Coexistence of IBM App Connect Enterprise 13.0 with previous versions

IBM® App Connect Enterprise 13.0 can coexist with IBM App Connect Enterprise 12.0, IBM App Connect Enterprise 11.0, and IBM Integration Bus 10.0, so you can test and compare functional differences between the versions.

You can control your migration to IBM App Connect Enterprise 13.0 by migrating individual integration nodes and integration servers; you do not have to migrate all integration nodes or servers at the same time. For more information, see Migrating.

The following sections describe how to achieve coexistence, and explain the restrictions that apply for each platform:
When you have an environment that contains different versions of IBM App Connect Enterprise and IBM Integration Bus, the following tasks have limitations:
Editing source artifacts in the IBM App Connect Enterprise Toolkit
Artifacts cannot be shared between different versions of the IBM App Connect Enterprise Toolkit and IBM Integration Toolkit. Changes made to an artifact by using the IBM App Connect Enterprise Toolkit make the artifact incompatible with earlier versions of the IBM Integration Toolkit. Consider branching your version control system when you migrate to a new version.
Building BAR files from artifacts
Your build system must use the same or later version as the IBM App Connect Enterprise Toolkit or IBM Integration Toolkit system that was used to create the artifact. A build system cannot build a BAR file from an artifact that was created or edited in a later version of the IBM App Connect Enterprise Toolkit or IBM Integration Toolkit.
Deploying BAR files to an integration node
You can deploy BAR files that are built with one version of IBM Integration Bus (by using the IBM Integration Toolkit, mqsicreatebar, or mqsipackagebar) to an integration node at a later version. You do not have to rebuild your BAR files. However it is not supported to deploy BAR files to an integration node at an earlier version. The BAR files are likely to contain new properties that cause deployment errors.

Coexistence on Windows

The following restrictions apply to coexistence on Windows.
  • You can install multiple instances of IBM App Connect Enterprise on the same computer, but you cannot install multiple instances of a product version at the same modification or fix pack level.
  • All integration nodes from all versions are accessible by all users of the Windows system, and must have unique names.
  • Each integration node is associated with the product code from a specific installation location and uses that product code when the integration node is started.
  • If you have more than one installation on a single computer, ensure that the commands that you issue to integration nodes on that computer are using the correct version of installed code. On Windows, an IBM App Connect Enterprise Console is available for each installation. You must run commands in the correct instance of the IBM App Connect Enterprise Console for a particular installation.

    If you prefer, you can run the mqsiprofile command. By default, this command is stored in C:\Program Files\IBM\ACE\13.0.n.0\server\bin.

Coexistence on Linux and AIX

The following restrictions apply to coexistence on Linux® and AIX®:
  • You can install multiple instances of IBM App Connect Enterprise and IBM Integration Bus on the same computer, including multiple instances of a product version at the same modification or fix pack level.
  • Each integration node can be either part of a shared installation or part of a single-user installation. Integration nodes that are part of a shared installation are accessible by all users of the IBM App Connect Enterprise installation. Integration nodes that are part of a single-user installation are only accessible by a specific user.
  • Integration nodes are not automatically associated with product code from specific installation locations. Before you start the integration node, you must run the mqsiprofile command that is associated with the product code that the integration node should use. The command is stored in install_dir/ace-13.0.n.0/server/bin, where install_dir is the directory where you unpacked the IBM App Connect Enterprise software. If you add the mqsiprofile command to your system login profile, it is run automatically whenever you log on.
  • If you have more than one installation on a single computer, you must ensure that the commands that you issue to integration nodes on that computer are using the correct version of installed code. You must run the mqsiprofile command to set up the correct environment before you run other IBM App Connect Enterprise commands, such as mqsicreatebroker.

    If you installed an earlier version of this product on the same computer, check that the earlier mqsiprofile command is not included in the system profile for the current user ID. The environment that is set up by the mqsiprofile command of a previous version of IBM Integration Bus is not compatible with a later version of IBM App Connect Enterprise. To avoid potential problems, consider using a different user ID for each version and add the correct command for each version to the system profile of each user ID. For more information about the mqsiprofile command, see Setting up a command environment