BPM Editor and Python Extension Not Playing in Nicely in the Same Sandbox

I was playing with the latest FMW 11.1.1.5 BPM Feature Pack when I noticed immediate NPE when launching any BPM process editor in my JDeveloper.

The stack trace was:

java.lang.NullPointerException

        at oracle.bpm.ui.action.BaseAction$ActionFuegoAction.putValue(BaseAction.java:496)

        at oracle.bpm.ui.action.BaseAction.setMsg(BaseAction.java:312)

        at oracle.bpm.ui.action.BaseAction$ActionFuegoAction.<init>(BaseAction.java:476)

        at oracle.bpm.ui.action.BaseAction.valueOf(BaseAction.java:100)

        at oracle.bpm.designer.catalogdoc.DocumentationEditorPanel.createActions (DocumentationEditorPanel.java:521)

        at oracle.bpm.designer.catalogdoc.DocumentationEditorPanel.createEditorPanel(DocumentationEditorPanel.java:504)

        at oracle.bpm.designer.catalogdoc.DocumentationEditorPanel.init(DocumentationEditorPanel.java:472)

After debugging long enough I found out that this was a compatibility problem with JDeveloper Python Extension and BPM Editor.

Python Extension is something I ported from JDev 10.1.2 to 10.1.3 and latest rewrote some portions to get it working on JDeveloper 11g. Aparently there is something causing side effects in BPM Editor so the recommendation from me is to disable this Python Extension to get BPM Editor working without these NPE issues.

To disable any extension you can follow these menu options:

Tools –> Preferences –> Extensions (from the left hand panel) –> Uncheck the Checkbox from Python Extension

Word of Warning for OracleVM 2.2 Upgraders

Decided to start upgrading my OracleVM 2.2 servers to the new OracleVM 3.0.2.

First obstacle was that the installation application didn’t recognize the CD drive it was originally started from. Weird. Got an error stating that I should have drivers to read the CD.

Went to buy an external USB DVD drive. Started the installation from there. Got a bit further but at the time I was supposed to choose my hard disk for partitioining, OracleVM 3.0.2 did’n find the hard drives at all.

Looks like OracleVM 3.0.2 is very picky on the supported hardware systems you can run it on.

Finally managed to install OracleVM 3.0.2 on USB Stick acting as hard drive. Well, obviously this isn’t a perfect solution to run my virtualization servers, so I reverted back to OracleVM 2.2.

So a word of warning to all those thinking of upgrading. You can either test the installation media just to see if it recognizes your hard drivers and then make decision whether to go forward or not.

I’m waiting for a new version of OracleVM to be released and hoping it has the kernel modules for my AMD/VIA based motherboard.

OracleVM 3.0 Finally Out

The wait is over for those that have been waiting for OracleVM 3.0:

http://www.oracle.com/us/corporate/press/459406

When starting my own business (http://www.ratioware.com), I decided to set up all my servers as OracleVM 2.2 virtual servers. I’ve been more than happy running my stuff virtualized, so I’m very interested in getting hold on OracleVM 3.0.

There are number of enhancements worth mentioning:

• Policy based resource management
• Centralized network and storage configuration and management
• Performance, scalability and security enhancements
• New management console

Not so happy surprise was that upgrading from OracleVM 2.2 was non-existent. All servers must be reinstalled with OracleVM 3.0.1 software, but you could utilize the 2.2 templates and virtual images.

I’m currently downloading the OVM 3.0 Server and Management Console installation packages and start planning for 2.2 –> 3.0 upgrade on my own server pool.

Maybe this would be a good time to get rid of my iSCSI SAN setup and replace it with NFS for easier management (backups, image copying etc).

Stay tuned for experiences on OVM 3.0 once I get it up and running.