JRE folder - fresh install vs. updater

[Tech_Department]

Hello all!

We run Wowza Streaming Engine on a Windows Server 2008 R2. Our production Wowza was originally installed as 4.1.2 and has been updated since to 4.7.6, using the established updating procedure.

A while back we tried updating to the current and latest version 4.7.7. Something did not work right, so we rolled back to 4.7.6. Right after that, we installed a FRESH copy of 4.7.7 on another server to use as a dev server. We noticed that the fresh install came with a JRE folder, containing its own version of (an older) JAVA version. This Java version is the one Wowza uses, regardless of what version is globally installed and referenced on the server. IF this JRE folder is missing, THEN Wowza uses the globally installed Java.

The documentation at page:

https://www.wowza.com/docs/manually-install-and-troubleshoot-java-on-wowza-streaming-engine states:

“[…] Important: Wowza Streaming Engine Manager requires the version of Java that installs with Wowza Streaming Engine. Do not install and use any other version of Java if you work in Wowza Streaming Engine Manager.”

BUT - here is my problem and question. This JRE folder is NOT INSTALLED when an update is downloaded and applied. It is only part of a FRESH install. And we NEVER had a problem with our Wowza until NOW. Everything works OK using the latest Java version from Oracle, EXCEPT SSL INTEGRATION.

How important is to use Wowza’s version of Java? And do we have to reinstall a fresh copy of Wowza using the latest installer?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

[Andrew_Ramberg]

Hello,

Installers after WSE version 4.2.x include the JRE as you’ve noticed but updaters will not modify or add this to the existing installation folder. The updater is designed to preserve the existing configuration, whereas the installer is a fresh installation and may contain a different Java JRE.

You can modify WSE to use a specific Java version. WSE should work fine with most Oracle Java 8 versions but the version we include is what our team tests against and should be the most reliable. Normally we suggest using the Java 1.8.0_77 version unless a feature is needed or security issue is resolved with a newer version.

The following article explains how to manually configure Java with WSE:
https://www.wowza.com/docs/manually-install-and-troubleshoot-java-on-wowza-streaming-engine

Best regards,
Andrew

[Tech_Department]

Thank you for the reply Andrew.

The link your provided in your answer is the same link I provided in my post.

I do not think I will be able to get a positive result with my current install and the SSL problem we are experiencing. My next course of action is to backup the current production installation, uninstall it and install a fresh copy of 4.7.7 and the reconfigure it based on the old settings.

Thank you and best regards!