FAQs

Q 21 How will you reduce down time in 11i to R12 upgrade?

APPLICATION LEVEL

– Take advantage of patch merge & hot patching of help/nls portions
– Use Shared APPL_TOP, shared application tier with Distributed AD (use of multiple application nodes to run ADPATCH in parallel)
– Prepare a complete list of pre and post patches and recommended code levels including CUP – Critical Upgrade Patches
– Apply latest RUPs for ATG/AD/OAM prior to upgrade
– Purge Data aggressively
– Re-gather Statistics close to start of actual upgrade downtime
– Batch size – 10K is suitable for most installs, you can test other values from 1K up to 100K
– Number of Workers – Starting rule-of-thumb is between 1 and 1.5 x #CPUs
– Order NLS Sync patchsets in Oracle instead of download and apply it for each patch.
– use staged application system ( not good for r12.2)

DATABASE LEVEL

– Maximize SGA and PGA sizing – Adjust with help from AWR pool advisories
– Set job_queue_processes = # of CPUS
– Set parallel_max_servers = 2 X CPUs
– Double java_pool_size
– Shutdown other RAC instances on same server
– Re-create your redo-logs – no mirrors, 2GB+
– Make sure you’ve applied the latest PSU for your DB version (especially if you’re doing an 11i to R12 upgrade with DB upgrade as well).
– Turn off archive logging – use interim snapshot backups for rollback points
– Gather statistics with higher estimate.

HARDWARE LEVEL

– H/W and OS planned changes – put as much CPU as possible on database node and RAM.
– CPU Server utilization in testing cycle (scale down if at 100%)
– Implement “huge pages” to offload your CPUs.
– Check Server Memory utilization in testing cycle (no swapping/ excessive paging)

Q 15 What are the basic steps for Printer Installation in EBS 11i/R12?

For most printing needs, the Pasta Utility offers quick setup and easy maintenance. For additional flexibility, Oracle E-Business Suite allows you to define your own printer drivers and print styles.

1. Setup the printer at the OS level
2. Add a valid entry in the hosts file (Printer Name and the IP Address)
3. Login to System Administrator responsibility
4. Navigate to Install > Printer > Register
5. Define a new printer by entering the Printer Name you have set in the hosts file
6. Save
7. Bounce the Concurrent Manager

Q 16 What are basic steps for Workflow Mailer configuration?

use Oracle Application Manager (OAM) to configure Workflow Notification Mailer.

For Outbound Notification, CM (Concurrent Manager) node should be able to connect to SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) server/relay.

 For Inbound Notification (Optional), CM node should be able to connect to IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) Server.

 Log file for Workflow Mailer Notification are at $APPLCSF/$APPLLOG/FNDC*.txt

 Workflow Notification Mailer in background run as Concurrent Manager (Workflow Mailer Service, Workflow Agent Listener Service)

If you wish to configure Inbound Notification as well then ensure IMAP Server should be configured with a valid user (create Inbox, Processed & Discard folder for this User)

Schedule “Workflow Background Process” Concurrent Request:

The main component of the Oracle Workflow Notification Mailer is the executable WFMAIL. This is a server-side program that queries the database for any pending notifications To configure Workflow Notification Mailer we have to do OS level setup (Sendmail) and Application level setup.

Q 12 What are custom schema creation steps?

Step-1 : Create a Tablespace in the backened Database for custom schema.
Step-2 : Create Schema
Step-3 : Grants Connect and Resource to schema
Step-4 : Make the directory structure for your custom application files.
Step-5 : Create Custom Environment file in APPL_TOP directory
Step-6 : Register your Oracle Schema.
Login to Applications with System Administrator responsibility
Navigate to Application–>Register
Step-7 : Register Oracle User
Navigate to Security–>Oracle–>Register
Step-8 : Add Application to a Data Group
Navigate to Security–>Oracle–>DataGroup
Step-9 : Create custom request group, custom menu etc

Q 10 Which all tables FNDCPASS touches when changing user’s password?

Below is how FNDCPASS works.

(1) applsys validation. (make sure APPLSYS name is correct)
(2) re-encrypt all password in FND_USER
(3) re-encrypt all password in FND_ORACLE_USERID
(4) update applsys’s password in FND_ORACLE_USERID table.
(5) Update apps password in FND_ORACLE_USERID table.

Also, changes are made in DBA_USERS table.

Q 6 What is GSM and FNDSM ?

Service processes (application tier processes such as Forms listeners, HTTP servers, and concurrent managers etc) must be kept running on an application tier for the proper functioning of their associated products. Management of the services is complicated by the fact that they may be distributed across multiple host machines. The Generic Service Management (GSM) feature simplifies management of these generic service processes, by providing a fault-tolerant framework with a central management console built into Oracle Applications Manager.

FNDSM is executable and core component in GSM (Generic Service Management Framework). GSM and Concurrent Processing are closely integrated.

You start FNDSM services via application listener on all Nodes in Application Tier in E-Business Suite.

The Service Manager (FNDSM) PID can be used to locate all concurrent manager and service processes on the node, since the Service Manager (FNDSM) is the parent process

Script to start FNDSM: gsmstart.sh

Q 3 How to increase the performance of Apache?

Oracle HTTP Server uses directives in httpd.conf. This configuration file specifies the maximum number of HTTP requests that can be processed simultaneously, logging details, and certain limits and time outs.

The parameters defined in this file can be tweaked, which will impact the performance of http (apache) server.

 for example :

1) KeepAlive option should be used judiciously along with MaxClients directive. KeepAlive option would tie a worker thread to an established connection until it times out or the number of requests reaches the limit specified by MaxKeepAliveRequests. This means that the connections or users in the ListenBacklog queue would be starving for a worker until the worker is relinquished by the keep-alive user. The starvation for resources happens on the KeepAlive user load with user population consistently higher than that specified in the MaxClients.

2) Increasing MaxClients may impact performance in the following ways:

A high number of MaxClients can overload the system resources and may lead to poor performance.

For a high user population with fewer requests, consider increasing the MaxClients to support KeepAlive connections to avoid starvation. Note that this can impact overall performance if the user concurrency increases. System performance is impacted by increased concurrency and can possibly cause the system to fail.To avoid potential performance issues, values for any parameters should be set only after considering the nature of the workload and the system capacity.

Q 2  What is the purpose of JSERV?

Oracle 11i uses Jserv as the servlet engine. R12 uses OC4J as the servlet engine.

R12 uses version 10g of the Oracle Application Server, which does not have or use jserv
Once you click on the Oracle E-Business Home Page link, the request is forwarded by Apache to Jserv. Jserv sends it to Appslogin servlet

Few related useful definitions below :

a) Apache JServ

– the 100% pure Java server application that acts as an independent servlet-request server.

b) mod_jserv

– the Apache module that converts HTTP requests to servlet requests, connecting to the proper servlet engine and sending back the HTTP response to the client.

c) Apache JServ Protocol(AJP)

– the protocol used to communicate between the web server and the servlet engine over a TCP/IP connection.

d )Servlet

– A servlet is a Java server side application that runs inside a network service, such as a web server.It responds to requests from clients, accepting client input and dynamically generating output. For example, a database querying servlet may receive a client’s query, run it against the connected database, process obtained data, and return formatted output to the client.

Q 4 Tell me some issues with Apache?

There can be many Apache issues. Some issues can be:

1) Apache process crashes and not able to come up.

One reason can be huge log file of above 2 gb because of which Apache process is unable to write to it coz of OS limitations.

2) sometimes clone/ install issues can also cause problem with Apache, example

After clonning (or installing) an Oracle Applications Release 12.0 or 12.1 instance on Linux 5, an error may occur while starting up the Apache service. The error would be this:
…
You are running adapcctl.sh version 120.6.12000000.4
Starting OPMN managed Oracle HTTP Server (OHS) instance …
adapcctl.sh: exiting with status 204
…

Review the HTTP log file. The error is very clear about the missing soft link. It would show this error:
…
<physical Path>/10.1.3/Apache/Apache/bin/apachectl startssl: execing httpd
<physical Path>/10.1.3/Apache/Apache/bin/httpd: error while loading shared
libraries: libdb.so.2: cannot open shared object file: No such file or directory
…

Soft link libdb.so.2 is missing.

As the unix root user, create a soft link as follows:

ln -s /usr/lib/libgdbm.so.2.0.0 /usr/lib/libdb.so.2

FAQ AROUND ORACLE EBS R12.2.8

Q: When was Oracle EBS R12.2.8 released?

A: Release 12.2.8 was done back in October 2018.

Q: What are the steps to install Oracle EBS R12.2.8?

A: You can find the specific instructions to download and apply the latest release update pack (RUP) for the EBS 12.2 here: Oracle E-Business Suite 12.2.8 Readme (Doc ID 2393248.1)

Q: Is there a direct upgrade path from Release 11i to Release 12.2.8?

A: No there isn’t. Before applying 12.2.8, Release 11i customers must first upgrade to Release 12.2.

Q: Is there a direct upgrade path from EBS 12.0 to 12.2.8?

A: No. Before applying 12.2.8, Release 12.0 customers must first upgrade to Release 12.2.

Q: Is there a direct upgrade path from EBS 12.2 to 12.2.8?

A: Yes. 12.2.8 can be applied directly to R12.2 environments. Since EBS 12.2.8 is an online patch, it can be applied while an existing Release 12.2 system is running.

Q: How can I prepare for EBS 12.2?

A:  You can get prepared for EBS 12.2 with this checklist Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12.2: Technical Planning, Getting Started, and Go-Live Checklist(Doc ID 1585857.1), which applies to Release 12.2.5 and higher

ADOP Options: actualize_all

Whenever adop prepare phase is initiated, a new patch edition is created in the database. ...

When the number of old database editions reaches 25 or more,

you should consider dropping all old database editions by running the adop actualize_all phase and then performing a full cleanup

What is AD/TXK patches?

latest update to Applications DBA (AD) and Technology Stack (TXK) utilities for Oracle E-Business Suite 12.2. This delta includes important performance and stability fixes for various issues related to the AD and TXK tooling. We strongly recommend that you apply these new AD and TXK updates at your earliest convenience:

R12.AD.C.Delta.11 ( Patch 26834480)

R12.TXK.C.Delta.11 (Patch 28840822)

Check AD and TXK patches versions applied in R12.2.4

Oracle EBS12.2.4 Check AD and TXK patches versions applied.

[appl@sujeet ~]$ cd /u02/apps/fs1/EBSapps/appl/

[appl@sujeet appl]$ . APPSPREPROD_chintels.env

[appl@sujeet appl]$ sqlplus apps/apps

SQL> select  ABBREVIATION, NAME, codelevel FROM AD_TRACKABLE_ENTITIES where abbreviation in ('txk','ad');

ABBREVIA NAME       CODELEVEL

-------- ---------------------------------------- ------------------------------

ad  Applications DBA     C.6

txk  Oracle Applications Technology Stack   C.6

Applying the Latest AD and TXK Release Update Packs to Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12.2 (Doc ID 1617461.1)

So, the overall process of applying is:

Run adgrants.sql from latest AD Patch

Start Prepare Phase

Apply the ETCC Patches

Apply 11.1.1.7: Patch 20756887 (FMW Dependency for AD/TXK 11)

Apply AD RUP 11 with additional AD Patches

Apply TXK RUP 11 with additional TXK Patches

Cutover, Cleanup

Migrate latest AD/TXK code to Database

Perform the sanity checks

All the patches including AD & TXK will be applied in the same patch cycle. Ensure you download and upload all the patches needed. Though in several cases ETCC patches will not be necessary its recommended to apply the latest ETCC patches needed for your environment. Each environment might need different ETCC patches so I am not going to provide details of applying ETCC patches here. Make sure you run the checkDBpatch.sh and checkMTpatch.sh to apply the respective DB and MT patches on your EBS.

Run adgrants.sql:

cp <Patch Location>/admin/adgrants.sql $ORACLE_HOME/appsutil/admin

cd $ORACLE_HOME/appsutil/admin

sqlplus '/as sysdba'

@adgrants.sql APPS

Prepare Phase:

adop phase=prepare

Apply 11.1.1.7: Patch 20756887:

In my case, FMW is 11.1.1.9 so I need not apply this patch but if you need to apply patch as you are in 11.1.1.7, perform the below steps :

export ORACLE_HOME=/u01/.../FMW_Home/oracle_common

export PATH=$PATH:$ORACLE_HOME/OPatch

cd <Patch Location>

opatch apply

Please remember that you will be applying this on Patch File System since you already started the prepare phase.

Apply AD RUP 11 with additional AD Patches:

adop phase=apply patches=26834480,28280348 merge=yes workers=4

Apply TXK RUP 11 with additional TXK Patches:

adop phase=apply patches=28840822,29607457,29794237,29167962 merge=yes workers=4

Cutover, Cleanup:

adop phase=cutover,cleanup mtrestart=no

Migrate latest AD/TXK code to Database:

perl $AD_TOP/bin/admkappsutil.p

cp $INST_TOP/admin/out/appsutil.zip <DB_HOME>

On DB Tier:

unzip -o appsutil.zip

cd $ORACLE_HOME/appsutil/scripts/<CONTEXT_NAME>

./adautocfg.sh

On Apps Tier:

adautocfg.sh

Start the Services and Perform Sanity Checks:

T2P tool(Oracle Traffic Director)

The Oracle Fusion Middleware T2P utility allows you to move an Oracle Fusion Middleware environment from test to production (T2P) with customization specific to the production environment

Oracle XML Publisher / BI Publisher Desktop - XML Publisher, which is also called Oracle Business Intelligence Publisher (BI Publisher), is a template-based reporting tool that leverages standard technologies for data extraction and display.

Internal Login Flow in Oracle Apps

When the application user name and password is entered by the user(operations/welcome)

1.DB connection is established using APPLSYSPUB user. This user “APPLSYSPUB” is having access to fnd_user view and a small set of other public tables needed to establish the initial connection.

2.Once DB connection is established FND_USER table is used to get ENCRYPTED_FOUNDATION_PASSWORD.

3.Using GUEST/ORACLE password combination and ENCRYPTED_FOUNDATION_PASSWORD  string obtained from 2 above, we get Apps schema password.

4.Internally it tries to connect to Apps schema with the password retrieved in step 3 above. If the connection fails, then

a)The GUEST username password is incorrect

b)The FNDNAM (APPS) environment variable is set incorrectly.

c)Some other problem prevented a connection

5 Using Apps password obtained in Step 3 and ENCRYPTED_USER_PASSWORD string from FND_USER table, password for Application user (e.g. SYSADMIN) is obtained.

6. The Application user password obtained in Step 5 is compared to the application user password entered by user in login screen. If both passwords match, then user can get into self-service.