Book Image

GeoServer Beginner's Guide

Book Image

GeoServer Beginner's Guide

Overview of this book

GeoServer is an open source server-side software written in Java that allows users to share and edit geospatial data. Designed for interoperability, it publishes data from any major spatial data source using open standards. GeoServer allows you to display your spatial information to the world. Implementing the Web Map Service (WMS) standard, GeoServer can create maps in a variety of output formats. OpenLayers, a free mapping library, is integrated into GeoServer, making map generation quick and easy. GeoServer is built on Geotools, an open source Java GIS toolkit.GeoServer Beginner's Guide gives you a kick start to build custom maps using your data without the need for costly commercial software licenses and restrictions. Even if you do not have prior GIS knowledge, you will be able to make interactive maps after reading this book.You will install GeoServer, access your data from a database, style points, lines, polygons, and labels to impress site visitors with real-time maps.Follow along through a step-by-step guide that installs GeoServer in minutes. Explore the web-based administrative interface to connect to backend data stores such as MySQL, PostGIS, MSSQL, and Oracle. Display your data on web-based interactive maps, style lines, points, polygons, and embed images to visualize this data for your web visitors. Walk away from this book with a working application ready for production.After reading the GeoServer Beginner's Guide, you will have beautiful, custom maps on your website built using your geospatial data.

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GeoServer Beginner's Guide
Feb, 2013 | 350 pages
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Table of Contents (20 chapters)
GeoServer Beginner's Guide
GeoServer Beginner's Guide
Credits
Credits
About the Authors
About the Authors
About the Reviewers
About the Reviewers
www.PacktPub.com
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Preface
Free Chapter
1
GIS Fundamentals
GIS Fundamentals
What is GIS about?
The foundation of any GIS – spatial data
Understanding coordinate systems
Representing geometrical shapes
Modeling the real world with raster data
Representing the world
Time for action – exploring OpenStreetMap
Adding more colors to your maps
Time for action – making your thematic map
Summary
2
Getting Started with GeoServer
Getting Started with GeoServer
Installing Java
Time for action – checking the presence of Java on Windows
Time for action – checking the presence of Java on Ubuntu
Time for action – installing JRE on Windows
Time for action – installing JRE on Ubuntu
Installing Apache Tomcat
Time for action – installing Apache Tomcat on Windows
Time for action – installing Apache Tomcat on Ubuntu
Time for action – configuring Tomcat as a service on Ubuntu
Installing GeoServer
Time for action – deploying GeoServer on Tomcat
Implementing basic security
Time for action – improving security settings
Summary
3
Exploring the Administrative Interface
Exploring the Administrative Interface
Understanding the interface
About & Status
Time for action – manually reloading configuration
Data
Time for action – OpenLayers preview
Time for action – KML preview
Time for action – creating a workspace
Services
Time for action – limiting the SRS list from WMS
Settings
Time for action – changing your logging configuration
Tile Caching
Security
Demos
Time for action – exploring Demo requests
Time for action – filtering the projection list
Summary
4
Accessing Layers
Accessing Layers
Layer types
OpenLayers
Time for action – exploring OpenLayers options
Exploring the Web Map Service output formats
Web Feature Service
Time for action – parsing GeoJSON
Extra output options
Time for action – using the GetFeatureInfo freemarker template
Using WMS Reflector
Time for action – using WMS Reflector
Summary
5
Adding Your Data
Adding Your Data
Configuring your data
Configuring vector data sources
Time for action – adding shapefiles
Time for action – installing PostgreSQL and PostGIS
Time for action – loading data in PostGIS and publishing them in GeoServer
Configuring raster data sources
Exploring additional data sources
Time for action – adding Oracle support in GeoServer
Time for action – adding MySQL data source
Summary
6
Styling Your Layers
Styling Your Layers
Understanding Styled Layer Descriptor
Editing styles
Exploring the standard structure of a style
Time for action – viewing GeoServer bundled styles
Loading data for styling
Working with point symbols
Time for action – creating a simple point style
Time for action – adding a stroke value
Time for action – dealing with angles and transparency
Time for action – composing simple shapes
Time for action – using external graphics
Linestring symbols
Time for action – creating a simple line style
Time for action – adding a border and a centerline
Time for action – using hatching
Time for action – using dashed lines
Time for action – mixing dashing lines and markers
Working with polygon symbols
Time for action – creating a simple polygon style
Time for action – using a graphic filling
Time for action – using hatching with polygons
Adding labels
Time for action – labeling points
Time for action – labeling lines
Time for action – labeling polygons
Thematic mapping
Time for action – classifying roads
Setting visibility
Time for action – enhancing thematic roads map
Putting it all together
Time for action – grouping layers
Summary
7
Creating Simple Maps
Creating Simple Maps
Exploring Google Maps API
Time for action – adding a GeoServer layer as overlay
Time for action – adding a GeoServer layer as a base layer
Time for action – adding a GeoServer cached layer as overlay
Time for action – customizing Google basemap
Time for action – intercepting the Click event
Using OpenLayers
Time for action – integrating GeoServer and OpenLayers
Time for action – using GeoRSS with OpenLayers
Exploring Leaflet
Time for action – using Leaflet with GeoServer layers
Summary
8
Performance and Caching
Performance and Caching
Exploring GeoWebCache
Time for action – configuring GeoWebCache storage
Time for action – configuring Disk Quota
Setting caching defaults
Configuring gridsets
Time for action – creating a custom gridset
Configuring tile layers
Time for action – configuring layers and layer groups for caching
Time for action – using tiles with OpenLayers
Time for action – seeding a layer
Using an external GeoWebCache
Summary
9
Automating Tasks: GeoServer REST Interface
Automating Tasks: GeoServer REST Interface
Introducing REST
Using REST
Time for action – installing the Requests library
Managing data
Time for action – managing workspaces
Time for action – managing data stores
Time for action – adding a new shapefile
Time for action – adding a PostGIS table
Publishing data
Time for action – adding a new style
Time for action – managing layers
Summary
10
Securing GeoServer Before Production
Securing GeoServer Before Production
Basic security settings
Time for action – enabling strong encryption
Time for action – changing the master password
Defining users, groups, and roles
Time for action – creating users and groups
Time for action – defining roles
Accessing data and services
Time for action – securing layers
Summary
11
Tuning GeoServer in a Production Environment
Tuning GeoServer in a Production Environment
Tuning Java
Time for action – configuring Java runtime parameters
Time for action – installing native JAI
Removing unused services
Time for action – disabling unused services
Setting a proxy
Time for action – configuring a proxy
Avoiding service faults
Time for action – configuring a cluster
Summary
12
Going Further: Getting Help and Troubleshooting
Going Further: Getting Help and Troubleshooting
Going beyond maps
Time for action – retrieving vector data
Time for action – retrieving raster data
Getting help
Summary
Pop Quiz Answers
Pop Quiz Answers
Chapter 2, Getting Started with GeoServer
Chapter 4, Accessing Layers
Chapter 5, Adding your Data
Chapter 6, Styling your Layers
Chapter 7, Creating Simple Maps
Chapter 8, Performance and Caching
Chapter 9, Automating Tasks: GeoServer REST Interface
Chapter 10, Securing GeoServer before Production
Chapter 11, Tuning GeoServer in a Production Environment
Chapter 12, Going Further: Getting Help and Troubleshooting
Index
Index

Tuning Java

When we installed Tomcat, we didn't play with the JVM settings. Tomcat's startup script is configured for booting quickly, but of course it can't match all the requirements of the application. Tuning your Java runtime parameters can greatly increase performance. There are many runtime parameters you can set at JVM startup. In the following section you will set the parameters that are most effective on GeoServer performances. Note that the values may vary according to the hardware configuration on your site.

Note

Unfortunately, there is no way to cut corners on the path of tuning parameters for a Java application. While the options presented in this chapter have been widely tested on GeoServer and are recommended by core developers, you should note that the best options may vary depending on your scenario. A valuable resource to understand how each parameter works is at http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/javase/tech/vmoptions-jsp-140102.html.

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