hi
we are at the early stages of planning AX,
how long would you recommend to leave aside for installing AX onto the servers?
if we install our live environment, can i copy this (virtual image etc) to other servers and use these as test, dev uat environments? or must i do an install on each server
(An ax cert consultant will do the installs)
thanks
mal
That can be a “tricky” question. You are referring to a fresh install of AX or you are performing an upgrade ? Do you have POS ? How many AOS servers are planned for the production environment ?
Hi mal, welcome to Dynamics User Group.
Unfortunately the answer depends on many things. For example, do you count installation of SQL Server to installation time of AX? Will you install Enterprise Portal? Will you have more than one AOS server? And so on.
What you can copy again depends on your setup. Personally, I don’t see any point in doing it - Live, Test and Dev servers usually use different setup and different service accounts, you would have to rename servers, to change AOS configuration and so on. What you usually need is just copying code and data and AX already has tools for that.
By the way, I wouldn’t start with the installation of the live environment. Try it first with a Dev environment or so - you’ll also learn how long it takes in your case (which your particular requirements, skills etc.).
hi guys, thanks for replies
it is a fresh install, with 1 AOS server for production then 1 each for test ,dev and maybe a UAT server
i dont count sql as i already have it configured and so is sharepoint, no ent portal for now, and POS - if thats point of sale, then No…
AX is a big step up for us, i am used to being able to install our current erp system quite easily but im led to believe its not as simple with AX? so i just want to ensure i put enough days in for this, and ensure we are getting value for money when speaking with consultants
hi
please dont close question, i know its pretty open ended, but someone should be able to give an estimated time that they would set aside for install?
From what you have described, it’s seems to a simple installation of AX.
About 2 weeks ago, It took me one day to setup a fresh production environment like yours, using Dynamics AX R3. The agreed project deliverables can also increase work effort, for example, some customers demand a detailed step by step document will all screenshots of setup, options and reason to chang default values.
TypiTypically estimations, should be aligned with the consultants, associated with the project requirements.
The list of things to take into account is by no mean exhaustive. We can continue: SSRS, OLAP, Management Reporter, Enterprise Search, Office Add-Ins, Web Services etc. etc.
It’s not a problem at all to install a simple AX environment in one day, but it may take much more time in complex cases (especially if you run into some issues, e.g. with configuration of SSRS).
The planning is extremely important. If you don’t think in advance about which components you need, what will you share (e.g. SSRS), which accounts you need to prepare etc., you’ll surely get into troubles sooner or later.
ok, thanks for information folks
Martin , i can think of no reason why we would have a complex install, yes we will use ssrs, olap, office addins etc but i cant imagine that involves anything more than giving the sql address etc as sql is already setup?
fyi, i have received quotes for 12 days setup to get me a live, test, Uat and dev environment, that is a lot of days to what sounds to me following predefined steps, days i would rather spend on real customisations/developments
It’s not that simple. You have to configure quite a few things (depending on your requirements), set up security, deploy reports and cubes and so on.
The installation guide doesn’t have 330 pages without reason. [:)]
Without knowing all the details it’s impossible to notice if 12 days are excessive. Configuring OLAP and SSRS it’s just more than giving the proper SQL instance address, you must setup AX and those services, for example you must deploy all the reports in reporting services and it can take a while.
330 pages indeed, but then it is Microsoft, id imagine you could write the same for sql itself!
dont get me wrong, maybe it does take that length of time, after all they released r3 without a migration path from r2!
i just want to ensure value for money
Upgrade from R2 to R3 is fully supported.
is there a migration path to move data etc?
An upgrade can be a complex process, depending of your customizations.
Data upgrade is supported too, of course. Just do an in-place upgrade as usual.