We currently use Insight (Global) Spreadsheet Server (ISS), SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), Word, Excel, PowerBI Desktop, Crystal Reports Builder, etc. - how do we make that work in your cloud?

Author: Eric Vasbinder

Our new, state of the art connection mechanism for Vista in our cloud, known as Vista Remote Link (VRL), functions by having the Vista client run on the user's local workstation directly. With customer deployed using VRL, it is no longer necessary for Viewpoint to host Vista and other client-side Windows apps using RDP Terminal Services; those apps run locally, on the users' local machines. This works great for Vista over VRL, as VRL enables Vista to talk over the Internet directly to the Vista database (using HTTPS, like a web browser).

However, third party client-slide applications, like Global (Insight) Spreadsheet Server (GSS), Crystal Reports Builder, SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and others still need to talk to the Vista database directly. To be specific, they need to use an ODBC direct connection. Without RDP, customers need to run these apps locally, on their local machines. Unfortunately, this direct connection does not work out of the box when you run those client apps on your local laptop / desktop; your local workstation is not in the same network as your Vista server in our cloud.

For those few end users at customers who still need to access the Vista database directly, for whatever reason, a Virtual Private Network (VPN) will be necessary. This means that, for GSS (and other third party apps), you'll need to have a VPN running between your company's network and our network; the VPN joins your company's network to our network in the cloud. This ensures that your company's workstations can "see" the Vista database. Once that is done, you can configure GSS and other applications to talk to the new Vista installation.

There are two items you will need before you begin to set up Crystal, ISS, SSMS, or any other app that needs direct DB access:

• 1. Set up a Dedicated SQL Account: You will need to set up a dedicated SQL account for each user and/or third party integration who needs to access to Vista in this manner. This will be a SQL account, directly on Vista. Normal Viewpoint cloud accounts do not work as they use Viewpoint's AD, which cannot be federated to a local AD, and your client workstations are not joined to Viewpoint's domain.

     1. These accounts may be set up by your IT by using the simple instructions located here: I need a dedicated SQL account for my integration to Vista in your cloud. How do I set that up?

     2. NOTE: you MUST grant this SQL service account access to the appropriate data in Vista to generate your reports, using Vista security groups and roles.

  2. Request and Set Up a VPN: EITHER a TLS Database Endpoint (TLS VPN) or an IPSEC VPN is critical to connecting apps that you host on your workstations to Vista in our cloud. Please make certain you request a VPN ASAP.

Once these two pre-requisites are out of the way, please proceed to the steps below.

Here are the steps at a high level:

1. Validate you can see the Vista Database over the VPN.

2. Create a support ticket with our cloud team to open the firewall ports between your company's network and the Vista database.

3. Ping and telnet to the Vista database from your local workstation to verify that the database is visible. We should have supplied you with an updated IP address and/or DNS name for the Vista database server.

4. Make a note of your SQL Service account credentials that are needed for the third party (e.g. Insight Spreadsheet Server / GSS) to authenticate to Vista

1. NOTE: Separate service accounts should be created for each app that needs to speak to Vista directly.

2. NOTE: If you do not have the needed service accounts created, please follow these instructions to use Vista to create them.

3. NOTE: Your method of logging in to the Vista database using a SQL account will NOT be the same as you use to log in to Vista:

a. SSO Users: If you are using Trimble ID SSO, you will click on a button to login to Vista using SSO AND your username in Vista itself will be converted on the back end of Vista to be in the form of "user_name_enterpriseID".

b. LEGACY CloudWorkspace Users: Usually only used by customers who make use of Viewpoint's legacy RDP Terminal Services hosting. Usernames for these users will NOT be the same as logging in to Vista over VRL or into the RDP cloud. NON-SSO VRL usernames are in the format of "VIEWPOINT\username.CODE", whilst RDP usernames are in the format, "username@companyid.tld" (usually an email). SQL usernames are just listed as a username, without the ".CODE" at the end or the "VIEWPOINT\" at the beginning.

5. Update the settings for the third party product (e.g. GSS) to point to the new location for Vista's database. If you have those, you can follow the instructions in the third party's help documentation to add a new ODBC connection to enable the product to speak to the new Vista server. If you have issues with those instructions, our friends at these companies can help you create the new connection. Here is a link with a high level description of what needs to happen: https://www.tutorialgateway.org/create-odbc-connection/

NOTE: YOU CANNOT PUT IN YOUR VISTA SERVER'S DIRECT DNS NAME (e.g. CODED1.VIEWPOINT.LOCAL) DIRECTLY INTO YOUR THIRD PARTY APP.

YOU MUST FIRST TELL YOUR LOCAL COMPUTER THE TLS DOMAIN NAME (IF USING TLS ENDPOINT) OR THE PRIVATE IP ADDRESS OF THE VISTA SERVER (IF USING THE IPSEC VPN). Why? Well, your local computer does not use Viewpoint's DNS Servers.

As such, your computer has no clue which IP address to talk to when you put in the regular Vista DNS name into your cloud-side app.

Instead, you need to either:

A. FOR TLS ENDPOINT USERS - PUT IN THE TLS ENDPOINT DNS NAME

(In the form of COMPANYCODE-sql.viewpointdata.cloud)

OR

B. FOR IPSEC VPN USERS - PUT IN THE IP ADDRESS ONLY

OR

C. CREATE AN ENTRY IN YOUR LOCAL WORKSTATION'S HOSTS FILE FOR THE VISTA SERVER. See this link for a how-to.

TRANSFORMATION CUSTOMERS - Please NOTE:

It is CRITICAL that you inform us if you need a VPN early in your transformation process, so we can ensure the VPN is set up prior to your go-live.

If you have any of the following client-side applications, or any other client-side app, that talks to the Vista database directly, you WILL need a VPN to continue to use the app with Vista in our cloud:

• • Insight (Global) Spreadsheet Server (ISS)

  • SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)

  • Crystal Reports Builder

  • SSRS Report Builder