1. Will the BVBridge solution require additional BroadVision services and scripts to migrate to the newer framework?

BroadVision provided upgrade scripts migrate all of your Java code base, converting 7.x API’s to corresponding ones in 8.x. The BV migration scripts cannot migrate your JavaScript. This is where BVBridge enters. BVBridge enables you to execute your JavaScript 'as is' in the BV 8.x environment.

2. How about the database migration?

As part of the upgrade process, BroadVision utilities are used to migrate the BV 7.x schema to BV 8.x schema. This process is part of the standard upgrade procedure provided by BV and is performed as part of the post installation process. In addition to the steps above, eFORCE will provide you with a clear migration plan that will detail all additional changes that must be made as appropriate. These include modifications to database objects (if any) that become invalid due to schema changes and the process to re-configure any other processes that are in place, e.g. replication using streaming.

3. What do I get by upgrading to BV8.x and using the BVBridge?

BroadVision 7.x is near its EOL. The current Portal solution has a limited resource pool, limited capabilities and inadequate technical support. With BV8.x there are opportunities to replace obsolete entities and lay a new foundation, for instance, using SOA and Intranets. Essentially, execute a unified corporate vision.

Some key highlights of BV8.0 include:

• Support for 3rd party application servers (BEA, IBM, JBoss) and use their capabilities of session management, clustering, fail-over etc..
• Extensible external systems integration using SOA.
• BVMC (BroadVision Management Center) provides a single common interface for content management.
• Increase site scalability and improved database throughput.
• Application Server and third party shareware independence.
• Standardized Java Specification support.

4. What are the typical infrastructure requirements, deployment procedures for executing this migration?

Though the actual steps and requirements would vary depending upon the existing infrastructure in your data center, a typical migration project would have the following requirements:

• BVBridge is deployed as part of the application war file. It does not have any special infrastructure requirements. Of course, configuration steps need to be followed which will be a part of the deployment process.
• With BV8.x there is no concept of IM’s. Installations that utilize multiple IM’s will be deployed as separate applications. Load balancing if required would be handled through application clustering typical of any J2EE deployment.
• A development environment will be needed for initial testing.
  • A fresh installation of BV8.x will be done on the development application server. This deployment will include the BVBridge jar.
  • Existing application source code will be copied onto this server after which BV migration scripts will be executed. This would be for the non-JavaScript code base. The JavaScript codebase will continue to execute with BVBridge.
  • During the post installation phase, data migration and other database related activities will also be conducted and tested.
• The deployment phase will be followed with complete end to end functionality testing.
• The final step will be to follow the same procedure on production servers.

The above steps are a simplistic outline of the procedure to migrate BV7.x to BV8.x. There will be more activities and logistic planning involved which would vary depending upon the application, domain and other existing technology stacks.