Introduction:
Oracle Primavera P6 EPPM is the
most powerful Project Management scheduling tool used extensively in project
intensive industries across the globe. In today's fast paced world; there is
dire need to enhance technology landscape and reduce cost of ownership on
hardware infrastructure by moving it to cloud. Oracle has also moved most of
the products from Primavera umbrella to cloud and providing that as Software as
a Service (SaaS).
This blog contains the details regarding
migration of Primavera On-premise environment to Oracle P6 EPPM Cloud which can
be used as reference for future cloud migrations.
Typical Cloud Migration Flow:
Following is typical and
recommended overall solution approach for P6 EPPM cloud migration
Cloud Migration Methods:
There are 2 different methods
which can be used for Oracle Primavera P6 EPPM cloud migration:
- Lift and
shift (Moving the database) i.e. In place upgrade and migrate
- This option is recommended approach to migrate an entire legacy database to Cloud with minimum risk and issues
- Minimum user involvement and quick turnaround time is key benefits of this approach
- MS SQL database needs to be first converted in to Oracle DB for handing over to Oracle for DB upgrade
- Using standard Primavera export/import functionality
- This option is suitable for organizations having multiple On-premise environments and selected data is required to be migrated from Legacy environment to single consolidated Cloud environment
- The process will require strict coordination between IT and Business representative to determine which projects and data to migrate hence will need better planning
- Certain user specific data will have to be manually re-created and comprehensive testing is required to ensure data is correctly migrated without any losses & error
Method 1: Lift and Shift Database:
Lift & Shift database approach has following main elements:
- Take backup of existing On-premise Database
- Convert MS SQL DB to Oracle DB; if using SQL DB as Oracle cloud does not support any other DB except Oracle
- Upgrade Oracle DB version compatible to latest On-premise version i.e. P6 R19.12 in On-premise environment
- Unit Testing on upgraded DB along with application for P6 R19.12 On-premise environment as per legacy environment compatibility; if needed
- Handover upgraded Oracle DB to Oracle cloud team through Oracle Secure File Transfer (SFTP) protocol
- Oracle cloud team to upgrade Oracle DB from On-premise R19.12 to DB version which is compatible with latest Oracle P6 EPPM Cloud version i.e. P6 R20.x and release cloud environment
Method 2: Primavera export/import functionality
1. Exporting
Primavera Projects to P6 XML:
- Preparing to Export: Consolidate database instances, check version compatibility and clean data, if required
- Export data: Export Project Data from either P6 Web or P6 Professional client to P6 XML
2. Importing
P6 XML into Oracle P6 EPPM Cloud:
- Import Objects: Determine global and project data that needs to be imported into Primavera P6 EPPM Cloud using the P6 XML file format.
- Import Actions: Finalize on handling of project data when they are imported into the application. Different actions can be taken depending on whether client want to create new project, update an existing project or ignore an importing project.
- Preparing to Import: Complete all master configurations, import template finalization and check the P6 XML file size to ensure that environment is ready to import projects
- Import P6 XML Data into Oracle P6 EPPM Cloud: Use the P6 EPPM Cloud web or the Professional desktop client module to import project data
- Post-Import Steps: Complete import log review, project data validation, schedule & baseline projects to ensure that the imported data is accurate and complete.
Primavera export/import functionality is applicable method for cloud migration for following scenario:
- This method is applicable for organization where selected data needs to be migrated from legacy On-premise environment to Cloud
- Also this method can be used for the organization where multiple Primavera environments are present and there is a need for single consolidated environment which will help in reducing clutter and overall database size
- Since only select data is being migrated, it will significantly reduce occurrences of data anomalies resulting in a more stable environment for users
Comparison:
Various implementation factors determine which is the best method to be adopted for cloud migration. Given following are few factors to be considered while deciding on approach.
Summary: