The event database stores information about Horizon 7 events as records in a database rather than in a log file.

You configure an event database after installing a Connection Server instance. You need to configure only one host in a Connection Server group. The remaining hosts in the group are configured automatically.

Note: The security of the database connection between the Connection Server instance and an external database is the responsibility of the administrator, although event traffic is limited to information about the health of the Horizon 7 environment. If you want to take extra precautions, you can secure this channel through IPSec or other means, or you can deploy the database locally on the Connection Server computer.

You can use Microsoft SQL Server or Oracle database reporting tools to examine events in the database tables. For more information, see the Horizon 7 Integration document.

You can also generate Horizon 7 events in Syslog format so that the event data can be accessible to third-party analytics software. You use the vdmadmin command with the -I option to record Horizon 7 event messages in Syslog format in event log files. See "Generating Horizon 7 Event Log Messages in Syslog Format Using the -I Option" in the Horizon 7 Administration document.

Prerequisites

You need the following information to configure an event database:

  • The DNS name or IP address of the database server.
  • The type of database server: Microsoft SQL Server or Oracle. For more information on the supported database servers, see Supported vSphere, Database, and Active Directory Versions in an IPv6 Environment.
  • The port number that is used to access the database server. The default is 1521 for Oracle and 1433 for SQL Server. For SQL Server, if the database server is a named instance or if you use SQL Server Express, you might need to determine the port number. See the Microsoft KB article about connecting to a named instance of SQL Server, at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/265808.
  • The name of the event database that you created on the database server. See Add a Database and Database User for Horizon 7 Events.

    For an Oracle 12c or 11g database, you must use the Oracle System Identifier (SID) as the database name when you configure the event database in Horizon Administrator.

  • The username and password of the user you created for this database. See Add a Database and Database User for Horizon 7 Events.

    Use SQL Server Authentication for this user. Do not use the Integrated Windows Authentication security model method of authentication.

  • A prefix for the tables in the event database, for example, VE_. The prefix enables the database to be shared among Horizon 7 installations.
    Note: You must enter characters that are valid for the database software you are using. The syntax of the prefix is not checked when you complete the dialog box. If you enter characters that are not valid for the database software you are using, an error occurs when Connection Server attempts to connect to the database server. The log file indicates all errors, including this error and any others returned from the database server if the database name is invalid.

Procedure

  1. In Horizon Administrator, select View Configuration > Event Configuration.
  2. In the Event Database section, click Edit, enter the information in the fields provided, and click OK.
  3. (Optional) In the Event Settings window, click Edit, change the length of time to show events and the number of days to classify events as new, and click OK.
    These settings pertain to the length of time the events are listed in the Horizon Administrator interface. After this time, the events are only available in the historical database tables.
    The Database Configuration window displays the current configuration of the event database.
  4. Select Monitoring > Events to verify that the connection to the event database is successful.
    If the connection is unsuccessful, and error message appears. If you are using SQL Express or if you are using a named instance of SQL Server, you might need to determine the correct port number, as mentioned in the prerequisites.

Results

In the Horizon Administrator Dashboard, the System Component Status displays the event database server under the Reporting Database heading.