The WebSphere Application Server works with a Web server to route requests for dynamic content, such as servlets, from Web applications. The Web servers are necessary for directing traffic from browsers to the applications that run in WebSphere Application Server. The Web server plug-in uses the XML configuration file to determine whether a request is from the Web server or the Application Server.
The Web server plug-ins for distributed platform Web servers are provided on a separate CD from the WebSphere Application Server products.
A Web Server Plug-in Installation Wizard is also provided on that CD. Installing Web server plug-ins describes how to install a Web server plug-in and create a Web server definition.
Note: If you are running WebSphere Application Server for iSeries, you do not need to perform the following steps. The OS/400 Web server plugins are installed as a component of the WebSphere Application Server product during product installation.
WebSphere Application Server uses Web server plug-ins to communicate with your HTTP server. The Web server receives incoming requests and routes them to the application server for processing. Perform this task after you install WebSphere Application Server.
Install your Web server if it is not already installed. If you want to use an IBM HTTP Server, see Installing IBM HTTP Server.
Otherwise, see the installation information provided with your Web server.
Ensure that your Web server is configured to perform operations required by Web applications, such as GET and POST. Typically,
this involves setting a directive in the Web server configuration file (such as the httpd.conf file for an IBM HTTP Server). Refer to the Web server documentation for instructions. If an operation is not enabled when a servlet or JSP file requiring the operation is accessed, an error message displays,
such as this one from the IBM HTTP Server:
HTTP method POST is not supported by this URL.
Use the Installing Web server plug-ins instructions to install the appropriate plug-in file to your Web server and run the script configureWeb_server_name created by the wizard to create and configure the Web server definition in the WebSphere configuration repository. The following substeps are performed during the plug-in installation process. See the Plug-in Installation Roadmap for additional information.
A node is created. An unmanaged node is created when the Web server is on a different computer from the Application Server. An unmanaged node is a node that does not have a WebSphere node agent
running on it. Using unmanaged nodes, WebSphere Application Server can represent servers that are not application servers within its configuration topology.
This representation enables connection information between those servers and application servers to be maintained. Managing nodes describes how to create a node.
A Web server definitions is created. You can also use either use the administrative console or use the ConfigureWebServerDefintion.jacl script to create a Web server definition.If you use the administrative console:
Select the node that was created in the preceding step, and in the Server name field, enter the local name of the Web server for which you are creating a Web server definition.
Use the wizard to complete the Web server definition.
An application or modules are mapped to a Web server. If an application that you want to use with this Web server is already installed, the application is automatically mapped to the Web server. If the application is not installed, select this Web server during the Map modules to servers step of the application installation process.
Master repository is updated and saved.
Optional: Configure the plug-in. Use either the administrative console, or issue the GenPluginCfg command to create your plugin-cfg.xml file. When setting up your Web server plug-in, decide whether or not to have the configuration automatically generated in response to a configuration change.
When the Web server plug-in configuration service is enabled and any of the following conditions occur, the plug-in configuration file is automatically generated:
Generating or regenerating the configuration file might take a while to complete. After it finishes, all objects in the administrative cell use their newest settings, which the Web server can access. If the Application Server is on the same physical machine as the Web server, the regeneration usually takes about 30 to 60 seconds to complete. The regeneration takes longer if they are not both on the same machine.
Select Servers > Web Servers >webserver>
plug-in properties .
Select Automatically generate plug-in configuration file or click on one or more of the following topics to manually configure the plugin-cfg.xml file:
You might need to stop the application server and then start the application server again to enable the Web server to locate the plugin-cfg.xml file. See Start and stop the application server for more information.
Note: Generating the plug-in configuration and propogating the configuration are two different tasks.
Generating the plug-in configuration refers to the process of creating a new plugin-cfg.xml file when you make changes to your Web server configuration.
Propogating the plug-in configuration refers to copying the plugin-cfg.xml file to the Web server.
If you want to enable the Web server plug-in to use private headers,
define an SSL configuration repertoire that defines a trust file. Then in the administrative console, select Application servers > server1 > Web Container Settings > Web Container Transport Chains >transport_chain > SSL
Inbound Channel (SSL_2) and specify this repertoire for that transport chain. If you try to use private headers without setting up an SSL configuration repertoire that does not include a trust file definition,
the private headers will be ignored. If the private headers are ignored, the
application server might not locate the requested application.
After you enable the use of private headers, the transport chain's SSL inbound channel
trusts all private headers it receives. Therefore, ensure that all paths to the transport chain's SSL inbound channel are trusted.
Propagate the plug-in configuration. The plug-in configuration file (plugin-cfg.xml) is automatically propagated to the Web server if the Web server plug-in configuration service is enabled, and one of the following is true:
The Web server is a local Web server. (It are located on the same machine as an application server.)
The Web server is a remote IBM HTTP Server (IHS) Version 6.0 that has a running IHS Administrative server.
If neither of these conditions is true, the plugin-cfg.xml file must be manually copied to the remote Web server's installation location.
The remote Web server installation location is the location you specified when you created the node for this Web server.
ResultThe configuration is complete. To activate the configuration, stop and restart the Web server. If you encounter problems restarting your Web server, check the http_plugin.log file for information on what portion of the plugin-cfg.xml file contains an error. The log file states the line number on which the error occurred along with other details that might help you diagnose why the Web server did not start. You can then use the administrative console
to update the plugin-cfg.xml file.
If applications are infrequently installed or uninstalled, which is usually the situation in a production environment,
or if you can tolerate the performance impact of generating and distributing the plug-in configuration file each time any of the previously listed actions occur, you should consider enabling this service.
If you are making a series of simultaneous changes, like installing numerous applications, you might want the configuration service disabled until after you make the last change. The Web server plug-in configuration service is enabled by default.
To disable this service, in the administrative console click elect Servers > Application Servers >server_name> Administration Services >Web server plug-in configuration service and then unselect the Enable automated Web server configuration processing option.
Tip: If your installation uses a firewall, make sure you configure the Web server plug-in to use a port that has been opened. (See your security administrator for information on how to obtain an open port.