Preparing to Install WebLogic Platform

If, however, Contivo Analyst was installed on your system before you installed WebLogic Server and WebLogic Integration, you need to integrate the Contivo Analyst software with the repository. Instructions are provided in the installation section of the Contivo-BEA Release Notes, which you can access from the Start menu as follows: Start—>Programs—>Contivo Analyst—>Release Notes.

You can download the WebLogic Platform 7.0 software from the following BEA Web site:

If you purchased WebLogic Platform from your local sales representative, you will find the following items in the WebLogic Platform product box:

If you purchased the product, in most cases a license file is sent to you as an e-mail attachment. The name of the input license file can vary. The names of most license files are prefixed with the BEA sales order record (SOR). When you install the software from the CD-ROM, an evaluation license is installed. You can update this evaluation license with the license you received via e-mail as described in Installing and Updating WebLogic Platform License Files.

Service packs and rolling patches, if any, are included in the latest distribution of WebLogic Platform 7.0, which you can download as described in Web Distribution of WebLogic Platform. If you do not have WebLogic Platform 7.0 installed, you should install this distribution.

If you already have WebLogic Platform 7.0 installed, with no service pack, and if you have a BEA eSupport account, you can upgrade your software in one of the following ways:

BEA WebLogic JRockit^TM was developed and optimized for server-side applications and supports Intel architectures. In BEA WebLogic Platform 7.0 SP2 and higher, the WebLogic JRockit 7.0 SDK is packaged with the WebLogic Platform software.

Note: WebLogic JRockit 7.0 is certified with Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition (J2SE), version 1.3.1.

To install the WebLogic Platform/JRockit packages, you can use the installation procedures described in the following chapters:

Note: The net installer is not available with the WebLogic Platform packages that include the WebLogic JRockit SDK.

When you install a WebLogic Platform 7.0/JRockit package, two JVMs are installed on your system: the WebLogic JRockit JVM, optimized for server-side applications, and the Sun Hotspot Client JVM, provided for optional use by client-side applications. Some of the samples provided with WebLogic Platform heavily exercise a client-side GUI or other application for which client-oriented JVMs, such as the Sun Hotspot Client JVM, are more appropriate. In WebLogic Platform 7.0 SP2 and higher, a convenient script, commEnv, is installed that defines environment variables that determine whether a client or server JVM should be run. For additional information, see "Specifying JVM Options in WebLogic Platform 7.0 SP2 and Later" in the BEA WebLogic Platform Release Notes at http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/E13196_01/platform/docs70/relnotes/relnotes.html.

If you install WebLogic Platform 7.0 with the Sun Java 2 SDK and you want to change your installation to use the WebLogic JRockit 7.0 SDK, see "Using WebLogic Platform with the WebLogic JRockit SDK" in the BEA WebLogic Platform Release Notes for instructions at: http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/E13196_01/platform/docs70/relnotes/relnotes.html.

Note: The installation instructions provided in BEA WebLogic JRockit^TM 7.0 SDK Installation and Migration Guide describe how to install JRockit as a standalone SDK. These instructions do not apply to the WebLogic Platform/JRockit packages.

The following sections provide installation prerequisites for a WebLogic Platform installation:

Table 1-1 System Requirements

Component	Requirement
Supported platform	A platform configuration that is supported by BEA WebLogic Platform. See the Supported Platforms page at the following URL: http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/E13196_01/platform/docs70/support/index.html This page includes the recommended Java run-time environment versions and other prerequisites or recommendations.
Hard disk drive	A full WebLogic Platform installation requires approximately 525 MB of disk space, including 35 MB for the SDK and 142 MB for the examples. For a list of the disk drive requirements for the individual components, see the Supported Platforms page at the following URL: http://download.oracle.com/docs/cd/E13196_01/platform/docs70/support/index.html
Memory	Full WebLogic Platform installation—512 MB of RAM, 1 GB recommended WebLogic Server—256 MB of RAM minimum, 512 MB or more recommended WebLogic Integration—512 MB RAM, 1 GB recommended WebLogic Portal—512 MB of RAM, 1 GB recommended
Color bit depth display and size	For graphical user interface (GUI) mode installation, 8-bit color depth (256 colors). For console-mode and silent-mode installation, there is no color bit depth requirement.
Java 2 SDK	The WebLogic Platform installation program requires a Java run-time environment (JRE) to run. A Java 2 Software Development Kit (SDK), which includes a JRE, is bundled in the Windows installation program, and in some UNIX installation programs (those with filenames ending in .bin). For other UNIX platforms, the WebLogic Platform installation program does not include the Java 2 SDK. Filenames for these installation programs end in .jar. To run the .jar installation programs, you must have the appropriate version of the Java 2 SDK installed on your system, and include the bin directory of the SDK at the front of the PATH variable. It is important that you use an SDK because the installation process sets the JAVA_HOME and related variables to point to this directory. For procedures, see one of the following: Starting Graphical-Mode Installation for .jar Installation Files Starting Console-Mode Installation for .jar Installation Files

The BEA installation program uses a temporary directory in which it extracts the files necessary to install WebLogic Platform on the target system. During the installation process, your temporary directory must contain sufficient space to accommodate the compressed Java run-time environment (JRE) bundled with the installation program and an uncompressed copy of the JRE that is expanded into the temporary directory. The extracted files are deleted from the temporary directory at the end of the installation process. As a general rule, installation programs require approximately 2.5 times the amount of temporary space the installed files require.

Note: If there is not enough temporary space to run the installation program, you are prompted to specify an alternate directory or exit the installation program.

To ensure there is adequate temporary space, you may want to allocate an alternate directory for use as a temporary directory for the installation. To do so, follow the instructions provided in the following table.

On this platform . . .	Perform this step . . .
Windows	Do one of the following: Set the TMP system variable to a directory of your choice. If starting the installation program from the command line, enter the -Djava.io.tmpdir=tmpdirpath option on the command line. In this option, tmpdirpath is the full path of the directory that you want to use to temporarily store files used by the WebLogic Platform installation program. For example: net_platformXXX_win32.exe -mode=console -Djava.io.tmpdir=d:\Temp In the filename used in this example, XXX is the version number of the software you are installing.
UNIX	Enter the following option on the command line when you start the installation program: -Djava.io.tmpdir=tmpdirpath Here, tmpdirpath is the full path of the directory that you want to use to temporarily store files used by the WebLogic Platform installation program.

On this platform . . .

Perform this step . . .

Windows

Do one of the following:

Set the TMP system variable to a directory of your choice.

If starting the installation program from the command line, enter the -Djava.io.tmpdir=tmpdirpath option on the command line. In this option, tmpdirpath is the full path of the directory that you want to use to temporarily store files used by the WebLogic Platform installation program. For example:

net_platformXXX_win32.exe -mode=console -Djava.io.tmpdir=d:\Temp
In the filename used in this example, XXX is the version number of the software you are installing.

UNIX

Enter the following option on the command line when you start the installation program:

-Djava.io.tmpdir=tmpdirpath

Here, tmpdirpath is the full path of the directory that you want to use to temporarily store files used by the WebLogic Platform installation program.

If you choose to run the Configuration Wizard at the completion of a custom installation to create user domains, you are prompted (in some templates—such as the WLS Domain template) to specify if you want the server installed as a Windows service. When a server is installed as a Windows service, it starts automatically each time you boot your Windows system.You must have Administrator privileges to install the server as a Windows service.

For additional information, see "Setting Up a WebLogic Server as a Windows Service" in "Starting and Stopping WebLogic Servers" in the BEA WebLogic Server Administration Guide at the following URL:

The WebLogic Platform software cannot be used without a valid license. When you install WebLogic Platform, the installation program installs an evaluation license with access for up to 20 client connections. The evaluation license is a full license, enabling all of the component features of WebLogic Platform.

You can purchase licenses for the entire WebLogic Platform product, or for individual components. For information about the licenses available for WebLogic Platform, see the Licensing page on the e-docs Web site at the following URL:

Licenses for pre-7.0 versions of the WebLogic Platform components will not work with WebLogic Platform 7.0. You must upgrade this license to a 7.0 license.bea format. Procedures for upgrading a license file and installing permanent licenses are provided in Installing and Updating WebLogic Platform License Files.

Secure sockets layer (SSL) encryption software is available with two levels of encryption: 56-bit and 128-bit. Licenses for the 128-bit client version of SSL are available in the United States and Canada. With proper authorization, customers outside the United States and Canada may also acquire licenses with 128-bit encryption enabled.

A WebLogic Platform license comes with 56-bit encryption enabled by default. Enabling 128-bit encryption for SSL requires that a 128-bit encryption license be present in the license.bea file of the target BEA Home directory before you install the WebLogic Platform software.

During installation of WebLogic Platform, you need to specify locations for the following directories:

When you install WebLogic Platform, you are prompted to specify a BEA Home directory. The BEA Home directory is a repository for common files that are used by multiple BEA products installed on the same machine. For this reason, the BEA Home directory can be considered a central support directory for the BEA products installed on your system.

The files in the BEA Home directory are essential to ensuring that BEA software operates correctly on your system. They perform the following types of functions:

The structure of a sample BEA Home directory created by the WebLogic Platform installation program that includes a bundled SDK is shown in the following illustration.

This illustration depicts only the files and directories required in the BEA Home directory. If you choose the default product installation directory, you will see additional directories in the BEA Home directory, such as weblogic700 and user_projects. Although the default location for the product installation directory is within the BEA Home directory, you can select a different location outside the BEA Home directory.

Note: For some UNIX platforms, the WebLogic Platform installation program does not install the SDK.

During installation of WebLogic Platform, you are prompted to choose an existing BEA Home directory or specify a path to create a new BEA Home directory. If you choose to create a new directory, the WebLogic Platform installation program automatically creates the directory for you.

Note: For a BEA Home directory, you are allowed to install only one instance of each version of a BEA product that uses the BEA Home directory convention. For example, you can install only one instance of WebLogic Server 7.0 in a BEA Home directory, but that BEA Home directory may also contain an instance of WebLogic Server 6.1.

The files and directories in the BEA Home directory are described in the following table.

Table 1-2 BEA Home Directory Description

Component	Description
sdk directory	Contains the software for the Java 2 SDK installed with WebLogic Platform. The SDK provides the Java run-time environment (JRE) and tools for compiling and debugging Java applications. Options include: jdk131_XX—the 1.3.1 version of the Sun Java 2 SDK. In this directory name, XX indicates the version of the Sun SDK installed on your system, for example jdk131_08. jrockitXXX—The WebLogic JRockit SDK. In this directory name, XXX indicates the version of the JRockit SDK installed on your system, for example jrockit70sp4_131_08. Note: SDK options vary by hardware platform. For some UNIX platforms, the WebLogic Platform installation program does not include an SDK.
logs directory	Contains a history file of installation and uninstallation for the BEA Home directory.
utils directory	Contains utilities that are used to support the installation of all BEA WebLogic Platform products. The utils.jar file contains code that supports the UpdateLicense utility.
license.bea file	An XML-format license file that contains the license keys for all BEA WebLogic products installed on your system. The format of this license has changed in WebLogic Platform 7.0. To convert a pre-7.0 license.bea file to a WebLogic Platform 7.0 license.bea file, refer to the procedures in Upgrading Licenses from Pre-7.0 Releases of WebLogic Platform Products. To add a non-expiring (permanent) license or to update a license file for additional functionality, you must update the license.bea file using the UpdateLicense utility. For details, see Updating Your license.bea File Note: Do not edit this file manually. Doing so may cause operating problems for the currently installed BEA products.
registry.xml file	A registry file that contains a persistent record of all BEA products installed on the target system. This registry contains product-related information, such as version number, service pack number, and installation directory. Note: Do not edit this file manually. Doing so may cause operating problems for the currently installed BEA products, or result in installation problems when installing future BEA products or maintenance upgrades.
UpdateLicense (.cmd/.sh)	A command file (Windows NT/2000) or a shell script (UNIX) that updates the current license.bea file with new license sections. The result is a merged license that contains both the existing and new license sections. For details about using the UpdateLicense utility, see Updating Your license.bea File.

Although it is possible to create more than one BEA Home directory, we recommend that you avoid doing so. In almost all situations, a single BEA Home directory is sufficient. There may be circumstances, however, in which you prefer to maintain separate development and production environments, each containing a separate product stack. With two directories, you can update your development environment (in a BEA Home directory) without modifying the production environment until you are ready to do so.

The product installation directory contains all the software components that you choose to install on your system, including program files and examples. You are prompted, during the initial installation of WebLogic Platform, to choose a product installation directory. If you accept the default, the WebLogic Platform software is installed in the following directory:

where BEA_HOME is the BEA Home directory containing the support information for this installation and weblogic700 is the product installation directory. However, you can specify any name and location on your system for your product installation directory; there is no requirement that you name the directory weblogic700, or create it under the BEA Home directory.

The installation program uses the product installation directory as the WL_HOME directory and installs the software components under this directory. If, on your initial installation, you choose to install individual components of WebLogic Platform and not the full complement of products, and later decide to install additional components (using the same BEA Home directory), you are not prompted on the subsequent installations to provide a product installation directory. The installation program detects the WL_HOME directory and installs the additional components under that same directory.

In previous releases of the WebLogic Platform component products, domains were created within the directory structure of the product installation, including application code for each domain. With the Configuration Wizard provided in WebLogic Platform 7.0, you can, and are encouraged to create domains in their own directory structure within the domain container folder (user_projects, by default). You can create a domain container to store all of your user domain directories, or create each domain in its own domain container. A domain container can be located anywhere you choose.

This new directory structure provides for greater flexibility when storing application code and configuring server systems. It also promotes best practices for application development. That is, application code should not be stored with the product software.

Note: Directories created using the Configuration Wizard are not removed when you uninstall the software, or overwritten during subsequent installations. If you want to remove these directories, you must delete them manually.

If you launch the installation from the command line or from a script, you can specify the -log option to generate a verbose installation log. The installation log stores messages about events that occur during the installation process, including informational, warning, error, and fatal messages. This type of file can be especially useful for silent installations.

Note: You may see some warning messages in the installation log. However, unless a fatal error occurs, the installation program completes the installation successfully. The installation user interface indicates the success or failure of each installation attempt, and the installation log file includes an entry indicating that the installation was successful.

To create a verbose log file during installation, include the -log=full_path_to_log_file option in the command line. For example:

In these filenames, XXX represents the version number of the software you are installing.

The path must specify a file. You cannot create a folder simply by including a name for it in a pathname; your path should specify only existing folders. If your path includes a nonexistent folder when you execute the command, the installation program does not create the log file.

Upgrade and migration information for WebLogic Platform components is available at the following URL:

WebLogic Platform 7.0 includes the Smart Update feature which provides the capability to quickly and easily upgrade your software with service packs, rolling patches, and subsequent releases of the software.

When you start Smart Update, either from the Windows start menu or from the command line, it checks the version numbers of the products installed (associated with the current BEA Home directory), and then connects to the BEA Web site to check for available updates. For details about using Smart Update, see Installing Service Packs and Rolling Patches.