Defining your migration through properties

Rather than specifying individual parameters on migration commands, you can specify the -properties file_name.properties parameter to input a properties file that contains properties that define your migration. By defining your migration settings in a properties file, you can make your migration process easily repeatable.

About this task

The properties file can contain the following types of properties:
  • Migration parameter properties: These properties are equivalent to the parameters that you specify for the migration commands. Not every command-line parameter can be specified as a parameter property; limitations are noted in the template migration.properties file.
  • General tracing and debugging properties: These properties control tracing and debugging when the migration commands call external tools. For example, you can enable or disable trace and specify trace strings and locations.

Properties that you define in the properties file take precedence over system properties, but parameters that you specify on the command line take precedence over those defined in the properties file.

Tip: You can use the same file for all profile and migration types because any properties that do not apply are ignored.

Procedure

  1. Create the properties file.
    Best practice: A template migration.properties file is located in the app_server_root/properties directory. The template contains instructions for defining properties and examples of the default values for the command-line properties. Copy the template migration.properties file to a new location, then modify the file to suit your migration.

    Alternatively, you can create your own properties file without using the template.

    Define properties using the following formats:
    • Parameter properties for all commands:
      com.ibm.ws.migration.parameter.parm_name=value
      For example:
      com.ibm.ws.migration.parameter.traceString=*=info:Migration.SSPI=fine:Migration.Flow=finer
    • Parameter properties for specific commands:
      com.ibm.ws.migration.command_name.parameter.parm_name=value
      For example:
      com.ibm.ws.migration.WASPostUpgrade.parameter.includeApps=true
    • General tracing and debugging properties:Tracing and debugging property definitions vary based on the command run, but use the following general format:
      com.ibm.ws.command_family.command_name.parm_name
      For example:
      com.ibm.ws.migration.backupConfig.trace=true
com.ibm.ws.migration.backupConfig.logfile=C:\logs\myBackupLog.log
com.ibm.ws.scripting.traceString=com.ibm.ws.management.*=all:com.ibm.websphere.management.*=all
  2. When you run a migration command, input the properties file on the -properties file_name.properties parameter.
    For example:
    C:\WebSphere\AppServer90\bin>WASPreUpgrade.bat C:\70backupDirectory C:\WebSphere\AppServer70
-properties C:\my90migration.properties
    Properties that do not apply to the command are ignored.