Upgrade to ArcGIS Enterprise 11.x

Summary

This article walks through the process of upgrading to ArcGIS Enterprise 11.x, with detailed steps on what needs to be checked before the upgrade, done during the upgrade, and verified after the upgrade.

Note:
The upgrade process can be time-consuming, and if not done correctly, many things can go wrong. The steps outlined here can save a significant amount of time and make the process more efficient.

Procedure

When planning an upgrade, keep in mind that it is not recommended to upgrade directly from versions that are more than two releases apart. For example, you can't upgrade directly from ArcGIS Enterprise 10.6.1 or earlier to version 11.0. You must first upgrade to an interim version (10.7.x to 10.9.x) and then upgrade to 11.0. Before upgrading, check the upgrade documentation for the interim version to confirm direct upgrades are supported for the starting version of ArcGIS Enterprise.

Prepare for the upgrade

Before starting the upgrade process:

1. Check if there are any considerations before upgrading to the desired version see: Considerations for upgrades to 11.0 and later
2. Check if there are any retirement notices: Retirement notices
3. Check the system requirements for the machine(s) that hosts the ArcGIS Enterprise products and ensure it meets the minimum requirements. From this, a list of the recommendations can be made like increasing the CPU, disk space, etc., before starting the upgrade process. See: ArcGIS Enterprise 11.0 system requirements
4. Check the type and version of the databases used and registered (such as SQL Server, Oracle, etc.) for compatibility. If not compatible, upgrade it before upgrading the ArcGIS Enterprise. See: Supported databases
5. Check permissions across the Enterprise deployment. The Windows service account running the services on all machines should be the same domain-level Active Directory administrative account. The account should have a static password. Explicitly add permissions to the following folders for full control. This must include read and write privileges. The drive listed here should be changed based on the drive used, commonly it would be the C drive but that is not always the case.
   1. Check permissions on the ArcGIS Server machine:
      • Check C:\arcgisserver
      • Check C:\Program Files\ArcGIS
      • Check C:\Python 27
   2. Check permissions on Portal for ArcGIS Machine:
      • Check C:\arcgisportal
      • Check C:\Program Files\ArcGIS
   3. Check permissions on ArcGIS Data Store Machine:
      • Check C:\arcgisdatastore
      • Check C:\Program Files\ArcGIS
6. Download the desired version of Portal for ArcGIS, ArcGIS Server, ArcGIS Data Store, and ArcGIS Web Adaptor, as well as the associated licensing, from the My Esri website.
7. Navigate to the portaladmin interface: https://domain.com/webadaptor name/portaladmin
   • System > Indexer
   • Check the index status and make sure the index values are aligned. If it's out of sync, re-index.
8. Take a snapshot of all the machines involved as a precautionary measure.
9. Validate federation and datastores. See: Validate Servers, and How To: Validate ArcGIS Data Store
10. Take note of the web adaptors' names.
11. Take note of the web context assigned (if any) for the portal and server. 
12. Back up the deployment using:
    • The webgisdr utility for Portal. See: Use the webgisdr utility -Export ArcGIS Enterprise
    • The backup utility for ArcGIS Server -Backup utility 
    • Run the backupdatastore utility to back up each data store-backupdatastore
    • Back up the arcgisportal content directory folder and any extensions you've added for Dashboards and Web AppBuilder. Additionally,
    • Back up the config.js file if you've configured advanced portal options by modifying the properties in the file. You can use the backed-up file as a reference to customize your portal's behavior through the ArcGIS Portal Directory (Sharing API) after the upgrade.
13. If possible stop the antivirus during the upgrade process.

Start the upgrade process

If it is a multimachine deployment, list the names of the machines: Upgrade your ArcGIS Enterprise portal

1. Upgrade the Portal for ArcGIS Upgrade the Portal for ArcGIS
   1. Clear the browser cache, including cookies.
   2. Run the Portal setup file (Setup.exe) as an administrator, and do not interrupt the installation process, it could take two to three hours depending on the machine's performance.
   3. Continue the Portal upgrade in the browser. Have the license file (.json) handy as it is required in the Import license file.
   4. If it is a highly-available portal, upgrade both primary and standby machines.
   5. Uninstall the existing portal's web adaptor.
   6. Install the new portal's web adaptor with the same name as before (the version upgrading to).
   7. Configure the portal's web adaptor. For full instructions, see the configuring topic for IIS or Java (Windows).
   8. Once completed, verify that you can log into the portal over the web adaptor URL, for example: https://webadaptorhost.domain.com/webadaptorname/home
2. Upgrade the ArcGIS Server serving as the portal's hosting server. Upgrade the ArcGIS Server
   1. Clear the browser cache (including cookies).
   2. Run the server installation file (.exe) as an administrator. A license file is required after this step.
   3. Continue the upgrade in the browser.
   4. Uninstall the existing Server's web adaptor. If it is a multiple-machine server site this must be done after finishing upgrading all machines joined in the site.
   5. Install the new Server's web adaptor with the same name as before.
   6. Configure the Server's web adaptor. For full instructions, see the installation topic for IIS or Java (Windows).
   7. Validate that the ArcGIS Server Manager interface is accessible over the web adaptor and that you can log in using portal credentials. When logging into Server Manager over the web adaptor, you should see the portal OAuth redirect indicating the federation has been maintained throughout the upgrade.
3. Upgrade the ArcGIS Data Store, see: Upgrade ArcGIS Data Store
   1. Clear the browser cache (including cookies).
   2. Run the Data Store installation file (.exe) as an administrator.
   3. Continue the upgrade in the browser.
   4. Once complete, verify that the Data Store validates successfully in the Server Manager.
4. Upgrade any additional ArcGIS Server sites, if there are any other federated servers, such as an image server. Repeat the upgrade process for each additional site.
   • ArcGIS GIS Server or ArcGIS Image Server sites
   • ArcGIS GeoEvent Server
   • ArcGIS GeoAnalytics Server
   • ArcGIS Notebook Server
   • ArcGIS Mission Server
   • ArcGIS Workflow Manager
   • ArcGIS Knowledge Server
   1. Clear the browser cache (including cookies).
   2. Run the Server installation file (.exe) as an administrator. A license file will be required after this step.
   3. Continue the upgrade in the browser.
   4. Uninstall the existing server's web adaptor (for the previous version) If it is a multiple-machine server site this is done after finishing upgrading all machines joined in the site.
   5. Install the new server's web adaptor with the same name as before.
   6. Configure the server's web adaptor.
   7. Validate that the ArcGIS Server manager is accessible over the web adaptor and that you can log in using portal credentials. When logging into Server Manager over the web adaptor, you should see the portal OAuth redirect indicating the federation has been maintained throughout the upgrade.
5. Once all the applications have been successfully upgraded
   1. Navigate to Portal home.
   2. Validate the ArcGIS Server in Portal for ArcGIS to make sure everything is successfully validated.
   3. Navigate to the portal admin interface:
      • Check the index status, If it's out of sync, re-index
   4. Navigate to the ArcGIS Server Manager:
      • Validate all data stores
   5. Restore any previously created portal customizations. When restoring your portal customizations, do not replace the files you modified in the previous version. This has an adverse effect on your deployment. You must manually re-add your custom behavior from the previous version in each file.
   6. It is recommended that you use the serverScan.py and portalScan.py scripts to review security best practices with your ArcGIS Server and ArcGIS Enterprise portal following the upgrade.
   7. After upgrading, carefully review the following information: Considerations after upgrading Portal for ArcGIS
6. If you used ArcGIS Enterprise Builder to set up a base ArcGIS Enterprise deployment on a single machine:
   1. Review and complete the steps in the prerequisites.
   2. As an administrator, run the ArcGIS Enterprise Builder installation file (.exe) of the desired version to install components.
   3. Use the configuration wizard or upgradebasedeployment command line utility to perform the upgrade.
   4. Complete post-upgrade steps.