Step-By-Step: Upgrading SCSM 2012 and Orchestrator 2012 Environments to SP1

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System Center 2012 SP1 was recently released.  You can now download and install it for all System Center 2012 products.

Using the same installation media you can:

You can upgrade either the fully licensed version of System Center 2012 or the evaluation version of System Center 2012.  Upgrading the evaluation version affects no changes to the evaluation period.

If there are multiple System Center 2012 products communicating and working together in your environment, there is a recommended order in which to upgrade them as to prevent problems in the environment.  The recommended order is:

  1. Orchestrator
  2. Service Manager
  3. Data Protection Manager (DPM)
  4. Operations Manager
  5. Configuration Manager
  6. Virtual Machine Manager
  7. App Controller

The official Microsoft documentation to upgrade to SCSM 2012 SP1 is here: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj900193.aspx

The official Microsoft documentation to upgrade to Orchestrator 2012 SP1 is here: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/jj900231.aspx

I am going to cover upgrading to SCSM 2012 SP1 and Orchestrator 2012 SP1 specifically.

I’ll cover several topics in this discussion including:

  • Preparing for the upgrade
  • Performing the upgrade
  • Post upgrade steps or validation

Preparing for the upgrade

To prepare for the upgrade be prepared for if things go south that you can get your data back.  In general, here is what you’ll need to get prepared:

Orchestrator 2012

  1. Export any runbooks
  2. Back up the Orchestrator SQL Database
  3. Make sure you have access to any Integration Pack Source Files
  4. Uninstall

SCSM 2012

  1. Back up any Unsealed Management Packs
  2. Back up the Service Manager CMDB
  3. Back up the encryption key for the SCSM Management Group
  4. Back up the Service Manager Data Warehouse Databases including and databases created by connectors
  5. Back up the encryption key for the SCSM DW Management Group
  6. Back up the Sharepoint Content database for the Self-Service Portal
  7. Backup the virtual directory located under \inetpub\wwwroot\wss\<virtual application>\*.*  (customizations)
  8. Make sure you have access to install media and any added Management Pack source files
  9. Make sure you have access to install source files for the SQL Server 2012 Analysis services Management
    Objects.

Note: If bad things happen, the documentation listed above covers disaster recovery procedures.

Performing the upgrade

Once prepared after taking precautions, time to perform the upgrade.

Particulars:   In my environment, the SSRS Server role is located on the same server as the SCSM 2012 DW role so both get upgraded at the same time.  If the SSRS server is remote, the procedure above details steps to upgrade that.

The Orchestrator 2012 SP1 upgrade process isn’t much of an upgrade at all except maybe for the Orchestrator SQL database.  It is just a component removal and reinstall exercise. 

Officially, Microsoft supports Integration Packs created for Orchestrator 2012 SP1 in an Orchestrator 2012 SP1 environment.   These are the only supported scenarios.

Orchestrator 2012

  1. Put and Orchestrator 2012 servers in Maintenance Mode in System Center 2012 Operations Manager if applicable.
  2. Uninstall Orchestrator 2012 Management Server
  3. Uninstall Orchestrator 2012 Runbook Server(s)
  4. Uninstall Orchestrator 2012 Runbook Designer(s)
  5. From the Install Media deploy Orchestrator 2012 SP1.  This will upgrade the Orchestrator SQL Database and you can re-deploy the components you removed…
  6. From the Orchestrator 2012 SP1 Install Media deploy any additional Runbook Server(s)
  7. Uninstall any Integration Packs that have newer SP1 versions.
  8. In the Orchestrator 2012 SP1 Deployment Manager Console unregister any Integration Packs you uninstalled from the Orchestrator 2012 SP1 Management Server
  9. In the Orchestrator 2012 SP1 Deployment Manager Console register any Integration Packs with newer versions.
  10. In the Orchestrator 2012 SP1 Deployment Manager Console deploy any new integration packs to Runbook Designer(s) – you can decide which integration packs the individual Runbook Designers can access at this step.
  11. From the Orchestrator 2012 SP1 Deployment Manager Console deploy and additional Runbook Designers and integration packs at this step.

SCSM 2012

  1. Put any SCSM 2012 servers in Maintenance Mode in System Center 2012 Operations Manager if applicable
  2. In the SCSM 2012 Console Disable all connectors from the Administration workspace.
  3. Disable any outbound communications via the notification channel(s) from the Administration workspace.
  4. Disable any inbound E-mail communications via Incident Settings from the Administration workspace.
  5. On the SCSM 2012 DW Server Import the SCSM 2012 powershell modules and disable any SCSM 2012 DW Jobs.
  6. Make sure in the SCSM 2012 Console that the status of any Extract, Transform, or Load jobs on the Data Warehouse workspace are set to Not Started.
  7. Install the SQL Server 2012 Analysis services Management Objects on the SCSM 2012 DW Server.
  8. Using the SCSM 2012 SP1 install media, upgrade the SCSM 2012 DW server.
  9. Install the SQL Server 2012 Analysis Services Management Objects on the SCSM 2012 Management Server.
  10. Using the SCSM 2012 SP1 install media, upgrade the SCSM 2012 Management server.
  11. Repeat steps 9-10 for any additional SCSM 2012 Management Servers.
  12. Using the SCSM 2012 SP1 install media, upgrade the SCSM 2012 Self-Service Portal server(s).
  13. Using the SCSM 2012 SP1 install media, upgrade any SCSM 2012 Consoles.

Post upgrade or validation

Are any steps needed post install?  How do we make sure that upgrade was successful?

Orchestrator 2012 SP1

  1. Take Orchestrator 2012 SP1 servers out of Maintenance Mode in System Center 2012 Operations Manager if applicable.
  2. Start the Orchestrator 2012 SP1 Runbook Designer and verify in Help -> About that the version has changed to System Center 2012 SP1.
  3. Validate that the Runbooks work as expected.
  4. Inspect %ProgramData%\Microsoft System Center Orchestrator\OrchestratorManagementService for issues.

SCSM 2012 SP1

  1. Take SCSM 2012 SP1 servers out of Maintenance Mode in System Center 2012 Operations Manager if applicable.
  2. On the SCSM 2012 SP1 DW Server Restart the System Center Data Access Service.
  3. On the SCSM 2012 SP1 DW Server Restart the System Center Management Service.
  4. Restart the SCSM 2012 SP1 DW jobs.
  5. On the SCSM 2012 SP1 Reporting Services Server Stop and then Restart SQL Server Reporting Services.
  6. In the SCSM 2012 Console Enable all connectors from the Administration workspace.
  7. Enable any outbound communications via the notification channel(s) from the Administration workspace.
  8. Enable any inbound E-mail communications via Incident Settings from the Administration workspace.
  9. On any SCSM 2012 SP1 servers, review the Applications -> System Center Operations Manager event logs for issues.

These are the high-level steps I followed to prepare for and complete the upgrade for System Center 2012 Orchestrator and System Center 2012 Service Manager to Service Pack 1.

 System Center 2012 SP1 Evaluation

System Center 2012 SP1 Includes the products listed below as you may already know this allows you to pick and choose the parts that are right for you while providing a linkage between all the parts.  System Center 2012 SP1 and Windows Server 2012 are really better together.

Orchestrator

Orchestrator provides a workflow management solution for the data center. Orchestrator lets you automate the creation, monitoring, and deployment of resources in your environment.

Service Manager

Service Manager provides an integrated platform for automating and adapting your organization’s IT service management best practices, such as those found in Microsoft Operations Framework (MOF) and Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL). It provides built-in processes for incident and problem resolution, change control, and asset lifecycle management.

Data Protection Manager (DPM)

Data Protection Manager (DPM) enables disk-based and tape-based data protection and recovery for servers such as SQL Server, Exchange Server, SharePoint, virtual servers, file servers, and support for Windows desktops and laptops. DPM can also centrally manage system state and Bare Metal Recovery (BMR).

Operations Manager

Operations Manager provides infrastructure monitoring that is flexible and cost-effective, helps ensure the predictable performance and availability of vital applications, and offers comprehensive monitoring for your datacenter and cloud, both private and public.

Configuration Manager

Microsoft System Center 2012 Configuration Manager provides a comprehensive solution for change and configuration management for the Microsoft platform.

Virtual Machine Manager

Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) is a management solution for the virtualized datacenter, enabling you to configure and manage your virtualization host, networking, and storage resources in order to create and deploy virtual machines and services to private clouds that you have created

App Controller

App Controller provides a common self-service experience that can help you easily configure, deploy, and manage virtual machines and services across private and public clouds.

Endpoint Protection

Endpoint Protection provides an antimalware and security solution for the Microsoft platform

 

 

If you're thinking of using any of these tools\products to help you manage your environment . Please refer to https://www.aka.ms/downloadSC2012

Thanks

Brad Bird