Recommended Browsers for Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12

Recommended Browsers for Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12

In This Document
Section 1: Overview
Section 2: Internet Explorer for Windows Users
Section 3: Firefox for Windows Users
Section 4: Safari for Mac Users
The most current version of this document can be obtained in note 389422.1

There is a change log at the end of this document.

Section 1: Overview
This document outlines the requirements for browsers that are certified for use with the Oracle E-Business Suite 12.

To check certification information please examine the Certifications page from https://support.oracle.com by entering the following values;.

Product Line - 'Oracle E-Business Suite'
Product Family - 'Applications Technology'
Product Area - 'Lifecycle Management'
Product - 'Application Install'
Product release - 'as required'
Tier - 'Client'
Click the 'Search' button.
Section 2: Internet Explorer for Windows Users
Prerequisite Patch Requirements
Internet Explorer 8 on Windows XP, Windows Vista and Windows 7
Internet Explorer 8 is certified as a client browser on Windows XP SP2 & SP3, Windows Vista SP1 & SP2 and Windows 7 with the following patch requirements;

Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12.1.1 or higher.
Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12.0 with R12.ATG_PF.A.DELTA.6 (patch 7237006) or higher
Oracle forms 10.1.2.3 or higher
Internet Explorer 7 with Windows Vista
Internet Explorer 7 is certified as a client browser on Windows Vista, SP1 & SP2 with the following patch requirements:-

Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12.1.1 or higher.
Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12.0, with R12.ATG_PF.A.DELTA.3 (patch 6077669) or higher.
Certification Matrix for Internet Explorer (IE)
The table below outlines the currently certified Browser, Operating System and JRE streams with minimum versions, where applicable:

Browser
Version Windows 7 Windows Vista SP1 & SP2 Windows XP SP2 & SP3 Windows 2000
IE 8 JRE 1.6.0_03 or higher JRE 1.6.0_03 or higher JRE 1.6.0_03 or higher Not Certified
JRE 1.5.0_10-erdist or higher JRE 1.5.0_10-erdist or higher JRE 1.5.0_10-erdist or higher
IE 7 Not Certified JRE 1.6.0_03 or higher JRE 1.6.0_03 or higher Not Certified
JRE 1.5.0_10-erdist or higher JRE 1.5.0_10-erdist or higher
IE 6 Not Certified Not Certified JRE 1.6.0_03 or higher JRE 1.6.0_03 or higher
JRE 1.5.0_10-erdist or higher JRE 1.5.0_10-erdist or higher

Compatibility with Higher Sun JRE releases
Oracle has certified the Oracle E-Business Suite with the minimum Sun JRE releases noted above on the JRE 1.6 and JRE 1.5 streams. Oracle E-Business Suite end-users may use or upgrade to later production releases of the Sun JRE plug-in on, either stream, at their discretion. It is recommended to upgrade to the latest certified JRE releases to uptake the latest security and functional fixes. For further information on upgrading JRE and it's requirements and known issues, please reference note 393931.1 titled, 'Deploying Sun JRE (Native Plug-in) for Windows Clients in Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12'.

Oracle will continue to test and certify the Oracle E-Business Suite with selected future versions of Sun JRE releases in advance of their general availability to the public. Oracle will update this documentation with known compatibility issues or workarounds as needed.

3rd Party Software Support Lifecycle
Oracle's certification of the various third party client operating system and browsers aligns with the respective vendor's support lifecycle. You may find Microsoft's support timelines for OS and browsers at http://support.microsoft.com

Recommended Internet Explorer Browser Settings
Security Zones
Microsoft Internet Explorer offers four different security zones to run your application through. Which zone is used is dependant how you are accessing your site (Internet or Local Intranet) and set up within the zones themselves (Trusted sites & Restricted sites).

It is advisable to have the security setting at Medium for run-time use.

The Security Internet Options on Microsoft Internet Explorer can be accessed by going to;

Tools -> Internet Options -> Security tab from the Internet Explorer Menu Bar.

Each zone carries its own default security level that may need to be adjusted when accessing Oracle E-Business Suite through it. The defaults are as follows;

Zone Usage Default for IE8 & IE7 Default for IE6
Internet Web sites not placed in other zones Medium-high Medium
Local Intranet Web sites on your organization's intranet Medium-low Medium-low
Trusted Sites Web sites you trust not to damage your computer Medium Low
Restricted Sites Web sites that could potentially damage your computer High High

It is recommended that Oracle E-Business Suite is run through the 'Trusted Sites' zone, with a 'Medium' Security Setting.

Setting up Oracle E-Business Suite to run through the 'Trusted Sites' zone, with a 'Medium' Security Setting. (If Required)
Step 1: Select Tools -> Internet Options -> Security tab -> Trusted Sites icon -> Sites button from the Internet Explorer Menu Bar.
Step 2: Set the 'Security Level for this Zone' to 'Medium' if it is not set already.
Step 3: In the 'Add this Web site to the zone:' field, enter the 'hostname and domain' of the environment you are running the Oracle E-Business Suite from; i.e. https://., then click the 'Add' button. Alternatively you can simply add the domain name preceded by '*', so that all sites under that domain go through this zone. i.e. *.

(If you are entering an http://... or '*.' domain address, you must ensure that the 'Require server verification (https:) for all sites in this zone' is not checked).

Internet Explorer Browser Settings for User Download of oaj2se.exe
Oracle recommends that customers running Oracle E-Business Suite through Internet Explorer (IE) should use a 'Medium' security setting through the 'Trusted Sites' zone in the browser at runtime. This setting does not automatically download the oaj2se.exe file from the middle tier if the user does not already have the appropriate version installed on their desktop.

The JRE plug-in will download and install from the webserver on a medium security setting. After clicking on a 'forms link', a message similar to the following will appear at the top of the browser window;

'The website wants to install the following add-on: 'J2SE Runtime Environment 6 Update 3' from 'Sun Microsystems, Inc.'. If you trust this website and the add-on and want to install it, click here...'

To install the plug-in:-

Click on the message above and select 'Install ActiveX Control...'
Once the browser has stopped processing, click on the 'forms link' again, and the oaj2se.exe file should start to download
Once the download has completed, a security warning pop-up window will ask, 'Do you want to install this software?'
Click on the 'Install' button and follow the on screen instructions
Alternatively, to enable the download of this file, the user should temporarily alter the security settings within their browser using one of the two methods below:
Method A: Change Security Setting to Medium-low
Select 'Tools' -> 'Internet Options -> 'Security' (Tab)' from the browser menu.
Select 'Trusted Sites' -> 'Custom Level' (button)
From the 'Reset custom settings' drop down select 'Medium-low'
Click the 'Reset...' button and accept the changes.
Press the 'okay' buttons to close the window.
Close the browser and start a new browser session for the settings to take effect.
After launching Oracle E-Business Suite and downloading the oaj2se.exe file onto your desktop, please reset the security setting back to 'Medium'
Method B: Change Individual Parameter Settings
Select 'Tools' -> 'Internet Options -> 'Security' (Tab)' from the browser menu.
Select 'Trusted Sites' -> 'Custom Level' (button)
Under 'Settings' -> 'ActiveX controls and Plug-ins'
Change 'Automatic prompting for ActiveX controls' to 'Enable'
Change 'Download unsigned ActiveX controls' to 'Prompt'
Click the 'OK' button and accept the changes and click the 'OK' buttons to close the window
Close the browser and start a new browser session for the settings to take effect.
After launching Oracle E-Business Suite and downloading the oaj2se.exe file onto your desktop, please reset
'Automatic prompting for ActiveX controls' to 'Disable' and
'Download unsigned ActiveX controls' to 'Disable'.
Use of Excel with WebADI
To create an excel spreadsheet on your desktop through WebADI, the 'Initialize and script Active X controls not marked as safe' setting must be set to 'Prompt'. This is only defaulted to this value on a 'Low' security setting', therefore you will probably need to alter this setting through Internet Explorers Custom Settings. From the browser menu;

Select Tools -> Internet Options -> Security tab.
Select the zone that you are running Oracle E-Business Suite through and click the 'Custom Level' button.
Set the 'Initialize and script Active X controls not marked as safe' option to 'Prompt'.
Page Refresh
When using Oracle Self-Service products it is important to ensure that the most current data is being viewed. You may check if the page has been updated since your last visit by manually refreshing the page, however it is desirable for this to be done automatically through IE by setting the following parameter from the browser menu as follows;

IE7 and IE8 Users

Select Tools -> Internet Options -> General tab -> Browsing History -> Settings button.
Select 'Every time I visit the webpage'.
With this option set Internet Explorer will check if the page has changed since it was last viewed.
IE6 Users

Select Tools -> Internet Options -> General tab -> Settings button.
Select 'Every visit to the page'.
With this option set Internet Explorer will check if the page has changed since it was last viewed.
Shared Desktop Security
If multiple users share the same desktop, they may be able to view a previous users browser content by pressing the 'Back' button on the browser. To avoid this issue please set the 'Force Page Refresh' profile option to 'Yes' at Site level in your Oracle E-Business Suite 12 instance.

For security reasons, if a PC is shared by multiple users it is also advisable not to save encrypted pages onto the drive. To set this option please go to Tools -> Internet Options -> Advanced tab -> Security settings and tick 'Do not save encrypted pages to Disk'.

Exception: SSL users who export Discoverer Workbooks to excel must leave this parameter unchecked.
AutoComplete in Internet Explorer
IE can automatically show previous values entered in the same form field. For privacy and security reasons this feature should be disabled as follows;

Go to Tools - > Internet Options -> Content
Click the AutoComplete 'Settings' button
Uncheck the 'Forms' and 'User names and passwords on forms' check boxes.
HTTP 1.1/Keep Alive Settings
Users should have the HTTP 1.1/Keep Alive option enabled.

To set this option, from the browser menu select;

Tools -> Internet Options -> Advanced tab -> HTTP 1.1 Settings.
Please ensure 'Use HTTP 1.1' and Use HTTP 1.1 through proxy connections' are both ticked
Importing an SSL Certificate into Internet Explorer on Windows Vista and Windows 7
Connecting to a Secure Socket Layer (SSL) enabled environment requires the certificate to be 'Trusted'. If the certificate is not from a trusted authority or has not previously been trusted on the client, it must be verified at runtime. When accessing such an environment it will return the following warning message: 'There is a problem with this website's security certificate'. Using the automatic default install button can cause the certificate to be added to the browser's 'Intermediate Certification Authorities' folder and not the required 'Trusted Root Certification Authorities' folder. Therefore the security message will still display.

Installing an SSL certificate into the Browsers Trusted Certificates folder requires the browser's security option 'Enable Protected Mode' to be turned off, which is the default setting in the 'Trusted Sites' zone. This feature is available in Internet Explorer for Vista and Windows 7, and does not exist in the XP version of the browser. ('Enable Protected Mode' may be turned on after the certificate has been installed for runtime use).

To trust the certificate authority thus stopping this error page appearing on future logins;

Enter the URL in the browser
From the browser menu select; Tools -> Internet Options -> Security -> Trusted Sites icon. Security setting should be 'Medium' by default
Make sure the 'Enable Protected Mode' option is off (not checked)
Click the 'Sites' button and add the url if it is not there already (or add *.oracle.com to cover all Oracle environments, you must uncheck the 'Require Server Verification....' option first to allow you to add it)
Save the changes and close the browser window
Enter the URL in a new browser window
You will again see a message saying There is a problem with this website's security certificate'. Click on, 'Continue to this website (not recommended)
In the taskbar click on the Red certificate error
An Untrusted Certificate Window Pops, click on 'View Certificates'
Click on Certification Path 'Tab'
Highlight the Root certificate (will probably have a white cross in a red background next to it) and press 'View Certificate'
Click on Install Certificate 'button' and press next
Select 'Place all the certificates in the following store'
Click 'Browse' and tick the 'Show physical Stores' box.
Click the + next to 'Trusted Root Certification Authorities' folder
If a folder exists called 'Local Computer' Click on it and select 'Okay'
If that folder does not exist, highlight 'Trusted Root Certification Authorities' folder and select 'Okay'
Press 'Next' followed by 'Finish'
When the Security Window pops asking if you wish to install it, say 'Yes' then hit the 'finish' button
Close the pop-up and the browser, when you next login, it should be fine.
If the install button is not active when trying to install the certificate, it may have been installed previously using the automatic facility (Into the 'Intermediate Certification Authorities' zone). To remove the certificate;
Open the browser and go to Tools -> Internet Options -> Content -> Certificates -> Intermediate Certificate Authorities
Highlight the appropriate certificate for the instance you are trying to access, press the 'Remove' button then close down the browser
Open a new browser session and follow the steps above to install the certificate into the 'Trusted Certificates' folder
Known Issues for Internet Explorer Users
Internet Explorer 8
Windows Vista and Windows 7 for Internet Explorer
General Internet Explorer Issues
Internet Explorer 8 (IE8)
Cross-Site Scripting Error
Oracle E-Business Suite 12.0 and 12.1.1 users may see the following error in the browser window when launching a forms based application;

'Internet Explorer has modified this page to prevent a possible cross-site scripting attack'

The required Forms 10.1.2.3 servlet components may not have been deployed properly when Forms 10.1.2.3 was first installed in your Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12 environment (Bug 8608695).

If your IE 8 end-users encounter this error when attempting to launch a Forms-based E-Business Suite product, redeploy the Forms 10.1.2.3 formsapp.ear file by following Note 397174.1 titled, 'Deploying a New Forms .ear File in Oracle Applications Release 12'.

Multiple Java Console Windows Open
With the 'Show Console' option set in the Java Control Panel, launching a forms based application through IE8 may cause two separate 'Java Console' windows to open. Accessing further applets from the same Oracle E-Business Suite session may also cause further 'Java Console' windows to appear. This is expected behavior due to the Loosely-Coupled IE (LCIE) functionality within IE8. This functionality splits the browsers frame and its tabs into separate processes on the desktop to improve performance and browser recovery if a tab crashes. This will not always be seen because not every tab will necessarily be started in its own process as LCIE will attempt to balance reliability with performance. Therefore the issue of multiple java console windows is most likely to be seen if running from a high specification multi-core processor desktop.

If required you can prevent the java console from appearing by running the following from your desktop client;

Control Panel -> Java icon -> Advanced tab -> Java Console -> select the 'Hide Console' radio button

Windows Vista and Windows 7 with Internet Explorer
The following issues are applicable for users running on Windows Vista through IE7 or IE8, and Windows 7 through IE8.

Balanced Scorecard Users
The VB client is not supported on Windows Vista or Windows 7.

Discoverer Users
Discoverer (10g) 10.1.2.3 is certified with Windows Vista. For further information please see note 456426.1.

Discoverer 10.1.2.2 and earlier are not certified with Windows Vista or Windows 7.

Financial Analyzer and Sales Analyzer Users
Financial Analyzer and Sales Analyzer client versions (6.4) are not supported on Windows Vista or Windows 7. Please use the OFA and OSA web versions, see note 470992.1.

XML Reports (RTF file extensions)
Windows Vista and Windows 7 users cannot open *.rtf format files through the browser. When clicking the 'OK' button on the 'Opening *.rtf' modal window the file will not open and the modal window will come up again. To correct the problem, associate a different program such as Wordpad, OpenOffice.org etc. with the .rtf extension on the desktop.

Control Panel -> Default Programs -> Associate a file type or protocol with a program
Select .rtf under the Name column from the list
Click the 'Change Program' button.
Select an appropriate program i.e. Wordpad
Click the 'OK' button
General Internet Explorer Issues
Discoverer Viewer Users
After clicking the drill icon on a worksheet the drill items are not listed when running Discoverer Viewer through IE7 and higher. To fix this issue;

Discoverer Viewer 10.1.2.0.2 and 10.1.2.1 and 10.1.2.2 users should apply patch 5673463. Please contact support to request this patch.
Discoverer Viewer 10.1.2.2 Cumulative Patch (CP7) and lower users should apply patch 5673463. Please contact support to request this patch.
This issue is fixed in Discoverer 10.1.2.2 Cumulative Patch (CP8) and Discoverer 10.1.2.3 and higher.

Tabbed Browsing in IE 7 and IE 8
Forms Windows
IE7 and higher provides a tabbed browsing facility, which can be enabled from the browser menu through Tools -> Internet Options -> General Tabs -> Settings. Forms in Oracle E-Business Suite are supported and launched through a separate frame. Therefore, even with tabs enabled, the forms navigator and the forms windows will continue to open in a new window and not in a new tab. This is intended functionality and is not a bug.

Web Based LOV's
If the 'Always Open Pop-Ups in a New Tab' option within IE 7 or IE 8 is selected, Web based LOV's can lose focus. To regain focus within the pop-up window press 'Ctrl & Tab'. This option is set through Tools -> Internet Options -> Tabs -> Settings -> Always Open Pop-Ups in a New Tab.

For further information please see bug 6242250

Exporting Data and Opening Attachments
The file type that you wish to export from the Oracle E-Business Suite must be associated with the browser. If the file type is not associated, the Window will not open or will briefly open and then close immediately. This may occur for example, when using 'File -> Export' to an excel spreadsheet or when opening an attachment from the Oracle E-Business Suite.

To fix this issue, using the 'Trusted Sites' zone as an example, (which is recommended for running the Oracle E-Business Suite through);

Select 'Tools' -> 'Internet Options' -> 'Security' (tab) -> 'Trusted Sites' -> 'Custom Level' (button) -> 'Downloads' from the browser menu.
Set 'Automatic prompting for file downloads' to 'Enable'.
Save the setting and close the browser window.
Start a new browser session and login to the Oracle E-Business Suite.
This time, when trying to open the attachment or export data you should see a pop up windows titled 'File Download'.
Uncheck the checkbox labeled, 'Always ask before opening this type of file' and click the 'open' button.
The file should now display correctly.
After this has been done, the file extension type is registered and you may set the 'Automatic prompting for file downloads' back to 'disable', accessing such files in future will now work correctly with that setting.
Browser Helpers and Toolbars
The use of certain browser helpers and Toolbars may cause the browser to crash when trying to login to Oracle E-Business Suite due to their incompatibility with older plug-in versions. To remove a toolbar;

On the Start menu, click Control Panel
Double-click Add or Remove Programs
Select the appropriate toolbar
Click the Remove button
To disable an add-on;

From the bowser menu, Tools -> Manage Add-ons -> Enable or Disable Add-ons
Select the appropriate add-on
Under 'Settings' click the 'disable radio' button
Restart the browser
Section 3: Firefox for Windows Users
Prerequisite Patch Requirements
Firefox 3.0, Firefox 3.5 and Firefox 3.6
Firefox 3.0, Firefox 3.5 and Firefox 3.6 are certified as client browsers on Windows XP SP2 & SP3, Windows Vista SP1 & SP2 and Windows 7 with the following minimum requirements:-

Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12.1.1 or higher.
Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12.0.x with;
Oracle Applications Technology R12.ATG_PF.A.delta.6 (patch 7237006) or higher
Applications Framework Patch 7602616
It is also strongly recommended to apply patch 7567840 which removes the use of the jpi-version parameter and switches Firefox to a non-static versioning model. For further information see Multiple Desktop JRE Plug-in Versions with Firefox 3.0.x
Certification Matrix for Firefox Browser
The table below outlines the currently certified Browser, Operating System and JRE streams with minimum versions, where applicable:

Browser Version Windows 7 Windows Vista, SP1 & SP2 Windows XP SP2 & SP3 Windows XP & Windows 2000

Firefox 3.6.x JRE1.6.0_10 and higher JRE1.6.0_10 and higher JRE1.6.0_10 and higher Not Certified
Firefox 3.5.x JRE1.6.0_03 and higher JRE1.6.0_03 and higher JRE1.6.0_03 and higher Not Certified
JRE1.5.0_10-erdist to JRE1.5.0_22 JRE1.5.0_10-erdist to JRE1.5.0_22 JRE1.5.0_10-erdist to JRE1.5.0_22
Firefox 3.0.x Not Certified JRE1.6.0_03 and higher JRE1.6.0_03 and higher Not Certified
JRE1.5.0_10-erdist to JRE1.5.0_22 JRE1.5.0_10-erdist to JRE1.5.0_22

Firefox 3.6.x Users
Firefox 3.6.x only supports next-generation java plug-in releases (JRE 1.6.0_10 or higher). Forms based products cannot be launched using 'classic java' versions (JRE 1.6.0_07 or earlier or JRE 1.5.x).

If a 'next generation java' plug-in version is not available on the desktop client the browser will display the message, 'Additional plugins are required to display all the media on this page'.

If an appropriate version is available from the Oracle E-Business Suite web server it can be downloaded and installed in the usual way. Alternatively, clicking the 'Install Missing Plugins' button or the 'Click here to download plugin' box will activate the Firefox 'Plugin Finder Service' which will offer the latest available version of the JRE 1.6.x plug-in for download and install.

Compatibility with Higher Sun JRE releases
Oracle has certified the Oracle E-Business Suite with the minimum Sun JRE releases noted above on the JRE 6 (1.6.0.x) stream. Oracle E-Business Suite end-users may use or upgrade to later production releases of the Sun JRE 6 plug-in at their discretion. For further information on upgrading JRE and it's requirements, please reference note 393931.1 entitled 'Upgrading Sun JRE (Native Plug-in) with Oracle E-Business Suite 12 for Windows Clients'.

Oracle will continue to test and certify the Oracle E-Business Suite with selected future versions of Sun JRE releases in advance of their general availability to the public. Oracle will update this documentation with known compatibility issues or workarounds as needed. All current JRE production versions equal to or higher than the minimum versions stated above are compatible with Oracle E-Business Suite 12.

3rd Party Software Support Lifecycle

Oracle's certification of the various third party client operating system and browsers aligns with the respective vendor's support lifecycle. You may find Mozilla/Firefox support timelines at http://www.mozilla.org/projects/firefox/roadmap.html

NOTE: Firefox 2.0.x is no longer supported by the vendor. It is recommended that any users still running Firefox 2.0.x upgrade to Firefox 3.0.x or higher. Oracle will continue to offer support for Firefox 2.0.x with Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12 on a 'Best Effort' basis only. Consequently, where issues are due to problems with the browser, we may, where necessary, require customers to upgrade or change their browser to resolve the issue.

Recommended Firefox Browser Settings
Shared Desktop Security
If multiple users share the same desktop, they may be able to view a previous users browser content by pressing the 'Back' button on the browser. To avoid this issue please set the 'Force Page Refresh' profile option to 'Yes' at Site level in your Oracle E-Business Suite 12 instance.

Importing an SSL Certificate into Firefox 3
Connecting to a Secure Socket Layer (SSL) enabled environment requires the certificate to be 'Trusted' within the browser. If the certificate is not from a trusted authority or has not previously been trusted on the client, it must be verified at runtime. When accessing such an environment a warning message will display:

Secure Connection Failed

(Error code: sec_error_ca_cert_invalid)

This could be a problem with the server's configuration, or it could be someone trying to impersonate the server.
If you have connected to this server successfully in the past, the error may be temporary, and you can try again later.
Or you can add an exception...

To trust the certificate authority and to stop this error page appearing on future logins, add an exception;

Click on 'Or you can add an exception...' link.
Click ' Add Exception...' button.
Check 'Permanently store this exception'.
Click 'Confirm Security Exception' button.
Known Issues for Firefox Users
General Firefox Issues
Windows Vista and Windows 7 with Firefox
General Firefox Issues
JRE Plug-in Download Using Firefox (oaj2se.exe)
Oracle E-Business Suite 12.0.x Users

If using a non-static versioning model (patch 7567840 has not been applied) and the correct 'JRE Plug-in' version is not already installed on the client it will not automatically download from the web server when using a Firefox browser. This is due to bug 5855986.

To workaround this problem, the user can either download and install the JRE Plug-in, before launching the Oracle E-Business Suite, or can still download it from the server as follows.

Clicking on a forms link through Firefox will activate the 'Plug-in Finder Service'. The user will then see the message 'Additional plug-ins are required to display all the media on this page' in the taskbar.

Click on the 'Install Missing Plug-ins' button. (This will open a new window, search for the plug-in but will not find it)
Click on the 'Manual Install' button, which should open another window saying;
Forbidden
You don't have permissions to access /OA_JAVA/ on this server.

In the URL line on this window change http://:/OA_JAVA to http://:/OA_HTML/oaj2se.exe.
When asked if you wish save the oaj2se.exe file. Click the 'Save File' button and install the file onto your desktop
Once it has installed successfully, close down the firefox window and start a new session to access the Oracle E-Business Suite.
Multiple Sessions
You may only access a single Oracle E-Business Suite instance from a single desktop session when using the Firefox browser. Currently 'Internet Explorer' is the only browser that allows you to access multiple instances or multiple Application Responsibilities concurrently from the same desktop session, through the use of multiple browser sessions.

Multiple Desktop JRE Plug-in Versions
Multiple Desktop JRE Plug-in Versions with Firefox 3.x
Firefox 3.0.x supports 'Next-Generation JRE Plug-in' technology which is enabled by default when running JRE 1.6.0_10 and higher.

Oracle E-Business Suite 12.0.x Users

It is strongly recommended Oracle E-Business Suite 12.0.x users running Firefox 3.0 users apply patch 7567840. Without this patch the latest jre plug-in version on the desktop would have to match the jre plug-in version being called from the web server to successfully load a form. See Multiple Desktop JRE Plug-in Versions with Firefox (Static Versioning)

Whilst there is limited backward compatiblity, using the jpi-version attribute of the MIME type to select a particular JRE version is no longer supported by Sun when using the next-generation JRE plug-in (JRE 1.6.0_10 and higher). This patch changes the behavior within Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12 by removing the jpi-version parameter to overload the usage of the application/x-java-applet MIME type and implement the java_version parameter for JRE version selection. Further information is available from; https://jdk6.dev.java.net/plugin2/version-selection/#JPI_VERSION.

This patch changes the behavior of Firefox 3.0 to a 'non-static versioning' model. Earlier 'classic' java versions can also be run on this new architecture and they will also then adhere to a the non-static versioning model.

Oracle E-Business 12.1.1 Users

Oracle E-Business 12.1.1 users do not require patch 7567840. This architectural change is included by default making Firefox 3.0 adhere to the non-static versioning model.

For further information on static and non-static versioning please see Appendix A: Static vs Non-Static Versioning and Set Up Options in note, 393931.1, titled, 'Deploying Sun JRE (Native Plug-in) for Windows Clients in Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12'.

(Return to Prerequisite Patch Requirements section if required.)

Multiple Desktop JRE Plug-in Versions with Firefox (Static Versioning)
By default, Firefox only uses the latest version of the plug-in that it finds on the desktop client. Unless Oracle E-Business Suite is set to use the latest available version of the plug-in, users may not be able to connect using earlier versions of the plug-in.

To enable Firefox to use multiple versions of the plug-in from the desktop client, (thus allowing the use of jre plug-ins on the desktop that are not the latest version installed on that desktop) the following workaround can be used;

Copy '\bin\npjpi.dll' to '\plugins'.
(Using JRE 1.6.0_03 as an example in a default installation, this would be) -

Copy C:\Program Files\Java\jre1.6.0_03\bin\npjpi160_03.dll to C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\plugins

To check which versions are available within Firefox type, 'about:plugins' in the address bar.
Note: This workaround is not valid when running Firefox 3.0 with JRE 1.6.0_10 or higher installed on the desktop client.
Tab functionality in the Firefox Browser
Firefox uses tabbed browsing by default. Forms in Oracle E-Business Suite are supported and launched through a separate frame. Therefore, even with tabs enabled, the forms navigator and the forms windows will continue to open in a new window and not in a new tab. This is intended functionality and is not a bug.

Personal Homepage Setting
The ICX 'Personal Homepage' setting is not supported with the Firefox browser.

Rich Text Editing
The Cut, Copy and Paste buttons within the Rich text Editor on Oracle Applications Framework do not work by default when using a Firefox browser. This is due to a security feature within Firefox. We recommend that the keyboard shortcut keys, which do still work by default are used for this functionality. If you still wish to use the buttons, this can be enabled by editing the users Firefox preference file. Further information is available at, http://www.mozilla.org/editor/midasdemo and http://www.mozilla.org/editor/midasdemo/securityprefs.html.

BIDI Language Users
BIDI Languages are not supported with Self Service Applications using the Firefox Browser.

Oracle Report Manager
Oracle Report Manager interaction with Excel will not work when using the Firefox browser. This functionality requires the interaction of ActiveX through VbScript which is not supported in Firefox. Oracle Report Manager users should run Internet Explorer for full functionality. Full support through Firefox is being investigated through enhancement request 7832639 titled, 'Support downloading of FSG reports and templates in excel for Firefox browser'.

Windows Vista with Firefox
Windows Vista and Windows 7 with Firefox
Balanced Scorecard Users
The VB client is not supported on Windows Vista or Windows 7.

Discoverer Users
Discoverer 10.1.2.3 is certified on Windows Vista. For further information please see note 456426.1.

Discoverer 10.1.2.2 and earlier are not certified on Windows Vista or Windows 7.

Financial Analyzer and Sales Analyzer Users
Financial Analyzer and Sales Analyzer client versions (6.4) are not supported on Windows Vista or Windows 7. Please use the OFA and OSA web versions, see note 470992.1.

XML Reports (RTF file extensions)
Windows Vista and Windows 7 users cannot open *.rtf format files through the browser. When clicking the 'OK' button on the 'Opening *.rtf' modal window the file will not open and the modal window will come up again. To correct the problem, associate a different program such as Wordpad, OpenOffice.org etc. with the .rtf extension on the desktop.

Control Panel -> Default Programs -> Associate a file type or protocol with a program
Select .rtf under the Name column from the list
Click the 'Change Program' button.
Select an appropriate program i.e. Wordpad
Click the 'OK' button
Section 4: Safari for Mac Users
Certification Matrix for Safari Browser
The table below outlines the currently certified Browser, Operating System and the certified JRE versions.

Browser Version OS X v10.4.7 or higher OS X v10.5 or higher
Safari 2.0.x (where x = 4 or higher) JRE 1.5.0_06 and higher n/a
Safari 3.2.x (where x = 1 or higher) JRE 1.5.0_13 and higher JRE 1.5.0_13 and higher

For further information and patch requirements for Apple Macintosh OS X version 10.4, please see Document id: 402138.1, titled 'Oracle Applications Release Notes Release 12 for Apple Macintosh OS X version 10.4'.

For further information and patch requirements for Apple Macintosh OS X version 10.5, please see Document id: 864552.1, titled 'Oracle Applications Release Notes Release 12 for Apple Macintosh OS X version 10.5'.



Recommended Safari Browser Settings
Performance
From the Safari Menu, go to 'Preferences -> Security -> Web Content' and select; 'Enable Plug-ins', 'Enable Java' and 'Enable JavaScript'. Do not select 'Block Pop-Up Windows'. (Selecting this will cause the Oracle E-Business Suite not to open).

From the Safari Menu go to 'Preferences -> Advanced' and select 'Press Tab to highlight each item on a webpage'.

Related Notes
Deploying Sun JRE (Native Plug-in) for Windows Clients in Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12 (Note 393931.1)
Deploying Sun JRE (Native Plug-in) for Windows Clients in Oracle E-Business Suite 11i (Note 290807.1)
Recommended Browsers for Oracle E-Business Suite 11i (Note 285218.1)
Change Log
Date Description
Jan 21, 2010 Added Firefox 3.6 as a certified browser.
Dec 22, 2009 Added multibyte language support for Windows 7 desktop client operating system.
Dec 17, 2009 Added Windows 7 as a certified desktop client operating system.
Sep 18, 2009 Added Firefox 3.5 as a certified browser.
Sep 11, 2009 Added Internet Explorer 8 certification with Oracle E-Business Suite R12. In particular please see Prerequisite Patch Requirements and Known Issues for Internet Explorer Users
Aug 3, 2009 Added Safari 3.2.1 with OS X v10.5 certification with Oracle E-Business Suite R12.
Jun 26, 2009 Added Windows Vista SP2 as a certified patchset.
Jun 12, 2009 Removed FF 2.0 information.
May 1, 2009 Added Oracle E-Business Suite 12.1.1 information.
Feb 27, 2009 Added Firefox 3.0.x as a certified browser.
Jul 24, 2008 Added Vista SP1.
Jun 6, 2008 Added information for using multiple jre plug-in versions in Firefox known issues section.
May 16, 2008 Added certification of Windows XP SP3.
Jan 24 , 2007 Initial document created.