Installation Problems

As a critical first step, examine the installation log files.

The install log file is the Oracle_iPlanet_Web_Server_install.log file located in install-dir/setup/ directory. Install log file entries contain information about the attempted action, the outcome of the action, and the cause of failure if applicable. Entries fall into three categories: INFO, WARNING, and ERROR.

For more information on the installation log, see Viewing Installation Log Files in Oracle iPlanet Web Server 7.0.9 Installation and Migration Guide.

Check if the DISPLAY environment variable is set properly on the machine used for installation. The DISPLAY variable needs to be set to the IP address of that machine, followed by a screen address, which can always be assumed to be :0.0. On Linux/Unix, execute echo $DISPLAY to find the value.

Failed Installation

If your installation fails, investigate the installation log.

Existing Installation Detected

The installer maintains an entry in the product registry. If installation files are removed incorrectly (for example, if the files are manually deleted instead of being removed by running the uninstaller), the files may be gone but the Web Server entries remain in the product registry. If you then try to re-install to that location, a message displays indicating that an existing installation has been detected, even though it appears that the installation does not exist. To remedy the situation, go to the product registry and delete the entries manually.

The location of the product registry differs for each platform.

Again, the information in this section applies only if files were removed in some way other than by using the Web Server uninstaller.

Product Registry on Solaris

On Solaris, the product registry is in /var/sadm/install/productregistry.

In the productregistry file, remove the content between <components> and </components>, and you should then be able to install to the location. The following example shows a product registry file on Solaris.

Example 2–1 Example Product Registry File

<productregistry>
	<version>7.0
	</version>
	<components>
		<compid>webcore
			<compversion>1.0
				<uniquename>webcore
				</uniquename>
				<compinstance>1
					<comptype>COMPONENT
					</comptype>
					<location>/sun/gj/ws7
					</location>
				</compinstance>
			</compversion>
		</compid>
		<compid>java
			<compversion>1.0
				<uniquename>java
				</uniquename>
				<compinstance>1
					<comptype>COMPONENT
					</comptype>
					<location>/sun/gj/ws7
					</location>
				</compinstance>
			</compversion>
		</compid>
		<compid>snmp
			<compversion>1.0
				<uniquename>snmp
				</uniquename>
				<compinstance>1
					<comptype>COMPONENT
					</comptype>
					<location>/sun/gj/ws7
					</location>
				</compinstance>
			</compversion>
		</compid>
	</components>
</productregistry>

Product Registry on Linux

On Linux, the product registry is in /var/opt/sun/install/productregistry.

Product Registry on Windows

On Windows, the product registry is in C:\WINNT\system32.

The installation will fail if the Windows registry contains the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Sun Microsystems\WebServer\7.0 entry. Remove this entry using Registry Editor, and you should then be able to install to the desired location.

If you get an error related to the https-admserv70 service, remove the following entry from the registry and try installing again: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\https-admserv70.

Defaults to Command-Line Mode

On UNIX systems, the installer and uninstaller default to command-line mode if the DISPLAY environment variable has not been exported to your local machine and if X Windows is not supported.