Create generic servers

 

A generic server is a server that is managed in the WebSphere administrative domain, although it is not a server that is supplied by WebSphere Application Server. The WAS generic servers function enables you to define a generic server as an appserver instance within the WAS administration, and associate it with a non-WebSphere server or process.

 

Overview

There are two basic types of generic appservers:

• Non-Java applications or processes.

• Java applications or processes

Therefore, a generic server can be any server or process that is necessary to support the Application Server environment, including:

• A Java server

• A C or C++ server or process

• A CORBA server

• A RMI server

You can use the wsadmin tool or the console to create a generic server.

 

Procedure

 

• Create a non-Java application as a generic server. The following steps describe how to use the console to create a non-Java application as a generic appserver.

  1. Select Servers > Generic servers

  2. Click New.

  3. Type in a name for the generic server.

     The name must be unique within the node. IBM recommends that you use a naming scheme that makes it easy to distinguish your generic appservers from regular WAS servers.

  4. Click Next

  5. Click Finish. The generic server now appears as an option on the Generic servers page in the console.

  6. On the Generic servers page, click on the name of the generic server.

  7. Under Additional Properties, click Process Definition.

  8. In the Executable name field under General Properties, enter the name of the non-WAS program that is launched when you start this generic server. Executable target type and Executable target properties are not used for non-Java applications. Executable target type and Executable target properties are only used for Java applications

  9. Click OK.

   

• Create a Java application as a generic server: The following steps describe how to use the console to create a Java application as a generic appserver.

  1. Select Servers > Generic servers

  2. Click New.

  3. Type in a name for the generic server.

     The name must be unique within the node. It is highly recommended that you use a naming scheme that makes it easy to distinguish your generic appservers from regular WAS servers..

  4. Click Next

  5. Click Finish. The generic server now appears as an option on the Applications Server page in the administrative console.

  6. Click Finish. The generic server now appears as an option on the Generic servers page in the console.

  7. On the Generic servers page, click on the name of the generic server.

  8. Under Additional Properties, click Process Definition.

  9. In the Executable name field under General Properties, enter the path for the WAS default JVM, ${JAVA_HOME}/bin/java, which is used to run the Java application when you start this generic server.

  10. In the Executable target type field under General Properties, select whether a Java class name, JAVA_CLASS, or the name of an executable JAR file, EXECUTABLE_JAR, is used as the executable target of this Java process. The default for WAS is JAVA_CLASS.

  11. In the Executable target field under General Properties, enter the name of the executable target. Depending on the executable target type, this is either a Java class containing a main() method, or the name of an executable JAR file.) The default for WAS is com.ibm.ws.runtime.WsServer.

  12. Click OK.

      If the generic server is to run an appserver other than the WAS, leave the Executable name field set to the default value and specify the Java class containing the main function for your application serve in the Executable target field.

 

What to do next

After you define a generic server, use the Application Server administrative console to start, stop, and monitor the associated non-WebSphere server or process when stopping or starting the applications that rely on them.

You can use either the Terminate or Stop buttons in the console to stop any appserver, including a generic appserver.

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Start and terminating generic appservers

 

Related tasks

Manage generic servers using scripting
Administering appservers