Login name (usually infolink) and password, consider unchecking “Enforce password policy”. Click on Server Roles on the left menu -> select all public permissions. If you do not plan to use an existing database, InfoLink will create a new one named inflink_master that requires dbcreater permissions.
If the SQL server installed on a different machine, enable TCP/IP connections: start SQL Server Configuration Manager (installed with Basic SQL server) -> SQL Server Network Configuration -> Enable TCP/IP.
InfoLink requires the database used for storing metadata to have the SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CS_AS collation. During the metadata repository initialization, InfoLink will check the current collation and will try to change it to SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CS_AS if it is different. If the user does not have enough permissions to change the collation, an error will reported in the Tomcat log. In this case you can change the collation as follows:
```
ALTER DATABASE <databasename> SET SINGLE_USER WITH ROLLBACK IMMEDIATE
ALTER DATABASE <databasename> COLLATE SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CS_AS;
ALTER DATABASE <databasename> SET MULTI_USER WITH ROLLBACK IMMEDIATE;
```

Configure InfoLink

Step 1: You must store InfoLink’s metadata in a separate database. So you have two options: (1) create a new database in SQL Server and enter its name in infolink.conf as described below; (2) a new database named infolink_master will be created automatically.
Step 2: Edit <path to Infolink>/conf/infolink.conf
- Set useDefaultEmbedded to no.
- Edit connStr, user, and password to access SQL server. connStr should not include the database name. An example of connStr is:
```
jdbc:sqlserver://138.128.251.178:1433
```
- [Optional] Add databaseName if you want to store the metadata in an existing database. Without databaseName parameter, a new database named infolink_master will be created.

Step 3: Restart InfoLink.
Step 4: Perform Step 5 in the Installation Steps