4.0 GroupWise Mobility Service Update

IMPORTANT:GroupWise Mobility Service (GMS) 18.3.1 requires a fresh installation. Upgrading or updating an earlier GMS version to version 18.3.1 is not supported.

The following sections offer suggestions for migrating to the new GMS system with as little disruption to your current GMS system as possible.

Preparing to Migrate to GMS 18.3.1

Terminology

  • Server1: Your current GMS server.

  • IP1: The static IP address assigned to your current GMS server.

  • DNS1: The DNS name associated with IP1.

  • Server2: Your new GMS 18.3.1 server.

  • IP2: The static IP address that you assign to Server2.

  • DNS2: The DNS name associated with IP2.

Prerequisites

  • A GMS 18.3.0 or earlier server (Server1) that currently provides mobility services for your GroupWise mobile-device users.

  • (Preferred) Your mobility users connect to Server1 using an assigned DNS name (DNS1).

    (Migrations where users connect with only an IP address are possible, but the process requires more user downtime.)

  • A new SLES 15 SP2 or later server (Server2) for exclusive use by GMS 18.3.1 that meets all of the requirements outlined in Mobility Server Requirements.

    IMPORTANT:Make sure to check Sever1’s percentage of free storage space on the disk containing the /var folder. If free space is getting low, be sure to allocate more when installing the 18.3.1 server.

  • An IP address (IP2) and associated DNS name (DNS2) to assign to the new GMS server

  • Adequate time for the initial synchronization of users’ data before the planned cut-over date.

    Initial data synchronization can take an extended period of time, depending on the quantity of data and the number of shared folders and calendars.

Installing a New GMS 18.3.1 Server

  1. Install a new SLES 15 SP2 or later server (Server2) and give it a static IP address (IP2) and DNS hostname (DNS2).

    For instructions, see Preparing the Linux Server.

  2. Install Mobility 18.3.1 on Sever2.

    For instructions, see Installing GroupWise Mobility Service.

Adding and Syncing Users and Data with the New GMS Server

  1. After GMS 18.3.1 is installed and running on Server2, add your GMS users to Server2 by using the GMS Web Admin console.

    For instructions, see Adding Users to Your Initial Mobility System.

  2. Adding users automatically begins the data synchronization process, which can take some time to complete. See Managing Initial Synchronization of Users.

  3. When you have verified that data synchronization is complete, continue with the next section,

Connecting Users with the New GMS Server

When all users display the status Synced in the GMS Web Admin Console, you can begin to transition them to Server2. For help, see Helping Mobile Device Users Understand Synchronization. Make sure that users understand that because the GMS server is new, their devices must re-sync the GroupWise data.

Your next steps depend on how your mobility users connect with GMS.

IMPORTANT:Do not shut down your old GMS server (Server1) until you are directed to do so.

If Users Connect through DNS

  1. If your users connected to Server1 using its DNS name (DNS1), change your DNS server’s configuration so that DNS1 resolves to IP2 instead of IP1.

    The next time mobile devices connect with GMS, they are automatically redirected to Server2.

    Because Server2 is new, GroupWise data on each device is resynchronized.

    NOTE:Having the old IP address (IP1) and it's old related DNS name (DNS1) can be very useful going forward if you ever need to perform a server migration again, or if you need to set up a second GMS server for fail-over redundancy.

If Users Connect Using an IP Address

  1. If your users connected to Sever1 using its IP address (IP1), you must do the following:

    1. Open the GMS Admin Console on Server1.

    2. Delete all of the mobile users on Server1.

      This temporarily makes GMS unavailable to mobile users.

    3. Shut down Server1.

    4. Add IP address IP1 to Server2.

      Server2 now has two IP addresses assigned.

    5. User devices begin connecting to Server2 through IP1 and their GroupWise data re-syncs.

Decommissioning the Old GMS Server

After verifying that your mobile users are successfully using GMS 18.3.1, do the following:

  1. If your users connect using an IP address, you should have already deleted them from Server1 and shut it down.

    If your users connect using DNS, do the following:

    1. Open the GMS Admin Console on Server1.

    2. Delete all of the mobile users on Server1.

    3. Shut down Server1.

    IMPORTANT:Deleting mobile users from Server1 while it is still connected to GroupWise, clears the server’s user event configurations from the GroupWise POA, an important housekeeping task.

  2. You can now re-purpose Server1 as needed.