Performing a Pre-Upgrade Readiness Check

To identify potential issues with the upgrade, Oracle recommends that you run a readiness check using the Upgrade Assistant before you start the upgrade process.

To run the pre-upgrade readiness check, refer to Running a Pre-Upgrade Readiness Check in Upgrading with the Upgrade Assistant.

When you run the Upgrade Assistant in ­readiness mode, it performs a pre-upgrade check on the schemas and component configurations associated with a domain. When completed, the readiness check generates a formatted, time-stamped readiness report so you can address potential issues before you attempt the actual upgrade.

Oracle recommends that you read this report thoroughly before performing an upgrade.

If no issues are detected, you can begin the upgrade process.

Note: Be aware that the readiness check may not be able to discover all potential issues with your upgrade. An upgrade may still fail, even if the readiness check reports success.

Create Copies of Oracle Forms Template Files

Before you start an upgrade to the latest 12c release, it is recommended that you create copies of existing Forms template files.

This includes all files in the following directory:

DOMAIN_HOME\user_projects\domains\base_domain\config\fmwconfig\components\FORMS\instances\<INSTANCE NAME>\server

If you are upgrading from a previous 12c release to the latest release, the files are located in the same directory as mentioned in the previous line.

The copy of template files will help you to restore user-specific customization in the new forms template files.

After you have completed the upgrade process, you should manually copy or merge user-specific customizations created in the earlier version to the new Forms template files.

Upgrading to Oracle Forms 12.2.1.19.0

Upgrade to Oracle Forms 12.2.1.19.0 by either installing the software in the same Oracle Home directory or installing in a new Oracle Home directory you create. After the upgrade, complete the applicable configuration steps.

If you plan to use the existing Oracle Home directory, follow the procedures for an "in-place"" upgrade. In this case, you'll back up the existing directory, install the software in the existing directory, then copy over any required files from the backup directory. See Performing an In-Place Upgrade below.

This upgrade is particularly useful for multi-node environments since you can shut down and upgrade one node at a time, ensuring minimal to no downtime.

If you plan to create a new directory for this installation, follow the "out-of-place" procedures instead. This involves installing the software as for a fresh install, then use the WLS Reconfiguration Wizard and Upgrade Assistant to complete the upgrade. See Performing an Out-of-Place Upgrade below.

Regardless of which upgrade path you choose, if the existing WLS domain was previously configured to use Forms Application Deployment Services (FADS), you must upgrade the Oracle SQL Developer version found in the Oracle Home directory to 21.4.3.

Download this version of Oracle SQL Developer from the Oracle SQL Developer Downloads 21.4.3 page. In the table, use the link for Other Platforms.

WARNING: Do not upgrade Oracle SQL Developer to a version newer than 21.4.3.

To get the Oracle Fusion Middleware Infrastructure and Oracle Forms and Reports software, refer to Obtaining the Oracle Fusion Middleware Software.

When you have finished installing 12.2.1.19, you'll need to perform some additional tasks to complete the upgrade. See Completing the Upgrade below.

This section includes these topics:

• Performing an In-Place Upgrade
• Performing an Out-of-Place Upgrade
• Completing the Upgrade

Performing an In-Place Upgrade

To perform an "in-place" upgrade, you'll back up the existing Oracle Home directory, install the latest versions of the required software in the existing directory, then copy over any required files from the backup directory.

In an in-place upgrade, you install the 12.2.1.19.0 software in the same Oracle Home path that 12.2.1.4.0 or 12.2.1.3.0 previously used. This upgrade is recommended for multi-node load balanced Forms deployment.

This procedure uses a two-node environment as an example: A primary node, named "node1", with Admin Server, Forms (managed Server WLS_FORMS and System component forms1) and Oracle HTTP Server (OHS); and a secondary node, named "node2", with Forms Instance (managed Server WLS_FORMS and System component forms1).

For single node configurations, complete steps 1 - 8. For each additional node, complete steps 9 - 12.

To perform an in-place upgrade:

1. Shutdown any system components like OHS (if in use), the managed servers, the Admin Server, then the Node Manager on node 1.
2. Rename the Oracle Home parent directory on node 1. For example, you can rename it to Oracle_Home_Old.
3. Install Fusion Middleware Infrastructure 12.2.1.4.0 on node 1 using the same Oracle Home path as used previously (before renaming it in Step 2).
4. Install Oracle Forms 12.2.1.19.0 on node 1 using the same Oracle Home path.
5. If the WLS Domains directory (user_projects) and its subdirectories are located within the old Oracle Home, copy these directories to the new Oracle Home in the same location as they were previously.
6. If installing on Unix/Linux, execute the following in a shell as the same user that owns this new installation:
   1. Set the ORACLE_HOME environment variable and point it to the Forms home, for example:

      export ORACLE_HOME=

   2. Issue the following commands:

      cd $ORACLE_HOME/procbuilder/lib
      make -f ins_procbuilder.mk sharedlibs dejvm_install
      cd $ORACLE_HOME/forms/lib
      make -f ins_forms.mk sharedlib
      frmopmn_wrp_install
      frmctrl_install frmweb_install
      frmcmpb_install frmcmp_install
      frmbld_install
      

7. If required, upgrade Oracle SQL Developer to 21.4.3 You'll need to upgrade to 21.4.3 if the existing WLS domain was previously configured to use Forms Application Deployment Services (FADS). An older version of SQL Developer is installed with the latest Forms release.

   
   WARNING: Do not upgrade Oracle SQL Developer to a version newer than 21.4.3.

   1. Download Oracle SQL Developer 21.4.3 from the SQL Developer 21.4.3 Downloads page using the Other Platforms link in the table. The download file is a zip file, for example: sqldeveloper-21.4.3.063.0100-no-jre.zip.

   2. Rename the sqldeveloper directory located in the $ORACLE_HOME directory. For example, rename it to sqldeveloper_old.

   3. Extract the contents of the Oracle SQL Developer 21.4.3 zip file to the Oracle Home directory. This results in a new sqldeveloper top-level directory within the Oracle Home.

8. Start the Node Manager, Admin Server, the managed servers, and any other system components (such as OHS) on node 1.

   This completes the upgrade of node 1. For additional nodes, perform the remaining steps.

9. Shutdown system components and the managed servers on node 2.

10. Repeat steps 2 to 8 to install Oracle Forms on node 2.

11. Start system components and the managed servers on node 2.

12. After completing the installation and starting the servers correctly, delete the Oracle_Home_Old directories from nodes 1 and 2. Before deleting, make sure you copy any custom files you need from the Oracle_Home_Old directory.

Once you have completed these steps, proceed to Completing the Upgrade section below.

Performing an Out-of-Place Upgrade

Performing an Out-of-Place Upgrade

To perform an "out-of-place" upgrade, you'll install the software as for a fresh install, then use the WLS Reconfiguration Wizard and Upgrade Assistant to complete the upgrade.

In an out-of-place upgrade, you install the 12.2.1.19.0 software in a new Oracle Home directory rather than the one used by the 12.2.1.4.0 or 12.2.1.3.0 install.

• Install the Software in a New Oracle Home
• Reconfiguring the Domain using the WLS Reconfiguration Wizard
• Running the Upgrade Assistant to Upgrade the Components Configuration
• Starting Oracle Forms After an Upgrade

Install the Software in a New Oracle Home

Install the Oracle Fusion Middleware Infrastructure 12.2.1.4 and Forms 12.2.1.19 software into a new Oracle home directory.

After installing the software, skip any additional steps and return here to update your existing WLS domain. Do not create new Repository schemas and do not run the Configuration Wizard.

Refer to the Installing and Configuring Oracle Forms chapter starting with Installing Oracle Forms in a New Oracle Home for the steps to install the software.

Reconfiguring the Domain using the WLS Reconfiguration Wizard

You have to reconfigure the domain using the WLS Reconfiguration wizard.

To reconfigure the domain:

1. Run the WLS Reconfiguration wizard from the following location in the new Oracle home:

   $ORACLE_HOME/oracle_common/common/bin/reconfig.sh

2. Provide the location of the 12.2.1.4.0 or 12.2.1.3.0 FMW domain to be upgraded.
3. Enter the RCU schema information.
4. Select the Administration Server and Topology options from the Advanced Configuration screen. Do not select the System Components option. Those will be automatically configured/upgraded by the Upgrade Assistant.
5. Administration Server Settings screen: If the previous environment was configured to use Forms Application Deployment Services (FADS), ensure that WSMPM-MAN-SVR is selected from the Server Groups drop-down list.
   Note: Do not select it if FADS was not previously configured.
6. Leave the default selections on the Node Manager screen. Enter user name and password if needed.
7. Click Next until you get to the last screen of the wizard.

Running the Upgrade Assistant to Upgrade the Components Configuration

To upgrade the Components configuration, complete a series of steps using the 12.2.1.19.0 Upgrade Assistant.

To upgrade the Components configuration:

1. Run the 12.2.1.19.0 Upgrade Assistant from the following location:

   $ORACLE_HOME/oracle_common/upgrade/bin/ua

2. Select the All Configuration Used by the Domain option.
3. Provide the location of the reconfigured 12c domain.
4. Select the prerequisite check boxes.
5. Click Upgrade.

Starting Oracle Forms After an Upgrade

After you have installed the Oracle Fusion Middleware Infrastructure and Oracle Forms software and run both the WLS Reconfiguration wizard and the Upgrade Assistant, you'll need to start Oracle Forms.

If the existing WLS domain was previously configured to use Forms Application Deployment Services (FADS), you'll need to upgrade Oracle SQL Developer to version 21.4.3 before you start the servers. An older version of SQL Developer is installed with the latest Forms release.

1. If required, upgrade Oracle SQL Developer to 21.4.3.
   WARNING: Do not upgrade Oracle SQL Developer to a version newer than 21.4.3.
   1. Download Oracle SQL Developer 21.4.3 from the SQL Developer 21.4.3 Downloads page using the Other Platforms link in the table. The download file is a zip file, for example: sqldeveloper-21.4.3.063.0100-no-jre.zip.
2. Rename the sqldeveloper directory located in the $ORACLE_HOME directory. For example, rename it to sqldeveloper_old.
3. Extract the contents of the Oracle SQL Developer 21.4.3 zip file to the Oracle Home directory.
4. This results in a new sqldeveloper top-level directory within the Oracle Home.
5. Start the Node Manager, Admin Server, the managed servers, and any other system components (such as Oracle HTTP Server).

Once you have completed these steps, proceed to Completing the Upgrade.

Completing the Upgrade

After you upgrade Oracle Forms to 12.2.1.19.0, you may need to perform these additional steps depending on your configuration.

Forms Application Services (FADS) Configuration

If Forms Application Services (FADS) was configured in the 12.2.1.4.0 or 12.2.1.3.0 domain, you'll need to run the FADS configuration script (fads_config.py) with the upgrade option:

1. Run the following command:

   ORACLE_HOME/oracle_common/common/bin/wlst.sh fads_config.py upgrade

2. Complete the prompts.

Userid Encryption

If upgrading from 12.2.1.3.0, enable encryption for the userid parameter and grant access to the Forms application keystore.

Note: These steps are not necessary if upgrading from 12.2.1.4.0.

To enable encryption for the userid parameter:

1. ("Out-of-place" upgrade only) Set the forms.userid.encryption.enabled server parameter to true for the Admin Server and the Forms managed servers. Refer to Customizing Domain Wide Server Parameters in Administering Server Startup and Shutdown for Oracle WebLogic Server. Here is a sample of the setUserOverridesLate.sh file (use setUserOverridesLate.cmd for Windows), where the forms.userid.encryption.enabled parameter is enabled.

   echo ""
   echo "*****************************************************"
   echo "** Executing setUserOverridesLate.sh"
   echo "*****************************************************"
   
   # specify additional java command line options for all servers
   
   EXTRA_JAVA_PROPERTIES="${EXTRA_JAVA_PROPERTIES} -Dforms.userid.encryption.enabled=true"
   export EXTRA_JAVA_PROPERTIES
   
   echo "USER_MEM_ARGS=\"${USER_MEM_ARGS}\""
   echo "EXTRA_JAVA_PROPERTIES=\"${EXTRA_JAVA_PROPERTIES}\""
   echo ""
   echo "*****************************************************"
   echo "** End of setUserOverrideLate.sh"
   echo "*****************************************************"
   echo ""
   

2. Run the following commands using WLST (online mode) to provide grants to the forms application or mbeans to access the Forms application keystore.

   grantPermission(codeBaseURL="file:${common.components.home}/../forms/provision/forms-config-mbeans.jar",
   permClass="oracle.security.jps.service.keystore.KeyStoreAccessPermission",permTarget="stripeName=formsapp,
   keystoreName=formsks,alias=*", permActions="*")
   
   grantPermission(codeBaseURL="file:${domain.home}/servers/${weblogic.Name}/tmp/_WL_user/formsapp_12.2.1/-",
   permClass="oracle.security.jps.service.keystore.KeyStoreAccessPermission", permTarget="stripeName=formsapp,
   keystoreName=formsks,alias=*",permActions="*")

3. Restart the Node Manager, the Admin Server, and Forms managed server(s).

Post-Upgrade Steps after Upgrading Oracle Forms

After using the Upgrade Assistant to upgrade Oracle Forms, you'll need to perform a number of post-upgrade tasks.

Complete these tasks:

• Regenerate the Forms application files (fmx, mmx, and plx) to run on Oracle Forms Services 12.2.1.19.0.
• If you deployed the Oracle Forms Services J2EE custom application ear file (formsapp.ear) file to override the context root or Forms servlet alias, you should perform similar steps in the 12.2.1.19.0 Oracle WebLogic Server domain, see Custom Deployment of Forms Java EE Application. For more information, see Oracle Forms Configuration Helper Script in the Working With Oracle Forms guide.
• Manually copy any customizations made to provided shell script to the new environment as necessary.
• Be sure to copy any custom files stored in the old Oracle Home into the corresponding directories of the new installation.
  Note: It may be necessary to stop the servers before copying the old files into the new directories in order for the new servers to become aware of their existence.