Required Linux libraries for TWS v8.3 and above

Answer

Missing Linux libraries is the most frequently reported failure when installing the newer versions of TWS on a Linux server. Occasionally, the required Linux libraries may be present on the system but they have not been configured. This Technote will address both situations.

Despite first appearances, this is a Linux issue, not a TWS issue, one which will likely require the attention of a Senior Linux administrator. This is due primarily to the fact that Linux allows an administrator to construct a highly configurable and a very lightweight system if required for his or her organization. Thus, most Linux distributions may not include some of the more obscure Linux libraries with the understanding that the administrator will add libraries as required by the applications they wish to run. To further complicate the issue, a Junior Linux administrator may not have the knowledge to install, configure, or compile the required Linux libraries. This Technote provides some insight into resolving the issue.

Where can I find which Linux libraries are required for TWS?

The Linux libraries required by TWS are found on the TWS v8.4 and v8.5 Documentation pages under "System Requirements". See the appropriate links below:

TWS v8.6
http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?rs=672&uid=swg27019747#sup_plats

TWS v8.5.1: https://www-304.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?uid=swg27017192

TWS v8.5: http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?rs=672&uid=swg27012175

TWS v8.4: http://www-01.ibm.com/support/docview.wss?rs=672&uid=swg27010396

At the time of this writing, the required Linux libraries are as follows:

NOTE: The library requirements may change with future releases of TWS, so it is necessary to check the TWS Documentation page under Detailed System Requirements for the most current information. The same libraries are required for both Redhat and SuSe Linux.

NOTE: For all 64-bit Linux versions cited below, install both the 32-bit and the 64-bit versions of the libraries. The 64-bit libraries are not required for 32-bit only systems.

For all Linux on x86 operating systems:

• libstdc++.so.5
• libgcc_s.so.1
• libstdc++-libc6.1-2.so.3 (or a soft link to libstdc++-libc6.2-2.so.3)

• libXp.so.6
• libXmu.so.6

• libstdc++.so.5
• libgcc_s.so.1
• libstdc++-libc6.1-2.so.3 (or a soft link to libstdc++-libc6.2-2.so.3) (linux 32 and 64 bit kernel support)

• libXp.so.6
• libXmu.so.6

• libstdc++.so.5
• libgcc_s.so.1
• libstdc++-libc6.1-2.so.3 (or a soft link to libstdc++-libc6.2-2.so.3). (32 and 64 bit kernel support)

• libXp.so.6
• libXmu.so.6

Where can I find these libraries?

IBM cannot provide these libraries as they are third party libraries and IBM does not own either the source or the binary code. If IBM were allowed to provide these libraries, they would have been included in the product package.

The easiest way to find the libraries is to perform a Google search by library name. (Work with your Linux system admininstrator.) An alternative is the rpmfind tool:

Beginning with Redhat version 5, a tool called yum is provided to install components and libraries.

SuSe Linux has a similar utility (yastt) that is used to install and configure Linux libraries. Consult your SuSe administrator for additional information.

Caveats:

1. All Linux systems have a set of system libraries installed as part of the base install. The libraries on any given system may require that a specific version of another library be present. Simply replacing one library without assuring that other libraries depending upon specific versions of the library have their dependencies properly updated may break your system. Both the rpm and the yum installer will typically check all library dependencies before installing a new library and may refuse to install the new library. However, it is possible for an inexperienced administrator to force the installation which could be fatal to your system.
2. IBM cannot assist in this matter as installing libraries is the responsibility of the customer and TWS L2 support engineers are not allowed to administer customer systems.
3. When using rpmfind to locate the required Linux libraries, you may find the libraries but they may not have been compiled for the version of Linux you are using. For example, some of the required Linux libraries may be found only on earlier versions of Redhat Fedora Linux. In this situation, the Senior Linux administrator or system architect may need to download the source code for those libraries and compile them under the particular version of Linux that he or she is using. IBM cannot assist in this matter as this is a task for your Linux system administrator. Occasionally, these libraries will work fine, and other times they may not work at all. Such would be the case for 64-bit versions of Linux, as finding pre-compiled binaries of these libraries for 64-bit systems is much less likely. To find out how to compile the required libraries, locate the source code for the library and read the README file packaged with the source code. This will provide compilation instructions.

With Redhat v5 & v6, you may be able to have the Redhat provided utility yum locate to install the libraries. As stated above, the parameters to use yum is outside the scope of support that IBM L2 support can perform. TWS L2 support engineers are not allowed to administer customer systems and because misuse of a command can potentially damage your system. If yum does not locate the libraries, the Linux system administrator may have to configure yum to use the appropriate yum repository. The syntax for yum can be found by issuing the following command at the Bash prompt:

man yum

With Redhat v3 and Redhat v4, the Redhat repository may be accessed with the up2date tool. Again, this is an operation that the customer must perform.

A typical issue encountered is that, even though the libraries have been installed, the installer cannot find them. The Linux system tool used to configure the libraries on Redhat is ldconfig. IBM cannot provide the commands to do this as this is a task for a Senior Linux administrator. If this is incorrectly performed, the system configuration could be overwritten such that the system might become inoperative or certain applications could be rendered inoperative.

The syntax for the ldconfig command may be found using the following command at the Bash prompt:

man ldconfig