Automatically restarting server processes
 Technote (FAQ)
 
Problem
Is there an equivalent of a nanny process in WebSphere Application Server Version 5? In other words, how can I run server processes as monitored processes so that they can be restarted if they go down?
 
Solution
There is an equivalent, but it is different depending on the platform.

On Windows, use a command line tool called WASService.exe in the WAS_install_root/bin directory. This tool adds any server process as a Windows Service, and the Windows operating system monitors the process and restarts it if it crashes. For WebSphere Application Server v5 (base), where there is only the application server, individual application servers can be added as Windows Services for monitoring. For WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment, the Node Agent takes care of the monitoring and restarting of individual application servers in the node, but the Node Agent should be setup as a Windows Service using WASService.exe so it can be automatically restarted. If the deployment manager is installed, the Deployment Manager should also be setup as a Windows Service using WASService.exe in order for it to be a monitored process.

Inorder to create a service, run wasservice.exe from <install_root>/bin. The command is :
wasservice.exe -add <service name> -serverName <Name of Server> {optional params}.
To get more information on the wasservice.exe tool and the optional parameters for the add command, check the WebSphere Application Server InfoCenter.
For example, to create a nodeagent service, you could use the command:
wasservice.exe -add nodeagent -serverName nodeagent.
To start a service, use the command: wasservice.exe -start <service name>

Alternatively, You can create Windows services during installation, using the installation wizard. The wizard lets you create services for these servers:
The server1 process in a standalone base product environment
The IBM HTTP Server process and the IBM HTTP Administrative Server process, if you have chosen to install the IBM HTTP Server feature during the base product installation
The Deployment Manager process on a deployment manager node
The installation wizard does not provide a way to create a service for a node agent. You have to use the WASService tool mentioned above to run the Node Agent as a service.

The basic situation is the same for Unix platforms except that instead of WASService.exe, we ship an example shell script (rc.was) that should be added to the system's inittab table. The rc.was example contains instructions and a sample inittab entry line. This is similar to creating a Windows Service. Individual Application servers can be monitored in the Base environment, and node agents and deployment managers in the Network Deployment environment.
 
 
Cross Reference information
Segment Product Component Platform Version Edition
Application Servers Runtimes for Java Technology Java SDK
 
 


Document Information


Product categories: Software > Application Servers > Distributed Application & Web Servers > WebSphere Application Server > Administrative Console (all non-scripting)
Operating system(s): Windows
Software version: 5.0
Software edition:
Reference #: 1067508
IBM Group: Software Group
Modified date: Oct 8, 2003