Migrate/upgrade XCOM for Windows to new XCOM version or new Windows server

Products

XCOM Data Transport XCOM Data Transport - Windows

Issue/Introduction

What are the best practices when migrating XCOM for Windows for these scenarios:

Migrating XCOM to new Windows server.
Migrating/upgrading XCOM on a Windows server.

Environment

Release: 11.6, 12.0
XCOM™ Data Transport® for Windows

Resolution

Migrating XCOM to new Windows server

As general advice, when moving XCOM to new a new machine rather than copying existing XCOM installation files from the old to the new machine XCOM must be installed on the new machine.
That is because an XCOM installation on Windows involves not just placing the files/libraries onto the filesystem but also creating registry settings and environment variables.
If it is also required to upgrade the XCOM version at the same time, then the advice in the following sections should be followed.

Migrating/upgrading XCOM on a Windows server

XCOM for Windows 12.0 is the latest version so it is strongly advised to upgrade to that version and its latest patch level assuming the Windows version being used is supported for it. For details please see XCOM Distributed Platform Compatibilities and the Windows section.
Instructions for both 11.6 and 12.0 are provided below.

Release 11.6

The latest service pack for 11.6 is SP03. NOTE: SP03 is the only service pack that is currently supported.

XCOM Data Transport r11.6 SP03 64-bit for Windows Family Server can be downloaded from the XCOM Products Download page (type windows into the search box and then the link for "XCOM Data Transport for Windows Family Server WINDOWS-ALL" will become easily visible). The SP03 release is version r11.6.20035.
Only file DVD0000000002021.iso needs to be downloaded.
See the online documentation section Installing and Upgrading. As described, to access the installer:
EITHER: Use a zip utility to unzip the file DVD0000000002021.iso and extract the installer file XCOM.exe.
OR use right mouse button on it and option Mount which will open a new drive showing the installer file XCOM.exe. If the Mount option is not available use "Open With" and select Windows Explorer which should have the same effect as Mount.
From within that section, please note that for an XCOM upgrade on the same Windows server, automatic upgrades from 11.5 or 11.6 32-bit are not supported and for those versions a manual upgrade must be done. NOTE: Only an automatic upgrade will perform an existing installation backup during the upgrade process and a manual upgrade requires a manual backup of files beforehand.
After the install/upgrade, install the latest patch to avoid any known problems. XCOM patches are cumulative so only the latest patch needs to be installed. The patches are available on the XCOM Solutions Download page (type windows into the search box and then the link for "XCOM Data Transport for Windows Family Server WINDOWS-ALL" will become easily visible).
In general, unless running an automatic upgrade on the same Windows server or the old and new Windows servers are running identical XCOM versions (patch level), the best practice advice for the migration of configuration settings is that the new version should not simply have its configuration files replaced with backed-up copies from the old server. Instead, the steps should be:
a. Review what is currently in the xcom.glb and xcom.cnf files on the old server and use those files as a guide to modify the new xcom.glb and xcom.cnf. The same advice applies to any other configuration files e.g. configssl.cnf.
b. If using XCOM pre-processing or post-processing scripts on the old server the versions of those equivalent scripts on the new server will need to be modified accordingly.
c. Review the online documentation to see what has changed: XCOM™ Data Transport® for Windows 11.6 Service Packs > Release Notes

Release 12.0

Assuming the Windows version supports XCOM for Windows 12.0

XCOM Data Transport for Windows 12.0 can be downloaded from the XCOM Products Download page (type windows into the search box and then the link for "XCOM Data Transport for Windows Family Server WINDOWS-ALL" will become easily visible). Only file XCOMWindows120.iso needs to be downloaded.
See the online documentation section XCOM™ Data Transport® for Windows 12.0 > Installing.
As described in Install Using ISO Conventional Method > Install in Silent Mode and Install Using ISO Conventional Method > Install in GUI Mode, to access the installer:
EITHER: Use a zip utility to unzip the file XCOMWindows120.iso and extract the installer file XCOM_12_0_23053.exe.
OR: Use right mouse button on it and option Mount which will open a new drive showing the installer file XCOM_12_0_23053.exe. If the Mount option is not available use "Open With" and select Windows Explorer which should have the same effect as Mount.
From sub-section Upgrade from a Previous Release, please note that for an XCOM upgrade on the same Windows server, automatic upgrades from 11.0, 11.5 or 11.6 SP00 are not supported and for those versions a manual upgrade must be done. NOTE: Only an automatic upgrade will perform an existing installation backup during the upgrade process and a manual upgrade requires a manual backup of files beforehand.
After the install/upgrade, install the latest patch to avoid any known problems. XCOM patches are cumulative so only the latest patch needs to be installed. The patches are available on the XCOM Solutions Download page (type windows into the search box and then the link for "XCOM Data Transport for Windows Family Server WINDOWS-ALL" will become easily visible).
In general, unless running an automatic upgrade on the same Windows server or the old and new Windows servers are running identical XCOM versions (patch level), the best practice advice for the migration of configuration settings is that the new version should not simply have its configuration files replaced with backed-up copies from the old server. Instead, the steps should be:
a. Review what is currently in the xcom.glb and xcom.cnf files on the old server and use those files as a guide to modify the new xcom.glb and xcom.cnf. The same advice applies to any other configuration files e.g. configssl.cnf.
b. If using XCOM pre-processing or post-processing scripts on the old server the versions of those equivalent scripts on the new server will need to be modified accordingly.
c. Review the online documentation to see what has changed: XCOM™ Data Transport® for Windows 12.0 > Release Notes

Example: Steps to do an in place upgrade 11.6 SP03 to 12.0 in GUI Mode

11.6 SP03 can be automatically upgraded because it is a "Supported Release". That means the 12.0 installer will recognise it is installed, take a backup during the install process and then upgrade it: Upgrade from a Previous Release > Upgrade from a Supported Release
Per that page stop the current xcomd service before starting the upgrade.
OPTIONAL: For extra backup insurance before starting the upgrade, after stopping the existing 11.6 SP03 xcomd service, take a manual back up of the %XCOM_HOME% installation directory. However that is not really necessary because of the 12.0 installer backup feature built in which allows for a rollback if need be (Uninstall or Roll Back)
Before starting the upgrade check the value of the environment variable XCOM_JAVA_HOME from a command prompt
echo %XCOM_JAVA_HOME%
That should point to the existing Java 1.8 installation directory which 11.6 SP03 is using (that directory should not be under the 11.6 SP03 install directory because 11.6 SP03 required the user to provide their own Java version like 12.0 does)
Use that same version of Java with 12.0
Per the page: Install Using ISO Conventional Method > Install in GUI Mode
After extracting the installer XCOM_12_0_23053.exe from XCOMWindows120.iso (per Release 12.0 section #2 above) right-click on that file and use Run as Administrator.
After the installer starts it should prompt for "Choose Java Virtual Machine"
If see multiple lines choose the Java installation directory found in #2 above.
Then continue with the install.
Post-install: Install the latest 12.0 patch (per Release 12.0 section #3 above).

Additional Information

XCOM Data Transport main product page.