Upgrading WebLogic Application Environments
Introduction
This document describes the procedures to upgrade your application environment to WebLogic Server 10g Release 3 (10.3). An application environment includes applications, the WebLogic domains in which they are deployed, and any application data associated with the domain, and may include external resources, such as database servers, firewalls, load balancers, and LDAP servers.
WebLogic Server 10.3 includes powerful tools to assist you with upgrading your application environments including the WebLogic Upgrade Wizard for upgrading domains, custom security providers, and custom node managers.
Most WebLogic Server applications can be run without modifications in the new WebLogic Server 10.3 application environment.
The following sections provide an overview of the topics discussed in this chapter:
- Overview of the Upgrade Process
- How the Upgrade Wizard Simplifies the Upgrade Process
- Interoperability and Compatibility with Previous Releases
Important Terminology
We recommend that, before proceeding, you familiarize yourself with the following terminology:
- Upgrade—To update WebLogic products from a previous release or service pack to a more recent one. This process may include updating an existing application or domain configuration to run in a more recent version of WebLogic Server.
- Migrate—To move an application or domain configuration from a third-party product to an Oracle product.
- Interoperability—(1) The ability of an application deployed in one release or service pack to communicate with another application that is deployed in a different release or service pack. (2) The ability of Oracle product components to communicate with third-party software via standard protocols.
- Compatibility—The capability of an application built using one release or service pack to run in another release or service pack, regardless of whether the application was rebuilt.
Overview of the Upgrade Process
The process required to upgrade an application environment depends on the scope of the application. An application environment includes a WebLogic domain and any applications and application data associated with the domain. It may also include external resources, such as firewalls, load balancers, and LDAP servers. Figure 1-1 shows an example of a WebLogic application environment. Figure 1-1 Example WebLogic Application Environment
Table 1-1 lists the components of the WebLogic application environment shown in Figure 1-1, and the upgrade requirements for each.
| Component | Description | Upgrade Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| WebLogic domain | Includes the Administration Server (AS) and optionally one or more Managed Servers (for example, MS1, MS2, MS3, and MS4). The servers in a domain may span multiple machines. Furthermore, you can group Managed Servers into clusters to support load balancing and failover protection for critical applications. For more information about WebLogic domains, see “Understanding WebLogic Server Domains” in Understanding Domain Configuration. | Upgrade the domain directory on each machine in the domain. |
| Custom security provider | Supports custom security requirements. For information about developing custom security providers, see Developing security providers for WebLogic Server. | Upgrade the custom security providers on each machine in the domain. |
| Node Manager | Provides high availability to Managed Servers. For more information about Node Manager, see “Node Manager Overview” in Node Manager Administrator's Guide. | Upgrade custom Node Manager on each machine in the domain. |
| Applications | Any Java EE applications, including Web applications, EJBs, and so on. Typically, applications are deployed to one or more Managed Servers in a domain. Depending on the deployment strategy, applications may reside locally on a machine or be accessible via a shared directory. In addition, external client applications may access the application environment from outside a firewall. | Most WebLogic Server applications can be run without modifications in the new WebLogic Server 10g Release 3 (10.3) application environment. For more information, see Interoperability and Compatibility with Previous Releases. |
| External resources | Software components, such as databases for storing domain and application data, load balancers, and firewalls. | Verify that all external resources are compatible with WebLogic Server 10.3. For more information, see: WebLogic Server 10.3 Supported Configurations |
How the Upgrade Wizard Simplifies the Upgrade Process
The WebLogic Upgrade Wizard guides you through the steps required to upgrade a WebLogic domain that is compatible with WebLogic Server 7.0, or 8.1 such that it runs in a WebLogic Server 10.3 application environment. As part of the upgrade process, upgrade any custom security providers and Node Managers used in the domain.
You can also use the WebLogic Upgrade Wizard to upgrade to 10.3 a WebLogic domain that is compatible with WebLogic Server 9.x or 10.0, but this is optional. This type of domain runs under WebLogic Server 10.3 without modification.
You can step through the upgrade process interactively, using the graphical user interface (GUI), or “silently,” by creating an upgrade script and running it. Note that the Silent Mode is supported for upgrading WebLogic Server domains only.
Interoperability and Compatibility with Previous Releases
Application environments that run with WebLogic Server 10.3 can interact with application environments built on WebLogic Server 7.0, 8.1, 9.x, or 10.0.
Most existing WebLogic Server applications can be run without modification in the new WebLogic Server 10.3 application environment. You should review the compatibility information described in WebLogic Server 10.3 Compatibility with Previous Releases to determine whether any feature changes affect the applications in your environment. If your application uses APIs that have been deprecated or removed, then you may encounter warnings or exceptions at run time.