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Upgrading Enterprise Vault through multiple versions

Rob_Wilcox1
Level 6
Partner

A question which is often discussed is how to upgrade through multiple versions of Enterprise Vault. For example, can you upgrade from EV 9 straight to EV 11.  The short answer is No..  let's seee why.

Each version of Enterprise Vault is a 'full kit'. In other words you can obtain the media for Enterprise Vault 10.0.2, and install just that and it's the full installer. Compare this with things like Exchange, or Windows editions and service packs/full installs.  With those products and applications you need to install a base version, and then apply the service pack (though of course there are now some options allowing slipstreaming). I hope you can see the difference - full kit versus incremental service packs.

With each version of Enterprise Vault, there are always significant changes in many areas including the database schema, indexing and so on.

Testing of upgrading from one version of an application, or Operating System, to another is a major, major, major undertaking.

Given the above, it's just not something that is supportable in going from something like EV 9 to EV 11.  There are too many changes, there is too little options/capability relating to testing. In some ways it seems harsh, but it's the same system that other vendors, products and Operating Systems use.  For example you can't upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 10.. nor can you upgrade from Exchange 2003 to Exchange 2010. These all have predefined, tested, and supported upgrade paths.  'Simple' upgrades are 'one version back'.

In the end so long as you make a good backup of the whole Enterprise Vault environment, going from Enterprise Vault 9 to Enterprise Vault 11 'in one hit' (actually going to 10, then whilst systems are down going to 11) is definitely a viable option for most organisations (unless you've got 60+ Enterprise Vault Servers! If that's the case it's a bit harder).