Sage 100

What process are you using when upgrading your Sage 100 ERP installs to the new versions when Integrated with Sage CRM? I am trying to see if people are doing this on the same server as the live or on different server. If it is done as a one step process or a multi-stage process. Some things that I have run into are: 1) If installing on Same Server a) Common Files overwritten (paperless, Chilkat, Integration Engine) b) Can only have one install in the registry so all links for Sage Adviser go to new install and not current live c) Advanced and Premium defaults to overwrite the path in the server configuration d) Noticed that the client can connect now to 2013 and 2014 where in the past you would have gotten a mismatch error. 2) If installing multi-Stages a) must copy back the common files for live over the test system then back again when going live on the new version b) Must keep test system from using integration engine c) unless doing a full system migration again before going live you must copy the paperless files (utility helps with that) but then if you are linked with CRM you have to manually copy the CU files. (I believe this only copies if System migrated like PL files). I am sure I am missing other things that others have run into. I would love to see what others have been doing. I don't think Sage has really thought out the upgrading process. They seem to be making it more difficult every release. This isn't including any integration with mobile services or credit cards. After you migrate to a test system for Credit cards your system is still linked to the live. So no testing with Credit Cards. Be careful about changing the payment type info or credit cards setup for SPS. I had a customer remove the link to the CC processor and it marked all live Credit Cards as inactive in SPS (not ERP) and all the live credit cards were unable to function in the live system due to a change in the test. Happened twice and took down CC processing for 2-3 days until we could get to engineering to reset the flag on SPS's side indicating the credit cards were invalid. This flag is what they do internally when accounts to disabled or credit cards are expired.

You can save on the Paperless headache if the Paperless folder is OUTSIDE the MAS90 folder.

That is what I do but you still need to either manually copy the PL files or run the utility to update the log file to update what was done since the initial system migration (if doing multiple stages).

Agree with you @ToddMartin that Sage wants us to promote things like SPS and CRM but seems to lack a road map for dealing with upgrades.

Sage have definitely suffered through moderate to severe technical and product mismanagement. There was a period of time they were trumpeting the importance of the customer being able to self upgrade. Once they saw that was never going to happen they fired an R&D guy and I haven't heard boo about self-upgrade. I think they would like to have as many future integrations as possible run through Sage Data Cloud. How that might impact the ease of upgrade is anybodies guess. Upgrade simplicity has to be high on Sage's internal whiteboard. Keeping customers on the latest version is important for achieving Sage' ultimate goal of renewing them perpetually on maintenance.

This is crazy - specifically the footnotes on the different integration engine versions