Few things can be as daunting as a software update. When the software in question is a complex ERP program you use to run your business, the stakes are even higher. While Microsoft goes to great lengths to make sure your update process goes as smoothly as possible, there are a number of things you can do to ensure a flawless update.
- Find out What Legacy Features Are No Longer Supported
One of the biggest mistakes an organization can make is rushing into an upgrade before realizing that a key feature has been removed. This is especially true with significant upgrades that make changes to the underlying database, making it difficult, if not impossible, to revert to an earlier version.
An example of this kind of transition would be the phase out of Microsoft’s Office Web Components, much of which is being deprecated upon Microsoft’s release of Windows 10. Many users will still be able to use OWC with Internet Explorer, but however will not be able to use the program elsewhere, like with the new Spartan browser.
Before upgrading, carefully read over the change-logs to make sure the features your business depends on are still present. Even if they are, make sure they haven’t changed so much that it will break functionality once you hit go.
- Backup, Backup, Backup
Although every organization should be making regular backups of critical data, you should make a special backup before embarking on a major software upgrade. This will ensure that, even if things go horribly wrong, you will still be able to get back up and running with a previous version of the software and your current data.
And you can’t exactly be safe with all of your data in the cloud, either. According to this recent study, “47% of enterprises lost data in the cloud and had to restore their information from backups”, and even scarier, “66% of those organizations saw recovery operations fail”.
- Decide Your Upgrade Method
Microsoft Dynamics offers a couple of different ways to upgrade. For best results, analyze which option fits your needs. For example, speaking specifically of Dynamics CRM, Microsoft describes the different methods of upgrading:
“Migration upgrade (Recommended)
This method:
- Is used to support an upgrade with a fallback scenario included.
- Requires additional hardware to install a CRM server.
- Is the preferred method, in general, because you can upgrade without disrupting your existing CRM 2011 deployment.
In-place upgrade
This method:
- Is used when you need to upgrade an existing CRM server.
- Provides the easiest and simplest path to upgrade.
Customers that choose this route should consider the following:
- You cannot fall back to CRM 2011 without reinstalling the CRM 2011 server.
- If an upgrade fails, your server or organization will not be accessible until you clear the error or restore the server from a backup.”
- Update the Database
When beginning the upgrade process, it’s important to do it in the right order. According to MSDN, “if your current solution is based on Microsoft Dynamics 2013 or Microsoft Dynamics 2013 R2, you must convert the database to the Microsoft Dynamics 2015 technical requirements as part of the data upgrade process to Microsoft Dynamics 2015 and then upgrade the application and data later…The first task is to back up the old database and then prepare to convert it.”
- Update the Application Code
The fifth step in the process is to upgrade the application code. As Microsoft highlights, “typically, customers want all the customizations that have been implemented in their existing Microsoft Dynamics databases to be migrated to their new Microsoft Dynamics 2015 databases. Depending on the version of Microsoft Dynamics that a database is being upgraded from, the amount of code changes between the two versions is large or small. To upgrade the application code, you must merge code from different versions of the application. This merge process is known as a code upgrade or application upgrade. You must upgrade the application before you upgrade the data.”
- Convert Your Data
The sixth and final step in the process is to convert your existing data. The goal is “to convert the old data with the old version’s table and field structure, so that it functions together with the new version’s table and field structure.”
While certainly daunting, upgrading your Dynamics software can be a relatively pain-free process. By following this upgrade checklist and checking in with your Microsoft Partner regularly, you can go a long way toward ensuring your next Dynamics upgrade goes as smoothly as possible.
About the Author: Curt Finch is the CEO of Journyx, a Certified Microsoft Partner. Journyx maximizes the value of Microsoft Dynamics by adding enterprise time tracking. Journyx Accountlink for Microsoft Dynamics allows companies to quickly implement a complete time tracking solution using existing business data in Dynamics. Connect with Curt on Google+.
About Journyx
A Certified Microsoft Partner, Journyx enterprise time and expense tracking software is an add-on that integrates with Microsoft Dynamics GP as well as Project Accounting. Learn more at http://journyx.com/dynamics.
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