Elastic Path Commerce 6.1 introduces a number of changes from version 6.0.x. Primary among these are a major change to the store asset directory structure; movement of store configuration information from the file system to the database; and a number of minor changes to the existing database tables. As a result, 6.0.4 deployments with existing data can be upgraded to the 6.1 codebase with relocation of store assets; migration of configuration files into the database; and database upgrade scripts.

Note that it's assumed that the codebase has already been upgraded to 6.1; it's up to you to decide how code merge is done. It's also assumed that the existing deployment was already at the latest service release (6.0.4) before upgrading to 6.1.

Store Assets Relocation

Along with the XML configuration files, store-specific visual presentation elements used in the Storefront and emails have been moved from the WAR files into a central assets directory.  These include all Velocity templates, message properties files, images, javascript, css and Power Reviews.

• The simplest way to move storefront assets out of the WAR file is to copy the directories com.elasticpath.sf/template-resources and com.elasticpath.sf/WEB-INF/templates to the new assets directory under a theme folder of your choosing. The assets directory will have the structure:

assets/themes/<theme_name>/<store_code>/templates

assets/themes/<theme_name>/<store_code>/template-resources

• Email templates previously located in com.elasticpath.cm/WEB-INF/templates also need to be moved to the assets folder. Email templates and property files that are not connected to any particular store will need to be moved to: assets/cmassets/templates/velocity

• Storefront related emails will be located under their respective theme folders: assets/themes/<theme_name>/<store_code>/templates/velocity

Configuration File Migration

Much of the configuration data previously in XML files within Elastic Path WAR directories has been moved into the database to be managed through the Settings framework in the CM. This includes commerce-config.xml, search-config.xml, urlrewrite.xml, intelligent-browsing.xml. Please consult the settings framework documentation before migrating configuration settings.

• With the exception of web.sf.context.url, all settings previously in commerce-config.xml have been moved to the Settings framework and are no longer required to be in the XML file. Values in these settings (e.g. VFS paths/login) should be updated in the Settings framework through the CM Settings configuration view as new Setting values or inserted into tables TSETTINGVALUE where appropriate. Additional custom settings in commerce-config.xml file should be moved to the Settings framework as new Setting definitions in TSETTINGDEFINITION. A table of where settings in the commerce-config.xml reside in the settings framework is provided in Appendix A.

• Content in intelligent-browsing.xml has been moved to the Settings framework and the file is no longer needed. Its contents should be inserted as a new Setting Value for the setting COMMERCE/STORE/FILTEREDNAVIGATION/filteredNavigationConfiguration

The content can also be copied into the CM Store Editor's Filtered Navigation section.

• Content in urlrewrite.xml has been moved to the Settings framework and the file is no longer needed. Its contents should be inserted as a new Setting Value for the setting COMMERCE/SYSTEM/urlRewriteConfig

• Content in search-config.xml has been moved to the Settings framework and the file is no longer needed. If any customization has been made, the Setting values under the paths COMMERCE/SEARCH/<setting> should be updated appropriately.

Database Upgrade

Upgrade SQL scripts are provided along with each release of Elastic Path to capture changes in the database schema between the new release and the latest service release.

Each supported database (MySQL, SQL Server, Oracle) will have its own upgrade script.

• Upgrade scripts are provided in the 6.1 distribution for each database, and should be run by the tools provided by the database vendor.
• Upgrade scripts will apply schema changes and insert necessary base data on an existing 6.0.x database, but does not change existing data.

After running the upgrade script, the steps can be done through the CM or directly through the database to get your deployment up and running:

• Reassign supported currency and supported locales to existing stores in the CM, or insert entries in the TSTORESUPPORTEDCURRENCY and TSTORESUPPORTEDLOCALE respectively.
• Change the display theme of existing stores appropriately by editing the COMMERCE/STORE/theme setting in either the System Configuration section of the CM or the Store Editor.
• Set the correct value for the search server in the settings framework, under the path COMMERCE/SERVER/SEARCH/searchHost
• Search indexes need to be rebuilt. This is an automatic step if old indexes are deleted.
• Set the correct values for the asset VFS in the settings framework under COMMERCE/APPSPECIFIC/RCP/ASSETS/<setting>
• Gift certificate themes need to be recreated through the CM, and assigned to stores in the CM Store Editor.
• Be aware that stores can now only be accessed through the URL defined in the CM Store Editor (TSTORE table in the databse), and care should be taken when testing.

Caveats

• The upgrade process cannot cover all possible database and code customizations to the 6.0.x codebase, and upgrade scripts should be reviewed before running on any schemas that you have customized.
• Before moving existing storefront assets, be aware that there are changes in these files (Velocity templates, property files) that might not be picked up through a normal code merge due to the change in location.
• New configuration settings introduced in 6.1 take on their default values after an upgrade, and should be reviewed for correctness.

Upgrading to 6.1 from 6.0.4 requires little database change. Configuration files and asset migration make up the bulk of the upgrading effort, and existing customizations to configuration and assets should be reviewed to take advantage of the new settings framework and asset repository.