A Using Oracle Fusion Middleware Configuration Files

Although we recommend that you use Oracle Enterprise Manager 11g Fusion Middleware Control for administering Oracle Portal, you can also make changes directly through Oracle Fusion Middleware's configuration files and tables. This appendix provides information about the files and tables that can affect the connection to, and the behavior of, Oracle Fusion Middleware and its components in the middle tier and on other computers to which it is connecting.

A.1 Oracle HTTP Server Configuration File (httpd.conf)

The Oracle HTTP Server configuration file, httpd.conf, contains configuration information for running the Oracle HTTP Server. The content of this file includes information about listening ports, server names, virtual hosts, proxy configurations, and the like. This file also configures Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) support by defining information such as certificates and other HTTPS configuration directives. This file is available at the following location:

ORACLE_INSTANCE\config\OHS\ohs1\httpd.conf

If you create additional virtual hosts in Oracle HTTP Server, then you must add the RewriteEngine and RewriteOptions mod_rewrite directives for the virtual host that is used by Oracle Portal, in the httpd.conf file as shown in the following example (shown in bold text):

NameVirtualHost *:7778
<VirtualHost *:7778>
  ServerName http://www.xyz.com:7779
  ServerAdmin you@your.address
  RewriteEngine On
  RewriteOptions inherit
</VirtualHost>

Example A-1 httpd.conf

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" standalone="yes" ?> 
- <portal-midtier xmlns="http://xmlns.oracle.com/portal/config/midtier" description="Oracle Portal Midtier Configuration Parameters">
  <useWebCache>true</useWebCache> 
  <jspRoot>internal_jsp</jspRoot> 
  <jspSrcAlias>/internal_jsp/</jspSrcAlias> 
  <useSessionMemorycache>true</useSessionMemorycache> 
  <autoRedirect>true</autoRedirect> 
  <maxParallelPortlets>20</maxParallelPortlets> 
  <maxParallelPagePortlets>10</maxParallelPagePortlets> 
  </portal-midtier>

A.2 DAD Configuration File (portal_dads.conf)

This file contains the configuration parameters for the PL/SQL Database Access Descriptor (DAD). A DAD is a set of values that specifies how a database server should fulfill an HTTP request.

You can modify a Portal DAD by editing the portal_dads.conf file using Oracle Enterprise Manager 11g Fusion Middleware Control, WLST, or by manually editing the file.

Using Fusion Middleware Contol
Configuring a Portal DAD Using WLST
Manually Editing the portal_dads.conf File

If you manually update the portal_dads.conf file, then you must also add the necessary mod_rewrite and mod_wls directives in the httpd.conf and mod_weblogic.conf files respectively.

Using Fusion Middleware Contol

Perform the following tasks using Fusion Middleware Control:

Open Oracle Enterprise Manager 11g Fusion Middleware Control.
Open the Portal instance.
From the Portal menu, select Settings, and then select Database Access Descriptor to display the DAD configuration information.

To edit the DAD file:

Select the portal DAD entry to edit and click Edit.
Enter the new values and click OK.
Restart the Oracle HTTP Server and WLS_PORTAL components.

This ensures that the required mod_rewrite and mod_weblogic directives are added.

For more information about configuring DADs or using Oracle Fusion Middleware Control, refer to the Oracle Fusion Middleware Administrator's Guide.

Manually Editing the portal_dads.conf File

Based on the type of updates you make in the portal_dads.conf file, perform all or some of the following tasks:

If you added a new portal DAD in the portal_dads.conf file, then you must add the following Rewrite directives to the httpd.conf file:
```
RewriteRule (^/pls/<dad>/.*) /portal$1 [PT]
RewriteRule (^/pls/<dad>$) /portal$1 [PT]
```
where <dad> is the name of the new DAD. For example:
```
RewriteRule (^/pls/mydad/.*) /portal$1 [PT]
RewriteRule (^/pls/mydad$) /portal$1 [PT]
```
If you modified a DAD name in the portal_dads.conf file, then you must update the Rewrite directives described in the previous step with the new DAD name.
To update the manual configuration changes done on the middle tier, run the following commands:
```
ORACLE_INSTANCE/bin/opmnctl restartproc process-type=OHS
```

Updating the plsqlSessionCookieName Value

Although you can change the plsqlSessionCookieName in Fusion Middleware Control, you can also manually change the value in the portal_dads.conf file. This file is located under:

DOMAIN_HOME\config\fmwconfig\servers\WLS_PORTAL\applications\portal\configuration

A typical entry in this file looks like this:

<Location /pls/portal>
    SetHandler pls_handler
    Order allow,deny
    Allow from All
    AllowOverride None
    PlsqlDatabaseUsername portal
    PlsqlDatabasePassword SomePassword
    PlsqlDatabaseConnectString myhost.domain.com:1521:mySID
    PlsqlDefaultPage portal.home
    PlsqlAuthenticationMode SingleSignOn
    PlsqlSessionCookieName portal
    PlsqlMaxRequestsPerSession 500
    PlsqlDocumentTablename portal.wwdoc_document
    PlsqlDocumentPath docs
    PlsqlDocumentProcedure portal.wwdoc_process.process_download
    PlsqlPathAlias url
    PlsqlPathAliasProcedure portal.wwpth_api_alias.process_download
    PlsqlFetchBufferSize 128
</Location>

To edit a DAD entry, change the value of PlsqlSessionCookieName, for example, portal2. After saving the file, update the Oracle HTTP Server configuration and restart the WLS_PORTAL.

A.3 Oracle Database Connection Configuration

SQL*Net configuration files define the entries that can be used as connect strings in the DADs. Typically, the portal_dads.conf located in DOMAIN_HOME\config\fmwconfig\servers\WLS_PORTAL\applications\portal\configuration and sqlnet.ora file located in DATABASE_HOME\network\admin contain information on how Oracle WebLogic Server can connect to the database where the Oracle Portal installation is located.

For more details on SQL*Net configuration, refer to the Oracle Database Net Services Administrator's Guide in the Oracle Database 11g documentation library.

A.4 Web Cache Configuration Files

Information about the Oracle Web Cache configuration files can be found in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Administrator's Guide for Oracle Web Cache.

A.5 OracleAS Single Sign-On's Partner Application Table

The configuration table on the OracleAS Single Sign-On's side is the partner application Table, WWSSO_PAPP_CONFIGURATION_INFO$. Maintenance of this table is typically done using the OracleAS Single Sign-On application's user interface for adding or editing partner applications.

For an initial installation, you need to register the Portal's mod_osso_url using ssoreg tool, this populates both the OracleAS Single Sign-On's partner configuration table and Oracle Portal's enabler configuration table. For example:

$ORACLE_HOME/sso/bin/ssoreg.sh
-site_name portal.example.com:8090
-config_mod_osso TRUE
-mod_osso_url http://portal.example.com:8090
-remote_midtier
-config_file config_file_path

On Windows, you must run the ssoreg.bat batch file.

A.6 Local HOSTS File

The HOSTS file on a network host defines mappings of IP names to IP addresses. Normally, a Domain Name Server (DNS) provides the mapping of IP name to IP address. In some of the configurations described in Chapter 5, "Basic Configuration and Administration", a host may need to be addressed in an internal network with a domain name that is not defined within the internal network. In these cases, the server's HOSTS file can provide the necessary name resolution.