3 Pricing Design Center Pre-Installation Tasks

This chapter describes the tasks that you perform before installing Oracle Communications Pricing Design Center (PDC) 11.2 or 11.2 patch sets.

Pre-Installation Tasks for the Complete PDC Software Installation

Before installing the complete PDC software, do the following:

Installing and Configuring Oracle Database

Oracle recommends that the installation and configuration of Oracle Database be performed by an experienced database administrator. To install and configure Oracle Database, see the Oracle Database installation documentation.

Important:

Do not use compression options (such as COMPRESS ADVANCED LOW) for creating the PDC database.

When you install the software, do the following:

  • Install Oracle Database Enterprise Edition.

  • Create the PDC database.

  • Create a database to store the transformation cross-reference tables, or use the PDC database to store the transformation cross-reference tables.

  • Create a database to store the migration cross-reference tables, or use the PDC database or the transformation cross-reference database to store the migration cross-reference tables.

  • (Optional) Create PDC tablespaces and temporary tablespaces for the following:

    • The PDC schema, to store the pricing and setup components.

    • The transformation cross-reference schema, to store tables that map pricing and setup components in PDC to the corresponding component in a target rating engine.

    • The migration cross-reference schema, to store tables that map the pricing and setup components that are migrated from the BRM database to the corresponding component in a target rating engine.

    Oracle recommends that you create separate PDC tablespaces and temporary tablespaces for each schema. However, you can use a single PDC tablespace and temporary tablespace to create all the schemas.

Configuring the PDC Database

This section describes procedures relating to configuring the PDC database.

Setting the Database Time Zone

The PDC database must have the appropriate local time zone setting.

For more information on setting the time zone, see the Oracle Database Globalization Support Guide.

Note:

Ensure that the BRM database and the PDC database are in the same time zone.

After PDC has been installed, the database time zone cannot be changed. Ensure the time zone is correctly set before installing PDC.

Tuning the Database

Table 3-1 and Table 3-2 provide recommended database parameters for tuning your database for the PDC installation. These are the minimum requirements for PDC.

Table 3-1 Database Creation Parameters

Parameter Recommended Value

SGA+PGA

At least 4 GB in total.

Oracle recommends that you use as much memory as you have available in the machine, and also use Automatic Memory Management.

Processes

2000

Connection mode

Dedicated server

Redo log file size

1024 MB minimum

Table 3-2 Database Initialization Parameters

Parameter Recommended Value

db_file_multiblock_read_count

16

distributed_lock_timeout

7200

dml_locks

9700

job_queue_processes

10

log_buffer

31457280

open_cursors

5000

parallel_max_servers

640

plsql_code_type

NATIVE

Installing JRE/JDK

Install the recommended version of JRE/JDK on the machine on which you want to deploy PDC. See "Additional Software Requirements" for the recommended version of JRE/JDK.

To verify the JRE/JDK version:

  1. Go to the command prompt on the machine on which you want to deploy PDC.

  2. Enter the following command:

    java -version

    The Java version is displayed. For example:

    java version "1.8.0_172"

    If the version displayed does not start with 1.8.0_, JRE/JDK 1.8 is not installed.

For information about installing JRE/JDK, see the Oracle Java documentation.

Installing and Configuring Oracle WebLogic Server

This section describes procedures relating to installing Oracle WebLogic Server and configuring the WebLogic Server domain in which you will deploy PDC.

Downloading and Installing Oracle WebLogic Server

WebLogic Server is a component of the Oracle Fusion Middleware 12c media pack. Oracle Fusion Middleware 12c includes Oracle WebLogic Server 12.2.1.3.0.

  1. Download WebLogic Server 12.2.1.3.0 from the Oracle Software Delivery Web site:

    http://edelivery.oracle.com

  2. Download the WebLogic Server 12.2.1.3.0 patches 26626168 and 27010571 from the My Oracle Support Web site:

    http://support.oracle.com

For information on installing Oracle WebLogic Server 12.2.1.3.0 and the patches, see the Oracle WebLogic Server documentation on the Oracle Help Center:

http://docs.oracle.com

Installing Oracle Application Development Runtime

Oracle Application Development Runtime 12c (12.2.1.3.0) must be installed on the machine on which you will install PDC.

Download Oracle Application Development Runtime 12c from the Oracle Software Delivery Web site:

http://edelivery.oracle.com

For information on installing Oracle Application Development Runtime 12c, see Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation Guide for Application Developer 12c Release.

Note:

The Oracle Fusion Middleware 12c Application Developer Installer installs Oracle Application Development Runtime and Oracle Enterprise Manager.

Creating the Oracle WebLogic Server Domain

To create a WebLogic Server domain in which to deploy PDC, see the description of using the Configuration Wizard in the Oracle WebLogic Server documentation. You can use the Configuration Wizard in graphical mode or console mode.

Important:

If you are migrating the PDC pricing data from a source PDC system to a target PDC system that supports ECE, ensure that you create the WebLogic Server domain for the target PDC system on the same machine on which the WebLogic Server domain for the source PDC system exists.

Table 3-3 shows the values to choose when creating the WebLogic Server domain for PDC.

Create the WebLogic Server domain with at least one managed server configured along with the administration server because Oracle recommends that you deploy PDC on a managed server in the production environment.

Table 3-3 Oracle WebLogic Server Domain Configuration Values

Configuration Value Description

Domain source

Select Generate a domain configured automatically to support the following products.

From the list, select Oracle JRF - 12.2.1.3.0 [oracle_common].

Domain Mode Configuration

Select Production Mode.

JDK Selection

From the Available JDKs list, select the JDK version required for installing PDC. See Table 2-2, "PDC Software Requirements" for the recommended JDK version.

Optional Configuration

Select the following:

  • Administration Server. Select this option to configure the Oracle WebLogic Server domain administration server.

  • (Optional) Managed Servers, Clusters and Machines. Select this option if you want to configure only WebLogic Server domain managed servers or machines that host WebLogic servers.

    Note: PDC does not support WebLogic cluster deployment.

  • (Optional) Deployments and Services. Select this option if you want to target your deployments to servers.

Administration Server Listen Address

Use a listen address that is equal to a resolvable DNS host or IP address.

Administration Server Listen Port

Enter a free port number.

Managed Server Listen Address

(Optional) Enter a listen address that is equal to a resolvable DNS host or IP address.

Managed Server Listen Port

(Optional) Enter a free port number.

Target Deployments to Clusters or Servers

(Optional) Add all libraries to the managed server target and to the administration server.

Target Services to Clusters or Servers

(Optional) Add all services to the managed server target.

SSL Listen Port Enabled

Select the SSL Listen Port Enabled check box.

SSL Listen Port

Enter a free port number.

See Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation Guide for Oracle Enterprise Content Management Suite 12c Release for more information on WebLogic Server domains.

You can now start the administration server manually and log in to WebLogic Administration Console.

Configuring SSL for the WebLogic Server Domain

If you want to enable secure communication for PDC, you must configure secure sockets layer (SSL) for the WebLogic Server domain in which you deploy PDC.

To configure SSL for the WebLogic Server domain:

  1. Generate the server-side keystore file by using the recommended version of the JRE/JDK keytool utility. See Key and Certificate Management Tool for more information.

  2. Export the public certificate from the server-side keystore file by using the recommended version of the JRE/JDK keytool utility. See Key and Certificate Management Tool for more information.

  3. Generate the client-side keystore file from the exported public certificate by using the recommended version of the JRE/JDK keytool utility. See Key and Certificate Management Tool for more information.

    Note:

    Note the path of the client-side keystore file. You need to provide this path during the PDC installation if you choose to use SSL.

  4. Configure SSL for the server on which you want to deploy PDC in WebLogic Server Administration Console. See the Oracle WebLogic Administration Console Help for more information.

  5. Enable Java Secure Socket Extension-based SSL for the server on which you want to deploy PDC in WebLogic Server Administration Console. See the Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console Help for more information.

Configuring the SSL Protocol Version

In a production environment, Oracle recommends the TLSv1 protocol for sending and receiving messages in an SSL connection.

Important:

You need to set the same protocol version for managed servers and the administration server. Ensure that all the managed servers are down when making changes to the administration server for setting up the protocol. Oracle recommends to set the properties in the administration server and then the managed server.

To set the minimum protocol version to TLS V1, specify the following as a command-line option in the WebLogic Server startup parameters:

-Dweblogic.security.SSL.minimumProtocolVersion=TLSv1.0

Note:

When you set a minimum protocol version, the TLS protocol that is enabled depend on the protocols that are configured in the SSL implementation.

See the discussion about specifying the version of the SSL protocol in the Oracle WebLogic Server documentation for more information.

Setting the JAVA_HOME Environment Variable

Set the JAVA_HOME environment variable to the recommended version of JRE/JDK before running any PDC processes.

To set the JAVA_HOME environment variable on the machine on which you want to deploy PDC:

  1. Open the .cshrc file in a text editor.

  2. Add or modify the following entries:

    setenv JAVA_HOME jre/jdk_path

    where jre/jdk_path is the absolute path to the directory in which JRE/JDK is installed.

    For example:

    setenv JAVA_HOME /pinhome/pin136/opt/portal/7.5/ThirdPartyApps/jre/1.8.0

  3. Save and close the file.

  4. Update the environment by running the following command:

    source .cshrc

  5. Verify the Java version by running the following command:

    $JAVA_HOME/bin/java -version

    The Java version is displayed. For example:

    java version "1.8.0_172"Java(TM) SE Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_172-b07)Java HotSpot(TM) 64-Bit Server VM (build 20.60-b01, mixed mode)

To set the JAVA_HOME environment variable for the WebLogic Server domain:

  1. Go to the MW_home/user_projects/domains/bin directory, where MW_home is the directory in which the Oracle Middleware components are installed.

  2. Open the setDomain.sh file in a text editor.

  3. Add or modify the following entries before the EXTRA_JAVA_PROPERTIES entry:

    JAVA_HOME="${JAVA_HOME}"
export JAVA_HOME

  4. Save and close the file.

Enabling JRE Permissions

To enable JRE permissions:

  1. Go to the jre/jdk_path/lib/security directory.

  2. Open the java.policy file in a text editor.

  3. Add the following entries to the file:

    grant {// JMX Java Management eXtensionspermission javax.management.MBeanTrustPermission "register";};

  4. Save and close the file.

Enabling Compatibility View in Internet Explorer 11

To enable compatibility view in Internet Explorer 11:

  1. In Windows 10, open Internet Explorer 11.

  2. Press Alt.

  3. From the Tools menu, select Compatibility View settings.

    The Compatibility View Settings dialog box appears.

  4. In the Add this website field, enter oracle.com.

  5. Click Add.

  6. Click Close.

Installing and Configuring BRM

Note:

You cannot use PDC 11.2 with BRM 7.4.

Install the following on the machine on which you will install PDC BRM Integration Pack:

To install BRM 7.5 and the BRM 7.5 patch set:

  1. Download BRM 7.5 from the Oracle Software Delivery Web site:

    http://edelivery.oracle.com

  2. Install BRM and Pipeline Manager. For more information, see BRM Installation Guide.

  3. Download the BRM 7.5 patch set from the My Oracle Support Web site.

    http://support.oracle.com

  4. Install the BRM 7.5 patch set. For more information, see the corresponding BRM 7.5 Patch Set Installation Guide.

Enabling BRM-PDC Integration

After installing BRM, enable the BRM-PDC integration in BRM. This enables PDC to transform and transfer pricing components configured in PDC to BRM. See the discussion about the PDC and BRM integration process flow in PDC User's Guide for more information.

To enable the BRM-PDC integration:

  1. Go to BRM_home/sys/data/config and run the following command, which creates an editable XML file from the pricing instance of the /config/business_params object, where BRM_home is the directory in which BRM is installed.

    BRM_home/bin/pin_bus_params -r BusParamsPricing bus_params_pricing.xml

    This directory includes the support files used by the pin_bus_params utility. To run it from a different directory, see the discussion about the pin_bus_params utility in the BRM documentation.

    This command creates the XML file named bus_params_pricing.xml.out in your working directory. If you do not want this file in your working directory, specify the path as part of the file name.

  2. Search the bus_params_pricing.xml.out file for the following line:

    <PriceDesignCenterInst>disabled</PriceDesignCenterInst>

  3. Change disabled to enabled.

  4. Save the file as bus_params_pricing.xml.

  5. Run the following command, which loads the updated file into the /config/business_params object:

    BRM_home/bin/pin_bus_params bus_params_pricing.xml

  6. Read the object with the testnap utility or Object Browser to verify that all fields are correct. See the discussion about reading an object and fields in BRM Developer's Guide.

  7. Stop and restart the Connection Manager (CM).

    For more information, see the discussion about starting and stopping the BRM system in BRM System Administrator's Guide.

Obtaining the PDC Software

You can obtain and install the PDC 11.2 or PDC 11.2 Patch Set 1 complete software.

Obtaining the PDC 11.2 Software

To obtain the PDC 11.2 software:

  1. On the machine hosting the Oracle WebLogic Server domain, create a temporary directory (temp_dir).

  2. Go to the Oracle software delivery Web site:

    http://edelivery.oracle.com

  3. Sign in with your user name and password.

  4. Search for the PDC software pack and select the PDC 11.2 software pack from the search results.

  5. From the Platform list, select the platform.

  6. Download the PDC server software pack to temp_dir.

  7. Unzip the PDC server software pack and extract the contents to temp_dir.

Obtaining the PDC 11.2 Patch Set 1 Software

To obtain the PDC 11.2 Patch Set 1 software:

  1. Create a temporary directory (temp_dir).

  2. Go to the My Oracle Support Web site:

    https://support.oracle.com

  3. Sign in with your user name and password.

  4. Click the Patches & Updates tab.

  5. From the list, select Patch Name or Number.

  6. In the text field, enter 28738471 and click Search.

    The Patch Search Results page appears.

  7. Click the Patch Name or Number.

    The patch details appear.

  8. From the Platform list, select the platform and click Download.

    The File Download dialog box appears.

  9. Download the appropriate p28738471_112010_platform.zip file to temp_dir, where platform is linux or solaris.

    The File Download dialog box appears.

  10. Unzip the p28738471_112010_Generic.zip file.

Pre-Installation Tasks for the PDC Software Upgrade

Before upgrading to PDC 11.2 or 11.2 Patch Set 1, do the following:

Important:

When upgrading from PDC 11.1 to PDC 11.2 or 11.2 patch sets, note the following:

A direct upgrade from the PDC 11.1 Patch Set 7 release or an earlier patch set release is not supported.

If you want to upgrade from 11.1 to 11.2, you must have PDC 11.1 Patch Set 8 or later releases through PDC 11.1 Patch Set 12 installed.

If you want to upgrade from 11.1 to the 11.2 patch set, you must have PDC 11.1 Patch Set 11 or PDC 11.1 Patch Set 12 installed.

  • Shut down the current PDC instance. See "Shutting Down the Current Instance" for more information.

  • Make a complete offline backup of your existing PDC installation. See "Backing Up the Current Installation" for more information.

  • If you are using Oracle Communications Billing and Revenue Management Elastic Charging Engine (ECE) for usage rating, install the recommended version of the ECE 11.3 patch set on the machine on which ECE 11.3 is installed. See "Installing the ECE Patch Set" for more information.

  • Install the recommended version of the BRM 7.5 patch set on the machine on which BRM 7.5 is installed. See "Installing the BRM Patch Set" for more information.

  • Install the recommended version of JRE/JDK on the machine on which PDC 11.1 is installed. See "Installing JRE/JDK" for more information.

  • Upgrade the PDC database. If you have created separate database for migration and transformation, upgrade the migration cross-reference database and the transformation cross-reference database. For instructions to upgrade the database, see the Oracle Database upgrade documentation.

  • If you have installed PDC and BRM Integration Pack on different machines, copy the client-side keystore (client.jks) file that you generated to the machine on which BRM Integration Pack is installed.

  • Undeploy the existing PDC installation deployed on the WebLogic Server domain. For instructions, see the discussion about undeploying applications in the Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console Help.

  • Install the recommended version of WebLogic Server (on the machine on which PDC 11.1 is installed). See "Downloading and Installing Oracle WebLogic Server" for more information.

  • Set the JAVA_HOME environment variable. See "Setting the JAVA_HOME Environment Variable" for more information.

  • Enable JRE permissions. See "Enabling JRE Permissions" for more information.

  • Enable compatibility view for PDC in Internet Explorer 11. See "Enabling Compatibility View in Internet Explorer 11" for more information.

  • Upgrade Oracle Application Development Runtime (on the machine on which PDC 11.1 is installed) to the recommended version. See "Installing Oracle Application Development Runtime" for more information.

  • Enable the SSL port for the WebLogic Server domain in which the existing PDC 11.1 patch set is deployed, if it is not enabled during the WebLogic Server domain creation. See "Enabling the SSL Port for the WebLogic Server Domain" for more information.

  • Configure the minimum SSL protocol version that is enabled for SSL connection, if it is not configured during the WebLogic Server domain creation. See "Configuring the SSL Protocol Version" for more information.

  • Obtain the PDC software. See "Obtaining the PDC Software" for more information.

Shutting Down the Current Instance

To shut down the current PDC instance:

  1. Ensure that no users are logged in.

    Users include customers, client applications, customer service representatives (CSRs), and so on.

  2. Stop all PDC processes.

    Only the PDC database instance should be running during the PDC patch installation.

Backing Up the Current Installation

To prevent any data loss and minimize the impact of software or hardware failure during the patch installation, back up your existing installation.

Before installing the patch set, make a complete offline backup of the following:

  • The WebLogic server domains directory; by default, MW_home/user_projects/domains.

  • The Oracle Inventory (oraInventory) directory. Open the /etc/oraInst.loc (Linux) file or the /var/opt/oracle/OraInst.loc (Solaris) file to find the default location of the oraInventory directory.

  • The PDC database schema. See your database documentation for more information on performing full database backups.

  • The transformation cross-reference database schema. See your database documentation for more information on performing full database backups.

    Important:

    Store this backup in a safe location. The data in these files will become necessary if you encounter any issues in the installation process.

  • The migration cross-reference database schema, if you installed the migration utility during the PDC 11.1 Patch Set 4 or PDC 11.1 Patch Set 5 installation. See your database documentation for more information on performing full database backups.

Installing the ECE Patch Set

You must install the recommended version of the ECE 11.3 patch set on the machine on which ECE is installed.

To install the ECE 11.3 patch set:

  1. Stop Pricing Updater.

  2. Download the ECE 11.3 patch set from the My Oracle Support Web site.

    http://support.oracle.com

  3. Install the ECE 11.3 patch set. For more information, see ECE Installation Guide.

Installing the BRM Patch Set

You must install the recommended version of the BRM 7.5 patch set on the machine on which BRM is installed.

Note:

The BRM 7.5 patch set installation must be performed as the UNIX user who installed BRM Integration Pack; for example, pin_user.

To install the BRM 7.5 patch set:

  1. Download the BRM 7.5 patch set from the My Oracle Support Web site.

    http://support.oracle.com

  2. Install the BRM 7.5 patch set. For more information, see the corresponding BRM 7.5 Patch Set Installation Guide.

Installing JRE/JDK

Install the recommended version of JRE/JDK on the machine on which you deployed PDC. See "Additional Software Requirements" for the recommended version of JRE/JDK.

To verify the JRE/JDK version:

  1. Go to the command prompt on the machine on which you want to deploy PDC.

  2. Enter the following command:

    java -version

    The Java version is displayed. For example:

    java version "1.8.0_172"

    If the version displayed does not start with 1.8.0_, JRE/JDK 1.8 is not installed.

For information about installing JRE/JDK, see the Oracle Java documentation.

Enabling the SSL Port for the WebLogic Server Domain

Before installing PDC 11.2, enable the SSL port for the WebLogic Server domain in which you deployed PDC if it is not enabled. You must enable the SSL port even if you are not configuring SSL for the WebLogic Server domain.

To enable the SSL port for the WebLogic Server domain:

  1. Start the WebLogic Server domain.

  2. Log in to WebLogic Server Administration Console.

  3. In the Environment tree, click Servers.

    The Summary of Servers pane appears.

  4. Select the server in which you want to deploy PDC.

  5. Click the Configuration tab.

  6. Click the General subtab.

  7. Select the SSL Listen Port Enabled check box.

  8. In the SSL Listen Port field, enter a free port number.

  9. Click Save.

  10. Log out of WebLogic Server Administration Console.

  11. Restart the WebLogic Server domain.

See the discussion about enabling the SSL port in the Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console Help for more information.

Pre-Installation Tasks for the PDC Patch Set Installation

Before installing PDC 11.2 Patch Set 1 on an existing PDC 11.2 installation, do the following:

Granting Permissions for Required Files

To grant permissions for required files:

  1. Go to the PDC_home/oui/bin directory, where PDC_home is the directory in which you installed PDC.

  2. Run the following commands:

    chmod 755 README_deinstall.md

    chmod 755 cleanup_weblogic_domain.py