The Endeca Server is a J2EE application that runs in a J2EE
container in the Oracle WebLogic Server. The Endeca Server uses WebLogic 11g
(10.3.6), and Application Development Framework 11g (11.1.1.6). This topic
discusses the integration in detail.
The Endeca Server software exposes almost
all of its APIs as SOAP web services. Starting with the Endeca Server version
7.5.0, those web services are implemented using the Oracle WebLogic Server 11g
(WebLogic Server version 10.3.6), inside a hosted web application called the
Endeca Server.
The Endeca Server delegates most of its actual query processing to its
own internal component, the Dgraph, which is external to the WebLogic Server,
is not Java-based, and must be running in each active Endeca Server instance.
For single-node development environments, you can deploy the Endeca
Server instance in the single Admin Server in the WebLogic Server. In the
Endeca Server cluster, all Endeca Server instances must be running on the
Managed Servers only.
Important: This Installation Guide relies on those components
that are available in the WebLogic Server installation under the Oracle
Restricted Use License. If your site already has access to the fuller version
of the WebLogic Server, additional components may be available to you. However,
the instructions in this guide do not guarantee that any other components of
the WebLogic Server can be used with the Endeca Server. Additionally, certain
components, such as the Enterprise Manager, are not discussed in this guide.
How the WebLogic Server is used
The Endeca Server application hosted in the WebLogic domain utilizes
the following features of the WebLogic Server and Application Development
Framework (this list is not guaranteed to be exhaustive):
- The Java Required Files
(JRF). The JRF template is used for the domain configuration of the Oracle
WebLogic Server targeted for using it with the Endeca Server. (This template is
used automatically when you create an Endeca Server domain in the WebLogic
Server.)
- The WebLogic deployment
tools. You use the Configuration Wizard for creating a WebLogic domain for JRF
and the Endeca Server. The Endeca Server uses the Administration Console and
WLST (the WebLogic Server Scripting Tool) for starting and stopping the Managed
Servers hosting the Endeca Server instances.
- The WebLogic Server
security features, for ensuring security of the Endeca Server processing,
interfaces, and data.
The Endeca Server does not utilize the following features of the
WebLogic Server (this list is not exhaustive):
- The WebLogic Server
message catalog and the default Java Logging API are not used for logging from
the Endeca Server. Instead, the Endeca Server uses the Oracle Diagnostic
Logging (ODL). Note that any messages from the WebLogic domain itself (and not
the Endeca Server application running inside it) utilize the default message
catalog and the Java Logging API from the WebLogic Server.
- The WebLogic Server JDBC
modules or resources are not used in the Endeca Server package (as they are not
required).
- The WebLogic Server
clusters are not used by the Endeca Server for load balancing and request
routing. Instead, the Endeca Server cluster accepts requests on any Endeca
Server instance, and utilizes its own routing service. Depending on the
deployment strategy, an external load balancer can also be used.
Important: For performance and troubleshooting purposes, it
is preferable to dedicate a WebLogic domain to hosting only the Endeca Server
Java application. In this case, the
endeca-server root context is used in the URL
pointing to any of the WebLogic Server instances hosting the Endeca Server
application.