 History of Lotus Notes

 Overview of Lotus Notes

 Document Model
 Communication
 Naming
 Lotus notes is completely different distributed
document –based system.

It is database-oriented system originating from the the

Lotus Development Corporation, but its entire sales and
development are handled by IBM, which bought Lotus in
the late 1990s.

 It runs on various windows and UNIX platforms.

 Lotus Notes system is organized as a client-server system.

 Notes was originally designed to work over local-area

networks, but now also runs across wide-area networks such
as internet.

 Main components of Lotus Notes

› Clients
› Servers
› Databases
› Middleware layer
Con…(Overview Lotus Notes)

The general organization of a Lotus Notes system

 Each client and server can have several locally
associated database.
 Each database forms a collection of notes, with a note
being the key data element in any Note System.
 The clients runs the applications required to access
databases, using functionality of a web browser.
 A major distinction with browsers, however, is that
users are excepted not only to read from databases, but
also modify them.
 Lotus notes provide separate suite of tools that allows
users to design and maintain their own databases.
 Lotus notes servers are known as Domino server.
 Domino server manages its associated collection of databases.
 The main task is to provide (remote) clients and other servers
access to these databases.
 The main server program consists of modules for listening for
requesting coming in over the network, maintaining
connections and sessions to remote processes, and maintaining
information on opened local databases.
 The numerous other tasks the relate to database management
and which often run as separate programs on the server
machine.
 Clients, servers and databases are glued together through a
separate middleware components known as the NOS.

 This middleware implements a layer on top of underlying OS

and networks that allows clients and servers to communicate
and access local and shared databases.

 Its consists of components for RPC, storage facilities, callback

functionality.
 The key data element in a Lotus Notes is formed by a note.

 An item is the element for storing data associated with a note.

 A data note comparable to a web document, such as video,

audio, images, plain text, icons.

 There are four types notes

 Data notes
 Design notes
 Administration notes
Note type Category Description

Document Data A user-oriented document such as a Web page

Structure for creating, editing, and viewing a

Form Design
document
Defines a field shared between a form and
Field Design
subforms

View Design Structure for displaying a collection of documents

ACL Administration Contains an access control list for the database

ReplFormula Administration Describes the replication of the database

Examples of different types of notes

 Lotus Notes uses an underlying RPC system for all
communication between clients and servers.

 The notes RPC system is mostly transparent to all clients and is

actually internal to the NOS middleware layer.

 Notes provides portable interprocess communication facilities

for exchanging information between processes running on the
same machine.

 The notes subsystem formed for handling e-mail, its always

sent mail messages MIME format.

 To facilitate the development of high-level applications such as

workflow systems.
 Server side software consists of a main programs
with a number of built in tasks such as those for
handling in coming requests, opening & closing
local database keeping databases consistent and
managing cluster of servers.
 Additional server tasks.
 Main server + server task=Domino server.
 Communication between processes of a Domino
server takes place using of NOS layer.
 Domino server can be grouped together into
cluster.
The general organization of a Domino server.
Request handling in a cluster of Domino
servers.
 Synchronization mechanism are implemented in
non distributed fashion.

 No support for distributed locking or transaction.

 Key role in replication is played by connection
documents.
 Connection documents are special notes
contained in domain directory that described
exactly when, how and what to replicate.
Replicator Schemes
Pull-push
Pull-pull
Push-only
Pull-only
 Scheme Description
A replicator task pulls updates in from a target server, and pushes
Pull-push
its own updates to that target as well
A replicator task pulls in updates from a target server, and responds
Pull-pull
to update fetch requests from that target
A replicator task only pushes its own updates to a target server, but
Push-only
does not pull in any updates from the target
A replicator only pulls in updates from a target server, but does not
Pull-only
push any of its own updates to that target

Replication schemes in Notes.

 Write-write conflict occurs.

Safely merging two documents with conflicting OIDs.

 Write head log method is used to prevent faults.
Security
Notes relies on the Authentication system.
Authentication
Validating certificates
Private key
Public key
 Part Description

Servers ACL's specifying access rights for servers and ports

Workstations Lists specifying execution rights for scripts and such

Databases ACLs specifying permissions for different types of users

Files ACLs used for controlling access by Web clients

Design notes ACLs to control the presentation and such of documents

Documents ACL's to control read and write access to documents

 Issue WWW Notes
Basic model Marked-up text List of text items (note)
Extensions Multimedia, scripts Multimedia, scripts
Storage model File oriented Database oriented
Network comm. HTTP RPC, E-mail
Interprocess comm. Operating sys. dependent Notes Object Services (NOS)
Client process Browser, Editor Browser, Design editor
Client extensions Plug-ins In basic client system
Server process Comparable to file server Comparable to database server
Server extensions Servlets, CGI programs Server tasks
Server clusters Transparent Nontransparent
Naming URNs, URLs URLs, identifiers
Synchronization Mainly local Mainly local
Caching Advanced Not documented
Replication Mirroring, CDNs Lazy
Fault tolerance Reliable comm. & clusters Clusters
Recovery No explicit support Single server
Authentication Mainly TLS Certificate validation
Access control Server dependent Extensive ACLs
-Distributed systems principles and Paradigms
ANDREW S. TANENBAM MAARTEN VAN STEEN.
-LOTUS
www.ibm.com
-www.domino.cs.vu.nl