Documentum Roadmap and compatibility

karenj

Does anyone have a doc that describes the roadmap of versions and their associated support for Documentum?  If this has the compatibility between releases, that would also be very much appreciated.

THanks,

Karen Jaffe

Chris_Campbell

Sorry for the length of time it took to respond.  I'd recommend 6.5 as well since it's super-friendly with 6.0 and just like version 6.0 can talk to 5.3 application.  The gotchas to look for is to make sure that all 5.3 apps are at SP6.  Anything less isn't going to be supported by EMC (without extended support) and is going to lack some of the compatibility that SP6 has.

Also, make sure to pay close attention to the release docs for any 5.3 application.  Potential conflicts will occur when you custom coded a function that's now native in the newer version.  Some applications, like DCO don't even have an official 6.0 release yet, but EMC has provided 6.5 dars so it can be used on a 6.5 repository.  For the most part, 5.3 apps will do fine since most of the new features will be handled on the Content Server side in the background.  You'll notice problems though as soon as you want a 5.3 app to do something cool that's done easily in 6.0/6.5.  That's when you'll be tempted to code in that functionality in 5.3.  Resist those tempting thoughts!  Convince the business owner to bite the bullet and upgrade to the newer version.

Hartmut_Clausen

This information can be obtained from Powerlink:

Home  >  Support  >  Interoperability and Product Lifecycle Information  > Documentum and Former Legato Product Information

Chris_Campbell

A general rule of thumb to go by for Documentum products is that all like subversions (5.2.x, 5.3x, 6.x) work together within themselves.  In other words, if everything you're using is 5.3 you're okay.

The one general exception are applications that are 5.3 (or above) will work against a content server running at 5.3, but a Content Server running 6.5 only works with applications running 6.5.  So Web Publisher 6.5 will run against Content Server 5.3, but Web Publisher 5.3 will not run against Content Server 6.5.

Again, this is just a general rule of thumb.  Always check the compatibility chart in Powerlink as previously mentioned.  That chart is the only one that will list third-party applications like web application servers, OS releases and Java releases.

karenj

Thank you very much.

karenj

Thank you very much.

karenj

Chris-

So if I am developing a system that might need to support interface with a variety of versions of Documentum, what I get from the site is that the Global Registry is important along with the JDK and DFC.  The latest DFC still does support .NET and Com through an interop layer, so my inclination is to recommend 6.5 as it could be made compatible with 6.0 and 5.3.

Can you advise as to any "gotcha's" that I should look out for?

THanks very much,

Karen J.

Chris_Campbell

Sorry for the length of time it took to respond.  I'd recommend 6.5 as well since it's super-friendly with 6.0 and just like version 6.0 can talk to 5.3 application.  The gotchas to look for is to make sure that all 5.3 apps are at SP6.  Anything less isn't going to be supported by EMC (without extended support) and is going to lack some of the compatibility that SP6 has.

Also, make sure to pay close attention to the release docs for any 5.3 application.  Potential conflicts will occur when you custom coded a function that's now native in the newer version.  Some applications, like DCO don't even have an official 6.0 release yet, but EMC has provided 6.5 dars so it can be used on a 6.5 repository.  For the most part, 5.3 apps will do fine since most of the new features will be handled on the Content Server side in the background.  You'll notice problems though as soon as you want a 5.3 app to do something cool that's done easily in 6.0/6.5.  That's when you'll be tempted to code in that functionality in 5.3.  Resist those tempting thoughts!  Convince the business owner to bite the bullet and upgrade to the newer version.

ealvarez

You should also be aware that using a 5.3 Application on the same machine as a 6 + version will cause problems due to DFC conflicts. You should read the Release notes of the versions you are considering to install as they mention potential problems using older versions.