Migrating with Enterprise Replication

If you use Enterprise Replication, you must complete replication-related tasks when you migrate to a new version of Informix®. If you are converting to Informix 12.10.xC4 or later from an earlier fix pack in the same release, you also have to complete these tasks.

About this task

Prerequisites:

  • Complete the steps in Preparing for migration.
  • Perform all migration operations as user informix.
  • All servers in the Enterprise Replication domain must be available.

Procedure

To migrate with Enterprise Replication:
Note:

If you are migrating server from 12.10xC4 or a later version to 14.10xC6 or a later version, after upgrading server to 14.10FC6 or a later version, for the first time when you start ER, make sure to start ER using cdr cleanstart command to force required schema changes to syscdr database. Rest of the steps can be skipped.

  1. Perform the tasks that are described in Migrating to the new version of Informix, including starting the new version of the server.
  2. For each node involved in Enterprise Replication, back up the syscdr databases by using the dbexport -ss command or the dbschema -ss command and the UNLOAD statement, or by a combination of these methods.
    The -ss option prevents backup tables from using default extent sizes and row-level locking, which is not an appropriate lock mode with Enterprise Replication.
  3. Make sure that no replicable transactions occur before Enterprise Replication starts.
  4. If you are upgrading to a new release, run the conversion script, named concdr.sh, in the $INFORMIXDIR/etc/conv directory on UNIX™, or concdr.bat, in the %INFORMIXDIR%\etc\conv directory on Windows™. Do not run the script when you migrate between fix packs of the same release except where noted.
    To convert to 12.10.xC4 or later:
    • UNIX: % sh concdr.sh from_version 12.10.xC4
    • Windows: concdr.bat from_version 12.10.xC4
    The valid from_version values are: 12.10.xC3, 12.10.xC2, 12.10.xC1, 11.70, 11.50, 11.10, and 10.00.

    Because version 12.10.xC4 is the latest fix pack with conversion, specify 12.10.xC4 even if you are upgrading to later a fix pack version, such as 12.10.xC6.

    To convert to earlier fix packs of 12.10:
    • UNIX: % sh concdr.sh from_version 12.10
    • Windows: concdr.bat from_version 12.10
    The valid from_version values are: 11.70, 11.50, 11.10, and 10.00.
  5. Ensure conversion completed successfully.
    The script prints messages and conversion details to standard output, and stores the information in the following file:
    • UNIX: $INFORMIXDIR/etc/concdr.out
    • Windows: %INFORMIXDIR%\etc\concdr.out
    Important: If you receive the following message, you must resolve the problems reported in the concdr.out file, restore the syscdr database from backup, and then start from step 1.
    'syscdr' conversion failed.
    When you receive the following message, conversion is complete and you can go to the next step. 
    'syscdr' conversion completed successfully.
  6. After successful conversion, if you are upgrading server to 14.10xC6 or later version, start Enterprise Replication by running the cdr cleanstart command, otherwise run cdr start command.
  7. If you upgraded the servers in a grid from version 11.70 to version 12.10 and you want to copy external files to the servers in the grid, you must enable the ability to copy external files. To enable the copying of external files, run this command:
    cdr modify grid grid_name --enablegridcopy server_groupname

Results

Important: After you convert to the new version of Informix with Enterprise Replication, do not drop the syscdr database. If syscdr is dropped, you cannot revert to the older database server with Enterprise Replication because the data required to carry out the reversion is stored in the syscdr database.