Re: AX 2012 R2 Service Pack 2
I am looking for options in copying Business Setup data (eg Companies, Chart of Accounts, Location, etc) from one AX instance to another instance. The instances are currently in development so we don't have to worry about wiping out data. As of now one single instance has a master copy of all Business Setup information. What I want to do is copy that data to multiple development instances.
I can refresh the Model Store and Business Data with no problem. But the Business Setup data is a different beast entirely. In AX 2009, there was a feature to copy this information, but it has since been removed in AX 2012. I've read multiple articles on this but each one warns that it's either not recommended or only for testing. I need something that is safe to use.
Has anyone found a clean process to copy business setups from one instance to another in AX 2012?
The really simple solution is to have an AX setup database/environment without any transactions.
To deploy do a SQL Server, do a backup of the setup database and restore to the target database followed by a full AX dictionary synchronize in the target application.
This will of cause wipe out any transactions, setup etc. done in the target database.
After import a script is run to change file locations not to point to setup locations etc.
You may need to save some data beforehand using the Administration, Periodic, Data Export/Import, Export then import after the wipe.
Below is the actual procedure used by one of my customers. The setup is done in the production environment and the target may be the flow testing environment.
Sketch list:
Backup setup
Export target data
Stop target AOS
Restore to target
Run SQL script
Start target AOS
Database synchronization
Run AX script
Import target data
This procedure is also great for making a test environment of a production environment.
There is a Microsoft document, "Microsoft Dynamics AX 2012: Tech Domain New Features Module 5: Moving Between Environments" on this subject (Google that entire title and it will be the first hit).
The procedure that Jan outlines in his answer is correct but more high level. There is data in several tables that store configuration information that you want to wipe out after the restore, and insert the rows that were there prior to the restore. I.e., there are some tables that you need to export before you do the restore, so that you can create SQL scripts to insert that data.
You can do it without these procedures, but then you have a messy environment with AOS servers listed that aren't in the environment, and if you have a reporting server, help server, etc., you have to go through and change all of that manually. If you save the data prior to the restore, then you have scripts that will get the configuration where it needs to be and it just takes one second.
You can copy commonly used values from an existing company to a new one, as long as both companies are in the same database. For example, if you have a standard list of symptom codes that is common to all your service management implementations, you can copy the codes easily from one company to another.
To copy data to a new company using RapidStart Services:
Open the new company.
Choose the Lightbulb that opens the Tell Me feature icon, enter Configuration Worksheet, and then choose the related link.
Choose the Copy Data from Company.
On the Copy Company Data page, choose a company to copy from in the Copy From field, and then choose the OK button.
Select a table from one of the configuration packages that you have imported, and then choose the Copy Data action.
This works for me with Microsoft
Related
I have a visual studio project which contains a database project. I create an executable which performs a software update and part of that update is to update the database. Some of the stored procedures are dependent on a linked server existing which gets created as part of the executable too. The problem is that this functionality is optional and the linked server won't connect on some client machines. But the DACPAC fails because the linked server can't connect. I am using sqlpackage.exe to deploy the .dacpac file.
Is there some way that I can deploy either all or only some of the stored procedures? Or maybe I can set a flag to ignore linked server errors? Or maybe there is an alternative method to using sqlpackage/dacpac?
One option I thought of is to convert the stored procedures that contain the linked server to dynamic SQL.
Having the database in visual studio and therefore source control is important.
Yes!
This is fairly easy to do. You can see your database project in visual studio. I would recommend removing the stored procs that are problematic and merging those back in to master. Then I would take out a feature branch and point again to the DB you have the stored procs on and use the schema compare to get those back as well (even the ones that don't work well so that you don't lose them). Push the commit up to the feature branch repo. Then,now that you have the problematic stored procs in source control + the shippable version in master-- you can go ahead and thruough visual studio "publish" through the database project into the DBs you want the selected objects.
If you haven't checked in anything to master-- you can do the schema compare and select all objects except those that are problematic and update your database project. and merge that to master. If this doesn't make sense, please comment on this answer and I'm happy to give more detail.
Well, I came across this. Still working on to implement this to solve my problem. Might help your cause too.
Download the filter from:
https://agilesqlclub.codeplex.com/releases/view/610727 put the dll
into the same folder as sqlpackage.exe and add these command line
parameters to your deployment:
/p:AdditionalDeploymentContributors=AgileSqlClub.DeploymentFilterContributor
/p:AdditionalDeploymentContributorArguments="SqlPackageFilter=IgnoreSchema(BLAH)”
This will neither deploy, drop or alter anything in the BLAH schema.
More details on
https://the.agilesql.club/2015/01/howto-filter-dacpac-deployments/
I'm working on a project to create an external data warehouse using some data from Microsoft Dynamics AX 7. I am using the new BYOD approach which allows you to define an external database, and then use that database as the target when exporting one or more Dynamics entities.
See: https://blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/dynamicsaxbi/2016/07/27/export-dynamics-ax7-entities-to-your-own-azure-sql-database/
At the time of writing, this export mechanism is able to do incremental exports (only inserted or updated records) but it lacks support for record deletions.
With AX7 you cannot directly access the AX database from external systems, so what I'm wanting to do is run a post-export SQL script that will examine the MSSQL Change Tracking tables and based on that data for deleted rows, execute a series of delete systems on the same external database.
If it is possible, I'm hoping to use this more generic, sql-centric approach rather than getting involved in writing custom AX entities and export code.
How might one best approach this?
We will soon be migrating company data from our pre-production server to production with Microsoft Ax 2009. I believe that there are two ways to do this and would like to know of any issues that might arise with the second. This is migrating data across servers and not a simple case of duplicating company data on the same Ax 2009 service.
Use the Import / Export functionality. Administration -> Periodic -> Data Export/Import, create a new definition group and then export it. Recreate the same definition group on the second server then import. Here's an example how to do it for Ax 2012.
Export/Backup the SQL Server database from the first server and restore it over the second. We then would merely be eliminating our test and template company data from the second server. The Ax servers need to have the same patches and development layers installed first. I note that we would need to edit the ServerID value within SysServerConfig table afterwards.
Thanks
The Backup/Restore way to do it is at least 10 times faster.
There are some issues to be aware of though:
Ensure that references to the file systems are correct (e.g. Document parameters)
Server configuration setup
UAC cache file issue described here
Update 1:
For AX 2012 you will also need to have the same model store on the production server as well, this can be accompliced by using database backup/restore or using export/import of the object store as described here.
Update 2:
Update 1 is partly rubbish, both data and model store are copied in the SQL backup/restore. No need to synchronize the database afterwards! But it may come as a surprise.
What about this solution? How To Copy AOS instance from Server to another
How can I automate the web-application build process, that includes following steps:
Change connection string.
Recreate database by scripts.
Deploy web-site by ftp.
Copy some files to server in addition to application.
And may be perform some initialize operations.
Should I write any script/programm, use Visual Studio or any another program?
Personally I use a Continuous Integration tool to do this kind of work.
The one I mainly use is Team City by JetBrains.
This kind of software can look at your Source Control repo for new checking, perform builds, publish builds to servers as well as running pre/post build events.
You've to start learning MSBuild. It is VERY simple and straightforward, so just start and you'll see ;)
In adddition to built in features it has Community Pack with many tasty things so you will be able to:
Replace connection string in config file using regex or replace whole config with predefined connection string (FileUpdate or Copy task)
Execute database scripts (MSBuild.Community.Tasks.SqlServer.ExecuteDDL)
Deploy site using Copy task
And many other...
You can run pre and post events in Visual Studio. To do this, simply right click on the project and in the project properties navigate to the 'Build Events' options. Here you can specify the pre and post build events (you can also specify when the event runs - on successful build or otherwise).
Once the project has been successfully built, the post build event can be set up to perform the tasks specified. You can detail the steps either in a separate file or in Visual Studio project's build events itself.
More information
Pre/Post Build event command line arguments
How to: Specify Build Events (C#)
Much along the continuous integration concept Jamie mentions, we use BuildMaster internally for all of our applications since we develop it :)
Now that we have a version offered for free, I'll share some thoughts on each of your bullet points:
Change connection string
This is something that is handled uniquely by the tool. Each environment would get its own "instance" of a configuration file and in a deployment plan you can use the "deploy configuration files" action to put them in any environment. This means there are no transforms to worry about since the config file is stored and versioned within the tool.
Recreate database by scripts
This is another major feature we have. Object code (stored procs, views, etc.) can be run every time with a DROP/CREATE combo, but adding indexes, dropping columns, can only be done once (you can't bring a column's data back without a restore!)
BuildMaster handles these types of change scripts differently - they can only be run at most once against an environment's instance of your database. This makes it super easy to bring any new or existing initialized database schema up-to-date.
Deploy web-site by FTP
Just add an action to your deployment plan, and you click Create Build or Promote Build, it will do that.
Copy some files to server in addition to application
If the process is repeatable you can do this easily, if need be by using a manual action that will remind you to do it.
And may be perform some initialize operations
This sounds like a "change control" to me, a one-time change when you release. We support these as well but not in the free version unfortunately.
I need to manipulate some tables in a JET database housed on a web-server:
check existing indexes
change table cluster/primary key
see what tables exist
rename tables
add tables
drop tables
browse data
etc
I don't have the option of installing PlaneDisaster or Access (even if i had it) on the local machine.
I've already written a generic web-based query tool. I'd rather not have to get into writing a whole web-based database maintenance GUI. Someone must have done this already, and probably many times over.
A partial answer might be Compare'Em
http://home.gci.net/~mike-noel/CompareEM-LITE/CompareEMscreens/CompareEM-About.htm The Pro version allows you to create SQL statements to update the Access database file. This will allow you to generate the differences between one version and a newer version.
His website isn't very clear but as I recall the price for the Pro version was $10.
As you say you have already done a generic web based query tool. The problem with JET is that you cannot connect with it as database server like you can do with one SQL server in order to process changes to tables and other maintenance procedures. Jet is is not a client/server RDBMS. You need to have an application in the server to do that for you as you already have done with your generic web based tool, or download the database to your machine. That's why you have done some procedures and locate them in the server as asp pages.
Anyway you can use JetSQLConsole, if you don't want to use Planedisaster or Access, but remember that you need always an application on the server to to the job for you
You can also use access "in your machine" and connect to a database located in a URL (http://myserver/mydatabase.mdb) but remember when you are doing this you are downloading all the database and when you save it you are uploading it again.