IBM Cognos 8
components require Java Runtime Environment (JRE) to operate.
If you want to change your current JRE, some configuration changes
are required. Changing may be appropriate in the following situations:
The current version provided with IBM Cognos 8 is JRE
1.5.0. For more information about the supported JRE versions, see
the IBM Cognos Resource Center (http://www.ibm.com/software/data/support/cognos_crc.html).
If you are using IBM Cognos 8 components in
an application server environment, follow the process in Configuring IBM Cognos 8 for an Application Server other than Tomcat. The process includes steps for
updating the Java environment.
IBM Cognos Configuration
and other IBM Cognos 8 components use the JRE referenced
by the JAVA_HOME environment variable. On Windows, if JAVA_HOME
is not set, the JRE that is packaged with IBM Cognos 8
components is used by default.
Before you begin, ensure that IBM Cognos 8 components
are installed and that JRE you want to use is installed.
To change JRE versions, do the following:
You must back up existing IBM Cognos information if
IBM Cognos 8 components are running on an application server
(including Tomcat) and you are changing to an application server
that ships with its own JVM. You must also back up existing IBM
Cognos information if you must change the JVM you are using.
Note: You must back up existing
IBM Cognos information within the working environment prior to upgrade.
Before configuring IBM Cognos 8 components to run on
the new application server or JVM, you must back up
To ensure the security and integrity of your IBM Cognos data,
back up the content store, configuration information, and cryptographic
keys to a directory that is protected from unauthorized or inappropriate
access.
Tip: To check if any cryptographic keys exist, look
in the c8_location/configuration directory. Cryptographic
keys exist if this directory includes the following subdirectories:
csk, encryptkeypair or signkeypair.
If data exists in the content store, start the IBM Cognos 8
service and export the entire content store using the Deployment
tool.
For more information, see the topic about creating an export
deployment specification in the Administration
and Security Guide.
In IBM Cognos Configuration, from the File menu,
click Export As and save the configuration
information in a decrypted format. When naming the file, use a name
such as "decrypted.xml".
Export the data to a directory that is protected from unauthorized
or inappropriate access because passwords are stored in plain text.
You are prompted to acknowledge that the export is an unsecure operation.
Stop the IBM Cognos 8 service:
Back up any existing cryptographic keys by saving the appropriate
files and directories to an alternate location that is secure.
The files are
The directories are
Delete the caSerial and cogconfig.prefs files and the three
directories: csk, encryptkeypair, and signkeypair.
Replace the c8_location/configuration/cogstartup.xml
file with the file that contains the data exported from IBM Cognos
Configuration (for example, "decrypted.xml").
Important: In the c8_location/configuration
directory, the file must use the name "cogstartup.xml".
The information in this file will be automatically re-encrypted
using new cryptographic keys when you save the configuration in
IBM Cognos Configuration.
The IBM Cognos security provider files must be located
in the JVM environment for the new version of Java.
IBM Cognos 8
cryptographic services use a .jar (Java Archive) file, named bcprov-jdknn-nnn.jar,
that must be located in your Java Runtime Environment (JRE). This
file provides additional encryption and decryption routines that
are not supplied as part of a default JVM installation. To ensure
security, the encryption file must be loaded by the JVM using the
java extensions directory.
If you want to use your
own JRE and have JAVA_HOME set to that location on Windows or if
you are installing on UNIX, you may have to update the Java environment
for the cryptographic services.
On Windows, you can set JAVA_HOME as a system variable or a user
variable. If you set it as a system variable, it may be necessary
to restart your computer for it to take effect. If you set it as
a user variable, set it so that the environment in which Tomcat
is running can access it.
If you do not have
a JAVA_HOME variable already set on Windows or if JAVA_HOME points
to a Java version that is not valid for IBM Cognos 8, the
JRE files provided with the installation will be used, and you do
not have to update any files in your environment.
Ensure that the JAVA_HOME environment variable is set to
the JRE location.
For example, to set JAVA_HOME to the JRE files provided with
the installation, the path is c8_location/bin/jre/version.
Copy the bcprov-jdknn-nnn.jar file from the c8_location/bin/jre/version/lib/ext directory
to the Java_location/lib/ext directory.
Start IBM Cognos Configuration.
Save the configuration.
IBM Cognos Configuration generates new keys and encrypts the
data.
If you exported the content store before changing the
JVM, import the deployment to restore and encrypt the data using
the new encryption keys.
