Migrating desktops

If you have multiple instances of the IBM Content Navigator web client in your environment, you can export your desktops to a file that you can then import to another instance of IBM Content Navigator.

About this task

When you select a desktop to export, the viewer map, menus, and mobile application features that are associated with the desktop are automatically exported with that desktop. You can also include the following configuration components when you export a desktop:
  • The list of users and groups who are authorized to use the desktop
  • The repositories that are associated with the desktop
  • The plug-ins that are associated with the desktop

Because the source server and the target server are different, you might have to do some additional configuration on the target server before you can use the desktops that you want to import. Some common issues include:

  • Different viewers are configured on the source server and the target server. If you installed any viewers that are not shipped with IBM Content Navigator on the source server, such as the AFP2PDF conversion viewer, you might need to install the viewers on the target server before you can use an imported viewer map.
    Tip: If you installed the AFP2PDF viewer, you might need to update the installation directory in your AFP conversion viewer configuration before you can use the imported viewer map.
  • Different users and groups defined on the source server and the target server. If the target server has a different list of users and groups, you cannot use the list of users and groups from the source server unless you add the users and groups to the target server.
  • The URL that is specified in a repository configuration is not valid on the target server. Some common reasons a URL might be invalid include:
    • The target server is behind a different firewall than the source server.
    • The URLs on the source system point to repositories in a test environment, but the target system is a production system.
  • The URL of a plug-in is not valid on the target server. Some common reasons a URL might be invalid include:
    • The target server is behind a different firewall than the source server.
    • The source server used the relative URLs of the plug-ins, but the plug-ins are not installed on the target system.
  • The plug-in configuration includes additional URLs that are not valid on the target server. For example, the external data services plug-in configuration includes the URL of the external data service.

To resolve issues with plug-in URLs, you can either update the URLs when you import the desktops to the target server, or you can copy the plug-ins to the same location on the target server.

Procedure

To migrate one or more desktops:

  1. Log into the instance of the IBM Content Navigator web client from which you want to export the desktops and open the administration tool.
  2. Click Desktops, select the desktops that you want to export, and click Export.
  3. Specify the name of the file that you want to export the desktops to.
  4. Select the additional configuration components that you want to export with the selected desktops:
    • The users and groups that are authorized to use the desktops
    • The repositories that are associated with the desktops
    • The plug-ins that are associated with the desktops
  5. Click Export.
  6. Log out of the current instance of IBM Content Navigator.
  7. Log into the instance of the IBM Content Navigator web client into which you want to import the desktops and open the administration tool.
  8. Click Desktops, and then click Import.
  9. Browse for and select the file that you exported the desktops to. Click Open.
  10. In the Import Desktop window, if a configuration object with the same ID already exists on the target server, you must determine whether you want to overwrite the existing objects or leave the existing objects on the target server:
    • To overwrite an item on the target server with the items from the source server, select the configuration object from the list of conflicting items in the Import Desktop window.
    • To leave an existing item on the target server, leave the configuration object from the list of conflicting items unselected in the Import Desktop window.
    Tip: To add an item from the source server without replacing the item on the target server, create a copy of the configuration object on instance from which you exported the desktop, give it a different ID, and associate it with the desktop. Export the desktop again, and then import the desktop on this instance.
  11. Click Import.
  12. If you want to create a record of the items that were imported and skipped, click Download Report on the Desktop Import Summary.