Upgrading an existing PSIcapture Installation
Introduction
Upgrading PSIcapture is very similar to a typical software installation. During the installation, application data is not removed, and all configuration and licensing data will remain following the uninstalling/reinstalling of the application.
Important: Before upgrading an installation in Production, we always recommend setting up a test environment where you may test your configuration against the newer version of the software, as well as backing up the PSIcapture data on each machine.
Ensure you have tested all currently in-use Capture Profiles and that the upgrade satisfies the Production-level standards before proceeding with the actual upgrade. This is especially true if PSIcapture has had a recent Toolkit or OCR Engine update (versions 7.9+ will use the OmniPage OCR engine, for example)
Installations older than version 7.9.0.3 are advised to first upgrade to that version before proceeding to upgrade to 7.10.0.x or later.
Testing
When considering a production environment upgrade there are a few details that need to be
considered:
- Will the current workflows still function as designed?
- Will the data be skewed or incorrect due to an OCR engine update?
- Will the current production throughput remain, once PSIcapture is upgraded?
For these reasons and others, it is generally important to first test - before deploying any upgrades to a production environment. If needed, a test license may be requested from your Sales Representative by emailing them directly, or creating a ticket in the Support Portal.
Before upgrading, establish a test location and install the target version outside the
production environment.
- Your test environment should mirror your production environment as closely as possible.
- Assemble a set of test documents that are representative of documents that you typically
process through the your production workflow(s). You should run a test batch for each
document type that you have configured in the system. - Export your current production Capture Profiles from the production environment and import
these profiles into your test environment. (Contact PSIGEN Support if you are unable to
complete this task). - Test the same workload in the test environment to ensure production design and throughput
remains at the standards established in the current version. Focus on anomalies in results,
speed, and accuracy of capture. You may find that adjustments must be made to your profile
to ensure compatibility with the latest version.
- The release notes for the new version should also be used as a guideline for
determining which specific features you may need to test. - All newly released versions will include a ReadMe file with the installer.
- Note: If you discover a behavior has changed or throughput has ceased to meet
expectations, please contact our Support team so this issue can be investigated by
our experienced Support Engineers.
- The release notes for the new version should also be used as a guideline for
- Once testing is complete, uninstall all stations and upgrade to the target version that has
been tested. - Following the upgrade of all stations, use your assembled test set to confirm the results in your production environment.
Configuration Backups
PSIcapture version 4.0 and later makes a backup copy of critical application data. Prior to making any changes, please ensure a full backup has been completed.
This will require that the Capture Services be stopped, under Services.msc.
The backup Directory can be found here on all machines running PSIcapture: C:\ProgramData\PSIGEN
To create a backup, simply Copy and Paste the PSIGEN folder to the desired location of your choosing. Please allow for sufficient time for the copy to finish, and space on the disk we wish to copy to.
- We suggest naming the backup folder based on the currently installed version, or the current date.
Should your database files (Configuration and Batch Manager) be hosted in a SQL environment, then we also recommend taking backups of those databases.
- More information on that configuration can be found here.
- More information on backing up SQL databases here.
If you do not complete this process before upgrading, you will not be able to revert to the previous version of PSIcapture, should you have any serious issues.
Installation Steps
Before proceeding the steps below please review the following articles and documentation:
PSIcapture System Requirements
PSIcapture Documentation (Latest)
Once the above is understood and we have confirmed compatibility with the new version, we may proceed:
-
Check the Software Downloads page of the PSIGEN Partner Portal (requires login) to
download the latest installer or patch - for the version of PSIcapture.
- If you are an end user, you can request the latest software download from your
Reseller, or contact Support directly for access to the necessary files. - When downloading the latest release, the included ReadMe file will specify whether the
software version you are currently running can be patched, or if it requires a full installation.
- If the instructions require a full installation:
- Uninstall PSIcapture off of the machine being upgraded.
- Any logged in users to the Capture Services will be cleared, so take note of the user account under Services.msc (Local System is the default) as they will need to be added back in after installation is complete.
- Any logged in users to the Capture Services will be cleared, so take note of the user account under Services.msc (Local System is the default) as they will need to be added back in after installation is complete.
- Reboot the machine.
- Install the new version using the downloaded installer.
- Be sure to Unblock the file if needed (via Right-click Properties menu, by checking the box shown below), and Run as Administrator.
- If you are upgrading multiple machines, it is recommended that you start with the Capture Server and/or License server, and then proceed to the network stations; keeping all machines on the same version of the software.
- Be sure to Unblock the file if needed (via Right-click Properties menu, by checking the box shown below), and Run as Administrator.
- Uninstall PSIcapture off of the machine being upgraded.
- If the instructions allow patching from your current version:
- Execute the downloaded patch on each station.
- No reboot is required.
- If the instructions require a full installation:
- If you are an end user, you can request the latest software download from your
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