Installing iGene

This guide covers installing or updating iGene on an existing Tomcat server using a new ROOT.war deployment package.

Preparation

Before starting:

  • Confirm the server name.
  • Confirm the Tomcat installation path.
  • Confirm the Tomcat service name. New installations are named iGene; servers built earlier may be named Tomcat9. Check in Services.
  • Confirm the location of the iGene home folder.
  • Confirm the maintenance window.
  • Obtain the new ROOT.war file.

Backup

Before deploying the new version, create the following backups.

Application Backup

Backup the current WAR file:

C:\path\to\tomcat\webapps\ROOT.war

Backup the current exploded application folder:

C:\path\to\tomcat\webapps\ROOT\

Database Backup

Create a database backup to support rollback if required.

Stop Tomcat

Stop the Tomcat service using one of the following methods.

Services

Open Services and stop the Tomcat service.

Command Line

C:\path\to\tomcat\bin\shutdown.bat

Wait until Tomcat has fully stopped before continuing.

Deploy WAR

Copy the new WAR file to:

C:\path\to\tomcat\webapps\ROOT.war

Remove the existing exploded application folder:

C:\path\to\tomcat\webapps\ROOT\

Tomcat will recreate this folder automatically when the application starts.

Configure the iGene Home Folder Location

iGene keeps its configuration, storage pool, report templates and logging settings in the iGene Home Folder. Tomcat tells iGene where that folder is using a context file:

C:\path\to\tomcat\conf\Catalina\localhost\ROOT.xml

The file is named ROOT.xml because iGene is deployed as ROOT.war. The two names must match.

First Installation

Create the Catalina\localhost folders if they do not already exist, then create a file named ROOT.xml containing:

<Context>
    <Parameter name="igene_home" value="D:\igene_home" override="true" />
</Context>

Change D:\igene_home to the actual location of the iGene home folder on this server.

Updating an Existing Installation

The file will already be in place, so there is nothing to create. Confirm it is still present and that the path it contains is correct before starting Tomcat.

Start Tomcat

Start the Tomcat service using one of the following methods.

Services

Start the Tomcat service from Services.

Command Line

C:\path\to\tomcat\bin\startup.bat

Allow sufficient time for the application to deploy and start.

Validate

After Tomcat has started:

  1. Open iGene in a web browser.
  2. Log in with a valid user account.
  3. Perform a quick functional check to confirm the application is operating correctly.

Rollback (if needed)

If an issue is identified after deployment:

  1. Stop Tomcat.
  2. Restore the previous ROOT.war.
  3. Restore the previous exploded application folder.
  4. Restore the database backup.
  5. Start Tomcat.
  6. Validate that the previous version is operating correctly.