JDE E1 WP-1022 Best Practices for Upgrading Your System

Best Practices for Upgrading Your JD Edwards EnterpriseOne System

An Oracle White Paper August 2006

PURPOSE STATEMENT

This document provides an overview of considerations when planning an upgrade to your JD Edwards EnterpriseOne system to any currently available release.

This document is intended for information purposes only, and may not be incorporated into any contract. It is not a commitment to deliver any material, code, or functionality, and should not be relied upon in making purchasing decisions. The development, release, and timing of any features or functionality described for Oracles products remains at the sole discretion of Oracle. Updates and enhancements are provided in accordance with Oracles Technical Support Policies at:

www.oracle.com/support/collateral/oracle-technical-support-policies.pdf

Best Practices for Upgrading Your JD Edwards EnterpriseOne System Page i


EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW................................................................................1 GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS.................................................................2

Learn from Others.......................................................................................2 Change Management .................................................................................2 Communicate with Oracle: Listen, Learn and Log......................................5

WHAT TO DO FIRST AFTER PROJECT KICKOFF ......................................7 TRAINING .....................................................................................................11 PREPARE YOUR TECHNICAL ENVIRONMENT ........................................12

Support Assistant Tool..............................................................................12 Prepare Your Data and Database ............................................................13

INSTALLING YOUR NEW RELEASE...........................................................15 UPGRADE YOUR CODE..............................................................................16 UPGRADE YOUR DATA...............................................................................17

Minimizing Downtime ................................................................................17 POST-UPGRADE ACTIVITIES.....................................................................19

Validation ..................................................................................................19 Testing ......................................................................................................19

GOING LIVE..................................................................................................19

Best Practices for Upgrading Your JD Edwards EnterpriseOne System Page 1


EXECUTIVE OVERVIEW When you decide to upgrade from an older release of JD Edwards EnterpriseOne to a more current version, you must plan carefully to ensure project success. Most customers do not upgrade frequently, and the employees involved in your upgrade may not have been with your company when you last did a similar project. This document discusses recommendations for your project based on others experiences. While not a comprehensive project plan or exhaustive checklist, review this paper for ideas and lessons learned from successful (and not-so-successful) projects in the past.

The document discusses the following concepts related to upgrading your system:

General recommendations to get ready for an upgrade project The first things your project needs to do prior to technical work Training recommendations Getting your technical environment prepared Preparing your database and associated data Installing your new release from Oracle Upgrading your code and data Post-upgrade and go live activities

The tips presented are also organized in a checklist that can be printed and used by your project and management team.

These and many more additional assets are available from the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Upgrade web site at Customer Connection1.

1 http://www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/iou/upgrade/e1_upgrd_resources.jsp (sign on with password required)

This document contains recommendations for your upgrade based on experiences from other customers, our partners and

Oracle consultants and support staff from around the globe.


GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS In preparing to successfully upgrade, here are some general considerations to include. As with most project oriented work, preparation and project management are key elements to ensuring success. Within this paper Oracle has gathered tips and techniques from hundreds of other system managers, consultants and partners who have upgraded the enterprise. These recommendations are intended to help you learn from others and manage a successful project.

Learn from Others Most system administrators do not work on upgrade projects often so it is important to leverage the experiences of others as much as possible.

Tip No. 1 - Utilize Peer and Oracle Resources

Use these links to gather information from Oracle and interact with other users of JD Edwards EnterpriseOne. Some will allow you to ask questions of other customers:

Customer forums sponsored through Quest2 and JDEList3 Join the bi-monthly Upgrade Consortium Calls4 Visit the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Upgrade web site5 Regularly check the JD Edwards Customer Connection web site6

Tip No. 2 Consult Experienced Performance Tuning Consultants

Another critical area for leveraging other expertise is the performance tuning of your new system. Acquire the expertise of a consultant who has experience tuning your new release to ensure you get the most from your infrastructure, even if you have the expertise to execute other areas of the project yourself.

In particular, if you are upgrading from JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Xe (OneWorld) to a current version, the architecture has evolved significantly. In addition, you are likely moving from a Windows or partial-Windows environment to a full Internet environment. Getting this assistance will help you successfully make this transition.

Change Management A critical factor in successful upgrades is how you update your software during the process. Oracle has prepared an extensive white paper outlining our

2 Visit Quest International Users Group at www.questdirect.org 3 Visit JDEList at www.jdelist.com 4 The Upgrade Consortium Calls are generally held the 2nd and 4th Wednesday, 9 am US Mountain Time, each month and recorded for post call playback. Enroll in the consortium at: www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/iou/upgrade/e1_upgrd_resources.jsp (sign on required) 5 See www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/iou/upgrade/e1_upgrd_resources.jsp (sign on required) 6 See www.peoplesoft.com/psp/portprd/CUSTOMER/CUST/h/?tab=DEFAULT (sign on required)

There are many resources available to you to help with your upgrade project. Others

have already completed the journey that you are preparing for. Take advantage of

their experiences to increase your success.


recommendations for you to consider which has been posted on Customer Connection.7

Tip No. 3 Use Change Management Appropriate for an Upgrade

One of the key elements of our recommendation is to treat the different phases of using the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne system differently. This is an updated recommendation from the original notion of fixing issues as you find them.

During an upgrade, it is imperative that you take all relevant patches available for your new release when you install the new system. Once you have done this, you should proactively search for issues and schedule change during your implementation of the new release until you reach a milestone and stop change to stabilize the environment. For more details and information on how to determine relevant patches, please review the white paper. In addition, in the Tools section of this paper is a description of the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne and World Change Assistant tool to facilitate this process.

Tip No. 4 - Prepare the Organization

As you enter the beginning stages of an upgrade project, engage the entire affected organization to help them prepare for the work ahead and the changes they will experience in their jobs. Consider gathering formal buy-in from the stakeholder organizations and kicking off the project in a face-to-face meeting. Formality, visibility to upper management and team building can be a key aid in securing the cooperation and problem solving help you will need as the project progresses.

Tip No. 5 - Treat Your Upgrade Activity as a Formal Company Project

The single best predictor (perhaps a tie with Change Management) of upgrade success may very well be project management. A structured approach to managing the tasks, resolving issues and measuring progress is absolutely critical. In addition, you must clearly define and stick to an agreed-to scope for the project to prevent timeline and cost overruns. Many projects which struggle or even fail do not have a clear understanding of the issues they are facing, and good project management is your best strategy to ensure you identify and resolve roadblocks to success.

If your organization has good project management expertise in house, you have an important asset to bring to bear. If, however, you dont have this expertise, acquire it early on. In either case, you will need someone with experience managing technical projects who can also help you anticipate and manage the effects of this on other parts of the organization including end users, managers and executives.

7 The paper is at www.peoplesoft.com/media/cupa/pdf/e1upgrade_code_currency.pdf (sign on required)

Having change management in place is a basic requirement for success. Not using

change management principles can be compared to forgetting to get electricity for

running your servers.


Tip No. 6 Build an Upgrade Team with Broad and Complimentary Skills

Several different skill sets will be necessary to successfully upgrade your system. Table 1 lists upgrade team recommendations to collect and organize within the context of a project team. Note that a steering committee is at the top of the list. Creation of an active and interested steering committee is often overlooked; project failures are often traced to the lack of an effective steering committee.

Tip No. 7 - Proactively Decrease Your Issues List

One of the best ways to reduce the numbers of issues you have to track, research and resolve is to train your users. Although many of the core functional and administrative business processes are similar between releases, training will give your users the information they need to identify true issues from intended changes. The timing of this training is important. While you may want key users to be trained early on to give input to the project and assess impact, most users prefer training proximate to going live on the new system so they dont have to remember what they have learned over a long period of time without using it.

Tip No. 8 Decide When To Change (Add) Processes

In most cases, there is functionality in the release you are moving to that will help your business. This can be a small enhancement to business processes you are already using, or larger changes like the adoption of a new module. One critical decision for your upgrade project is whether you will implement the new functionality as part of the upgrade, or upgrade your existing processes without change, and implement new functionality as a follow-on project.

Your upgrade team needs skills and experiences from across the technical and

management spectrum. It is crucial to have a senior company manager involved

on the steering committee. Issues will come up that will need executive attention.

Table 1. Upgrade Team Resources and Responsibilities

Resource Required Optional Responsibilities

Steering Committee Required

Oversees the project, assigns additional resources and funding if necessary, and decides when the organization is ready. Meets regularly.

Project Manager Required Dedicated project manager (depending on project size) manages progress, issues, etc. Technical Upgrader Required

Executes the technical upgrade using Spec Merge, TC Workbench, etc

Testers Required Validates the new system. You will need coverage across all implemented processes CNC Required Manages fixes, patches, hardware requirements

Support Required Responds to issues, particularly right after go-live. Additional resources during this critical period.

Performance Tuner Required

Gets maximum performance from your infrastructure. Consider contracting with a consultant with specific tuning experience.

Developer Optional Retrofits custom modifications, if necessary.

Trainers Optional Trains your end users. This can be done with power users, outside consultants, etc.

While it may appear to be a time-worn clich, there is probably nothing more important than scope control. Scope

creep can turn your project into a failure. Scope creep often starts out with good

intentions but if not managed correctly will yield bad results.


Generally, implementing your existing processes in the new system is a way to mitigate risk in the upgrade project. However, your business realities may preclude this approach. For example, the business may be driving to take advantage of new capabilities as quickly as possible, or it may be more efficient to leverage testing (and FDA validation if that is relevant for your company) in one project as opposed to repeating it for two.

By carefully weighing the pros and cons of these approaches, you can choose the best strategy for your organization.

Communicate with Oracle: Listen, Learn and Log Make sure you are using available Oracle resources to help you gather current information for your project, and work with Support for critical support over your conversion weekend. Oracle is increasing focus on gathering together assets to help and using these resources will help you upgrade smoothly.

Tip No. 9 - Get Current Information from Oracle

Oracle maintains several resources to help you get the most current information that is relevant to your upgrade. Several great resources can be found through the Update Center.

Important Breaking News and Known Issues provides you a link into the experience of other customers and access to the latest information about your technical upgrade in on the web.8

Key Issues and Critical Solutions details issues in functional areas and performance that are relevant to an upgrade or using the system in general on the web.9

Solution 200972793, accessible from Customer Connection, brings together several of the links mentioned in this paper and references general upgrade information.

In addition, the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Upgrade web site10 is a good starting point for all types of upgrade information. This site is segmented into Evaluate, Plan and Execute sections based on where you are in your project.

Finally, make sure you get the most current documentation available. Oracle provides several kinds of documentation to help you through a successful upgrade project. This documentation can be accessed from the Customer Connection web site.

Tip No. 10 - Communicate with Oracle Technical Support

As you begin your upgrade, you can register your project with the Global Support Center. When you register, Oracle Support will contact you to answer questions and provide current information relevant to your upgrade. This proactive

8 See www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/update_fix/kgwrapper.jsp?app=uc (sign on required) 9 See www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/update_fix/kgwrapper.jsp?app=uc (sign on required) 10 See www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/iou/upgrade/e1_upgrd_resources.jsp (sign on required)


conversation will help you execute a smooth upgrade. You can register on Customer Connection using the online form11.

In addition, update your Installed Products and Planned Production Dates through Customer Connection using a special web page just for upgrade activity12. This helps alert Oracle Global Support Centers to your critical go live dates.

Tip No. 11 - Logging Issues

Another recommendation to help you get the most out of support is to log your non-critical issues (non P1s) through our web interface. Cases logged through the web are often resolved faster than calls into the support center. This is due to a variety of factors including:

You can provide a detailed description of the issue in your own words You can clearly articulate the priority and sense of urgency You can include trace files, screen shots, log files and more to help the

analyst move quickly on your issue.

Note that Priority 1 issues (P1) should always be called in to ensure that immediate discussion and escalation can be utilized, as appropriate.

Tip No. 12 Effectively Resolve and Escalate Problems as Appropriate

Oracle provides a Guide to Problem Resolution13 to help you with any software issues you encounter. Please use the links to the right of this guides introduction for more information. One of the key documents in this site is the Best Practice Suggestions14. Review this document for the best ways to work with support and resolve your issues.

This web site also contains the Global Support Center Escalation Process. Use this information to review case priorities and the escalation process. This will help you enter cases in the appropriate way and understand Oracles commitment to you, as outlined in an official Oracle policy15, when dealing with an escalated issue. This policy can be found on Customer Connection.

Always escalate appropriate issues as early as possible. These issues are typically on the critical path for your go live, and getting the right focus on their resolution early will give you the best chance of staying on schedule. Depending on several factors including your customization, issue complexity and more, an escalated issue can take up to two months to resolve with a fully tested solution, so the earlier the process is started, the better.

11 Register at www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/iou/dep_planning/e1_upgrade_request.jsp (sign on required) 12 See www.peoplesoft.com/psp/portprd/CUSTOMER/CRM/c/RC_SELF_SERVICE.C1C_INPRD_SS_SRCH.GBL?CPID=RC (sign on required) 13 See www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/support/troubleshoot/prob_guide_proc.jsp (sign on required) 14 Available at www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/support/troubleshoot/prob_guide_best.jsp (sign on required) 15 Read the policy at: www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/support/troubleshoot/prob_guide_escal.jsp (sign on required)

Escalate appropriate issues early. Oracles support staff is ready to help with

your upgrade project.


WHAT TO DO FIRST AFTER PROJECT KICKOFF There are a number of things you can do as your project begins, or even before it is formally kicked off, that will help you progress.

Tip No. 13 - Ensure the Quality of Your Data

One of the key steps in preparing for a successful upgrade is ensuring your data is in good shape. You may have a standard practice to handle duplicate records, verify data integrity and look after the health of your data. Even if you do not, the time before an upgrade is an important time to review what you have. In particular, run your application integrity reports and resolve any issues that are identified. Here are some example reports you may want to run:

Companies in Balance Integrity Report (R097001) in General Ledger DBA Integrity Report (R077021) in Payroll Item Ledger/Account Integrity Report (R41543) in Inventory

Documentation on these reports can be found in the functional documentation for JD Edwards EnterpriseOne. Ensuring good quality data using these techniques will aid the smooth running of Table Conversions, which are the core technical tools for upgrading your data.

Tip No. 14 - Inventory your System

Upgrading is like moving; you have to make sure you know where all of your belongings are and that they are being handled appropriately. Early in your project, take care to gather this information. Support Assistant16 is a useful tool to help this process. It can gather information about your installation that will help your planning, for internal use or to share with outside consultants. Here are the key things to include:

Customizations Interfaces and integrations Third party products Hardware Software releases and patches, including operating system, database, and JD

Edwards EnterpriseOne

Tip No. 15 - Custom Code in System Codes 55-59

In addition to getting an inventory of your system, you should also ensure that all your custom code is correctly identified in the system. When the upgrade process brings your custom changes into the new target release, it uses the system code associated with the objects. Objects which are incorrectly coded to system codes outside the 55-59 range will be considered obsolete and not brought forward.

16 See further www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/support/online_support/support_assistant/eo_support_assistant.jsp (sign on required)

Gather information about your system; consider using a tool like Support

Assistant to help.


You can make sure that all custom changes are coded correctly well in advance of your project and will therefore be upgraded appropriately.

Tip No. 16 - Convert from OneWorld Menus to Solution Explorer

One conversion that many customers will make is going from OneWorld Menus to Solution Explorer Taskviews and Tasks. Solution Explorer is supported on OneWorld Xe and later releases, so you can do this conversion before the upgrade, or as part of your upgrade project. If you choose to do this beforehand, you can remove this variable from the upgrade effort. Please see Migrating from OneWorld Menus to Solution Explorer Tasks.17

Tip No. 17 - Threadsafe C Business Functions

For customers moving to 8.11 SP1 or later releases, there is an enhancement that enables Kernel processes on the Enterprise server to be multi-threaded. Kernels are processes which respond to requests in EnterpriseOne, such as user actions like inquiring on records or committing transactions. Multi-threaded kernels improve the response time for user requests such as validating or writing data to the database, preventing users from waiting until longer requests are fulfilled.

In order to use this enhancement, all the code in the environment must be threadsafe. For this reason, the enhancement requires 8.11 SP1 or later versions of the application code. In parallel, any customer C business functions must be made threadsafe as well. This can be done before the upgrade project and is a best practice regarding your customer code. Please see the Oracle Red Paper Multithreaded Kernels.18

Tip No. 18 - Security Workbench Changes from Groups to Roles

Security in more recent releases has been significantly enhanced. One of the largest changes has been the transition from Groups to Roles. If you analyze the new features in security workbench and plan how to leverage role based task views along with the security you may find a large amount of simplification in your security setup. Many customers can replace a large amount of redundant security definitions and simplify their security setup. This work will require additional time, testing and planning to accomplish.

Tip No. 19 - Evaluate your Architecture

There are several key technological decisions to make that will affect your project. It is best to make these early on to remove uncertainty and allow you to focus on moving forward.

Middleware: For many customers, upgrading in CY 2006 or 2007 represents the first adoption of middleware with your JD Edwards EnterpriseOne system as part of a move to the web client. One of the key decisions is which middleware platform you will use. With JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools release 8.95 and beyond, JD Edwards

17 See www.peoplesoft.com/media/cupa/pdf/e1upgrade_migrate_solution_explorer.pdf 18 www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/doc_archive/red_paper/rp_e1tools_multithreaded_kernels.jsp

Review your system architecture by considering middleware, platform and

Unicode options.


EnterpriseOne supports both the IBM WebSphere products as well as Oracle Fusion Middleware, including Oracle Application Server. Choose your middleware, and be sure to understand the licensing requirements early to make sure this is not a barrier as you move forward.

Unicode: Another key decision is whether or not you will convert your database to Unicode. Most customers have data in a non-Unicode format; customers on releases Xe and 8.0 can only have data this way. With release 8.9, and more recent versions of JD Edwards EnterpriseOne, upgrading customers can choose to stay non-Unicode or convert to a Unicode format. There are benefits and costs either way. The conversion to Unicode is an additional step in your upgrade project, and requires more disk space on your database server when you are done. Customers choosing not to convert may need some additional processing power as the system must convert data into Unicode to process it, converting it back when the transaction is complete.

In either case, or even if your strategy is to stay non-Unicode knowing you can change your mind later, a clear direction in this area will clarify hardware and project requirements and focus you on planning a successful upgrade.

Platform: Most upgrading customers choose to remain on their existing hardware (enterprise servers, batch servers, and JAS servers), operating system and database architecture through the upgrade. If your requirements include considering a change in this area, it is vital to make this decision early on. Changing any part of the architecture does increase the complexity of an upgrade project, and careful planning is required to determine when to make this change as well as account for the technical work required. If you are not planning on changing architecture, it is important to clarify this throughout your organization and create consensus to avoid disruptions in the future.

If you are not changing the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne architecture there are platform considerations related to your upgrade:

As part of the upgrade process, contact your hardware vendor to review your current architecture configuration. The system requirements and footprint for JD Edwards EnterpriseOne changes with each release. This is particularly important if you are moving from a Win32 environment to a web-based environment or if you are adding new JD Edwards EnterpriseOne modules. Your hardware vendor can validate that the existing architecture will meet the system requirements of the upgraded release.

In addition to reviewing your infrastructure and changing requirements, consider doing a full performance test prior to go-


live. This will help your team tune the system, getting all you can from your available resources and minimizing performance related issues at go-live.

If the decision is made to change part or all of the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne architecture the following should be considered. This includes adding new elements into your architecture, such as middleware:

It is critical that your administrative staff receive proper training prior to the implementation of the new components. Moreover, to further insure success, it maybe advisable to bring in resources that already had experience with the new components.

If the decision has been made to change the server hardware, it is critical that you contact your hardware vendor so they properly size your new configuration. Each hardware vendor has a standard sizing kit that they use to determine the correct hardware configuration for a customer. The standard sizing recommendation should include number of servers, number of processors per server, and the amount of memory required. The performance of the upgraded environment is dependant on having the environment properly sized.

Each architectural component has minimum technical requirements (MTR) that JD Edwards EnterpriseOne supports. It is important to validate that each new architectural components meet these MTRs. An example of a common scenario is that your vendor my provide hardware with an operating system version that is newer than the supported MTRs. In this scenario, a version of the operating system that meets JD Edwards EnterpriseOne MTRs most be installed.

Performance testing is more critical if you are changing the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne architecture. The new JD Edwards EnterpriseOne architecture will have new parameters and configuration to optimize performance. It is highly recommended that a performance test be conducted prior to go-live to tune the system to minimize performance related issues at cutover to the new system.

If the decision is made to change the database component of the architecture, an important consideration is that the data conversion process will be longer. As part of the upgrade process, the data will need to be migrated to the new database and then the standard table conversion (TC) process can be executed. If your data conversion window does not allow for this extended processing, it is possible to implement the new database into the existing production system prior to upgrade.


TRAINING While many of the existing skills your team has will serve you well in your project, it is important to get training to learn the new features and changes that will help you be more efficient and effective with the new version. Consider these areas:

Tip No. 20 Get Specific Training for Web Based Environments

If you are moving from a Win32 environment to a web-based environment, it is critical that your IT staff has the proper training on your selected application server (Oracle Application Server or IBM WebSphere).

Tip No. 21 - Train Users on Net Change

When you first implement the system, your end users must be trained from the ground up to use the new system. However, during your upgrade you have experienced users already familiar with the basics. This can both help and hurt your project. Your end users, importantly including those that will be testing the system, must have good information about how the system will be different, whether the changes are functional, user interface or technical in nature. This will prevent issues being reported that are the result of misunderstandings, and help everyone embrace the new system.

Net change training should include orientation and efficiency training for the web client for those users who are transitioning from a Win32 environment.

Tip No. 22 - Get Specific Technical Training

Additionally, it is important that your staff understands how to use new functionality such as XML metadata, new JAS logging, multi-threaded kernel and the new JD Edwards EnterpriseOne security model. Some key courses are listed in Table 2 as examples.

Table 2. Recommended Courses

Release Course Description and Internet Link

8.12 JD Edwards EnterpriseOne 8.12 Upgrade Workshop

8.94 Security Principles JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools 8.94

8.94 System Administration Troubleshooting Tool 8.94

Tip No. 23 Leverage Other Training Resources and Opportunities

Oracle University: Training can always be found on the Oracle University web site.19

Customer Connection: Another good source of information and training are the advisor webcasts on Customer Connection20

19 Visit education.oracle.com/pls/web_prod-plq-dad/db_pages.getpage?page_id=64 20 See www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/news_events/events/advisor/pa_home.jsp

Broad and adequate training is an important contributor to any upgrade

activity. Dont put your project at risk by minimizing training activities.


Tip No. 24 Prepare a Go Live Checklist

Now that you are past the initial planning and training, you can create a checklist of criteria to use later on. This will help you gather the information you need to decide whether or not to go live when you think you may be ready. Creating this checklist now is a good way to organize your project goals, validate your plan, and identify your criteria before the pressure is on to complete the project. Your checklist should include the key success criteria that will allow you to go live, such as completion of application and technical testing, training of the end users, sign-off by the steering committee or other stakeholders, etc.

PREPARE YOUR TECHNICAL ENVIRONMENT While many of the activities required for a successful project involve end users and net change for the applications, you must also manage the changes to your technical environment carefully. Here are some main considerations in this area.

Support Assistant Tool Support Assistant is a helpful tool in doing a successful upgrade. In addition to generally helping with the gathering of information to triage and troubleshoot issues, here are some specific hints for using Support Assistant. As with all profiles, Support Assistant creates an XML document as output that is easy to email to project team members, share with consultants that are involved in your project, and send to Oracle Support if the need arises. Note that Support Assistant is a free tool for all customers on maintenance and is at Customer Connection.

Tip No. 25 - Pre-upgrade Questionnaire and Custom Options

This profile, included with Support Assistant, will help you focus on some key issues covered in this paper. Use it to gather information and prepare for your project.

In addition, all profiles contain the ability to set custom options. Using the Retrieve Database Records option, you can select records in the F9860 (Object Librarian) that are identified as custom objects (using system codes 55-59, if you have coded them correctly, or the change flag, etc). This is a one way to get some information about the custom code you have in your environment.

Tip No. 26 Calculate New Hardware Sizing

It is absolutely vital to get a new sizing for your new release. The combination of evolution of the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne product functionality, technological change including adopting the Internet architecture, anticipated changes in the way you use the applications and possible implementation of new modules all impact your requirements. Sizing information will help you decide whether you can use existing hardware, need to increase hardware resources, or should consider upgrading one or more of your servers.

Tip No. 27 Study and Adhere to Current MTRs

A critical step in ensuring success is adhering to the technical requirements for your system. This is true for the release you currently have in production as well as the

It is vital to get a new hardware sizing based on the release you are targeting.


release to which you are moving. Make sure you review these requirements early in the project to ensure you have the right components and understand any updates or changes and how they will affect your plan.

Current information about MTRs can be found on Customer Connection21

Prepare Your Data and Database In making sure your database is ready for the upgrade, you can view the considerations in two groups. Application data readiness refers to the things you can do in the applications for a smooth data upgrade; database readiness refers to the steps your DBA can take to support this process.

Tip No. 28 Minimize Application Data to Upgrade

There are several steps to take to prepare your application data for the conversion. The first step is to minimize the amount of data you need to upgrade. If you have a defined Archive and Purge strategy for your data, be sure to use it before the upgrade. If you do not have a strategy, consider implementing one.

Depending on which modules within JD Edwards EnterpriseOne you are using, and in some cases how you are using them, there may be steps to take within specific functional areas to help with your upgrade. Please refer to the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Processes to Purge Data document to look for opportunities that will reduce your data size. This document allows you to search by either table name, if you know your largest tables, or by system code if you want to review systems where you typically do large volumes of transactions. The document will be available on the JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Upgrade Site on Customer Connection.

Another important step is to run and review application integrity reports. These help you ensure data is in good shape and prevents issues when processing data through the conversion. (Please see Ensuring the Quality of Your Data above)

Tip No. 29 De-fragment and Reorganize your Database before Upgrading

From a general database perspective, there are a few things to do to help your upgrade project. To optimize the efficiency of the system as you upgrade, you should de-fragment and reorganize the database as possible beforehand. Your database administrator can use the normal database tools to accomplish this.

Tip No. 30 Follow the Specific Platform Recommendations

For the Table Conversion (TC) process, CPU processor speed for both the enterprise server and database server is a significant factor for the longer running TCs. There are platform specific recommendations that will assist in minimizing the TC process which are listed in Table 3.

21 Consult www.peoplesoft.com/corp/en/iou/platforms/enterpriseone.jsp (sign on required)

Minimize schedule and technical risk by carefully evaluating your data situation.

Extra time spent with data analysis combined with a well-crafted data strategy

will contribute to a successful project outcome.


Table 3. Platform Specific Recommendations for Upgrading

Platform Recommendations IBM System i

Disable journaling during the conversion process. The profile being used to execute the TC process should have

*ALLOBJ special authority. Ensure SQL Package Library=2 is enabled and prior

*SQLPKGs in the converted libraries have been removed before the Table Conversions execute

IBM DB2/UDB

The LOCKLIST size should be at 4000 for the upgrade You may need to increase the tablespace sizes for the 4K and

32K. This is especially true if you have a large number of media object records in F00165

You should pre-allocate space before the TC process to improve performance

Microsoft SQL Server

Pre-allocate data files to accommodate the size of the entire converted database. This needs to include the size of the table and any unique indexes on that table.

The tempdb size must be large enough to accommodate the largest table in your EnterpriseOne database. If N is the number of concurrent jobs in the TC workbench, then the tempdb should be as large as the N largest tables combined.

The transaction log settings must be large enough to rollback of your largest table. So for example, if your F0911 has 12 million rows, the transaction log setting must be large enough to handle the rollback of all 12 million rows in the event of a failure

Oracle DB The tablespace logging should be turned OFF during the upgrade

DB tools should be executed prior to the upgrade to minimize table fragmentation.

The redo and temp tablespaces must be large enough to accommodate the largest table in your EnterpriseOne database. This needs to include the size of the table and any unique indexes on that table. If N is the number of concurrent jobs in the TC workbench, then the redo and temp tablespce should be as large as the N largest tables combined.

You should pre-allocate space before the TC process to improve performance.

To manage database growth beyond the pre-allocated space, you should set the datafile extend mode to Autoextend. It is important to verify that you have the enough disk space to handle pre-allocate and autoextend space.

There are other Oracle settings that your DBA should review. These settings are vary based on your hardware configuration and actual database size. A list of settings to review are: Db-cache-size Shared_pool_size Large_pool_size Sga_max_size Pga_aggregate_target Workarea_size_policy Sort_area_size Sort_area_retained_size


INSTALLING YOUR NEW RELEASE With JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Tools 8.95, the installation of JD Edwards EnterpriseOne was improved to allow for more parallel processes. Customer familiar with the previous way of installing JD Edwards EnterpriseOne should familiarize themselves with the new process and documentation.

Tip No. 31 - Install Verification

The Install Verification profile in Support Assistant is used to check basic setup in the newly installed system. You can think of this tool as doing the first 10 tests that an experienced consultant would do to make sure the install is working.

Tip No. 32 Get Code Current

In addition to the basic installation steps, it is critical to get code current in the new environment before you invest in the testing, configuration and validation associated with going live. This process requires you to take the most current aggregate fixes, such as Updates and Tools releases, as well as identify ESUs in the areas of the software that you will use.

Whether or not you install these fixes to the system early in your project is a significant predictor of your project success. The best run and most successful projects do this right after installation.

Please see the white paper Maintaining your JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Investment: Code Currency22 for a discussion of recommendations and tools to accomplish this task.

Tip No. 33 Use Change Assistant

In an upgrade project, Change Assistant is a critical tool to help you get fix current when you install the new release, and to apply fixes according to your change management strategy through the project and beyond.

Change Assistant allows a single point of entry to facilitate administration of software updates and fixes. This application utilizes a navigational tree to help manage your deployment processes and enhance your search capability over Update Center and Customer Connection information. The tool is available to all customers current on maintenance and can be accessed from the Update Center23.

Tip No. 34 Use the Software Update Impact Analysis Tool

The Software Update Impact Analysis Tool allows you to review a software update to determine what objects will be affected, any prerequisites required, SARs included, and more. This is a valuable tool, in conjunction with Change Assistant, to understand the affect of taking an update will have on your system, particularly after the initial effort to get fix current.

The Software Update Impact Analysis Tool is found on the Software Updates menu inside EnterpriseOne.

22 The paper is at www.peoplesoft.com/media/cupa/pdf/e1upgrade_code_currency.pdf 23 See maintenance.peoplesoft.com/softwaredownloads/home/content/documents/changeassistant.html

Getting your code current is a key step to a successful upgrade project.


UPGRADE YOUR CODE Now that you have the new JD Edwards EnterpriseOne release installed, the upgrading of the code (as opposed to the data upgrade, covered next) is the central activity. Here are some tips to help you in this process.

Tip No. 35 - Read Your Logs

The upgrade process has several methods for providing feedback and error messages. While is may seem self-evident, it is critically important to review this output and react to any issues you find. Many of the processes that run during the upgrade create PDF files in your print queue folder and include these reports:

Planner Validation (R9640B) Data Dictionary (R989200P) Spec-merge (R98700)

Package build logs are also important; solution 200970039 describes their review.

Tip No. 36 Use Visual Compare Tools

JD Edwards EnterpriseOne provides three tools to help with the retrofit process: Visual Compare for Applications, Visual Compare for ER and Visual Compare for UDC Descriptions and Data Dictionary Glossary.

The JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Visual Compare tool enables you to compare two versions of JD Edwards EnterpriseOne objects (APPL - applications, ER event rules, NER named event rules, UDC descriptions user defined code descriptions, DD glossary data dictionary glossary). For example, if you apply an update containing an application in which you made custom modifications you will need to retrofit that object. Visual Compare lets the developer compare the updated application or Named Event Rule to the custom object in the central objects data source of any defined path code, specifications, or ESU backup.

JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Visual Compare provides a detailed, on-screen comparison. You can change the target object (your local version) within the utility by moving lines directly from the source. You can also remove or disable lines. In addition to providing an on-screen comparison, you can select to print a report detailing the changes as well.

Tip No. 37 Use WinDiff

In addition to the Oracle Visual Compare Tools, you may also want to use a tool to compare source code in your business functions. The Microsoft Windows utility WinDiff tool provides a visual comparison of these code files to aid in retrofitting any changes to the new release.

Tip No. 38 - Prepare Environments In Advance

As this paper implies, much of the work to upgrade your environments can be done before the final data conversion. This includes retrofitting of code and preparing all your target environments to be ready to add in your converted data. By working in this order, you will be able to find and resolve issues before the final critical path of your go-live weekend.

Using recommended tools and reviewing log files will help your project reach its

goals.


UPGRADE YOUR DATA Once the code has been upgraded, you will turn your attention to your data. This step is a critical one in your upgrade success, and often the most time-sensitive. Use these tips to plan and execute carefully.

Tip No. 39 - Test with a Copy of Production Data

Converting your data depends on the quality and makeup of the data itself. Working with a current copy of your production data will give you valuable information about how this process will go and how long it will take. Typically, your first conversion will be your longest, and most difficult.

As you progress through the project, continue to work with current data, taking a fresh copy periodically.

Tip No. 40 - Chose a Minimum Number of Test Conversions

Choose a minimum number of practice runs. Successful upgrade projects test the data conversion multiple times. Depending on the complexity, volume and success of the process, you might need to practice less than five times, or more than 20. This practice ensures confidence and success over the final conversion weekend. Testing after your first successful conversion will help you prove repeatability in the process.

Minimizing Downtime Your data conversion is typically done over a weekend, when no users are on the system. Depending on the size and nature of your data, this conversation can take hours or days to complete. Here are some considerations to decrease the duration of the conversion to minimize your downtime window.

Tip No. 41 - Understand Multiple Queues

One of the key ways to increase the throughput of your conversions, and therefore reduce their duration, is to use multiple threads with the Table Conversion (TC) process. The set-up of multi-threading TCs is done in the Table Conversion Workbench using the Max Concurrent field. The maximum number of threads is calculated multiplying the number of queues that you have selected for the TC process by the number of threads defined for these queues. This configuration is dependant on your hardware and should be addressed as part of your hardware sizing review with you hardware vendor.

Tip No. 42 - Empty Temporary Tables

Some tables, such z-files and MRP tables, can be emptied before the upgrade is begun. This will reduce the data that is converted, resulting in less resource consumption and potentially less time to upgrade. You will allow avoid troubleshooting any issues for this data. In general, if you are using tables to bring data into the system, you should be able to delete any data that has already been processed.

Minimize downtime by utilizing multiple queues, emptying temporary tables and performing other database maintenance

activities.


Tip No. 43 - Turn off Database Triggers

If your system has any database triggers, you typically want to disable these while the data is being upgraded. It is important to understand the purpose of these triggers and make a decision about whether or not they can all be disabled. In some cases it is possible to do the conversion with the triggers on, although this may slow processing. Also note:

For System i customers, this should also include turning off journaling.

Typically it is recommended that CFR21 shadow table auditing also be disabled for any tables listed in the table conversion workbench.

Tip No. 44 - Remove Other Data

To optimize the resources available to the upgrade, remove any temporary or unrelated information on JD Edwards EnterpriseOne servers. For example, this is a good time to remove PDF reports, temporary files and work center records. If you have large amounts of data that need to be present in the new configuration, but can be removed temporarily during the upgrade, consider doing this to free up resources.

Tip No. 45 Perform Index Management

There are two main considerations regarding indices for accelerating your conversion.

First, ensure that they indices that are used by specific conversions, including Table Conversions, are present during the upgrade process. If you have not deleted any indices on your system, they will be present by default.

Second, there are some situations where you may want to limit the amount of indices available during a process. This is an advanced consideration, and most customers will not need to weigh this factor. However, in a complex upgrade, particularly if you are also changing platforms and converting to Unicode, you may want to look at whether or not this can help your project. In these cases, engage with an experienced consultant (or consultants) to fully explore this issue.

Tip No. 46 Execute Table Conversions from the Database Server

When data intensive processing, such as data conversion, is required, the most efficient way to accomplish this is close to the data itself. For this reason, be sure to execute Table Conversions from the database server, not over the network. This will ensure you are using the least and most efficient resources to accomplish this task.

Optimize your upgrade by removing data that isnt needed or is temporary.


POST-UPGRADE ACTIVITIES Now that you have completed the core technical upgrade, there are several additional steps to ensure success.

Validation Functional validation of the new system is a key task. Most projects use functional users, away from their main responsibilities, to accomplish this. This effort shares some characteristics with the testing effort of your initial implementation. Consider these testing aspects of the project.

Tip No. 47 - Secure Functional User Buy-in

Though it may be self-evident, if you have functional users do the testing, they must see the value and share the project goals to do this effectively. Typically, they are setting aside important tasks to participate. Take the time to solicit both management and individual cooperation. Once you have this, ensure you are collectively allocating enough time to do a thorough job.

Testing Testing is one of the key steps to finishing the upgrade and going live on the new release.

Tip No. 48 - Testing Scope

Consider the testing element of the upgrade as a major software update. Typically, a full, integrated test is done that exercises all the business processes the organization will use. You may choose to use automated testing tools; in most cases, this should be augmented with human testing.

GOING LIVE

Tip No. 49 Third-Party Readiness Assessment

For larger projects, or situations where risk mitigation is crucial, you can retain a consulting firm to do an independent readiness assessment before you go live on the new system.

Tip No. 50 - Deciding to Go Live

Ultimately, of course, the decision to start running the business on the new system must be made internally, and taken seriously. As you approach the milestone of using the new system, make sure that the team has enough information to make a good go or no go decision. This may include input from a third party assessment, if you had one done. Make sure that all affected groups are represented in this decision from both the business and IT perspectives. If you have a formal Steering Committee (see Skills and Resource Considerations above), this will be the decision-making body. If you do not, call a meeting for this purpose, gathering input from the stakeholders ahead of time and fostering the communication that will allow for a good decision.

Validation and testing are important for organizational support after you go live.

Actively solicit input to build internal support for your project.

After you go live, dont forget to schedule a success party to indulge in your favorite

beverages.


JD Edwards EnterpriseOne Upgrade Best Practices Checklist

(A) GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS (F) INSTALLING YOUR NEW RELEASE

1 Utilize Key Peer and Oracle Resource 31 Install Verification 2 Consult Experienced Performance Tuning

Consultants 32 Get Code Current

3 Use Change Management Appropriate for an Upgrade

33 Use Change Assistance

4 Prepare the Organization 34 Use the Software Update Impact Analysis Tool 5 Treat Your Upgrade Activity as a Formal

Company Project (G) UPGRADE YOUR CODE

6 Build an Upgrade Team with Broad and Complimentary Skills

35 Read Your Logs

7 Proactively Decrease Your Issues List 36 Use Visual Compare Tools 8 Set and Control Project Scope 37 Use WinDiff 9 Get Current Information from Oracle 38 Prepare Environments in Advance

10 Communicate with Oracle Technical Support (H) UPGRADE YOUR DATA

11 Logging Issues 39 Test with a Copy of Production Data 12 Resolve and Escalate Problems as Appropriate 40 Choose a Minimum Number of Test Conversions

(B) WHAT TO DO FIRST AFTER PROJECT KICKOFF 41 Understand Multiple Queues

13 Ensure the Quality of Your Data 42 Empty Temporary Tables 14 Inventory Your System 43 Turn off Database Triggers 15 Custom Code in System Codes 55-59 44 Remove Other Data 16 Convert from OneWorld Menus to Solution

Explorer 45 Perform Index Management

17 Threadsafe C Business Functions 46 Execute Table Conversions from the Database Server

18 Security Workbench Changes from Groups to Roles

(I) POST-UPGRADE ACTIVITIES

19 Evaluate Your Architecture: Middleware, Unicode, Platform

47 Secure Functional User By-In

(C) TRAINING 48 Testing Scope

20 Get Specific Training for Web Based Environments

(J) GOING LIVE

21 Train Users on Net Change 49 Third Party Readiness Assessment 22 Get Specific Technical Training 50 Deciding to Go Live 23 Leverage Other Training Resources and

Opportunities

24 Prepare a Go Live Checklist

(D) PREPARE YOUR TECHNICAL ENVIRONMENT

25 Pre-upgrade Questionnaire (Support Assistant Tool)

26 Calculate New Hardware Sizing 27 Study and Adhere to Current MTRs

(E) PREPARE YOUR DATA AND DATABASE

28 Minimize Application Data to Upgrade 29 De-fragment and Reorganize Your Database

before Upgrading

30 Follow the Specific Platform Recommendations

Best Practices for Upgrading Your JD Edwards EnterpriseOne System (White Paper) Original: August 2006 (Dan Stern, Jeff Erickson, editor Rudy Lukez) Oracle Corporation World Headquarters 500 Oracle Parkway Redwood Shores, CA 94065 U.S.A. Worldwide Inquiries: Phone: +1.650.506.7000 Fax: +1.650.506.7200 oracle.com Copyright 2006, Oracle. All rights reserved. This document is provided for information purposes only and the contents hereof are subject to change without notice. This document is not warranted to be error-free, nor subject to any other warranties or conditions, whether expressed orally or implied in law, including implied warranties and conditions of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. We specifically disclaim any liability with respect to this document and no contractual obligations are formed either directly or indirectly by this document. This document may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, for any purpose, without our prior written permission. Oracle, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft, Siebel, and Retek are registered trademarks of Oracle Corporation and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. This document is for informational purposes only and may not be incorporated into a contract or agreement.

JDE E1 WP-1022 Best Practices for Upgrading Your System

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