5
Creating WebDB Sites

Estimated completion time: 30 minutes

This chapter shows you how to use Oracle WebDB to create Web sites. You create a WebDB site within a schema in an Oracle database. Storing Web sites in the database means that backing up the database backs up all of the data in your site. It also means that to move the site from one database to another, you simply export the schema that owns the site and import it into a new database.

When you create a WebDB site, you also install all the tools needed for designing and maintaining the site. These tools can then be accessed from within the site itself, using a Web browser. No other software needs to be installed.

In this chapter, you'll learn how to create a WebDB site in a database, using WebDB's Site Creation Wizard. You'll then learn how to assign a site administrator to manage the design and maintenance of the site.

This chapter includes the following sections:

Section
"Before You Begin"
"Creating a WebDB Site in the Database"
"Assigning a Site Administrator"
"What's Next?"

5.1 Before You Begin

• To complete this chapter, you must be a DBA (that is, you must be a member of the DBA role). If you are not a DBA, you will not be able to access WebDB's site creation features. If you need to be added to the DBA role, ask your DBA.

• You must also have execute privileges on SYS.DBMS_SYS_SQL with grant option. Ask your DBA to grant you these privileges.

  Note: The WebDB schema owner is automatically a DBA and has the appropriate privileges on SYS.DBMS_SYS_SQL. Therefore, if you are logged on as the WebDB schema owner, you will already meet the above two prerequisites for completing this chapter.

• At least one tablespace must exist to store site objects and to be used for temporary operations. If an appropriate tablespace does not already exist, create it now. We recommend that you create two tablespaces called USERS and TEMP.

  For information about how to create tablespaces, see your Oracle Server documentation.

• You must have completed Section 1.2, "Creating a New User" before starting this chapter.

5.2 Creating a WebDB Site in the Database

Your company wants a Web site for providing information, such as product information to its employees and customers. As DBA, it is your job to create the Web site in the database.

1. Clickat the top right of the page if you are not already on your WebDB home page.

2. Click Sites.

   The page displayed is divided into three panels. For this exercise you will use the Site Building panel.

   
   

   Tip: You can also clickin the toolbar at the bottom of any page to display the Create Site Wizard page.

3. Click Create to display the WebDB Site Creation Wizard.

4. In the Site Name field, type Tutorial Site.

5. Clickto display the Select Owning Schema page.

   WARNING: Clickif you need to go back to a previous page of the wizard. Do not click your browser's Back button.

6. In the Owning Schema field, type <NAME>_SITE, where NAME is your own user name.

   WebDB will create the Web site in the specified schema.

   Note: This schema must not already exist. WebDB creates it for you.

   WebDB also creates two user accounts, <SITENAME>_PUBLIC and <SITENAME>_ADMIN, where SITENAME is the name you specified in the Owning Schema field.

   • The <SITENAME>_PUBLIC user account is granted public access to the site.

   • The <SITENAME>_ADMIN user account is granted site administrator privileges on the site.

   WebDB also configures two Database Access Descriptors (DADs). A DAD is a set of values that specify how WebDB connects to the database to fulfill an HTTP request.

   • The <SITENAME> DAD is used to provide public access to the site and automatically logs users on as <SITENAME>_PUBLIC.

   • The <SITENAME>S DAD is used when users attempt to log on for authorized access to the site. This DAD is not configured with a user name and password. Thus, when users click the Log On link, they have to provide a valid user name and password before they can continue.

7. Clickto display the Language page.

8. In the Language list, choose the desired language for the text in the Web site, for example American.

   WARNING: Make sure you choose the correct language. You cannot change the language setting once you have chosen it in the Site Creation Wizard.

9. Clickto display the Select Tablespaces page.

10. In the User Tablespace field, type the name of the tablespace to be used to store any site objects (for example USERS).

    You, or another DBA, should have created this tablespace before you started this chapter.

11. In the Temporary Tablespace field, type the name of the tablespace to be used for temporary operations (for example, TEMP).

    You, or another DBA, should have created this tablespace before you started this chapter.

12. In the Document Tablespace field, type the name of the tablespace to be used to store any items uploaded to the site (for example, USERS).

    WARNING: Make sure you choose the correct tablespaces. You cannot change the tablespace settings once you have chosen them in the Site Creation Wizard.

13. Clickto display the Select Demos page.

14. Check The Traveler to include the WebDB demo in your site.

    The Traveler is an example WebDB site that can be included as a folder in your sites. You can use The Traveler to learn about and experiment with the features of WebDB sites.

15. Clickto display the Create Site page.

    The Create Site page displays the following information:

    • The options you selected in the wizard.

    • The name of the Owning Schema that will be created. The password is the same as the name.

      IMPORTANT: For security purposes, it is very important that you change the Owning Schema password immediately after creating the site.

    • The user name of the public access user account that will be created. The password is the same as the user name.

    • The user name of the administrator user account that will be created. The password is the same as the user name.

      IMPORTANT: For security purposes, it is very important that you change the administrator user password immediately after creating the site.

    • The URLs of the Web site that will be created.

      The first URL provides public access to the site. This is the URL you will provide to the users of the site.

      The second URL provides authorized access to the site when users click the Log On link. When users try to access this URL they are prompted for a user name and password.

      The URLs consist of:

      hostname:port/dad/
      
      

      where:

      hostname	is the name of machine where the site is installed.
      port	is the port to use to access the machine where the site is installed. If port 80 is used, this may be omitted.
      dad	is the name of the Database Access Descriptor (DAD) used to access the database where the site is installed. Two DADs are automatically configured for each WebDB site you create: one for public access to the site and one for when users log on to the site.

16. Note down the public access URL of the Web site and the user name for the administrator user. You will need this information to log on to the site later.

17. Click Finish to display the WebDB Site Install Status page.

    
    

    WebDB executes a series of operations to create the site and install the site development tools in the Owning Schema. The WebDB Site Install Status page lists these operations as they are being executed and informs you of the progress of the site creation process.

18. When the site creation process finishes, the Abort button changes to a Done button. Click Done to display the WebDB Site Install Menu page.

    
    

    WebDB has now created the site in the Owning Schema you specified. All the tools needed to design and maintain the site have also been installed in the schema. All that your WebDB site users require to view and edit the site is the URL for public access to the site (you noted this down in Step 15).

    Note: Once the WebDB site has been created in the database, all site development and maintenance tasks are performed within the site itself.

5.3 Assigning a Site Administrator

When you create a WebDB site, WebDB creates an administrator user account that you can use to log on to the site as site administrator. A site administrator is responsible for managing a site. This includes designing the structure of the information accessed from the site, designing the style of the pages in the site, and granting other users access to the site. Typically, you will want to transfer this responsibility to another user or users. You can do one of the following:

• Provide the administrator user name and password created by WebDB to another user who will be a site administrator.

• Log on to the site yourself using the administrator user name and password and assign another user as a site administrator.

Let's log on to the site you just created and assign MILLER, the user you created in Section 1.2, "Creating a New User", as a site administrator.

1. In the WebDB Site Install Menu page, click Site Administration.

2. You will be prompted for a user name and password.
   1. In the log on dialog box, type the administrator user name that you noted down in Step 15 of the previous exercise and the password. The password is the same as the user name.

   2. Click OK.

   The site's Administration page is displayed.

   
   

   IMPORTANT: While you are logged on to the site as the administrator user, you should also change the default passwords for the site owning schema and the administrator user that were set during site creation. For information about how to change passwords, refer to the WebDB Site Builder online help.

3. In the Access Managers section, click User to display the User Manager.

4. The page displayed is divided into two panels. For this exercise, you will use the Find User panel.

   
   

5. Clickto search for users you can assign as site administrator.

6. In the field at the top of the list, type M% and click Find to display user names that start with an M.

7. Click MILLER_<NAME>, where NAME is your own user name to choose the user you created in Section 1.2, "Creating a New User".

   MILLER_<NAME> is displayed in the Find User: Name field of the User Manager.

8. Click Edit to display the User Manager: Details page.

   
   

9. In the Administrator Privileges section, check Site, Style and News Administrator.

   There are three types of administrator:

   • Site Administrator Site administrators have the highest level of privileges in a WebDB site. They can view and modify anything on the site. Site administrators can create users, groups of users, and control access to the site. Site administrators can also perform all style and news administrator functions.

   • Style Administrator Style administrators establish the look and feel of the WebDB site. They have control over color schemes, text, fonts, and background images for pages used on the site. For more information about styles, see Section 6.3, "Controlling the Style of a WebDB Site".

   • News Administrator News administrators have the authority to add news to the home page, approve news submitted by public users, and perform other functions related to site wide news management. News is a special type of WebDB site content, for more information see Section 7.3, "Adding a News Item".

10. Clickto save your changes and return to the User Manager.

11. Clickto return to the Administration page.

5.4 What's Next?

In this chapter you learned how to:

• Create a WebDB site in the database.

• Assign administrators to design and maintain a WebDB site.

If you will be designing or adding content to a WebDB site, see Chapter 6, "Designing WebDB Sites".

If you will be using WebDB to build applications, see Chapter 2, "Building and Browsing Database Objects".