Streamlining the Inspyrus Install Process with Apache Ant
Streamlining the Inspyrus Install Process with Apache Ant
By: Marvin Martinez | Senior Developer
Introduction
The Inspyrus product has merits across the board, from the rich, UI front-end down to the way it is installed. In regards to installation, Inspyrus leverages Apache ant scripts to help streamline the installation process. The installation of Oracle products can be a complex and involved process. By using the ant scripts provided, Inspyrus helps assist with the installation pieces, which is a very welcome feature.
The use of ant during the installation is primarily beneficial for two key pieces of the installation:
- Oracle WebCenter software installs
- Deployment of Inspyrus-specific database objects, workflow objects, and supporting pieces
Once the file structure is set up and the silent-install.properties file is populated, the installation process for these pieces is transformed into a series of commands that can be executed in sequence, with limited deviation and free of tedious clicking, particularly in reference to the workflow process deployments.
Ant for Oracle WebCenter Software Installs
In order to use ant to install these pieces, the environment needs to be set so that it includes the applicable JAVA_HOME and the PATH includes the ant location. Once that is in place, the necessary response files, RCU, SOA, UCM, OSB, domain creation, and many necessary configuration tasks, including AD provider, data sources, and DBAdapter, are all installed and created with the usage of just a few ant commands.
The ability to execute and complete all these steps from one console session allows for added efficiency during these typically tedious steps. Moreover, the added automation during these steps allows for greater expectation of consistency across multiple installations.
Ant for Inspyrus Objects
Once the base installs are complete, the Inspyrus objects must be deployed. This includes business rules, metadata store (MDS), BPEL and BPM processes, as well as 12 other application deployments. Usually, these would be manually deployed via JDeveloper or Enterprise Manager. While straightforward, it makes for a rather monotonous set of mouse clicks for each of the 12 deployments, particularly for the BPEL processes and the updating of the BPEL preferences inside them. For these Inspyrus deployments, once the environment is primed with appropriate variables for JAVA_HOME and PATH, the commands are painless. All one needs to do is cd into the appropriate directories and execute “ant deploy”. In the case of the BPEL processes, the ant scripts handle the process deployment as well as any post-deployment configurations required, such as updating BPEL preferences to appropriate file paths and updating the supporting files to point to the appropriate OSB locations. The ant scripts also append the entityID of the customer to some of the workflow processes on the fly, eliminating another installer task that would normally be done manually. While there are some additional inputs for certain pieces, namely the MDS, business rules, and BPM processes, these are an unavoidable necessity that are not able to be automated but still made much easier via the use of these ant scripts. With an error-free deployment, these ant scripts drastically improve deployment times of these objects.
Conclusion
Installing Inspyrus involves many pieces that must be correctly installed and/or deployed. Leveraging the power of Apache ant scripts to complete these steps not only minimizes the risk for user-errors during these install steps, but also allows for greater consistency across installations and easier troubleshooting when errors arise. By making the installation smoother and more efficient, these ant scripts provided with Inspyrus will make any installer happy!