How to Patch Java in WebLogic

With the recent attacks on SSL, WebLogic and Java, I wanted to give an overview on how you patch Java for your WebLogic instances.

When you install WebLogic, it asks you for the location of your Java Home. Then, every web server instance you create uses that Java Home. Unless you have patched Java in the past, all of the WebLogic instances on that server will be using the old Java Home.

Download the New JDK

Go to Oracle’s Java Download page and download the latest JDK. Make sure to select the correct codeline that your version of PeopleTools supports.

PeopleTools 8.53-8.55 support Java 1.7 (aka Java 7). It will implicity support any patch on the 1.7 codeline. So, you can install the latest 1.7.0_xx patch and use it with WebLogic and PeopleTools.

Install the new JDK (you don’t need the JRE) to a common location. We use the folder convention e:javajdk-1.7.0_xx to install the JDK.

Update the commEnv Script

By default, the Java Home parameter is set in the %WL_HOME%commEnv script. This script configures environment variables that are common to all WebLogic instances on the server.

You can update the JAVA_HOME in the commEnv script, but it will affect ALL the WebLogic instances on that machine. This might be what you are looking for. But, if you run more that one web server you might want to try the next option.

Update the setEnv Script

In each WebLogic instance you create (hr92dmo, hr92dev, etc), the file %PIA_HOMEbinsetEnv will set the configuration that applies only to a specific domain. This is where I prefer to set JAVA_HOME. In the file, you will find a line that says:

@REM JAVA_HOME is set via commEnv.sh, to override set it here.

Simply add this line to set a JAVA_HOME for a specific web server:

set JAVA_HOME=e:javajdk-1.7.0_79

Now, you can patch your Demo environment and test without affecting other web servers on the server.

Update the Windows Service

If you are on Windows and installed a service for your web server, you will need to change the JAVA_HOME value for the service. You could re-create the service but there is an easier way.

Open the Registry Editor (regedit) and navigate to:

HKLM:SYSTEMCurrentControlSetserviceshr92dmo-PIAParameters 

Under this registry folder, you’ll see a Key name “JavaHome”. Update the value’s path to match your new JAVA_HOME. Restart the service for the change to take affect.

Patching Java for WebLogic is pretty simple. The next step (and upcoming blog post) will be to script these changes, and WebLogic patches, so you can automate your web server patching.