iSeries/AS400 Question on upgrade from V5R3 to V5R4

We plan on upgrading our iSeries/AS400 from V5R3 to V5R4 shortly. Any gotchas we should look for?

Our plan is to:
* Apply the base V5R4
* Apply latest CUM, hipers, groups, Client Access, and individuals from the EnterpriseOne APAR.
* Delete SQL Packages
* Move the new jt400.jar from the ifs (qibm\proddata\http\public\jt400\lib) to the Windows Websphere server.
* Start everything back up.

It's been a while since we did an upgrade (V5R1 to V5R2) but we were still on the Fat Clients.

Is there a need to run LINKBSFN?
Is there a need to regenerate the JAS specs?

Thanks,

Grant.

Hi,

1. Don't forget to read JDE MTRs regarding WebSphere and
JDE on OS/400, there are some specific PTFs there.
2. Yes, it's strongly recommended to delete all *SQLPKG
files except for the (in)famous Q* ones
3. Do you plan to move your JAS server from OS/400 to Win?
4. I recommend you to build a full client/server package
and a full webgen just to be sure that ILE-C, PAKTOTAM,
Package and Web generation are working correctly after
the O/S upgrade.

You need to run LINKBSFN if you're upgrading your service pack, but not for your OS. You don't need to upgrade Client Access either, unless you really want to. CA for V5R3 works just fine with V5R4.

Don't know the answer about your JAS specs, but I'm not sure why an OS upgrade would affect those.

>>>3. Do you plan to move your JAS server from OS/400 to Win?

Actually, it's on a Win box now and going to stay there.

Thanks for the comments.

This is just a word of warning - I know others have upgraded to V5R4 without problems. But we have been fighting a problem since our upgrade on 3/9, with the visual assist buttons not working. We do have a new full package under V5R4 and have updated the clients (at Oracle support request). This is what I have found so far: if we touch the global specs (most likely dddict is the culprit) with new files, either through allowing jiti or building new global tables, the visual assist is often absent, or present but not working. I am getting around this by installing a new full PD package and immediately overlaying the global tables with a copy that I got from backup just before the V5R4 upgrade. Have been working with Tech Support since last Tuesday, and they haven't come up with anything yet. To my mind, it's got to be the R92TAM (getting errors in the log - I've put a thread out on this before), or it's whatever is behind the jiti process that is corrupting the client. Once JDE is opened with new specs, it hoses the application, and you have to install again. Can't just copy the old global tables into the spec directory and have it work.

So, you may want to test a client after installing a new package built under V5R4 and using either jiti or the full global table build.

This is probably something specific to our environment that has been corrupted, but you may want to better safe than sorry & test.

Have you tried to delete the QZDAPKG?

Looks like more an issue with Fat Clients. I'll have to check our dev clients (only a handfull). Everyone else in on the web, woohoo! Thanks for the info.

No, I haven't deleted that yet. Support originally asked me to do that, then said to hold off. I will try it the next time I can get a restricted system. Thanks for the reminder.

Seems the problem is fixed. Noticed varying results from testing this week - some times VA working and not others. iSeries was IPL'd on Sunday. (It was IPL'd several times after the V5R4 update).
- Installed full PD client on the spec build pc
- Built new specs. This time, during the R92TAM I did not get the errors previously mentioned in this thread.
- Install specs, all works OK. Also works if I delete specs and jiti. The steps I took this week were done many times last week without good results.

My conclusion: some kind of communication or other error between the iSeries IFS and the PC during download of specs, either via R92TAM or jiti was corrupting the ddict file. IPL straightened it out.

Hopefully, this is a one-time error, and others won't have this problem.