How to migrate the ADSelfService Plus installation from one machine to another

Description

This article will guide you through the process for migrating the ADSelfService Plus installation from one machine to another.

Important:

1. Before you start the migration process, please update your ADSelfService Plus installation to the latest build from the Service Pack webpage.
2. Do not uninstall ADSelfService Plus from the old machine until you have confirmed that the new installation works correctly.

Steps to migrate your ADSelfService Plus installation

Step 1: Identify the database

• Navigate to the configuration folder - <install_dir>\conf. The default configuration folder is available in C:\ManageEngine\ADSelfService Plus\conf.
• Open database_params.conf file in a text editor, and locate the drivername to identify the database that is being used by ADSelfService Plus.
• The version of PostgreSQL database should be the same on both the old and new machines. If the database of the existing installation is older than the new machine's database, contact the ADSelfService Plus support team for further guidance.

  Detecting the PostgresSQL version: The version of PostgreSQL can be detected by running the command pgsql\bin>postgres.exe -V from the command prompt within the pgsql folder in the location where ADSelfService Plus is installed (usually C:\ManageEngine\ADSelfService Plus).

• If the backend database is MySQL or MS SQL, then contact the ADSelfService Plus support team for migration guidance.

Step 2: Back up the ADSelfService Plus database from the old machine

• Stop your ADSelfService Plus, whether it is being run as an application or as a service.
  • Start → All Programs → ADSelfService Plus → Stop ADSelfService Plus.
  • In case you have installed ADSelfService Plus as a Windows Service, follow this process: Start → Run → type Services.msc → Stop ManageEngine ADSelfService Plus.
• Open the Command Prompt as an administrator (right-click Command Prompt, and select "Run as Administrator").
• Navigate to <Installation_Dir>\bin folder (Default location: C:\ManageEngine\ADSelfService Plus\bin).
• Execute the command backupDB.bat. This will back up the database.
• A folder named backup will be created in ADSelfService Plus installation directory (by default: C:\ManageEngine\ADSelfService Plus\Backup), and it will contain the database back up in compressed file format (for example: 081224-1547.zip).

Step 3 (Optional):

• Back up all patch files: Copy the patch folder present in ADSelfService Plus installation directory (Default location: C:\ManageEngine\ADSelfService Plus).
• Back up all customized language files: Navigate to <installation directory>, and copy the resources folder within.
• Back up the customized login page: Navigate to <installation directory>\webapps\adssp, and copy the html, images, resources, and styles folders.
• Back up all SSL certificates: If you have enabled the HTTPS option for ADSelfService Plus in the old machine, then, navigate to the <installation directory>\conf folder, and copy the server.xml, web.xml, and SSL keystore. (For example: server.keystore) files.
• Backup the MPM folder: If you have enabled the mobile app deployment feature, then, backup the MPM folder (Default location: <installation directory>\MPM).
  Note: The reason we are backing up folders from the old machine is because some folders can be lost during the migration process. Lost files, like the language or login agent-related files, should be restored in the new machine. If they are not restored, any customizations made to the language file or the login agent will not work correctly in the new machine.

Step 4: Restore the ADSelfServicePlus database in the new machine

• Install ADSelfService Plus on the new machine. Note that the version, or the build number of both old and new installations must be the same.
  Note: If you do not know the build number of your old ADSelfService Plus installation, contact our support team.
• Stop the ADSelfService Plus, whether it is being run as an application or as a service.
• If you have followed step 3, then:
  • Paste the patch folder under the ADSelfService Plus installation directory (By default: C:\ManageEngine\ADSelfService Plus).
  • Paste the resources folder under the ADSelfService Plus installation directory (By default: C:\ManageEngine\ADSelfService Plus).
  • Paste the html and styles folders in the <installation directory>\webapps\adssp folder.
  • Paste the server.xml, web.xml, and the SSL keystore files in the <installation directory>\conf folder.
• Copy and paste the compressed file (.zip) that contains the backed up database from the old machine (refer Step 2.v), under the <Installation_Dir>\bin (By default: C:\ManageEngine\ADSelfService Plus\bin) folder.
• Open the Command Prompt as an administrator (right-click Command Prompt and select "Run as Administrator").
• Navigate to the <Installation_Dir>\bin folder (By default: C:\ManageEngine\ADSelfService Plus\bin).
• Now, execute the following command:

  restoreDB.bat compressed_file_name.zip -p <password>
  E.g.:restoreDB.bat 081224-1547.zip -p <password>

  The password for the database backup file could be one of two types:

  1. Default password: This is the reverse string of the filename. For the filename mentioned above, the password would be "7451-422180".
  2. Admin-configured password: This is the custom password that was configured in the admin portal before creating the database backup. The Change Password For Database Backup Files option under Admin → Connection → General Settings is used for this.

  If you have forgotten the password to the backup file, but have access to the ADSelfService Plus installation directory, the encrypted password can be obtained from the customer-config.xml file (<installation_dir>\conf\customer-config.xml), and you can contact support@adselfserviceplus.com to decrypt it.

  If not, the backup will be inaccessible and a new backup will have to be created.

• Start ADSelfService Plus.

Appendix

1. Steps to follow for high availability setup during migration

• If you are migrating the primary ADSelfService Plus server that is part of a high availability setup, follow the steps below:
  • Access the ADSelfService Plus web-console after shutting down the primary server. You will automatically be redirected to the standby server.
  • Disable High Availability (Navigate to Admin → Enterprise essentials → High Availability) in the standby server.
  • The primary and standby servers will restart automatically.
  • Migrate the primary ADSelfService Plus installation from the old machine to the new machine.
  • Once the migration is complete, enable High Availability on the new machine by following these steps.
• If you are migrating a standby ADSelfService Plus server that is part of a high availability setup, you can simply install ADSelfService Plus in a new machine and add it to the high availability setup by modifying the high availability configuration through the primary ADSelfService Plus server.

2. Steps to follow for load balancing setup during migration

• If you are migrating the primary ADSelfService Plus node of a load balancing setup, follow the steps below:
  • Login to ADSelfService Plus in the old machine that acts as the primary node, using administrator credentials.
  • Go to Admin → Enterprise essentials → Load balancing. In the load balancing configuration window, click on Remove to delete all load balancing configuration from the old machine.
    Notes: The restoration of the backup will not automatically restore the load balancing configuration. It has to be manually configured. The secondary nodes have to be configured again as well. During the migration process, ADSelfService Plus will not be accessible to the users.
  • ADSelfService Plus will now automatically restart.
  • Migrate the primary ADSelfService Plus node from the old machine to the new machine.
  • Once the migration is complete, you can configure load balancing in the new machine by following these steps.
• To migrate secondary ADSelfService Plus nodes that are part of a load balancing setup, install ADSelfService Plus in the new machine, and add that as a secondary node by modifying the load balancing configuration through the primary node, while removing the unused node.