3 Things You Should Know Before Starting the Installation

This chapter contains the following topics:

• Section 3.1, "Oracle Home Directory"

• Section 3.2, "Oracle Home Name"

• Section 3.3, "Installing Additional Languages"

• Section 3.4, "The ias_admin User and Restrictions on its Password"

• Section 3.5, "Comparing Installing Components against Configuring Components"

• Section 3.6, "Where Does the Installer Write Files?"

• Section 3.7, "Starting theOracle Universal Installer"

3.1 Oracle Home Directory

The directory in which you install Oracle Application Server is called the Oracle home. During installation, you specify the full path to this directory and a name for this Oracle home.

3.1.1 Installing in a Non-Empty Oracle Home

You cannot install Oracle Application Server in a directory that already contains some files. For example, if you cancel an installation, or if an installation failed, then you have to clean the directory before you can reinstall Oracle Application Server in it. Also, the installer cannot repair an installation.

See Also: For instructions on how to clean up the directory, refer to Section F.3.2, "Message About Installing in a Non-Empty Directory".

3.2 Oracle Home Name

One of the screens in the installer prompts you for the Oracle home directory (which is the destination directory) and also an Oracle home name. This Oracle home name does not need to be the same as the directory name.

The Oracle home name can consist of alphanumeric and the underscore (_) characters, and cannot be longer than 128 characters.

The Oracle home name is used in the following ways:

• Some Oracle Application Server components run as Windows services. When naming these services, the installer inserts the Oracle home name in the service name using the following format:

  Oracle<OracleHomeName><ComponentName>
  
  

  For example, if you name the Oracle home as Home10_1_2, then the process management service will be called Home10_1_2ProcessManager.

• The installer also uses the Oracle home name in Start menu items. For example, if the Oracle home name is Home10_1_2, then you will get the following menu items:

  • Start, Programs, Oracle - Home10_1_2

  • Start, Programs, OracleAS 10g - Home10_1_2

3.3 Installing Additional Languages

By default, the installer installs Oracle Application Server with text in English and in the operating system language. If you need additional languages, then click the Product Languages button in the Select a Product to Install screen.

When you select additional languages to install, the installer installs text in the selected languages. It also installs fonts required to display the languages.

For some components, languages are installed only if you select them during installation. In this case, if you access the application in a language that is not available, then it will fall back on the server locale language.

For other components, available languages are installed regardless of what you select during installation. In this case, however, fonts are installed only for the languages that are explicitly selected. When you access the application, it uses text in your language because the language was installed. However, if you do not have the appropriate fonts to render the text, then the text appears as square boxes. This usually applies to the Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages. You can install fonts after installation.

See Also: Refer to Section F.3.6, "User Interface Does Not Display in the Desired Language or Does Not Display Properly".

You must install all languages that you need during installation. If you run Oracle Application Server in an environment that uses a language that you did not install, then the user interface can display text in that language and in English, or it can display square boxes (caused by missing fonts) instead of text.

Note: Note that you cannot install additional languages after installation.

3.4 The ias_admin User and Restrictions on its Password

The installer prompts you to specify the password for the ias_admin user. The ias_admin user is the administrative user for Oracle Application Server instance. To manage Oracle Application Server instances using Application Server Control, log in as ias_admin.

Password for the ias_admin User

The password for the ias_admin user has the following restrictions:

• Passwords must be shorter than 30 characters.

• Passwords can contain only alphanumeric characters from your database character set, the underscore (_), the dollar sign ($), and the number sign (#).

• Passwords must begin with an alphabetic character. Passwords cannot begin with a number, the underscore (_), the dollar sign ($), or the number sign (#).

• Passwords cannot be Oracle reserved words. The Oracle Database SQL Reference Guide lists the reserved words. You can find this document on OTN at http://www.oracle.com/technology/documentation

Note: When entering your password, check that the state of the Caps Lock key is what you want it to be. Passwords are case-sensitive.

You must remember the password because you need to enter it when you log on to Application Server Control as the ias_admin user, to manage Oracle Application Server.

See Also: For details about resetting the password if you forget it, refer to Oracle Application Server Administrator's Guide.

3.5 Comparing Installing Components against Configuring Components

When you select components on the Select Configuration Options screen, the installer installs and configures the selected components. For the unselected components, the installer still installs them, but does not configure them.

In most cases, you can configure components that you did not select on the Select Configuration Options screen after installation using the Application Server Control.

See Also: Refer to Oracle Application Server Administrator's Guide for details.

3.6 Where Does the Installer Write Files?

The installer writes files to the following directories:

Table 3-1 Directories Where the Installer Writes Files

Directory	Description
Oracle home directory	This directory contains Oracle Application Server files. You specify this directory when you install Oracle Application Server.
Inventory directory (system_drive:\Program Files\Oracle\Inventory)	The installer uses the inventory directory to keep track of the Oracle products installed on your computer. The inventory directory is created when you install the first Oracle product on the computer. In subsequent installations, the installer uses the same inventory directory.
TEMP directory	The installer writes files needed only during installation to a temporary directory. The temporary directory is specified by the TEMP variable. For details, refer to Section 2.5.5, "TEMP".

Additionally, the installer also creates entries in the Windows registry.

3.7 Starting the Oracle Universal Installer

1. Log on to the computer as a user who is a member of the Windows Administrators group.

2. Insert the disk.

   CD-ROM users: Insert Oracle Application Server Disk 1 into the CD-ROM drive.

   DVD-ROM users: Insert the Oracle Application Server DVD-ROM into the DVD-ROM drive.

3. If your computer supports the auto-run feature, then the installer runs automatically.

   If your computer does not support the auto run feature, then you have to start the installer manually as follows:

   
   

   Note: If you are running the installer on a computer that is already running Oracle Database 10g, then you have to start the installer with the following option: E:\> setup.exe -J-Dsun.java2d.noddraw=true If you do not start the installer with this option, then the installer may not display.

   
   

   CD-ROM users: Double-click setup.exe.

   DVD-ROM users: Double-click setup.exe in the application_server directory.

This runs Oracle Universal Installer, through which you install Oracle Application Server.