Falko,

I have migrated several ib56 databases to firebird 1.5.

Firebird reads ODS 9 format (ib56 database internal format) but its
really recommended to do a backup/restore with Firebird just to use
the native ODS 10.1 format and to benefit from optimizations (index,
etc..)

For your client application, I you don't install IB56, just make sure
you use the right client dll :
- if you can't change gds32.dll to fbclient.dll, just rename old
gds32.dll in system32 (interbase 5.6) and install gds32.dll
with "instsvc i g" from firebird\bin (you have the option in the
setup)
- or use fbclient.dll or gds32.dll (firebird version) in your app
directory.

You can verify with "instsvc q g" which version is active.


Alexandre

>
> Falko,
>
> > but what if the old server isnt present any more and we have to
> > upgrade old databases?
> > the background is: our customers get a application update with
> > firebird 1.5 included. so interbase will be uninstalled.
>
> Actually, it is possible for you to construct a Firebird install

which

> would not require that IB be uninstalled. You can have Firebird

use a

> different set of TCP ports from IB.
>
> Thus you could have both engines co-existing.
>
> > in our tests the interbase databases seem to be ok after
> > a backup/restore with firebird!?
> > So: is it really neccessary to backup with ib5.6?
> > What can go wrong if we backup interbase-databases with firebird?
>
> It has been 6 years since I used IB, and I never tried to access a

5.6

> database from FB, so I can't comment.
>
> I would recommend that you NOT uninstall IB and that you create a
> "migration tool" to move the IB databases to FB, rather then depend

on

> FB being able to correctly backup a 5.6 database.
>
> Further, I would also STRONGLY recommend that you use different

database

> names (or at least the .fdb extension) and NOT delete the original

IB

> databases (compress them if required). You never know when you

_might_

> need to go back to the original databases.
>
>
> Sean
>