Specifications

The ADX may be installed in a split configuration. Splitting
provides enhanced security for historical data. The ADX
software and Site Management Portal UI are installed on
one computer (the web/application server computer), and
the historical trend, audit, and event data on another
computer (the database server computer) running
Microsoft SQL Server software. See ADX Split
Configuration for more details.
The ADX can also be installed at Validated Environment
sites with the addition of the Metasys for Validated
Environments, Extended Architecture application. For
more information, refer to the Metasys for Validated
Environments, Extended Architecture Product Bulletin
(LIT-12011326).
Applications
Use an ADS when:
• the number of network engines becomes larger than
a single network engine can handle efficiently as Site
Director
• long-term historical data storage needs exceed the
capacity of a typical network engine
• the number of simultaneous users logging in exceeds
the capacity of a single network engine. The ADS
supports up to 5 simultaneous users, and up to 10 to
14 NxE engines. Refer to the Metasys System
Configuration Guide (LIT-12011832).
Use an ADX when:
• the Metasys Advanced Reporting System, Energy
Essentials, or the Metasys for Validated Environments
(MVE), Extended Architecture application is required
• you need to support more than 5 simultaneous users.
The ADX supports up to 10, 25, 50, or 100 users, and
up to 1,000 NxE engines. Refer to the Metasys
System Configuration Guide (LIT-12011832).
• any one of your data storage or access requirements
is not met by an ADS
To further help you decide whether an ADS or ADX is
right for your facility, consider their respective data
storage and data access capabilities. See Table 5 and
Table 6.
Access through the Launcher
Application
You use the Launcher application (Figure 3) to connect
to the Site Management Portal UI of the ADS/ADX by
using a desktop, laptop, or other type of computer
connected to a corporate intranet, dedicated BAS,
Internet, or telephone line from remote sites. Multiple
users can communicate simultaneously with the server,
and access is based on the authorization level assigned
to individual users.
The Launcher is a software application that you download
when you browse to any Release 7.0 Metasys server or
supervisory network engine on the building network. After
you install the Launcher software, use it to launch the
Site Management Portal UI. Opening the Site
Management Portal UI from the Launcher replaces the
practice of doing so from the web browser. In addition,
you can configure the Launcher to browse to any website.
Included sites are Metasys software products such as
Ready Access Portal and the Metasys Advanced
Reporting System, as well as popular websites, such as
Google® and Yahoo!®. For more details, refer to the
Launcher Help (LIT-12011742).
Figure 3: Launcher Application
User Experience
The Metasys system user interface is a portal into a site
that can be tailored to fit the needs of all potential system
users. The UI can evolve and scale to match the needs
of any single facility or campus of multiple buildings. The
UI experience includes the Site Management Portal UI,
the optional, mobile-optimized Metasys UI, or the optional
Ready Access Portal UI.
4Application and Data Server (ADS) and Extended Application and Data Server (ADX) Product Bulletin