Starting with the August 2020 release of Zello Enterprise Server (ZES), we have introduced migration tools to simplify the transition of user accounts, channels, roles, and settings while upgrading. Follow this guide to update to the latest version of ZES.
Update procedure outline
- Download and install the updated ZES image side by side with the old version
- Export configuration data from the existing instance
- Import configuration data into the new instance
- Turn off the old instance
- Switch production IP or DNS to the new instance
Download and install the updated ZES image side by side with the old version
- Use the links received from Zello support to download the updated virtual machine image
- Follow the same installation procedure as with the original server to install and configure the updated image (you will receive a copy of the installation guide along with the download links)
- Make sure the IP address you use for the new virtual machine is different from the one you use for your existing production instance of ZES
- Use your existing license key to activate the new server
Export configuration data from the existing instance
Note: Exported configuration data includes your network users, channels, channel roles, and settings. It doesn't include Message Vault data, audit log detail, or sign in history.
If you are using ZES version 2019-02-19 or older
Older versions of ZES don't come with a data export function so you'll need to install the data export utility on the server first. The instructions below assume the server is connected to the internet.
- Sign into the ZES linux shell
- Execute the following command:
wget https://zello.com/data/mesh/apps/export-zes-data.txt && php export-zes-data.txt
- When prompted enter a new password to be used for the data archive and press Enter
- Repeat the password to confirm and press Enter
- ZES configuration will be exported to a file named zes-data-export.csv.zip
- Copy the file to your computer using your favorite sftp client
If you are using ZES version 2020-08-25 or newer
- Sign into the ZES web console
- From the Dashboard click Export your network data
- In the dialog, enter a password to encrypt the data and click Proceed. Make sure to remember the password as you will need it to import data on the new server.
- An encrypted archive with your network data will be saved to your computer as <date>_<time>_mesh.csv.zip
Import configuration data into the new instance
- Sign into the ZES web console on the new installation
- From the Dashboard click Import your network data
- In the dialog, browse for the location of the previously exported file, type in the same password as you used for exporting of the data, and click Import network.
- If you see an error, make sure you enter the archive password correctly
- Upon successful import the page will automatically reload
- Navigate to the Users, Channels and Settings screens to verify that your configuration data was imported correctly
- Note: Import will not override the users and channels already present in the target system such as admin
Turn off the old instance
Using your virtualization system control panel shut down the old instance of ZES. We strongly recommend not removing it until you've fully verified the functionality of the new version.
Switch production IP or DNS to the new instance
Depending on how you configured networking for ZES you'll need to do one of the following:
- Update port forwarding at your firewall to point to the new instance IP
- Change the DNS to point to the new instance IP
- Re-run ./configure script on the new instance to change its IP to the one you designated for use by ZES
After the configuration is complete and changes propagate through your network, Zello clients will reconnect to the updated instance of ZES.