Upgrading your Verba system

Upgrading a Verba system consist of various steps executed by the installer and includes some manual step also. Before starting the upgrade make sure you have the followings available:

• New Verba system installers
• Valid license file
• Existing Verba system installer in case you need to roll back during the upgrade process
• Servers, OS, database, and prerequisites (Java, .Net, etc.) meeting the requirements of the new system
• A clear and definite plan for the upgrade including backup plan, upgrade plan and rollback plan
• Since the upgrade might require to stop recording for a while, make sure it does not interfere with your business and regulations
• When you have a complex deployment, make sure you have the right engineering resources available knowledgeable of Verba deployments

Verba does not support partial upgrades, all system components and servers need to be upgraded at once. There might be exceptions, but it needs to be authorized and confirmed by a Verba representative.

Verba supports upgrade from version 5 up to the latest version following the procedures described in this document.

If you are aware of any customization (custom database procedures, triggers or customized web interface including branding) in your system, please contact your Verba representative before the upgrade.

The following list briefly outlines the upgrade process:

• Backup Verba database and prepare it for the upgrade process
• Backup existing servers and verify server and OS compatibility
• Uninstall the existing Verba software
• Install the new Verba software
• Configure servers
• Test the new system

Backup Verba database and prepare it for the upgrade process

During the upgrade process, the database has to be altered to support the new version of the software. In order to ensure a fallback option is available, it is mandatory to create a full backup of your Verba database.

For more information, see https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/relational-databases/backup-restore/create-a-full-database-backup-sql-server

Upgrading from 9.3 or earlier

With version 9.4, several database performance improvements were implemented, and this caused major changes in the database. The upgrade process may take significantly longer, (up to 30 minutes for every million records, depending on the resources of the SQL server) when you upgrade from version 9.3 or earlier to version 9.4 or later. 

The number of the records currently in the database can be checked by running the following SQL query:

 SELECT COUNT(*) FROM v_section

Based on the number of the database records, SQL version and available free space the following configurations are required.

Step 1 -  Optionally set the recovery mode to simple. When the upgrade is complete, you can change it back to its original setting. This step is recommended if the disk space available for the transaction log is limited.
For more information, see https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/relational-databases/backup-restore/view-or-change-the-recovery-model-of-a-database-sql-server

Step 2 - Set the SQL Server Agent service to automatic start and start it (except when using SQL Express Edition, which does not include the SQL Server Agent service). For more information, see https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/ssms/agent/autostart-sql-server-agent-sql-server-management-studio

Step 3 - Optionally rebuild the indexes on the database tables. If the database contains more than one million entries, it is recommended to run the manual-index-rebuild.sql on the Verba database before the upgrade. This script should be run outside of business hours.

Database partitioning (9.5 or earlier)

With version 9.6 partitioning was added as a recommended step during the installation, when more than 100 million conversations are expected to be stored in the database. The installer configures database partitioning only for future conversations. In order to improve performance for the already recorded conversations, it is possible to add partitioning for historical records. 

For more information, see: Database table partitioning

Backup Verba servers and verify server and OS compatibility

In order to ensure that you can restore the system at any point during the upgrade procedure, you need to make a backup of the entire system. 

The easiest and most efficient way to backup your current system is to create snapshots of your (virtual) servers. If your upgrade fails, you can simply restore the system by loading the snapshots.

The uninstall process does not affect or delete the database and the media folders. However, other data needs to be removed from the server. If you would like to keep the application log files for some reason, you need to back the log folder to an external location first.

Follow the steps below to backup the servers to be able to restore the system if you need to roll back changes.

Step 1 - Make a note of all active Verba services on the servers by navigating to Service Activation tab under System / Servers for 9.x or later versions and under Administration / Verba Serves in earlier versions. You will need this information when you re-apply the configuration on the servers running the new version.

Step 2 - Stop all Verba services on all servers. If you need to continue recording or you want to minimize downtime, you can continue recording on the Verba Recording Servers by disabling the database access. Before doing so, please consult your Verba representatives to confirm the available options and compatibility issues between the existing and the new system.

Step 3 - Check if your media folders or storage targets are not under C:\Program Files (x86)\Verba. If your media folders or storage targets are under C:\Program Files (x86)\Verba, move the folder to another, more appropriate location.

Step 4 - Optionally make a copy of your log folders to an external location on all servers.

Step 5 - Optionally make a copy of the C:\Program Files (x86)\Verba\resources\webapp\ folder on the Media Repository server to backup branding and other web application customization.

Step 6 - Make a copy of the server registry under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Verba key.

Step 7 - Check server configuration (CPU, memory, disk, network), operating system and database version compatibility for the new Verba version. 

Uninstall Verba servers

Step 1 - Check that you have valid and up to date backups of your servers, and you verified server and OS compatibility with the new version.

Step 2 - Uninstall the Verba Media Repository Server first, unless you have a single server in your deployment.

Step 3 - Check that you do not have remaining files under C:\Program Files (x86)\Verba folder. If you have, check that no media folder is used under this folder and you made a backup of all relevant content (for instance log files). After checking all of these, delete the content of the folder.

Step 4 - Check that you do not have remaining entries under HKLM\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Verba key. If you have, delete them completely.

Step 5 - Repeat Step 2 through Step 4 for all other Verba servers, including the ones installed on external servers such as Lync/SfB servers.

Install Verba servers

Once you completed the uninstall of your servers, you can go ahead and install the new version.

Step 1 - Run the prerequisites tool from the new installer package to check if there is any missing prerequisite. Install the missing ones and make sure you have Java Runtime version 11 installed on Verba Media Repository and Verba Recording Servers.

Step 2 - Install the new version on the Verba Media Repository server first. The installer will automatically update your database, it can take hours depending on the size of your database.

Step 3 - Install the new version on all Verba Recording Servers and other server roles.

Configure Verba servers and test

Once you installed the new version on your servers, you need to apply the previous configuration and test the new system.

Step 1 - Login to the web interface and navigate to the Verba server and select the Service Activation tab. Activate all Verba service according to the previous configuration. 

Step 2 - Navigate to Change Configuration Settings tab. The system will offer you an option to apply the previous configuration (the configuration in the database) on the server. Select the Use configuration only from central database option, or you can manually select the appropriate option below.

Step 3 - Press Start and follow the instructions on the screen to apply the new configuration on the server.

Step 4 - Repeat these steps for all Verba servers in your deployment.

Step 5 - If you have added new servers during the upgrade, simply configure them using an existing configuration template or direct server configuration.

Step 6 - Now you have finished the upgrade. Check all configuration settings (especially the new ones) and execute your test plan to ensure that your system is functioning properly.

Roll back to the previous version

If you encounter any issues during the upgrade and you are unable to resolve them, you need to roll back to the previous, working copy. If you have managed to create server snapshots, you can simply restore them. If you need to manually restore the system, follow the steps below:

Step 1 - Uninstall the new Verba servers by following the uninstall steps above. Make sure you execute the manual checks also.

Step 2 - Run the prerequisites tool from the previous installer package. Make sure you have the right Java Runtime on the server. 

Step 3 - Restore the Verba database from the backup.

Step 4 - Install the Verba Media Repository server first.

Step 5 - Install the previous version on all other servers.

Step 6 - Apply the configuration on the servers and test the configuration by following the steps described above.