Tips for Setting Up Virtual Web Applications
When setting up virtual web applications, it is possible that when the wizard completes, the web application does not function as expected. In these situations, there are a few options that should be tried before contacting support.
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In this example, assume the following:
That application that will be proxied is https://www.myapp.com. This is its public address outside of webNetwork.
The webNetwork relay is https://www.mywebnetwork.com.
The virtual host name for the web application is https://myapp.mywebnetwork.com.
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When testing to verify if the virtual web application is working or not, be sure to check the following:
1. Did the login page appear correctly?
a) If it didn't - verify you added the DNS record for myapp.mywebnetwork.com.
b) On the machine you are testing with - ping myapp.mywebnetwork.com and verify it is resolved correctly.
2. Did the login page come from the virtual host name (myapp.mywebnetwork.com) as expected? If it went back to the
public address (www.myapp.com) then it did not work correctly.
3. Hand enter your credentials and sign in.
4. Verify that the main menu or the first signed-in page appears correctly.
5. Did the menu page come from the virtual host name (myapp.mywebnetwork.com) as expected? If it went back to the public address (www.myapp.com) then it did not work correctly.
a) In some situations, it is possible to allow the login page to be proxied, but then after authentication, it redirects back to the public address, and still works. When this happens, it is strongly recommended that you test the logout button. Logout and then try to login as a different user. Be sure you are not logged in as the first user when the second user tries due to the fact that cookies on the proxied domain weren't removed when the public site logged out.
6. Test various other links within the web application to be sure they are working correctly.
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To setup the web application:
1. In webAdmin, run the Publish Virtual Web Application wizard. At the end of the wizard, test the web application. Do not try to setup SSO and do not change any of the default options. Test the web application. If it does not work, continue with Step #2.
2. In webAdmin, click on the new web application object. Click the Options tab. Note that Rewrite Browser Cookies is NOT checked and Host Authority is set to Enabled. You will want to try every combination of these two values. This leaves 3 additional combinations to try. When you make changes, be sure to click Save to save the changes, then click Reload so that the changes will take effect. When testing each combination, check to see if the web application starts working. If it does, that is the combination that is needed.
a) Uncheck Rewrite Browser Cookies and set Host Authority to Disabled. Reload and test the web application.
b) Check Rewrite Browser Cookies and set Host Authority to Disabled. Reload and test the web application.
c) Check Rewrite Browser Cookies and set Host Authority to Enabled. Reload and test the web application.
3. If the web application appears to be working, be sure to verify that it is staying on the virtual host name. In the example given earlier, that means if the url ever changes back to www.myapp.com, then something isn't working correctly.
That is often related to the web site asking for a redirect to that address. If this happens, try the following:
a) In webAdmin, right click the web application object.
b) Choose Auto Correct.
c) Check the box for Server Name Rule and click Correct.
d) Reload the web application and test.
4. Once everything is working as expected, then it is time to begin work on the single sign-on. Do not attempt single sign-on until the web application is working as expected.
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At this point, if the web application is not functioning as expected, it is time to explore more advanced concepts, including header rewriting, rules and various other options. It is recommended that you contact Stoneware support at this point for guidance.