2 Installing and Configuring Oracle Forms and Reports

This chapter describes how to install and configure Oracle Forms and Reports.

The following topics are covered:

2.1 Preparing to Install

Before you begin installing Oracle Forms and Reports, it would be helpful if you understand the installation requirements. To prepare for your Oracle Forms and Reports installation, verify that your system meets the basic requirements, then obtain the correct installation software.

You should also ensure that your environment and other software requirements are met.

2.1.1 Reviewing Certification, System, and Interoperability Requirements

Oracle recommends that you use the certification matrix and system requirements documents with each other to verify that your environment meets the requirements for installation.

Verifying that your environment meets certification requirements

Make sure that you install your product on a supported hardware and software configuration. See the certification document for your release on the Oracle Fusion Middleware Supported System Configurations page.

Oracle has tested and verified the performance of your product on all certified systems and environments. Whenever new certifications are released, they are added to the certification document right away. New certifications can be released at any time. Therefore, the certification documents are kept outside the documentation libraries and are available on Oracle Technology Network.
Using the system requirements document to verify certification

Oracle recommends that you use the Oracle Fusion Middleware System Requirements and Specifications document to verify that the certification requirements are met. For example, if the certification document indicates that your product is certified for installation on 64-Bit Oracle Linux 6.5, use this document to verify that your system meets the required minimum specifications. These include disk space, available memory, specific platform packages and patches, and other operating system-specific requirements. System requirements can change in the future. Therefore, the system requirement documents are kept outside of the documentation libraries and are available on Oracle Technology Network.
Verifying interoperability among multiple products

To learn how to install and run multiple Fusion Middleware products from the same release or mixed releases with each other, see Oracle Fusion Middleware 12c Interoperability and Compatibility in Understanding Interoperability and Compatibility.

2.1.2 Understand Oracle Fusion Middleware Concepts

If you are new to Oracle Fusion Middleware, see About Key Oracle Fusion Middleware Concepts in Understanding Oracle Fusion Middleware to familiarize yourself with some concepts and terminology you will encounter.

2.1.3 Obtaining the Oracle Fusion Middleware Software

Depending on your specific needs, there are multiple locations to obtain Oracle Fusion Middleware software.

For specific information on the distributions you need to download, see the Oracle Fusion Middleware Download, Installation, and Configuration Readme Files on Oracle Technology Network (OTN) page.

To install and configure Oracle Forms and Reports, you will need to download the following software:

The installer for a certified version of Oracle WebLogic Server (FMW Infrastructure). Make sure you refer to the certification document, as described in Reviewing Certification, System, and Interoperability Requirements, to determine which version of Oracle WebLogic Server (FMW Infrastructure) you should obtain.
The installer for Oracle Forms and Reports.
If you want to secure your Oracle Forms and Reports installation with Identity Management, you can also download Oracle Internet Directory with Oracle Access Management.

Make a note of the directory where you download each installer; you will need this information when it is time to run the installer for each product.

2.1.4 Installing Oracle Forms and Oracle Reports on Separate Servers

You can install Oracle Forms and Reports on different server by performing specific configurations.

To install Oracle Forms and Reports on different servers, you must perform manual configuration in order for these two products to be able to communicate properly with each other, as described in Communication Between Reports and Forms When Installed on Different Instances.

2.1.5 Installing Oracle Forms and Reports in a New Oracle home

Oracle Forms and Reports must be installed inside an Oracle home directory, which is created when Oracle WebLogic Server is installed.

Oracle Forms and Reports must be installed in its own Oracle home directory that it does not share with any other Oracle Fusion Middleware products of a different version.

2.1.6 Installing Oracle Forms and Reports as a Non-Default User

On UNIX operating systems, the installation of Fusion Middleware products is owned and controlled as a known user (for example, "oracle"). The file permissions associated with this installation are configured to ensure the highest level of security possible, which by default are 700 (meaning all files are owned and accessible by the owner only).

Changing the default permissions settings will reduce the security of the installation and possibly your system. Therefore, making such a change is not recommended. If other user require access to particular files or executables, the UNIX sudo command (or other similar command) should be considered in lieu of changing file permissions.

Refer to your UNIX operating system Administrator's Guide or contact your operating system vendor if you need further assistance.

On Windows operating systems, the user must be a member of the Windows "Admin" group. This gives the user the proper permissions required to start and stop processes after the installation, including the Builders.

2.1.7 Overview of Installation and Configuration Steps

To complete the installation and configuration of Oracle Forms and Reports, this section lists the basic steps you have to perform.

Installation and Configuration Steps

Perform the following steps to complete the installation and configuration of Oracle Forms and Reports:

Install WebLogic Server Infrastructure.
Install Forms and Reports.
Run Repository Creation Utility (RCU).
Run Configuration Wizard.
Start all servers to complete configuration.

2.2 Installing Oracle WebLogic Server (FMW Infrastructure)

Oracle Forms and Reports requires Oracle WebLogic Server (FMW Infrastructure), which creates the Oracle home directory during installation.

The Oracle Fusion Middleware certification document for a specific release provides information about the minimum required Oracle WebLogic Server (FMW Infrastructure) version. See the certification document for your release on the Oracle Fusion Middleware Supported System Configurations page.

Planning Your Oracle Home Location for Oracle Reports (Windows Only)

If you are installing Oracle Reports on Microsoft Windows operating system, Oracle home directory path should not be not too long, as described in Verify Environment Variable Lengths for Oracle Reports (Windows Only)

Downloading the Correct Installer for Your Operating System

To obtain the Oracle WebLogic Server (FMW Infrastructure) installer, see Obtaining the Oracle Fusion Middleware Software.

Finding Oracle WebLogic Server (FMW Infrastructure) Installation Instructions

Follow the Oracle WebLogic Server (FMW Infrastructure) installation instructions, as described in Installing Oracle WebLogic Server and Coherence for WebLogic Server MT. The WebLogic Server installation must be completed so that an Oracle home directory is created; you do not have to create a WebLogic Server domain as the Oracle Forms and Reports installer will allow you to do this for your Oracle Forms and Reports products.

If you are installing on Microsoft Windows operating system, after your Oracle WebLogic Server (FMW Infrastructure) installation is complete, perform the steps in the following section.

Stopping Node Manager Before Installing Oracle Forms and Reports (Windows Only)

If you are installing Oracle Forms and Reports on a Microsoft Windows operating system, you must ensure that the Node Manager utility that was installed with Oracle WebLogic Server is stopped before you begin the installation:

Verify the Oracle WebLogic Server Node Manager utility is stopped. If it is running, end the process.
Determine if the nodemanager.properties file is present in the WebLogic_Home\common\nodemanager directory.
1. If the nodemanager.properties file is not present, continue installing Oracle Forms and Reports.
2. If the nodemanager.properties file does exist, open it and verify that the ListenPort parameter is included and that it is set. If the ListenPort parameter is not included or set, edit the nodemanager.properties file so that it is similar to the following, where NODE_MANAGER_LISTEN_PORT represents the port the Node Manager listens on, such as 5556:
```
ListenPort=NODE_MANAGER_LISTEN_PORT
```

2.3 Installing Oracle Identity and Access Management

Oracle Identity and Access Management helps to secure Oracle Forms and Reports installation.

Your Oracle Forms and Reports installation can be protected with Identity Management (see Secure Oracle Forms and Reports With Identity Management). If you choose to secure your Oracle Forms and Reports with Oracle Internet Directory and Oracle Access Manager, you must download and install these products if you do not already have them.

Oracle Identity and Access Management must be installed in a separate Oracle home directory from your Oracle Forms and Reports installation (see Installing Oracle Forms and Reports in a New Oracle home). For performance reasons, Oracle recommends that Oracle Forms and Reports is installed on a separate machine from your Oracle Identity Management product.

See Installing and Configuring Oracle Identity and Access Management, to install and configure Oracle Identity and Access Management.

2.4 Installing and Configuring Oracle Forms and Reports

You have to perform a series of steps to install and then configure Oracle Forms using the configuration wizard.

The following sections are included:

2.4.1 Starting the Oracle Forms and Reports Installer

To start the installer, navigate to the directory where you have downloaded the Forms and Reports compressed folder containing the installer files.

On Windows operating system, extract the compressed folder.

fmw_12.2.1.3.0_fr_win64_Disk1_1of2.zip

An executable .exe file is extracted which you have to double-click to start the installer.

setup_fmw_12.2.1.3.0_fr_win64.exe

On UNIX / Linux operating systems, an executable .bin file is extracted from the compressed folder, which starts the installer.

unzip fmw_12.2.1.3.0_fr_linux64_Disk1_1of2.zip
./fmw_12.2.1.3.0_fr_linux64.bin

Note:

The Forms and Reports 12c Disk-1 compressed installer files folder for IBM AIX operating system does not include the rootpre.sh script files. So, you do not need to run the rootpre.sh script as the root user before starting the installer. The rootpre.sh script was used in pervious version of FMW installer to load postwait driver pw-syscall.
Some platforms may have multiple download files or disks, such as Disk-1 and Disk-2. You should extract all the files, for example executable .exe file, from the downloaded compressed (zipped) folder. If the downloaded compressed (zipped) folder contains another compressed (zipped) file, you should not extract that compressed file contained within the original compressed (zipped) folder. You should store all the extracted files from the compressed folder in the same directory before starting the installer.

2.4.2 View the Installation Log Files

The installer writes logs files to the Oracle_Inventory_Location/log (on UNIX operating systems) or Oracle_Inventory_Location\logs (on Windows operating systems) directory. See Installation Log Files for information about log files and their contents.

2.4.3 Configuring Your Oracle Inventory (UNIX)

If you are installing on a UNIX operating system, and if this is the first time any Oracle product is being installed on your system with the Oracle Universal Installer, you will be asked to provide the location of an inventory directory. This is where the installer will set up subdirectories and maintain inventory data for each Oracle product that is installed on this system.

Use the inventory screens in Table 2-1 to configure the inventory directory and group information. For more help, select the screen name in the table, or click the Help button in the GUI.

Table 2-1 Inventory Directory and Group Screens

Screen	Description
Specify Inventory Directory	Specify the Oracle inventory directory and group permissions for that directory. The group must have write permissions to the Oracle inventory directory.
Inventory Location Confirmation	Run the `createCentralInventory.sh` script as `root`.

If you do not want to use the Oracle central inventory, you can create a file called oraInst.loc and in this file, include the full path of the inventory directory of your choice. For example, a typical oraInst.loc file would contain the following:

inventory_loc=/home/username/oraInventory
inst_group=group

Then, you can start the installer and point to the oraInst.loc file. For example:

./fmw_12.2.1.3.0_fr_linux64.bin -invPtrLoc /location_of_oraInst.loc_file

2.4.4 Installing Using Oracle Universal Installer

Follow these instructions to install Oracle Forms and Reports using Oracle Universal Installer. After invoking Oracle Universal Installer as described in Starting the Oracle Forms and Reports Installer:

Welcome page. This page welcomes you to the installation. Click Next.
The Auto Updates page appears. This page enables you to choose to automatically receive software updates for your components from Oracle Corporation. Make your choices, then click Next.
The Installation Location page appears. Specify the Oracle home location into which you want to install the product(s). Click Next.
The Installation Type page appears. You can select Standalone Forms Builder if you want only that functionality, or choose Forms and Reports Deployment to install all of the products. Click Next.
The Prerequisites Checks page appears. This pages shows you the progress of the system checking the prerequisites on your system before installation. If you are lacking any prerequisites, a message will appear telling you so. You do not need to take any actions on this page, though you can view the log from here. Click Next.
The Installation Summary page appears, showing you what components and features are about to be installed. If you need to make changes, click Back, otherwise, click Install to start the installation.
The Installation Progress page appears. This page shows you the progress of the installation, and will warn you if there are any problems.You can view messages and logs from this page, but typically no action is required here. When progress is complete, click Next (go to a Summary page). Alternatively, you can click Finish.
If you clicked Next, the Installation Complete page appears, showing you the components that have been installed. Click Finish.

2.4.5 Using the Repository Creation Utility

Before proceeding to the next tasks, follow the instructions in this topic to set up Repository Creation Utility (RCU) schemas for configuring Oracle Forms.

RCU is available with the Oracle Fusion Middleware Infrastructure distribution. After you install Oracle Fusion Middleware Infrastructure and create your Oracle home, you can start RCU from the ORACLE_HOME/oracle_common/bin directory. Follow these instructions to set up schemas.

Run $FMW_HOME/oracle_common/bin/rcu.sh. Unless otherwise noted, click Next to continue to the next screen.

Table 2-2 Schema Setup Steps

Screen	Description
Welcome	This screen introduces you to RCU.
Create Repository	Select Create Repository, then select System Load and Product Load (default).
Database Connection Details	Specify RCU database connection credentials. Click Next when you have specified your credentials. The Checking Prerequisites dialog window appears. It shows the progress of prerequisites checking. Click OK, when the database checking has passed without errors, to dismiss the dialog window, and go to the next screen.
Select Components	Select the Create new prefix radio button and provide a schema prefix (such as DEMO). You must remember the prefix and schema names for the components you are installing. It is recommended that you write down these values. Select the following components: Oracle Platform Security Services User Messaging Service (UMS) Tip: If Forms Application Deployment Services (FADS) is also planned to be configured, include User Messaging Services (UMS). Audit Services Audit Services Append Audit Services Viewer Note: Additional dependent components will automatically be selected. The Checking Prerequisites pops up box appears. It shows the progress of prerequisites checking. Click OK, when it is complete, to dismiss the dialog window and go to the next screen.
Schema Passwords	Leave the default Use same passwords for all schemas radio button selected, and enter the password in the Password field. You must remember the passwords you enter on this screen; you need this information during the configuration phase of product installation. It is recommended that you write down these values.
Map Tablespaces	Use this screen to configure the desired tablespace mapping for the schemas that you want to setup. When you click Next, Repository Creation Utility dialog window appears, asking you to confirm that you want to create these tablespaces. Click OK to proceed and dismiss the dialog window. A second dialog window, Creating Tablespaces appears showing the progress of tablespace creation. Click OK, after the tablespaces are created, to dismiss this window and go to the next screen.
Summary	Verify the information on this screen, then click Create to begin schema setup. A System Load progress dialog window appears, showing progress. The dialog window will disappear when complete.
Completion Summary	Review the information on this screen to verify that the operation was completed successfully. Click Close to complete the schema setup and close RCU.

2.4.6 Configuring Forms Using the Configuration Wizard

The Configuration Wizard helps and simplifies the task of configuring Oracle Form.

The Configuration Wizard shows a series of screens where you verify or enter information.

Note:

To complete the configuration, Windows DOS shells must be run with Administrator permissions and Unix shells must be owned by the same user who performed the installation (for example, oracle). Failure to follow this instruction may result in the configuration failing silently.

Performs the following steps in the Configuration Wizard:

Run the Configuration Wizard using config.sh (config.cmd on Windows) located in the ORACLE_HOME/oracle_common/common/bin directory.
Choose Create a new domain, and enter the desired domain home path.
Click Next. The Templates screen appears. Keep the default selection (Create Domain using Product Templates), and select Oracle Forms – 12.2.1.3.0 [forms]. Any dependent templates will be automatically selected. Additional templates, like Oracle HTTP Server and others, can be selected based on the components desired. Refer to those individual component documents for more details.
Click Next. The Application Location screen appears. Keep the default value for Application location.
Click Next. The Administrator Account screen appears. Enter the desired WebLogic Domain administration username and password. This information will be needed to access WebLogic Server Control and Fusion Middleware Control.
Click Next. The Domain Mode and JDK screen appears. Select the Domain Mode (either Development or Production). To ensure the highest degree of security, selecting Production is recommended. Leave the default JDK selection as it appears, unless using another version of the JDK desired.
Click Next. The Database Configuration Type screen appears. Enter the RCU DB connection information. This information was created when running the Repository Creation Utility (RCU) in an earlier step. After entering the requested information, click Get RCU Configuration. Verify that a successful message is presented in the Results Log panel. If an indication of success is not indicated, check the databases entries made in this step. Mostly it will only be necessary to enter data for DBMS/Service, Host Name, Port, Schema Owner, and Schema Password. Other entries can remain as the default value.
Click Next. The JDBC Component Schema screen appears. These instructions assume each Repository schema uses the same password. If not, enter the correct schema passwords.
Click Next. The JDBC Component Schema Test screen appears. If any tests fail, it may be necessary to go back and make corrections.
Click Next. The Advanced Configuration screen appears. Select Topology and System Components. Depending on the level of customization desired, other selections may be used.
Tip:

If you want to configure server templates and dynamic server, see:
- Using Server Templates in Understanding Domain Configuration for Oracle WebLogic Server.
- Creating and Configuring Dynamic Clusters in Administering Clusters for Oracle WebLogic Server.
Click Next. The Managed Servers screen appears. Verify that the Server Groups is set to FORMS-MAN-SVR (for Forms). This screen can also be used to add additional managed servers if desired.
Click Next. The Clusters screen appears. Default entries will be acceptable mostly, unless adding new clusters is desirable.
Click Next. The Assign Servers to Clusters screen appears. The default values will be appropriate for most cases. However, if new managed servers were added in the previous step, they should be added to the cluster here.
Click Next. The Coherence Clusters screen appears. The default values will be appropriate for most cases.
Click Next. The Machines screen appears. Use this screen to override the machine name or add addition machine names for extend domain scenarios (add remote Forms nodes).
Click Next. The Assign Servers to Machines screen appears. Move the AdminServer to the AdminServerMachine by clicking the > button.
Click Next. The Virtual Targets screen appears. Used with WebLogic Server Partitions. Refer to the WebLogic Server documentation for details.
Click Next. The Partitions screen appears. Use this screen to add Weblogic Partitions if desired. Refer to the WebLogic Server documentation for details on how to use Partitions.
Click Next. The System Components screen appears. The default values will be appropriate for most cases. You can add additional Forms or other System Component instances on this screen (for example, extending a domain).
1. If Oracle HTTP Server (OHS) was selected in the Templates screen, the OHS component would need to be added in this step.
2. Click the Add button to add the OHS component and then click Next button.
3. Accept the default settings for the OHS Server component and then click Next button.
The Assign System Components to Machines screen appears. The default values will be appropriate for most cases. If OHS added in the previous step, move it to the Machines column under the Admin Server using the > button.

Note:

In case of extend domain scenario; assign the Forms System Component to the relevant Machine.
Click Next. The Configuration Summary screen appears.
Click Create. The Configuration Progress screen appears.
Depending on the location and performance of the Repository database, this process may take a few minutes. Click Finish. The End of Configuration screen appears.

To complete the Configuration, Node Manager and the Admin Server must be successfully started.

On Unix/Linux platforms, the shell used to start these servers the first time, must be the installation owner's (for example, oracle).

On Microsoft Windows, the DOS shell used to start these servers the first time must have Administrator permissions. To enable an Administrator shell session, right-click the Command Prompt shortcut and select Run as Administrator. The shell that opens will indicate that it has Administrator privileges in its title bar.

Figure 2-1 Command Prompt with Administrator Privileges

Description of "Figure 2-1 Command Prompt with Administrator Privileges"

2.4.7 Configuring Reports Using the Configuration Wizard

You have to also perform a series of steps to configure Oracle Reports using the Configuration Wizard.

The Configuration Wizard shows a series of screens where you verify or enter information.

Note:

Perform the following steps in the Configuration Wizard:

Run the Configuration Wizard using config.sh located in the Run the Configuration Wizard using config.sh located in the ORACLE_HOME/oracle_common/common/bin directory.
Choose one of the following options, and enter the desired domain home path:
- Create a new domain:
  to add reports to a new domain
- Update an existing domain:
  to add reports to an existing domain
Click Next. The Templates screen appears. Select Reports Server, Reports Tools, Reports Bridge, Reports Application, and OHS. Skip Reports Upgrade Only Template; this is only used for upgrades.
Click Next. The Application Location screen appears. Keep the default value for Application location.
Click Next. The Administrator Account screen appears. Enter the WebLogic Domain administration username and password. This information will be needed to access WebLogic Server Control and Fusion Middleware Control.
Click Next. The Domain Mode and JDK screen appears. Select the Domain Mode (either Development or Production). For our purposes, select Production. Leave the default JDK selection as it appears, unless using another version of the JDK desired.
Click Next. The Database Configuration Type screen appears. Enter the RCU DB connection information.
- Select Vendor and Driver from the drop-down lists.
- Enter DBMS/Service, Host Name and Port.
  
  Enter the Schema Owner and Schema Password. Schema Owner value refers to the schemas created while running the Repository Creation Utility (RCU) in a previous step of the installation process. The trailing _STB should be included along with the prefix value chosen at the time RCU was run previously. For example, if the prefix you provided during the Repository creation was DEMO then the entry for Schema Owner will be DEMO_STB.
  
  Click Get RCU Configuration. You should receive a success message.
Click Next. The JDBC Component Schema screen appears. These instructions assume each Repository schema uses the same password. If not, enter the correct schema passwords.
Click Next. The JDBC Component Schema Test screen appears. The tests are run and the results given.
Click Next. The Advanced Configuration screen appears. Select Administration Server, Node Manager, Managed Servers, Clusters and Deployment and Services.
Click Next. The Administration Server screen appears. The default values will be appropriate for most cases.
Click Next. The Managed Servers screen appears. Create WLS_REPORTS. Verify that the Server Groups is set to REPORTS-APP-SERVERS. The Listen address is All Local Addresses. Add WLS_REPORTS to reports_cluster.
Click Next. The Clusters screen appears. Default entries will be acceptable mostly, unless adding new clusters is desirable.
Click Next. The Assign Servers to Clusters screen appears. The default values will be appropriate for most cases. However, if new managed servers were added in the previous step, they should be added to the cluster here.
Click Next. The Coherence Clusters screen appears. The default values will be appropriate for most cases.
Click Next. The Machines screen appears. Add a machine, for example: AdminServerMachine (default).
Click Next. The Assign Servers to Machines screen appears. Add AdminServer and WLS_REPORTS to AdminServerMachine by clicking the > button. The Reports App is targeted to WLS_REPORTS by default.

Development Configuration can be used for development mode where sufficient system resources are not available. To perform this configuration, follow these steps:
1. In the Admin Server screen, in Server groups drop down list, select REPORTS-APP-SVR as one of the groups. This will configure AdminServer with reports.
2. The rest of the steps are the same as before.
  
  Note:
  
  One ReportsTools component is compulsory. Reports Server and Reports Bridge are optional.
  
  This configuration is not supported for use with production, multiuser environments. It is further not recommended in cases where sufficient system resources are available. This configuration should only be used on development environments where adequate resources such as system memory are limited.
  
  Oracle Forms is not supported for use in this configuration.
Click Next. The System Components screen appears. The default values will be appropriate for most cases. You can add additional Forms or other System Component instances on this screen (for extend domain scenario). For example, if adding OHS, it would appear here.
Click Next. The Assign System Components screen appears. The default values will be appropriate for most cases.

Note:

In case of extend domain scenario; assign the Forms System Component to the relevant Machine.
Click Next.The Deployment Targeting screen appears.
Click Next.The Service Targeting screen appears.
Click Next. The Configuration Summary screen appears.
Click Create. The Configuration Progress screen appears.

2.4.7.1 Creating Reports Tool Components

This section describes running the ReportsToolsInstance command after you have finished installing and running Configuration Wizard for Oracle Reports 12c.

After installing and running Configuration Wizard for Oracle Reports 12c and while trying to start in-process or newly created standalone reports server, you may encounter the following errors:

REP-54005: The cache directory DOMAIN_HOME\reports\cache cannot be created.
REP-52266: The in-process Reports Server rep_wls_reports_xxxxxxx failed to start.oracle.reports.RWException: IDL:oracle/reports/RWException:1.0.

To resolve this errors, the first step you should complete after running the Configuration Wizard in a new environment with Oracle Reports 12c, is to run the following WLST command:

createReportsToolsInstance(): This command will create all the components at file system level required for Oracle Reports.
For example:
- Execute wlst.cmd/wlst.sh from ORACLE_HOME/oracle_common/common/bin.
- Connect to AdminServer.
  
  connect("weblogic","weblogic_password","hostname:7001")
- Run the following wlst command.
  
  createReportsToolsInstance(instanceName='reptools1',machine='AdminServerMachine')

The following are some of the key folders that will be created for Oracle Reports 12c after the third steps in the preceding example:

DOMAIN_HOME/reports/bin
DOMAIN_HOME/reports/cache
DOMAIN_HOME/reports/fonts
DOMAIN_HOME/reports/plugins
DOMAIN_HOME/reports/server

The Oracle Reports environment is now complete and ready to be used.

2.4.7.2 Resolving Report Server access error

This section describes solutions to resolve problems when you try to access the Reports Server.

When you try to access the Reports server, you may encounter the following errors:

REP-51002: Bind to Reports Server <rep_server_name> failed. This error is encountered when you try to access Reports Server using getserverinfo or showjobs.
REP-50503: No server found in the network. Then error also occurs when running the command rwdiag.sh -findAll.

This is firewall permission related problem, because the Reports server trace files shows Reports server is up and running. There are no errors in the trace files.

To resolve this problem, perform the following steps:

Open the rwnetwork UDP port on the firewall to allow the Reports Server to be accessible.
1. Run command: rwdiag.sh –findAll
2. From output, check what value is used for Channel port.
  
  For example:
  
  Broadcast mechanism used to locate servers
  
  Channel address = ###.###.###.###
  
  Channel port = 14021
3. Open the channel port on the firewall.
  
  As per the example in the previous step, it is port 14021.
In the firewall, authorize requests from your host's IP address to ###.###.###.###.
The Channel address as shown in the example in the first step.

The above steps will solve the Reports server access related problem.

Note:

It the above steps do not solve the problem, add the name of the machine where Reports Server is located and the IP for that machine to the hosts file (/etc/hosts or C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\etc\hosts).

2.4.7.3 Provisioning a Machine

Follow these steps to provision a machine for Oracle Reports.

Start Node manager

$DOMAIN_HOME/bin/startNodeManager.sh
Start Adminserver

$DOMAIN_HOME/bin/startWebLogic.sh
Use WLST to create Reports Components
- Create a reports tools targeted to machine 'AdminServerMachine' - <reportsToolsName>
- Create a reports server targeted to machine 'AdminServerMachine' - <reportsServerName> (optional)
  
  give credentials of adminserver to connect
  
  connect("weblogic","welcome1", "localhost:7001")
  
  createReportsToolsInstance(instanceName='<reportsToolsName>', machine='AdminServerMachine')
  
  createReportsServerInstance(instanceName='<reportsServerName>', machine='AdminServerMachine')
  
  exit()
Start WLS_REPORTS

$DOMAIN_HOME/bin/startManagedWebLogic.sh WLS_REPORTS (Inprocess server starts)

Create a reports tools targeted to machine 'AdminServerMachine'- reptools1

Create a reports server targeted to machine 'AdminServerMachine' - repsvr_<hostname>

2.4.7.4 Configure Reports Builder as Run to web

To configure Reports Builder as "Run to web", follow these steps.

Locate the directory.

$DOMAIN_HOME/servers/WLS_REPORTS/tmp/_WL_user/reports_12.2.1/<random_number>/war
Add it to builder config file (below element, <pluginParam> as shown below.

$DOMAIN_HOME/config/fmwconfig/components/ReportsToolsComponent/reptools1/rwbuilder.conf

</pluginParam>

<webLayout port="9002" docroot="/scratch/rrpai/wls2/user_projects/domains/test1/servers/WLS_REPORTS/tmp/_WL_user/reports_12.2.1/5ah7s6/war"/>

The port is the OHS port. If OHS is not there, it should be the WLS_REPORTS port.

2.4.8 Configuring Form Builder Standalone 12c Using the Configuration Wizard

Before you begin installing the Form Builder Standalone 12c software, you should complete the Oracle Forms or Reports software has been successfully installed.

Perform the following steps to configure Form Builder Standalone 12c software:

Install the Form Builder Standalone 12c software.
Launch the Form Builder Configuration Assistant using one of the following methods:
1. Choose to run it after the Form Builder Standalone software installation.
  
  After the installation is complete, check the Automatically Launch Forms Builder Configuration Wizard option and click Finish.
2. Launch the configuration tool later from the location: $FMW_HOME/forms/common/bin/config_builder.sh.
  
  config_builder.cmd for Microsoft Windows.
  
  Figure 2-2 Launching the Configuration Tool in Windows
  
  Description of "Figure 2-2 Launching the Configuration Tool in Windows"
Note:

To complete the configuration, Windows DOS shells must be run with Administrator permissions and UNIX shells must be owned by the same user who performed the installation (for example, oracle). Failure to follow this instruction may result in the configuration failing silently.
Enter a name for the Form Builder Instance path in the Configuration Wizard, Instance Configuration screen. Click Next.
After configuration is complete, the Configuration Progress screen shows Configuration Succeeded message. Click Next.
End of Configuration screen shows the Oracle Home and Form Builder Instance location. Click Finish to exit the installer.

2.4.9 Verifying the Installation and Configuration

After you complete the installation and configuration of Oracle Forms and Reports, verify it was successful by performing a series of tasks.

You can verify the status of your installation by performing the tasks in any combination.

2.4.9.1 Reviewing the Installation Logs

Check for the presence of installation log files in logs directory inside your Oracle Inventory directory.

On UNIX operating systems, if you do not know the location of your Oracle Inventory directory, you can find it in the ORACLE_HOME/oraInst.loc file.

On Windows operating systems, the location for the inventory directory is C:\Program Files\Oracle\Inventory\logs.

For information about installation log files, see Installation Log Files.

2.4.9.2 Reviewing the Domain Server Logs

You can check the domain server logs, which are located in the servers directory inside the domain home directory.

On UNIX operating systems:

DOMAIN_HOME/servers/server_name

On Windows operating systems:

DOMAIN_HOME\servers\server_name

2.4.9.3 Checking the Installed Products and Product Versions

The contents of your installation vary based on the options that you selected during the installation.

Check the products and product version numbers by running the opatch lsinventory -detail command from the ORACLE_HOME/OPatch directory.

2.4.9.4 Checking Browser URLs

To verify the installed products URLs are provided.

The Installation Complete screen contains URLs that can be used to access your installed and configured products, as described in the following table.

Table 2-3 Oracle Forms and Reports Product URLs

Product or Component	URL
Administration Server Console	`http://host:port/console`
Enterprise Manager Console	`http://host:port/em`
Oracle Forms	`http://host:port/forms/frmservlet`
Oracle Reports	`http://host:port/reports/rwservlet`

Note:

If you installed in development mode, there would not be an Enterprise Manager Console URL to verify, and your Oracle Forms and Reports URLs would use the Administration Server port. In deployment mode, Enterprise Manager Console and EMAgent would use the Administration Server port, while Oracle Forms and Reports could be verified using their respective Managed Server ports or the Oracle HTTP Server port number.

Additionally, if your Oracle Forms and Reports are protected by Oracle Identity Management, then you will be prompted to provide login credentials when you attempt to access the Oracle Forms and Oracle Reports URLs.

2.4.9.5 Performing Basic Administration Tasks

After running the installer and configuration tool, all of your system components, the Administration Server, and Managed Servers should be manually started in order to complete the configuration process.

In the event that some of your servers or components are stopped unexpectedly, you can restart your Oracle Fusion Middleware environment by following the instructions, as described in Starting an Oracle Fusion Middleware Environment.

Your Oracle Fusion Middleware environment can also be stopped, as described in Stopping an Oracle Fusion Middleware Environment.

2.5 Installing Oracle Forms and Reports in Silent Mode

This section describes how to install Oracle Forms and Reports from the command line in silent mode.

You can use the silent installation mode to bypass the need to monitor your product installation because no graphical output is displayed and no input by the user is required. To install Oracle Forms and Reports in silent mode, use the -silent flag on the command line when you start the installer.

Silent installation does not include configuration. That is, you cannot configure Oracle Forms and Reports silently using the same silent installation commands and response file. In Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g release, you could use the content of the response file for both installing and configuring the product. But in 12c release, product configuration is a separate process. The Configuration Wizard cannot be run in silent mode (or used with response files) in 12c.

See the following sections in Installing Software with the Oracle Universal Installer, for details on silent mode:

After you have completed the installation in silent mode, perform the separate step-by-step process in the following sections to configure Oracle Forms and Reports using the Configuration Wizard:

Deinstalling in Silent Mode

Follow the instructions in Running the Oracle Universal Installer for Silent Deinstallation, to deinstall Oracle Forms and Reports in silent mode.

2.6 Oracle Forms and Reports Accessibility Information

This topic provides links to information about accessibility features and related information for Oracle Forms and Reports.

Oracle Forms

You can configure you system and use features supporting accessibility while running Forms. Oracle Forms Builder 12c also supports a range of features that are designed to support accessibility. The Oracle Forms 12c runtime is accessible if coded based on the instructions provided in the following link. Information is also provided about the minimum requirement that assistive technology must meet to run with Oracle Forms. See: Accessibility Features and Tips for Oracle Forms.

Oracle Reports

Accessible enterprise reports can be created using features and options available in Oracle Reports. You can also use specific techniques for designing reports to increase accessibility of report output, see: Accessibility Features and Tips for Oracle Reports