Rational ClearQuest MultiSite adds a powerful capability to Rational ClearQuest. With MultiSite, developers at different locations can use the same database set (a schema repository and its associated user databases). Each location has its own copies, or replicas, of the schema repository and user databases. At any time, changes made in one replica can be sent in update packets to other replicas. The update process can be automated or can be started manually with a command.
An organization can use MultiSite to distribute independent, but related, development efforts across multiple cities, nations, or continents. For example, a company in the United States has development and testing sites in India, Argentina, Japan, and Australia. Because it is not practical for all engineers to access the databases in the United States, the company uses MultiSite to distribute the development.
MultiSite can also be used at a single geographical location to allow independent groups to work with the same development data or to be a backup mechanism. For example, a company that wants extra reliability for backups can create local replicas for a database set.
This chapter gives an overview of the major features in MultiSite. MultiSite Operation, contains more details about how the features work.