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Profile concepts

A profile defines the runtime environment. The profile includes all the files that the server processes in the runtime environment and that we can change.

(Dist) Create a runtime environment either through the manageprofiles command or the Profile Management Tool graphical user interface. Use the Profile Management Tool to enter most of the parameters described in this article. Some parameters, however, require you to use the manageprofiles command. We must use the manageprofiles command to delete a profile, for instance, because the Profile Management Tool does not provide a deletion function. Use either the Profile Management Tool or the manageprofiles command to create a cell profile. The Profile Management Tool creates the cell in a single step, whereas the manageprofiles command requires two separate invocations.

(iSeries) Create a runtime environment through the manageprofiles command. Depending on the operation to perform with the manageprofiles command, provide one or more parameters. Use the command to do such actions as creating or deleting profiles. To create a cell profile, we must invoke the manageprofiles command two separate times.


Core product files

The core product files are the shared product binary files, which are shared by all profiles.

The directory structure for the product has the following two major divisions of files in the installation root directory for the product:

When we want binary files at different service levels, we must use a separate installation of the product for each service level.

The configuration for every defined application server process is within the profiles directory unless we specify a new directory when we create a profile. These files change as often as we create a new profile, reconfigure an existing profile, or delete a profile.

(Dist) Each of the folders except for the profiles directory and a few others such as the logs directory and the properties directory do not change, unless we install service fixes. The profiles directory, however, changes each time we add, change, or delete a profile. The profiles directory is the default repository for profiles. However, we can put a profile anywhere on the machine or system, provided enough disk space is available.

(Dist) If we create a profile in another existing folder in the installation root directory, then a risk exists that the profile might be affected by the installation of a service fix that applies maintenance to the folder. Use a directory outside of the installation root directory when using a directory other than the profiles directory for creating profiles.

(iSeries) If we create a profile in an installation root directory, then a risk exists that the profile might be damaged or destroyed by routine system maintenance.


Why and when to create a profile

The manageprofiles command-line tool defines each profile for the product.

(Dist) Run the Profile Management Tool or the manageprofiles command each time to create a profile. A need for more than one profile on a machine is common.

(iSeries) Run the command-line tool each time to create a profile.

Administration is greatly enhanced when using profiles instead of multiple product installations. Not only is disk space saved, but updating the product is simplified when you maintain a single set of product core files. Also, creating new profiles is more efficient and less prone to error than full product installations, allowing a developer to create separate profiles of the product for development and testing.

(iSeries) We can run the manageprofiles command to create a new profile on the same machine as an existing profile. Define unique characteristics, such as profile name and node name, for the new profile.

(Dist) We can run the Profile Management Tool or the command-line tool to create a new profile on the same machine as an existing profile. Define unique characteristics, such as profile name and node name, for the new profile. Each profile shares all runtime scripts, libraries, the Java SE Runtime Environment 6 (JRE 6) environment, and other core product files.


Profile types

Templates for each profile are located in...

Multiple directories exist within this directory, which correspond to different profile types and vary with the type of product installed. The directories are the paths that you indicate while using the manageprofiles command with the -templatePath option. We can also specify profile templates that exist outside the profileTemplates directory, if we have any.

See the -templatePath parameter description in the manageprofiles command topic for more information.

The manageprofiles command in the WebSphere Application Server, Network Deployment product can create the following types of profiles:

Management profile with a deployment manager server

The basic function of the deployment manager is to deploy applications to a cell of application servers, which it manages. Each application server that belongs to the cell is a managed node.

(Dist) Create the management profile with a deployment manager server using the Profile Management Tool or the manageprofiles command. If we create the profile with the manageprofiles command, specify app_server_root/profileTemplates/management for the -templatePath parameter and DEPLOYMENT_MANAGER for the -serverType parameter.

Management profile with an administrative agent server

The basic function of the administrative agent is to provide a single interface to administer multiple unfederated application servers.

(Dist) Create the profile using the Profile Management Tool or the manageprofiles command. If we create the profile with the manageprofiles command, specify app_server_root/profileTemplates/management for the -templatePath parameter and ADMIN_AGENT for the -serverType parameter to create this type of management profile.

Management profile with a job manager server

The basic function of the job manager is to provide a single console to administer multiple base servers, multiple deployment managers, and do asynchronous job submission.

(Dist) Create the profile using the Profile Management Tool or the manageprofiles command. If we create the profile with the manageprofiles command, specify app_server_root/profileTemplates/management for the -templatePath parameter and JOB_MANAGER for the -serverType parameter to create this type of management profile.

Application server profile

Use the application server to make applications available to the Internet or to an intranet. We can scale up a standalone application server profile by adding the application server node into a deployment manager cell. Multiple application server processes in a cell can deploy an application that is in demand. We can also remove an application server node from a cell to return the node to the status of a standalone application server.

Each standalone application server can optionally have its own administrative console application, which we use to manage the application server. We can also use the wsadmin scripting facility to perform every function that is available in the administrative console application.

No node agent process is available for a standalone application server node unless we decide to add the application server node to a deployment manager cell. Adding the application server node to a cell is known as federation. Federation changes the standalone application server node into a managed node. We use the administrative console of the deployment manager to manage the node. If we remove the node from the deployment manager cell, then use the administrative console and the scripting interface of the standalone application server node to manage the process.

(Dist) Create the profile using the Profile Management Tool or the manageprofiles command. If we create the profile with the manageprofiles command, specify app_server_root/profileTemplates/default for the -templatePath parameter to create this type of profile.

(iSeries) The application server profile is created by default if we do not specify the -templatePath parameter. We can alternatively specify default for the -templatePath parameter on the manageprofiles command to create the application server profile.

Cell profile

Use the cell profile to make applications available to the Internet or to an intranet under the management of the deployment manager.

(Dist) Creation of a cell profile generates a deployment manager and a federated node in one iteration through the (Dist) Profile Management Tool. The result is a fully functional cell on a given system.

To create a cell profile using the manageprofiles command, create two portions of the profile: the cell deployment manager portion and the cell node portion. Additionally, we can have only one cell deployment manager and one cell node associated with each other when we create a cell. (Dist) The initial cell profile created with the manageprofiles command is equivalent to the cell profile we create with the (Dist) Profile Management Tool. After creating the initial cell profile, we can create custom profiles or standalone profiles and federate the profiles into the deployment manager.

(Dist) On the manageprofiles command, specify app_server_root/profileTemplates/cell/dmgr for the -templatePath parameter for the deployment manager and app_server_root/profileTemplates/cell/default for the -templatePath parameter for the cell node.

(iSeries) On the manageprofiles command, specify app_server_root/profileTemplates/cell/dmgr on the -templatePath parameter for the deployment manager and app_server_root/profileTemplates/cell/default on the -templatePath parameter for the cell node. We can read about the cell profile type in the article on creating a cell profile with the manageprofiles command.

After creating the two portions that make up the cell profile, we have a deployment manager and federated node. The federated node contains an application server and the default application, which contains the snoop servlet, the HitCount application, and the HelloHTML servlet.

Custom profile

Use the custom profile, which belongs to a deployment manager cell, to make applications available to the Internet or to an intranet under the management of the deployment manager.

The deployment manager converts a custom profile to a managed node by adding the node into the cell. The deployment manager also converts an application server node into a managed node when we add an application server node into a cell. When either node is added to a cell, the node becomes a managed node. The node agent process is then instantiated on the managed node. The node agent acts on behalf of the deployment manager to control application server processes on the managed node. The node agent can start or stop application servers, for example.

A deployment manager can create multiple application servers on a managed node so long as the node agent process is running. Processes on the managed node can include cluster members that the deployment manager uses to balance the workload for heavily used applications.

Use the administrative console of the deployment manager to control all of the nodes that the deployment manager manages. We can also use the wsadmin scripting facility of the deployment manager to control any of the managed nodes. A custom profile does not have its own administrative console or scripting interface. We cannot manage the node directly with the wsadmin scripting facility.

A custom profile does not include default applications or a default server like the application server profile includes. A custom profile is an empty node. Add the node to the deployment manager cell. Then, we can use the administrative interface of the deployment manager to customize the managed node by creating clusters and application servers.

(Dist) Create the profile using the Profile Management Tool or the manageprofiles command. If we create the profile with the manageprofiles command, specify app_server_root/profileTemplates/managed for the -templatePath parameter to create this type of profile.

(iSeries) Specify managed for the -templatePath parameter on the manageprofiles command to create this type of profile.

Secure proxy profile

Use the secure proxy server to take requests from the Internet and forward them to application servers. The secure proxy server resides in the DMZ.

(iSeries) Specify secureproxy for the -templatePath parameter on the manageprofiles command to create this type of profile.


Default profiles

Profiles use the concept of a default profile when more than one profile exists. The default profile is set to be the default target for scripts that do not specify a profile. Use the -profileName parameter with most of the scripts to enable the scripts to act on a profile other than the default profile.

(iSeries) After installation, we should use the manageprofiles command to create a cell profile, which consists of the deployment manager portion of the profile (dmgr) and the default portion of the profile (default). This default portion of the profile is pre-federated into the cell that the deployment manager manages and contains the application server (server1). If we create a different type of profile, the default portion of the profile might be different.

The default profile name is <profile_type><profile_number>:

Addressing a profile in a multiprofile environment: When multiple profiles exist on a machine, certain commands require specified the -profileName parameter if the profile is not the default profile. In those cases, it might be easier to use the commands in the bin directory of each profile. When we issue one of these commands within the bin directory of a profile, the command acts on that profile unless the -profileName parameter specifies a different profile.


Security policy for application server profiles

In environments where we plan to have multiple standalone application servers, the security policy of each application server profile is independent of the others. Changes to the security policy in one application server profile are not synchronized with the other profiles.


Installed file set

We decide where to install the files that define a profile.

The default location is in the profiles directory in the installation root directory. We can change the location on the Profile Management Tool or in a parameter when using the command-line tool. For example, assume that we create two profiles on a Linux platform with host name devhost1. The profile directories resemble the following example if we do not relocate them:

We can specify a different directory, such as /opt/profiles for the profile directory using the manageprofiles command. For example:

Then the profile directories resemble the directories shown in the following example:

(iSeries) The default location is in the user_data_root/profiles directory. We can change the location in a parameter when using the command-line tool. For example, assume that we create two profiles with host name, devhost1.

(iSeries) We can specify a different directory, such as /home/QEJBSVR/profiles/myprofile, using the -profilePath parameter of the manageprofiles command:

The following directories exist within a typical profile. This example assumes that the profile, AppSrv01, exists:

(iSeries) The following directories exist within a typical profile. Different profile types might include different subdirectories. This example assumes that the profile, AppSrv01, exists and was created in the default directory:

(iSeries)


Subtopics

  • Profiles: File-system requirements