[Windows]

Planning to install IBM MQ on Windows

Before you install IBM® MQ on Windows, you must choose which components to install and where to install them. You must also make some platform-specific choices.

About this task

The following steps provide links to additional information to help you with planning your installation of IBM MQ on Windows.

As part of your planning activities, make sure that you review the information on hardware and software requirements for the platform on which you are planning to install IBM MQ. For more information, see Checking requirements on Windows.

Procedure

  1. Decide which IBM MQ components and features to install.
    See IBM MQ components and features and Where to find downloadable installation images.
    Important: Ensure that your enterprise has the correct license, or licenses, for the components that you are going to install. For more information, see License requirements and IBM MQ license information.
  2. Review the options for naming your installation.
    In some cases, you can choose an installation name to use instead of the default name. See Installation name on AIX, Linux, and Windows.
  3. Review the options and restrictions for choosing an installation location for IBM MQ.
    For more information, see Installation location on Multiplatforms.
  4. If you plan to install multiple copies of IBM MQ, see Multiple installations on AIX, Linux, and Windows.
  5. If you already have a primary installation, or plan to have one, see Primary installation on AIX, Linux, and Windows.
  6. Make sure that the communications protocol needed for server-to-server verification is installed and configured on both systems that you plan to use.
    For more information, see Server-to-server links on AIX, Linux, and Windows.
  7. Determine whether you need to install the Java Runtime Environment (JRE).
    From IBM MQ 9.1.0, if you are not using Java in your messaging applications, and you are not using portions of IBM MQ that are written in Java, you have the option to not install the JRE (or to remove the JRE if it was already installed).
    Attention: If you choose not to install the JRE, or to remove the JRE if it was already installed:
    • You must perform your key management by using the runmqakm command line tool rather than the strmqikm GUI tool, or the runmqckm command line tool.
    • The IBM Key Management shortcut is still installed. Clicking the shortcut has no effect. You should use the runmqakm command line tool instead.
    • Use of the runmqras command fails unless a JRE at version 7, or later, is available on the system path.

    On Windows, before IBM MQ 9.1.0, the JRE was a hidden installation feature that was always installed. From IBM MQ 9.1.0, the JRE becomes an independently installable feature. The feature can be installed or omitted, either silently or though the GUI installer, as long as you are not installing other features that require the presence of the JRE. For more information, see Install features that require the Server or JRE.

    Upgrading from an earlier version of IBM MQ to IBM MQ 9.1.0 (or later) adds the separately installed JRE feature to the installed product.

    For more information, see Using runmqckm, runmqakm, and strmqikm to manage digital certificates.