Installation of multiple AOS instances [AX 2012]

This topic describes how to install multiple instances of Application Object Servers (AOS) for Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012.

Few Important points to be noted while installing Multiple AOS instances are as below:

·        You can install up to 99 AOS instances in your environment. And each AOS instance installed is automatically assigned a number between 01 and 99

·        After you install and start an AOS instance, and before you complete any other tasks in Microsoft Dynamics AX, you must run the initialization checklist.

·        You must install an initial AOS instance and complete the Initialization checklist on that instance before you install additional AOS instances.
If you install additional AOS instances before you have completed the Initialization checklist those AOS instances will not start.

·        The process of manually changing the service account used for an AOS is complicated and prone to error.
For this reason, if you must change the service account for an AOS, it is recommended that you uninstall and reinstall the AOS by using Setup.exe. For more information, see Change the account used by AOS

·        While installing AOS instance, Setup adds the AOS account to the database as a user, and makes it a member of the db_ddladmin, db_datareader, and db_datawriter database roles.

·        Every AOS instance uses just one database. There is no way to select a database based on an incoming client connection (Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012 Configuration).
But it's completely fine to run a Single AOS instance with different databases, one at a time. You can configure the Database connection in the “Microsoft Dynamics AX Server Configuration Utility” and you can only connect the AOS instance to the updated database after a AOS Service Restart.

·        You can install only one instance of .NET Business Connector on a computer. In an environment that has multiple AOS instances, use the Microsoft Dynamics AX Configuration utility to make sure that the instance of .NET Business Connector on the local computer connects to the correct AOS instance for the component that you are installing.
In the utility, in the Configuration Target list, select Business Connector (non-interactive use only). On the Connection tab, verify that the correct AOS instance is displayed.

·        Microsoft does not recommend or support the installation of multiple versions of Microsoft Dynamics AX components on the same computer in a production environment.

·        The AOS service can take several minutes to start the first time after it is installed. To determine whether the AOS service has started, click Administrative tools > Services, and review the status of the Microsoft Dynamics AX Object Server service.

Installation of multiple AOS instances could fall under the below two categories:

1.      Install an AOS instance on multiple computers:
In most production environments, you install multiple AOS instances, each on a different server. You can use multiple AOS instances to support batch processing and load balancing. To make this happen, Install each AOS instance as shown below, and make sure that you point every AOS instance to the same database.
The first user who installs an AOS instance is automatically added to Microsoft Dynamics AX as an administrator. If subsequent AOS instances are installed by different users, you must manually add those users to the Microsoft Dynamics AX System administrator role to grant them administrative rights in Microsoft Dynamics AX
You can use a single domain account for all instances of the AOS service, or you can specify a different account for each instance.

2.     Install multiple AOS instances on one computer:
In some testing and development scenarios, you may want to install multiple AOS instances on the same computer. For example, if you are developing code for multiple versions of Microsoft Dynamics AX, you can install different versions of AOS side by side.
Install each AOS instance as shown below. If you want to install an AOS instance on a server that already has an AOS instance, you must specify a unique port number for each instance. By default, every time that you install an additional AOS instance on a computer, the TCP/IP, WSDL, and NET-TCP port numbers are incremented by 1.
If the same port number is used for more than one AOS instance on a computer, one of the AOS instances that have conflicting port numbers does not start.

How to Install an AOS instance:

1.      Start Microsoft Dynamics AX Setup. Under Install, select Microsoft Dynamics AX components. Advance through the initial wizard pages.

2.     If the Setup Support files have not yet been installed on the computer, the Select a file location page is displayed. The Setup Support files are required for installation. Enter a file location or accept the default location, and then click Next. On the Ready to install page, click Install.

3.     On the Select installation type page, click Custom installation, and then click Next.

4.     On the Select components page, select Application Object Server (AOS), and then click Next.

5.     On the Prerequisite validation results page, resolve any errors. And when no errors remain, click Next.

6.     On the Select a file location page, select the location where you want 32-bit versions of Microsoft Dynamics AX files to be installed, and then click Next.

7.      On the Connect to the databases page, in the Server name box, type or select the name of the Microsoft SQL Server computer. In the Database name box, select the name of the Microsoft Dynamics AX transaction database. Optionally, select the name of the baseline database.

Note: If you are upgrading code or data from Microsoft Dynamics AX 4.0 or Microsoft Dynamics AX 2009, you must select Register database for upgrade and select a baseline database.
The Register database for upgrade option is available when you install the first AOS in the computing environment. If you install more AOSs, this option is not available. You can determine whether the database was registered for upgrade by opening the Microsoft Dynamics AX client. If the database was registered for upgrade, the Data upgrade checklist is displayed when you open the client.
Click Next.

8.     On the Configure an Application Object Server (AOS) instance page, assign a name to the AOS instance. Optionally, you can specify the ports that are listed in the following table.
TCP/IP port (Used by other Microsoft Dynamics AX components to communicate with AOS) à 2712
Services WSDL port (Used by external applications to access the WSDL for AOS-based Microsoft Dynamics AX Web services) à 8101
Services endpoint port (Used by external applications to access AOS-based Microsoft Dynamics AX Web services) à 8201

9.     On the Specify an AOS account page, select the Network Service account of the local computer (recommended only for development environments), a managed service account, or a domain account for the AOS service.
If you select to use a managed service account, make sure to specify the account in the format Domain\AccountName$.

10.  On the Prerequisite validation results page, resolve any errors. When no errors remain, click Next.

11.   On the Ready to install page, click Install.

12.   After the installation is complete, click Finish to close the wizard.

Related links:
http://ajstudi0.blogspot.com/2012/12/step-by-step-installation-procedure-of.html