a Power Center 8.5 - Upgrade Methodology-Sonofon (1)

Upgrade to Informatica PowerCenter 8.5

(U2PC85X)

Methodology

Apr 2008

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION.............................................................................................................................. 5

1.1 Purpose......................................................................................................................................... 5

1.2 Scope of this document................................................................................................................. 5

1.3 Acronyms...................................................................................................................................... 5

2. UPGRADE APPROACH............................................................................................................................. 6

2.1. Big Bang Approach....................................................................................................................... 6

2.2. Phased Approach.......................................................................................................................... 6

2.3. Combination Approach..................................................................................................................7

3. UPGRADE METHODOLOGY....................................................................................................................... 8

3.1. Testing Approach.......................................................................................................................... 9

3.2. Acceptance Criteria....................................................................................................................... 9

3.3. Upgrade Path................................................................................................................................ 9

3.4. Phases, Activities and Deliverables.............................................................................................10

4. PROJECT GOVERNANCE............................................................................................................17

4.1. Project Organization.................................................................................................................... 17

4.2. Roles and Responsibilities..........................................................................................................17

5. UPGRADE ESTIMATION MODEL..............................................................................................................19

5.1. Estimation considerations for Conceptualization.........................................................................19

5.2. Estimation considerations for Upgrade........................................................................................19

APPENDIX A - POWERCENTER 8.5 KNOWN ISSUES..........................................................................................20

Appendix B – Upgrade Checklists.........................................................................................................21

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1. Introduction

1.1 Purpose

Sonofon plan to upgrade PowerCenter from version 6.2.1 to version 8.5.

The purpose of this document is to detail approach, planning and methodology for upgrading Informatica ETL environment to latest Informatica version (8.5.x). This document will facilitate Upgrade process and quicker stabilization of systems post-upgrade.

Estimation guidelines and other documents included with the Process Handbook can be leveraged for scoping and pricing of Upgrade initiatives as an account level.

1.2 Scope of this document

From PowerCenter version 6.1.x and up, Informatica components are packaged in standard and advance edition. Standard edition includes PowerCenter ETL product and Metadata reports. Advance edition consists of PowerCenter, Metadata Manager (Superglue) and Data Analyzer, the data-ready reporting product packaged together. The scope of this document is limited only to upgrading PowerCenter 6.x ETL components to PowerCenter 8.5. Since this is a upgrade from 6.x to 8.5 it would be done in steps.

Step1: Upgrade from 6.2.1 to 8.1

Step 2: Upgrade from 8.1 to 8.5

1.3 Acronyms

Acronym Expansion

ETL Extract, Transform and Load

ETVX Entry, Task, Validation, EXit

SIT System Integration Testing

UAT User Acceptance Testing

SOA Service Oriented Architecture

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2. Upgrade ApproachThe three approaches that can be used for upgrade are

1. Big Bang Approach

2. Phased Approach

3. Combination Approach

2.1. Big Bang Approach

Using this approach, all the repositories/subject areas will be upgraded simultaneously to PowerCenter 8.5 environment. This approach is best suited for environment in which there is less inter-dependency between the repositories/subject areas.

Advantages:

It provides fastest upgrade path

Disadvantages:

Rigorous testing is required to ensure the success of Upgrade

As all repositories are upgraded in one go, any failure would require a ‘rollback’ of the upgrade to earlier environment

A separate Upgrade path needs to be defined to move objects changed in earlier environment during Upgrade Lifecycle

Dependencies:

In case of failures and till system stabilization, old environment should be available to rollback to

Availability of dedicated team during Upgrade life cycle

2.2. Phased Approach

Using this approach, repositories are migrated one by one depending on their inter-relationships and project priorities.

Advantages:

Adaptable to any schedule or Subject-Area to be upgraded

Verification and validation takes place on a smaller unit

More suitable where multiple stake-holders are involved

Lessons learnt will be leveraged

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Disadvantages:

Takes longer time for complete Upgrade

Requires maintaining two separate development paths until the upgrade is complete

Dependencies:

Availability of dedicated Upgrade team

2.3. Combination Approach

proposes a combination approach to leverage advantages of both the approaches. As per this approach, all repositories will be upgraded using Big Bang approach to 8.x development environment and phased approach for migrating tested components to Production. proposes three environments on 8.x for testing and remediation - Development -> SIT and UAT -> Production. Prior to Upgrade, Informatica components will be frozen on Production environment, repositories will be backed up and these will be used for Upgrade process. After Upgrade to 8.x Development environment, existing server can be made available for regular activities, thus reducing down-time.

Advantages:

Minimum down-time

Verification and validation on smaller units

Lessons learnt will be leveraged

Disadvantages:

Requires maintaining two separate development paths until the upgrade is complete

Dependencies:

Availability of dedicated Upgrade Team

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3. Upgrade MethodologyUpgrade to PowerCenter 8.5 methodology is a six phased approach that minimizes risk and operational disruption while providing the most feasible solution. These phases are:

1. Assessment

2. Justification and Approval

3. Planning

4. Implementation

5. Deployment

6. Monitoring

As per the RFQ phase 1 and 2 are not relevant for Sonofon. But these are included in the TCS approach in full for the sake of completeness.

An ETVX (Entry-Tasks-Validation-eXit) model is defined for each phase. This conveys the entry and exit criteria for each phase, the Tasks and Validations performed at each phase, and how the phases are interrelated.

Figure below depicts the Upgrade Methodology Pyramid

Upgrade Methodology will focus on the following four major areas:

Identifying the business drivers (like cost savings and added functionality), business case justification and impact assessment to determine the readiness of the system and pinpoint the custom objects that will need to be addressed

Change Management and Training to increase end-user/operational-user acceptance and utilization of best practices

‘Risk-Mitigated execution approach’ without disruption of the day-to-day operations

Stabilization and Optimization of the post-upgrade environment for continuous business improvements and scalability through a planned roadmap approach

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Sub-section below details the ETVX for the phases stated above and procedures for Change Management, Risk Mitigation, etc.

3.1. Testing Approach

PowerCenter 8.x architecture and communication between internal services is different from other PowerCenter versions. Hence for ensuring optimal utilization of PowerCenter environment post upgrade, the following aspects are to be considered during testing:

Hardware environment setup

PowerCenter options

Upgraded Components

Three test cycles will be executed for upgraded environment.

1. Unit Testing: As part of this, each session/mapping will be executed. The purpose of this is to ensure the components are correctly upgraded to the 8.x Development environment. Data validation may or may not be in scope

2. System-Integration Testing: Integration of PowerCenter with external scheduling tools will be verified as part of this testing cycle. Also, tests of new features like High Availability, Security (LDAP, Active directories) will be verified. Any tests on implementation of GRID will be done as part of SIT

3. User Acceptance Testing: One end-to-end cycle will be executed on both 6.x and 8.x environment with same data set. Correctness of target data will be verified for each. Also, end-to-end ETL cycle (load window) will be timed to capture load timings and gauge performance improvements because of Upgrade

3.2. Acceptance Criteria

1. Data loads should complete in the same time window as with 6.x version. E.g. If data loads were completing in 4 hours on PowerCenter 6.x version, they should take 4 or less number of hours for same data volume

2. Data, as loaded by 6.x routines should match exactly with 8.x routines

3.3. Upgrade Path

Base Version Upgrade to Version Reference

PowerCenter 6.x PowerCenter 8.1.x U2PC8X Handbook

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3.4. Phases, Activities and Deliverables

Phase 1: Assessment

This phase includes various steps to assess existing PowerCenter environment to leverage the same for 8.x environment. The ETVX model for this phase is as follows:

Entry

The primary contact from clients side is identified

Project team of consultants is in place

Technical information like supported OS, databases and versions for Informatica PowerCenter 8.x along with Service Packs, if any.

Tasks

Future State PowerCenter Architecture Roadmap

o Create list of Project owners and stakeholders

o Review and understand current PowerCenter environment in sufficient detail as a first step towards preparation for stakeholder interviews

o Setup customized questionnaire templates Architecture

Current BI System Fact Sheet (HW and SW Architecture) Current Information Architecture (Data, Metadata, Documentation, Data

Requirements, Security Requirements) ETL

Data Sources–Subject Area Matrix ETL System Fact Sheet (Number of Jobs, schedule, formats, load

window, etc.) Level of Automation Survey

Project Management Current BI Vision, Roadmap, Alignment with Corporate Objectives and

Goalso Adopt and execute follow-up and escalation procedures and ensure required information

is collectedo Specify gaps between existing hardware/software environment and hardware/software

environment required for PowerCenter 8.xo Capacity Planning for new PowerCenter environmento Define roadmap for setting the Future State PowerCenter architectureo Identify and describe additional PowerCenter 8.x options that can be implemented at

client locationo Prepare Installation and Configuration manual for Informatica PowerCenter 8.x (base as

well as the service pack installation)

Deciding the domain and node names

OS environment – variables, db connectivity

Grid setup

Services setup

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Review and analyze the impact of upgrade on the existing objects (mappings, sessions, scripts, etc) due to changes in new release. If applying PowerCenter Service Packs check the documentation for the changes if any.

Develop project plan for the Upgrade that includes resources and timelines. Project plan should also include estimations for applying the Service Packs.

Prepare Upgrade Checklist

Define Acceptance criteria for Upgraded environment

Benchmark performance of ETL routines on 6.x environment

Validations

Review of Future State Architecture

Review of Installation and Configuration Manual

Review of Gap Analysis document

Review of Impact Analysis document

Review of Upgrade Checklist

Review of Project Plan

Exit

Project Plan for executing the Upgrade is finalized

Reviewed Future State Architecture is available

Reviewed Installation and Configuration Manual

Reviewed Upgrade Checklist

Reviewed Impact Analysis document is available

Reviewed Gap Analysis document is available

Deliverables

Document Responsibility

Future State Architecture Technical Consultant

Installation and Configuration Manual Technical Consultant

Upgrade Checklist Technical Consultant

Impact Analysis document Technical Consultant

Project Plan Project Leader

Gap Analysis document Technical Consultant

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Phase 2: Justification and approval

As part of this phase all administrative and monetary approvals will be sought for. ETVX model for this phase is as follows:

Entry

Assessment phase is complete

Tasks

Presentation of Assessment report (if required)

Documentation of License and costing details

Validation

Review of Impact Analysis and Gap Analysis documents

Exit

Sign-off for all deliverables of Assessment Phase

Deliverables

Document Responsibility

Signed documents Project Owner from client-side, Project Leader

Licenses Project Owner from client-side

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Phase 3: Plan

In this phase, all activities and checks prior to upgrade will be performed. ETVX model for this phase is as follows:

Entry

Management has approved the project

All required hardware/software and licenses are available

Future State Architecture details

Installation and Configuration Manual

Tasks

Certification of hardware/software environment

Freeze all folders, subject areas and repositories in existing Informatica environment which are to be upgraded

Backup existing Informatica PowerCenter/PowerMart repositories which are to be upgraded

Create database user account for domain config

Create domain by installing on a gateway node

Check remote connectivity by logging on to web-based Administration Console

Install and configure subsequent nodes (valid only where multiple physical machines are available for Informatica PowerCenter) and application services

Install and configure Informatica 8.5 client components.

Document any issues with resolutions encountered by the team during Informatica PowerCenter 8.x installation and configuration

Create test plans and test cases for UAT

Validations

Review of Installation and configuration manual (issues with resolutions included in the same)

Review of UAT test plans and test cases

Exit

Informatica 8.x Domain and nodes are up and running

Reviewed Installation and Configuration manual

Reviewed UAT test plans and test cases

Deliverables

Document Responsibility

Installation and Configuration manual Technical Consultant

UAT Test Plans Technical Consultant

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Phase 4: Implement

At the end of this phase validated and tested Informatica components will be available in Test environment. The ETVX model for this phase is as follows:

Entry

Plan phase is complete and all deliverables of the phase are available

Tasks

Prepare Unit Test, System Integration Test plans

For version 6.x

Restore repository backup/s into new schema using 6.x Repository Server Admin Console client tool

Copy the configuration files to the node on which services will run post upgrade

Validate Repository Server and Informatica server configuration files using 8.x Administration Console web-based tool

For version 8.x

The repositories automatically reflect under the Upgrade tab of the Administration Console.

Upgrade contents of global Informatica repository using Administration Console and then upgrade other local repositories

Check Logs for any upgrade errors

Make necessary changes to invalid Informatica components and perform unit testing

Create empty repository in SIT and UAT environment

Move unit tested Informatica components from development to SIT environment

Perform SIT as per plan

For any errors found in SIT, make necessary fix in development repository and move the components to Test environment

Modify Upgrade checklist for any error encountered during Upgrade but not available in the checklist

Install and configure Metadata Reporter (optional)

Validations

Review Unit & System Test plans

Review and test Informatica components in Development and Test environments

Review of Upgrade Checklist

Exit

System tested application is ready for deployment

Reviewed Test Plans and test results for UT and SIT

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Deliverables

Document Responsibility

Reviewed Unit, System Integration Test Plans and test cases

Technical Consultant

Reviewed Upgrade Checklist Technical Consultant

System tested application Project Leader

Site Rollout plan Project Leader

User Documentation Project Leader

Phase 5: Deploy

This phase includes the various steps for deploying Upgraded application. The ETVX for this phase is as follows:

Entry

Implement phase is complete and the deliverables are available

Tasks

Setup the UAT environment

Perform UAT for the upgraded application

Conduct End User Training program

Log user feedback, complaints and fix the issues

Setup Production environment

Deploy application

Validation

Validate UAT results against UAT plan

Validate performance in production environment (benchmark for this is earlier Informatica Performance statistics)

Review and validate upgraded application in Production environment

Validate ETL routines performance against benchmark

Exit

UAT is complete

Upgraded application is rolled out in Production environment

Deliverables

Document Responsibility

Implemented Application Project Leader

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Phase 6: Monitor

This phase includes a stabilization period. Also, any handover-takeover required from team to Support team would happen as part of this phase. Trainings, installation and configuration of Metadata Reporter can also be included in this phase. The ETVX model for this phase is as follows:

Entry

Deploy phase is complete

Tasks

Documentation of Standards, Lessons Learnt and overall upgrade process

Installation and configuration of Informatica Metadata Reporter

Operational Training to Admin team

Support deployed Informatica solution

Validation

Review Handover-Takeover and Upgrade process documents

Sign-off for all deliverables

Exit

Stable Informatica solution in upgraded environment

Deliverables accepted by Client

Production support handed over to client team

Deliverables

Document Responsibility

Reviewed Upgrade Process document including Standards and Lessons Learnt

Technical Consultant

Signed off Handover-takeover documents

Project Leader, Client Support team Leader

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4. Project Governance

4.1. Project Organization

The project can be set up in Onsite-Offshore using one of the following. These approaches are defined to bring cost savings, effective quality control and business continuity.

1. Complete Onsite

Complete project team works at client location for the project life cycle. This approach is preferred when the size of the application to be upgraded is small or team performing upgrade doesn’t have much insight into Client application.

2. Complete Offshore

Complete project team works from the development centers. This approach is practical if has got an established relationship with the client so that the existing infrastructure can be leveraged.

3. Onsite-Offshore

The project team is divided between onsite and offsite. On average 20% of the team works at client location and the remaining 80% of the team works from the TCS development centers. This approach being the hybrid of the earlier two approaches, works for all types of projects.

Phases 1 and 2 would be carried out entirely at Onsite. Phases 3, 4 would be carried out completely by Offshore team. Phases 5 and 6 would be carried out by both onsite and offshore teams.

4.2. Roles and Responsibilities

The Upgrade project team roles are Client Project Manager, Project Leader, Technical Consultant and TCS Developers.

The responsibilities of these roles are highlighted in the table below:

Roles Responsibilities

Client Project Manager

Reports to the project sponsor and provides direct inputs to the project leader Addressing out of scope issues not resolved with the immediate project

management Managing external risks to the project Monitoring project progress Managing escalated issues from project teams Measuring project success against budget, original scope, business objectives Planning activities for a specific process area or application product set Monitoring and reporting the progress of project teams to the client management

Project Leader

Interacts with the client Project Manager and Project Coordinator Developing high level project plan and detailed work plan & schedules Planning activities for a specific process area or application product set

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Assigning tasks to project personnel Monitoring staff and project progress Addressing out of scope issues and resolve with the client Project Manager Managing risks (internal and external) and escalated issues from project teams and

the client Project Manager Measuring project success against budget, original scope, business objectives

Technical Consultant

Reports to the Project Leader Analyze the current technical environment and identify the components requiring

upgrade Prepare the Impact Analysis Report Prepare the HLD for the impacted components Supporting the (onsite/offshore) development team on the design of impacted

components Facilitate technical correspondence between offshore development team and client

development team Completing tasks and deliverables assigned by the PL Keeping the PL informed of progress and issues in a timely manner

Developers Understand the upgrade impact on the components vis-à-vis the business

requirements Work with technical consultant to understand the changes to be made in Upgraded

components Modify the upgraded component code Unit test of the modified components Application test of the modified components Completing tasks and deliverables assigned by the project leader Keeping the project leader informed of progress and issues in a timely manner Time session performance

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5. Upgrade Estimation ModelFrom estimations perspective, the Upgrade initiative can be taken as two different projects:

1. Conceptualization or Assessment/Justification phases

2. Actual Upgrade process from Build to Monitor phases

5.1. Estimation considerations for Conceptualization

If conceptualization of future state architecture and certification of hardware/software environment is in scope, Assessment and Justification together would span for 3-4 weeks depending on complexity of the ETL environment.

If licenses are already available for PowerCenter 8.x and deployment architecture defined, 2 weeks should be sufficient for other activities to be performed. This is dependent on complexity of ETL environment and judiciously time should be estimated for the same.

As such, Assessment/Justification can be a fixed bid engagement.

5.2. Estimation considerations for Upgrade

Following are the considerations for estimating duration for actual upgrade and stabilization

Setup of software environment

Physical Upgrade of PowerCenter components - Configuration files, repositories, etc

Remediation and correction

Testing - Unit, System/Integration, User Acceptance

Post Upgrade Support - Cooling phase

End user and operational User training - This is optional

Transition of upgraded environment

Project Governance effort - This includes Project monitoring and planning effort

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Appendix A - PowerCenter 8.5 Known IssuesSource: Informatica Inc

https://my-prod.informatica.com

Release notes for latest PowerCenter version can be found under Documentation Center

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Appendix B – Upgrade Checklists

Sr. No. Name Description

1 Informatica Upgrade to v8.5.x

(Source: Informatica Inc)

Upgrade manual detailing hardware/software components, required patches, etc

2 Informatica Upgrade Checklist Pre-Upgrade, Upgrade and Post-Upgrade checklist to ensure all activities are tracked

3 Informatica Upgrade changes Details all the transformation and functions changes which will happen during Upgrade process

4 Sample Estimation Sheet Provides sample estimations for a medium sized project

5 Upgrade Utility in PowerCenter 8.5

Comparison tool is used for comparing 6.x with the upgraded 8.x version.

6 Upgrade to 8.5 – Lessons learnt

Lessons learnt while upgrading to PowerCenter 8.5

7 PowerCenter 8.5 – Upgrade FAQs

List of frequently asked questions

Source: Informatica Inc

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