WebLogic Admin Best Practices

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WebLogic Admin Best Practices

• Tom Janofsky
• Chariot Solutions
• DVBUG 12/16/03

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Tom Janofsky

• Architect with Chariot Solutions
• Instructor at PSU Abington
• Tjanofsky_at_chariotsolutions.com

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Overview

• Process
• Deployment Architecture
• Debugging WLS Administration
• Performance
• Security
• Scripting

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Process

• Integrate early and often on a cluster
• Test as early as possible on deployment platform
  and configuration
• Development team needs build manager
• Deploy so you can roll back
• Model production in your QA environment

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Deployment Architecture

• KISS
• Have a good reason before splitting the
  presentation and object tier
• Consider WebLogic Express Premium
• Prove a real improvement before using Apache for
  static content

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More Deployment

• Beware giving servers different internal and
  external names
• Evaluate deployments on the admin server
• Use domains as an administrative constraint

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Debugging Administration

• .wlnotdelete and stage
• Firewalls and JDBC pool shrinking
• One WLS version in QA and production
• Upgrade WebLogic
• Backup config.xml
• Beware the console domain wizard

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More Debugging Admin

• Remember licenses are IP bound
• Licenses at http//elicense.bea.com, can be
  misleading (CPUs and products)
• ClassCastException and ClassNotFoundErrors are
  usually problems in deployment architecture
• NotSerializableExceptions look for objects
  going into Session not tested on a cluster

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More Debugging Admin

• Use shutdown, not kill 9
• Search esupport and Google groups for problems
• When contacting support, fill out the whole form
• Deadlocks kill 3
• Use your salesrep for real support problems

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Performance

• Focus on object tier -gt DB for CRUD apps
• Spend s on network and DB machine
• Set headers and cache images
• Use replication in groups in large clusters
• Set max size in connection pool to max number of
  users

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Security

• http//dev2dev.bea.com/advisories
• Permissions
• Restrict size and time limit on connections
• Password protect the JDBC connection pools to a
  role
• Enable security auditing

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More Security

• Dont allow JSPs in production to have
  keepgenerated true
• No builds / no source
• Dont enable the Servlet servlet in production
• Do not leave the FileServlet as the default
  servlet

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Scripting

• Write shell scripts to control disparate servers
• Use MBeans to ensure consistent configurations

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Panel Discussion

• Keith Wilson Vertex Inc.
• Don Nawrocki GSI Commerce
• Tom Janofsky Chariot Solutions
• Tom Purcell Chariot Solutions

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Tom Janofsky

• Tjanofsky_at_chariotsolutions.com