Source and Target Databases

In various places within this PeopleBook, as well as any PeopleSoft documentation related to upgrades or database compares, the terms source and target are used. Knowing the meanings of these terms helps you to understand the context of a description or step.

During a PeopleSoft update or upgrade, in most cases, you copy application definitions (such as pages and records) from a source database to a target database. The definitions of these terms are:

Field or Control

Definition
source database

The source database is the database from which the new changes are coming.
target database

The target database is the database to which you are moving the new changes.

Note: Depending on whether you are performing an upgrade or update, and the stage within the process you are, these terms are relative and can refer to different databases.

For example, in a typical upgrade, you install the certified Upgrade Source database, referred to as Demo. Then, you create a copy of your production database, referred to as Copy of Production. You then copy the modified definitions from the Demo database into the Copy of Production. In this context, your Demo database is your source and the Copy of Production is the target. Likewise, after you complete the initial copy and perform the required compares and tests, you begin a Move to Production pass. In this pass you take the Copy of Production database and incorporate the modified definitions into the Production database. In this context, the Copy of Production is your source and the Production database is your target.

When applying an update using the "Apply with Database Compare/Copy" option, the source database is the Demo database where the update (change package) has already been applied.

The database definition will include:

  • Database name

  • Database type

  • Unicode

  • User Ids and passwords

  • SQL query executable

  • Products

    Change Assistant will query the database for the products.

  • Languages

    Change Assistant will query the database for the languages.

  • Paths to the current home directories.

    • PS_HOME

    • PS_APP_HOME

    • PS_CUST_HOME

  • For upgrades , the database will also include paths to the new home directories.

Paths to Home Directories

The order by which the PeopleTools runtime will pick up objects from the file system is as follows:

  1. PS_CUST_HOME

  2. PS_APP_HOME

  3. PS_HOME

Change Assistant will loop through the paths in order of precedence until it finds the first instance of the file object at which time it will execute the step.

Databases Used for Each Action

Action

Databases and Paths Used

Apply Update

Target database with path for current environment.

Update Manager

Target database with path for current environment.

Source database (PeopleSoft Update Image ) with path for current environment.

Application Upgrade

PeopleSoft Update Image.

Certified Upgrade Source Image.

Copy of Production.

Production database.

Upgrade PeopleTools

Target database with path for current environment.

Copy/Compare Managed Objects or Merge Selected Object Types

Multiple databases can be copied, compared and merged.