Support for heterogeneous environments and mixed bitness

WebSphere Commerce is typically installed in a homogeneous environment. That is, WebSphere Commerce, WebSphere Commerce search, and all tiers (web server tier, application server tier, and database server tier) run the same operating system. However, WebSphere Commerce Version 7.0 supports heterogeneous environments, if the software vendor claims support for the operating system.
LinuxAIXWindows

Operating systems

If needed, you can install the WebSphere Commerce, WebSphere Commerce search, web server, application server, or database server on different operating systems.
  • Your database server can be on a different operating system than your WebSphere Commerce server. Consult your database server documentation to learn about other considerations when you move data across platforms. For more information, see
    • DB2.
    • OracleSign in to your Oracle support site and access document ID 277650.1
  • Your web server tier can be on a different operating system than your application tier (WebSphere Commerce server). This support is identical to the heterogeneous environment support provided by WebSphere Application Server. For more information, see the following topics:
    The following table shows the supported heterogeneous environments across the web server tier, application server tier, and the database tier.
    Supported heterogeneous configurations
    Web server tier Application server tier Database tier
    Any AIX AIX
    Any Linux on System x AIX or Linux on System x
    Any Linux on Power Systems AIX or Linux on Power Systems
    Any Windows AIX or Linux or Windows
  • Your WebSphere Commerce search server can be on a different operating system than your WebSphere Commerce server. However, it is recommended that the same operating system is used across all parent and child servers in a search cluster. For more information, see Index-building topologies and scenarios.

Mixed bitness

WebSphere Commerce also supports running components with different JVM bitness.
  • DB2By default, WebSphere Commerce uses a 32-bit JVM to communicate with a 32-bit DB2 client. However, you can also use a 64-bit JVM to communicate with either a 32-bit or 64-bit DB2 client or a 32-bit or 64-bit local DB2 server. If you choose to do so, you must ensure that all settings are properly configured.
  • OracleDepending on your configuration, for WebSphere Commerce to communicate with an Oracle database, you can use a 32-bit or 64-bit client. For more information, see the following links.
  • You can set the WebSphere Commerce server and WebSphere Commerce search server to run on different JVMs. For example, you can run the WebSphere Commerce search server by using a 32-bit JVM and WebSphere Commerce by using a 64-bit JVM.