Upgrading Ignition 8.1 to 8.3: backup, test Gateway, licence, modules, redundant pairs and rollback

Ignition 8.3 is a major release, and Inductive Automation's 8.1 to 8.3 upgrade guide lists changes that need action before or after the upgrade. The route the manual recommends is to take a Gateway backup, upgrade a development or test Gateway first, then run the 8.3 installer over the existing 8.1 installation. This article follows the Ignition 8.3 user manual, and the 8.1 manual where it differs. What Ignition is: What is Ignition.

1. Which versions can go to 8.3

The 8.3 installing page states that a Gateway older than 8.1 cannot be upgraded straight to 8.3. It goes to 8.1 first, then to 8.3, and the same applies to Gateway backups from older versions. The upgrade guide also strongly advises moving to the latest 8.1 release before the jump to 8.3.

Both versions are long-term support (LTS) releases. Inductive Automation's LTS page gives these dates:

2. What to settle on the 8.1 Gateway first

• Licence. The guide asks to check that the licence is ready for 8.3. The installing page adds that a major version needs an updated licence, which can be done before the upgrade so the Gateway has no unlicensed time. Licence items change too: the Tag Historian item is replaced by Historian Core and SQL Historian.
• Third-party modules. Each one must be confirmed as compatible with 8.3 by its maker. The installer's Select Modules screen then lets each additional module be upgraded, removed or left unchanged.
• Duplicate users. 8.3 does not allow two users with the same username in Internal or AD/Internal Hybrid user sources. They must be removed on the 8.1 Gateway. From 8.3.4 the migration logs and skips such user sources instead of breaking them, but removing duplicates first is still recommended.
• System requirements. The installing page points to the Downloads page for the minimum system requirements.

3. Backup first, then a test Gateway

A Gateway backup (.gwbk file) holds the projects, Gateway settings, user sources, tags, database connections, device and OPC connections, alarm pipelines, scripts and reports. Data held in other programs is not in it: SQL databases, PLC programs and files added by hand to the installation folder must be backed up separately. In 8.1 the backup is downloaded under Config > System > Backup/Restore, in 8.3 under Platform > System > Backup & Restore. Restoring a backup on an existing Gateway overwrites its configuration and projects with no merge, but leaves its modules, licence, redundancy settings and Tag Reference Store unchanged.

The guide strongly advises upgrading a development or test environment first, on hardware similar to production. It describes two methods:

• Installer (recommended). Run the 8.3 installer on the existing server, which detects the installation. The Gateway restarts during the upgrade, so downtime must be planned.
• Fresh 8.3 installation plus imports (discouraged). If it must be done, the guide recommends restoring Gateway backups: a restore runs the same upgrade check as the installer, project and tag imports do not, and tags exported from 8.1 are likely to break on import.

4. What changes in 8.3

On Windows, tag JSON files now sit under data\config\resources\core\ignition\tag-definition, followed by the Tag Browser folders. The Long File Paths page warns that the Windows API limit of 255 characters can leave backups and copies incomplete, sometimes with no error; the LongPathsEnabled registry key set to 1 lifts the limit, though file tools may still have problems. For Perspective, the Perspective Sessions page lists Chrome 92, Firefox 90, Safari 15.4 and Edge 92 as minimums for basic session functionality in 8.3.0.

Before moving Identity Provider configurations from an 8.1 Gateway, check the release notes for the exact 8.3 version being installed.

5. Several Gateways, Edge and redundant pairs

8.3 Gateways cannot store data to 8.1 Gateways over the Gateway Network. Where Gateways store data remotely through Edge Sync Services, remote history providers, remote alarm journals or remote audit profiles, the central Gateway that hosts the data is upgraded first and checked. The remote and Edge Gateways follow. While versions are mixed, an 8.1 Designer cannot edit tags hosted on an 8.3 remote tag provider. The installers upgrade the Edge, Maker and Standard editions alike, except on ARM, which needs a ZIP installer.

The Ignition 8 Upgrade Guide page warns that some changes may need a downtime window even with redundancy. For a redundant pair, the installing page gives this order:

1. On the Master's Redundancy page, set Recovery Mode to Manual and save, so the upgraded Master stays inactive until told to take over.
2. Upgrade and start the Backup.
3. Force a failover to the Backup. The 8.3 redundancy page allows failover between nodes on different versions, so clients stay connected to at least one node.
4. Upgrade and start the Master.
5. Confirm that both nodes are connected, then select Assume Control on the Master.

If the Backup is a new installation, its Require Two-Way Authentication setting must match the Master's. Redundancy is compared across platforms in SCADA server redundancy.

6. After the upgrade, and rolling back

After the upgrade the guide suggests Diagnostics > Overview on the Gateway webpage, the Gateway and wrapper logs, and checks that history is still stored and projects work. If modules show Trial where Activated is expected, the licence may need to be reactivated. When something is wrong, these files show what the migration did:

There is no supported downgrade. The 8.1 and 8.3 installing pages both say that going back means a clean reinstallation of the older version and a restore of a Gateway backup from the same or an older version, after uninstalling the service and deleting the installation folder. The backup taken on 8.1 before the upgrade is therefore the way back.

What TDL checks first

These are our own working habits before upgrading an Ignition system, not Inductive Automation requirements:

• We list each Gateway's version, edition and modules, and get each third-party module maker's statement on 8.3.
• We download a .gwbk from every Gateway, back up the SQL databases and any files added to the installation folder, and keep the installer of the exact 8.1 build.
• We restore the backup on a test Gateway, upgrade it there, and read the migration log, tag-migration and conversion-report files.
• We search project scripts for the functions the guide lists as deprecated and for historical tag paths.
• We list database connections and their JDBC drivers, OPC UA connections to other vendors' products and Gateway Network connections, because certificates and trust change.
• We check the launchers and browsers on operator PCs, and the order and downtime window for redundant pairs and remote Gateways.

Device connections to Allen-Bradley controllers in both versions: Ignition Logix driver.

How TDL approaches it

TDL Industrial Automation is an Ignition Certified Integrator. We plan an upgrade from the Gateway backup and the module list, prove it on a test Gateway, and only then touch the production Gateway. More on this service: Ignition SCADA integrator in Vietnam and SCADA and historian.