SIMS Spring 2017 Release IN17-E019 - · PDF fileSIMS Spring 2017 Release IN17-E019 ... part of this upgrade please refer to Capita’s SIMS Spring 2017 Release note ... already on

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SIMS Spring 2017 Release IN17-E019

Action Level: Severity Level: Deadline:

Required High 18 May 2017

Audience: Attention of: Region:

All Schools excluding EIS Hosted Schools

SIMS System Manager and Network Manager

Kent / Medway / Bromley / Bexley / East Sussex / Suffolk

Applies to: Article Type:

**Hosted Schools - No # Non-Hosted Schools - Yes Information Notice

**Any Establishments that are using the EIS Hosting Service to host their SIMS database DO NOT need to carry out this upgrade as it will be completed by EIS between 19:00 on Friday 28 April and 06:00 on Monday 1 May 2017. This means you will not be able to access SIMS during this time

# Please Note – any schools that are part of the EIS SIMS Upgrade Service will be emailed the date when their SIMS upgrade will take place.

Summary

This document serves to notify schools that the SIMS Spring 2017 Release is now available. Those schools that are using SOLUS3 V3.11.56 or above should read this document and follow the instructions to carry out the upgrade. This document provides a checklist for the actions that should be carried out in order to apply a SIMS upgrade plus full detailed instructions. To find out more about the changes in functionality provided as part of this upgrade please refer to Capita’s SIMS Spring 2017 Release note (see page 23 of this notice for details).

Release of files: The upgrade files will be released to all schools by 16:00 On Tuesday 28 March 2017.

Document Control:

Created on: 02/02/2017 Expiry date: 01/03/2018

Updated on: Author: SIMS-CEW

Any amendments to this document are outlined below:.

Page Paragraph Detail

http://www.eisit.uk/

IN17-E019 - SIMS Spring 2017 Release

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Schools using Remote Access via KLZ: Schools using the Kent Learning Zone (KLZ) to connect remotely to their SIMS database should upgrade their SIMS system as near as possible to the date that EIS will be updating the remote connection element that is part of KLZ. If schools do not upgrade their SIMS on or around the 28 April 2017 they will not be able to access SIMS remotely until the school SIMS is at the same version as the KLZ servers. EIS will be updating the remote connection between 19:00 on Friday 28 April to 06:00 on Monday 1 May 2017


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IMPORTANT INFORMATION: PLEASE READ BEFORE UPGRADING

This release should only be applied on the computer that is the SIMS SQL Server, and has SOLUS3 installed. 1. Upgrade Path: This update release should only be applied if you are, as a minimum,

already on version 7.172 of SIMS .net.

2. Supported SQL versions: SIMS, FMS, Discover, Partnership Xchange, SOLUS and InTouch run on SQL Server 2012 and SQL Server 2014 only.

3. SIMS Services Manager: From the SIMS 2014 Autumn Release, the SIMS Services Manager (SSM) has been incorporated as part of the upgrade process. SSM is installed automatically and silently on the SIMS SQL Server as part of the server upgrade process and installs .NET Framework 4.5.2. The standard reboot that normally occurs as part of the .NET installation has been suppressed and will not occur automatically. Likewise, in order to protect the SIMS upgrade and to avoid causing alarm, if there are any issues with the installation of SSM or the .NET Framework, no error messages will be displayed and the rest of the SIMS upgrade will proceed as normal. To enable the successful installation of these components, there must be 2 GB of free disk space available on the SIMS SQL Server. If you run the upgrade manually and do not want SSM to be installed, please use the switch /NoServiceManager when you run SIMSSQLApplicationSetup.exe. The text in the switch is case sensitive.

4. Examinations Organiser: From the SIMS 2014 Spring Release, Capita have included the Microsoft Report Viewer as part of the workstation upgrade process. This is used by the reporting functionality for Examinations Organiser provided with that release. If the Report Viewer upgrade is taking an excessive amount of time and you decide not to install it, a user with Administrative rights can save time by running the SIMS workstation upgrade (SIMSApplicationSetup.exe) via the Command Line, using the /NoReportViewer switch. Taking this action means that you will have to install the Report Viewer at a later date.

5. Schools using the SIMS Learning Gateway Solution: The SIMS Learning Gateway Spring 2017 Release can be used alongside the following versions of SIMS: SIMS 2017 Spring 7.174 and SIMS 2016 Autumn 7.172 releases. Important Note: - If you install the SIMS 2017 Spring Release (SIMS 7.174) and continue to run an older release of SLG, this is not guaranteed to work and is therefore not supported.

6. Schools using the SIMS Partnership Xchange Solution: Schools using the SIMS Partnership Xchange (PX) solution should ensure the SIMS PX Agent is upgraded to the PX 2017 Spring Release immediately after, or in conjunction with, upgrading to the SIMS 2017 Spring Release. Important Note: - If you install the SIMS 2017 Spring Release (SIMS 7.174) and continue to run an older release of the PX Agent, this is not guaranteed to work and is therefore not supported.

7. If your school uses both Fees Billing and FMS, SIMS and FMS must be upgraded at the same time.

8. Schools using the Kent Learning Zone (KLZ) to connect remotely to their SIMS database - It is important that schools using the KLZ to access their SIMS database remotely via the Internet should upgrade their SIMS system as near as possible to the date that EIS will be updating the remote connection element that is part of KLZ, otherwise schools will not be able to access SIMS remotely. EIS will be updating the remote connection from 19:00 on Friday 28 April to 06:00 on Monday 1 May 2017.


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9. Schools whose SIMS database is being hosted by EIS: The upgrade to your SIMS database will take place from 19:00 on Friday 28 April to 06:00 on Monday 1 May 2017. This will mean that you will not be able to access your SIMS database during this time. EIS will also advise EIS Hosted customers of this date via email.

10. Schools Using SIMS Nova T6/Options Satellite Applications: Schools who are using SIMS Nova T6/Options Satellite Applications will also need to ensure that School Timetablers have updated the SIMS Nova T6 satellite versions being used on a laptop or other stand-alone computer following this SIMS upgrade. The version can be checked by left clicking Help on the menu bar and opening ‘About’. Please refer to EIS Information Notice 14-E029 - Nova-T / Options Satellite Upgrade, for full instructions. Please see page 24 for information on how to extract these NOVA upgrade files from SOLUS3.

11. Schools Using SIMS Discover: Separate instructions will be issued to schools with regard to the upgrade for SIMS Discover. The Discover upgrade can be scheduled to apply on the same night as the SIMS upgrade but must run after the SIMS upgrade has completed. If the Discover deployment start time is not set to run after the SIMS upgrade is finished, then the data transfer between SIMS and Discover will not work until the SIMS upgrade has completed.

12. Windows 10: SIMS, FMS and Discover are supported on Windows 10 from the Spring 2016 Release onwards.

13. SIMS Agora: Does not form part of the SIMS 2017 Spring Release. For information on the latest release of Agora, please refer to the Agora release note available from Capita.

14. SIMS ID: SIMS ID does not form part of the SIMS 2017 Spring Release.

15. All users must be logged out of SIMS, FMS and Discover before the upgrade is applied.

16. The upgrade should only be applied after the daily backup of your SIMS server has taken place.

https://support.eisit.uk/info-notice/nova-and-options-satellite-install-or-upgrade-14-e029/

https://support.eisit.uk/info-notice/nova-and-options-satellite-install-or-upgrade-14-e029/


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ADVICE FOR PERFORMING A SIMS UPGRADE

EIS strongly suggests that you prepare carefully for this upgrade by reading these instructions in full before starting the upgrade.

Should you need to call us for advice/support for performing the upgrade our available times for the EIS Service Desk are 08.00 to 17:00 Monday to Friday excluding public holidays.

On which machine should you run this upgrade? This upgrade must be run on the machine which is used as your SIMS database server and has the SOLUS3 User Interface installed. This will be the machine where the SIMS database files are physically located. If you are not sure which machine you should be using please contact the EIS Service Desk for assistance before proceeding.

What rights do I need on the server? For Windows 2008 / 2008R2 / 2012 / 2012 R2 Servers you must log in as a user with Administrator permissions.

Do I need to take a backup first? It is VITAL that a backup of your SIMS, FMS and Discover databases have been taken before this upgrade takes place. The upgrade should be scheduled to apply after the daily backup of your server has taken place

In addition you may wish to export SIMS Reports that have been written by school users:

EXPORTING ‘CUSTOM MADE’ SIMS REPORTS

EIS feel it would also be prudent for schools to safeguard any ‘custom made’ reports, (these are reports that have been produced in-house using the SIMS .net Reporting tool) as outlined in an EIS Support Document – Information Notice 13-E123.

https://support.eisit.uk/info-notice/importing-exporting-sims-reports-13-e123/


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SIMS UPGRADE CHECKLIST

Step Detail Notes Completed

1. Make a note of the time of the daily backup

2. Export custom SIMS reports

See Information Notice 13-E123 Importing and Exporting Reports.

3. Check the Upgrade files are listed in Update Library and have downloaded (see pages 7-10)

4. Schedule the SIMS Upgrade to run overnight (after the daily backup) page 11

NB: This will apply the SIMS upgrade and any auto deployable SIMS related patches allocated to your site.

5. Check the upgrade has completed successfully (see page 13).

6. If upgrade shows as PARTIALLY Successful (see page 15).

7. Upgrade shows as Successful – Run SIMS on the SERVER and continue to points 8 and 9 below

8. Clear the ticks from the Auto Deployment tab (see page 19)

9. Import updated SIMS reports (see page 21 and 22)

10. Print / read “What’s new in this release” (see page 23)

11. Extract executables if required (see page 24)

Schools that have SIMS Discover installed will also need to follow Information Notice 17-E020 SIMS Discover 2017 Spring Release which can be found under the Upgrades area of the EIS Support Portal To log into the EIS Support Portal you will need to enter your username in the following format: [email protected] e.g. [email protected]

https://support.eisit.uk/info-notice/importing-exporting-sims-reports-13-e123/

https://support.eisit.uk/?sfid=231&_sft_category=upgrades

https://support.eisit.uk/?sfid=231&_sft_category=upgrades

mailto:[email protected]



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UPGRADING THE SIMS SERVER

Important note:

No users should be logged in to SIMS, FMS or Discover when you perform this upgrade.

Before scheduling the SIMS upgrade to run using SOLUS3, you will need to check that the SIMS Spring 2017 upgrade has been downloaded to your SIMS/SQL server. On the Server that holds the SIMS database and has Microsoft SQL 2012/2014 installed, run the SOLUS3 Deployment Server User Interface from the icon on the desktop

1. The first SOLUS3 screen takes you to the Update Library page.

When your SOLUS3 system was originally setup, it was set to automatically download any updates allocated to your school on a daily basis. Therefore any updates/patches that have been previously allocated to your school will be listed here as per the example below:

2. If the new SIMS updates i.e. SIMS Spring 2017 Release (7.174.37) and SIMS Spring 2017

Database Only (3.62.667 and 3.62.669) files are showing here as downloaded then please go straight to page 11 to schedule the auto deployment. If the updates are not showing on this list, you can force SOLUS3 to check for updates. Firstly make sure there is a tick in the box to Show all updates and then click on the green Check for updates button at the bottom of the screen.


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The following message will appear in the centre of the screen to show that it is checking on the Capita server for any new updates:

If any new updates have been found, a message will be displayed showing which updates have been found for your site:

Click OK to this message and the updates will then be displayed on the list as per the screenshot.


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You may find that when you click on check for updates the following message is displayed:

When you click OK to acknowledge this message you should see the new SIMS Spring 2017 updates showing in the Update Library as in the screenshot below:

Before the updates can be auto deployed, they need to be downloaded – highlight the files SIMS Spring 2017 Full Release (7.174.37) and SIMS Spring 2017 Database 2017 Only (3.62.667 and 3.62.669) then click on the Download button at the bottom of the screen.


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When the files have successfully downloaded, the status will show as Downloaded.

Now that the files have successfully downloaded you can go on to schedule the upgrade to run overnight.


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SCHEDULING THE SIMS SPRING 2017 UPDATE TO RUN OVERNIGHT

To schedule the SIMS Spring 2017 Update to run automatically overnight; first check what time the nightly scheduled backup will be running so that this update can be applied after this time. Schools using the EIS Remote Backup Solution can hover over the icon in the system tray on the server - this will show the status of the last backup and the time it is scheduled to run next.

It is advisable to check the previous days backup log (Schools using the EIS Remote Backup solution are emailed on a daily basis) to see when the previous night’s backup finished so that you can schedule the upgrade to apply after the backup has completed – we would recommend that the schedule is to set to apply at least one hour after the nightly backup has completed: Example: EIS Remote Backup Solution “Summary” email: No users must be logged in to SIMS, FMS or Discover when you perform this upgrade. From the main SOLUS3 menu select the Settings | SOLUS3 | Deployments tab

To: Attix 5 Logs <[email protected]>; Subject: Backup Completed [EIS School] - Please check Log

Backup completed at: 2015/12/28 23:43:34

Your backup summary is as follows: Message: 23:50:47 ========== Backup Summary ========== Message: 23:50:47 Total selection: 57.32 GB in 183,922 files and 33,999 folders Message: 23:50:47 Total backup time: 1h50min Message: 23:50:47 Backup Status: Successful with warnings Message: 23:50:47 Thank you for using the EIS Remote Backup Service. Message: 23:50:47 If you have any questions or queries, please contact the EIS Service Desk on 0300 065 8888 or email [email protected]




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1. a) Tick the module that you want to update i.e. SIMS

By selecting the SIMS option, it will perform the SIMS Spring 2017 update and apply any auto deployable SIMS patches that have been allocated to your school.

b) Enter the time span for the update to run (you need to add at least a two hour slot i.e. 02:00 – 04:00) Please ensure you use a colon in between the hours and minutes. NB: the time slot selected must be after the nightly back up has completed to ensure a backup of SIMS and FMS has taken place before the upgrade begins.

c) Tick the day you want the update to apply

2. Now click on the Save button in the bottom right hand corner and then close the SOLUS3 UI.

Handy hint: On the night that you apply the update, you might want to leave your SIMS workstations switched on (but not logged on) - that way, when SOLUS3 sends out the workstation update it will find the PC on line and apply the update immediately. If the workstation is offline at the time of the upgrade, then SOLUS3 will send the update when it is switched on in the morning – this process can be a little slow so it would be preferable to leave the PC on overnight.


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HOW TO CHECK THE UPDATE HAS SUCCESSFULLY APPLIED

The upgrade will apply overnight on the day/time specified but you need to check the next day that the upgrade has completed successfully. Select the SOLUS3 Deployment Server UI icon from the desktop

1. From the main SOLUS3 menu select the Deployment History tab (Upgrades |

Deployment History)

Click on the SIMS Spring 2017 Full Release update to make sure it is showing as Successful (please note the previous upgrades listed will not be the same as the screenshot below).


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If the update is showing as Successful then continue on from page 19. If the update is showing as FAILED or as Rollback in Progress please call the EIS Service Desk for assistance. If the update shows as Partially successful for the SIMS 2017 Spring update please follow the instructions on page 15.


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A PARTIALLY SUCCESSFUL UPGRADE

The status message is a “snapshot” of the status immediately after the upgrade has completed. If the upgrade is showing as Partially Successful, it may be that one or more of the SIMS workstations were offline at the time the upgrade was applied. For example, if the SIMS database and the majority of the SIMS workstations upgraded successfully but one of the workstations was offline (and therefore not upgraded) the status would show as Partially Successful (even when all the workstations have upgraded this message will remain the same). However, once this SIMS workstation is switched on, the SOLUS3 console on the server will send out the update to the workstation and upgrade it to the new version – as the process can be a little slow we would recommend that workstations are left switched on (but not logged on) on the night of the upgrade. However there are two options that are new from SOLUS 3.8 onwards which allow the user to “request” the update from the server:

a) The user is now able to update the module from the workstation by just clicking on the SIMS icon - this should detect that the version is not the current one and give you the option to update.

b) Or, the user can check the version/run the update by double clicking on the SOLUS3 agent notifier in the system tray:

The following screen will be displayed:

Click on the Applications tab, then and click on the “Check for update” button next to the SIMS Workstation.


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You will be prompted to say Yes to install the update

Click OK to the deployment message

Click Deploy Now to perform the update

When the workstation update has completed the following screen will be displayed and SIMS .net will be ready for use:


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HOW TO RE-DEPLOY THE SIMS WORKSTATION UPDATE TO ONE OR MORE STATIONS

From the Main SOLUS3 UI select the Deployment History button, then highlight the Partially Successful upgrade N.B. the example below uses the SIMS 2014 Autumn Upgrade

Then click on the Redeploy button to open the following screen:


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This will display all components included in the upgrade i.e. SIMS Database, SIMS SQL Server and SIMS Workstations in the SIMS channel. To redeploy the SIMS workstation update to those PCs that failed to upgrade, just put a tick in the box to the left of the PC name and click on the Deploy now button at the bottom of the page and then click Yes on the Deploy now message.

NB - SOLUS3 will automatically place a tick in the box of those workstations that did not upgrade at the time of auto deployment - if you do not wish to send the update out to all these workstations just remove the tick next the workstation name. Alternatively, you can leave all the ticks in place and SOLUS3 can redeploy the update to all of those that failed to upgrade.

Click OK to the Deployment plan rescheduled message:

You will be returned to the Deployment History page, where you can see the updates being applied. When the update has completed it will show as Successful, as per the screenshot on page 13.


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AFTER THE SIMS SPRING 2017 UPGRADE HAS APPLIED

Now that the upgrade has applied you must clear the ticks from the auto deployment screen to stop SOLUS3 automatically applying any SIMS update/patch allocated to your School.

1. From the Main SOLUS3 menu select the Settings | SOLUS3 | Deployments tab - now remove the tick next to the selected SIMS module (this will remove the time span):

2. Now click on Save and then exit from the SOLUS3 User Interface.


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CHECKING THE SIMS .NET VERSION NUMBER

Once the update has been completed the SIMS .net version should be 7.174 and the Database Build should be 3.62.669 Build 37. To check this go into SIMS .net, from the top tool bar select Help\About SIMS .net and the version number will be displayed as shown below.

Once you have checked it click on the picture to close the window.


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IMPORTING THE UPDATED SIMS .NET REPORTS

The following instructions only need to be done once to make the reports available to all computers that run SIMS .net on the school network.

1. To import the reports login to SIMS .net and select Reports | Import. The Import Reports window will appear.

2. Click on Open and the ‘Select report file to import’ window will open and you should see a file called Predefined_Reports_v7174.RptDef. Select it by clicking on it and then click on Open.

The import report(s) window will now open. Check that all the reports have a tick next to them on the left hand side and that a tick is present in the Import associated templates box. Now click on Import to import the reports to your SIMS .net Document Server.


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3. When the reports have been imported the word Imported will appear in the Status column as shown below. Click on Close to complete the process.

The new/updated reports are now imported and will be available to all computers that run SIMS .net.


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WHAT IS INCLUDED IN THIS RELEASE?

On first running SIMS following an upgrade, the software launches a window containing information about what is new in this release. This information may be accessed at any time, until the next upgrade, from the SIMS Home Page and the Documentation button:


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EXTRACTING EXECUTABLE FILES FOR MANUAL UPDATE OF WORKSTATIONS IF REQUIRED

From the first SOLUS3 menu (Upgrades | Update Library | Updates) highlight the SIMS Spring 2017 Full Release (7.174.37) and then click on the Extract button at the bottom of the page:

1. After clicking on the Extract button the following “Browse For Folder” screen will be displayed as below:


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2. Select the option to Make a New Folder and give it a name i.e. Spring SIMS 2017 Executables and then click on OK

3. The executables will extract to this newly created folder on the desktop of the server and

when complete the following message will be displayed – just click OK to the message

If you now open this Spring SIMS 2017 Executables folder you will see that the executables are now available for you to use if required:

SIMS Spring 2017 Release IN17-E019 - · PDF fileSIMS Spring 2017 Release IN17-E019 ... part of this upgrade please refer to Capita’s SIMS Spring 2017 Release note ... already on

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