Using Hit List with multiple servers, log files and databases

• Hit List normally uses a "global" database setting (Options/Database tab) to specify where it stores its data after importing your logs. All reports, unless otherwise specified, would run against this database by default. You may override this setting, however (explained below) and pick a particular database to use for each report. In this way, you can have Hit List updating and reporting on several different databases simultaneously.
  

  Setting up HitList to report on multiple "real" or "virtual" servers, or just generate multiple databases -
  

  Assumptions - three physical machines/virtual servers, named server x, server y and server z
  

  Select the report you want to run for Server X (ie "Executive Summary").
  

  Highlight the report, and click Copy in the upper left.
  

  Now "Paste" the report (not applicable to Hit List v3.x users) and rename the Copy to something relevant (ie "Executive Summary of Server X").
  

  Highlight the newly renamed report (if it already isn't) and click Design.
  

  On the Outline tab, check the box at the bottom referring to "update the database before running this report".
  

  On the Output tab, you may want to tell HitList where to output this specific report to keep it separate from others, otherwise it will be simply generated as the same file over and over (in this case "executive.htm") Hit Help here on the right to see how to use "substitution fields" to prevent reports created from overwriting one another in this way.
  

  On the Options tab, set the default domain (if different from your global setting under Options/General), assuming you are reporting about a different domain than www.yourcompany.com, the likely setting under Options/General.
  

  On the Log file tab, check "override the global settings" and then hit the Browse button and browse to the network/local location of your log files, highlight one, hit Open and you'll be back on the tab. Later (or now if you want) you can modify the end of the path to be a wildcard, for example from c:\logs\access.log to c:\logs\access*
  

  If you're using Domino logs, make sure that you use a wildcard like that above as well as make sure that the "Log File Type" setting is set to "Lotus Domino 4.5 three-file system" and that your Access, Agent and Referer logs are in this location - this will enable Hit List to match up the Access log with the Agent and Referer logs, combine them and load them into the database.
  
  If you have to FTP logs from a Unix (or sometimes NT) webserver, check with the administrator of that machine as to what is a proper "one-line" FTP request to put in under Options/Logfile - sometimes the syntax is in a different order than the suggested template here and requires the administrator's input to get it right.
  
  If you are using SAMBA with a Unix machine (to allow connecting it to an NT network) you should be able to browse to the logs in the usual manner, set the wildcard and have the path retained for loading logs as you go.
  
  If you are using your IIS webserver to log directly into MS SQL Server (instead of using ASCII text logs), you can use the "my server logs to an ODBC datasource such as Microsoft SQL Server" to pull the webserver records from that location, making sure these four settings are correct. You may need to check with the SQL Server administrator for more information to make sure these are correct.
  

  On the Database tab, check "override the global settings" and then tell HitList where you want to create the database for this server, presumably in a drive with ample space and not the same location as the log files' directory. Also, DON'T put the database on a network drive (when using the default Access97 database format) - often times network drivers can't handle the multiple "grabs" HL makes on a database (as opposed to simply loading in the logs - this isn't a "multiple grab", but just one pass to pull in the information) but at minimum it will bog your network.
  

  NOTE: For Hit List Enterprise and Live users that are working with a SQL Server or Oracle database, often these WILL be on a different machine over the network, and that's fine. Just make sure that if this is a different database from the default setting under Options/Database, that you have a separate System DSN set up in Control Panel/ODBC.
  

  Also on the Database tab, you may want to put settings in "only update database with requests from the following" slots, putting in the relevant URL wildcard and/or IP. This is useful if you're creating multiple databases off one set of logs, and just want to see results from one IP or URL path/wildcard.
  

  (3.5 and 4.0 users only, not in 3.0 HL) On the Updates tab, check "override the global settings" and put in the appropriate settings you want, including excluding JPEGs, GIFs, JPGs, etc. and your own IPs if desired, also whether you want to collect summary and detail data, summary alone, etc.
  

  Now click OK, then run the report - provided you've set everything up correctly, you can keep a separate database and update it by simply running this report. You can also aim other reports at this database by copying them, renaming them, clicking Design then going to the database tab and "overriding global settings" within the report.
  

  To set up the other two servers' reports (or another database), just do the above for each.
  

  To automate the whole update process once these reports are set up, use the Event Scheduler to have these reports run as an "event" when you want the databases updated. Thus, every time you run the report(s) the databases will be updated.