Using Direct Mailer and Windows Authentication

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To use Direct Mailer service with Windows Authentication, perform the steps explained in this topic.

If your site uses Windows Authentication, and permissions are not given to the service accounts under which the Direct Mailer and List Manager run, a Business Desk user may get the error message "Unable to save or schedule the Direct Mail."

Following are the steps required to configure the Direct Mailer service to use Windows Authentication:

  • Creating a SQL Login
  • Granting Direct Mailer Access to the Commerce Server COM Objects
  • Setting the Service Identity
  • Changing the Connection Strings for Windows Authentication
  • Restarting IIS and the Direct Mailer Service

Creating a SQL login

You perform the following steps to create a SQL login that matches the identity under which the Direct Mailer and List Manager services are configured to run. The service identity is created as part of setup; however, if you want to modify the service identity, see Setting the Service Identity.

In this step you create a SQL login that has db_owner permissions for both the Direct Mailer database and the <sitename>_Commerce database.

To create a SQL login

  1. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Microsoft SQL Server, and then click Enterprise Manager.

  2. In SQL Server Enterprise Manager, expand the nodes to the following path: Microsoft SQL Servers/SQL Server Group/<computer name>/Security/Logins.

  3. Right-click anywhere in the right pane, and then select New Login.

    Ee796676.note(en-US,CS.20).gifNote

    • Do not right-click on an existing name.

  4. In the SQL Server Login Properties - New Login screen, on the General tab, do the following:

    Use this To do this
    Name Type the name of the domain account configured for the service.
    Windows Authentication Verify that this option is selected.
    Domain Select the domain of the account from the drop-down list.
    Grant access Verify this option is selected for security access.
    Database Select master as the database for this login from the drop-down list.
    Language Select the default language for this login from the drop-down list.

  5. In the Database Access tab, do the following:

    Use this To do this
    Permit Select this check box next to the <sitename>_commerce database to specify that the database will be accessed by this login.
    db_owner Select this check box to specify the db_owner database role for the <sitename>_commerce database.

    Ee796676.note(en-US,CS.20).gifNote

    • Repeat step 5 for the Direct Mailer database.

    Ee796676.important(en-US,CS.20).gifImportant

    A Business Desk user assigned to the db_owner role could potentially delete a database. To mitigate this risk, place a firewall that prevents direct connection from the Business Desk client to the SQL Server database containing the catalogs. This is the recommended secure configuration. For detailed instructions for deploying firewalls, see Deploying a Secure Site.

  6. Click OK.

Granting Direct Mailer access to the Commerce Server COM objects

You must grant Direct Mailer access to the Commerce Server COM objects. Through the GlobalConfig COM object, Direct Mailer obtains access to the Administration database (and loads its initial configuration).

To grant Direct Mailer access to the Commerce Server COM objects

  1. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Administrative Tools, and then click ComponentServices.
  2. Expand the nodes to the following path: Component Services/Computers/My Computer/COM+ Applications/Commerce Server Config/Roles/Web Users/Users.
  3. Right-click Users, and then select New Window from Here.
  4. Right-click Users, select New, and then select User.
  5. In the Select Users or Groups dialog box, in the Look in box, select the computer name of the user under which you want the service to run.
  6. In the bottom pane, type the name of the user, or select the user from the list under which you want the services to run, and then click OK.

Setting the Service Identity

The Commerce Server Direct Mailer and Commerce Server List Manager service identities are created as part of setup; however, if you want to modify the service identities, you perform the following steps after setup has completed. These steps must be performed for both the Direct Mailer and List Manager services.

To set the Service identity

  1. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Administrative Tools, and then click Services.
  2. In the Services dialog box, in the right pane, right-click Commerce Server Direct Mailer, and then select Properties.
  3. In the Commerce Server Direct Mailer Properties dialog box, in the Log On tab, select the This account option, and then do the following:
    Use this To do this
    This account Type the name of the user under which you want the service to run.
    Password Type the password of the user under which you want the service to run.
    Confirm password Type the confirmation password of the user under which you want the service to run.
  4. Click OK.
  5. To restart the service, in the Services dialog box, right-click Commerce Server Direct Mailer, and then click Restart.

Ee796676.note(en-US,CS.20).gifNote

  • Repeat steps 2 through 5 for the Commerce Server List Manager service.

Changing the Connection Strings for Windows Authentication

The connection strings for the Direct Mailer are created as part of setup for the services, and as part of unpacking a site for the site-specific services. If during setup you selected SQL Server authentication, you will need to change the connection strings to use Windows Authentication.

To change the connection strings for Windows authentication

  1. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Microsoft Commerce Server 2002, and then click Commerce Server Manager.
  2. Expand Commerce Server Manager, expand Global Resources, and then right-click Direct Mail on <server name>, and then click Properties.
  3. In the Direct Mail on <server name> Properties dialog box, on the Connection Strings tab, click Modify.
  4. In the Data Link Properties dialog box, do the following:
    Use this To do this
    Select or enter a server name Select a server name from the drop-down list, or type the path to the server that contains the database you want to access.
    Use Windows NT Integrated security Click to specify that the provider request a secure (or trusted) connection to a SQL Server running on Windows 2000.
    Select the database on the server Select DirectMailer from the drop-down list.
  5. Click OK.
  6. In the Direct Mail on <server name> Properties dialog box, click OK.
  7. In Commerce Server Manager, expand Commerce Sites, expand <site name>, expand Site Resources, right-click Campaigns, and then select Properties.
  8. In the Campaigns Properties dialog box, click Modify.
  9. In the Data Link Properties dialog box, do the following:
    Use this To do this
    Select or enter a server name Select a server name from the drop-down list, or type the path to the server that contains the database you want to access.
    Use Windows NT Integrated security Click to specify that the provider request a secure (or trusted) connection to a SQL Server running Windows 2000.
    Select the database on the server Select <site name>_commerce from the drop-down list.
  10. Click OK.
  11. In the Direct Mail on <server name> Properties dialog box, click OK.

Restarting IIS and the Direct Mailer Service

After you change the connection string, you must restart IIS. You must also restart the Direct Mailer service for the settings to take effect. You can restart Direct Mailer from either the command line interface or through the administration tools.

To use the IISReset command to restart IIS

  1. Click Start, and then click Run.
  2. In the Run dialog box, in the Open box, type iisreset, and then click OK.

A command box appears while IIS is being reset. IIS is reset when the command box closes.

To restart Direct Mailer from the command line interface

  1. At the command line, type the following: net stop dmlservice
  2. When the service has stopped, type the following: net start dmlservice

To restart Direct Mailer using Services

  1. Open Services from the Start menu. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Administration Tools, and then click Services.
  2. In the Services screen, in the right pane, right-click Commerce ServerDirect Mailer, and then select Restart.

See Also

Configuring Direct Mailer

Security Risk: Using SQL Authentication for Direct Mailer Global Resource

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