Need Advice.
We currently use Restaurant Pro Express {RPE} on a Windows 10 computer (server) with two Windows 7 clients.
The RPE software was written to work well with MSSQL 2012.
We want to get everything in place to run SambaPOS 5.
Want to have it ready, so we can one day soon “flip the switch” and use SambaPOS.
Two of our other restaurants use SambaPOS 5.2.6 on MSSQL 2014.
Can I install a new DB (SambaPOS) on MSSQL 2012 and install the SambaPOS software, and import a transaction emptied DB backup from on of the other locations so that the menu and most of the setup will be the same?
If I update MSSQL from 2012 to 2014, it will break RPE at that location.
You could check options to have multiple versions of sql or maybe run RPE instance in compatability mode or something which again would be a question for them.
Ok to be clear its one location, with two restaurants and they (being one owner) is about to merge the two.
So with that said…the computer server in this place is newer, thats why its W10 and the client stations, while they are old and both W7, they are getting upgraded, but the server computer, there is no need.
So since you brought it up…is it easy to upgrade the other locations from SambaPOS 5.2.6 to the latest and upgrade MSSQL to 2017 without any glitches or lost data?
I just found out there is no need in a “flip the switch” situation anymore, so for that restaurant merge, I will have time to install it from scratch on the server computer there.
I just want to be able to import the DB from the back of the restaurant to the new one so that all the data, menu and config is already there and setup.
Hope all this makes sense, if not let me know and I will try again.
You can install multiple database engines side by side using named instances. Also, you can load a backup from your RPE into SQL Server 2019 and the underlying engine will still present at 2012.
For importing a database the compatibility versions must match. You will not be able to restore a backup from 2014 to a 2012 instance.
Windows 7 won’t run anything after SQL Server 2014 (maybe 2016 - I can’t recall). So my recommendation to be able to just flip a switch one day is to have another server up and running with W10+ and then just decommission the W7 box, or have a W10+ box run the 2012 and 2019 engines or have 2019 SQL Server host the 2012 in compatibility mode if RPE allows it (I don’t see why not, though).
FOr upgrading the other locations running 2017, you can upgrade to 2019 then make sure you set the DB’s compatibility to 150.
I am not a DB guy, so I have to ask, is MSSQL a “database engine” and I have often seen several versions in add and remove programs, so is that what you mean by you can run several instances?
It has always confused me why I may install MSSQL (version) and it will not get rid of an older version.
Its like it just keeps stacking itself up in there.
Also I noticed that I must have upgraded one location at one point and it shows this in control panel.
So what is the clean way to do an upgrade, or is it ok to have it like this?
From what I gather, I could run MSSQL 2019 (sambapos) and 2012 (pcamerica) at the same time on that one server.
I could install Samba and have it ready.
I could use the backed up DB from another Samba machine and import it to the new machine, just as long as they are the same version samba.
Correct?
When you install MSSQL Server it installs the database engine - this engine mounts its databases on start. On installing of a newer version one has the option to install it side by side or upgrade an existing installation.
You can definately run 2012 and 2019 side-by-side. One of those you will have to configure to run on a non-standard port, and will need to be named different, then update your configuration accordingly.
As for dbs from SambaPOS, the application versions must be the same or the one receiving the import can be higher as the software will auto update the database; you will then not be able to use that db with an earlier version of SambaPOS.
