A very common question among enterprise deployments of an Oracle BI solution is, How can I have Oracle BI start up when the server boots? Or, especially with a Windows OS, How can I log off the server where Oracle BI resides and still keep the Oracle BI server application running? The solution or answer to this question is ancillary when compared to the overall architecture, security, and metadata modeling efforts behind the main BI effort. Nonetheless, once this keep-alive solution is implemented you'll wonder how you did without it.
On a Windows OS we can take advantage of Windows Services. On a *Nix server we can take advantage of the rc.local or init.d and chkconfig system start up and shutdown functions. Either approach involves writing a few short batch (or shell on *Nix) scripts, saving them to the appropriate location on the server and assigning the scripts to the correct start-up and shutdown function delegate for the operating system.
Regardless of OS, Oracle BI 12c has simplified this process by allowing bitools command-line files that are part of the Oracle BI 12c LCM to control this process in a very straightforward manner. By executing the bitools start command, the process runs by starting the WebLogic Server NodeManager and calling the start of the WebLogic Admin Server, the BI Managed Server, and the BI Components. The bitools stop command calls the same process in reverse to properly shutdown the system. So as an administrator, one only needs be concerned about automating the start and stop commands for a basic Oracle BI implementation such as what is covered in this book.
Again, since we are using a Windows Server operating system, this exercise will highlight that operating system and take advantage of Windows Services.
On a Windows OS, the automation of programs on startup or shutdown typically involves using the Windows Services. This could also be done using the task scheduler or other popular methods. The following steps will focus on using the Windows Services SC.EXE command to create a windows service:
- Navigate to the Windows Services panel by clicking on the Start menu and then searching for Windows Services.
- Click on the option and then scan the resulting services list for an entry that starts with Oracle.
- Open a command prompt and ensure that you are logged in as an Administrator or running the command prompt as an Administrator.
- Enter the following command to create the start service, adjusting the path to the
bitoolsfolder to reflect your environment:SC CREATE OracleBI12cStartup binPath= "C:fmw_obieeOracle_homeuser_projectsdomainsbibitoolsbinstart.cmd" DisplayName= "Oracle BI 12c Startup Service"
- View the resulting output and ensure the result was successful by checking the Windows Services list. Click Refresh on the list to see your new service listed:
- Enter the following command to create the stop service, again adjusting the path to the
bitoolsfolder to reflect your environment and the correct command name:SC CREATE OracleBI12cShutdown binPath= "C:fmw_obieeOracle_homeuser_projectsdomainsbibitoolsbinstop.cmd" DisplayName= "Oracle BI 12c Shutdown Service"
- Again, refresh the Windows Services list to see the new service.
- Right-click the startup service, change the necessary option to run at start up and click the OK button to close the prompt:
You should now, upon startup of your Windows Server, feel fairly confident that your Oracle BI system starts up fully when the machine is rebooted.
To delete a windows service, a Windows OS administrator can run the SC DELETE command followed by the service name, for example: SC DELETEOracleBI12cShutdown, to remove the windows service completely.
The shortcut that you created after the installation from Chapter 3, Installing on Windows Server 2012 can still be used from the desktop and, since it points to the same startup script that the Windows Service you created does, you can have confidence in your testing of either approach to starting Oracle BI.
Tip
Another crowd favorite for creating Windows services is using a tool such as the Non-Sucking Service Manager (NSSM), which is open source and very reminiscent of the OPMN tool most will remember from the predecessor Oracle BI 11g system. NSSM helps to provide error logs and event logs from failed processes and ensures that programs are actually started or stopped with a high-level of confidence. Read more about NSSM at http://nssm.cc/usage .
Oracle BI is marketed as a product that can connect and be configured with several cutting-edge productions such as Oracle Enterprise Performance Management (EPM) to view financial reporting and also Oracle MapViewer to incorporate visual spatial analytic views into reports and dashboards. Although these are great concepts and ideal for many organizations, they are not set up by default. They are considered native extensions, but they do involve additional efforts through configuration in order to introduce them into your Oracle BI implementation. Some of these integration points such as EPM require configuration with the Oracle BI Action Framework, which requires additional modification to a physical configuration file on the server and a credential key configuration via the WebLogic Server Administration Console. Others require a separate server configuration as with incorporating MapViewer to develop custom maps, tiles, and layers, or to leverage existing or default ones.
We mention this here not to pass judgment on Oracle BI as a tool, but so that you are aware of some additional efforts required to hook in all the bells and whistles of Oracle BI. This also gives you a sense of how straightforward or how complex you can make your Oracle BI implementation. From a project management perspective, milestones are crucial when laying out your Oracle BI project. From a technical perspective, there's a lot of amazing stuff you can do with this tool; expanding your skillset or getting some outside assistance will be key for meeting those milestones on time, managing expectations, and understanding the art of the possible.