vRanger 7.8 - Installation/Upgrade Guide

Before upgrading vRanger

Before you upgrade an existing vRanger installation, review the following topics for important information.

•	Deprecated repository types

•	vRanger editions

•	Upgrading a previous vRanger installation

Deprecated repository types

Starting with vRanger 7.6, FTP and SFTP repositories will not be supported. If your existing vRanger installation has either of these repository types configured, the upgrade will not proceed. To upgrade, you will need to:

•	[Optional] Migrate content from existing FTP and SFTP repositories to a supported repository type.

•	Remove the FTP and/or SFTP repository from vRanger.

•	Run the vRanger 7.6 installer to upgrade.

•	Edit any existing backup jobs for FTP or SFTP repositories and configure the jobs to use one of the supported repository types

Migrating content from an FTP or SFTP repository

You can migrate content from one repository (or repository type) to another simply by copying the repository contents to the new location.

To migrate a repository:

1	For each repository, identify the GlobalManifest.metadata file. This file serves as a master index to the repository contents. Ensure that this file is moved to the new repository along with the savepoint data.

2	Using the file transfer method of your choice, copy all of these files to the new repository location.

3	Remove the FTP or SFTP repository from vRanger.

IMPORTANT: Do not select Delete all savepoints in this repository. By not selecting this option, you will remove the repository from vRanger but maintain the data in the repository location.

4	When all FTP and SFTP repositories are removed, you will be able to upgrade vRanger to the latest version.

5	When the upgrade is completed, you can add the new repository to vRanger. Refer to the instructions in the “Configuration” chapter of the vRanger User’s Guide if necessary.

NOTE: When adding the new repository, you will be prompted with the options to Import as Read-Only, Import, or Overwrite. Select Import.

6	Please note that the imported savepoints will not be linked to any backup jobs. You will need to edit existing backup jobs to point to the new repository as required.

vRanger editions

With replication now integrated into vRanger, and vRanger being offered in multiple versions, there are several upgrade options available.

•	Current vRanger customers: See Upgrading a previous vRanger installation.

•	Current vReplicator customers: See Upgrading a previous vReplicator installation.

•	Customers of both vRanger and vReplicator: The upgrade procedures differ depending on whether you want to manage replication from the disaster recovery (DR) site, or combine backup and replication management on the production site.

▪

DR site: If you want to manage replication from the DR site to ease failover, follow both of the preceding procedures, upgrading the vRanger installation on the production side and the vReplicator installation on the DR site. You may use a combined license file for both installations, if the combined CPU count for each protection type — backup and replication — for both sites does not exceed the total licensed number of CPUs.

▪	Production site: When both backup and replication are managed from the production site, start with Upgrading a previous vRanger installation, and skip to Step 4 of the Upgrading a previous vReplicator installation procedures.

If you purchase vRanger SE, you can purchase an upgrade to vRanger Backup & Replication. Similarly, you can also purchase an upgrade from vReplicator 5.0 to vRanger Backup & Replication 7.8.

Supported upgrade paths

Due to architectural differences, a direct upgrade to vRanger 7.8 from older vRanger versions may not be possible.

•	Supported for direct upgrade: If you are using one of the following vRanger versions, you may upgrade directly to vRanger 7.8.

▪	vRanger 7.6.3

▪	vRanger 7.6.4

▪	vRanger 7.6.5

▪	vRanger 7.6.6

▪	vRanger 7.7

▪	vRanger 7.7.1

•	Requires intermediate upgrade: The following versions are not supported for direct upgrade to vRanger 7.8. If you are using one of these versions, you must first upgrade to vRanger 7.6.x before upgrading to the latest version.

▪	vRanger 7.2.x

▪	vRanger 7.3.x

▪	vRanger 7.5.x

Backing up the vRanger database

vRanger utilizes a SQL Server® database to store application and task configuration data. The database can be either the embedded SQL Server Express instance — the default — or a SQL Server database running on your own SQL Server or SQL Server Express instance. If you want to back up the SQL Server database before installing an upgrade, you must use SQL Server Management Studio.

1	Start SQL Server Management Studio, and log in using either the system administrator (sa) or Windows credentials.

2	Expand the list of databases.

3	Right-click vRangerPro Database, select Tasks, and then select Backup.

4	In the Back Up Database Wizard, verify that the Disk option is selected in the Destination section.

5	If you need to point to a different destination, complete the following steps:

a	Click Add.

b	Verify that the default path to the SQL Server backup folder is acceptable; if not, point to a different location.

c	After identifying the applicable path, enter vRangerPro.bak after the last backward slash in the path name, and click OK.

6	To run the backup process for the database, click OK.

7	To verify that the backup was created, go to the selected location, and look for the vRangerPro.bak file.