Automatically restarting WebSphere processes

There are several server processes related to WebSphere Application Server products that the operating system can monitor and automatically restart when the server processes stop abnormally. This task describes how to set up monitored processes.

Before you begin

To set up this function on a Linux and UNIX-based operating system, you must have root authority to edit the inittab.

On a Windows operating system, you must belong to the Administrator group and have the user rights Act as part of the operating system and Log on as a service to define Windows services. The installation wizard grants you the user rights, if your user ID is part of the Administrator group. It displays a message that states that although the advanced user rights are now effective, they do not display as effective until the next time you log on.

You can also add the user rights manually if you are performing a silent installation on a Windows platform. For example, to grant the user rights to your administrator group user ID on a Windows 2000 Server platform:

  1. Click Administrative Tools in the Control Panel.
  2. Click Local Security Policy.
  3. Click Local Policies.
  4. Click User Rights Assignments.
  5. Right click Act as part of the operating system.
  6. Click Security.
  7. Click Add.
  8. Click your user ID.
  9. Click Add.
  10. Click OK.
  11. Click OK.
  12. Right click Log on as a service.
  13. Click Security.
  14. Click Add.
  15. Click OK.
  16. Click OK.
  17. Reboot your machine to make the settings effective.
Consult your operating system help for more information.

Why and when to perform this task

There are several environments where you might use this function of automatically restarting servers. You can restart the server1 process in a stand-alone WebSphere Application Server environment, for example. Here is a list of processes you might consider restarting:

You can create Windows services during installation, using the installation wizard. The wizard lets you create services for these servers:

The installation wizard does not provide a way to create a service for a node agent because the deployment manager instantiates each node agent after installation when you add an Application Server node to the deployment manager cell. For this reason, you must manually create a function that automatically starts a failed nodeagent server process.

You must manually create a shell script that automatically starts any of the processes previously mentioned, on a Linux and UNIX-based operating system. Each Windows service or UNIX shell script controls a single process, such as a stand-alone WebSphere Application Server instance. Multiple stand-alone Application Server processes require multiple Windows service or UNIX scripts, which you can define.

In a Network Deployment environment, the addNode or startNode command starts a single node agent process which is not monitored by the operating system and does not start all of the processes that you might define on the node. While running, the node agent monitors and restarts Application Server processes on that node, on either a Windows or a Linux and UNIX-based platform. Each Application Server process has Monitoring Policy configuration settings that the node agent uses when monitoring and restarting the process.

It is recommended that you set up a monitored node agent process manually, either through a Windows service, or through the rc.was example shell script on Linux and UNIX-based platforms. The operating system monitors and automatically restarts the node agent process, nodeagent, if the process terminates abnormally, which means if the process stops without going through a normal shutdown. It is also recommended that you set up the deployment manager server, dmgr, as a monitored process. As mentioned, you can do this during installation on a Windows platform. On a Linux and UNIX-based platform, use the rc.was example shell script to set up the deployment manager dmgr server as a monitored process.

If you do not install the WebSphere Application Server base product or Network Deployment as a Windows service during installation, you can use the WASService command in the install_root/bin directory to do so at a later time. You can use the tool to add any WebSphere Application Server process as a Windows service. The operating system can then monitor each server process, and restart the server if it stops.

Steps for this task

  1. Use the installation wizard to set up a Windows service to automatically monitor and restart processes related to the WebSphere Application Server product.

    • Perform the following procedure from the installation wizard for the base WebSphere Application Server product, to select services that the installation wizard can set up:

      1. Click Run WebSphere Application Server as a service.

        If you select this option, the installation wizard creates the following service during the installation:

        IBM WebSphere Application Server V5 - server1
        

        The IBM WebSphere Application Server V5 - server1 service controls the server1 process in a stand-alone environment.

        After you complete and verify the installation, use the Windows NT Services Control panel, or the Windows 2000 (or later) Services panel to change the IBM WebSphere Application Server V5 - server1 service to an automatic startup type.

        1. Right click IBM WebSphere Application Server V5 - server1 and click Properties.
        2. Click Automatic from the Startup type list box and click OK.

      2. Click Run IBM HTTP Server as a service.

        Select this option on the machine where you are installing the IBM HTTP Server.

        If you select this option, the installation wizard creates the following services during the installation:

        • IBM HTTP Server 1.3.2x (1.3.26 or 1.3.28 for V5.1)
        • IBM HTTP Administration 1.3.2x (1.3.26 or 1.3.28 for V5.1)
        The installation wizard defines the startup type of these services as automatic. It is not necessary that you do so.

      3. Enter your user ID and password and click Next.

      In a coexistence environment, you can change the default service names to make them unique. In a same version coexistence scenario for IBM HTTP Server 1.3.2x.x or 2.0.x on a Windows platform, you cannot use the default service names created by the installer because they are common.

      To work around this problem:

      1. Install the first copy of IBM HTTP Server, either by itself or with WebSphere Application Server and select to install the services.
      2. Customize the service names for the first install by running the following commands from the first install location:
             apache -k install -n "IHS 1.3.26(1)"
             apache -k install -f conf\admin.conf -n "IHS 1.3.26 Administration (1)"

        If you are installing IBM HTTP Server 1.3.28, use these commands:

             apache -k install -n "IHS 1.3.28(1)"
             apache -k install -f conf\admin.conf -n "IHS 1.3.28 Administration (1)"

      3. Edit the AdminAlias directive in the installLocation 1\conf\admin.conf file to point to the new service name, such as IHS 1.3.26(1).
      4. Remove the default service names installed by the first install by running the following commands:
             apache -k uninstall -n "IBM HTTP Server 1.3.26"
             apache -k uninstall -n "IBM HTTP Administration 1.3.26"
      5. Install the second copy of IBM HTTP Server, either by itself or with WebSphere Application Server. The default service names will now correspond to the second install.

      Customized service names must be unique on your system.

    • Perform the following procedure from the installation wizard for the Network Deployment product:

      1. Click Run WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment as a service.
      2. Enter your user ID and password and click Next.

      The installation wizard creates the following service during the installation:

      IBM WebSphere Application Server V5 - dmgr
      

      The IBM WebSphere Application Server V5 - dmgr service controls the dmgr server process, which is the deployment manager server that administers the cell.

  2. After installing, use the WASService.exe utility in the install_root\bin directory to manually define a Windows service for another installation or configuration instance of the base WebSphere Application Server product.
  3. After installing, use the WASService.exe tool to manually define the nodeagent server process as a Windows service.

    You can use the same tool to manually define a Windows service for another installation or configuration instance of either the base WebSphere Application Server product or the Network Deployment product.

    Note: In a distributed environment, where application server nodes are federated to WebSphere Application Server ND, you should not add the application servers (i.e.: server1) in Windows Services because the node agent monitors the status of the application servers and restarts them if they fail.

  4. After installing, set up a Linux and UNIX-based shell script to automatically monitor and restart the nodeagent server or any other related server process.
    1. Locate the rc.was example shell script, which is in the install_root/bin directory.
    2. Create a new shell script for each process that the operating system is to monitor and restart.
    3. Edit each shell script according to comments in its header, which provide instructions for identifying a WebSphere Application Server process.
    4. Edit the inittab table of the operating system, to add an entry for each shell script you have created.
      Comments in the header of the rc.was file show a sample inittab entry line for adding the script. This inittab entry causes the Linux and UNIX-based system to call each shell script whenever the system initializes. As it runs, each shell script monitors and starts the server process you specified.
    Each shell script monitors and restarts an individual WebSphere Application Server process in a stand-alone environment, or a node agent or deployment manager process in an WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment environment.

Results

You can use the net start and net stop commands to control the IBM HTTP Server services on a Windows system. For more information about these commands, see the Windows help file. Access these commands from the Start menu, clicking Start > Programs > IBM HTTP Server.

[5.0 only][Version 5.0.1][Version 5.0.2]You can also use the Start the Server and Stop the Server commands to control the IBM WebSphere Application Server on a Windows system. Access these commands from the Start menu, clicking Start > Programs > IBM WebSphere > Application Server V5.0.

[5.0 only][Version 5.0.1][Version 5.0.2]You can also use the Start the Manager and Stop the Manager commands to control the Network Deployment dmgr server on a Windows system. Access these commands from the Start menu, clicking Start > Programs > IBM WebSphere > Application Server V5.0 > Deployment Manager.

Processes started by a startServer or startNode or startManager command are not running as monitored processes, regardless of how you have configured them.

For example, you can configure a base Application Server as a WebSphere Application Server monitored process. However, if you start the Application Server instance using the startServer command, the operating system does not monitor or restart the Application Server because the operating system did not start the process as a monitored process.

What to do next

Return to Installing the product to continue.


Related reference
startNode command
startServer command
startManager command
WASService command



Searchable topic ID:   tins_service
Last updated: Jun 21, 2007 8:07:48 PM CDT    WebSphere Business Integration Server Foundation, Version 5.0.2
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