Within a WebLogic domain, the Administration Server, Managed Server instances, and the domain itself each have a WebLogic Server version number. The version number contains five decimal places; for example, WebLogic Server 14.1.2.0.0. The meaning of each decimal place is described below:

• The first two decimal places together describe the Major Version number, for example "14.1" in 14.1.2.0.0. The WebLogic Server 14.1 Major Version release is also branded as the WebLogic Server 14c Major Version release.

• The first three decimal places together describe the Minor Version number, for example "14.1.2" in 14.1.2.0.0. WebLogic Server 14.1.2 (or 14.1.2.0.0) is the second Minor Version release of the WebLogic Server 14.1 Major Version release. WebLogic Server 14.1.3 (or 14.1.3.0.0) would be the third Minor Version release of the WebLogic Server 14.1 Major Version release.

• Patch Set releases for WebLogic Server 14.1.2.0.0 will increment the fourth decimal place. For example, 14.1.2.1.0 would be the first patch set release.

• Patch Set Update releases are named uniquely by incrementing the fifth decimal place with the date of the Patch Set Update release in YYMMDD format; for example, 14.1.2.0.241130. This convention is used for Patch Set Update naming purposes; for example, naming downloads available on My Oracle Support. However, the application of a Patch Set Update does not change the version number of an existing WebLogic Server installation as referenced in the Oracle inventory directory (oraInventory) used by WebLogic Server 14.1.2 installers.

You can obtain the version number and Patch Set level of a WebLogic Server instance or domain several different ways. For example:

• For an Administration Server or Managed Server instance, you can view the version message sent to stdout when the server is started. For example:

  <Version: WebLogic Server 14.1.2.0.0  Sat Nov 11 12:34:37 PDT 2024 1960751 >
  

• For a domain, you can view the value of the <domain-version> element in the domain configuration file, config.xml. For example:

  <domain-version>14.1.2.0.0</domain-version>

Within a WebLogic domain, the Administration Server, all Managed Server instances, and the WebLogic domain must be at the same WebLogic Server Major and Minor Version. This means that in WebLogic Server 14.1.2.0.0, the Administration Server, Managed Servers, and the WebLogic domain must all be at version 14.1.2.0.0. Note the following guidelines for maintaining consistency in Patch Set Update and Interim or One-off Patch levels within a domain.

• In general, the best practice is for all server instances within a domain to be at the same Patch Set Update (PSU) and Interim or One-off Patch level during steady-state operation. However, there may be cases where server instances are required to run at different PSUs and Interim or One-off Patch levels within a domain. The primary examples include:

  • When applying PSUs, Interim or One-off Patches in rolling fashion across server instances in the domain. In such cases, the maintenance should be applied to the Administration Server first, so that the Administration Server is at the same PSU and Interim or One-off Patch level (or higher) than its Managed Servers. See About Rolling Upgrade in Upgrading Oracle WebLogic Server.

  • When there are specific requirements to run Managed Servers within a domain at different PSU and Interim or One-off Patch levels in steady-state operation. In such cases, the Administration Server should be at the highest PSU level, so that the Administration Server is at the same PSU level or higher than all of the Managed Servers. If Managed Servers within a domain are running with different Interim or One-off Patches, it will not be possible to apply a consistent set of Interim or One-off Patches to the Administration Server. Because this maintenance complexity may be difficult to manage, the general best practice is to use the same PSU and Interim or One-off Patch level across all servers in the domain.

• 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 Oracle Fusion Middleware Supported System Configurations page on Oracle Technology Network. However, note that running clustered Managed Server instances on different hardware and operating systems may impact load balancing and performance. In general, the best practice is to run all Managed Servers within a cluster on the same hardware and operating system.

• If the WebLogic domain is part of an Oracle Enterprise Manager Cloud Control installation, additional requirements exist regarding the combinations of hardware, operating system, and JVMs, that may be configured in the domain. See Oracle Enterprise Manager Cloud Control Administrator's Guide.

For more information about WebLogic domains and additional details about domain compatibility, see Domain Restrictions in Understanding Domain Configuration for Oracle WebLogic Server.

WebLogic Server instances within a domain can run on any hardware, operating system, and JVM platform as long as the hardware, operating systems, and JVMs are supported for the current version of WebLogic Server. For details, see the Oracle Fusion Middleware Supported System Configurations page on the Oracle Technology Network.

As a best practice, Oracle recommends that the version of Node Manager used in a WebLogic domain should match the version of the Administration Server.