A Portal to a Portal

I really hope my cat nevers get to see this ...

2009-11-22T21:15:00.001Z

IBM HTTP Server installation wizard - not very wizardly

2009-11-22T09:36:00.001Z

Whilst trying to install IBM HTTP Server 6.1 on Orac, I was getting very frustrated with my inability to get the installation running. Regardless of what I did, I wasn't able to get the normal installation wizard to run, either via a normal X11 GUI or via VNC. In all cases, the wizard "whinged" about the browser, even though I had the latest version of Firefox installed.

Realising that the installation wizard was actually trying to run a Java JAR file ( setup.jar ), I tried running it by hand using the command: -

java -jar setup.jar

from the IHS directory which is generated when one expands the installation package, supplied by: -

C87PSML.tar.gz WebSphere Application Server V6.1 Supplements for Linux on x86Series, 32-bit Support

C87XSML .tar.gz WebSphere Application Server V6.1 Supplements for Linux on x86Series, 64-bit Support

but I then got the error: -

The wizard cannot continue because of the following error: could not load wizard specified in /wizard.inf (104)

which is particularly useful :-(

However, thinking laterally, I thought that the installer MIGHT be looking for the WAS JVM, so I ran: -

. /opt/IBM/WebSphere/AppServer/profiles/AppSrv01/bin/setupCmdLine.sh

java -jar setup.jar

which did the trick :-)

WSWS7007E and WSVR0501E Conflict between Lotus Connections 2.5 and Feature Pack for Web Services for WebSphere Application Server V6.1

2009-11-18T21:27:00.001Z

This is the first of two posts documenting some fun n' games that I've recently seen with LC 2.5 on a WAS environment that also included this Feature Pack: -

Utility: Feature Pack for Web Services for WebSphere Application Server V6.1

http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?rs=180&uid=swg21264563

I'll document the more pressing issue in the next day or so, but wanted to mention that, on my own environment ( aka Orac ), I hit the following exceptions when trying to start Connections: -

WSWS7007E: The peoplepages.war application module cannot be loaded correctly because of the following error: com.ibm.ws.metadata.annotations.AnnotationException: Annotation processing failed for class: com/ibm/lconn/profiles/internal/service/AbstractCodesService.class

and: -

WSVR0501E: Error creating component null [class com.ibm.ws.runtime.component.ApplicationServerImpl]
com.ibm.ws.exception.RuntimeWarning: com.ibm.ws.exception.RuntimeWarning: com.ibm.ws.metadata.annotations.AnnotationException: Annotation processing failed for class: com/ibm/lconn/profiles/internal/service/AbstractCodesService.class

In essence, I was installing the Feature Pack onto an existing node ( the first, and currently only, node within a WAS 6.1 cell/cluster ) that was running WebSphere Application Server Network Deployment 6.1.0.23.

The Feature Pack ( downloaded as 6.1.0-WS-WAS-WSFEP-LinuxX32.tar.gz ) went in without problems, but I was then unable to start Connections.

The Annotation Exception problem is/was well known in earlier versions of WAS, as a Google search will show.

In the end, I had to do the following: -

a) Remove the Feature Pack

b) Remove the 6.1.0.23 fixpack for WAS ND ( and its corresponding SDK fix pack 23 )

c) Install the Feature Pack ( which in turns upgrades WAS and the SDK to fix pack 9 )

d) Install 6.1.0.9-WS-WASWebSvc-IFPK53084.pak and 6.1.0-WS-WASWebSvc-LinuxX32-FP0000023.pak for the Feature Pack

e) Install 6.1.0-WS-WASSDK-LinuxX32-FP0000023.pak and 6.1.0-WS-WAS-LinuxX32-FP0000023.pak

Having done all of the above, versionInfo.sh now returns: -

WVER0010I: Copyright (c) IBM Corporation 2002, 2005; All rights reserved.
WVER0012I: VersionInfo reporter version 1.15.4.3, dated 11/12/08

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
IBM WebSphere Application Server Product Installation Status Report
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Report at date and time November 17, 2009 9:35:40 PM GMT

Installation
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Product Directory /opt/IBM/WebSphere/AppServer
Version Directory /opt/IBM/WebSphere/AppServer/properties/version
DTD Directory /opt/IBM/WebSphere/AppServer/properties/version/dtd
Log Directory /opt/IBM/WebSphere/AppServer/logs
Backup Directory /opt/IBM/WebSphere/AppServer/properties/version/nif/backup
TMP Directory /tmp

Product List
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ND installed
WEBSERVICES installed

Installed Product
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Name IBM WebSphere Application Server - ND
Version 6.1.0.23
ID ND
Build Level cf230910.10
Build Date 3/10/09

Installed Product
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Name WebServices Feature Pack
Version 6.1.0.23
ID WEBSERVICES
Build Level cf230907.03
Build Date 2/21/09

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
End Installation Status Report
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

and, perhaps MORE importantly, Connections 2.5 now starts, and then I hit the next problem ...

CLFRO0002E: Failed to post the bookmark to Bookmarks. java.lang.ClassCastException: org.apache.abdera.parser.stax.FOMText incompatible with org.apache.axiom.om.impl.OMContainerEx

This is definitely a conflict between the Web Services Feature Pack and Lotus Connections, but I'm not yet sure how to resolve it .....

WATCH THIS SPACE ->>>> <<<<--

SECJ0375E: Mismatch of realms during token validation

2009-11-18T21:10:00.001Z

More notes from the front-line. Whilst trying to get WebSphere Portal <-> Lotus Connections <-> Lotus Quickr to place nicely using the Lightweight Third Party Authentication (LTPA) mechanism to achieve Single Sign-On, we were hitting these two messages: -

SECJ0375E: Mismatch of realms during token validation

SECJ0373E: Cannot create credential for the user <null> due to failed validation of the LTPA token. The exception is com.ibm.websphere.security.CustomRegistryException: The realm in the token: domino.uk.ibm.com:389 does not match the current realm: defaultWIMFileBasedRealm

This was being displayed in SystemOut.log on the Connections server. The second message really says it all.

When we configured the underlying WebSphere Application Server 6.1.0.23 instance for security, using a Federated Repository, Domino LDAP etc., we failed to change the realm name, but left it at the default of defaultWIMFileBasedRealm.

Interestingly, the LC25 Information Centre does imply that it's OK to leave it as-is: -

On the Federated Repositories page, enter an administrative user ID (for example, wasadmin) in the Primary administrative user name field. You can leave the other default settings, such as Realm name, unchanged.
Note: The administrative user ID must be unique, and must not exist in the LDAP repository to be federated.

http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/ltscnnct/v2r0/topic/com.ibm.connections.25.help/t_inst_federated_repositories.html

However, the LTPA token that had been generated on the portal server ( WebSphere Portal Server 6.1.0.2 running on WebSphere Application Server 6.1.0.25 ), and contained the line: -

com.ibm.websphere.ltpa.Realm=domino.uk.ibm.com\:389

The solution ?

We simply changed the Realm Name from defaultWIMFileBasedRealm to domino.uk.ibm.com:389 and then restarted Connections.

Job done, next .....

CLFRN1152E: Unable to contact the global search service. Please start the Search application if it is not started. If the service is started, please check the network connection.

2009-11-18T21:00:00.001Z

Working through my various notes relating to a recent Lotus Connections 2.5 clustered installation, we did see this error: -

CLFRN1152E: Unable to contact the global search service. Please start the Search application if it is not started. If the service is started, please check the network connection

This occurred despite the Search application ( actually installed onto the same WAS instance that hosts Home Page and News, as per the recommended practice ) being started.

The problem was due to my having failed to completely update LotusConnections-config.xml after the cluster.

This wiki article: -

http://www-10.lotus.com/ldd/lcwiki.nsf/dx/S1_Editing_the_configuration_file

directs you to update the config. file ( using the wasadmin scripts to check it out and back in again ) to reflect the fact that all of the services are now accessed via an HTTP server ( actually a load balancer in front of TWO HTTP servers, in my case ).

I'd missed this crucial line: -

All entries in this file should be updated to the Web server URL with the exception of the three bootstrap entries – two of which should not be modified at all. The only bootstrap entry which must be modified is that for search. Leave the host and port blank as shown:

In essence, I had to change: -

<sloc:serviceReference bootstrapHost="dm.uk.ibm.com" bootstrapPort="2811" clusterName="Homepage" enabled="true" serviceName="search" ssl_enabled="false">

to: -

<sloc:serviceReference bootstrapHost="" bootstrapPort="" clusterName="Homepage" enabled="true" serviceName="search" ssl_enabled="false">

In other words, I removed the host name and port number for the bootstrapHost and bootstrapPort parameters, but *ONLY* for the Search service.

Prior to this error, we had been seeing: -

[09/11/09 15:01:12:978 GMT] 00000037 WsnInitCtxFac W NMSV0602E: Naming Service unavailable. A communications error occurred.
[09/11/09 15:01:12:979 GMT] 00000037 TagCloudServi E com.ibm.lconn.comm.internal.service.TagCloudServiceImpl getEJBSearchHandlerFromSearchEjbDefault Caught naming exception!
javax.naming.ServiceUnavailableException: A communication failure occurred while attempting to obtain an initial context with the provider URL: "corbaloc:iiop:dm.uk.ibm.com:2811". Make sure that any bootstrap address information in the URL is correct and that the target name server is running. A bootstrap address with no port specification defaults to port 2809. Possible causes other than an incorrect bootstrap address or unavailable name server include the network environment and workstation network configuration. [Root exception is org.omg.CORBA.TRANSIENT: java.net.ConnectException: Connection refused:host=dm.demo.ibm,port=2811 vmcid: IBM minor code: E02 completed: No]

   at com.ibm.ws.naming.util.WsnInitCtxFactory.mapInitialReferenceFailure(WsnInitCtxFactory.java:2226)
   at com.ibm.ws.naming.util.WsnInitCtxFactory.mergeWsnNSProperties(WsnInitCtxFactory.java:1386)

This particular problem was, in my simple world, was that the Deployment Manager node (DM) was being contacted by the WAS instance on which Connections was installed, but that the hostname / IP address was being incorrectly resolved; note that the FQ hostname differs within the error message.

Once we fixed the DNS name resolution ( by hacking the /etc/hosts file ), that particular error message went away, and was replaced by the aforementioned CLFRN1152E.

IBM WebSphere eXtreme Scale 6 - Review to come

2009-11-11T09:02:00.000Z

Although it has not yet come up on one of my Portal projects, it's been a fact for some time that WebSphere Portal can be clustered to extremes via the WebSphere Extended Deployment. Therefore, it's timely that I am awaiting a copy of Anthony Chaves' book IBM WebSphere eXtreme Scale 6 from Packt Publishing.

From Packt's site, here's a brief synopsis: -

Build scalable, high-performance software with IBM's data grid

• Get hands-on experience with eXtreme Scale APIs, and understand the different approaches to using data grids

• Introduction to new design patterns for both eXtreme Scale and data grids in general

• Tutorial-style guide through the major data grid features and libraries

• Start working with a data grid through code samples and clear walkthroughs

Not sure that I'll completely understand all of the content (!) but it should prove to be a useful reference, and will help me grow my understanding, especially as to how eXtreme Scale infrastructure works.

Watch this space ...

Lotus Connections 2.5 - All clustering together ...

2009-11-05T20:11:00.000Z

Will write this up more fully as time allows, but had a frightening moment yesterday - after 1+ hours, my Connections 2.5 installation ( the first node of a two-node cluster ) failed :-(

The LC product had successfully installed onto the node, but failed to "ripple" across to the cell that was managed by a WebSphere Application Server 6.1 Network Deployment DM node. The error message being displayed was CLFRP1261E.

The lcinstalllog.txt wasn't particularly useful, in terms of providing further details.

As is always the way, I couldn't find owt about this message in the Information Centre or on't'internet etc. so had to rely upon native wit and intelligence ( OK, I guessed ).

I took a look at /tmp using the df -km command and - c'est voila - it was showing at 100% used.

I cleared /tmp down and re-ran the installation ( the second time around, one chooses to add a standalone installation to a cell/cluster ) and it just worked.

Therefore, I'm assuming that CLFRP1261E actually means "Hey dude, you've like got no frikking disk space in /tmp, man" or something.

Don't take my word for it, but it did work :-)

Fun and Games with Windows 7

2009-11-01T08:46:00.001Z

No, before anyone asks, I haven't gone over to the dark side and "upgraded" my Mac or Ubuntu boxen to Windows 7 ....

However, whilst staying with friends, I volunteered to help resolve an issue whereby he was getting no audio from his Windows Media Centre PC. The PC ( a Sony VAIO VGX-TP1 ) connects via a HDMI cable to a monster LG 42" LCD HD telly.

Having worked OK whilst running Vista, all appeared to be well following an upgrade to Windows 7; however, something seemed to change, potentially due to a pesky Windows update.

The symptoms were quite simple - no sound, anywhere, from anything, zip, nada, nowt, nuffink.

The plumbing is quite straight-forward; a nice chunky HDMI cable from the the back of the Sony, plugged directly into one of the two HDMI ports on the telly. We tried the normal problem determination techniques; swapping HD cables, powering on/off PC and TV etc. but nothing appeared to help.

To cut a very long ( 3 hours last night, 3 hours this morning ) story short, having upgraded/downgraded/regraded the audio drivers ( provided by Realtek ), I'd completely failed to realise that, in this brave new world, HD audio comes from the video card as much as from the sound card; the sound card only drives a so-called optical output on the rear-side of the PC. Once I downloaded and installed the latest drivers (15.12.75.4.1930) for the graphics card, an Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 950 from: -

http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Detail_Desc.aspx?agr=Y&DwnldID=18231&lang=eng

and rebooted, all was well.

For reference, we also used the most up-to-date Realtek driver (R2.35) from here: -

http://www.realtek.com.tw/DOWNLOADS/downloadsView.aspx?Langid=1&PNid=24&PFid=24&Level=4&Conn=3&DownTypeID=3&GetDown=false

but this made no difference; I switched to/from the stock Windows 7 drivers, but to no avail. The "killer blow" was the Intel drivers :-)

Apart from trial and error ( and coffee ), credit must be given to this posting: -

Good news! I talked to a friend that worked in the Windows 7 development at Microsoft and he had the same prob with 2 of his computers and figured out the solution. While it doesn't make a whole lot of sense, the HDMI Audio comes from the video card drivers. I went to Intel's website and chose my video card, and they had Windows 7 RC drivers up, I downloaded those and installed, rebooted and my HDMI audio is now back in the soundcard list and I tested it, worked great! So to all of you above, go get the latest video card drivers and try again. Worked for me!

http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/w7music/thread/a494af37-9780-4b4a-895c-b2c1fce17fe6

which provided me with the clue to upgrade the frikkin' Intel drivers :-)

More portal laziness

2009-10-28T09:32:00.000Z

Following on from my earlier post about improving portal startup performance, via lazy loading, one of our customers has located an almost identical mechanism to achieve a similar outcome, as documented here: -

http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/wpdoc/v6r1/topic/com.ibm.wp.ent.doc_v6101/install/inst_opt.html

The original script: -

./ConfigEngine.bat/sh enable-portal-light-startup-performance

affects 37 applications: -

  [wsadmin]   1 PA_Blurb    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   2 PA_MPagesandFavorites   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   3 PA_Properties   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   4 PA_Eecontentandlayout   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   5 PA_appearance   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   6 PA_Set_Permissions    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   7 PA_portletWiring    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   8 PA_ThemesAndSkinsMgr    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   9 PA_Resource_Manager   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  10 PA_TCustomizerPortApp   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  11 PA_Portlet_Manager    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  12 PA_Manage_Webservices   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  13 PA_Web    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  14 PA_Principals_Manager   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  15 PA_ResourceView   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  16 PA_Credential_Admin   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  17 PA_PolicyExplorer   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  18 PA_PolicyEditor   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  19 PA_PolicyEditorCA   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  20 PA_Settings   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  21 PA_URL_mapping    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  22 PA_UniqueNames    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  23 PA_Markups_Manager    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  24 PA_Clients_Manager    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  25 PA_Import_XML   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  26 PA_WCM_Admin    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  27 PA_WebScanner   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  28 PA_FrequentUsers    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  29 PA_Tracing    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  30 PA_WPS_Welcome    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  31 PA_MageVirtualPortals   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  32 PA_TateCatalogPortApp   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  33 PA_PropertiesPortApp    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  34 PA_ParamConfig    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  35 PA_Roles    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  36 PA_ApplicationCatalog   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  37 PA_Policy_Status    OK   is set to   false

whereas this new script: -

./ConfigEngine.bat/sh enable-develop-mode-startup-performance

affects 96 applications: -

  [wsadmin] Check 107 application(s)
  [wsadmin] -------------------------------------------------------------------------
  [wsadmin]   1 AJAX Proxy Configuration    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   2 CatalogHandler    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   3   DefaultApplication  Not mapped to WebSphere_Portal
  [wsadmin]   4 Feed_Servlet    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   5 IEHS_war    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   6 LWP_Mail_Servlets   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   7 LWP_People    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   8 Live_Object_Framework   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]   9 PA_ApplicationCatalog   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  10 PA_Banner_Ad    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  11 PA_BksFinalJSRProject   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  12 PA_Blurb    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  13 PA_Bookmarks    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  14 PA_Clients_Manager    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  15 PA_Community_Port_App   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  16 PA_Credential_Admin   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  17 PA_DoWebAccessServlet   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  18 PA_Document_Viewer    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  19 PA_DynamicUIApp   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  20 PA_Eecontentandlayout   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  21 PA_FS_Disambiguation    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  22 PA_FeedReader   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  23 PA_FrequentUsers    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  24 PA_IBMCommonPIMPort   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  25 PA_Import_XML   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  26   PA_Login_Portlet_App skip   is in exclude list
  [wsadmin]  27 PA_LotusNotes   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  28 PA_LtusDocumentViewer   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  29 PA_LusWebConferencing   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  30 PA_MPagesandFavorites   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  31 PA_MageVirtualPortals   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  32 PA_Manage_Webservices   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  33 PA_Markups_Manager    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  34 PA_MosoftExchange2003   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  35 PA_MyTeamspaces   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  36 PA_PTransformationApp   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  37 PA_Palette_Port_App   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  38 PA_ParamConfig    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  39 PA_PolicyEditor   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  40 PA_PolicyEditorCA   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  41 PA_PolicyExplorer   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  42 PA_Policy_Status    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  43 PA_PortalWSRPProxy    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  44 PA_Portlet_Manager    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  45 PA_Principals_Manager   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  46 PA_Properties   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  47 PA_PropertiesPortApp    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  48 PA_RSS    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  49 PA_Reminder   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  50 PA_ResourceView   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  51 PA_Resource_Manager   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  52 PA_Roles    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  53 PA_SIAPI    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  54 PA_SQL_Query    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  55 PA_SametimeWhoIsHere    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  56 PA_SearchSitemapPort    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  57 PA_Search_Center    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  58 PA_Selfcare_Port_App    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  59 PA_Set_Permissions    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  60 PA_Settings   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  61 PA_SmetimeContactList   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  62 PA_TCustomizerPortApp   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  63 PA_TateCatalogPortApp   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  64 PA_ThemesAndSkinsMgr    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  65 PA_TplApp   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  66 PA_Tracing    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  67 PA_URL_mapping    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  68 PA_UniqueNames    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  69 PA_WCMLRingPortJSR286   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  70 PA_WCMLocalRendering    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  71 PA_WCM_Admin    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  72 PA_WCM_Authoring_UI   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  73 PA_WPS_Welcome    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  74 PA_Web    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  75 PA_WebAppIntegrator   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  76 PA_WebScanner   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  77 PA_appearance   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  78 PA_portletWiring    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  79 PA_spa    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  80 PA_wp.feedspace   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  81 PSESearchAdapter    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  82 PZN_Utilities   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  83    Personalization_Lists_6 skip   is in exclude list
  [wsadmin]  84    Personalization_Workspace_6 skip   is in exclude list
  [wsadmin]  85 Seedlist_Servlet    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  86 SpellCheckService   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  87   TemplateLibrary_Servlets skip   is in exclude list
  [wsadmin]  88 UserProfileRESTServlet    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  89 WSPolicyManager   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  90 WebResourceServlet.ear    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  91   content_j2ee skip   is in exclude list
  [wsadmin]  92 ibm_personTagServlet_war    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  93 ilwwcm-wcmimport    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  94 ilwwcm-wcmsearchseed    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  95   ivtApp  Not mapped to WebSphere_Portal
  [wsadmin]  96   jcrear skip   is in exclude list
  [wsadmin]  97 lwp.addtosametimelist_war   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  98 lwp_dynamicPersontag_war    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin]  99 lwp_groupsViewer_war    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin] 100 lwp_peoplePicker_war    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin] 101 lwp_peoplefinder_war    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin] 102 odc   OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin] 103 pznpublish    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin] 104 pznscheduler    OK   is set to   false
  [wsadmin] 105    query  Not mapped to WebSphere_Portal
  [wsadmin] 106    wcm skip   is in exclude list
  [wsadmin] 107    wps skip   is in exclude list
  [wsadmin] -------------------------------------------------------------------------
  [wsadmin] Done.
  [wsadmin] Worked on 107 Applications. Modified: 96. Warning(s): 0

You pays your money, you takes your choice ...

"CPU Over Temperture (sp) Error" when building up Orac

2009-10-27T10:29:00.001Z

Whilst reviewing my notes from my recent PC build, I found a scrawled error message that I was seeing not long after I first powered up the new box: -

CPU Over Temperture (sic) Error

This message popped up at the BIOS stage, and caused the machine to power down after a couple of minutes. When the machine was actually running, the CPU was running at 95 degrees C whereas it should've been running at a much lower temperature.

After much faffing about, it turned out that I had not properly seated the stock fan/cooler that came with the Intel Q9550 CPU. This is, in fact, much harder than it looks - whilst the cooler has four little "feet" that plug into the motherboard, this is actually very difficult to do, whilst the motherboard is in the case.

In the end, I pulled the machine apart again, and seated the CPU *and* cooler on the mobo with the board on the desk ( actually sitting on a pad of paper ). Despite this, I still found that I needed to flex the mobo somewhat, which felt a bit strange. However, everything fitted together and the machine has been running consistently, at 30-35 degrees C, since then.

The moral of the story ? Check the fitting between the cooler and CPU.

PS It's worth noting that the Intel CPU comes with some pre-applied thermal paste - I didn't need to replace this, despite having fitted/removed the cooler many times - if I'd continued to experience problems, I'd have been down the PC store to get more paste ( Shippams will NOT do ).

Persistent Sessions and the Web Clipping portlet - not such good friends ...

2009-10-25T18:48:00.001Z

A salutory lesson from a friend and customer of ours, Andrew Frayling, that might you avoid the recent performance challenges that he's been seeing with his implementation of WebSphere Portal: -

Retiring the Portal Wibble Dance

http://sphericalnemesis.blogspot.com/2009/10/retiring-portal-wibble-dance.html

Hope it helps ...

When your VPN doesn't want to play ball on OSX ... flush your roots ( routes actually )

2009-10-23T18:35:00.001+01:00

For some reason, my VPN connection doesn't always want to work when I wake up my Macbook, even if I wasn't actually using it. As an example, I was working in the office today on a fixed Ethernet connection, with no need to run the VPN and the AirPort wireless adapter turned off.

When I got home and woke up the Macbook, I turned on the AirPort, connected to my home wireless, and started my VPN client ( Lotus Mobile Connect ). Whilst the VPN connected without problems, I was still unable to connect to any intranet sites, either via browser or Notes client.

I've seen this problem before on OSX and on Linux, but couldn't ( for 20 minutes or so ) remember the solution ....

Finally, during an episode of the Simpsons in which Homer shows American sports stars how to celebrate when they win something ( endzone run ? ), I remembered the solution.

a) Open the Terminal application

b) Enter sudo route flush

c) Enter your password

d) Wait for the command to complete

e) Disable / enable Airport

f) Restart the VPN client

There's probably a better way but .....

Remember "Nerds Do It ... Rarely"

Learning to VMRUN

2009-10-22T17:04:00.001+01:00

I was also seeing the exception: -

Error: The virtual machine cannot be found

when using the VMRUN command ( I'm running VMware Server 2.0 on Ubuntu 9.0.4 64-bit ) as follows: -

vmrun -t server -h https://hostname.domainname.com:8333/sdk -u root -p passw0rd register "/vmwares/domino/Virtual\ Machine.vmx"

Having validated the path to the .VMX file ( /vmwares is a mount point for a 1 TB drive formatted as EXT4 ), I was also baffled.

The syntax of the VMRUN command does imply a logical/physical path to the VM: -

"[storage1] vm/myVM.vmx"

and I was missing the obvious - the phrase [storage1].

I followed the advice given here to start a VM from the Web UI and then issue the command: -

vmrun -t server -h https://hostname.domainname.com:8333/sdk -u root -p passw0rd list

which showed the running VM as: -

[VMwares on Samsung] domino/Virtual\ Machine.vmx

Once I had this ( slightly strange ) "path", I was good to go.

I can now start my VM as follows: -

vmrun -t server -h https://hostname.domainname.com:8333/sdk -u root -p passw0rd start "[VMwares on Samsung] domino/Virtual\ Machine.vmx"

and, if I want to be mean, stop it as follows: -

vmrun -t server -h https://hostname.domainname.com:8333/sdk -u root -p passw0rd stop "[VMwares on Samsung] domino/Virtual\ Machine.vmx"

Simple :-)

Thanks to the VMware Communities folks here

How to enable lazy load of portlet applications during Portal startup

2009-10-21T10:21:00.000+01:00

Had missed this Technote from earlier in the year, but it came into a client conversation about reducing the amount of portal applications being loaded when WebSphere Portal first starts up.

Abstract

This technote describes how to enable and disable the startup of administrative and sample portlets during Portal startup to speed up the server start and reduce the Portal memory footprint.

Content

WebSphere Portal 6.1.0.2 introduces a new configuration task to enable and disable the lazy load of administrative and sample Portlet Applications. When enabled the applications are not loaded during startup of the server but when accessed for the first time.

http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg27015437

Open Mic call: "Lotus Domino ID Vault" on October 22, 2009

2009-10-21T08:44:00.000+01:00

Abstract

The IBM Lotus Domino team will host an Open Mic Question and Answer session regarding the "Lotus Domino ID Vault" on Thursday, October 22, 2009 at 10 AM Eastern Time (2:00 GMT).

Content

The IBM Lotus Domino team will host an Open Mic Question and Answer session regarding the "Lotus Domino ID Vault" on Thursday, October 22, 2009 at 10 AM Eastern Time (2:00 GMT). The call will last 60 minutes. Please dial into the call 5 minutes before the scheduled start. The Open Mic call will be recorded for future use. This document will be updated with a link to the recording when available.

You can submit your question in advance by posting a response document at the following link: http://www.lotus.com/ldd/nd8forum.nsf/DateAllThreadedWeb/55ab70f247ebb97985257650005a4530?OpenDocument

We will also answer live questions on the call without pre-submission. You must have a touchtone phone to be able to ask a question.

http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?rs=463&uid=swg21407232

Lotus Connections 2.5 - A Deployment in Six Parts ...

2009-10-12T07:49:00.001+01:00

A useful set of articles covering Connections on VMware: -

http://www-10.lotus.com/ldd/lcwiki.nsf/dx/10112009035045PMWEBRAA.htm

http://www-10.lotus.com/ldd/lcwiki.nsf/dx/10112009042326PMWEBRWP.htm

http://www-10.lotus.com/ldd/lcwiki.nsf/dx/10112009043544PMWEBS6D.htm

http://www-10.lotus.com/ldd/lcwiki.nsf/dx/10112009045619PMWEBSK9.htm

http://www-10.lotus.com/ldd/lcwiki.nsf/dx/10112009054615PMWEBTJG.htm

http://www-10.lotus.com/ldd/lcwiki.nsf/dx/10112009065328PMWEBUUG.htm

PC - Personal Computer rather than Politically Correct

2009-10-11T19:02:00.004+01:00

Following on from the experiences of Mr Scoot here, I have decided to build my first PC from scratch ( well, I'm not actually going to start soldering pins and joining up NAND gates but you get my point ).

I haven't yet placed the order, but this is what I'm considering component-wise: -

This is going to be a server rather than a gamer's rig, hence why I'm going for 8 GB RAM and 1 TB storage.

I recently found an old invoice from the mid-90s for the first full-size PC that I ever bought ( thanks, Vee Patel ) which came in at over 1.5 grand. Pentium Pro and 32 MB RAM iirc.

The new baby ? Less than five hundred notes - is that a result or what ?

Lotus Web Content Management 6.1: The enhanced security model simplified

2009-10-07T10:24:00.001+01:00

Summary: Using IBM WebSphere® Portal and Lotus Web Content Management, you can restrict access to selected users and groups to the views within an authoring portlet, the items managed by the authoring portlet, and to elements and pages displayed within a Web site.

This article describes how to simplify the use of the enhanced Web Content Management security model introduced in WebSphere Portal and Web Content Management 6.1.

http://wiki1.swg.usma.ibm.com/ldd/portalwiki.nsf/dx/lotus-web-content-management-6.1-the-enhanced-security-model-simplified

Webcast: Unleash the Power with WebSphere Portal 6.1 and Web 2.0

2009-09-30T21:12:00.000+01:00

Available online NOW, an interesting set of presentations and demonstrations, showing how cool life can be with WebSphere Portal

http://www-01.ibm.com/software/info/people/portalwebcast/index.jsp

Using Sametime Links within a simple portlet

2009-09-23T21:59:00.000+01:00

Whilst helping a colleague prepare for a Portal demo, we had one final hurdle to climb; how to enable Sametime awareness for a generic user e.g. Customer Services Rep, without needing to deploy the normal Sametime Contact List or Who Is Here portlets.

I knew this was possible, and think I'd actually done it in the past - however, I couldn't find any notes or blog postings, so had to start again.

Having previously set up Portal and Sametime integration, it was a relatively simple matter - I chose to use the Q&D approach of creating a JavaServer Page (JSP) file, and then rendering it on the portal page using the out-of-the-box Blurb portlet.

This is the portlet that IBM uses throughout WebSphere Portal to present simple messages, including the "Welcome to WebSphere Portal" portlet that has been deployed in WebSphere Portal for the past few releases.

To achieve this, I created a file called sametime.jsp and deployed it in the Blurb portlet's JSP directory: -

\IBM\WebSphere\wp_profile\installedApps\starg\PA_Blurb.ear\Blurb.war\jsp\html\en

Here's the source of sametime.jsp: -

<html>
<head>
<link rel="stylesheet" href="http://stargate.uk.ibm.com/sametime/stlinks/stlinks.css" type="text/css" />
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://stargate.uk.ibm.com/sametime/stlinks/stlinks.js">
</script>
<script type="text/javascript" >
setSTLinksURL('http://stargate.uk.ibm.com/sametime/stlinks/', 'en');
STHost = 'stargate.uk.ibm.com';
writeSTLinksApplet('ibm','',false);
</script>
</head>
<body>
<script type="text/javascript">
writeSametimeLink('CN=domadmin,O=ibm', 'Portal Admin', false, 'icon:yes;');
</script>
</body>
</html>

As you can see, we're using JavaScript tags to specify the Sametime server ( in order to get both the Cascading Style Sheet and JavaScript code for the Sametime Links API, as well as to actually connect to Sametime ).

The value specified in the writeSTLinksApplet() call sets the domain from which the outgoing Sametime chat will be displayed e.g. when clicking on the Sametime link, a chat session will be opened up FROM ibm/Guest.

Finally, the value specified in the writeSametimeLink() call sets the Sametime user to whom we want to send the ST message - in our demo, this will a user such as Customer Services Rep or something similar.

Make sense ?

I have to admit that I borrowed much of the above JS coding from Daniele Vistali's most excellent blog post here: -

http://www.vistalli.it/blog/vistalliblog.nsf/dx/bleedyellow-integration-for-your-site-sametime-connections.htm?opendocument&comments

WSADMIN saved my metaphorical bacon

2009-09-23T21:49:00.002+01:00

We hit a problem earlier today where, due to some weirdness caused by a LTPA token export (?), the WAS server underlying Lotus Quickr Services for WebSphere Portal ( WebSphere_Portal ) failed to start.

Worse still, we also were not able to start the server1 instance, meaning that we couldn't get back into the admin. console to resolve the problem

Thankfully, this Technote got me out of the hot water: -

http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg21173912

In essence, you simply disable security for WAS: -

cd $WAS_HOME/bin

Run: -

wsadmin -conntype NONE

Wait until wsadmin responds
Issue the securityoff command (no space between security and off)
Issue the exit command.

Job done. We were then able to start server1 and resolve the security problem ( we actually ended up re-running the ConfigWizard script to re-enable LDAP security ).

WebSphere Portal and Lotus Web Content Management performance tuning guides and supplemental content

2009-09-18T19:14:00.000+01:00

More useful WP / WCM knowledge: -

"...This technote provides abstracts and links to WebSphere Portal performance tuning guides. Best Practice is to starting with the Tuning Guide(s) provided for your release. The IBM performance test teams develop the tuning guides and they are based on performance testing and analysis.
Then, refer to the supplemental information provided in developerWorks articles, articles published on the WebSphere Portal Family wiki, and other resources noted in the Additional resources section of this technote..."

http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg21314715

All brought to you by me, thanks to the power of Twitter :-) and the number 73

Support Content Highlight for WebSphere Portal/WCM (September 2009)

2009-09-18T19:05:00.001+01:00

A useful consolidated set of support documents etc. for Portal / WCM, now available online here: -

"....This document contains links to technical support documents for IBM WebSphere Portal that are frequently requested or identified by IBM as valuable for the time period covered by this notification. This is key information to help you derive the most value from your software licenses, find answers to common questions, and work through current issues that might affect your environment..."

http://www-10.lotus.com/ldd/nflsblog.nsf/dx/SuCH-WP-Sep09

Learning WebSphere Portal Family Products

2009-09-18T14:24:00.001+01:00

A good range of self-study WP learning links here: -

Learning WebSphere Portal 6.1 for Developers and Designers

Learning WebSphere Portal Enable, Extend, and Express 6.1 for Administrators

Sweet, like a caramel latte

Preventing WCM from generating sessions when content is accessed anonymously

2009-09-17T16:09:00.002+01:00

Earlier today, I had a call from a friend who was trying to work out why he was seeing 000s of sessions created on his Portal/WCM delivery server when content was being accessed anonymously, via the WCM servlet, using the URL /wps/wcm/connect ( as opposed to /wps/wcm/myconnect ).

As I started to dig into the problem, he called me back and confirmed that he'd resolved it by creating a new Custom Property, public.session=false, for the WP_NavigatorService.

He's done a far better job of explaining it here: -

http://metkhoo.blogspot.com/2009/09/getting-rid-of-anonymous-sessions-when.html

Ironically, I was on my way to the same solution, albeit from a slightly different direction - I found this: -

http://www-10.lotus.com/ldd/portalwiki.nsf/dx/07052009031730WEBAKH.htm

which refers to the same Custom Property.