Installing DCM4CHEE Archive light (Open-Source PACS) on Mac

DCM4CHEE Archive light

We elected to use DCM4CHEE Archive light (dcm4chee-arc), an open-source PACS archive server, supporting the DICOM, DICOMweb and HL7 protocols. The default implementation uses a robust PostgreSQL database. More information can be found on the official DCM4CHE web site and in this Wiki.

 

How to deploy DCM4CHEE Archive light 5.x on macOS

On macOS, this archive server can easily be deployed through Docker.
Docker is a tool designed to make it easier to create, deploy, and run applications by using containers.

 

1. Docker

Download, install and launch Docker for macOS, following the instructions provided on Docker’s web site.

Docker Installation

 

2. DCM4CHEE Archive light

Open the Terminal application, located in the /Applications/Utilities folder. Then enter the following commands (replacing YOUR_USERNAME with your username). This procedure is adapted from the DCM4CHEE Archive light wiki.

 

Create a user-defined bridge network:
$ docker network create dcm4chee_default

 

Start OpenLDAP Server:
$ docker run --network=dcm4chee_default --name ldap \
-p 389:389 \
-v /Users/YOUR_USERNAME/dcm4chee-arc/ldap:/var/lib/ldap \
-v /Users/YOUR_USERNAME/dcm4chee-arc/slapd.d:/etc/ldap/slapd.d \
-d dcm4che/slapd-dcm4chee:2.4.44-14.0

 

Start PostgreSQL Server:
$ docker run --network=dcm4chee_default --name db \
-p 5432:5432 \
-e POSTGRES_DB=pacsdb \
-e POSTGRES_USER=pacs \
-e POSTGRES_PASSWORD=pacs \
-v /Users/YOUR_USERNAME/dcm4chee-arc/db:/var/lib/postgresql/data \
-d dcm4che/postgres-dcm4chee:10.4-14

 

Start Wildfly with deployed dcm4che Archive 5 application:
$ docker run --network=dcm4chee_default --name arc \
-p 8081:8080 \
-p 8443:8443 \
-p 9990:9990 \
-p 11113:11112 \
-p 2575:2575 \
-e POSTGRES_DB=pacsdb \
-e POSTGRES_USER=pacs \
-e POSTGRES_PASSWORD=pacs \
-e WILDFLY_WAIT_FOR="ldap:389 db:5432" \
-v /Users/YOUR_USERNAME/dcm4chee-arc/wildfly:/opt/wildfly/standalone \
-d dcm4che/dcm4chee-arc-psql:5.14.0

 

You now have a DCM4CHEE Archive light PACS server running on your Mac.

 

3. OsiriX MD

To access your newly created DCM4CHEE Archive light server from OsiriX MD, you have to declare it as a DICOMweb node. In OsiriX MD, open the Preferences and choose the Locations item, then click on the DICOMweb list. Declare your node with the following parameters:

URL
http://localhost:8081
Path
/dcm4chee-arc/aets/DCM4CHEE/rs

The DICOMweb nodes list of OsiriX MD

 

4. DICOM Communications

You can access your PACS through the DICOM protocol. You can now store, Query & Retrieve images from this server.

 

To store images in your PACS from OsiriX MD, drag and drop them on the server icon in the Locations section of the database window:

Store images on the PACS

 

You can also use the DICOM Query/Retrieve interface to transfer images from the server to OsiriX MD:

Query the PACS from OsiriX MD

 

5. Web Access

You can connect to the DCM4CHEE Archive light server through a web interface. Open your favourite browser (such as Safari) and go to this address: http://localhost:8081/dcm4chee-arc/ui2/

Web Access

 

Final Word

This article shows you the basic setup of an Open-Source PACS on Mac. Before using it with multiple users, you’ll have to complete a few other tasks:

  • Optimize DCM4CHEE Archive light installation.
  • Your server needs a fixed IP address: http://YOUR_SERVER_IP_ADDRESS:8081/.
  • Make sure that Docker and DCM4CHEE Archive light are always running even in case of reboot or power failure.
  • Add the adequate security (users access control, HTTPS, etc).
  • Implement a backup strategy
  • etc.