Over the past few years Oracle has been releasing a whole range of innovations for Siebel CRM. One such innovation, touted as a Siebel CRM next generation installer, i.e. Siebel Modular Deployment Engine (MDE), was released in Siebel Version 20.5 for members of the early adopter program. Siebel MDE is now generally available for all customers with Version 21.2. The primary benefit is to simplify the Siebel CRM installation and upgrade process.
What is Siebel MDE
- Siebel MDE is a powerful tool, which provides a single installer for all Siebel components such as SES, AI, Tools and Clients
- MDE supports New Installation, Migration Installation, and Update Installation paths
- New Installation – This can be used to install a new instance of Siebel 21.x
- Migration Installation – This can be used for installation or upgrade from Siebel releases prior to 17.0
- Update Installation – This can be used to install a Siebel 21.x update on top of Siebel 17.x or later. In addition, you can use MDE to modify an existing install of the same version
Why Siebel MDE
- Faster/Simplified Installation Process
- Base Version 17.0 installation is no longer necessary when you are upgrading from an earlier version
- The Siebel Network Image Creator is no longer required
- Single installer for both Server and Client modules
- Backup and Efficiency
- Because all files used for a Siebel CRM install are present, you don’t need to backup the Siebel CRM binaries again. Backups have become very efficient and only require customized files from the application
- MDE now installs ancillary products and Oracle Database/LDAP client drivers. Therefore, you never need to worry about having the wrong drivers installed
- Streamlining Install/Upgrade Deployment
- No more double upgrades like Pre-IP 2017 > IP 2017 > Siebel CRM 21.x
- MDE combines all Siebel installers and patch installers into a single utility with multiple components including Oracle Database components
- MDE reduces the workflows to be executed to get Siebel CRM up and running
- MDE enables repeatable silent mode scripting of installation and configuration in support of continuous delivery
- Key Advantages of MDE Over Legacy Installers
- MDE provides a single session installer for both base version (17.0) and the latest updates. Legacy installers require the base to be installed prior to applying the patch installer in order to update to the latest release
- MDE supports the installation of all components in a single session whereas legacy installation requires a different installer to install the Server, Client, and Tool modules.
- The download file size is much smaller for MDE
- With MDE, patching is faster as custom files are stored in an external location and do not require backup. Custom files are no longer part of the Siebel war files and are stored in a separate location called “siebelwebroot” under the AI container
How to Install MDE
- Review the new installation guide for pre-requisites and installation processes
- Download the required zip files and extract to a common directory. That’s all that’s required to launch the installer, as the Siebel Network Image Creator is no longer required.
- MDE installs binaries for all components in a unified folder structure
- MDE reduces the duplication of files using Symbolic links
To conclude, MDE provides a cleaner user interface (UI), simplified process, and improved productivity. This new installer supports cumulative installs, allowing customers to go from any Siebel CRM 8.x codeline version directly to the latest release via a simplified process.