Upgrading

(Clementoke) #1

Hi all,

We're currently on 4.2.3 is it true that we can't upgrade without paying Squiz loadsamoney?

(Nic Hubbard) #2

Had you previously signed up to receive the upgrade scripts?

(Tbaatar) #3

If you don't have the backup script you can just backup the database, install a new version of matrix and import the database into the new version.

(Nic Hubbard) #4

If you don't have the backup script you can just backup the database, install a new version of matrix and import the database into the new version.

 

He was talking about the upgrade scripts. So I don't think the backup script is going to help here.

(Tbaatar) #5

I meant if you don't have the upgrade script, perhaps the alternative is to backup the database, install latest matrix and import the database.

(Nic Hubbard) #6

I meant if you don't have the upgrade script, perhaps the alternative is to backup the database, install latest matrix and import the database.

 

No, because there is likely database changes coming with an upgrade, so that could be a disaster. 

 

Clement I think you just need to ask Squiz about this.

(Tom Chadwin) #7

So is there no documented way to upgrade Matrix without commercial scripts? It is open-source, so surely it must be possible. I got a test 5 box up and running, and was thinking it would be a good idea to figure out upgrades - with 5.0.1.0 and 5.0.1.1 out. Is there no process I can follow?

 

Thanks

 

Tom

(Tbaatar) #8

Sadly no.

(Tom Chadwin) #9

Really? To put the question another way: has any user ever upgraded Matrix themselves? Has Matrix only ever been upgraded by Squiz staff?

(Tbaatar) #10

We have upgraded in the past 3 different ways:

 

1. Manual upgrade - Squiz no longer provides this manual

2. Automatic Script

3. Database backup and install to new Squiz build.

 

You can get the automatic upgrade script by contacting Squiz. However at the moment you will only be able to upgrade to 4.18.5 (4.18.6 not available yet), and as mentioned in the Squiz Labs the CVS public repository will shutdown sometime this year, therefore it might be worth asking for the Git access rather then the old CVS repository.

(Talk) #11

I'm all for Squiz charging for what is a brilliant product. In fact Matrix is, in my experience, the best product I've used on a computer. Period.

 

Why just give it away?

 

The only real reason I could think of for keeping it free would be to expand their market share. I suspect this was always the strategy, but now that they have a comfortable niche, it may no longer be such a pressing need to expand their share.

 

I recommend Squiz Cloud to large clients as I've seen that running the CMS on their own hardware gets complicated and time-consuming. I've always recommended Matrix for larger CMS needs, because it's scalable and documented well, but now that, for all intents and purposes, it could essentially be moving to a restrictive release model, I'd be more cautious about pushing it as a solution. This is really only because I imagine its growth will become vulnerable.

 

There is already a Matrix skills shortage (at least in my neck of the woods) which is making big clients nervous. With budgets tightening, they're starting to look around and hearing a lot of buzzwords, like Joomla, Wordpress, etc - and I can tell you right now that most bureaucrats don't weigh up a CMS from a developer's perspective. Other products might not pack the power that Squiz does, but what they have which Matrix lacks is presence.

 

This move makes sense from a short term finance perspective, but is their more to it? Is Matrix growing long in the tooth for Squiz?

(Tbaatar) #12

You know there is Squiz Matrix shortage when it takes 5-6 months for SLA supported customer to get an upgrade date, and the only support people who seems to fulfill my request is 2 person, and when they're not at the desk then there is no support for the day.

 

I fear this will all crumble in couple of years time if Squiz continue to try be jack of all trades and master of none!

(Tom Chadwin) #13

Pros and cons of Matrix as a choice of CMS to one side, it is open-source, confirmed by Squiz staff on this board very recently. I was unclear about the mention of upgrade scripts, and presumed this was only a commercial option. If they are freely available, that goes some way to answering my question in a positive way.

 

However, lack of documentation, together with the closing down of the public SVN and bug tracker, means that the product is getting about as far away from the spirit of open-source as possible. Without public access to the source, and without proper documentation, the open-source nature of the product is moot. Look at the wording of the VM downloads: "Evaluate Matrix", not "download", or "install".

(Chris Horikx) #14

You know there is Squiz Matrix shortage when it takes 5-6 months for SLA supported customer to get an upgrade date, and the only support people who seems to fulfill my request is 2 person, and when they're not at the desk then there is no support for the day.

 

I fear this will all crumble in couple of years time if Squiz continue to try be jack of all trades and master of none!

 

Squiz on their partner page:

MASTERS OF ALL TRADES.

Jacks of none.
http://www.squiz.net/au/connect
(Bart Banda) #15

Sorry guys, never realised this thread was here. 

 

You know there is Squiz Matrix shortage when it takes 5-6 months for SLA supported customer to get an upgrade date, and the only support people who seems to fulfill my request is 2 person, and when they're not at the desk then there is no support for the day.

 

I would be happy to try and help out with any support issues you guys have tbaatar. If it takes 5-6 months to schedule in an upgrade, it might mean that they are just fully booked throughout that time for other client upgrades. Squiz has a lot of clients to support under SLAs, and if we realise that there is a shortage in support, we are often quick to recruit more people as a result. Feel free to PM me with your client and account manager details and a description of your support issues and I'll try and help out.

 

I agree that it would be great to have some manual upgrade information online on the manuals, I'll do some investigation to this and if there ever was any documentation available and see what can be done. 

 

I'm not sure how CVS works, but I've successfully upgrade manually with Git in the past by checking out a specific version and doing a merge, obviously with doing a back up first, which you would have to do with an automatic upgrade anyways. 

 

As I have mentioned in another thread, there are no plans whatsoever to change the licencing model for Squiz Matrix from open source GPL. 

(Talk) #16

...

 

As I have mentioned in another thread, there are no plans whatsoever to change the licencing model for Squiz Matrix from open source GPL. 

 

Hi Bart, that's great news. So that means we don't need to become a Squiz partner or client to continue to have access to the CMS? I'd like to take Matrix 5 for a spin at some point, but in a real world setting (including install, config, etc), not a local VM. Thanks :-)