3 Enterprise Back Office Installation FAQ

This section introduces key Enterprise Back Office concepts, answers frequently asked questions, and describes important installation topics.

• What Components Do I Install?

• What is the Difference Between Enterprise Back Office and Reporting and Analytics?

• What are the Deployment Scenarios Supported by Reporting and Analytics?

• Where Do I Install Gift and Loyalty?

• Where Do I Install Inventory Management?

• Do I Need Security Certificates Before Installation?

• What Components Do I Install?
  
• What is the Difference Between Enterprise Back Office and Reporting and Analytics?
  
• What are the Deployment Scenarios Supported by Reporting and Analytics?
  
• How Do I Upgrade?
  
• Where Do I Install Gift and Loyalty?
  
• Where Do I Install Inventory Management?
  
• Do I Need Security Certificates Before Installation?
  

What Components Do I Install?

Enterprise Back Office is comprised of applications and components that can be installed together or on separate servers. Use the following table and the Oracle MICROS Enterprise Back Office Server Sizing Guide to determine what components your environment needs and what a server in your environment can support:

Table 3-1 Enterprise Back Office Components

Component	Description
Portal WebLogic AdminServer	This component is required and installs Oracle WebLogic and Oracle WebLogic Administration Server.
Portal Managed Server (Reporting and Analytics)	This component is required and installs Oracle WebLogic and the Reporting and Analytics application. You can configure the component to install Labor Management.
Analysis Aggregation	This service is required and populates the Aggregation Database used for Oracle Business Intelligence and Gift and Loyalty segmentation.
Aggregation and Adjustment Service	This service performs data forecasting, generates trends and projections for InMotion Mobile, and suggests inventory cost adjustments.
iCare	This component installs Oracle WebLogic and the Gift and Loyalty application.
Master	This component is the Remote Transfer Agent posting server that receives incoming sales data from the Point-of-Sale applications and manages all Posting servers. Installation is not required if the Point-of-Sale application uses a different method for posting data to the Enterprise Back Office database.
Posting	Install this component on additional Remote Transfer Agent posting server nodes for load balancing.
Admin Server	This services provides export scheduling and product integration.
infoDelivery	This service interfaces with the mail server to process, schedule, and send reports by mail.
Alert Engine	This services provides push notifications and indicators for mobile applications.
Weather	This service interfaces with a third-party weather provider to retrieve up-to-date information, and stores daily weather condition and forecast information.
EMS Batch Service	This service interfaces with RES 3700, e7, and 9700 Point-of-Sale applications to process menu item, price, and tax rate updates.
Simphony Mobile Aggregation	This service interfaces with Oracle MICROS Simphony to aggregate and process sales data for InMotion Mobile.

What is the Difference Between Enterprise Back Office and Reporting and Analytics?

Oracle MICROS Enterprise Back Office refers to the whole product suite that contains Reporting and Analytics, Forecasting and Budget, Labor Management, Inventory Management, Gift and Loyalty, and support for mobile applications such as InMotion Mobile. When documentation refers to an Enterprise Back Office entity, it typically refers to an entity that is shared across two or more of these products.

Oracle Hospitality Reporting and Analytics refers to the core web application that provides reporting and data management. When documentation refers to Reporting and Analytics, it does not include components such as the Remote Transfer Agent, the Admin Server, and the Analysis Aggregation service.

What are the Deployment Scenarios Supported by Reporting and Analytics?

Oracle MICROS Reporting and Analytics supports the following server deployment scenarios:

Table 3-2 Reporting and Analytics Deployment Scenarios

Deployment Scenario	Description
Server Cluster	You install components on multiple servers in the environment as follows: Portal WebLogic AdminServer on one server. Only one server in the environment can host Portal WebLogic AdminServer. Optionally, install Reporting and Analytics on the same server. Reporting and Analytics on other servers. This deployment is typically used by data centers and high-volume customers and supports load-balancing and fail-over redundancy. Other required and optional components, such as the mail server, posting servers, and InfoDelivery service can be installed on the existing servers or on their own servers.
Single Server	You install Portal WebLogic AdminServer and Reporting and Analytics on the same server.

How Do I Upgrade?

Upgrade from Version 8.5.1 to Version 9.1

If you are upgrading Enterprise Back Office from version 8.5 or earlier, remove all components and services of the existing installation. Uninstalling Enterprise Back Office 8.5 or Earlier contains instructions for removing Enterprise Back Office.

If you are upgrading from Enterprise Back Office from version 8.5.1 to version 9.1, follow these high-level steps:

1. Uninstall Enterprise Back Office version 8.5.1, as described in Uninstalling Enterprise Back Office 8.5 or Earlier.

2. Uninstall Java version 1.6.

3. Install the Java version for your release variation. See the Oracle MICROS Enterprise Back Office 9.1 Release Notes for more information on system requirements.

4. Upgrade the Enterprise Back Office 8.5.1 database with the Enterprise Back Office 9.1 database installer.

5. Run the Enterprise Back Office 9.1 installer.

Migrate to the 9.1 New Tech Stack Release

Follow these steps to migrate from a 9.1 or 9.1 with OBIEE environment to the 9.1 New Tech Stack or 9.1 New Tech Stack with Pentaho release:

1. Ensure that the existing 9.1 environment is on patch 9.1.30 or newer.

2. Provision new server with the Microsoft Windows Server 2016 operating system.

3. Install JDK 1.8 update 361. See My Oracle Support (MOS) Doc ID 2330734.1 for the latest supported JDK update.

4. Run the Enterprise Back Office installer.

5. Provide existing database details in the installer.

   Note:

   You can perform an in-place upgrade of Oracle Database 12c to Oracle Database 19c. You can also perform an in-place upgrade of Microsoft SQL Server 2012 to Microsoft SQL Server 2016. Oracle recommends you complete the application migration and the database upgrade in separate steps.

6. Follow the verification steps and post-installation configuration described in the Installation Guide.

7. Apply Patch 9.1.35 or higher.

8. If using 9.1 New Tech Stack with Pentaho release, apply Pentaho Patch Package.

Where Do I Install Gift and Loyalty?

Oracle MICROS recommends installing the Gift and Loyalty web application on a separate application server for hardware requirement and load purposes.

If the Enterprise Back Office database is installed on Microsoft SQL Server, you can install the Gift and Loyalty database with the Enterprise Back Office database. Review the hardware guidelines in the Oracle MICROS Enterprise Back Office Server Sizing Guide to ensure the database server meets hardware and storage requirements.

If you install the Gift and Loyalty application with Reporting and Analytics:

• Verify that the server specifications comply with compatibility information in the Oracle MICROS Enterprise Back Office Release Notes and hardware guidelines in the Oracle MICROS Enterprise Back Office Server Sizing Guide.

• Change the Secure Socket Layer listening port and the listening ports for the network channel in Oracle WebLogic. Changing Gift and Loyalty Ports contains instructions for changing the ports after installation.

Where Do I Install Inventory Management?

Oracle MICROS recommends installing the Inventory Management web application and database on a separate server for hardware requirement and load purposes.

You can install the Inventory Management database on the Enterprise Back Office database server if the server specifications adhere to compatibility information in the Oracle MICROS Enterprise Back Office Release Notes and hardware guidelines in the Oracle MICROS Enterprise Back Office Server Sizing Guide.

Install matching release versions of Enterprise Back Office components. For example, to use Inventory Management with Reporting and Analytics 9.1.0, make sure to install Inventory Management 9.1.0. This does not apply to patches because patch release versions may vary by component.

Do I Need Security Certificates Before Installation?

Oracle MICROS recommends preparing and using security certificates for all applications that support traffic over public communications methods.

For the 9.1 and 9.1 with OBIEE release, if you do not have a security certificate prepared for one or more servers and must proceed with the installation, you can install Enterprise Back Office without enabling Secure Socket Layer (SSL) security. You can then set up SSL using Oracle WebLogic after acquiring the required certificates. See the Oracle MICROS Enterprise Back Office Security Guide for more details on how to enable SSL security, as well as how to request and renew an SSL Certificate, and how to create a Java keystore.

For both 9.1 New Tech Stack releases, CA signed certificates are mandatory for Enterprise Back Office and Gift and Loyalty installations. Installation will not proceed without a CA signed certificate. Follow instructions outlined in the Oracle MICROS Enterprise Back Office Security Guide to request and renew an SSL Certificate as well as create a Java keystore prior to starting the installation. Make sure to follow the keystore and certificate password requirements. Passwords can only use alphanumeric characters. Special characters, symbols, or spaces are not allowed

Gift and Loyalty

Gift and Loyalty requires a security certificate. You cannot proceed with a Gift and Loyalty installation without acquiring a security certificate.