Microsoft Dynamics GP 10.0 Great Plains Upgrade notes

We see multiple posts where upgrade fails and consultant and IT folks are not sure what to do.  Let’s review what is the source of these problems and how version 10 upgrade process differs from earlier versions upgrade: 9.0, 8.0, 7.5, 7.0, 6.0

1. New version CD.  When you received new GP version CD in the mail, you kind of expected that all you need to do is to insert CD into the CD drive and follow the Wizard. Sometimes you saw issues and if you are consultant – you tried to review options: upgrade path, including steps or intermediate versions, etc.  If you remember GP upgrade process with earlier versions, such as 5.0 or 5.5 and even 6.0 – then you had to deal with patches, services packs, clean-up utilities and things like these.  Version 7.5 was probably the most prepared for upgrade and it typically was successful process, even if it was conducted in internal IT departments
2. New approaches to GP upgrade.  When version 9.0 was released, here consultant community realized, that former control over upgrade process in now reduced: you can have only one instance of GP workstation per user, for example was not really understood – why it is needed?  At the same time GP upgrade process was brought into generic Microsoft products upgrade, it became similar to MS Office.  The only difference was the necessity to make Microsoft Dexterity and its Dex utilities to dance Microsoft upgrade music
3. Version 10.  Now, it is a surprise, that upgrade is not version-sensitive, but even applied service pack sensitive.   Let us give you example.  If you are on version 9.0 without service packs, then your build is 114 and if you try to upgrade version 9.0 on 114 build with 10.0 GP CD, you will get the error message, saying that file is not found: File not found: C:\Program Files\Microsoft Dynamics\GP\SQL\0\Upgrade.dll.UPGRADE_9_0_114.DRIVER_INI.  The reason of getting this message is the following: upgrade path for build 114 is not implemented in GP 10.0 OEM CD.  At this time of writing this article (end of July 2007), Microsoft Business Solutions promised to fix this issue in GP 10 Service Pack 1, which will be released in the fourth quarter of 2007.  OEM CD 10.0 actually is capable to upgrade from GP 9.0 SP2 only, or build 9.00.0281.  Plus if you are still on 8.0, then you can upgrade from SP5 build 8.00g73.  If you mastered to apply the patches with higher that 9.0 SP2, then Microsoft clearly tells you that you will have to wait the time when GP 10 SP1 will be released, and you can not upgrade at current time, July 2007
4. Linking OEM CD upgrade process to Service Packs.  As of right now it is probably OK and nobody would suffer due to this sensitivity.  However in the future, GP customers might be trapped in the situations, when they have to follow upgrade path with intermediate versions; and if old version service packs are not longer supported they may become not available for the customer, who is planning to upgrade.  So, general advise – you should stay current with relations with Microsoft Business Solutions and pay annual enhancement fee to avoid problems