Oracle WebLogic Server's installation is pretty straightforward; we just need to pay attention to the Java SDK selection in order to use the one we just installed.
- Navigate to the download page at http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/middleware/weblogic/downloads/index.html.
- Click on the Accept License Agreement option button.
- Right below the option box, there's a drop-down list with five entries. Select the entry Generic WebLogic Server and Coherence installer (880MB) and click on the Download File button.
Note
Another option is to download the zip distribution; with barely one fifth the size of the generic installer, it includes all core artifacts, leaving out samples, the Derby database, and web server plugins, among other features. Also, there's no way to apply patches to this installation.
If bandwidth is a concern, go ahead and get this file instead of the generic one. Check the
README.txtfile inside the package for instructions on how to install and configure a domain—the steps described in this chapter don't apply. - You will be redirected to a login page where you must enter your Oracle credentials (if you don't have one yet, sign up for an account now; you just need to fill up a short form).
- When the download is completed, execute the installer using the Java binary installed in the previous section:
/oracle/jdk1.7.0_21/bin/java/java -jar wls_121200.jar - The first step of the installation asks you to set up an inventory, which is the engine used by Oracle (along with OPatch) to apply upgrades and patches to its software. Enter
/opt/packt/inventoryas Inventory Directory, select a system group, and click on OK. - Click on Next on the Welcome screen.
- Enter the installation directory for the software,
/opt/packt/install, and click on Next.Note
The path you just entered is called Oracle Home, where the WebLogic Server binaries will be installed. If you are familiar with the previous versions of WebLogic, this is what was called Middleware Home, and earlier still, it used to be the BEA Home. In a nutshell, this folder is the root point where other Oracle products, such as SOA Suite, can be installed later, using the software that is already present as its starting point.
If you're using Windows, remember to choose a folder name with no spaces in it. This is critical to run things smoothly.
- On the Installation Type screen, you can choose between the default WebLogic Server Installation and Complete Installation; the difference between them is that the latter installs everything from the former plus the samples for both WebLogic and Coherence. Now click on Next.
- The Prerequisite Checks screen does a basic validation of the environment, showing warning messages for those that don't pass; for instance, if you're using Ubuntu, which is not a certified platform, a warning is shown, and can be safely ignored. If no other warnings or errors are present, go ahead and click on Next.
- You may want to register with Oracle Support in order to receive security updates. If you don't want to, just uncheck the I wish to receive security updates via My Oracle Support option and click on Next.
- A summary is presented. Go ahead and click on Install to start the installation process.
- After it finishes, uncheck the Automatically Launch the Configuration Wizard checkbox and click on Finish to close the installer.
Tip
It is recommended to export an environment variable pointing to your WebLogic's installation folder. Inside Oracle's documentation and usually in real environments, this is referred to as MW_HOME (the middleware home). For example:
export MW_HOME=/opt/packt/install. This is how we will refer to this folder from now on.