JBoss.orgCommunity Documentation

Chapter 2. Installing the Mobicents SIP Presence Service

2.1. Mobicents SIP Presence Service: Installing, Configuring and Running
2.1.1. Pre-Install Requirements and Prerequisites
2.1.2. Downloading
2.1.3. Configuring (and Setting JBOSS_HOME)
2.1.4. Installing
2.1.5. Running
2.1.6. Stopping
2.1.7. Uninstalling
2.1.8. Building from Source Project
2.1.9. Binary Releases Daily Snapshots

There are multiple binary distributions of the Mobicents SIP Presence Service.

The Mobicents Platform (Mobicents) is built on top of the JBoss Application Server (JBoss AS). You do not need to set the JBOSS_HOME environment variable to run any of the Mobicents Platform servers unless JBOSS_HOME is already set.

The best way to know for sure whether JBOSS_HOME was set previously or not is to perform a simple check which may save you time and frustration.

Checking to See If JBOSS_HOME is Set on Unix

At the command line, echo $JBOSS_HOME to see if it is currently defined in your environment:

~]$ echo $JBOSS_HOME

The Mobicents Platform and most Mobicents servers are built on top of the JBoss Application Server (JBoss AS). When the Mobicents Platform or Mobicents servers are built from source, then JBOSS_HOME must be set, because the Mobicents files are installed into (or “over top of” if you prefer) a clean JBoss AS installation, and the build process assumes that the location pointed to by the JBOSS_HOME environment variable at the time of building is the JBoss AS installation into which you want it to install the Mobicents files.

This guide does not detail building the Mobicents Platform or any Mobicents servers from source. It is nevertheless useful to understand the role played by JBoss AS and JBOSS_HOME in the Mobicents ecosystem.

The immediately-following section considers whether you need to set JBOSS_HOME at all and, if so, when. The subsequent sections detail how to set JBOSS_HOME on Unix and Windows

You DO NOT NEED to set JBOSS_HOME if...
You MUST set JBOSS_HOME if...

Naturally, if you installed the Mobicents Platform or one of the Mobicents server binary releases which do not bundle JBoss AS, yet requires it to run, then you should install JBoss AS before setting JBOSS_HOME or proceeding with anything else.

Setting the JBOSS_HOME Environment Variable on Unix

The JBOSS_HOME environment variable must point to the directory which contains all of the files for the Mobicents Platform or individual Mobicents server that you installed. As another hint, this topmost directory contains a bin subdirectory.

Setting JBOSS_HOME in your personal ~/.bashrc startup script carries the advantage of retaining effect over reboots. Each time you log in, the environment variable is sure to be set for you, as a user. On Unix, it is possible to set JBOSS_HOME as a system-wide environment variable, by defining it in /etc/bashrc, but this method is neither recommended nor detailed in these instructions.

Procedure 2.1. To Set JBOSS_HOME on Unix...

  1. Open the ~/.bashrc startup script, which is a hidden file in your home directory, in a text editor, and insert the following line on its own line while substituting for the actual install location on your system:

    export JBOSS_HOME="/home/<username>/<path>/<to>/<install_directory>"
  2. Save and close the .bashrc startup script.

  3. You should source the .bashrc script to force your change to take effect, so that JBOSS_HOME becomes set for the current session[1].

    ~]$ source ~/.bashrc
  4. Finally, ensure that JBOSS_HOME is set in the current session, and actually points to the correct location:

    Note

    The command line usage below is based upon a binary installation of the Mobicents Platform. In this sample output, JBOSS_HOME has been set correctly to the topmost_directory of the Mobicents installation. Note that if you are installing one of the standalone Mobicents servers (with JBoss AS bundled!), then JBOSS_HOME would point to the topmost_directory of your server installation.

    ~]$ echo $JBOSS_HOME
    /home/silas/
Setting the JBOSS_HOME Environment Variable on Windows

The JBOSS_HOME environment variable must point to the directory which contains all of the files for the Mobicents Platform or individual Mobicents server that you installed. As another hint, this topmost directory contains a bin subdirectory.

For information on how to set environment variables in recent versions of Windows, refer to http://support.microsoft.com/kb/931715.



[1] Note that any other terminals which were opened prior to your having altered .bashrc will need to source ~/.bashrc as well should they require access to JBOSS_HOME.