Using Ant Tasks to Configure and Use a WebLogic Server Domain
The following sections describe how to start and stop WebLogic Server instances and configure WebLogic Server domains using WebLogic Ant tasks that you can include in your development build scripts:
- Overview
- Starting Servers and Creating Domains Using the wlserver Ant Task
- Configuring a WebLogic Server Domain Using the wlconfig Ant Task
- Using the libclasspath Ant Task
Overview
WebLogic Server provides a pair of Ant tasks to help you perform common configuration tasks in a development environment. The configuration tasks enable you to start and stop WebLogic Server instances as well as create and configure WebLogic Server domains.
For example, a single Ant build script can:
- Compile your application using the wlcompile, wlappc, and Web Services Ant tasks.
- Create a new single-server domain and start the Administration Server using the wlserver Ant task.
- Configure the new domain with required application resources using the wlconfig Ant task.
- Deploy the application using the wldeploy Ant task.
- Automatically start a compiled client application to demonstrate or test product features.
Starting Servers and Creating Domains Using the wlserver Ant Task
The wlserver Ant task enables you to start, reboot, shutdown, or connect to a WebLogic Server instance. The server instance may already exist in a configured WebLogic Server domain, or you can create a new single-server domain for development by using the generateconfig=true attribute.
When you use the wlserver task in an Ant script, the task does not return control until the specified server is available and listening for connections. If you start up a server instance using wlserver, the server process automatically terminates after the Ant VM terminates. If you only connect to a currently-running server using the wlserver task, the server process keeps running after Ant completes.
The wlserver WebLogic Server Ant task extends the standard java Ant task (org.apache.tools.ant.taskdefs.Java). This means that all the attributes of the java Ant task also apply to the wlserver Ant task. For example, you can use the output and error attributes to specify the name of the files to which output and standard errors of the wlserver Ant task is written, respectively. For full documentation about the attributes of the standard java Ant task, see Java on the Apache Ant site.
Basic Steps for Using wlserver
To use the wlserver Ant task:
- Set your environment.
. WL_HOME/server/bin/setWLSEnv.sh
The wlserver task is predefined in the version of Ant shipped with WebLogic Server. If you want to use the task with your own Ant installation, add the following task definition in your build file:
<taskdef name="wlserver" classname="weblogic.ant.taskdefs.management.WLServer"/>- Add a call to the wlserver task in the build script to start, shutdown, restart, or connect to a server.
- Execute the Ant task or tasks specified in the build.xml file...
prompt> cd staging_directory
prompt> antUse ant -verbose to obtain more detailed messages from the wlserver task.
Sample build.xml Files for wlserver
The following shows a minimal wlserver target that starts a server in the current directory using all default values:
<target name="wlserver-default"> <wlserver/> </target>This target connects to an existing, running server using the indicated connection parameters and username/password combination:
<target name="connect-server"> <wlserver host="127.0.0.1" port="7001" username="weblogic" password="weblogic" action="connect"/> </target>This target starts a WebLogic Server instance configured in the config subdirectory:
<target name="start-server"> <wlserver dir="./config" host="127.0.0.1" port="7001" action="start"/> </target>This target creates a new single-server domain in an empty directory, and starts the domain's server instance:
<target name="new-server"> <delete dir="./tmp"/> <mkdir dir="./tmp"/> <wlserver dir="./tmp" host="127.0.0.1" port="7001" generateConfig="true" username="weblogic" password="weblogic" action="start"/> </target>
wlserver Ant Task Reference
The following table describes the attributes of the wlserver Ant task.
Attribute Description Data Type Required? policy The path to the security policy file for the WebLogic Server domain. This attribute is used only for starting server instances. File No dir The path that holds the domain configuration (for example, c:\bea\user_projects\mydomain). By default, wlserver uses the current directory. File No beahome The path to the home directory (for example, c:\bea). File No weblogichome The path to the WebLogic Server installation directory (for example, c:\bea\wlserver_10.3). File No servername The name of the server to start, shutdown, reboot, or connect to. A WebLogic Server instance is uniquely identified by its protocol, host, and port values, so if you use this set of attributes to specify the server you want to start, shutdown or reboot, you do not need to specify its actual name using the servername attribute. The only exception is when you want to shutdown the Administration server; in this case specify this attribute.
The default value for this attribute is myserver.
String Required only when shutting down the Administration server. domainname The name of the WebLogic Server domain in which the server is configured. String No adminserverurl The URL to access the Administration Server in the domain. This attribute is required if you are starting up a Managed Server in the domain. String Required for starting Managed Servers. username The username of an administrator account. If you omit both the username and password attributes, wlserver attempts to obtain the encrypted username and password values from the boot.properties file. String No password The password of an administrator account. If you omit both the username and password attributes, wlserver attempts to obtain the encrypted username and password values from the boot.properties file. String No pkpassword The private key password for decrypting the SSL private key file. String No timeout The maximum time, in milliseconds, that wlserver waits for a server to boot. This also specifies the maximum amount of time to wait when connecting to a running server. The default value for this attribute is 0, which means the Ant task never times out.
long No timeoutSeconds The maximum time, in seconds, that wlserver waits for a server to boot. This also specifies the maximum amount of time to wait when connecting to a running server. The default value for this attribute is 0, which means the Ant task never times out.
long No productionmodeenabled Whether a server instance boots in development mode or in production mode. Development mode enables a WebLogic Server instance to automatically deploy and update applications that are in the domain_name/autodeploy directory (where domain_name is the name of a WebLogic Server domain). In other words, development mode lets you use auto-deploy. Production mode disables the auto-deployment feature.
Valid values for this attribute are True and False. The default value is False (which means that by default a server instance boots in development mode.)
If you boot the server in production mode by setting this attribute to True, reboot the server to set the mode back to development mode. Or in other words, you cannot reset the mode on a running server using other administrative tools, such as the WLST.
boolean No host The DNS name or IP address on which the server instance is listening. The default value for this attribute is localhost.
String No port The TCP port number on which the server instance is listening. The default value for this attribute is 7001.
int No generateconfig Whether or not wlserver creates a new domain for the specified server. Valid values for this attribute are true and false. The default value is false.
boolean No action Specifies the action wlserver performs: start, shutdown, reboot, or connect. The shutdown action can be used with the optional forceshutdown attribute perform a forced shutdown.
The default value for this attribute is start.
String No failonerror This is a global attribute used by WebLogic Server Ant tasks. It specifies whether the task should fail if it encounters an error during the build. Valid values for this attribute are true and false. The default value is false.
Boolean No forceshutdown This optional attribute is used in conjunction with the action="shutdown" attribute to perform a forced shutdown. For example: <wlserver
host="${wls.host}"
port="${port}"
username="${wls.username}"
password="${wls.password}"
action="shutdown"
forceshutdown="true"/>Valid values for this attribute are true and false. The default value is false.
Boolean No noExit (Optional) Leave the server process running after ant exits. Valid values are true or false. The default value is false, which means the server process will shut down when ant exits. Boolean No protocol Specifies the protocol that the wlserver Ant task uses to communicate with the WebLogic Server instance. Valid values are t3, t3s, http, https, and iiop. The default value is t3.
String No forceImplicitUpgrade Whether the wlserver Ant task, if run against an 8.1 (or previous) domain, should implicitly upgrade it. Valid values are true or false. The default value is false, which means that the Ant task does not implicitly upgrade the domain, but rather, will fail with an error indicating that the domain needs to be upgraded.
Boolean No. configFile Specifies the configuration file for your domain. The value of this attribute must be a valid XML file that conforms to the XML schema as defined in the WebLogic Server Domain Configuration Schema Reference.
The XML file must exist in the Administration Server's root directory, which is either the current directory or the directory that you specify with the dir attribute.
If you do not specify this attribute, the default value is config.xml in the directory specified by the dir attribute. If you do not specify the dir attribute, then the default domain directory is the current directory.
String No. useBootProperties Whether to use the boot.properties file when starting a WebLogic Server instance. If this attribute is set to true, WebLogic Server uses the username and encrypted password stored in the boot.properties file to start rather than any values set with the username and password attributes. The values of the username and password attributes are still used when shutting down or rebooting the WebLogic Server instance. The useBootProperties attribute applies only when starting the server.
Valid values for this attribute are true and false. The default value is false.
Boolean No verbose Specifies that the Ant task output additional information as it is performing its action. Valid values for this attribute are true and false. The default value is false.
Boolean No
Configuring a WebLogic Server Domain Using the wlconfig Ant Task
The following sections describe how to use the wlconfig Ant task to configure a WebLogic Server domain.
The wlconfig Ant task works only against MBeans that are compatible with the MBean server, which was deprecated as of version 9.0 of WebLogic Server. In particular, the wlconfig Ant task uses the deprecated proprietary API weblogic.management.MBeanHome to access WebLogic MBeans; therefore, wlconfig does not use the standard JMX interface (javax.management.MBeanServerConnection) to discover MBeans. This means that the only MBeans that you can access using wlconfig are those listed under the Deprecated MBeans category in the WebLogic Server MBean Reference.
For equivalent functionality, you should use the WebLogic Scripting Tool (WLST).
What the wlconfig Ant Task Does
The wlconfig Ant task enables you to configure a WebLogic Server domain by creating, querying, or modifying configuration MBeans on a running Administration Server instance. Specifically, wlconfig enables you to:
- Create new MBeans, optionally storing the new MBean Object Names in Ant properties.
- Set attribute values on a named MBean available on the Administration Server.
- Create MBeans and set their attributes in one step by nesting set attribute commands within create MBean commands.
- Query MBeans, optionally storing the query results in an Ant property reference.
- Query MBeans and set attribute values on all matching results. >Establish a parent/child relationship among MBeans by nesting create commands within other create commands.
Basic Steps for Using wlconfig
- Set your environment in a command shell.
The wlconfig task is predefined in the version of Ant shipped with WebLogic Server. If you want to use the task with your own Ant installation, add the following task definition in your build file:
<taskdef name="wlconfig" classname="weblogic.ant.taskdefs.management.WLConfig"/>- wlconfig is commonly used in combination with wlserver to configure a new WebLogic Server domain created in the context of an Ant task. If you will be using wlconfig to configure such a domain, first use wlserver attributes to create a new domain and start the WebLogic Server instance.
- Add an initial call to the wlconfig task to connect to the Administration Server for a domain. For example:
<target name=”doconfig”> <wlconfig url="t3://localhost:7001" username="weblogic" password="weblogic"> </target>- Add nested create, delete, get, set, and query elements to configure the domain.
- Execute the Ant task or tasks specified in the build.xml file by typing ant in the staging directory, optionally passing the command a target argument:
prompt> ant doconfigUse ant -verbose to obtain more detailed messages from the wlconfig task.
Tip: Since WLST is the recommended tool for domain creation scripts, you should refer to the WLST offline sample scripts that are installed with the software. WL_HOME\common\templates\scripts\wlstFor example, the basicWLSDomain.py script creates a simple WebLogic domain, while sampleMedRecDomain.py creates a domain that defines resources similar to those used in the Avitek MedRec sample.
wlconfig Ant Task Reference
The following sections describe the attributes and elements that can be used with wlconfig.
Main Attributes
The following table describes the main attributes of the wlconfig Ant task.
Table 2-2 Main Attributes of the wlconfig Ant Task Attribute Description Data Type Required? url The URL of the domain's Administration Server. String Yes username The username of an administrator account. String No password The password of an administrator account. To avoid having the plain text password appear in the build file or in process utilities such as ps, first store a valid username and encrypted password in a configuration file using the WLST storeUserConfig command. Then omit both the username and password attributes in your Ant build file. When the attributes are omitted, wlconfig attempts to login using values obtained from the default configuration file.
If you want to obtain a username and password from a non-default configuration file and key file, use the userconfigfile and userkeyfile attributes with wlconfig.
String No failonerror This is a global attribute used by WebLogic Server Ant tasks. It specifies whether the task should fail if it encounters an error during the build. This attribute is set to true by default. Boolean No userconfigfile Specifies the location of a user configuration file to use for obtaining the administrative username and password. Use this option, instead of the username and password attributes, in your build file when you do not want to have the plain text password shown in-line or in process-level utilities such as ps. Before specifying the userconfigfile attribute, first generate the file using the WLST storeUserConfig command
File No userkeyfile Specifies the location of a user key file to use for encrypting and decrypting the username and password information stored in a user configuration file (the userconfigfile attribute). Before specifying the userkeyfile attribute, first generate the key file using the WLST storeUserConfig command
File No Nested Elements
wlconfig also has several elements that can be nested to specify configuration options:
create
The create element creates a new MBean in the WebLogic Server domain. The wlconfig task can have any number of create elements.
A create element can have any number of nested set elements, which set attributes on the newly-created MBean. A create element may also have additional, nested create elements that create child MBeans.
The create element has the following attributes.
String No delete
The delete element removes an existing MBean from the WebLogic Server domain. delete takes a single attribute:
set
The set element sets MBean attributes on a named MBean, a newly-created MBean, or on MBeans retrieved as part of a query. You can include the set element as a direct child of the wlconfig task, or nested within a create or query element.
The set element has the following attributes:
String No get
The get element retrieves attribute values from an MBean in the WebLogic Server domain. The wlconfig task can have any number of get elements.
The get element has the following attributes.
query
The query elements finds MBean that match a search pattern.
The query element supports the following nested child elements:
- set—performs set operations on all MBeans in the result set.
- get—performs get operations on all MBeans in the result set.
- create—each MBean in the result set is used as a parent of a new MBean.
- delete—performs delete operations on all MBeans in the result set.
- invoke—invokes all matching MBeans in the result set.
wlconfig can have any number of nested query elements.
query has the following attributes:
invoke
The invoke element invokes a management operation for one or more MBeans. For WebLogic Server MBeans, you usually use this command to invoke operations other than the getAttribute and setAttribute that most WebLogic Server MBeans provide.
The invoke element has the following attributes.
Using the libclasspath Ant Task
Use the libclasspath Ant task to build applications that use libraries, such as application libraries and web libraries.
libclasspath Task Definition
To use the task with your own Ant installation, add the following task definition in your build file:
<taskdef name="libclasspath" classname="weblogic.ant.taskdefs.build.LibClasspathTask"/>
libclasspath Ant Task Reference
The following sections describe the attributes and elements that can be used with the libclasspath Ant task.
Main libclasspath Attributes
The following table describes the main attributes of the libclasspath Ant task.
Nested libclasspath Elements
libclasspath also has two elements that can be nested to specify configuration options. At least one of the elements is required when using the libclasspath Ant task:
librarydir
The following attribute is required when using this element:
dir—Specifies that all files in this directory are registered as available libraries.
library
The following attribute is required when using this element:
file—Register this file as an available library.
Example libclasspath Ant Task
<taskdef name="libclasspath" classname="weblogic.ant.taskdefs.build.LibClasspathTask"/> <!-- Builds classpath based on libraries defined in weblogic-application.xml. --> <target name="init.app.libs"> <libclasspath basedir="${src.dir}" tmpdir="${tmp.dir}" classpathproperty="app.lib.classpath"> <librarydir dir="${weblogic.home}/common/deployable-libraries/"/> </libclasspath> <echo message="app.lib.claspath is ${app.lib.classpath}" level="info"/> </target>