Install & Configure Oracle Weblogic Server 10.3.6 & Forms & Reports 11g on Windows8/Windows 2008 R2

Hello guys, we just posted how to upgrade your existing  Forms & Reporots 32Bit 11.1.2.1.0  to 11.1.2.2.0. Why don’t check it out here?

We are running a blog explaining many workaround solutions for installing and configuring discontinued, uncertified Oracle software on Windows 7 & Windows 8 from last year onward.

Let us accept it, Developer 6i applications face multiple issues while used on both Windows 7&8 like:

1. Intermittent crashes
2. Rendering menu modules
3. Stability
4. Running products like Reports and Graphs

Usually a legacy application compiled using patch sets below 18 are less prone to above mentioned issues, however an application completely developed using patch 18 regularly get into issues on Windows 7 & 8 where hacks are used.

Recently we were forced to look towards a better environment for a new application, which by certain reasons cannot be accommodated and hosted within Oracle Application entity, and we started dwelling the possibilities of setting up a Weblogic server (old application server) for our forms and reports modules.

in short, we did it! and we are sharing the experience with you.

you need the following to carryout the installation and configuration

Windows 8/Windows 2008 R2 box (VM for testing)

Oracle Weblogic Server 10.3.6 (32Bit)

http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/middleware/weblogic/downloads/wls-main-097127.html

Oracle Forms and Reports 11g Release 2

http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/developer-tools/forms/downloads/index.html

(Hurry, you may not find the above software bundles with OTN after few weeks or months time)

Part 1 – Weblogic Server 10.3.6 Installation

Installation of Weblogic is pretty straight forward on Windows 8. Only once the compatibility issue is raised, which you can safely ignore by the click of a button.

The Weblogic 10.3.6 (wls1036_win32.exe) installation comes as a single .exe file, which you can start like any other installer.

Please have a look at the images

Choose a directory name without spaces, this is going to be your middleware home.

Uncheck the email notification, you don’t need it as far you don’t have a support from oracle

Select “Custom” installation type, as you can select which JDK to be selected and other components at later stages. We installed both JDK for our installation.

Click next to continue

Leave the selection as it is

Select Yes for “Node Manager Service”, it will make few things simpler at later stages, especially while you are using Admin Server for managing both forms and reports servers.

Select “All Users”

Clicking “Next” will start installing the Weblogic server 10.3.6 for you. Relax and wait until the installation completes.

Once installation has been done, you will be given an option to setup the Weblogic server with an instance, which we will do as a part of Forms & Reports 11g installation and configuration.

Part 2 – Installation of Oracle Forms and Reports 11g Release 2

Once you download the  Oracle Forms and Reports 11g Release 2, the zip archive must be unzipped to a folder, which will create Disk1, Disk2, Disk3 folders. You should start the “Setup.exe” from Disk1 folder. Once again the installation is straight forward, without requiring to make any specific hack to the installation media.

You must skip the “Software Update” option, unless you have the paid support from Oracle for the product you are installing.

Most important: You should select “Install Software – Do not configure” at this level, as the configuration will be done once after the installation completed.

On Windows 8 you will be notified about two vital check failures, however allowing you to continue the installation at own risk by clicking the “Continue” button.

Next page will clearly notify you that you must have an application server already installed. Application server akka Weblogic server. Without Weblogic server you cannot use Oracle Forms and Reports 11g Release 2 even for development purpose.

You can safely ignore being updated about the software updates once again

Once you say yes to software update related prompt, the installation will start

Now you have finished installing Oracle Forms and Reports 11g Release 2 on Windows 8/Windows 2008 R2

Part 3 – Configuring the Weblogic server with forms and reports 11g

As we have installed “Node Manager Service” prior configuring the forms and reports, we need to stop the Node Manager Service from Windows services console

Invoke “services.msc” and stop the following service “Oracle Weblogic NodeManager(D_Weblogic_Middleware_wlserver_10.3)

If you don’t stop this service, you are going to come across issues as discussed here

To configure the Weblogic server for forms and reports, you need to invoke the “Configure Classic Instance” cmd file from Windows menu folder “Oracle Classic 11g – Home1”

It may take couple of minutes until you are provided the installation application GUI as shown below. Click next

Select the option “Configure for Deployment”

Unless you are entitled for Oracle support ignore the email part

Now, choose a meaningful name for your Oracle instance.

Important: You must note down the following details for future references. We opted to use the username suggested by Oracle during the configuration which is “weblogic” and provide a password consist of alphabets and minimum one digit (number)

Domain is the node which will be setup with Weblogic for Administration server as well for both Forms and Reports Servers.

By default, Developer tools are not selected, you MUST select this node, incase if you are going to use the same machine for development (which is our objective with this exercise). You may uncheck the “Clustered” option, unless used in a production environment.

Select “Auto Port Configuration”

Try to avoid using Proxy. Microsoft ISA server can make the whole experience a parody, if used.

Use Identity management, only if already implemented and business mandatory. Else leave it unchecked

Click on “Configure” button and sit back, until the process is over!

You may save the installation responses for a future installation by clicking the Save button. Click “Finish” button to exit the configuration wizard

You can access the Weblogic Admin Server by visiting http://localhost:7001/console & the Enterprise manager through http://localhost:7001/em

You may run into issues accessing the Enterprise Manager, incase if you have automated the weblogic admin server startup part using services & we have another post explaining how to tackle it here

If the node manager service is installed you can start and stop various components for the domain through this console.

Part 4 – Starting and Stopping domain components AdminServer, WLS_FORMS(Forms Server), WLS_REPORTS(Reports server)

Oracle provides batch files to start and stop all the above mentioned components. You may start just WLS_FORMS and WLS_REPORTS services, unless planning to manage them through the Admin Server console.

Starting Weblogi Admin Server

Starting Forms Server

Starting Reports Server

Part 5 – Automating Weblogic Admin Server, WLS_FORMS(Forms Server), WLS_REPORTS(Reports server) startup with Windows Services

Let us agree, the cmd windows look ugly, dangerous and a user can close them down, thus bringing the entire servers down unintentionally. A windows service looks much favorable under such scenarios and wise people from Oracle do provide solutions to create windows services for

1. Weblogic Admin Server
2. WLS_FORMS (Forms Server)
3. WLS_REPORTS (Reports Server)

Creating Windows services for Admin Server and Forms server are pretty simple and straight forward business, while CMD command line length limitations will make Reports Server service creation a little difficult, don’t worry we have solution for it also.

Part 6 – Creating Windows Service for Weblogic Admin Server

Pre-requisite(s)

Notepad++ (or any decent text editor other than Windows notepad)

Create a .cmd file named “Install_AdminServer.cmd” with the following lines

Please note, you must provide the absolute domain name and physical directory names based on your installation preferences!

Save the script to “USERDOMAIN_HOME” folder, ie, “D:\WebLogic\Middleware\user_projects\domains\appsdomain” in our case

From elevated command line, execute the batch file, and the Windows service for Admin Server must be created, unless there were mismatches with the information supplied

Part 7 – Creating Windows Service for WLS_FORMS(Forms Server)

Create a .cmd file “InstallWLS_FORMS.cmd” using Notepad++ with following lines

Save the script to “USERDOMAIN_HOME” folder, ie, “D:\WebLogic\Middleware\user_projects\domains\appsdomain” in our case

From elevated command line, execute the batch file, and the Windows service for WLS_FORMS must be created, unless there were mismatches with the information supplied

Part 8 – Creating Windows Service for WLS_REPORTS(Reports Server)

Create a .cmd file “InstallWLS_REPORTS.cmd” using Notepad++ with following lines

Unfortunately, you cannot just run the .cmd file and create a service for WLS_REPORTS like other services, as the java CLASSPATH for reports server has more than 3000 character length, which is beyond 32Bit command line architecture.

Hence you have to do a minor hack, as provided as a solution by Oracle.

Go to “D:\WebLogic\Middleware\wlserver_10.3\server\bin” folder (equivalent on your machine) and make a backup for the file “InstallSvc.cmd”

If the report server is running, terminate it by using Ctrl+C within the open cmd window

Wait until the server shutdown. Check the status through Admin Console.

Now restart the Report Server, using the menu interface

Mark and copy the CLASSPATH= output and paste it to a new text document. You have to spend few minutes to wrap up the text and make sure the entire text is wrapped into a single line (This is why we love Notepad++)

Add “set” in front of CLASSPATH= and your txt file content should look something like below and save the text file as “myClasspath.txt”

Now open the “InstallSvc.cmd” using Notepad++ and locate the line “set CLASSPATH=%WEBLOGIC_CLASSPATH%;%CLASSPATH%” and comment the same like

rem *** set CLASSPATH=%WEBLOGIC_CLASSPATH%;%CLASSPATH%

Now locate the line “set CMDLINE” within the “InstallSvc.cmd” and change the line like following

There are two instances of set CMDLINE, you must change both lines, only replacing the “-classpath \”%CLASSPATH%\” part with -classpath @d:\myClasspath.txt

After the above, from elevated command line, execute the batch file, and the Windows service for WLS_REPORTS must be created, unless there were mismatches with the information supplied

Change “Automatic” to “Manual” for better ease, at various situations. You may create a .cmd file for starting the services and another one for stopping them.

From our prospects, these services are just a facelift for the batch files, avoiding the immediate problems with accidental closure of cmd windows and thus causing serious issues to the instance. We came to this conclusion because, the service status are not updated incase if one of the services stopped by the Admin Server console at later stages, neither the service status update waits until the actual server starts to update  state of the service.

You can delete whole these service from command prompt, after stopping like following

>SC DELETE “service name”

We hope you will enjoy setting up Weblogic 10.3.6 and Oracle Forms and Reports 11g Release 2 on Windows 8/ Windows 2008 R2 following the instruction set provided above.

Regards,

admin