Java Runtime Environment issues

Workplace and Workplace XT tools that are available as Java™ applets require users to have Java™ Runtime Environment (JRE) downloaded and installed on their local computers. A user might encounter problems with the applets if using an incompatible version of JRE. Information about the supported versions can be found in the IBM FileNet P8 Hardware and Software Requirements. To download this document from the IBM support page, see Accessing IBM FileNet documentation.

Clearing the caches to resolve JRE problems

If a user experiences problems with a Java applet, the user can try clearing the browser and Java caches.

Installing the correct JRE version when using Mozilla Firefox

The behavior of Firefox 2 when it opens an applet requiring JRE can cause the system to attempt to run Java applets with an unsupported version of the JRE. This can occur in one of two ways:

To avoid both problems, the user can manually download the JRE version provided with the application. Before doing so, however, you must identify the appropriate JRE version provided with the application, then provide the user with the appropriate instructions.

To identify the JRE version

  1. On the application server, navigate to the application's download folder.
  2. In the download folder, look for executable files starting with jre. For example, on a Windows application server, you might locate jre-1_5_0_12-windows-i586-p.exe and jre-1_5_0_09-windows-i586-p.exe.
  3. Make a note of the filename of the file for the newest JRE version. In the above example, you would select jre-1_5_0_12-windows-i586-p.exe.

Instructions to manually download the provided JRE

Using the JRE version information above, you can tailor the following instructions for your site before providing the instructions to your users.

NOTE  If the user has a newer version of JRE already installed, it might be necessary to uninstall that version before proceeding.

  1. On the client, log in to the application.
  2. Enter the following address in the Firefox address bar:

    http://<servername:port>/<applicationname>/download/<jre-executable>

    where

    <servername:port> is the name and port number of your server
    <applicationname> is the name of your application (for example, Workplace or WorkplaceXT)
    <jre-executable> is the filename for the newest JRE version (identified in the procedure above)

    TIP Once you have logged in, the <servername:port>/<applicationname> for your application is already displayed in the address bar. You can simply replace the rest of the displayed address with /download/<jre-executable>.

  3. When prompted, you can run the JRE installer or save it on your local hard drive. If you choose to save it, start the installer by navigating to the folder where you saved it and double-clicking the saved file.
  4. When the JRE installation is complete, restart Firefox.