Version update for your Corporate ERP system is relatively simple project, when you are one the previous version, or maybe skipped one.
In this situation you typically work it through your VAR, but the chances are high, especially because we see you, reading this publication, that you are several versions behind and now you have to do something about it and catch up with newer technologies, such as Microsoft SQL Server 2008, Windows Server 2008, maybe merge your old company with new business entity, or you name it. Technically it is possible to upgrade all the way through from such archaic Great Plains versions as GPA for DOS, Windows 9.2, 9.5 or earlier to the current offer GP 2010. Another possible path is from Great Plains Select on Pervasive SQL 2000 or Ctree, 5.5, 6.0, 7.0, 7.5 in several steps to version 2010 or 10.0. We are writing these lines in January 2011, so if the current date is far away, feel free to check the latest release. The project, however, requires preparation and probably some administrative steps, we’ll review it in the following paragraphs:
1. New version license key. Let’s assume that you own the license for ten users of Great Plains Accounting version 9.5 and such modules as General Ledger, Accounts Payable and Receivable, US Payroll. Do you automatically have access to GP 2010 ten user license and similar modules? The answer is natural, and we guess you know it – No. The good news is – you can get the license with high discount, the percentage depends on Microsoft Business Solutions promotion campaigns. Let’s now assume that you are on something like version 7.5, where upgrade requires several steps. If you are in production on 7.5, there is a possibility that you do not have active annual enhancement contract with MBS through your Reseller. You need to reenroll your company into the program, and this step often results in the penalty fee. And try to understand the position of Microsoft: other customers were paying all these years sixteen percent or more of the software pricelist to keep contract active, while you didn’t. Microsoft sent you invoice and your historical ERP Partner probably called trying to convince you to stay up-to-date, but you made a decision to lapse in the contract renewal. So, again, some negotiation should happen and you have to reestablish relations with MBS and your VAR, you may pick new reseller, if you like. In some situations we had to recommend software licenses repurchase, as the penalty fees were too high
2. Upgrade mechanics. Now we assume that you are good to go and you have license key. This paragraph is about update technology and planning. It is reasonable to expect that newest version has migration scripts from the previous one or maybe minus two. Older versions could be upgraded in multiple steps. These is also an alternative to export data from your legacy Accounting application into text files, or even into something like MS Access, Excel and move them into newly acquired version via Integration Manager, but if you decide to do it that way – you obviously lose historical transactions, and as a comparison – update keeps all the history intact and available in the new release
3. Historical Add-Ons. There are nuances, especially when you are still using such historically popular satellite extensions as Intellisol Advanced Purchase Order Processing. Great Plains Software history was sometimes bumpy and in late 1990th Intellisol International, Australian ISV, opened its office in Fargo, ND, next door to Great Plains, however GPS negotiated better deal with Match Data, Manila based ISV with pretty robust Project Accounting module. Intellisol found itself in a very big trouble and closed its door in a matter of one year timespan. However, there was in time huge pool of Intellisol Advanced POP customers, GPS specially created migration tool, moving you from Intellisol APOP to Purchase Order Processing module in the core distribution modules set
4. How your consultant launches the upgrade? In Utilities, recent versions of the application treat each service pack as upgrade process, launching utilities and walking your through
5. What happens behind the scenes? There are multiple steps, the most important and bugs sensitive part is table structure change and migration, where Utilities move your old table into Temp database, drop the old table, recreate the mew one and move back all the records from the Temp DB hosted tables copy. This step is famous to have some possibility to fail, if this is what happens, the data should be moved to the new version table manually via SQL scripts
6. Additional cautions. Please note that version update is Service pack sensitive, especially for the releases, associated with version 10.0 and more recent ones
7. For further information, please call us 1-866-304-3265 or email help@efaru.com
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