Simple Migration for Unmodified-opentaps Users

CAUTION: THIS IS A ROUGH DRAFT PAGE AND IS NOT YET TESTED AND READY TO USE

Migration of your current opentaps Version 1.0.X installation to a new one running Version 1.4 will be discussed, step-by-step in this section.

Back-up Your Current Version 1.0.X Installation

WARNING: BEST PRACTICES ADVISE -- BACK-UP YOUR DATABASE BEFORE MIGRATING

YOUR EXISTING DATABASE WILL BE MODIFIED AND WILL NO LONGER BE USABLE WITH 
AN OLDER LEVEL OF OPENTAPS.  THEREFORE IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT YOU PRESERVE YOUR
CURRENT DATABASE AS-IS WITHOUT MODIFICATIONS, TO SERVE AS A BACKUP IN CASE OF ANY
UPGRADE PROBLEMS.  

THEREFORE, BACK-UP YOUR DATABASE IN THE MANNER YOU ARE ALREADY USING FOR
PRODUCTION (SO THAT YOU KNOW THE BACKUP CAN BE RESTORED TO PRODUCTION IF NEEDED).

Back-up Your Database

If you are in production with opentaps then you have a database backup method that you are using already. This must be a backup method that you have practiced, so that you know it works, including the practice of restoring the backup copy and putting that restored copy back into production again.

You will want to backup your current production database before you start migrating to opentaps Version 1.4. Then, you can follow the migration guidelines which will modify your currently existing database to accomodate changes required for Version 1.4. After the modifications for Version 1.4, the database will no longer work with earlier releases of opentaps, but you will have your backup copy saved in case you run into any problems requiring you to go back to the earlier version.

Preserve Your Current Installation Directories and Configurations

There are two very important reasons why you will want to preserve your current older version of opentaps installation directories and the files they contain.

Copying XML configuration files and properties

First, your current, older version, installation directories contain all of the configuration files, and files containing set-up "Properties" used to fully configure the opentaps system. Thus, these files are the comprehensive record of how the system is currently set-up.

You can copy much of the critical information from these files and documents from the old version to the new version, or you can refer back to the older version of you have questions later about how it was set up before you migrated.

Your Fall-Back Strategy in Case of Problems

Your current, older version, opentaps installation is the best fall back strategy you have for continuing production in the unlikely event that you have problems in getting the new Version 1.4 up and running without problems, and on time.

Thus, you should plan to install the new Version 1.4 in a new installation directory, while preserving the old one without modifications. Then it will be available to bring up along with the restored data from the old system.

Alternate Strategy for Server Migration

Many Users who have opentaps in production will have a separate server that they use for testing purposes, sometimes for their own company modifictions to the configuration that are developed as the company grows, and also for other testing like upgrades to system code or upgrades to opentaps.

You can use such a test server installation to practice your upgrade to opentaps Version 1.4 so that any problems may be found and resolved before you attempt to put the production site through your upgrade changes.

When an upgrade involves changing out multiple major items of the server software or hardware at the same time, a separate test environment can be used to avoid unexpected problems on the production site.

Install opentaps Version 1.4

We do not repeat opentaps Installation guides in this section, but rather we refer to the opentaps Installation Manual, which contains a wealth of information useful to those planning migration to the latest version.

Select Or Upgrade Your Opentaps Host Server

New options are available for hosting the opentaps system, including the use of Amazon EC2, which provides virtual servers running in the Amazon server cloud environment. This setup allows an opentaps User to instantiate their own opentaps system by using the pre-installed image that resides on EC2. (One word of caution, however. Using EC2 is very much like learning another operating system similar to Linux but different in all the details.)

Install opentaps Version1.4

For the next step, refer to the detailed installation guide, Opentaps Installation Manual, which provides sections for installing on Linux, Mac OS-X, and on Windows.

Follow the directions to install on your type of system, then follow the directions for starting opentaps for a brief test.

As a test, to verify that the installation was successful, you can start opentaps Version 1.4 as described in the installation guide. You will be running with the demo data (not your own data), and this test is just to verify that the system comes up running and that you can log-in to it.

On the Main Navigation Screen, proceed to Log-in,
In the "opentaps Login" box, on the left side, 
Enter Username: admin
Enter Password:  ofbiz
Click: [Login], the Main Navigation Screen opens again with more large Icons. 
Click: the first large Icon, "iii", which is the CRM/SFA Icon.
The MyHome screen opens in the CRM/SFA application of opentaps.
Your installation was successful. 

If you do not get the results described, return to the Opentaps Installation Manual and review your work, and the last section that deals with problem shooting.

Pointing to Your Database

Next, you will point your new installation to work with your existing opentaps database, so that the database upgrades can be performed, making it compatible with Version 1.4 (and no longer compatible with the older version of opentaps).

Since your database is already set up, with a login ID and password specified in the opentaps files, when you point Version 1.4 to this database you can use the same ID and password that you defined in the earlier opentaps. Copy them into the new Version 1.4 files when directed in the following steps for pointing to the database.

Detailed instruction for pointing Version 1.4 to your database are contained in the guide, Using_opentaps_ERP_+_CRM_with_MySQL, or in guide, Using_opentaps_ERP_*_CRM_with_MySQL.

???????? Run ant run-install-seed ???????

    Comment out Securityext???

Start opentaps Version 1.4 Using startofbiz.sh

Initial Configuration Items

Items that must be done manually????

Run Version 1.4 Services that Set Up Some Data Fields

  Step-By-Step Running the Services