23 Patching Oracle Business Intelligence Systems

This chapter describes how to patch Oracle Business Intelligence. Patching involves copying a small collection of files over an existing installation. A patch is normally associated with a particular version of an Oracle product and involves updating from one minor version of the product to a newer minor version of the same product (for example, from version 11.1.1.2.0 to version 11.1.1.3.0). A patch set is a single patch that contains a collection of patches that are designed to be applied at the same time.

For more information, see Oracle Fusion Middleware Patching Guide.

This chapter includes the following sections:

23.1 What Is Patched for the Oracle Business Intelligence Platform?

Oracle Business Intelligence platform patching applies patches for binary files with extensions such as DLL, JAR, and EXE.

Oracle Business Intelligence platform patching does not patch the following:

  • Configuration Files

    If configuration updates are required as part of a patch, then these are detailed in the accompanying README.txt file, and you must manually apply them. No automated mechanism is available for merging customer configuration and patched configuration files.

  • Schema-based Metadata

    Nondesign-time metadata that is stored in database schemas (including schemas for the Scheduler, usage statistics, event polling, repository files, and the Oracle BI Presentation Catalog) is not patched.

    Other platform metadata (such as repository files and Oracle BI Presentation Catalog files) that are delivered in the context of an application are patched, but as part of an applications patch and not as part of a platform patch.

23.2 Patching the Platform

Typically you apply a patch that contains one or more bug fixes to an existing production Oracle BI EE system that is distributed across one or more computers. Bug fixes might affect the system components and Java components that are deployed inside the Oracle WebLogic Server. The patch might include new server executables and updated and new Java class files.

You use the Oracle OPatch utility to apply (and to roll back) Oracle BI EE platform patches. You download patches from Oracle Support Services, as described in Section 23.2.2, "Applying a Patch to the Platform."

For more information about patching in Oracle Fusion Middleware, see Oracle Fusion Middleware Patching Guide.

This section contains the following topics:

23.2.1 What Conditions Apply when Patching the Platform?

The following conditions apply when patching the Oracle BI EE platform:

  • Oracle BI EE 11g Release 1 (11.1.1) must be installed, and previous versions must have been upgraded to this 11g release.

  • Oracle Business Intelligence must be stopped before the patch is applied and restarted after all the components are successfully patched.

  • If a patch affects existing Java components or includes new Java components, then you must re-deploy the components after applying the patch.

23.2.2 Applying a Patch to the Platform

You must apply a patch to all the related Oracle homes for a given Oracle Business Intelligence system, distributed across multiple computers. Oracle BI EE components must be patched to the same version. You must check the patch version of each Oracle home, one at a time. For information, see Section 23.4, "Determining Current Patch Levels."

Complete the tasks that are described in the following sections to apply a patch:

  1. Section 23.2.2.1, "Step 1: Download the Patch"

  2. Section 23.2.2.2, "Step 2: Stop System Component Processes for Oracle BI EE"

  3. Section 23.2.2.3, "Step 3: Apply the Patch to Each Oracle Home"

  4. Section 23.2.2.4, "Step 4: Start System Component Processes for Oracle BI EE"

  5. Section 23.2.2.5, "Step 5: Redeploy Patched J2EE Applications"

23.2.2.1 Step 1: Download the Patch

To download patch:

  1. Locate the patch (OPatch package) on the Oracle Support Services website at the following URL:

    http://support.oracle.com

    The patch ID corresponds to a bug or service request number, which is provided by Oracle Support Services.

  2. Download the patch to your local network.

For more information, see Oracle Fusion Middleware Patching Guide.

23.2.2.2 Step 2: Stop System Component Processes for Oracle BI EE

For details, see Section 4.1, "About Starting and Stopping Oracle Business Intelligence."

23.2.2.3 Step 3: Apply the Patch to Each Oracle Home

To apply the patch to each Oracle home:

  1. Display a command window and navigate to the location of the OPatch executable.

    The OPatch utility is located in the ORACLE_HOME/ORACLE_INSTANCE/OPatch directory (on UNIX operating systems) or ORACLE_HOME\ORACLE_INSTANCE\OPatch directory (on Windows operating systems).

    For example, the directory on Windows might be:

    D:\OBI11g\Oracle_BI1\OPatch

  2. Run the OPatch utility using the following command syntax:

    opatch apply -id <patch_id> -oh <oracle_home>

    For example, you might use the following command:

    opatch apply -id 123456 -oh D:\OBI11g

    For complete information about OPatch command options, see Oracle Fusion Middleware Patching Guide.

    OPatch performs the following tasks:

    • Displays the patch number, creation date, bugs fixed, and details of what is updated when the patch is applied.

    • Makes a backup copy of the binary files that are being replaced.

    • Copies new binary files to the correct locations in the Oracle home.

    • Reports that the patch has been successfully applied to the Oracle home.

  3. To run the OPatch utility for other Oracle homes, repeat the previous steps.

For more information about applying patches, OPatch requirements, prerequisite checks, and the options for running the utility, see:

23.2.2.4 Step 4: Start System Component Processes for Oracle BI EE

For details, see Section 4.1, "About Starting and Stopping Oracle Business Intelligence."

23.2.2.5 Step 5: Redeploy Patched J2EE Applications

If the patch includes any J2EE applications, then you must redeploy them to the Oracle WebLogic Server instances that they were running on before the patch was applied.

To redeploy patched J2EE applications:

  1. Display the Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console.

    For information, see Section 2.3, "Centrally Managing Oracle Business Intelligence Java Components Using the Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console."

  2. In the Change Center of the Administration Console, click Lock & Edit to enable you to redeploy J2EE applications.

  3. In the left pane of the Administration Console, select Deployments.

  4. In the right pane, select the boxes next to the patched J2EE applications to redeploy.

    This information is included with the patch itself. OPatch lists the JAR files that are affected. The README.txt file details the post-patch steps that are required, which include this manual redeployment step.

  5. Click Update.

  6. In the Update Application Assistant, click Finish.

  7. To activate these changes, in the Change Center of the Administration Console, click Activate Changes.

    Not all changes take effect immediately; some require a restart of the system.

    For more information, see Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console Help system.

On completion of the patching tasks (and following any necessary restarts), the following conditions apply:

  • System component servers have been patched and restarted and are fully operational.

  • Backup versions of changed items have been stored in the Oracle home directory and are ready for potential rollback.

  • Patch history, archives, and logs have been updated.

23.2.3 What Happens If a Patching Conflict Occurs?

If a patching conflict occurs, then the process stops and you should contact Oracle Support Services.

23.3 Rolling Back a Platform Patch

OPatch maintains metadata for each patch that is applied to each Oracle home and keeps copies of what it replaces during a patch. Therefore, you can roll back a complete patch.

Note:

To confirm that an Oracle BI EE platform patch is no longer applied after a rollback, you must establish the patch levels before applying the rollback, then repeat the task after rollback. For information, see Section 23.4, "Determining Current Patch Levels."

Complete the tasks that are described in the following sections to apply a patch:

23.3.1 Step 1: Stop System Component Processes for Oracle BI EE

For details, see Section 4.1, "About Starting and Stopping Oracle Business Intelligence."

23.3.2 Step 2: Invoke OPatch with "-rollback" Option

You must invoke OPatch with the "-rollback" option for each Oracle home while specifying the ID of the patch to be undone.

To invoke OPatch with the "-rollback" option:

  1. Display a command window and navigate to the location of the OPatch executable.

    The OPatch utility is located in the ORACLE_HOME/ORACLE_INSTANCE/OPatch directory (on UNIX operating systems) or ORACLE_HOME\ORACLE_INSTANCE\OPatch directory (on Windows operating systems).

    For example, the directory on Windows might be:

    D:\OBI11g\Oracle_BI1\OPatch

  2. Run the OPatch utility with the -rollback option using the following command syntax:

    opatch rollback -id <patch_id> -oh <oracle_home>

    For example, you might use the following command:

    opatch rollback -id 123456 -oh D:\OBI11g\Oracle_BI1\OPatch

For more information about rolling back patches, OPatch requirements, and the options for running the utility, see:

23.3.3 Step 3: Start System Component Processes for Oracle BI EE

For details, see Section 4.1, "About Starting and Stopping Oracle Business Intelligence."

23.3.4 Step 4: Redeploy J2EE Applications

If the patch included any J2EE applications, then you must redeploy them to the Oracle WebLogic Server instances that they were running on before the patch was rolled back.

To redeploy patched J2EE applications:

  1. Display the Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console.

    For information, see Section 2.3, "Centrally Managing Oracle Business Intelligence Java Components Using the Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console."

  2. In the Change Center of the Administration Console, click Lock & Edit to enable you to redeploy J2EE applications.

  3. In the left pane of the Administration Console, select Deployments.

  4. In the right pane, select the boxes next to the J2EE applications to redeploy.

  5. Click Update.

  6. In the Update Application Assistant, click Finish.

  7. To activate these changes, in the Change Center of the Administration Console, click Activate Changes.

    Not all changes take effect immediately; some require a system restart.

    For more information, see Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console Help system.

Following completion of the rollback, the binary and JAR files that were updated by the application of the previous patch are now returned to their original state.

23.4 Determining Current Patch Levels

Each Oracle home must be patched to the same version as OPatch to ensure that Oracle BI EE functions properly. Use the OPatch lsinventory utility to determine the current patch version for any given Oracle home in the system. You can also use the utility to retrieve a full list of patches, with their corresponding IDs, for a given Oracle home.

To determine the current patch levels:

  1. Display a command window and navigate to the location of the OPatch executable:

    ORACLE_HOME\ORACLE_INSTANCE\OPatch

    For example:

    D:\OBI11g\Oracle_BI1\OPatch

  2. Run the lsinventory utility using the following command syntax:

    <Path_to_OPatch>/opatch lsinventory [-all] [-detail] [-patch] [-oh (Oracle home location)]

    For example:

    opatch lsinventory -patch -detail

    For information about the lsinventory options, see the user guides in the ORACLE_HOME\ORACLE_INSTANCE\OPatch\docs directory.

  3. To run the lsinventory utility against other Oracle homes, repeat the previous steps for each Oracle home.

For more information, see Oracle Fusion Middleware Patching Guide.