justcurious
MIS
If you are new to Domino servers or you have never used incremental installers, please read this for a basic explanation of what they are and how to use them. I am referring to versions up to and including R5 only, as I have no idea what future plans are at IBM. I am also addressing Domino Server for Windows based machines only.
As with any release of most software packages, Lotus Domino Server comes with it's fair share of bugs. New bugs are introduced and very often previously fixed bugs reappear. The purpose of an incremental install is to publish a quick fix for these bugs, while the next scheduled full release is being developed.
On the Lotus site you will actually see that an incremental install is referred to as a Maintenance Release ( MR ).
A MR will only contain the fixes for bugs that have been repaired since the last release, be it a full release or a MR. That doesn't mean only for bugs that have been found since the last release. Some bugs may hang around through several MRs and the fix will appear when Lotus has the solution. This is the reason they must be installed incrementally.
A full install includes all old and new, planned code for the Domino Server and all of the fixes introduced in the MRs since the last full release. A full install does not have any prior dependancies and can be implemented as a new install or as an upgrade to any previous implementation.
Throughout R5 there have been several full releases ( R5.0.3, R5.0.8 and R5.0.11 are the ones I'm aware of) and several MRs ( R5.0.4, R5.0.4a, R5.0.5, R5.0.6a, R5.0.7, R5.0.7a, R5.0.8, R5.0.9, R5.0.9a, R5.0.10, R5.0.11 and R5.0.12 ). Something to note is that there was both a maintenance release and a full release for R5.0.8 and R5.0.11. There may have been a full release for R5.0.5 as well. I'm not sure about that.
If you wish to upgrade a Domino server by several versions, you should be looking for the last full release prior to the version you wish to arrive at. Then look for the incremental installs that will take you from there to where you want to be. For example, if you wish to upgrade from R5.0.3 to R5.0.9a, don't worry about all of the incremental installs between R5.0.3 and R5.0.8. Just get your hands on the full release of R5.0.8, then the incremental installs for R5.0.9 and R5.0.9a.
When you run an incremental install, the first thing it does after checking it's own file integrity is verify your current version of Domino Server. It will fail with an error if the version is not correct.
Some MRs will give you a readable error message that makes sense, but most of the newer ones just give you a little popup containing what looks like garbage ( example : #10 ). This means you are trying to do something like run the MR for R5.0.9a on a R5.0.8 installation. The solution is to run the MR for R5.0.9 first.
Installation Tips:
1) Any Server upgrade requires that the server is not running.
2) Before I run any upgrade to a Domino Server, I allways make a copy of the Domino programs folder.
3) Before I run any FULL install upgrade, I make sure I have the installs for my current version should I need to roll back.
4) MRs can be run in succession without restarting your Domino server between each upgrade.
5) To roll back most MR upgrades, simply run the MRs again in reverse order. When a MR finds that the Domino server version corresponds with it's own, it becomes a deinstaller and will revert the server version to the previous one. I seem to remember a problem with R5.04 or R5.04a.
6) For a quick roll back of a full install, use "Add/Remove Programs" in Control Panel to uninstall Domino. Run the installs required to bring you back to where you were before you started, then replace your Domino programs folder with the copy you made before you began. If you are nervous about losing any data, you may also wish to make a copy of, or rename, your Domino data folder before you start your roll back.
7) If Lotus has ever supplied you with new files for a unique fix to your installation, keep the old ones in a safe place. You may need to swap them back if you want to run a MR.
8) Test Test Test before you begin.
I hope it is clear enough and helps to dispell some of the confusion I see regarding incremental installers.
Understand that this is all based on my hard earned experience through working with Lotus servers since sometime in R3. Please don't ignore your Admin Help database or the many Lotus forums that are easily found on the Net.
As with any release of most software packages, Lotus Domino Server comes with it's fair share of bugs. New bugs are introduced and very often previously fixed bugs reappear. The purpose of an incremental install is to publish a quick fix for these bugs, while the next scheduled full release is being developed.
On the Lotus site you will actually see that an incremental install is referred to as a Maintenance Release ( MR ).
A MR will only contain the fixes for bugs that have been repaired since the last release, be it a full release or a MR. That doesn't mean only for bugs that have been found since the last release. Some bugs may hang around through several MRs and the fix will appear when Lotus has the solution. This is the reason they must be installed incrementally.
A full install includes all old and new, planned code for the Domino Server and all of the fixes introduced in the MRs since the last full release. A full install does not have any prior dependancies and can be implemented as a new install or as an upgrade to any previous implementation.
Throughout R5 there have been several full releases ( R5.0.3, R5.0.8 and R5.0.11 are the ones I'm aware of) and several MRs ( R5.0.4, R5.0.4a, R5.0.5, R5.0.6a, R5.0.7, R5.0.7a, R5.0.8, R5.0.9, R5.0.9a, R5.0.10, R5.0.11 and R5.0.12 ). Something to note is that there was both a maintenance release and a full release for R5.0.8 and R5.0.11. There may have been a full release for R5.0.5 as well. I'm not sure about that.
If you wish to upgrade a Domino server by several versions, you should be looking for the last full release prior to the version you wish to arrive at. Then look for the incremental installs that will take you from there to where you want to be. For example, if you wish to upgrade from R5.0.3 to R5.0.9a, don't worry about all of the incremental installs between R5.0.3 and R5.0.8. Just get your hands on the full release of R5.0.8, then the incremental installs for R5.0.9 and R5.0.9a.
When you run an incremental install, the first thing it does after checking it's own file integrity is verify your current version of Domino Server. It will fail with an error if the version is not correct.
Some MRs will give you a readable error message that makes sense, but most of the newer ones just give you a little popup containing what looks like garbage ( example : #10 ). This means you are trying to do something like run the MR for R5.0.9a on a R5.0.8 installation. The solution is to run the MR for R5.0.9 first.
Installation Tips:
1) Any Server upgrade requires that the server is not running.
2) Before I run any upgrade to a Domino Server, I allways make a copy of the Domino programs folder.
3) Before I run any FULL install upgrade, I make sure I have the installs for my current version should I need to roll back.
4) MRs can be run in succession without restarting your Domino server between each upgrade.
5) To roll back most MR upgrades, simply run the MRs again in reverse order. When a MR finds that the Domino server version corresponds with it's own, it becomes a deinstaller and will revert the server version to the previous one. I seem to remember a problem with R5.04 or R5.04a.
6) For a quick roll back of a full install, use "Add/Remove Programs" in Control Panel to uninstall Domino. Run the installs required to bring you back to where you were before you started, then replace your Domino programs folder with the copy you made before you began. If you are nervous about losing any data, you may also wish to make a copy of, or rename, your Domino data folder before you start your roll back.
7) If Lotus has ever supplied you with new files for a unique fix to your installation, keep the old ones in a safe place. You may need to swap them back if you want to run a MR.
8) Test Test Test before you begin.
I hope it is clear enough and helps to dispell some of the confusion I see regarding incremental installers.
Understand that this is all based on my hard earned experience through working with Lotus servers since sometime in R3. Please don't ignore your Admin Help database or the many Lotus forums that are easily found on the Net.