Admin Systems at UR - Upgrade Information

Complete

2009-12-06T05:36:00.000-05:00

All planned steps complete.

Sent from my iPhone

Production Pools restored

2009-12-06T05:04:00.001-05:00

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

Backups done

2009-12-06T04:19:00.001-05:00

Sasko finished backups.

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

Backups running

2009-12-06T01:14:00.001-05:00

Sasko is starting backups

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

Revised time

2009-12-05T23:58:00.001-05:00

Melton thinks the materialized view build has ~50 minutes to go... Which means backups at 12:45a.

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

Expecting Backups around Midnight

2009-12-05T23:17:00.001-05:00

Things continue to take longer than expected. Currently, we're expecting to kick-off the backups in 45 minutes.

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

Current Estimates for remaining Tasks

2009-12-05T20:55:00.001-05:00

1. Melton will finish his tasks between 10 and 11.
2. We will forgo the next round of verification tests (Barth, Ray, Doug, and I did this during the end of our install work).
3. We'll call Sasko to start backs between 10 and 11.
4. We'll call Greg to reload the pools between midnight and 1am; I'll set the switches so the midtiers will work in the load pools.
5. Greg will call me; I'll run through the verification checklist again and send the "all is ready" email ~1:30am.

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

DBA Stats etc. starting

2009-12-05T20:27:00.001-05:00

Admin Sys work is done. We're on Banner 8. Melton beginning his next phase.

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

Admin Sys Status

2009-12-05T17:27:00.001-05:00

We are running in multiple parallel mode. We anticipate finishing our main body of work around 7pm (about 2.5 hours behind schedule). Melton, if you're paying attention, we expect to pass the baton to you in 90 minutes or so.

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

General 8.0

2009-12-05T09:48:00.001-05:00

We hit a few snags with General 8.0. We finished but spent 3 hours more than we expected.

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

Banner

2009-12-05T06:35:00.000-05:00

David and Ray and Scott are in. General 8 is running.

LIVE reload has completed.

2009-12-05T04:53:00.000-05:00

The LIVE database reload has completed and the backup is running. A hot-full backup is estimated to complete by 5:45. Barth was called at 4:45.

LIVE rebuild update

2009-12-05T03:31:00.001-05:00

The reloading of LIVE is taking longer than estimated – it’s now 3:30, I’m estimating to be finished at about 5:00 to 5:30. melton

B8 upgrade status update

2009-12-05T03:02:00.001-05:00

The import of LIVE is going well, data import is almost complete – at step 235, still about 1.5 hours to go.

ANDY AIX Patches

2009-12-05T00:55:00.001-05:00

All SA tasks on Andy are done. I'm handing Andy over to David Melton.

64-bit AIX kernel enabled.
JFS2 file systems for LIVE database created and mounted.
AIX TL9 SP3 patch installed.
ICU package compiled and installed.
Java 5 installed.

-Vinny

TEST Refresh is complete...

2009-12-05T00:20:00.000-05:00

The TEST refresh is complete. JOBSUB will need to be started…

Lennie G. Rimmer

The Schedule

2009-12-04T23:06:00.002-05:00

Although we're just over an hour behind expected schedule right now, Vinny is pretty certain he'll pick up some/most of this time in his leg: Vinny expects to wrap the OS work and pass the baton to Melton for DBA work just after 1am.

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

Update...

2009-12-04T22:31:00.000-05:00

Banner Mid-tier work completed…

TEST refresh started...

LIVE turned back over to Vinny

Lennie G. Rimmer

LIVE Backups

2009-12-04T22:12:00.001-05:00

The rman backup of LIVE is done. Andy has been turned over to Lennie....
--Vinny

Andy COLD Backup

2009-12-04T21:07:00.001-05:00

The COLD file-level backup of LIVE on Andy is done. The rman backup is starting now.... it should be done by 10.
--Vinny

B8 upgrade status update

2009-12-04T18:51:00.001-05:00

Oracle database exports completed thru step 61 – turning andy over to SA’s for backups.

Mid-tier Backups

2009-12-04T18:19:00.001-05:00

Mid-tier backups are done.
--Vinny

Upgrade underway

2009-12-04T17:20:00.001-05:00

Services stopped; load pools emptied.

DB Path - Initial database steps started.

Midtier Path - Backups started

Warning Message to Banner Users

2009-12-04T16:50:00.001-05:00

Sent the 15 minute warning SpiderByte to All Banner users.

===================================
Lee Parker
Administrative Systems
Information Services
University of Richmond, VA 23173
lparker@richmond.edu

Step 19

2009-12-04T16:49:00.001-05:00

Disabled Big Brother for banner servers. --Vinny

Status Update

2009-12-04T15:44:00.001-05:00

The necessary exclusion dates have been configured for all Banner server backups.

Upgrade Hand-offs

2009-12-04T14:09:00.001-05:00

Sent from my iPhone

Fall 2009 Upgrade begins today

2009-12-04T13:52:00.001-05:00

At 5pm today will will begin the Banner 8 Upgrade. We expect to finish saturday evening. We will use this site to publish the upgrade's status.

Done?!

2008-06-21T10:44:00.001-04:00

We completed all tasks... I always worry (superstition?) when I say this, but: We're done. I am grateful for the superb team who built and executed the plan: They ROCK!

Tying loose ends

2008-06-21T09:38:00.002-04:00

Backups are complete. We are rebooting servers, restoring "public" user interfaces, and performing final verifications... almost there.

Final Backups

2008-06-21T08:06:00.001-04:00

Testing is complete. Vinny is beginning Final backups

Testing!

2008-06-21T07:09:00.001-04:00

All updates complete. We begin verifying everything is good.

Nearing End of App Mods

2008-06-21T06:11:00.002-04:00

The db server OS work and database work are done. The application group is near completion. The night worker were succeessful and fast. We are nearly 2 hours ahead of schedule.

Hopefully, we will begin testing within the hour.

Late Night Update

2008-06-20T22:59:00.002-04:00

Vinny is nearing the end of OS modifications to db server. He is about 30 minutes from handing off to Lennie. We're estimating we are 30+ minutes ahead of schedule and are likely to pick up more time in the next set of DBA changes.

Do not expect another web update until 6am-ish.

Midtiers Almost complete

2008-06-20T19:41:00.002-04:00

The Banner midtier servers are small; their backups ran quickly. After Vinny completed the backups, Lennie applied Oracle security patches. Vinny is rebooting the midtiers to assure all is well.

The database server's backup is almost complete; soon, Vinny will start OS patches here.

We're pretty much on schedule.

Backups running...

2008-06-20T17:31:00.002-04:00

Before we make changes we make certain we have a safe copy of the working (pre-upgrade) system and data. While this happens, we wait. Backups should finish around 7:30. Expect more news shortly after that.

5pm Upgrade begins

2008-06-20T17:08:00.002-04:00

We begin by shutting down the systems and running back-ups...

More Upgrade Prep Pics

2008-06-20T13:45:00.003-04:00

Phone Photography

Campus Flowers

Detailed Project Plan

Upgrade Flow Chart

2008-06-20T13:28:00.003-04:00

Only 3 hours to go before we begin in earnest. Planning is as complete as it's going to get. Snacks for the valiant upgraders are in my office. We await time's passing (and tackle other priorities).

Banner 7.5 Upgrade

2008-06-16T14:59:00.001-04:00

We will begin the Banner 7.5 upgrade at 5pm on 20-Jun-2008.

Next Step: Monday Morning User Testing

2006-10-14T20:59:00.000-04:00

Yup, the techy stuff is done. The programming staff arrived to kick tires. Tires were kicked. Good work was done by all. And there was food. As you may be able to tell from the pictures posted here: no one wanted their picture taken. We'll let a group of users into the system for testing at 8am on monday.

Prepare for Testing

2006-10-14T12:16:00.000-04:00

The upgrade is done... now we are backing up the systems and preparing for 2 waves of testing. Wave 1 will occur this afternoon (roughly begining at 2:30pm) when the techies will make certain the infrastructure is sound. After Wave 1 all services will be stopped until monday morning when Wave 2 begins... this is where the users kick the tires to make certain the system behaves as expected.

Compiling like mad

2006-10-14T09:17:00.000-04:00

No one here is actually angry, though. David and Ray are tired... Lennie is asleep. Due to their effort (and that of others) we are way ahead of schedule.

Since last update we have had breakfast (Hardee's biscuits for David and Ray; I had Starbucks plus almonds, bananas, and a candy bar).

Programmer testing should occur around 2:30pm.

Ray has us groovin' to 70s music.

Only the Mets disappoint...

2006-10-14T06:04:00.000-04:00

It's morning and things appear to be going well. SAs and DBAs move through their tasks with great speed (and accuracy). The application guys begin their long job of upgrading the application. I get a real camera (instead of my phone). The Mets fall to the Cards... alas, the evening is not perfect (Ray and David probably also wish for more sleep). Current estimate: Backups and database split before noon; programmer testing around 2pm.

9pm-ish and most goes well

2006-10-13T21:28:00.000-04:00

The upgrade has entered a cruising phase... Our System Administrators have backed up the crucial servers and are upgrading operating systems and necessary utilities. Our DBAs are setting up reference databases and upgrading Oracle components. The Mets, however, have lost a 3 run lead. Knowing the upgrade is in good hands I am going to bed to rest for tomorrow's tasks.

Sorry Pages

2006-10-13T18:42:00.000-04:00

It takes a team to make a web server fail gracefully... and we have that team... and that web server... and we made it fail on purpose. It all part of our plan.

I look forward to David's status report having heard the conversations between Greg, Sasko, and David.

Upgrade Begins

2006-10-13T17:40:00.000-04:00

And we're off...

On time...

Mostly

Almost There

2006-10-13T16:36:00.000-04:00

Rehearsals are done.
Pre-upgrade checklists are almost done.
Food has been procured for the over night workers.
Lennie has the key to the on campus guest cottage.
Vinny has his Mets jersey.
It's amost time to start...

Banner 7.3 Upgrade Begins soon

2006-10-06T10:36:00.000-04:00

Hello,

UR's Banner 7.3 upgrade will begin on October 13th. Here is the timeline:

6pm 13-Oct-2006 - Upgrade begins; Banner 7.2 unavailable
8am 16-Oct-2006 - Acceptance Testing Begins (for designated testers)
10am 16-Oct-2006 - Acceptance Test Ends
Noon(-ish) 16-Oct-2006 - Banner 7.3 available for production use (LIVE)

Please check this site for upgrade progress reports.

And the Winner is...

2006-02-10T21:58:00.000-05:00

To top things off (get it?) Kerri had an idea: A "How Vanilla is Your Banner" sundae contest.

Of couse I thought mine was best... from the outside it looked completely vanilla because I hid the toppings (mainly Heath bar pieces) underneath.

So far as I know: there was no winner... only happy people.

What is this thing I have with things on my nose?

It's Alive!!!

2006-02-06T14:38:00.000-05:00

The final notifications have been sent... we are doing business with the new system.

I will not speak for everyone... but I might be a touch crazy: I'm starting to listen to Bananas.

We begin the last steps...

2006-02-06T11:27:00.000-05:00

User Testing is done and we are putting the pieces in place to bring up our new production system... more soon.

User Acceptance Testing starts

2006-02-06T06:19:00.000-05:00

A few bleary eyes entered Millhiser before 5:15am... the system was brought up and poked to make certain it was awake. An email was sent to testers welcoming them to Banner 7. The Bullpen bustles with activity... "bustle" being relative to normal mornings at this time of day, I guess... not that time of day changes the Bullpen's look (we ain't got no windows).

Techy Testing Complete

2006-02-04T11:57:00.000-05:00

Techy testing is complete... the food took a hit, too. Next Stop: User Acceptance Testing preparations for which begin at 5:15am Monday... ug.

Power Testing

2006-02-04T10:45:00.000-05:00

Polly the Pug Power Tester has been churning through critical system verification steps.

Techy Testing

2006-02-04T09:26:00.000-05:00

It's a rainy saturday morning and a bunch of techies have hunkered down in a windowless basement with Breakfast pizza, coffee, fruit, OJ, and a pug named Polly. Yee Ha!

2006-02-04T00:50:00.000-05:00

The Upgrade's application steps are now complete. Minor testing shows the big pieces work.

Duplicate copies of everything are being made so we can destructively test in the morning... DBAs and SAs handle these tasks.

I'm going to take a nap.

The crazies come out at night

2006-02-03T22:38:00.000-05:00

First, David didn't like his "slouchy"picture from earlier... are these really better, though?

Second, for the first time today we are are ahead of schedule... craziness has its advantages, I guess.

2006-02-03T21:44:00.000-05:00

And holding the team together as we plow through compiles and data manipulating script runs is...EGADS!!! It's Andrea!

The Next Shift Arrives

2006-02-03T16:09:00.000-05:00

And for the second set of application upgrade steps David has arrived to carry the torch. Very few Release Guides remain; David will lead the compiling and application script changes.

Yee Ha!

2006-02-03T16:02:00.000-05:00

From the front it doesn't look this bad.

It's after 4pm... the "SCT Release Guide" portion of the upgrade is on the home stretch... a backup followed by compiles are in the near future... well, a few hours away... which isn't that far when you consider we've been going for almost 24 straight hours.

We hope everyone has a good weekend.

2006-02-03T12:54:00.000-05:00

Well, the code monkey has been returned to his seat... and continues to pound away at the upgrade.

CM has recently feasted on a Subway BMT which, to his surprised, contained hot peppers... fortunately, we do not think he suffered permanent damage.

2006-02-03T12:52:00.000-05:00

Egads! The code monkey has gotten unchained from his chair!!!

2006-02-03T08:32:00.000-05:00

Now that's one busy looking man!

This morning, the TEST database is available for use. The URL has gone out (at some point in the mass of e-mails) to Banner users. Everyone is bright-eyed and bushy-tailed this morning. Coffee helps. Overnight, the Oracle 10g database was organized and loaded with data, and we prepare this morning for the programmers to take the baton and run.

More to come... I need much more coffee. Sumatra is this morning's brew at the Starbucks at the Hugenot Bridge, in case you care. It's rather tasty.

The Moving Parts

2006-02-03T07:49:00.000-05:00

2006-02-03T06:33:00.000-05:00

Well, morning has arrived. The database is now Oracle 10g and it is time to begin upgrading the Banner stuff. The DBAs and SAs can now rest... for a little while.

No, the highlighter color is meaningless... all colors are equal in our plan.

2006-02-02T17:36:00.000-05:00

Serious men wield the blue highlighter marking tasks as tasks are completed.

2006-02-02T17:07:00.000-05:00

It has begun. As of 5pm Banner, BannerWeb, and related systems are down. The green flag has waved...

Oh, and this craziness to the left is the checklist. At least we don't have to worry about losing it... it's too big for that :)

2006-02-02T16:39:00.000-05:00

We try to accomodate requests... Kerribear and fridge.richmond.edu.

Only a few more minutes of Banner 6...

2006-02-02T14:51:00.000-05:00

Kerri here. Lee and I are swapping posting duties.

Here's a Banner tip: if you're entering a date in a field, and you want the date to be the current date, enter a "c" in the field and hit the key. The current date will populate in the proper format. Woo hoo! If you want the date to be within the current month and year, simply enter the day (i.e. "12"), and the date will populate in the appropriate format. Yee haw!

Enough techy talk - if you have folks calling you with questions, I've posted a quick reference document for Banner 7. It's located here: http://is.richmond.edu/techtraining/B7UI_summary.pdf

Happy upgrade!

2006-02-02T13:38:00.000-05:00

Happily, Mr Melton begins taking down databases. So far we're only shutting down the test stuff but at 5pm today we break into a run... the upgrade will have begun in earnest.

2006-01-31T15:11:00.000-05:00

Days away from the upgrade... more to come... very soon.

2005-11-14T16:14:00.000-05:00

As we prepare the database for testing leaves fall outside.