FAQs on Migrating on-premise Setups to Ubuntu 22

Introduction

In order to keep up with current OS and hardware standards and to ensure that on-premise Ubuntu setups receive relevant updates and security fixes, NavVis Desktop Processing (SiteMaker) now supports Ubuntu 22.04.

As Ubuntu 18.04 is no longer supported by Canonical since 2023, which bears risks to any customers' IT setup, migration of on-premise NavVis processing setups to Ubuntu 22.04 is mandatory for all customers with active processing licenses.

To support our customers during the migration, we have summarized frequently asked questions.

Frequently asked Questions

Licensing

You need an active Desktop Processing license for each device you want to process data from. Review the status, start and end dates of your licenses within our NavVis Portal here.

The license for a specific device has expired. What to do now?

If you still want to process data from this device, you can move to IVION Processing and process all devices as needed in the cloud.

However, if staying on-premise is still required, then you need to choose from the following options:

• Renew the Desktop Processing license for this device: Do this by contacting your local NavVis Reseller or NavVis Account Executive. Migrate your setup to Ubuntu 22.04 and add the new license file as described here.

• Do not renew the Desktop Processing license: In this situation you need the latest version of NavVis Desktop Processing installed, for which you had active licenses for all devices you want to process. This version should be kept as is and your setup cannot be migrated to Ubuntu 22.04.

If you no longer want to process data from this specific device, then proceed with the Ubuntu migration. After the set up is complete, you will be able to process data from all devices with active licenses.

Migration Schedule

Is migrating to Ubuntu 22.04 mandatory to receive further Desktop Processing updates? Any dependencies on other NavVis products?
All migration to Ubuntu 22.04 is mandatory for customers that have purchased Desktop Processing updates.

Note: The software version of NavVis Desktop Processing needs to be at all times newer (= higher number) than the VLX System Software used to capture the data. This means, that if you want to continue updating your NavVis VLX, you also need to migrate your Desktop Processing workstation to Ubuntu 22.04.

How much time needs to be set aside to migrate my workstation or server?

Internal tests have shown, that migrating the recommended standard set up of a local workstation with standalone Ubuntu OS, which is only used for NavVis processing, takes around one day at most.

However, if problems arise or for more complex setups (eg. company network integrations, dual-boot systems…) more work and troubleshooting might be required. In such scenarios, please coordinate with your IT department or IT provider.

What’s the timeline within which all workstations and servers need to be migrated?

On 20th December 2023 NavVis Desktop Processing version 2.22.7 was released, refer here, which allows NavVis software to be installed on Ubuntu 22.04 systems.

• For a limited duration NavVis software will support both Ubuntu 18.04 and Ubuntu 22.04 as an Operating System.

• However, from April 2024 onwards software updates will only be released for Ubuntu 22.04.

We advise to schedule the migration of your workstation with your project timelines in mind to plan in some buffer time if any problems arise.

Until when will the NavVis Support team help troubleshoot systems running on Ubuntu 18.04?

There is no End of Support date set in place as yet, from which NavVis Support will no longer provide help for Ubuntu 18.04 systems.

NavVis will also ensure, that the last version released on Ubuntu 18.04

• Will be a stable one.

• Will be made available when needed for reinstallation.

Technical Procedures

Are there any notes on hardware compatibility available?

Yes. For the release of Ubuntu 22.04, refer to the recommendations and system requirements document.

As NavVis do not provide Ubuntu 22.04 as a product, we will refer back to Canonical official documentation directly wherever possible.

However, all hardware and IT set ups are expected to be personalized by our customers and accordingly, the overall compatibility and stability of each set up remains in your personal ownership.

Is it possible to use the integrated upgrade functionality within Ubuntu?

During previous tests and development of the migration procedure, the integrated upgrade functionality (18.04 → 20.04 → 22.04) has proven to be error prone and has required advanced IT knowledge to result in a stable and usable Ubuntu 22.04 installation.

Subsequently, we advise against using it and recommend a clean installation as described in our documentation.

Is it necessary to update Desktop Processing license files during the migration?

We recommend to run a backup of your data before the migration procedure.

1. If this backup includes the license folders, when restoring the data, all licenses will be immediately in place.

2. If they are not included, you need to download the respective license files from NavVis Portal and place it into the correct license folders as described here.

Are there any foreseeable situations that may require a reinstallation of NavVis Desktop Processing after the migration to Ubuntu 22.04?

As of now, we generally do not expect any further reinstallations of NavVis Desktop Processing (SiteMaker) after the successful migration to Ubuntu 22.04. However,

• If any specific processing issues arise, NavVis Support might ask you to perform a new installation to solve the issue based on the technical analysis done.

• Customers, who own both actively used NavVis M6 and NavVis VLX devices, might be required to set up an additional workstation later in 2024 with M6-specific software. The originally migrated workstation will continue to work for NavVis VLX-processing only. Once this becomes necessary, NavVis will officially communicate this to all applicable customers.

IVION on-premise

What is required if I am running IVION on-premise software on the same workstation or server?

IVION on-premise installed via Docker supports Ubuntu 22.04 since version 10.9.0 released on August 10th, 2023. To backup and migrate IVION Instances to Ubuntu 22.04 as well, please follow these instructions: Migrating IVION on-premise instances to Ubuntu 22.04.

Others

Are there any plans to make Ubuntu 22.04 the OS for VLX?

We are considering it, but there is no timeline yet in place.

If NavVis decides to move forward on this, we will prefer a customer-friendly technical implementation which minimizes the effort required from users, resellers as well as our own Support and Service teams.