Tag Archives: Installs

12.09.16
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You Lie! Error Messages and When To Ignore Them

Building Connections this week and troubleshooting some errors reminded me to share the process I have adopted when dealing with IBM error messages - which is to treat them as hints that can set you on the right path but also send you badly down the wrong one.

Problem 1:

Installing Connections itself via Installation Manager.  One of steps during the install requires you to specify the DB2 server, the database names and credentials to connect to them.  I click validate and it fails  with error CLFRP0030E and launch error!.  That points to this technote which says I left a space after the hostname for the DB2 server.

I absolutely didn’t leave a space and didn’t copy/paste.  Just in case (and working on the assumption that it’s always me and not the product) I cleared it all and typed carefully again. I confirmed the hostname was correct and could be reached.  I also relaunched Installation Manager and started from the beginning.  No luck.

It’s  at this point I have to accept the error is referring to something else and that’s all the information I’m going to get from Installation Manager.  So now I move to asking myself “what if I saw no error but it just failed to connect”.  Well the first answer to that is to check if the connection details, hostname, credentials etc actually work at all.   Having confirmed the hostname and ports (there were no firewalls turned on or virus software), I logged into the DB2 server and checked the LCUSER account. Locked out.  I unlocked the account and the install then completed.

Problem 2

The test server in this environment is one box with everything DB2, TDI and all the applications on it.  My base WebSphere install was WAS 8.5.5 FP10 since Connections System Requirements for WebSphere 8.5.5 says FP8 and higher and I wanted to test that out. Everything installed fine right up to when I went to install Connections Surveys.  That’s when I hit a 2 day brick wall.  Installation Manager couldn’t connect to the Deployment manager despite it being on the same server.

Well that’s odd.  Deployment manager is running.  The hostname resolves. The port is listening. I try to find out what the system requirements are for Connections Surveys but for 2 days last week and through the weekend the IBM system requirements pages for Survey were down.  I’m stubborn so I won’t let it go.  Even the Forms Experience Builder requirements for earlier versions were down.  So eventually I had to leave it and move onto the production build. The work needs completing and I was suspicious that the issue might have been installing everything on one server.

I build production across 4 servers and this time I stick with WebSphere 8.5.5 FP8 just in case.  When I get to the Surveys install it goes without a hitch.  So back to the test server I go.  Roll back Websphere to 8.5.5.0 and then forwards to FP8 (thank you Installation Manager!).  Surprise surprise Surveys installed perfectly.

So. Not an issue connecting to deployment manager or port or the server running but instead “Connections Surveys cannot install onto WebSphere 8.5.5.10 at all.

 

 

03.23.15
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Searching For The Elusive 5.2.0-P8CE-WIN.EXE

In this month’s adventures of Connections installs I offer you my search for a required Filenet installer.  If you’re installing CCM there are 4 files you need to have in a directory for the Connections install to complete - from the install instructions here and shown below .  I’ve done this lots of times and you basically put the executables together in one directory you can point to during the Connections install.

However with CR2 came a requirement to update the installers see here and below

Notice the difference?  CR2 doesn’t list the 5.2.0-P8CE-WIN (LINUX, AIX , ZLINUX) file at all as a required update.  That means that all the other files are in Fixcentral but not that one.  So I want the latest file and I don’t know if there’s a newer one.  I go to Fix Central and search for 5.2.0-P8CE and get offered the 5.2.0.3-P8CP8 files.  I try to search for a download list for IBM Connections Content Manager but it doesn’t exist (I like the download lists because they often have the latest part numbers).  There is one for IBM Connections but that doesn’t include any of the FileNet components.

Off I go to Partnerworld where I type in IBM Connections Content Manager and I get an eAssembly to go through including the file FN_CE_5.2.1_WINDOWS_ML which sounded hopeful but I already had that and it contains the following. Note 5.2.1-P8CPE-WIN not P8CE.  The 5.2.0 files were no longer showing on Partnerworld under Connections Content Manager

 

Luckily I’m a paranoid control freak and have backups of all the installers myself and there I found the original FN_CE_5.2_WINDOWS_ML file which, when download and extracted had the correct 5.2.0-P8CE-WIN file in it.  The one the Connections installer wanted and refused to progress without.

 

The sizes of the zip files should have made me suspicious.  It does look like the 5.2.1 zip file in partnerworld has the wrong content (possibly because there isn’t a 5.2.1 for P8CE only for P8CPE) and i’m not the only one who goes cross eyed staring at P8CE vs P8CPE.   Or maybe I’ve been staring at this too long. Either way thanks to my backup I’m sorted now.