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RW_1068286012-Amethyst
12-Amethyst
July 6, 2023
Question

windchill 12.1.2.5

  • July 6, 2023
  • 2 replies
  • 2848 views

We are planning to move from Windchill PDM Essentials is 11.1 M020 to Windchill PLM 12.1.2.5

 

Prior to upgrade, documents say we need to run a WinDu tool. Where is a download link for a recent version of Windu diagnostic tool. I was able to get to the following page:

 

https://support.ptc.com/appserver/wcms/standards/freefull_cs.jsp?&im_dbkey=122537&icg_dbkey=893&_gl=1*cpxl6v*_ga*MTgzMDg1NzM3OS4xNjgzODI3MTM4*_ga_1QBT6P6HR1*MTY4ODY0ODYxMC41Ny4xLjE2ODg2NDg5NjEuMC4wLjA.*_ga_CBN5QVB9VJ*MTY4ODY0ODYxMC40NS4xLjE2ODg2NDg5NjEuMC4wLjA.

 

If this happens to be the right page, which zip file should we download. Also, is there a guide to use the WinDU tool and resolve the fixes it recommends.

 

Sincerely,

Raj

2 replies

jbailey
jbailey18-Opal
18-Opal
July 6, 2023

Windu patches after Windchill 10.2 are bundled in the CPS patches.  I would consult the CPS release notes to see what CPS patch has the latest Windu bundled - and then update to at least that CPS.

PTC does not provide Windu patch updates out side of CPS patches anymore - so you will have to apply the CPS.

    avillanueva
    23-Emerald I
    avillanueva23-Emerald I
    23-Emerald I
    July 6, 2023

    Unless they are on a really old CPS of 11.1 M020, WinDU should already exist in the Windchill install. This should be run regularly as part of maintenance. Do you think upgrading CPS ahead of a version change is just extra effort?

      jbailey
      jbailey18-Opal
      18-Opal
      July 6, 2023

      It is until it isn't 🙂

       

      It would likely depend on CPS notes and if you ran into issues during a rehearsal  

      B
      buenosroas13-Aquamarine
      13-Aquamarine
      July 7, 2023

      Hi

       

      Sorry for the rather long (and unsolicited) post, but I just couldn't help it. 

       

      Are you planning to do the upgrade yourselves? And if so, have you tried to upgrade Windchill before? I presume not since you're moving from Essentials to PDMLink. 

      If you haven't already, make sure to study the Installation and Upgrade guide. Make a plan ahead. Upgrading Windchill is a complex process. 

      • Before you start a test upgrade, be sure to get a backup of your clean target system. Some times you need to reset and start with a blank slate, and this is by far the easiest way.
      • Be sure to do a test migration first and document all steps, commands used, errors encountered and what you did to fix them. It is quite normal to face a blocking issue that you need to resolve before you may continue. Be prepared to have to start from scratch. When you have successfully completed the test migration and have a running system afterwards, test everything to make sure it is working to satisfaction.
      • When you have made sure it is running ok, consider doing a rehearsal migration where you run through the same steps that you used in the test migration. When you want to do the final migration and go live you may find that not every step you did in the test migration are applicable to the final migration. That is the reason why you'd want to do a rehearsal before go-live.
      • I posted a step by step process for upgrading Windchil previously here https://community.ptc.com/t5/Windchill/Upgrade-from-Windchill-11-0-to-WIndchill-12-0/m-p/881315#M72473 that you may find useful. While this list contains references to Oracle and Creo, the same steps apply even if you have SQL Server or a different CAD solution. 
      • If you have a reseller at hand you may want to consider hiring help or outsourcing this task to them. They'll have the necessary experience and a direct link to PTC in case of emergencies.

      Good luck!

        R
        RW_1068286012-AmethystAuthor
        12-Amethyst
        July 7, 2023

        Thank you a ton. The reply is not long of course but detailed and helpful. Grateful for that and time taken to help out. I will sure go into this information line by line. 

        I am doing this the first time. We are planning to have a new brand VM with a recent Windows OS and Windchill 12.1.2.5.

        We are on now "Windchill PDM Essentials 11.1 M020". To begin with the abbreviations "PDM" and PLM" was so confusing. But now we get that there is no more PDM Essentials and so it is PLM 12.1.2.5.

        But do please rectify if I have understood it wrong. 

        Hoping a smooth ride!. Thanks again for everyone's and your clear explanation and insights that will help us a long way!

         

         

        Sincerely,

        Raj

         

        B
        buenosroas13-Aquamarine
        13-Aquamarine
        July 7, 2023

        You're very welcome.

         

        One of the things that you will face when going for Windchill 12.x is that 12 no longer includes Windchill DS bundled. The compatibility matrices (https://release-advisor.ptc.com/releaseMatrix?product=Windchill%20PLM&version=12.1.0.0) just state that it is compliant with any "v3 compliant directory service" software. Since you have Windchill DS 11.2 already I would make use of that together with Windchill 12.

        We have and it's working beautifully. Even if you have Windchill connected to Active Directory I highly recommend that you make use of Windchill DS for the Site Admin (wcadmin) and/or any other users that you make use of for operational purposes (i.e Solr admin user, publishing user etc). That way you will be able to disconnect Windchill from AD completely and still have a fully operational system.

         

        If I recall Windchill Essentials was only supported with SQL Server, so these steps (from the other post I linked to) may not be applicable to your process:

        • Execute pre-import queries
        • Prep DB before import to avoid broken indexes! 
        • Fix broken indexes
        • Fix broken packages

        Those were in my list because the process of using Oracle datapump (a backup method) would some time break indexes that would have to be recreated after importing the DB.

        Of all the steps in there, your most important thing is to make a backup of the clean LDAP configuration before you migrate from 11 to it. Keep the backup all the way untill you are live on 12. It is by far the hardest thing to reset if you lose the clean config.

        Again, good luck. 🙂 

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