[RichieRichR6]

Hi all,

Due to some performance issue with MSDE, I will be switching to a SQL db. Has anyone done this before and could you share your experience?

My current setup...
One BES with 248 users,
Version 4.1.3 SP4
MSDE database

I'm a bit nervous doing this this. We have one BES production server and NO test server. Therefore, I will have to take it offline briefly, I hope, to do this. Any input is MUCH appreciated.

Thanks,
Rich aka Worried

[whyerd]

Very easy...

Backup you DB
Stop all BES services
Install SQL, it should ask you to upgrade your existing installation... say yes.
Install SQL patches
Increase the number of available agents to 5 if you need to
Restart BES

It's been some time since I have done this, I think I had to re-run the install after the update to install the SQL manager, but that was just the modify part of the install.

[RichieRichR6]

Originally Posted by whyerd

Very easy...

Backup you DB
Stop all BES services
Install SQL, it should ask you to upgrade your existing installation... say yes.
Install SQL patches
Increase the number of available agents to 5 if you need to
Restart BES

It's been some time since I have done this, I think I had to re-run the install after the update to install the SQL manager, but that was just the modify part of the install.

Thanks for the quick reply. I saw another thread with links on moving from MSDE to SQL. I'm follow those steps.

Any other good tips to know? Anyone?

[moogeboo]

Does this process appy to a situation where we want to breakout the DB to another server running SQL 2005?

We have one BES server running MSDE, and we want to break out the DB to another server. Would the above steps work so that I won't need to re-active all the handhelds?

thanks,
Mooge

[thunderck]

Are you running Domino or Exchange? There are some KB articles you are going to want to look at depending which you are running and if the SQL is local to the BES or remote.

[Flash]

1. Install SQL Server on a separate server.
2. Copy the Database folder from the BES installer to the root of the C: drive on SQL.
3. Open command promt and got to database folder.
4. Type createdb besmgmt.cfg
5. This will create a blank BESMgmt database on your new SQL server however it ALSO improtantly installs the stored procedure into the SQL system database. This is important as if you just backup and restore youre database to the new SQL then these would be missing and your BES wont work.
6. Now you can restore the backup of youre production BES onto the SQL box.
7 Now back on you production BES point the BES to the new location.
8. You will also need to point BB Manager at the new DB as it will be pointing to the old DB.

There is a KB for this which gives more details than I have. I would have a look for it on BBs website.

[jibi]

Here you go. You will need to modify the cfg file to have the correct database name, if not BESMgmt, if I remember correctly.

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[RichieRichR6]

Thanks for all the tips guys. How long does this process usually take? In my environment, I dont have a test BES. Therefore, there will be downtime during the DB move. Just trying to have plan. Thanks again.

[KnacK]

Originally Posted by Flash

1. Install SQL Server on a separate server.
2. Copy the Database folder from the BES installer to the root of the C: drive on SQL.
3. Open command promt and got to database folder.
4. Type createdb besmgmt.cfg
5. This will create a blank BESMgmt database on your new SQL server however it ALSO improtantly installs the stored procedure into the SQL system database. This is important as if you just backup and restore youre database to the new SQL then these would be missing and your BES wont work.
6. Now you can restore the backup of youre production BES onto the SQL box.
7 Now back on you production BES point the BES to the new location.
8. You will also need to point BB Manager at the new DB as it will be pointing to the old DB.

There is a KB for this which gives more details than I have. I would have a look for it on BBs website.

I neglected to repoint my manager to the new database...... I didn't know I had a problem until I added a new user and the user was stuck on authenticating.

[Puddin]

We just did this exact thing last week. It went pretty smooth. Everything everyone says is correct. Make sure you also get all of the MDS databases. Most people don't use MDS and that was a gotcha for me. We ended up having to uninstall/reinstall the BES because something was corrupt - but that took alot of the time. Ultimatley as long as you have your MSDE on your BES you can always revert back to that. If you have support you can call them up and they will sit on the phone with you while you do it. Should be pretty painless. Make sure you have a current copy of your install files handy just in case.

Ken

[RichieRichR6]

Originally Posted by Puddin

We just did this exact thing last week. It went pretty smooth. Everything everyone says is correct. Make sure you also get all of the MDS databases. Most people don't use MDS and that was a gotcha for me. We ended up having to uninstall/reinstall the BES because something was corrupt - but that took alot of the time. Ultimatley as long as you have your MSDE on your BES you can always revert back to that. If you have support you can call them up and they will sit on the phone with you while you do it. Should be pretty painless. Make sure you have a current copy of your install files handy just in case.

Ken

Thanks for the feedback. I know its only been a week but have you seen any noticable improvements after switching to a SQL db?

[KnacK]

I didn't notice any improvement, but I don't have a lot of BB users either. I did it just for the consolidation of sql databases on one big box.

Like Ken said, support will help you with it. Just don't forget to repoint your management console(s) to the new database.

[hdawg]

... I'm also wondering if you've installed the DBNS (DataBase Notification Service) as a part of the move ...

[Puddin]

Originally Posted by RichieRichR6

Thanks for the feedback. I know its only been a week but have you seen any noticable improvements after switching to a SQL db?

Before the upgrade/move, I was receiving a tremendous amount of agent errors - this has been reduced dramatically. There was errors in the logs where MSDE couldn't handle the number of db connections. We have 300 users on the BES. After the upgrade mail was processed so much faster. I received many comments on how much faster the mail made it to the handhelds. Huge performance improvement.

Ken

[RichieRichR6]

Originally Posted by Puddin

Before the upgrade/move, I was receiving a tremendous amount of agent errors - this has been reduced dramatically. There was errors in the logs where MSDE couldn't handle the number of db connections. We have 300 users on the BES. After the upgrade mail was processed so much faster. I received many comments on how much faster the mail made it to the handhelds. Huge performance improvement.

Ken

Sweet! I hope my user will appreciate it too.