Tableau Server on Linux Help

This topic describes how to enable Tableau Prep conductor on your existing installation of Tableau Server.

Tableau Prep Conductor is supported only on Tableau Server versions 2019.1 or later. If you are using Tableau Server 2018.3 or earlier, you must first upgrade your Tableau Server to 2019.1 before enabling Tableau Prep Conductor on your Tableau Server installation.

Tableau Prep Conductor is licensed through Data Management, on a per Deployment basis, which is User-Based or Core-Based. A Deployment includes a licensed production Tableau Server installation and licensed non-production Tableau Server installations that support the production installation. For more information on Deployment, see the Tableau Deployment Guide.

This topic describes how to enable Tableau Prep conductor on your existing installation of Tableau Server.

Before you upgrade

Prepare for upgrade:

• Know before you upgrade(Link opens in a new window)

• Licensing Tableau Prep Conductor(Link opens in a new window)

• Tableau Server Hardware Requirements and Recommendations(Link opens in a new window)

Configure public gateway settings

If your Tableau Server is set up with one of the following:

• Load balancer to distribute requests across gateways.

• Reverse proxy to authenticate external (internet) client requests and offloading SSL-based encryption.

You must configure the following public gateway settings:

tsm configuration set -k gateway.public.host -v <name> (This should be the URL that your users are using to access Tableau Server)

tsm configuration set -k gateway.public.port -v 443

For more information on configuring gateway settings, see Configuring Proxies for Tableau Server(Link opens in a new window).

Tableau Server Installations using User-Based licenses

The recommended topology for a production Tableau Server installation is a dedicated node for running flows. For more information, see Minimum Hardware Requirements and Recommendations for Tableau Server(Link opens in a new window).

Tableau Server single-node installations

If you currently have a single node Tableau Server installation, it is recommended that you add a second node and dedicate it to running flows.

1. Run upgrade on your current Tableau Server installation using the information in the topics below:

   • Windows(Link opens in a new window)

   • Linux(Link opens in a new window)

     When you get to the Activate step, use the Tableau Server product keys to activate Tableau Server.

     All product keys are available through the Customer Portal(Link opens in a new window).

2. After completing the installation, add the Data Management product key to enable Tableau Prep Conductor on your node. The Data Management product key, like your other server keys, are available through the Customer Portal(Link opens in a new window).

   • In the Tableau Services Manager web interface, click Licensing on the Configuration tab and click Activate License.

   • Enter or paste your new product key and click Activate.

   • On the Register page, enter your information into the fields and click Register.

3. You will be prompted to restart the server. Restart the server and verify that Tableau Prep Conductor is enabled and running.

   • In the Tableau Services Manager web interface, click the Status tab to see the status. If Tableau Prep Conductor is enabled and running, you should see Tableau Prep Conductor in the list of processes as Active. If Tableau Prep Conductor is not enabled, you will see Tableau Prep Conductor in the list of processes, but with no status information.

     Tableau Prep Conductor not enabled:

     

     Tableau Prep Conductor enabled and running:

     

4. Add a second node to your Tableau Server installation. The installer will enable certain required processes like the Cluster Controller. Enable Backgrounder process on it as it is required to run scheduled flow tasks. When you enable the Backgrounder process, the installer automatically enables a single instance of Data Engine and Tableau Prep Conductor on the node. Do not add any other processes on this node.

5. Run the following commands to dedicate this node to do only flow tasks. For more information on node roles, see Node Roles in Tableau Server(Link opens in a new window).

   • Get the nodeID for your dedicated node to see the list of services on each node:

     tsm topology list-nodes -v.

   • Set the node role for the dedicated node using the nodeID that you got from running the command described above:

     tsm topology set-node-role -n <nodeID> -r flows.

   • Apply the changes, and restart the server:

     tsm pending-changes apply.

   • Review the status to ensure that all the processes are up and running and configured correctly:

     tsm status -v.

You have successfully added Tableau Prep Conductor to your Tableau Server installation.

Tableau Server multi-node installations

1. Run upgrade on your current Tableau Server Installation using the information in the topics below:

   • Windows(Link opens in a new window)

   • Linux(Link opens in a new window)

     When you get to the Activate step, use the Tableau Server product keys to activate Tableau Server.

     All product keys are available through the Customer Portal(Link opens in a new window).

2. After completing the installation, add the Data Management product key to enable Tableau Prep Conductor. Tableau Prep Conductor is automatically enabled on the nodes where you already have the Backgrounder process enabled. The Data Management product key, like your other server keys, are available through the Customer Portal(Link opens in a new window).

   • In the Tableau Services Manager web interface, click Licensing on the Configuration tab and click Activate License.

   • Enter or paste your new product key and click Activate.

   • On the Register page, enter your information into the fields and click Register.

3. You will be prompted to restart the server. Restart the server and verify that Tableau Prep Conductor is enabled and is running.

   • In the Tableau Services Manager web interface, click the Status tab to see the status of all the processes. If Tableau Prep Conductor is enabled and running, you should see Tableau Prep Conductor in the list of processes as Active. If Tableau Prep Conductor is not enabled, you will see Tableau Prep Conductor in the list of processes, but with no status information.

     Tableau Prep Conductor not enabled:

     

     Tableau Prep Conductor enabled and running:

     

4. Add a new node to your Tableau Server installation. The installer will enable certain required processes like the Cluster Controller. Enable Backgrounder process on it as it is required to run scheduled flow tasks. When you enable the Backgrounder process, the installer automatically enables a single instance of Data Engine and Tableau Prep Conductor on the node. Do not add any other processes on this node.

   Note: The dedicated node counts towards the total count of the Coordination Service ensemble. You may need to deploy a Coordination Service on the new node depending on the total number of nodes you have in your cluster including the new dedicated node. For more information, see Deploy a Coordination Service Ensemble(Link opens in a new window).

5. Run the following command to dedicate this node to only doing flow related operations. For more information on node roles, see Node Roles in Tableau Server(Link opens in a new window).

   • Get the nodeID for your dedicated node to see the list of services on each node:
   • tsm topology list-nodes -v.
   • Set the node role for the dedicated node using the nodeID that you got from running the command described above:
   • tsm topology set-node-role -n <nodeID> -r flows.
   • Apply the changes and restart the server:
   • tsm pending-changes apply.
   • Review the status to ensure that all the processes are up and running and configured correctly:
   • tsm status -v.
6. At this stage, you may have Tableau Prep Conductor enabled on other nodes. By default, the Backgrounder process on a node performs all tasks of all types including flow tasks. To isolate Tableau Prep Conductor and flow tasks to only certain nodes, you can configure the Backgrounders to do one of the following:

• To run only flow tasks: tsm topology set-node-role -n <nodeID> -r flows.

• To run all other tasks except flows: tsm topology set-node-role -n <nodeID> -r no-flows.

You have successfully added Tableau Prep Conductor to your Tableau Server installation.

Tableau Server Installations using Core-Based licenses

The recommended topology for a production Tableau Server installation is a dedicated node for running flows. For more information, see Minimum Hardware Requirements and Recommendations for Tableau Server(Link opens in a new window).

Data Management for Core-Based licenses includes product keys that enable Tableau Prep Conductor for your Tableau Server, and Tableau Prep Conductor cores that comes in units of four. The Tableau Prep Conductor cores should be applied to the node dedicated to running the flows. These product keys, like your other server keys, are available through the Customer Portal(Link opens in a new window).

To learn more about Tableau Prep Conductor licensing, see Licensing Tableau Prep Conductor for Tableau Server(Link opens in a new window).

Tableau Server single-node installations

If you currently have a single node Tableau Server installation, it is recommended that you add a second node and dedicate it to running flows.

1. Run upgrade on your current Tableau Server Installation using the information in the topics below:

   • Windows(Link opens in a new window)

   • Linux(Link opens in a new window)

2. Activate the product keys. This will enable Tableau Prep Conductor on the nodes where you already have the Backgrounder process enabled. When you are using core-based licensing, you must apply both the Data Management product key and the Resource Core product key to your Tableau Deployment. The first key allows flows to be run on Tableau Server though the Tableau Prep Conductor and the second key adds the additional cores for the Tableau Prep Conductor nodes. All product keys are available through the Customer Portal(Link opens in a new window).

   • In the Tableau Services Manager web interface, click Licensing on the Configuration tab and click Activate License.

   • Enter or paste your new product key and click Activate.

   • On the Register page, enter your information into the fields and click Register.

3. You will be prompted to restart the server. Restart the server and verify that Tableau Prep Conductor is enabled and is running.

   • In the Tableau Services Manager web interface, click the Status tab to see the status. If Tableau Prep Conductor is enabled and running, you should see Tableau Prep Conductor in the list of processes as Active. If Tableau Prep Conductor is not enabled, you will see Tableau Prep Conductor in the list of processes, but with no status information.

     Tableau Prep Conductor not enabled:

     

     Tableau Prep Conductor enabled and running:

     

4. Add a second node to your Tableau Server installation. The installer will enable certain required processes like the Cluster Controller. Enable Backgrounder process on it as it is required to run scheduled flow tasks. When you enable the Backgrounder process, the installer automatically enables a single instance of Data Engine and Tableau Prep Conductor on the node. Do not add any other processes on this node.

   Important: The number of physical cores on this machine must be equal to, or less than the Tableau Prep Conductor cores you purchased. For example, if you purchased four Tableau Prep Conductor cores, your node can only have up to four physical cores. To understand about how Tableau Prep Conductor licensing works, see Licensing Tableau Prep Conductor for Tableau Server(Link opens in a new window).

5. Run the following commands to dedicate this node to only doing flow tasks. For more information on node roles, see Node Roles in Tableau Server(Link opens in a new window).

   • Get the nodeID for your dedicated node to see the list of services on each node:

     tsm topology list-nodes -v.

   • Set the node role for the dedicated node using the nodeID that you got from running the command described above:

     tsm topology set-node-role -n <nodeID> -r flows.

   • Apply the changes and restart the server: tsm pending-changes apply.

   • Review the status to ensure that all the processes are up and running and configured correctly:

     tsm status -v.

You have successfully added Tableau Prep Conductor to your Tableau Server installation.

Tableau Server multi-node installations

1. Run upgrade on your current Tableau Server installation using the information in the topics below:

   • Windows(Link opens in a new window)

   • Linux(Link opens in a new window)

2. Activate the product keys. This will enable Tableau Prep Conductor on the nodes where you already have the Backgrounder process enabled. When you are using core-based licensing, you must apply both the Data Management product key and the Resource Core product key to your Tableau Deployment. The first key allows flows to be run on Tableau Server though the Tableau Prep Conductor and the second key adds the additional cores for the Tableau Prep Conductor nodes. All product keys are available through the Customer Portal(Link opens in a new window).

   • In the Tableau Services Manager web interface, click Licensing on the Configuration tab and click Activate License.

   • Enter or paste your new product key and click Activate.

   • On the Register page, enter your information into the fields and click Register.

3. You will be prompted to restart the server. Restart the server and verify that Tableau Prep Conductor is enabled and is running.

   • In the Tableau Services Manager web interface, click the Status tab to see the status. If Tableau Prep Conductor is enabled and running, you should see Tableau Prep Conductor in the list of processes as Active. If Tableau Prep Conductor is not enabled, you will see Tableau Prep Conductor in the list of processes, but with no status information.

     Tableau Prep Conductor not enabled:

     

     Tableau Prep Conductor enabled and running:

     

4. Add a new node to your Tableau Server installation. A dedicated node to run flow related operations is recommended for production Tableau Server installations. The installer will enable certain required processes like the Cluster Controller. Enable Backgrounder process on it as it is required to run scheduled flow tasks. When you enable the Backgrounder process, the installer automatically enables a single instance of Data Engine on the node. Do not add any other processes on this node.

   Note: The dedicated node counts towards the total count of the Coordination Service ensemble. You may need to deploy a Coordination Service on the new node depending on the total number of nodes you have in your cluster including the new dedicated node. For more information, see Deploy a Coordination Service Ensemble(Link opens in a new window).

   Important:
   The number of physical cores on this machine must be equal to, or less than the Tableau Prep Conductor cores you purchased. For example, if you purchased four Tableau Prep Conductor cores, your node can only have up to four physical cores. To understand about how Tableau Prep Conductor licensing works, see Licensing Tableau Prep Conductor for Tableau Server(Link opens in a new window).
   

5. Run the following commands to dedicate this node to only doing flow tasks. This will enable Tableau Prep Conductor on your new node. For more information, see Node Roles in Tableau Server(Link opens in a new window).

   • Get the nodeID for your dedicated node to see the list of services on each node:

     tsm topology list-nodes -v.

   • Set the node role for the dedicated node using the nodeID that you got from running the command described above:

     tsm topology set-node-role -n nodeID -r flows.

   • Apply the changes and restart the server:

     tsm pending-changes apply.

   • Review the status to ensure that all the processes are up and running and configured correctly:

     tsm status -v.

6. At this stage, you may have Tableau Prep Conductor enabled on other nodes that have the Backgrounder process. By default, the Backgrounder process on a node performs all tasks of all types including flow tasks. To isolate Tableau Prep Conductor and flow operations to only certain nodes, you can configure the backgrounders to do one of the following:

   • To run only flow tasks:

     tsm topology set-node-role -n <nodeID> -r flows.

   • To run all other tasks except flows:

     tsm topology set-node-role -n <nodeID> -r no-flows.

Next step

Step 2: Configure Flow Settings for your Tableau Server.

Who can do this

Tableau Server Administrators can install or upgrade Tableau Server, and enable Tableau Prep Conductor on Tableau Server.