Best practices for installation of Helpdesk 3.2 on Windows

[Athena]

Hello,

I plan to install OTRS Helpdesk 3.2 (full package, with MySQL and Apache) on a Windows Server.

Before starting the installation (and ordering of the server hosting), I have some questions.

1) Is there a Best Practices guide of installation on a Windows Server ?

2) What is the best (and most compatible) choice : Windows 2012, or Windows 2008 R2 ?

3) Is the Active Directory needed for installation ? Should the OTRS users be defined in the AD ? With some specific access rights ?

4) Should IIS be disabled (or uninstalled) on the server ?

5) Is there some specific ports to open in the firewall ?

6) What is the best practice for backup (in Windows environment) ?

7) Do you have any other tips for installation ?


Thanks in advance for your help.

[crythias]

1) Is there a Best Practices guide of installation on a Windows Server ?

Download and install the program and follow instructions.

2) What is the best (and most compatible) choice : Windows 2012, or Windows 2008 R2 ?

Linux. Or Windows 2008 R2

3) Is the Active Directory needed for installation ? Should the OTRS users be defined in the AD ? With some specific access rights ?

No; Not unless you want to integrate with AD; No

4) Should IIS be disabled (or uninstalled) on the server ?

You might be able to install on IIS.

5) Is there some specific ports to open in the firewall ?

Outbound, the system might want 80 or 443, and ports required to fetch and send email. Inbound, nothing except the port you assign for web interface if you want the cloud to see your webserver.

6) What is the best practice for backup (in Windows environment) ?

Filesystem backup of the OTRS folder and scheduled database backups. If you use mysql, schedule mysql dumps. If you use another (Microsoft) SQL, a normal backup like Symantec with a SQL Agent might work.

7) Do you have any other tips for installation ?

Search the forums. Many of the questions you may have are already asked.

[Athena]

Hi crytias,

Thanks a lot for your answers.

Just an additional question about IIS : if I use the complete package (including Apache), is IIS still required or not ?

[crythias]

if I use the complete package (including Apache), is IIS still required or not ?

IIS is a web server. Apache is a web server. While IIS may not be required for OTRS if Apache is used, IIS may be required in other cases for items related to Windows. However, they both will by default conflict on port 80. To mitigate, disable one or the other or address the listening port issue on one or the other.