3 WebLogic Server Compatibility

Oracle attempts to support binary and source-level compatibility between the current version of WebLogic Server and all versions as far back as 8.1 in the areas of persistent data, generated classes, and API compatibility. In some cases, it is impossible to avoid incompatibilities. Where incompatibilities arise, they are fully documented in Upgrade Guide for Oracle WebLogic Server.

Java EE 5 Compatibility

WebLogic Server 11g Release 1 (10.3.4) is JEE5 compatible. This compatibility allows a Java EE 5 compliant application to be developed on one operating system platform, and deployed for production on another, without requiring Java EE 5 application code changes. Oracle ensures this compatibility of Java EE 5 application portability within a WebLogic Server release level.

Generated Classes Compatibility

With one exception, upgrading to WebLogic Server 11g Release 1 (10.3.4) does not require you to recompile applications in order to create new generated classes.

The current version of the EJBGen utility recognizes only JDK 5.0 metadata annotation-style EJBGen tags and not the old Javadoc-style tags. This means that source files that use the Javadoc-style tags must be upgraded to use the equivalent annotation, and then recompiled using the updated version of EJBGen.

Compatibility Within a Domain

All WebLogic Server instances within the same Administrative domain must be at the same major and minor version. You cannot mix server versions within a domain.
Server instances within an Administrative domain can be at different Patch Set levels as long as the Administration Server is at the same Patch Set level or higher than its Managed Servers.
All server instances within a cluster must be at the same Patch Set level.
Server instances within a cluster or domain can run on any hardware and operating systems as long as the hardware and operating systems are listed on the Supported System Configurations page at http://www.oracle.com/technology/software/products/ias/files/fusion_certification.html. However, note that running clustered server instances on different hardware and operating systems may impact load balancing and performance.

Persistent Data Compatibility

When moving from WebLogic Server 8.1 to 10.3.4, there are changes required to configuration files. Upgrade tooling in WebLogic Server versions 9.0 and later automatically convert the configuration files for you.

API Compatibility

WebLogic Server 8.1, 9.x, 10.0, 10.3, 10.3.1, 10.3.2, and 10.3.3 applications deployed on WebLogic Server 11g Release 1 (10.3.4) will function without modification. Exceptions to this rule include cases where API behavior was changed in order to conform to a specification or to fix incorrect behavior. In certain circumstances, a correction may cause your application to behave differently.

Protocol Compatibility

Interoperability between WebLogic Server 11g Release 1 (10.3.4) and WebLogic Server 7.0, 8.1, 9.x, 10.0, 10.3, 10.3.1, 10.3.2, and 10.3.3 is supported in the following scenarios:

A WebLogic Server 8.1, 9.x, 10.0, 10.3, 10.3.1, 10.3.2, and 10.3.3 client can invoke RMI-based applications hosted on a WebLogic Server 10.3.4 server using IIOP, T3, T3S, HTTP, and HTTPS. JMS applications can be invoked using T3, T3S, HTTP, and HTTPS.
A WebLogic Server 10.3.4 client can invoke RMI-based applications hosted on a WebLogic Server 8.1, 9.x, 10.0, 10.3, 10.3.1, 10.3.2, and 10.3.3 server using IIOP, T3, T3S, HTTP, and HTTPS. JMS applications can be invoked using T3, T3S, HTTP, and HTTPS.
A WebLogic Server 10.3.4 Web server plug-in can proxy to the latest patch set release of a 8.1, 9.x, 10.0, 10.3, 10.3.1, 10.3.2, and 10.3.3 server.

Interoperability between WebLogic Server 7.0 and WebLogic Server 10.3.4 is supported in the following scenarios. You will need the WebLogic Server 7.0 patch that is associated with CR295275 for this interoperability to work. This patch is applicable to WLS 7.0 SP6 and WLS 7.0 SP7. You can request this patch by contacting Oracle support and requesting the patch associated with CR295275. Additionally, for RMI/IIOP interoperability support, start the WLS 7.0 client using the following flag: -Dweblogic.system.iiop.enableClient=true

A WebLogic Server 7.0 client can invoke RMI-based applications hosted on a WebLogic Server 10.3.4 server using T3, T3S, HTTP, and HTTPS. JMS applications can be invoked using T3, T3S, HTTP, and HTTPS.
A WebLogic Server 10.3.4 client can invoke RMI-based applications hosted on a WebLogic Server 7.0 server using T3, T3S, HTTP, and HTTPS. JMS applications can be invoked using T3, T3S, HTTP, and HTTPS.
A WebLogic Server 10.3.4 Web server plug-in can proxy to the latest patch set release of a 7.0 server.

JMX Compatibility

See "JMX 1.2 Implementation" in WebLogic Server 11g Release 1 (10.3.4) Compatibility with Previous Releases.