Prepare to upgrade or migrate the SolarWinds Platform database

At some point, you may need to upgrade or move your SolarWinds Platform database. For example, you may have to change your version of Microsoft SQL Server or migrate your data to a different server. New versions of SolarWinds products may require a new SQL version or merge databases with other products. Refer to your product documentation, release notes, and the SolarWinds Success Center to verify changes and requirements.

Requirements

Before you attempt to modify or back up your existing database, ensure the following:

• The new database server is installed correctly and meets all requirements for CPU, hard drive space, software, and additional settings. Refer to your product requirements (in documentation or release notes) for the listed SQL database system requirements.

  Due to the size and usage of the SolarWinds Platform database, we recommend having this database on a dedicated server. Depending on your current environment, database location, and upgrade SQL server requirements, you may need to migrate to a new server. Migrating allows you to keep all relevant data and history without having to start with a fresh database on a new server.

• The SQL Browser Service is running on the new target server. This service runs on UDP port 1434, and it may be blocked by internal firewalls.
• You have the sa password for both your existing SolarWinds Platform database server and your new database server.
• You have the credentials to an account with administrator rights on both your existing SolarWinds Platform database server and your new database server. For migrations, make sure you have the local administrator credentials.
• Schedule a maintenance window during off peak hours. During an upgrade or migration, you will need to stop your SolarWinds Platform services, ensuring polling data does not attempt writing to the database. This also ensures your backup file matches your last active database state.
• When migrating, stop all SolarWinds Platform services before creating a backup.
• Include your DBA in the installation of a new database version or migration to a new server.
• Notify your company of the changes and maintenance window.

Upgrade your SQL Database

Upgrading a database means migrating from one version of SQL to another. We recommend following the detailed instructions from your database software vendor for migrating between versions. Database migrations may require following an upgrade path specific to the vendor. For more information, refer to Microsoft TechNet web portal at https://technet.microsoft.com and search SQL migration.

You may also need to migrate your SQL database to a new version. Due to database size, you may want to migrate to a new version after migrating to a new server.