A tour of WebSphere Application Server Version 3.5 directories

This document describes the directories in WebSphere Application Server Version 3.5 for the purpose of avoiding and determining problems. The product directory structure is as follows (Microsoft Windows Explorer view):

The Standard and Advanced Editions of the product have basically the same directories, with some of the directories omitted from Standard Edition.

WebSphere and AppServer
The WebSphere directory contains subdirectories for each of the WebSphere products installed on the machine. The AppServer directory is the installation root of the WebSphere Application Server product.
bin
The bin directory contains several notable items:
classes
The classes directory exists for legacy purposes. Most users can disregard it.

Do not put anything in the classes directory unless advised to do so by IBM WebSphere Studio or other IBM products, IBM support personnel, or WebSphere Application Server documentation.

deployableEJBs and deployedEJBs
The deployableEJBs directory contains enterprise bean JAR files that the WebSphere administrator has placed there for deployment.

The Java-based WebSphere Administrative Console provides an interface by which the administrator can deploy the JAR files in deployableEJBs. The product places the deployed JAR files in the deployedEJBs directory.

Standard Edition does not contain the deployableEJBs and deployedEJBs directories.

hosts
The hosts directory should contain a subdirectory for each virtual host that exists in the administrative domain (one or more machines sharing administrative data). Each virtual host subdirectory should have subdirectories for all of the Web applications associated with the virtual host.

If the administrator has not created the subdirectories to match what he or she configured in the administrative domain, problems are likely to occur. For details, see the article about placing Web application files in the product directories.

lib
The lib directory contains the product JAR files.
logs
The logs directory contains high-level log output for the Web server plug-ins. It also contains a "tracefile" log for the administrative server.

The trace subdirectory under logs contains the trace for the Web server plug-ins, if that trace is enabled.

properties
The properties directory contains property files for several aspects of the product.

Unless directed otherwise by IBM support personnel or product documentation covering specific exceptions, the administrator is encouraged to modify properties only by means of the product interfaces provided, such as the WebSphere Administrative Console.

To avoid problems, the administrator is discouraged from directly editing files in the properties directory. However, it can be helpful sometimes to view the property files.

The most notable files in the properties directory are:

servlets
The servlets directory contains sample servlets that can be deployed through the default Web application (default_app) in the WebSphere Administrative Console.
temp
The temp directory contains the active Web server plug-in configuration files: vhost, queues, and rules.

If the Web server is not handling servlet requests properly, make sure the temp directory contains the files. If it does not, stop the administrative server and start it again to try to force the product to generate the files. The servlet engine resource in the WebSphere Administrative Console also offers an option for forcing the plug-in file generation.

theme
The theme directory contains some product graphics. Users can disregard it.
tivready
The tivready directory contains information and materials regarding the Tivoli Ready status of the product.
tranlog
The tranlog directory contains transaction logs. The administrator monitors and manages transactions through the WebSphere Administrative Console.
web
The web directory contains the product release documentation:
WebSphereSamples
The WebSphereSamples directory contains the product code samples, including several applications, Web applications, and individual Java components.