In a recent customer visit, I was asked about the profile terminology in WAS 8.5 and the new WAS liberty offerings (Core, Base, ND, and z/OS) in both the WAS 8.5 and WAS 8.5.5. I would like to share my answers in the form of a Q&A format to help explain things:
Q: IBM introduced a composable application server called WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile. Does the "profile" word here mean i need to use the Profile Management Tool (i.e. websphere customization tool) to create it?
A: No, the term profile in the WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile means "installation". Thus, there is no creations of profiles when it comes to Liberty profile. the WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile means the actual installation of the composable server.
Q: Now that you introduced WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile which is a composable server, how do you reference the non-composable WebSphere Application Server?
A: Starting with the WebSphere Application Server V8.5 release, IBM refers to the non-composable WebSphere Application Server as the WebSphere Application Server Full profile.
Q: What are the flavors/editions of the WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile and are they all separate products?
A: The answer here depends on the WebSphere Application Server release:
WebSphere Application Server 8.5 (i.e. June 2012 release):
The WebSphere Application Server liberty profile is a feature of the WebSphere Application Server. Meaning to get the Liberty profile, you have to have entitlement to the WebSphere Application Server product (BASE, EXPRESS, ND, Z/OS). With the exception of z/OS the liberty profile was identical in all of those edition. In the case of z/OS, the liberty profile added z specific functionality to take advantage of the z/OS platform which resulted in great performance enhancements (topic left for another posting).
WebSphere Application Server 8.5.5 (i.e. June 2013 release):
IBM introduced a new offering that is a liberty only offering and it is called: The WebSphere Application Server Liberty Core Edition (see ibm.co/1arYFaQ ). This is a Java EE 6 Web Profile certified offering.
Also, in this WAS 8.5.5 release, IBM differentiated the liberty profiles that ship with the other WebSphere Application Server offerings as follows:
- WebSphere Application Server Express/Base edition includes the Liberty Core edition features plus: WebServices, JMS Support, MongoDB support, and more (see picture below for details)
- WebSphere Application Server ND edition includes the liberty features that come with the WebSphere Application Server Express/Base offering plus the ability to cluster the Liberty server ( see picture below for details)
- WebSphere Application Server z/OS edition includes the liberty features that come with the WebSphere Application Server liberty ND offering plus z/OS specific features (see picture below for details)
Note that the 
refers to those features added in WebSphere Application Server v8.5.5 release
Q: So to help me understand, other than the WebSphere Application Server Liberty Core edition, is there a product offering from IBM that is called WebSphere Application Server Liberty ND edition? or WebSphere Application Server liberty Base edition? or WebSphere Application Server Liberty z/OS edition?
A: No, when it comes to Liberty, there is only one stand-alone liberty-only product which is called the WebSphere Application Server Liberty Core edition. To get the Liberty ND features, Liberty base features, or liberty z/OS features, one would have to acquire WebSphere Application Server ND edition, or WebSphere Application Server Base edition, or WebSphere Application Server z/OS edition.
Q: Did the way I install and get the WebSphere Application Server Full profile (i.e. non-composable app server) change?
A: No, the WebSphere Application Server Full profile continued to be installed the same exact way as the previous WebSphere Application Server V8.0 release.
Q: With the introduction of the new WAS liberty profile, did the way we install and configure the WebSphere Application Server Full profile change?
A: No, the configuration of the WebSphere Application Server Full profile continued to be exactly the same (i.e. after installation, you create profiles using the profile creation tool, ..).
Q: How can I install the WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile?
A: There are multiple ways to install the WebSphere Application Server liberty profile:
- installing WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile as an archive install:
- Though the Eclipse IDE liberty plugin ( you have to have the Eclipse liberty plugin (bit.ly/17k20YH)
2) installing liberty profile using IBM Installation Manager (www-01.ibm.com/software/rational/install...). That means, you point the Installation Manager to a local or remote liberty IM repository and you install it that way. See for example:
Q: Is WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile supported for production? or is for development usage only?
A: The WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile is absolutely supported for production. For the most part, its the same WebSphere Application Server code that is packaged in a composable way using OSGI.
Q: When should I use WebSphere Application Server Liberty for development?
A: The WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile contains a subset of the programming models and features that are supported in the WebSphere Application Server Liberty Full profile (check the info center for details of features and programming models are is supported in Liberty). If what your application requires/uses is supported in the WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile, you should start using it immediately as its so easy to setup and configure.
Q: When should I use WebSphere Application Server Liberty for production?
A: The WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile has a different administration model. Thus, as long as you can fit the new administration model in your env, there should be no reason not to use and take advantage of the composable nation of the application server in a production env. the WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile offers the same quality, scalability, security, and performance as the WebSphere Application Server Full profile.
Q: Is the WebSphere Application Server Liberty free of charge for developers?
A: Both the WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile and the WebSphere Application Server Full profile are free of charge when using for development usage.
Q: Is the WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile free when used for production?
A: No, the WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile is not free for production usage. See your sales rep for details on the cost of the WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile Core edition and the cost of the WebSphere Application Server other editions.
Q: What if I have WebSphere Application Server V8.0 server in my production env, can i take advantage of the great WebSphere Application Server Liberty profile in my development env?
A: yes, since both the WebSphere Application Server V8.0 and the WebSphere Application Server V8.5 are Java EE 6 certified application servers, you can develop code using the WebSphere Application Server V8.5 and V8.5.5 Liberty profile servers and deploy the developed application in the WebSphere Application Server V8.0 server.