Google Search Appliance Upgrade and Migration Handbook - Manual (Page 13)

Upgrade Considerations
Common considerations that should be taken into account when upgrading GSA connectors include:
Changes to the connector
● Some connector upgrades include major changes to connector design, and may impact the
configuration of the overall GSA environment. For example, the GSA Connector for Lotus Notes 3.0
introduced early­binding and if used, requires the correct security mechanisms to be configured for
authentication in order for secure search to function correctly. These changes should be determined
through analysis of the new connector features and an impact analysis within the existing GSA
environment.
Dependencies on the GSA
● GSA connectors depend on functionality within the GSA to operate, and some new versions of
connectors are tied to new features introduced within the GSA. For example, the GSA Connector
for File Systems 3.0 relies on new functionality introduced within GSA 7.0.
Re­indexing
● When re­indexing connector content, a complete re­traversal of the content system is required, and
may impact performance through the increased load on the content system.
● Re­indexing with a new connector instance will also increase GSA license count usage, if existing
documents are not removed from the index prior to connector upgrade.
● In some special circumstances, re­indexing of all content may not be required when performing a
GSA connector upgrade. This circumstance varies for each connector and each version, and should
only be determined with expert analysis and guidance.
Changes to the target content system
● Some connectors require software to be installed onto the target content source (eg. the GSA
Connector for SharePoint) and new versions will typically include updates to these components.
● This may also have limitations for running two versions of a connector simultaneously during the
upgrade process(eg. the GSA Connector for SharePoint requires an appropriate version of the
Google Services for SharePoint to be installed on the SharePoint server).
For complex connector upgrade scenarios, a GSA Qualified Deployment Specialist should be consulted for
advice and guidance.
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