Orion Server Migration

 Moving Orion to a different server is a fairly easy process, although it does require coordination between the firm and Orion.  Labor from Orion is necessary to complete this task, and requires at least 2-weeks notice for proper scheduling.  A proposal will be provided to you beforehand so that you may plan accordingly.  Usually the migration only involves a couple of hours.  To schedule a change of server or request a quote, simply email support@orionlaw.com or call 800.305.5867 and report your request.  The project is divided into two phases, pre-deployment which involves installing prerequisite software, and the cutover date, which is the actual date the server change is made.  The cutover date requires about 4 hours during which nobody can be in Orion.

Below is a summary of our system requirements.  As a general rule, Orion works best with faster cpu speed vs. core’s.  A significant amount of computing occurs at the workstation level and we encourage you to exceed our minimum requirements when possible, especially for those in a position of accounting or for individuals that need to run reports.  Orion also recommends being placed on its own dedicated server.  This eliminates potential conflicts and ensures resources dedicated to the processing of Orion.  Below are the recommended guidelines.  These guidelines DO NOT take into account any other applications or operating system overhead required for daily computing.

There are many factors to consider when preparing for the hardware that will house the Orion database software.  The most notable is the size of the firm and the modules they have installed.  You are encouraged to communicate your server hardware planning with your assigned technician.  This ensures the server will be appropriate to your unique firm in terms of speed and performance of the Orion application. 

Preference of CPU’s over Cores

Preference of CPU’s over Cores

Orion Practice Management integrates with other applications.  The following is a list of compatible programs with version 4.5.

Virtualization

Orion can be installed in a virtualized environment.  It works great, and we recommend it to many firms.  However, care and planning should be used before deploying this scenario.  Orion, like most database products, requires proper I/O throughput for acceptable speed.  Since any I/O request inside a VM has to pass through a translation layer and then get passed to the physical hardware, it takes longer to perform each operation.  This can be compounded by multiple VM’s running on the same host using the same physical drives.  The same is true for network transmissions.  As the database receives and responds to requests, all network traffic must pass through the hypervisor layer which can increase latency. 

Troubleshooting can be much more difficult in a VM environment, as the interplay or problems from one VM to another running on the same physical machine get much more complicated.  

Orion is fully supported in a virtual server with respect to functionality. This means that Orion will help you troubleshoot any issues due to crashing or other problems on virtual servers.  However, these services are billable and we do NOT guarantee performance in these environments.  We can only guarantee performance using our recommended requirements of a separate stand-alone server.  If you choose to virtualize, please ensure that your hardware resources will meet or exceed the performance as listed in our recommended server requirements.  At a minimum Orion should be configured with its own dedicated NIC card and disk drives – we continue to recommend RAID 10 even in a virtual environment. Many firms continue to prefer Orion be installed in a virtual environment.  This is fine, just be aware we do NOT recommend it for the best possible performance

One critical element in determining the overall scope of the project is to identify what version of Pervasive the firm is running.  It is required to run Pervasive 11 on any machines Windows 7 and above as well as Server 2008 and above.  Please refer to the below support matrix.  If the firm is running Pervasive 9, they must upgrade to Pervasive 11.  Pervasive 9 can no longer be distributed.

To determine your Pervasive version, from any workstation do the following,

1. Go Start, Run, type in PCC and choose run.
2. Go to the Help menu and choose about.

If the firm is on anything less than Pervasive 11, they must upgrade. The pricing for Pervasive varies by user count.  Please contact Orion to receive an upgrade quote.  The firm must purchase Pervasive from Orion in order for Orion to support and distribute it.

It is necessary that Orion’s Support Personnel be involved in a server migration.  This task can only be completed by specific personnel and must be scheduled beforehand to ensure availability.  To schedule your upgrade, please call or email Orion support at either 1-800-305-5867 or support@orionlaw.com.  We can also arrange for a Pervasive quote if necessary.

At this point you can begin provisioning your new server.  Because Orion will be performing the server installation, we will need remote access including a user account with the necessary rights.  This account must remain active after the server installation, and is required by the support agreement.  This allows for support technicians to respond and provide support at significantly faster levels than otherwise available.  The majority of support related questions are client specific and require us to review and evaluate each request individually.  Orion prefers RDC for remote connection, although Citrix is also acceptable. Other third party software will require prior approval.  Should you require IP addresses to lock down the connections between firewalls, they can be provided.  The following is required,

• Server IP address.  If the Orion server is not internet facing, it is acceptable to remote into a terminal server and then connect to the Orion server.  Orion prefers Remote Desktop Connection.
• If the connection is Citrix, we require the exact Citrix client required for connection.  Due to the number of different Citrix clients and connection methods available, please provide us with exact directions on how to connect to the Orion server, such as one that you would provide an end user.
• The Domain and username (Orion prefers Orion for user name).
• The Orion account must have appropriate rights and privileges to install and maintain software. Orion prefers belonging to the Domain Administrator account. Often, a local user or administrator is NOT sufficient due to the nature of communications across the network.  Especially in firms where group policy is extensively configured.

The following is to occur during the day of the actual switch over.  Doing so beforehand will prevent the user’s from running Orion.

Users will be required to have a mapped network drive using the same letter pointed towards an Orion Share.  They will need full rights (read/write) to the entire folder.  This share is typically called OLMS and will be determined during your server install.  The preferred drive letter mapping is O.  The following is an example of how to create a share at the workstation level, including in a login script.   In the example, drive letter of O is used and the name of the server is ACCT.  On the day of the switchover, it’s necessary to have all workstations point towards the correct mapped drive.

net use O: \\acct\olms

If the firm was required to upgrade Pervasive, it must perform a client install at each workstation.  If the workstation is already using Pervasive 11, this is not required.  This installation may or may not require a reboot of the workstation depending on the version.  The exact location of the installer will be provided to you in the pre-deployment process.  There are essentially two different ways that Pervasive can be deployed. 

1. Using the Wizard.

..\Orion\PVSWCache\PSQL11.30\autorun.exe.  You must choose 32-bit client even if on a 64-bit workstation.  Choose Complete and Application when prompted

2. Using an MSI script

..\orion\pvswcache\psql11.30\Windows\PervasivePSQLv11Client_x86 /qn which will install it silently.  You may also replace /qn with /qb which will display a bar showing you when it completes but require no prompts.

Orion determines the server and database location via the registry.  This information is prepopulated during a typical workstation installation, but is not included with a simple server migration.  These settings must be modified to ensure that when users launch Orion they connect to the database successfully.  The two locations are located at,

 1. Hkcu\software\Orion\CaseManagement\Server  – This should be set to the new server name

 2. .default\software\orion\casemanagement\server – This should be set to the new server name.

Orion has found it easy to change this registry setting on one computer, export the key and import it to other workstations.  It can be done with one click, or via a silent login script.  How you accomplish this in different environments varies, but we will be glad to help you with accomplishing this goal as best we can.

With all the steps complete, your server migration should be successful and users can continue to run Orion.