IBM i Installation Requirements

Before you install, review the following requirements.

Type

Description

Operating System

IBM i V7R2 or higher.

The ibi™ WebFOCUS® Release Notes maintains a current list of supported operating systems and levels.

Disk Space

(Do not install to iASP based locations)

Space for installation

Space after installation

Approximately 3G

Approximately 2G

IP Ports

Up to six consecutive IP ports (two in reserve for typical extra features).

The supplied IP port numbers must be above the IANA registered well-known reserve range (numbers under 1024) and not over the maximum legal number (65535). Additionally, do not use IP port numbers already being used by other applications or products. Netstat, or netstat like commands, should reveal what actual ports are in use.

Additional Java Listeners (postinstallation option) require additional ports (beyond basic reserve).

Memory

Memory and shared memory usage depend on the following elements:

  • Number of data access agents.
  • Type of access that is performed, such as joins and large retrieval.
  • Connection queue.

Actual memory usage differs between applications and the server load.

Java

Java JRE or Java SDK (also known as JDK) 8 or higher.

Needed if JVM-based adapters, server-side graphics, XBRL, or user-written CALLJAVA applications are to be used. For additional information, see JVM Requirements for Java Services.

Note:

Java 8 and Java 11 are explicitly tested and certified to be compatible with the WebFOCUS Reporting Server. Other Java releases may be compatible with the WebFOCUS Reporting Server. If you use an untested Java release, you must self-certify its compatibility with the WebFOCUS Reporting Server and accept responsibility for using an untested release.

Web Browser

Needed for using the WebFOCUS Reporting Server browser interface.

Microsoft Edge

Mozilla Firefox® 59 or higher.

Google Chrome® 65 or higher.

Shell

The IBM i - QShell Interpreter (IBM i Installation Option 30) must be installed to use the product. The QShell Interpreter is a free optional feature of IBM i. The easiest way to check if this feature is installed is to enter QSH on the IBM i command line. If it is installed, a UNIX-like environment starts (F3 to exit). If it is not installed, you receive a Command QSH in library *LIBL not found message. If it is not installed, install it before proceeding.

JVM Requirements for Java Services

If Java-based adapters, server-side graphics, XBRL, or user-written CALLJAVA applications are to be used, a Java Runtime Environment (JRE) JVM must be installed on the machine, and the server must be configured to use it.

The minimum Java JVM release level is 8 or higher, due to the required internal components of the server. As already noted, only Java release 8 and release 11 are explicitly tested, and use of any other release must be self-certified by the customer if they choose not to use release 8 or release 11. The Java Listener does not start properly (and shows errors in the edaprint.log file) if 8 (or higher) is not in use.

The following URL has Java EOL and EOSL information:

http://www.oracle.com/technetwork/java/eol-135779.html

On the IBM i5, Java is a system-installed option and there is no differentiation between JRE and SDK, but the build version it uses must also match the bit size of the server, which is 64-bit.

By default, the server uses the system default Java level and directories. If the JVM is found with the correct bit size and level (8+), the Java Listener starts and sends the start message to the edaprint.log file, in which case no further configuration is needed. If eight is not the default and the site does not want it as the default, then an explicit setup variable must be configured.

If JVM loading fails, the server starts, but not the Java Listener. This should be corrected. The default IBM i Java level may be set at a system level, however, changing this may affect other processes, so control is best done at the server level. For V7R2 (or higher), this is done by setting the following in the server environment file, edaenv.cfg,

JAVA_HOME=/QOpenSys/QIBM/ProdData/JavaVM/jdk80/64bit

The location of the default JVM on IBM i is controlled by the object QSYS/QJVAJNI. This is normally on the system path, so you do not need to do anything to fulfill the basic JVM find requirements. However, if the default JVM level of the machine is not 8 or higher, corrective action may be required to access the correct JVM level.

If the default JVM is not found or is set to an unappropriate release at server start time, a Failed to find JVM message is displayed. Further Java Services debugging information about loading the JVM is written to the server start log, indicating JSCOM3 start failed, as well as additional information that may be useful in resolving the problem. JSCOM3 is the actual process name for the Java Services Listener, and the terms are often used interchangeably.

The easiest way to determine the current default for the server iadmin ID is to issue the command QSH CMD('java -version'), which displays the default release level for the ID.

There are several choices on how to address using the correct JVM level, but as of V7R2, the steps no longer vary by operating system.

  • Change the Java (5761-JV1) install options to point at the desired JVM level as a machine default. Depending on other applications that might be using Java, this might or might not be desirable.
  • Set JAVA_HOME to a point at a desired JVM release level.

The various Java releases and PTF releases that may be available at any time will be found in the following folder: 

/QOpenSys/QIBM/ProdData/JavaVM

For example:

/QOpenSys/QIBM/ProdData/JavaVM/jdk11/64bit

/QOpenSys/QIBM/ProdData/JavaVM/jdk80/64bit

To use the JVM from one of these releases, specifically for the server iadmin ID (if it is not already the system default), set the JAVA_HOME variable to point at a 64-bit JDK. For example:

JAVA_HOME=/QOpenSys/QIBM/ProdData/JavaVM/jdk80/64bit

Note that Java 80 is the minimum requirement for the server.

The variable may be set in any of the following ways:

  • As a system variable set from the profile of the server iadmin ID, using the INLPGM exit, a JOBD RQSDTA() CL option, or any number of other methods for setting system variables within the environment of a job.
  • As an exported QSH variable in any script that is used to call the edastart script.
  • As a system variable in any customized CL that is used to call the QSH IFS edastart script, or as an export variable within the QSH portion of the CL.
  • Add to the edaenv.cfg environment configuration file of the server.

Formerly, a -Djava class property could be used to control the Java JVM release level, however, this method is no longer supported as of V7R2. If this method was used previously under V7R1, and the machine is upgraded to V7R2 or higher, the parameter should be removed and the server must be configured using V7R2 or higher methods (described above).

To change or add operating system environment variables, set and export the variable in a .profile, script, or CL that always gets called during a server start. It is very common to place variables in the server edastart script, but it is recommended that they be placed in a script that in turn calls edastart (so that the edastart script remains vanilla).

To change or add a variable in a server environment start-up file (EDACONF bin\edaenv.cfg), either edit the file in a text editor before starting the server or:

  1. Start the server (services like Java Listener may fail until configured and the server is restarted).
  2. Open the WebFOCUS Reporting Server browser interface and log in using an administrator ID.
  3. Select Workspace from the main menu.
  4. In the navigation pane, open the Configuration Files and Miscellaneous folders.
  5. Right-click Environment - edaenv.cfg and select Edit.
  6. Make the desired edit.
  7. Save the file.
  8. Restart (changes are not effective until restart).

The format of the edaenv.cfg variables is one per line in name=value pairs. Spaces before and after the equal sign are optional. Values with embedded spaces do not require quotation marks. Variables are always uppercase.

To add classes to the JVM class path for customer-written CALLJAVA applications, set and export the CLASSPATH variable to the operating system level before server start-up or use the WebFOCUS Reporting Server browser interface to set the Java Listener IBI_CLASSPATH property by using the WebFOCUS Reporting Server browser interface to access the Java Listener:

  1. Select Workspace from menu bar.
  2. Open the Java Services folder.
  3. Right-click DEFAULT and select Properties.

    The Java Services Configuration pane opens.

  4. Expand the Class Path section.
  5. Add the desired full path jar names (one per line).
  6. Click Save and Restart Java Services.

If JVM-based adapters or features are not required, and the JVM environment is not configured, the message Failed to find JVM is normal, and can be ignored.