Overview

Contents

Introduction

Model in Image is an alternative to the operator’s Domain in Image and Domain in PV domain types. See Choose a domain home source type for a comparison of operator domain types.

Unlike Domain in PV and Domain in Image, Model in Image eliminates the need to pre-create your WebLogic domain home prior to deploying your Domain YAML file.

It enables:

  • Defining a WebLogic domain home configuration using WebLogic Deploy Tool (WDT) model files and application archives.
  • Embedding these files in a single image that also contains a WebLogic installation, and using the WebLogic Image Tool (WIT) to generate this image. Or, alternatively, embedding the files in one or more application specific images.
  • Optionally, supplying additional model files using a Kubernetes ConfigMap.
  • Supplying Kubernetes Secrets that resolve macro references within the models. For example, a secret can be used to supply a database credential.
  • Updating WDT model files at runtime. For example, you can add a data source to a running domain. See Runtime updates for details.

This feature is supported for standard WLS domains, Restricted JRF domains, and JRF domains.

For JRF domains, Model in Image provides additional support for initializing the infrastructure database for a domain when a domain is started for the first time, supplying an database password, and obtaining an database wallet for re-use in subsequent restarts of the same domain. See Requirements for JRF domain types.

WebLogic Deploy Tool models

WDT models are a convenient and simple alternative to WebLogic Scripting Tool (WLST) configuration scripts and templates. They compactly define a WebLogic domain using YAML files and support including application archives in a ZIP file. For a description of the model format and its integration with Model in Image, see Usage and Model files. The WDT model format is fully described in the open source, WebLogic Deploy Tool GitHub project.

Runtime behavior

When you deploy a Model in Image domain resource YAML file:

  • The operator will run a Kubernetes Job called the ‘introspector job’ that:

    • Merges your WDT artifacts.
    • Runs WDT tooling to generate a domain home.
    • Packages the domain home and passes it to the operator.

  • After the introspector job completes:

    • The operator creates a ConfigMap named DOMAIN_UID-weblogic-domain-introspect-cm (possibly with some additional maps distinguished by serial names) and puts the packaged domain home in it.
    • The operator subsequently boots your domain’s WebLogic Server pods.
    • The pods will obtain their domain home from the ConfigMap.

Runtime updates

Model updates can be applied at runtime by changing an image, secrets, a domain resource, or a WDT model ConfigMap after initial deployment.

Some updates may be applied to a running domain without requiring any WebLogic pod restarts (an online update), but others may require rolling the pods to propagate the update’s changes (an offline update), and still others may require shutting down the entire domain before applying the update (a full domain restart update). It is the administrator’s responsibility to make the necessary changes to a domain resource to initiate the correct type of update.

See Runtime updates.

Continuous integration and delivery (CI/CD)

To understand how Model in Image works with CI/CD, see CI/CD considerations.

References