What should I look out for in Upgrading from 5.1 to 6.X

[TmoodSugarCRM]

Hello all-

I am new to SugarCRM and learning more everyday. I am in my first week with this company and they have been using Sugar 5.1 for almost three years now with no upgrades or patches that I'm aware of. The company would like to start the migration process from 5.1 to 6.X.

Thus, I have been studying 5.1 and learning some of the fundamental differences in 6.x.

However, not everything is always written in paper and frankly there is a lot to read and learn. So I'm hoping to cut some of the chases and ask the expert here:

What are the things I need to look out for when I start performing the migration process?

• Make backup? (I presume that's a given?)
• Any known bugs when making a big jump from 5.1 to 6.x?
  
• Must the upgrades/updates be gradual?
• Will any features be lost?
• Will any modules we've created be lost or incompatible?
• Are the workflow structure different?
• What are the biggest plus in 6.x?
• Etc..

Please feel free to share your professional and personal opinion. Anything provided would be greatly appreciated!

[Angel]

Backup is a must, specially given how old of a version you are dealing with.

One of the biggest issue that is often overlooked is your PHP configuration. By that, I mean the version and configuration. I'd stick around version 5.2.5 or so until you have Sugar upgraded to the 6.x series. (Assuming you want to upgrade PHP as well).

On the settings front, make sure memory_limit is set to at least 128M, max_execution_time and max_input_time to 300, upload_max_filesize and post_maxsize to 40M

You will need to do this in steps, but off the top of my head, I am not entirely sure about which sequence you will need to follow. Take a look at the downloads page to figure out your various hops. It is likely to be something like 5.1 to 5.5 to 6.1 to Current. Something like that.

In theory, your custom modules should remain intact. In theory. I stress that part because this tends to be one of the biggest issues that comes up, although it tends to be less problematic if you make smaller hops during the upgrade.

Two features that are lost that come to mind are POP3 support and Themes. POP3 support has been deprecated and the existing themes are not compatible with 6.x. Thus, if you were using a custom theme or you were accustomed to one other than the generic Sugar one, you will lose it.

Biggest advantages are the improved performance and customization enhancements. Studio is a lot more capable in 6.x when compared to 5.1