KB46526: What are the connection requirements and data flow for the ESRI Maps in MicroStrategy Web

Description

Strategy Web provides mapping capabilities for the ESRI platform and allows users to plot areas, markers and analyze data in a geographical context. However, Strategy Administrators need to consider certain connectivity requirements in order to allow the Strategy platform to contact the mapping services. The following diagrams will explain the complete data flow as well as all the servers involved in the process.
 
Important Notes:

• The connectivity requirement for ESRI Cloud environments below only applies to Strategy Web when direct communication between web server and ArcGIS server has not been disabled by setting a proxy server to send the HTTP requests to ESRI using the following article: https://community.strategy.com/article/KB202342-Support-using-proxy-server-to-send-HTTP-request-to-ESRI?language=en_US
• Arrows are numbered with the steps of the workflow
• Red arrows and boxes indicate that the server or communication might reside in the Internet or an external network.
• For Markers step 11 and 9 in the first and second diagram respectively are the end of the flow.
• The ESRI key mentioned in step 2 of the Cloud Maps diagram is configured when ESRI maps are activated using the following article: KB45064: How to activate cloud-based ESRI maps for MicroStrategy Web and MicroStrategy Library products
• The IP addresses for www.arcgis.com are for a type A class IN domain. These IP addresses might change over time for more current information visit https://www.whatsmydns.net/#A/www.arcgis.com and check the DNS Server closest to the Strategy Web Server. 
• No warehouse or metadata information is sent to external servers other than the area names in step 12 for Cloud configurations and step 10 for on premises configurations.

Workflows

Cloud Map configuration

1. The client (browser) makes the request for ESRI maps to the Strategy Web Server.
2. The Strategy Web Server requests a token for the client using the ESRI key that has been configured.
3. The ESRI server validates the key and sends back a token to the Strategy Web Server.
4. The Strategy Web Server sends the ESRI configuration with the ESRI Server information and the client token.
5. The client requests the base maps with the client token to the Cloud Map Server.
6. The Cloud Map Server sends the map tiles to the client.
7. The client requests the grid data to the Strategy Web Server.
8. The Strategy Web Server requests the grid data to the Intelligence Server.
9. The Intelligence Server serves the grid data to the Strategy Web Server.
10. The Strategy Web Server returns the data to the client.
11. If the map uses markers, the client calculates and plots the data points.
12. If the map uses areas, the client requests the polygons in JSON to the Map Layer Server.
13. The Map Layer Server servers the polygons in JSON format to the client, calculates the dimensions and plots the areas.

 
 
On-Premises configuration

1. The client (browser) makes the request for ESRI maps to the Strategy Web Server.
2. The Strategy Web Server sends the ESRI configuration with the ESRI Server information to the client.
3. The client requests the base maps to the Base Map Server.
4. The Base Map Server sends the map tiles to the client.
5. The client requests the grid data to the Strategy Web Server.
6. The Strategy Web Server requests the grid data to the Intelligence Server.
7. The Intelligence Server serves the grid data to the Strategy Web Server.
8. The Strategy Web Server returns the data to the client.
9. If the map uses markers, the client calculates and plots the data points.
10. If the map uses areas, the client requests the polygons in JSON to the Map Layer Server.
11. The Map Layer Server servers the polygons in JSON format to the client, calculates the dimensions and plots the areas.