Update, Migrate and Backup
Learn how to perform NetCrunch updates, migrate it to other machines, or set up a backup.
Updates
NetCrunch is updated several times per year, the procedure might be slightly different depending on an update type. It is recommended to perform a quick or full backup before upgrading NetCrunch.
Maintenance
Maintenance updates (i.e., 15.0.4) contain mostly bug fixes and small improvements that don’t require configuration data changes. They can be safely performed by installing the new version over the previous one (the installer will automatically uninstall the previous version).
Check your maintenance license expiration date before initiating the upgrade. If you install the NetCrunch version released after your upgrade & support subscription expiration date, it will work only in the trial license mode (14-day trial).
Minor Versions
The minor version (i.e., 14.2 or 15.1) updates contain some new features, requiring some changes to the existing configuration. Thus, we recommend performing a quick configuration backup before starting the update.
You don’t need to save all trend and event data – just save the configuration. See Backup procedure.
Major Version Upgrades
Major versions usually introduce important changes to the data to expand program performance, enhance stability, and accommodate new features.
Upgrading from one version to another is fairly easy. All upgrades are performed in place without copying data.
Before upgrading, ensure that the disk usage is less than 50%.
The installer automatically uninstalls the previous version of the program (keeping all data) and asks you to import it. (Make sure you have the latest version of the old program version installed - when in doubt, please confirm with the support team).
Atlas Backup
Atlas backup is, by default, scheduled to run automatically every day at 1 am. The backup contains Performance Trends data (TrendDB), an Event Log database, and an encrypted password database. The procedure keeps the last 3 backups, but you can increase the number of backups to keep.
To modify the automatic backup schedule, go to Settings NetCrunch System Automatic Backup and select the Modify Atlas backup schedule option at the bottom.
Atlas backups store only network monitoring data. The program configuration, such as NetCrunch server options, is not stored.
You can run a backup on demand by going to (hamburger icon) Maintenance Backup.
Quick Backup
Quick backup can be used before you start making configuration changes so that you can revert to the previous state at any time. It stores only Atlas configuration files such as nodes, alert configuration, maps, etc. It does not store the event log database or performance data.
Backup Folder
Settings NetCrunch System Automatic Backup
Each Atlas backup is stored in a single file in the directory specified in the program options. The default location points to a subfolder of the program data directory.
It's recommended to store backup files on a separate disk or disk partition. For example "E:\NetCrunch\backup".
Restoring the Atlas
(hamburger icon) Maintenance Restore...
You can easily restore previous Atlas versions by choosing a backup date in the Restore window. You can decide to restore only configuration or full data.
Migrate
If you need to migrate NetCrunch to new hardware, export all data to a single file, copy it to another machine, and import it to a freshly installed NetCrunch instance.
Export Data
- To export data to file go to (hamburger button) Maintenance Backup...
- Select the
Backup to separate folder...option. - In the next window, select the folder, where the backup should be saved by clicking on the folder icon in the Backup Filename field.
- Select the
Full Backup for migrating data to another machineoption in the Backup Type drop-down.
Import previously exported data
Upon the first NetCrunch console launch, select the Import Atlas from another machine... option to load the NetCrunch backup created on the previous Windows Server.