[chrisplough]

All,

Back at G-Log, we often had to take production databases from our customers and bring them into QA for performance testing - or to duplicate client issues. When doing so, it was critical that we didn't notify the customer's customers, nor their carriers when processing transactions into the system. These same steps can help you move data from your PROD environment, back to a PREPROD, PERF, TEST or DEV environment with the same protection.

Below are my recommendations, to ensure that external parties and systems aren't notified.

After moving your data (either via import/export or DB clone) to the TEST environment, complete the following:

1. Ensure your TEST system utilizes an SMTP server which doesn't relay to outside domains.
2. Ensure your TEST system is located within a segregated network, which doesn't allow it to connect to production integration systems.
3. Ensure the following property exists within your TEST glog.properties file, under the Custom Properties section:
   1. glog.mail.redirect.default=tester@company.com
4. Run the following SQL command against your TEST database (just to be sure!):
   1. UPDATE CONTACT SET EMAIL_ADDRESS='tester@company.com';
5. Startup your TEST instance and login as DBA.ADMIN, then modify all of your External Systems, and ensure that no production integration systems are referenced.
   1. This includes digging down into each WebService and ensuring the associated WSDL files don't specify a production endpoint

That's it - your officially done. While it may take a few minutes to complete -- knowing that you won't have to worry about performance tests wrecking havoc on customers and carriers is well worth the effort.

Hope this helps!

--Chris

[tangfj]

Just want to note that you may not want to use the e-mail address tester@company.com. In a previous job we'd set everything to in our DEV environment fake@fake.com and a few months later got a cease and desist letter from fake.com!