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Installing
Use this documentation to install the HCL Domino® server and subsequently deploy the HCL Notes®client.
Upgrading
Use this documentation to upgrade the existing Domino® server and subsequently upgrade the Notes® client to a new release. You can also upgrade additional clients such as Domino Administrator and Domino Designer clients and additional features and plug-ins such as the embedded HCL Sametime® client.
Planning the deployment of a new version of Notes
Understand the things to consider and actions to take before installing a new version of HCL Notes.
Steps to deploy a new version of Notes
The following steps are typical ones to use to deploy a new version of Notes in your environment.

Installing
Use this documentation to install the HCL Domino® server and subsequently deploy the HCL Notes®client.
- Installing and upgrading Domino® servers
  Perform a new or upgrade install of one or many Domino® servers.
- Downloading, distributing, and installing software using AutoUpdate
  AutoUpdate notifies you of the latest HCL Domino and Domino product family available on the Domino server, and allows you to download the software. You can also use it to distribute, and optionally, install, software to groups or selected Domino servers.
- Installing and upgrading Notes® clients
- Upgrading
  Use this documentation to upgrade the existing Domino® server and subsequently upgrade the Notes® client to a new release. You can also upgrade additional clients such as Domino Administrator and Domino Designer clients and additional features and plug-ins such as the embedded HCL Sametime® client.
  - Security considerations prior to upgrading
    It’s important to review your security practices before upgrading, especially if you are upgrading from an old version.
  - Preparing your environment for the upgrade
    Time spent doing a thorough evaluation of your environment prior to upgrading is time well spent. Capturing baselines of your existing server infrastructure allows you to compare how the upgraded environment is performing.
  - Planning the deployment of the new release
    Depending on the size of your organization and the number of Domino servers involved, an organization upgrade schedule may range from a few hours to a few weeks or months.
  - Upgrading a Domino server
    Before upgrading a Domino server, review the upgrade considerations and choose the upgrade option to use.
  - Upgrading post-V11 AD Password Sync to V12.0.2 or later
    Upgrade Domino AD Password Sync installations that use Domino 12.0 or 12.0.1 to Domino 12.0.2 or later in order to use the new "AD Password Sync" server install type available in 12.0.2 and later.
  - Planning the deployment of a new version of Notes
    Understand the things to consider and actions to take before installing a new version of HCL Notes.
    - MarvelClient Essentials
      Domino includes MarvelClient Essentials by Panagenda.
    - Automate and standardize
      Before the upgrade, take the opportunity to automate and standardize.
    - Clean, tighten, and fix
      Before the upgrade, clean, tight and fix the current Notes client environment.
    - Notes client install best practices
      Follow these install best practices.
    - Steps to deploy a new version of Notes
      The following steps are typical ones to use to deploy a new version of Notes in your environment.
      - Plan the deployment
        It is important to plan for the deployment of the new version of Notes.
      - Backing up and restoring Notes® client files
        Domino® administrators should periodically back up Notes® applications and files for users.
      - Download and customize the install kit
        There are many ways to customize the Notes installation.
      - Build and test the deployment package
        Follow these guidelines to build and test the deployment package.
      - Pilot the upgraded client
        Test the upgraded Notes version with a pilot deployment.
      - Roll out the deployment
        After certifying the pilot deployment, deploy Notes to the rest of your environment.
      - Manage the desktop
        Consider post-installation requirements.
    - Using Notes® Smart Upgrade and other upgrade tools
      You can push an upgrade to Notes® clients using Notes Smart Upgrade and/or other third party mechanisms, such as Smart Upgrade Run-As wizard (SURUNAS) or Upgrade-by-mail. You can also upgrade Notes clients using the Notes installation executable either silently (command line) or using the installer's graphical user interface. The supplied installation executable is used for an initial install or an upgrade install.
    - Maintaining Notes clients
      Upgrading Notes to the latest maintenance release and Fix Pack is a better choice than applying hotfixes

Steps to deploy a new version of Notes

The following steps are typical ones to use to deploy a new version of Notes in your environment.

Note: When you upgrade a Notes V10x or earlier client to V12, the Program and Data directories from the previous version are retained, for example C:\Program Files\IBM\Notes and C:\Program Files\IBM\Notes\Data. On fresh installations, the default directories are C:\Program Files\HCL\Notes and C:\Program Files\HCL\Notes\Data.