This chapter explains how to install Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on a local area network (LAN).
Note:
Installation of Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on a LAN via Oracle Client Software Manager is not supported in this release.
The procedures in this chapter are tested and certified on Microsoft
Windows LANs. Following these steps may work on other LAN systems, but
these are not supported by Oracle.
About network installation
Using Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on a network provides several benefits:
You can support multiple client workstations from a single copy of Oracle RepositoryDesigner.
You can conserve disk space on the client workstations because all executables
reside on the file server.
You can keep software versions up-to-date because only a single set of
executables requires upgrading.
The purpose of the installation procedure that follows is to achieve a
configuration where:
Each client workstation has what appears to be a local installation of
the Oracle RepositoryDesigner
software
The Oracle home directory resides on the file server, mapped to a local
network drive on the client workstations
All files under the Oracle home directory are shared between all clients
Files installed to local directories (for example, the Windows home directory
or Windows system directory) are installed at each client workstation
Because of limitations in network drive mapping, we recommend that you
use the same network drive letter (e.g. Q:) at all client workstations,
including the one used to perform the main software installation.
Note:
You can manage only those clients that are running the same
operating system under which the software was installed on the file server.
Installation procedure
The following steps summarize the procedure for installing Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on a LAN. These steps are described in further detail in the following
sections.
To install Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on a LAN:
Disable any anti-virus software running on your server and client.
Set up the file server by installing Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on a drive mapped to the desired server file system. (You may need your
network administrator to help with this step.) See "Setting
Up the File Server " below.
Re-enable any anti-virus software disabled in Step 1.
Set up each client workstation. (The network administrator or the client
workstation user may complete this step.) See "
Setting up the client workstations" below.
Setting up the file server
Before you begin, make sure that your LAN meets the storage requirements
listed under "System requirements",
and that you completed the steps in the section "Before
you install", in Chapter 1. To install Oracle RepositoryDesigner
software on the LAN, the network administrator must perform the following
steps.
Step 1 - Mount the file server drive and directory
Choose the file server drive on which you want to install the Oracle software.
The logical letter of this drive will be used later by the client workstations.
The drive can be local or networked to the machine you are using to install
the software.
Choose a workstation to use to install Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on the file server. On that workstation, log on as an administrator, then
substitute a logical drive letter for an existing server file system or
directory (or mount a remote file system) where you will install Oracle RepositoryDesigner
and other Oracle products. This step is necessary to avoid drive letter
assignment conflicts when you subsequently import Registry files to the
client workstation.
To substitute the drive, obtain the Command Prompt and enter a command
such as the following to install to a local file system:
SUBST Q: C:\
or the following to install to a remote file system:
NET USE Q: \\remote_file_server\ remote_file_system
In these examples, users of the client workstations will be able to use
drive Q: to access the Oracle RepositoryDesigner
software.
Step 2 - Install the software on the server file system
Follow the installation steps listed in Chapter 1, "Client-side
installation", to install the Oracle RepositoryDesigner
client-side software on the server file system. Also
install any Oracle Developer products you want to use.
When the Oracle Installer prompts you to indicate a complete path where
you want to install Oracle products, enter the path using the drive letter
you mapped to the server file system in the previous section (drive Q:
in the example).
Step 3 - Prepare for network shared installation
After installing Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on a network drive, you need to perform the following steps to prepare
for setting up the client workstations:
Export (or "Save") the following Registry entries to the Oracle home directory
on the server:
For instructions on how to export registry entries, see the online help
for the Registry Editor. (See also Appendix A.)
Set up concurrent access on the file server.
In order for the client workstations to access Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on the file server, you must enable access to the Oracle home directory.
To access the Oracle home directory using Windows NetBIOS-based networks,
enable Sharing on the server file system for the users or user groups who
will use Oracle RepositoryDesigner.
Step 4 - (Optional) Build the
database tables
If the client workstation users want to save Oracle
Developer modules in the database, the Database Administrator must load
the Oracle Developer system tables and views. Refer to the Oracle Developer
Getting Started manual for more information on building database tables.
Setting up the client
workstations
After the network administrator installs Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on the file server, each client workstation must be set up to run Oracle RepositoryDesigner.
The process of setting up a client workstation may be performed by the
network administrator or the client workstation user.
Note:
The following steps must be performed for each client workstation
that accesses the LAN, not including the client workstation from which
the network administrator installed Oracle RepositoryDesigner.
Step 1 - Modify the PATH variable
Log on to the client as the administrator for the local workstation (i.e.,
not as the network administrator).
Under Windows NT, click Start, then choose Settings > Control
Panel > System, then select the Environment tab.
Under Windows 2000, click Start, then choose Settings > Control
Panel > System, then select the Advanced tab and click Environment Variables.
Select the System Variable named Path (not the User Variable of the
same name). In the Value field, add d:\Oracle_home\BIN; to
the beginning, where d: identifies the drive that will be used when
each client mounts the file server (in our example, this drive is Q:),
and Oracle_home is the Oracle home directory where Oracle RepositoryDesigner
is installed.
Step 2 - Mount the network drive on the client workstation
On the client workstation, mount the network drive that you identified
as d: in the previous step.
To mount the drive, choose Map Network Drive on the context menu for
My Computer or Network Neighborhood on your desktop. Alternatively, in
Windows Explorer, choose Tools > Map Network Drive to mount the drive,
or use a command line such as :
NET USE Q: \\remote_file_server\remote_file_system
Step 3 - Import the Registry file
Start the Registry Editor by running REGEDIT (see Appendix
A) and choose Registry > Import Registry File. Select the file (for
example, ORACLE.REG) that you exported earlier and click Open. This is
the file containing the key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ORACLE and its
sub-keys.
You can configure all client machines to use a single network available
copy of the TNSNAMES.ORA file by creating the registry entry:
where dirname is a directory location containing the TNSNAMES.ORA
file.
Step 4 - Install system support files
You need to be a user with write access to the file server to carry out
this step.
If you install Oracle RepositoryDesigner
on a file server, the system support files are automatically placed in
the local hard disk of the client from which the installation takes place.
Any other workstations needing these files will not have access to them
at this point.
This problem is corrected by forcing a reinstallation of these files.
Doing so causes a version check to be made on each of the files, which
are then copied to the correct location on the local drive.
To achieve this, run Oracle Installer from the client workstation and
select Custom mode to display the Software Asset Manager window. In the
Available Products list, select the product named System Support Files
and click Install. Reply Yes when asked if you want to reinstall any currently
installed software.
Step 5 - Install protocol adapter
If you install an Oracle protocol adapter product on a file server, Oracle
Installer will install some files onto the local hard disk of the client
from which the installation takes place. The set of files that are installed
locally depends on your choice of protocol and protocol vendor, and on
the version of the protocol adapter. The names of these files are subject
to change with different releases of these products.
Step 6 - Install OCX files
You need to be a user with write access to the file server to carry out
this step.
Run Oracle Installer from the client workstation and select Custom mode
to display the Software Asset Manager window. In the Available Products
list, double-click Product Components, select the product named Oracle
OCX Pack and click Install. Doing so will also register the Oracle
OCXs in the HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT subtree of the registry.
Step 7 - Create icons for the products
In the Software Asset Manager window, click Restore Icons, then click Yes.
Step 8 - Check the Oracle RepositoryDesigner
working directory
The Oracle RepositoryDesigner
working directory on the client must be one to which you have write access.