Saturday, April 19, 2008

Oracle Apps R12 Forms : Servlet or Socket

Default Forms connection mode in Oracle Applications R12 is “SERVLET” where as in Oracle Apps 11i default form connect mode is “SOCKET” So

What is difference between socket and servlet mode in Forms ?
What are advantages and disadvantages of each ?
Can we change default R12 forms mode from servlet to Socket ?

Oracle Form Servlet Overview in apps R12
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i) In this mode, Java servlet handles communication between forms client(java based) and Oracle Forms Service (10g).

ii) All connection is via HTTP Server so there is no need to start form server and no need to open form server port on firewall between client machine and application tier.

iii) More secure as compared to Forms Socket Mode.

iv) Network traffic is more as HTTP protocol is more chatty so little bit network bandwidth hungry when compared with SOCKET mode

v) No additional certificate requirement during SSL implementation for application tier, single certificate will handle both forms & web connection.

How to change from default Servlet mode (in apps R12) to Socket mode ?
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Refer to Oracle Metalink Note # 384241.1 Using Forms Socket Mode with Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12

Are there any network overheads of using Forms in Servlet Mode ?
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Metalink
Note # 311091.1 Understanding the Network Overhead Of Forms Servlet Listener Architecture Compared to Forms Server, covers some interesting points w.r.t. network traffic

Advantage & Disadvantages of Forms Servlet Mode

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– Simple SSL Configuration (as no separate ssl configuration is required for Forms as connections are via web/http server)

– No port need to open to access forms in firewall

– More secure method of deployment over Internet

– Result in more network traffic because of HTTP is more chatty than socket (dedicated) so not preferred in WAN implementation.

Difference between Oracle Apps 11i and R12

Database:
Database Version in 11i (11.5.9 & 11.5.10) was 9i Rel 2 where as in Release 12 its 10g R2 (10.2.0.2)

Application Tier:
Tech Stack in Application Tier consist of iAS(1.0.2.2.2) & Developer 6i (Forms & Reports 8.0.6) but in Applications R12 it is build on Fusion Middleware (10g Web Server and 10g Forms & Reports)

Sub component in Application Tier
A) HTTP Server or Web Server in R12 is Version 10.1.3 which is built on Apache version 1.3.34. In apps 11i it is Version 1.0.2.2.2 built on Apache Version 1.3.19
B) Jserv in apps 11i is replaced by OC4J (mod_jserv is replaced by mod_oc4j)
C) Forms Version 6i in Apps 11i is replaced by Forms 10.1.2.0.2 in R12
D) Reports Version 6i in Apps 11i is replaced by Reports 10.1.2.0.2 in R12
E) JDBC version is changed from version 9 in apps 11i to version 10.2.0 in Apps R12
F) modplsql or mod_pls is removed from Apps R12 (What will happen to my mod plsql applications- coming soon* )
G) Java processes use JDK/JRE version 1.5.0 in R12 against JDK version 1.3.1 or 1.4.2 in Apps 11i
H) For various environment variable changes check below picture

I) New top INSTANCE_TOP added in Release 12 for configuration and log files