Primary Note for Oracle Application Express (APEX) Upgrades (Doc ID 1088970.1)

Last updated on FEBRUARY 14, 2023

Applies to:

Details

This note answers the most frequently asked questions about Oracle Application Express (APEX) installation upgrades.
In addition to the Support Notes below, you can find supplementary infomation here:

• APEX Discussion Forum
• Product Certification (Also <Note 1344948.1> further elaborates on APEX, Database and Web Server certification)
• Documentation, Technical Brief and Demos

Audience
This note is intended for product administrators and installers. You can use this information when planning future upgrades and installations.

Actions

Upgrade Overview

The best place to begin is in the Oracle APEX Downloads page, where you can find the Instalation Guide and Release Notes for the latest APEX version.
Previous versions of APEX can be found in the Prior Release Archives link of the same page.

The over all steps for upgrading APEX are:

1.- Run the APEX installation script against the target database
     The same script is used for new installations and upgrades. The script automatically senses whether there is a version of APEX present and automatically takes the appropriate action.

2.- Update the existing version of the /i/ virtual directory
     The virtual directory is where the images, javascript and css files of the current APEX version are located. The steps for doing this will vary depending on your web listener: 

Upgrade Steps

1.- Check Your APEX Version

Prior to the APEX upgrade, begin by identifying the version of APEX currently installed and the database prerequisites.
To do this run the following query in SQL*Plus as SYS or SYSTEM:

FAQ

1.-  Is it possible to configure more than one web listener to run against the same APEX instance?
      Yes, it is possible to configure more than one web listener  to run against the same database containing APEX.
      Please note that EPG has been deprecated and not supported starting with APEX 20.2

2.-  Is it possible to use the EPG on one database to run APEX on another database?
      This is not possible due to a software restriction of the EPG.

Known Problems

1.- The APEX installation guides indicate that the databases not associated with the install should be shut down.
     This step is not necessary, and is documented in <Bug 8851768> INSTALLATION GUIDE IMPLIES OTHER DATABASES SHOULD BE DOWN DURING INSTALLATION

2.- The installation guides for APEX 3.2 and below do not reflect the commands and file locations for the Fusion Middleware Oracle HTTP Server (OHS) supplied on OTN for the 11.2 database.
     Due to the timing of the 11.2 database release, the configuration information associated with the Web Tier OHS could not be included in the 3.2.1 APEX documentation.
    <Note 1070034.1> APEX Installation Guide Is Missing Configuration Information for Fusion Middleware 11.1.1 OHS: contains information on configuring APEX with the  Oracle Fusion Middleware Web Tier Utilities 11g (11.1.1.2.0) software.

Troubleshooting

If you get some error during APEX installation / upgrade, refer to the APEX Installation Troubleshooting section of the Installation Guide.

Also, it is recommended to run the apex_verify.sql script to get an output with the status of the APEX installation. For doing so, refer to this note:
<Note 1254932.1> APEX Installation Verification Script

Other References

<Note 389839.1> DBA_REGISTRY Shows Oracle Application Express Invalid
<Note 1286029.1> How to Prevent APEX 3.2.1 Installation when 10.2 DB Containing APEX 4.0 is Upgraded
<Note 304645.1> Troubleshooting MOD_PLSQL DAD issues during Installation of APEX / HTMLDB
<Note 283234.1> Receiving Failed to Login to APEX / HTMLDB Page - You Don't Have Permission to Access /pls/apex
<Note 471983.1> How to find whether DAD is configured in 11g database?
<Note 457621.1> How to Configure Oracle Application Express (APEX) & the Embedded PL/SQL Gateway (EPG) in an 11G DB External
<Note 469342.1> ORA-22288 When Running apex_epg_config.sql or apxldimg.sql 
<Note 604859.1> Apex Login Problem Using Embedded Pl/Sql Gateway
<Note 361581.1> How to Change the ADMIN User Password for the Workspace INTERNAL  
<Note 565952.1> Troubleshooting: The XDB Login Appears When Running APEX with the 11g Enterprise PL/SQL Gateway (EPG)
<Note 361581.1> How to Change the ADMIN User Password for the Workspace INTERNAL
<Note 555856.1> Installation of APEX Fails When PL/SQL Web Toolkit not Available in DB
<Note 558340.1> How To Uninstall Oracle HTML DB / Application Express from the Database
<Note 749733.1> FAQ on APEX Runtime Installation

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