PI Troubleshooting Tips: Cannot connect to server using message server error when logging on to Integration Builder

Purpose

The purpose of this page is to document some of the known causes of the above error, which occurs when logging on to the Process Integration (PI)/Process Orchestration (PO) Enterprise Services Repository (ESR) or Integration Builder tools.

Overview

This wiki will show how and where to troubleshoot the above error and also document some of the known causes and solutions to this error.

Background

There are several different causes for this particular error ranging from firewall configurations, to system configuration errors to actual bugs in the software.

Technical Background

Remote Method Invocation (RMI) communication is used in PI for communication between Integration Builder client and the PI server. With SAP J2EE, the internal P4 protocol is used for RMI communication.

Each J2EE instance registers its P4 port with the SAP Message Server. Then, a J2EE client application first connects to SAP Message Server via HTTP to receive a J2EE server instance's P4 port. Using this logon type, a client only needs to know the address and port of the Message Server instead of knowing an individual server address and port.

In PI, the Exchange Profile (or AII Service if you have an AEX) parameters below are used to configure the Message Server host and port values.

com.sap.aii.connect.repository.mshost
com.sap.aii.connect.repository.mshttpport
com.sap.aii.connect.repository.mshttpsport

com.sap.aii.connect.directory.mshost
com.sap.aii.connect.directory.mshttpport
com.sap.aii.connect.directory.mshttpsport

How to Reproduce

Depending on your PI release:

In your PI ABAP stack, call transaction sxmb_ifr -> click on the Repository or Directory link.
Open the PI Startpage http://<server>:<port>/dir/start/index.jsp and click on the ESR or Integration Builder Directory link.

If you are using HTTP the error will be similar to: “Cannot connect to server using message server: ms://<server>:<port>/P4”

If you are using HTTPS the error will be similar to “Cannot connect to server using message server: ms://<server>:<port>/P4S”

Common Causes of the Error

Firewall issues - Ensure the required ports are open on your firewall. I cannot document the exact ports here as it will vary depending on your installation type. However the document TCP/IP Ports Used by SAP Applications is a good reference. The P4 port and Message Server port are particularly relevant for accessing the Integration Builder.
Configuration issues - the PI system needs to be correctly configured to function correctly. Many cases of this error are caused because the mandatory Configuration Wizard has not been executed after a new installation, a new upgrade or a System Copy. See SAP Note 1286428 Configuration Wizard: PI Wizard Templates overview. This documents all Configuration Wizards. Ensure the relevant wizard has been executed in your system.
Bugs in the software

Tracing the Error

The traces below are the most useful in troubleshooting this issue. However, it depends on the actual root cause of the issue as to which may be useful/relevant. All should be checked regardless for any errors related to the Integration Builder logon.

the client side java trace as per the attached SAP Note 1891480 How to enable logging in Java WebStart console
the dev_icm trace - see ICM Tracing
the dev_ms trace - see Message Server Monitor
the defaultTrace from the PI server

Known Issues

BC-XI* Related errors:
SAP KBA 2416859 PI tools fail to open: Message server not available
SAP Note 1969736 PI CTC: Message Server settings in NW PI 7.11
-> SAP Note 1368522 PI CTC: ABAP Message Server Configuration
SAP KBA 1571274 Cannot connect to server using message server ms://
BC-JAS-COR-RMT Related:
SAP Note 1843232 P4 duplicate banner error in ICM on host with multiple IPs
SAP Note 1158626 P4 connection to ICM on machine with multiple IPs fails
BC-CST-MS Related:
SAP KBA 1911741 PI ESR: Cannot connect to server using message server ms:// P4
-> SAP Note 1782391 Message server crash
BC-NET Related:
SAP Note 129997 Hostname and IP address lookup - make sure that IP and hostname resolve correctly
SAP KBA 2582843 Message server error when opening PI Integration Builder tools

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