[Fix Pack 5 or later]
This topic applies only on the Linux operating system.

Preparing SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 for installation

This topic describes the steps that are needed to prepare the SUSE Linux® Enterprise Server Version 11 operating system before installing IBM® WebSphere® Application Server.

About this task

The SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Version 11 operating system was not available when WebSphere Application Server Version 7.0 originally shipped. Complete the following steps, which are common to any Linux operating system:

Procedure

  1. Log on to the operating system.

    You can log on as root or as a non-root installer.

    Select a umask that allows the owner to read/write to the files, and allows others to access them according to the prevailing system policy. For root, a umask of 022 is recommended. For non-root users a umask of 002 or 022 can be used, depending on whether the users share the group. To verify the umask setting, issue the following command:
    umask
    To set the umask setting to 022, issue the following command:
    umask 022
  2. Ensure that the Mozilla Firefox 3 browser on your SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Version 11 system is functional before installing WebSphere Application Server. The Mozilla Firefox 3 browser is bundled with SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Version 11.
    Note: It might be necessary to run >firefox &url from directories other than the one where Firefox is installed, so ensure that Firefox is in the path. You can add a symbolic link to the /opt/bin directory by entering:
    >ln -s /locationToFirefox/firefox firefox
  3. Optional: Export the location of the supported browser.

    Export the location of the supported browser using a command that identifies the actual location of the browser.

    If the Firefox package is in the /usr/lib64/firefox directory, for example, use the following command:
    export BROWSER=/usr/lib64/firefox
  4. Stop all WebSphere Application Server-related Java™ processes on the machine where you are installing the product.
  5. Stop any Web server process such as the IBM HTTP Server.
  6. Provide adequate disk space.

    The installation wizard for each component displays required space on the confirmation panel before you install the product files and selected features. The installation wizard also warns you if you do not have enough space to install the product.

    If you plan to migrate applications and the configuration from a previous version, verify that the application objects have enough disk space. As a rough guideline, plan for space equal to 110 percent of the size of the applications.

  7. Verify that prerequisites and corequisites are at the required release levels.

    Although the installation wizard checks for prerequisite operating system patches with the prereqChecker application, review the prerequisites on the Supported hardware and software Web site if you have not done so already.

    Refer to the documentation for non-IBM prerequisite and corequisite products to learn how to migrate to their supported versions.

  8. Increase the ulimit setting in the bash command shell profile to prevent addNode and importWasprofile problems.

    The addNode command script can fail when adding a node, or the importWasprofile command can fail when importing a configuration archive. The importWasprofile command might fail during the installation of a customized installation package (CIP) when the CIP includes a customized profile.

    Set a higher ulimit setting for the kernel in the bash shell profile script, which is loaded at login time for the session.

    Set the ulimit on your Linux command shells by adding the command to your shell profile script. The shell profile script is typically found under your home directory:
    1. cd ~
    2. vi .bashrc
    3. ulimit -n 8192

    See http://www.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg21223909 for more information.

  9. Restore the original copy of the etc/issue file if the file is modified.

    The prereqChecker program in the installation wizard uses the file to verify the version of the operating system. If you cannot restore the original version, ignore the Operating System Level Check message about the operating system being unsupported. The installation can continue successfully despite the warning.

  10. Verify the system cp command when using emacs or other freeware.
    If you have emacs or other freeware installed on your operating system, verify that the system cp command is used.
    1. Type the following command prompt before running the installation program for the WebSphere Application Server product.
      which cp
    2. Remove the freeware directory from your PATH if the resulting directory output includes freeware. For example, assume that the output is similar to the following message: .../freeware/bin/cp. If so, remove the directory from the PATH.
    3. Install the WebSphere Application Server product.
    4. Add the freeware directory back to the PATH.

    If you install with a cp command that is part of a freeware package, the installation might appear to complete successfully, but the Java 2 SDK that the product installs might have missing files in the app_server_root/java directory.

    Missing files can destroy required symbolic links. If you remove the freeware cp command from the PATH, you can install the Application Server product successfully.

What to do next

You might have to complete additional steps to prepare a SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Version 11 system for a WebSphere Application Server installation. The following list contains information about the special installation considerations to avoid known issues.
  • To install the product silently, either set the disableOSPrereqChecking option to "true" in the response file or follow the instructions in the following technote to ensure a successful installation: WebSphere Application Server might not recognize SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 as a supported operating system.
  • For the 32-bit SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Version 11 operating system, the xorg-x11-libs package must be present before installing and using WebSphere Application Server.

    For more information about this package, see the Novell Web site.

  • For the 64-bit SUSE Linux Enterprise Server Version 11 operating system, both the xorg-x11-libs package and the xorg-x11-libs-32bit package must be present before installing and using WebSphere Application Server.

    For more information about this package, see the Novell Web site.

For additional information about known issues with WebSphere Application Server on this operating system, see the technotes, which are available on the IBM Support site.

After you complete the steps in this topic, proceed to the final step in Preparing Linux systems for installation.




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Last updated: Oct 21, 2010 12:21:13 PM CDT
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