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Upgrading a Report Server Web Farm

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This topic explains how to upgrade multiple report server instances that share the same report server database. In the previous release, this deployment model was called "Report Server Web farm". That term is no longer used. Report servers that share a single database are referred to as a report server scale-out deployment. You can run a scale-out deployment on a Network Load Balanced (NLB) cluster. Configuring report server nodes for scale-out deployment is a prerequisite for doing so. If you have deployed Reporting Services in a scale-out deployment, you must upgrade each report server in the scale-out deployment. You cannot have a scale-out deployment that includes different versions of Reporting Services on individual nodes.

The following approaches can be used to upgrade a scale-out deployment:

  • Perform an in-place upgrade to replace the existing installation with a newer version. You can upgrade the nodes in any order. The report server database is updated on the first upgrade. You should take the servers offline until all of the report server nodes and the database are upgraded (that is, stop IIS and the Report Server Windows service). Once you start upgrading the servers, you need to upgrade all nodes. Otherwise, the remaining report server nodes will not work until they have been upgraded to use the new database format.
  • Perform a side-by-side upgrade to install a new SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services instance on the same computer as the existing installation. If you have up-time requirements, or if your installation does not meet the requirements for an in-place upgrade, you can install new instances of SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services that run alongside your existing installations. Users can continue to use the existing scale-out deployment while you configure and test the new software.

Before upgrading production servers, it is important to verify the upgrade steps on test servers so that you know what to expect.

Preparing for Upgrade

Use the following checklist to prepare for the upgrade:

  1. Back up the report server database and the symmetric key.
  2. Verify that you know the user account and password used for connecting to the SQL Server Database Engine that hosts the report server database. The account must have local administrator permissions in order to perform the upgrade.
  3. Back up of all configuration files (including the Machine.config and Web.config files) on each report server instance.
  4. Back up log files.
  5. Prepare the server for down time. If you are using Microsoft Windows Network Load Balancing, you can set host priority levels to isolate a node from new connections. This step minimizes the impact on existing user sessions.
    1. Log on to each computer.
    2. Start Network Load Balancing Manager on the first computer and open the host list.
    3. In Host priority, note the priority level of each node. Use the priority level to determine the order in which you upgrade the nodes. Upgrade the lowest priority node first.
    4. On the lowest priority node, right-click the host name, select Control Host, and click Stop. This routes all new connections to other nodes. Existing sessions continue to run. If the report server is used by many users, you might want to stop new connections several hours before you begin the upgrade to minimize the number of open sessions.
    5. Close the Network Load Balancing Manager if it is open. Close down any other MMC snap-in that is open.
  6. When you are ready to bring down the report server, do the following:
    1. Stop the Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) service.
    2. Stop the report server Windows service.
    3. Reset Internet Information Services (IIS).
    4. Stop IIS.

How to Upgrade to a SQL Server 2005 Report Server Scale-Out Deployment

These steps assume you are installing a new instance alongside an existing installation. If you want to perform an in-place upgrade, you can follow the instructions for installing Service Pack 1.

These steps are used to upgrade a report server. If the computer also has a database engine instance, it can be upgraded at the same time, at a later date, or not at all.

  1. Run Setup. In Instance Name, type a new name for the SQL Server 2005 instance you are installing. Do not specify Default Instance. If you do, you will perform an in-place upgrade of the existing installation rather than create a new report server instance.
  2. After setup is complete, view the timestamp information on the program files to verify that the files were copied successfully.
  3. Start the Report Server Windows service.
  4. Open the reportserverservice.log files and search for "the action completed successfully". This entry confirms that the upgrade succeeded.
  5. Start IIS.
  6. Open a browser window and type the report server URL. Verify that the version information at the bottom of the page reflects the product version.
  7. Start WMI service.

How to Upgrade to Service Pack 1

Service Pack 1 is applied by running a package on an existing SQL Server 2005 installation. If you are upgrading a SQL Server 2005 scale-out deployment to Service Pack 1, you must apply the service pack to each node. Upgrading the first node will upgrade the report server database, so be sure to take all other nodes offline until all nodes are upgraded. Use the following steps to perform an in-place upgrade of a report server node to Service Pack 1.

Note

Upgrading the report server database does not upgrade the Database Engine that hosts it. For more information, see Upgrading a Report Server Database.

  1. Choose a node to upgrade first. Take all other nodes offline.
  2. Stop the Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) service, the report server Windows service, and any other SQL Server service that is part of installation you are upgrading.
  3. Reset Internet Information Services (IIS), and then stop the service.
  4. Run the package that installs Service Pack 1. If the computer has multiple instances, be sure that you choose the one that runs Reporting Services. If the report server database is on a remote computer, you will be prompted to specify credentials that have permission to upgrade the report server database.
  5. After the upgrade is complete, view the timestamp information on the program files to verify that the files were copied successfully.
  6. Start the Report Server Windows service.
  7. Open the ReportServerService_<timestamp>.log files and search for "the action completed successfully". This entry confirms that the upgrade succeeded.
  8. Start IIS.
  9. Open a browser window and type the report server URL (by default, this value is https://localhost/reportserver). Verify that the version information at the bottom of the page reflects the product version you expect to see.
  10. Start WMI service.

Repeat the steps for the other nodes in the scale-out deployment.

See Also

Concepts

Upgrading Editions of Reporting Services
Upgrading a Report Server Database
Upgrading the Database Engine

Other Resources

Configuring a Report Server Scale-Out Deployment

Help and Information

Getting SQL Server 2005 Assistance

Change History

Release History

14 April 2006
Changed content:
  • Scale-out deployment Default Instance issue