Confused about the 11g R2 Forms Server and using SSL

Question

All,
I just installed the 11g R2 Forms Server software without configuring it.
I then ran the config.sh script to configure it which creates a weblogic server domain.
I'm a bit confused now. If I run opmnctl status command I get the following:
Processes in Instance: frmrep_inst_1
--------------------------------------------------------------+---------
ias-component | process-type | pid | status
--------------------------------------------------------------+---------
emagent_frmrep_inst_1 | EMAGENT | 28279 | Alive
RptSvr_eiaorapptest_frmrep_ins | ReportsServerComp~ | 28124 | Alive
ohs1 | OHS | 27831 | Alive
This looks to me like there is an Oracle Http Server installed.
Is the Oracle Http Server answering web calls when I run forms or is the Weg Logic Server answering the call?
Also, the Oracle Forms Installation Documentation talks about securing your environment with Oracle Identity Manager but we are not using Oracle Identity Manager. I want to use SSL but I'm not sure how to secure the environment with SSL. Do I need to configure the WebLogic server to use SSL or the OHS?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers

Answer 1

Fusion Middleware 11.1.x does include HTTP Server (OHS) and also requires WLS. Both HTTP Server and WLS are http listeners, amongst other things. So whether WLS handles a request or HTTP Server does it will be entirely up to you and/or the end-user.
OHS has a listener which by default (in FMw) listens for requests on port 8888. On the other hand WLS_FORMS is preconfigured to listen on port 9001.
This means that if your URL looks like the following, WLS_FORMS will directly answer the client:
<blockquote>http://server:9001/forms/frmservlet?form=abc</blockquote>
If the URL looks like the following, the HTTP Server will reply:
<blockquote>http://server:8888/forms/frmservlet?form=abc</blockquote>
The request path when using OHS as the listener to call Oracle Forms would look like this:
<blockquote>CLIENT --- OHS --- WLS_FORMS --- FORMS SERVLET --- FORMS RUNTIME (frmweb.exe) --- DATABASE</blockquote>
The request path when using WLS_FORMS as the listener to call Oracle Forms would look like this:
<blockquote>CLIENT --- WLS_FORMS --- FORMS SERVLET --- FORMS RUNTIME (frmweb.exe) --- DATABASE</blockquote>
Although removing OHS from the path would seem to be better because it is one less server to administer and less system resources consumed, generally it would be argued that the advantages of having it will outweigh the disadvantages.
There are numerous advantages to use OHS in front of WLS, but the most obvious should be that OHS can be set up so that you have one and only one entry point into your FMw environment. In other words, even though for example Forms WLS listens on 9001 and Reports on 9002 and some other app on 9999, all requests can be routed through a single OHS port (e.g. 8888). This gives added security since only one port would need to be open assuming a firewall was in place. This configuration is also helpful when calling one application from another. For example when calling Reports from Forms. If you use OHS, references to other WLS managed servers can be called with a relative reference rather than a fully qualified one.
Regarding whether or not SSL needs to be enabled at any particular point in the path is entirely up to you. You can enable SSL from the client all the way back to the db or any where in between. It is fairly common to see SSL between the client and OHS then no SSL to WLS. But if security is a great concern then you may want to consider SSL from front to back. However, keep in mind that SSL comes at a price. Performance will degrade slightly when SSL is enabled.
Also, OAM (Oracle Access Manager) has nothing to do with SSL. SSL refers to traffic encryption. OAM is for authentication - single sign on.
Consider reviewing the Forms Deployment Guide as well as the other Fusion Middleware documents referenced within it.
<blockquote>http://docs.oracle.com/cd/E24269_01/index.htm</blockquote>
Finally, and most important, this topic really has nothing to do with Oracle Forms. This is more about how a web server or its environment works.