2 Introduction to Oracle Fusion Middleware for 10g Users

This chapter introduces Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g Release 1 (11.1.1) to Oracle Application Server 10g users.

This chapter contains the following sections:

2.1 Terminology and Concepts for 10g Users

The following sections describe some of the new Oracle Fusion Middleware terminology and concepts for Oracle Application Server 10g users:

2.1.1 Terminology and Concepts for 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) Users

This section describes some key differences between Oracle Application Server 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) and the Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g:

  • Figure 2-1 shows an illustration of a typical 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) environment and compares it to a typical Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g environment.

  • Table 2-1 provides a list of Oracle Application Server 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) terms and concepts that you are likely familiar with. The table provides a summary of the equivalent terms and concepts in Oracle Fusion Middleware.

Note:

The 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) environment shown in Figure 2-1 is simplified to show only an Oracle Portal instance and an Oracle BI Discoverer instance. In fact, a 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) environment can also include Oracle Reports and Oracle Forms Services, as well as an associated Oracle Application Server Identity Management installation.

For more detailed information about the Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer components, as well as the Oracle Identity Management components of Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g, see the following guides:

  • Oracle Fusion Middleware Upgrade Guide for Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer

  • Oracle Fusion Middleware Upgrade Guide for Oracle Identity Management

Figure 2-1 Comparison of Terminology Used in 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) and 11g

Description of Figure 2-1 follows
Description of "Figure 2-1 Comparison of Terminology Used in 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) and 11g"

Table 2-1 Terminology and Concepts in 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) and Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g

10g Release 2 (10.1.2) Term Equivalent Term in Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g Differences

Oracle Application Server farm

Oracle Fusion Middleware farm

In 10g Release 2 (10.1.2), a farm contained all the Oracle Application Server instances that shared the same Oracle Metadata Repository.

In Oracle Fusion Middleware, a farm consists of a single Oracle WebLogic Server domain and the corresponding Oracle system components associated with the domain.

A Oracle WebLogic Server domain consists of an administration server, which hosts the Web-based management consoles, and one or more managed servers.

Oracle Enterprise Manager Application Server Control

Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console

Oracle Enterprise Manager Fusion Middleware Control

In 10g Release 2 (10.1.2), you use Application Server Control to manage your entire application server environment. Application Server Control was deployed on every Oracle Application Server 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) instance.

When multiple application server instances were associated with a common metadata repository, you could navigate to the Farm page, which listed all the application server instances in the farm.

In Oracle Fusion Middleware, there are two Web-based management consoles:

  • You manage the WebLogic servers with the Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console.

  • You manage the Oracle Fusion Middleware system components with Fusion Middleware Control.

Oracle Application Server Cluster

Oracle WebLogic Server cluster

In 10g Release 2 (10.1.2), an Oracle Application Server Cluster consisted of one or more application server instances with identical configuration and application deployments. Application server instances within the cluster appear and function as a single instance.

Oracle WebLogic Server provides a similar clustering feature. You can cluster two or more managed servers.


2.1.2 Terminology and Concepts for 10g Release 3 (10.1.3) Users

This section describes some key differences between Oracle Application Server 10g Release 3 (10.1.3) and the Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g:

  • Figure 2-2 shows an illustration of a typical Oracle Application Server 10g Release 3 (10.1.3) environment and compares it to a typical Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g environment.

  • Table 2-2 provides a list of Oracle Application Server 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) terms and concepts, as well as a summary of the equivalent terms and concepts in Oracle Fusion Middleware.

Figure 2-2 Comparison of 10g Release 3 (10.1.3) and Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g Terminology

Description of Figure 2-2 follows
Description of "Figure 2-2 Comparison of 10g Release 3 (10.1.3) and Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g Terminology"

Table 2-2 Terminology and Concepts in 10g Release 3 (10.1.3) and Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g

10g Release 2 (10.1.2) Term Equivalent Term in Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g Differences

Oracle Application Server Cluster Topology

Oracle Fusion Middleware farm

In 10g Release 3 (10.1.3), a cluster topology consists of two or more application server instances that share the same Oracle Notification Service (ONS) address.

You can manage the cluster topology from the Cluster Topology page of the Application Server Control.

In Oracle Fusion Middleware, a farm consists of a single Oracle WebLogic Server domain and the Oracle system components associated with the domain.

An Oracle WebLogic Server domain consists of an administration server, which hosts the Web-based management consoles, and one or more managed servers.

Oracle Application Server Control

Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console

Oracle Enterprise Manager Fusion Middleware Control

In 10g Release 3 (10.1.3), you use Application Server Control to manage the application server environment. Application Server Control is deployed on every Oracle Application Server 10g Release 3 (10.1.3) instance, but only one is up and running and identified as the active Fusion Middleware Control.

In Oracle Fusion Middleware, there are two Web-based management consoles, both running out of the Administration Server:

  • You manage the WebLogic servers with the Oracle WebLogic Server Administration Console.

  • You manage the Oracle Fusion Middleware system components with Fusion Middleware Control.

OC4J Group

Oracle WebLogic Server cluster

In 10g Release 3 (10.1.3), you can use OC4J groups to to group identically configured OC4J instances. You can then deploy applications to the group and perform certain management tasks on the group, rather than on individual OC4J instances.

Oracle WebLogic Server provides a similar clustering feature. You can cluster two or more managed servers.


2.1.3 Oracle HTTP Server and Oracle Web Cache Concepts for 10g Users and 11g Users

The following sections compare how Oracle HTTP Server and Oracle Web Cache are used in the Oracle Application Server 10g and Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g environments:

2.1.3.1 Configuring Oracle HTTP Server and Oracle Web Cache in Oracle Application Server 10g

In Oracle Application Server 10g, Oracle HTTP Server and Oracle Web Cache were integrated with the rest of the Oracle Application Server middle-tier components automatically during the installation.

For example:

  • In Oracle Application Server 10g Release 2 (10.1.2), you could select the Oracle HTTP Server and Oracle Web Cache components as part of a standard Oracle Application Server installation. During the installation and configuration of your environment, the routing of requests would automatically be configured between Oracle HTTP Server and Oracle Web Cache.

    Components such as Oracle Single Sign-On and Oracle Portal require an Oracle HTTP Server, so in 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) installations, Oracle HTTP Server was automatically configured to communicate with those components.

  • In Oracle Application Server 10g Release 3 (10.1.3), several of the common installation types included an instance of Oracle HTTP Server that was automatically configured to route requests to the OC4J instance.

    Users could then later reconfigure Oracle HTTP Server to route requests to an OC4J group or to specific OC4J instances in a 10g Release 3 (10.1.3) cluster topology.

2.1.3.2 Configuring the Web Tier in Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g

In Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g, Oracle HTTP Server is still automatically installed and configured for specific components that require a Web server. For example, Oracle HTTP Server is automatically installed and configured with the following Oracle Fusion Middleware components:

  • Oracle Identity Federation in the Oracle Identity Management software suite

  • Oracle Portal and Oracle Business Intelligence Discoverer in the Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports and Discoverer suite

However, for the other Oracle Fusion Middleware suites, Oracle HTTP Server and Oracle Web Cache are packaged as a separate installation called the Web tier.

The assumption is that in production environments, many Oracle Fusion Middleware customers will configure a separate set of computers to host the Oracle HTTP Server and Oracle Web Cache components. Packaging these components as a separate Web tier installation facilitates setting up this type of environment.

2.2 Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation and Configuration Tools

Unlike Oracle Application Server 10g, the installation and configuration of your Oracle Fusion Middleware components is separated. In other words, you first use an installation program to install the necessary files on disk, and then you use a configuration wizard to configure the environment.

Because the Oracle Fusion Middleware system components are designed to work with Oracle WebLogic Server, the first step in configuring any Oracle Fusion Middleware environment is usually to install Oracle WebLogic Server. Second, you install the Oracle Fusion Middleware component software, and third, you configure the software. Each installation and configuration step is performed with a specialized tool.

As an example of the tools required to install and configure Oracle Fusion Middleware, consider the steps required to install and configure a typical Oracle SOA Suite.

In particular, to install and configure a production-ready Oracle SOA Suite environment, you use the installation and configuration tools that are shown in Figure 2-3. The call outs in the figure correspond to the order in which you typically perform each installation and configuration task. Each step is described in more detail in Table 2-3.

For more information about the tools available for installing and configuring an Oracle Fusion Middleware environment, refer to the Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation Planning Guide.

Figure 2-3 Installation and Configuration Tools Used to Install and Configure a Typical Oracle SOA Suite Environment

Description of Figure 2-3 follows
Description of "Figure 2-3 Installation and Configuration Tools Used to Install and Configure a Typical Oracle SOA Suite Environment"

Table 2-3 Summary of the Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation and Configuration Tools for a Typical Oracle SOA Suite Installation

Step Number Task Performed with this Tool Location of the Required Tool More Information

1

Install the required schemas in a supported version of the Oracle database.

Repository Creation Utility (RCU)

On the Repository Creation Utility CD-ROM.

Oracle Fusion Middleware Repository Creation Utility User's Guide

2

Install the Oracle WebLogic Server files on disk. This creates the Middleware home and the Weblogic Server home directory inside the Middleware home.

Oracle WebLogic Server Installer

On the Oracle WebLogic Server CD-ROM.

Oracle WebLogic Server Installation Guide

3

Install the Oracle SOA Suite software on disk. This creates the SOA Oracle home and Oracle Common home.

Oracle SOA Suite Installer

On the Oracle SOA Suite CD-ROM

Installation Guide for Oracle SOA Suite

4

Configure the SOA domain. This creates the SOA domain directory structure.

Note that the domain directories can be located anywhere on disk, but are often installed inside the user_projects directory of the Middleware home.

Oracle SOA Suite Configuration Wizard

Run config.sh or config.bat from the common/bin directory of the SOA Oracle home created in step 3.

Installation Guide for Oracle SOA Suite

5

Optionally, install and configure a Web tier.

You will also need to configure Oracle HTTP Server to route requests to the appropriate Oracle WebLogic Server server.

Oracle Web Tier Installer

Oracle Web Tier and Utilities CD-ROM

Installation Guide for Oracle Web Tier


2.3 Oracle Fusion Middleware Administration Tools and Processes

The following sections describe some key differences between Oracle Application Server 10g and Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g administration tools and processes:

2.3.1 Comparison of Key Management Tasks for 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) Users

Table 2-4 shows some of the key differences between Oracle Application Server 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) and Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g.

Table 2-4 Summary of Differences Between Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g and Oracle Application Server 10g Release 2 (10.1.2)

Task or Feature In 10g Release 2 (10.1.2)... In Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g... More Information

Installing and managing an Oracle Application Server farm

Configure multiple Oracle Application Server instances so they use the same Oracle Metadata Repository.

This creates an OracleAS Farm, which can be managed from the Oracle Enterprise Manager Application Server Control Farm page.

Use the installation and configuration tools to:

  1. Install the selected Oracle WebLogic Serversoftware on disk

  2. Install and configure the Oracle instances using the Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer installer in an Oracle WebLogic Serverdomain.

The resulting Oracle Fusion Middleware farm can be managed from the Fusion Middleware Control.

  • Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation Planning Guide

  • Oracle Fusion Middleware Quick Installation Guide for Oracle WebLogic Server

  • Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation Guide for Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer

Using OracleAS Clusters

Add selected J2EE and Web Cache instances within an OracleAS Farm to an OracleAS Cluster. Perform this task from the Farm page in the Fusion Middleware Control Console.

Use the Oracle WebLogic Server configuration wizard, or the appropriate management tool, to configure selected managed servers into an Oracle WebLogic Server cluster.

"Overview of Oracle Fusion Middleware Administration Tools" in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Administrator's Guide

Replicating application state across a cluster

From the Application Server Control Farm page, create an OracleAS Cluster. OC4J clusters are based on processes and islands within an OracleAS Cluster.

Use the Oracle WebLogic Server configuration wizard to configure selected managed servers into Oracle WebLogic Server clusters.

Oracle Fusion Middleware Upgrade Guide for Java EE

Creating new OC4J instances

Click Create Instance on the OC4J Home page in the Application Server Control console.

Use the Oracle WebLogic Server configuration wizard, or the appropriate management tool, to create new managed servers in each Oracle WebLogic Server domain.

"Overview of Oracle Fusion Middleware Administration Tools" in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Administrator's Guide

Using command-line tools to manage servers, clusters, and system components

Use one of the following:

  • Distributed Configuration Management (DCM) command line (dcmctl)

  • Oracle Process Manager and Notification Server (OPMN) command line (opmnctl)

Use one of the following, depending upon the components you are managing:

  • The Oracle WebLogic Server scripting tool (WLST) for managing the Oracle WebLogic Server domain.

  • OPMN and the opmnctl commands for the Oracle Identity Management components, Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer components, and the Web tier components.

"Getting Started Using Command-Line Tools" in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Administrator's Guide

Using OracleAS Identity Management

Configure OracleAS Identity Management using the Application Server Infrastructure page in Application Server Control.

Configure Oracle Internet Directory as your identity store during the Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer installation.

Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation Guide for Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer


2.3.2 Comparison of Key Management Tasks for 10g Release 3 (10.1.3) Users

Table 2-4 shows some of the key differences between Oracle Application Server 10g Release 2 (10.1.2) and Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g.

Table 2-5 Comparison of Key Management Tasks in 10g Release 3 (10.1.3) and Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g

Task or Feature In 11g Release 1 (11.1.1)... In Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g More Information

Creating and Managing the middle-tier environment

Use the Topology Network Configuration page to configure the cluster, or perform the equivalent task during the installation.

This causes the selected Oracle Application Server instances to appear on the Cluster Topology page of the Fusion Middleware Control Console.

  1. Install the Oracle WebLogic Server software on disk.

  2. Install the Oracle SOA Suite and WebCenter software on disk.

  3. Use the configuration wizard in the SOA or WebCenter Oracle home to create the SOA or WebCenter domain and deploy the system components.

Using clusters

Create multiple OC4J instances and organize them into a group.

Use the Group page in the Fusion Middleware Control Console to manage the group.

Use the appropriate management tool to create an Oracle WebLogic Server cluster.

"Overview of Oracle Fusion Middleware Administration Tools" in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Administrator's Guide

Replicating application state across a cluster

Application clustering, which can be configured from the Fusion Middleware Control Console during deployment or post-deployment.

Use the appropriate management tool to create an Oracle WebLogic Server cluster.

"Overview of Oracle Fusion Middleware Administration Tools" in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Administrator's Guide

Creating new OC4J instances

Click Create OC4J Instance on the Application Server page, or use the createinstance command in the bin directory of the Oracle Application Server Oracle home.

Use the appropriate management tool to create a new managed server and apply the required domain template.

"Scaling Your Environment" in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Administrator's Guide

Using command-line tools to manage instances and clusters

Use the opmnctl commands and the admin_client.jar utility provide additional management capabilities.

Use one of the following, depending upon the components you are managing:

  • The Oracle WebLogic Server scripting tool (WLST) for managing the Oracle WebLogic Server domain, as well as Oracle SOA Suite, and WebCenter components.

  • OPMN and the opmnctl commands for managing the Oracle Identity Management components, Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer components, and the Web tier components.

"Getting Started Using Command-Line Tools" in the Oracle Fusion Middleware Administrator's Guide

Using OracleAS Identity Management

Configure OracleAS Identity Management using the Identity Management task on the OC4J Administration page in the Fusion Middleware Control Console.

Configure Oracle Internet Directory as your identify store in the Fusion Middleware Control.

Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation Guide for Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer


2.4 Oracle Fusion Middleware Upgrade Tools and Processes

Table 2-6 provides a summary of the tools you can use to help automate and validate your upgrade to Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g.

Refer to the rest of the Oracle Fusion Middleware upgrade documentation for specific information on how to use these tools as part of your overall upgrade experience.

Table 2-6 Summary of the Tools Required When Upgrading to Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g

Upgrade Tool Description Notes and Considerations

Repository Creation Utility (RCU)

Use this tool to install the database schemas required for specific types of Oracle Fusion Middleware upgrades.

In particular, you must run RCU and install the required schemas before upgrading to the following Oracle Fusion Middleware software suites:

  • Oracle SOA Suite

  • Oracle WebCenter

  • Oracle Business Intelligence Discoverer

When upgrading from a previous release, do not install the 11g schemas for Oracle Internet Directory or Oracle Portal.

Instead, you associate your new Oracle Fusion Middleware middle tier with the existing 10g ODS schema (for Oracle Internet Directory) and PORTAL schema (for Oracle Portal).

Later you use the Upgrade Assistant to upgrade the Oracle Internet Directory and Oracle Portal schemas to 11g.

Oracle WebLogic Server Installer

Before you can upgrade to Oracle Fusion Middleware, you must install an equivalent Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g environment. Your first step in installing your new Oracle Fusion Middleware environment is to install the Oracle WebLogic Server software on disk.

With the Oracle WebLogic Server installer, you create a new Middleware home. Later, you use the software in the Middleware home to configure a new, custom Oracle WebLogic Server domain for your new Oracle Fusion Middleware software.

You can optionally install the following components in "standalone mode" without an Oracle WebLogic Server Middleware home:

  • Oracle Internet Directory

  • Oracle Virtual Directory

  • Oracle HTTP Server

  • Oracle Web Cache

For standalone components, there is no need to run the Oracle WebLogic Server installer.

Oracle SOA Suite installation and configuration tools:

  • Oracle SOA Suite Installer

  • Oracle SOA Suite Configuration Wizard

  • Use the installer to install the Oracle SOA Suite software inside the Middleware home you created with the Oracle WebLogic Server installer.

  • Use the configuration wizard to configure a new, specialized Oracle WebLogic Server domain and to deploy the new Oracle SOA Suite software.

You can also extend an existing Oracle WebLogic Server domain to support the Oracle SOA Suite software.

For more information, see the Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation Guide for Oracle SOA Suite.

Oracle WebCenter installation and configuration tools:

  • Oracle WebCenter Installer

  • WebCenter Configuration wizard

  • Use the installer to install the Oracle WebCenter software inside the Middleware home you created with the Oracle WebLogic Server installer.

  • Use the configuration wizard to configure a new, specialized Oracle WebLogic Server domain for your Oracle WebCenter software.

You can also extend an existing Oracle WebLogic Server domain to support the Oracle WebCenter software.

For more information, see the Oracle Fusion Middleware Installation Guide for Oracle WebCenter.

Oracle Identity Management Installer

Use this tool to install the Oracle Identity Management software.

You can also use this tool to:

  • Configure a new, specialized Oracle WebLogic Server domain to configure your Oracle Identity Management 11g components.

    OR

  • Configure a standalone Oracle Internet Directory instance that is not associated with an Oracle WebLogic Server domain.

During the configuration, you configure the new, 11g Oracle Internet Directory to use your existing 10g ODS schema.

Later, you run the Upgrade Assistant to upgrade the ODS schema to 11g.

Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer Installer

Use this tool to:

  • Install and configure the Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer 11g component software.

  • Configure a new, specialized Oracle WebLogic Server domain to support the Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer 11g components.

You have the following options when installing and configuring the Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer software:

  • You can choose to install the software only and configure the domain and components later.

  • You can install the components into separate Oracle homes, or associate them with separate Oracle WebLogic Server domains.

Oracle Fusion Middleware Upgrade Assistant

After you install your new Oracle Fusion Middleware components, you can use this tool to automate many of the upgrade steps for the following component software:

  • Oracle B2B and Oracle BAM schemas

  • Oracle Portal, Forms, Reports, and Discoverer middle tiers and the Oracle Portal and Oracle BI Discoverer schemas

  • Oracle Internet Directory middle tier and (ODS) schema.

  • Oracle HTTP Server and Oracle Web Cache middle-tier configurations

Refer to the appropriate upgrade documentation for specific information on how and when to use the Oracle Fusion Middleware Upgrade Assistant as part of your overall upgrade process.

Oracle JDeveloper

Use this tool to automate the upgrade of Oracle SOA Suite, Oracle WebCenter, and Oracle ADF applications.

When you open an application in Oracle JDeveloper 11g, it automatically converts specific elements of the applications so they can be compiled and deployed on Oracle Fusion Middleware 11g.

For more information, refer to the Oracle Fusion Middleware Upgrade Guide for Oracle SOA Suite, WebCenter, and ADF.

SmartUpgrade

Use this tool, which is available as a command-line tool and Oracle JDeveloper extension, to help you upgrade your Java EE applications so they can be deployed on Oracle WebLogic Server.

Oracle Fusion Middleware SmartUpgrade User's Guide