25.0 Preparing Your Existing GroupWise System for the Upgrade

To prepare your GroupWise system to be upgraded to version 18, complete the following tasks:

  • Validate your domain and post office databases to ensure that there are no physical inconsistencies with the database. If problems exist, you should recover or rebuild the database. For information about validating, recovering, or rebuilding a database, see the documentation for your current GroupWise version at the Micro Focus Documentation website.

  • Back up each domain or post office immediately before upgrading it. For information about backing up your GroupWise databases, see the documentation for your current GroupWise version at the Micro Focus Documentation website.

  • Collect the information about your existing GroupWise system that the GroupWise Installation Wizard prompts you for as you upgrade to GroupWise 18. You might find it helpful to review Planning Your GroupWise System and to record the information on the worksheets provided for an initial installation:

  • Prepare the existing agents for upgrade. The Installation console uses the same agent configuration for GroupWise 18 that is in use for your existing GroupWise system. Your current agent configuration might not be the best option for GroupWise 18. The GroupWise 2012 Installation Guide provides information for reconfiguring your existing agents in preparation for the upgrade.

    Linux:

    The Installation console can locate agents that are listed in the gwha.conf file used by the GroupWise High Availability Service (gwha). For background information, see Enabling the GroupWise High Availability Service for the Linux GroupWise Agents in the GroupWise 2012 Installation Guide.

    Also, the Admin console cannot manage agents that run with the user interface provided by the --show switch. For background information, see Starting the Linux Agents with a User Interface in the GroupWise 2012 Installation Guide.

    Windows:

    The Installation console can locate agents that have been running as Windows services. For background information, see Starting the Windows Agents Manually or Automatically as Services in the GroupWise 2012 Installation Guide.

    Also, the Admin console cannot manage agents that run as applications with a user interface. For background information, see Starting the Windows Agents Manually As Applications in the GroupWise 2012 Installation Guide.

    In preparation for GroupWise 18, you can configure your existing agents to run without a user interface, so that the Installation console can automatically locate them, or you can specify the locations of domains and post offices during the upgrade process.

  • Ensure that all GroupWise servers meet the system requirements listed in GroupWise Server Requirements.

  • When you upgrade the primary domain to GroupWise 18, you establish the user name and password for the GroupWise Super Admin. For background information about this administrative user, see Primary Domain: Super Admin Creation. Decide on the Super Admin user name and password before you start the upgrade process.

  • When you upgrade a domain or post office on a Linux server, ensure that the Linux operating system media is available, either physically or in a repository, in case the Installation Wizard needs to install supporting packages on the Linux server.

  • Ensure that all GroupWise client user workstations meet the system requirements listed in GroupWise User Requirements.

IMPORTANT:Before upgrading to 18.5, make sure your GroupWise server certificates pass the Certificate Best Practices requirements in the GroupWise 18 Administration Guide or you will have problems during/after the upgrade.