FME Flow Administration: Planning and Performing an FME Flow Installation

Sanae Mendoza
Sanae Mendoza
  • Updated

Introduction

There are a number of factors that need to be considered when you are planning an FME Flow (formerly FME Server) installation. This guide is intended to provide all the resources you need to help you make decisions about how to implement your FME Flow. 

 

Planning Your FME Flow Deployment 

FME Flow consists of several key components—Core, Engines, Web Application Server, Database, and System Share—that can be installed together or separately to meet deployment needs. The architecture supports different configurations, such as express, distributed, and fault-tolerant, depending on workflow, security, and performance requirements. Understanding how these components interact helps optimize job processing and system performance.

For more details, check out this article: A Guide to Choosing Your FME Flow Deployment Architecture.

 

Environment Specifications

Operating System (OS)

FME Flow can be installed on Windows or Linux. See FME Platform Technical Specifications for updated OS requirements. 

Keep in mind that not all formats are supported on Linux platforms. Consider your data formats and review their requirements in our format matrix, FME Applications and Format Support on Linux.

 

Linux

If you opt to install FME Flow on a Linux OS, we recommend that your FME Flow Administrator has Linux experience. The Technical Support Team has put together some resources that should be reviewed before proceeding with this setup: 

 

Containerization

FME Flow is available as YAML files for containerized Linux-based environments. 

 

Cloud

FME Flow can be deployed to the cloud. 

 

Installation Considerations

Hardware

Hardware requirements for FME Flow are specific to your data and processes. However, the following resources have been put together to try and help make those decisions: 

 

Managing Multiple Environments

FME Flow can be deployed to multiple environments in order to support Continuous Integration/Continuous Delivery (CI/CD). This allows workflows to be developed, tested, and deployed throughout a lifecycle (e.g. DEV > UAT > STAGE > PROD)

 

Licensing

The license file is stored in C:\ProgramData\Safe Software\FMEFlow\licenses. For help requesting a license, review the instructions in the Documentation. There are two methods available to license FME Flow through the Web UI: Automatic and Manual. 

  • Automatic licensing is recommended. Use the internet to connect to the FME Flow Web UI and input your FME Flow serial number and customer information. If your environment is locked down, follow the FME Flow Automatic Licensing URLs article for guidance on what outbound connections to allow. To use CPU-Credit Engines, you must be able to use automatic licensing. 
  • Manual licensing is available for FME Flow environments that are disconnected from the internet. Download a JSON file and email it to codes@safe.com, where a license file will be generated using the information provided. The response is not immediate, and you should prepare to wait up to half an hour to receive the license file that can then be uploaded through the Web UI. CPU-credit Engine licensing is unsupported by manual licensing. 

 

Silent Install Licensing

If you are installing FME Flow by silent installation scripts, it may be licensed via the FME Flow REST API.

 

Processes, Ports, and Firewall

FME Flow components and processes require communication over a variety of ports. If you have a firewall in place, you’ll need to create inbound/outbound rules for FME Flow to function as expected. For more information, see FME Flow Ports

 

Account Permissions

On a distributed/fault-tolerant install, or if you are accessing data stored outside FME Flow System Share, you’ll be required to run FME Flow Services under a service account. 

3 different account types can affect security:

  • Group managed service accounts (gMSAs) offer the highest security level due to their automated password management and limited permission scope, making them ideal if Flow services run across multiple servers within a domain.
  • Domain service accounts (our usual recommendation) provide a balance between manageability and security, suitable if Flow services need defined/limited permission requirements.
  • Domain user accounts are flexible but present the most significant security risk due to manual password management and broader scope permissions. Notably, they run the risk of accidentally getting locked out of a user account if/when services attempt to start with a bad password.

For more information on required permissions, see Directory and Account Permissions.

 

Third-party Licensing and Workspace Dependencies

To make use of Esri-related formats (ArcSDE Geodb, File Geodb, Personal Geodb), Esri software must be installed and licensed on the same machine as your FME Flow Engine Service. For more information, please see: Using FME Flow with Esri ArcGIS Software

Once FME Flow is installed, depending on the components in use within your workspaces, other provisions may be required for FME Flow. Some common examples include: 

 

Optimization

Optimizing FME Flow is an iterative process and requires continuously analyzing your existing setup. Some of the deciding factors for system improvement are:

  • Job processing time
  • System resource usage
  • Number of engines available
  • Business requirements 

Check out this webinar where we dive into Best Practices for Optimizing Jobs on FME Flow.

 

What's Next? 

After FME Flow has been installed, you may wish to perform some additional configurations.

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