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Version: 2027.02 Beta
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8.3 to 2027 Upgrade Guide

2027.02 Beta Release

Ignition 2027.02 is a beta release. The information on this page reflects the current state of the beta and is subject to change throughout the beta period as features are finalized. Check back regularly for updates.

Do not upgrade any production Gateways to Ignition 2027 until after the final 2027 release. Use beta releases only on development or test systems.

Overview​

Ignition 2027 is a major update that builds on the platform introduced in Ignition 8.3. Inductive Automation strives to maintain its commitment to backwards compatibility and a straightforward upgrade process. However, some changes in 2027 require you to evaluate your system and take action to upgrade successfully. This document identifies those changes and provides guidance for users who are migrating from an Ignition 8.3 system. To discover the new features of Ignition 2027, see the New in this Version page.

Please read this guide carefully before upgrading any Gateway.

Upgrading Redundant Pairs?

If you are looking to upgrade redundant pairs, refer to the Upgrading a Redundant Pair procedure on the Installing and Upgrading page for a step-by-step description of the process. Be sure to review this guide before getting started.

Important Considerations​

Existing licenses are not compatible with the 2027 Beta. When Ignition 2027 is released, contact your Sales Representative to ensure that your license is 2027 ready.

Prior to performing any kind of upgrade, it is good practice to first take a Gateway Backup of your system. In case something goes wrong during the upgrade process, you will still have a configuration of your system to restore.

Additionally, it is strongly advised to upgrade either your development or test environment before production. This will help you foresee and eliminate any potential issues when upgrading, without affecting production. To further reduce any potential issues, your development environment should have similar hardware to your production environment.

Ignition 8.3 Is the Minimum Upgrade Version​

Ignition 2027 only supports upgrades from Ignition 8.3. Gateways running Ignition 8.1 or earlier must first be upgraded to 8.3, and then upgraded to 2027. Both the graphical and command line installers will block a direct upgrade from 8.1 to 2027. If your Gateway is running 8.1, see the 8.1 to 8.3 Upgrade Guide before getting started.

The same requirement applies to Gateway backups. Ignition 2027 rejects any Gateway backup created on a version earlier than 8.3.0, regardless of how the backup is restored. This includes restoring through the Gateway webpage, the REST API, the Gateway Command-line Utility, Docker, the installer, and EAM tasks. To restore an 8.1 backup on a 2027 Gateway, first restore it on an 8.3 Gateway, then take a new backup from the 8.3 Gateway.

Supported Platforms​

Ignition 2027 bundles Java 25, which does not support 32-bit ARM. As a result, there is no 2027 ZIP installer for 32-bit ARM devices. Only 64-bit ARM (AArch64) is supported. If your Gateway runs on 32-bit ARM hardware, you will need to migrate to a 64-bit ARM or other supported platform before upgrading.

Upgrade Process​

There are two general approaches when upgrading from Ignition 8.3 to Ignition 2027. The recommended approach is to use the installer to upgrade, but some users may prefer to uninstall their current Gateways and install a fresh copy of Ignition 2027. Both options are described below.

Using the Installer​

Using the installer to upgrade is the easiest approach. Run an Ignition 2027 installer on your existing server, similar to how minor version upgrades work. As always, we highly advise taking a Gateway backup before upgrading.

Download links for installers and launchers have moved to releases.inductiveautomation.com. If your organization uses firewall allowlists, proxy rules, or automated scripts to download Ignition, update them to use the new location.

Importing Projects into a Fresh Install​

When installing a fresh copy of Ignition, you'll need to manually import projects and tags from the Ignition 8.3 Gateway. We generally discourage this practice, as it can result in unintended consequences. If you must import 8.3 resources into a 2027 Gateway, we recommend you restore an 8.3 Gateway backup when possible. A Gateway backup triggers the same upgrade checks as the installer, while project and tag imports do not.

Keep in mind that a fresh 2027 installation uses some different default settings than an upgraded Gateway. See the Changed Defaults on Fresh Installs section for details.

Changes That Require User Action​

The following sections detail changes made from 8.3 to 2027 that require user action, and are organized by subsystem.

Audit Profiles​

New Previous Value Column​

Audit records for tag writes now include the value of the tag before the write. To store this value, Ignition adds a previous_value column to the audit table of each existing database Audit Profile during the upgrade. The column is set to null for all existing records.

If your audit table already has a column named previous_value, Ignition handles it in one of two ways:

  • The column is a string type, such as VARCHAR: Ignition uses the existing column to store the previous value of new audit records. If you were already using this column for other data, new records will overwrite it.
  • The column is not a string type: The Audit Profile's status is set to Faulted, and audit records are not retained until the issue is resolved.

To prevent either situation, check your audit tables for an existing previous_value column before upgrading. If one exists, either change the column's type to a string type, or update the Audit Profile to store previous values in a different column, such as previous_value2. After making the change, restart the Gateway.

Audit Actor Format​

The format of the actor recorded with each audit event has changed. For example, actors now appear as usr-prov:default:/usr:admin for users from a User Source, or with an idp: prefix for users authenticated through an Identity Provider.

If you have queries, scripts, reports, or alarms that filter or parse audit records by actor, review and update them to match the new format.

Audit Log Results and Displays​

The system.util.queryAuditLog function now returns a dataset that includes a Previous Value column. Scripts that reference dataset columns by index may need to be updated.

Custom displays of audit records, such as tables and reports, may also show the new Previous Value field. Depending on your query filters and display configuration, this can change how much information is visible, or how it is truncated, sized, or wrapped.

Gateway Network​

Ignition 2027 Gateways can only communicate with other 2027 or 8.3 Gateways over the Gateway Network, even if you are using proxies. Connections to and from Gateways earlier than 8.3 are refused and marked as Faulted. Upgrade any 8.1 Gateways in your architecture to 8.3 before introducing 2027 Gateways.

The Allow Java Serialization setting has been removed, and is stripped from the Gateway's configuration during the upgrade. Java serialization was only required to communicate with 8.1 Gateways.

Java 25​

Ignition 2027 bundles Java 25. Before upgrading, check the following:

  • If you have added custom JVM arguments to the Gateway configuration file, confirm that they are supported by Java 25. The Gateway may fail to start if it is passed an option that Java no longer recognizes.
  • Confirm that your launchers, Vision Clients, and third party modules are compatible with Java 25.

Modules​

Module Compatibility​

Module compatibility is now based on the year version. Modules built for Ignition 8.x will fault on a 2027 Gateway. Additionally, a module built for a newer 2027 release will fault on a Gateway running an older 2027 release.

Third Party Modules​

Because modules built for Ignition 8.x will fault on a 2027 Gateway, you will need 2027-compatible versions of any third party modules before upgrading. Check the official documentation and release notes from the developers of your third party modules for explicit statements of compatibility with Ignition 2027. If compatibility information is not readily available, contact the support or development teams of your third party modules before upgrading.

OPC COM Tunneller Module​

The OPC COM Tunneller module has been removed. Tags that use OPC COM Tunneller connections will stop working after the upgrade until their OPC item paths are changed to use another connection.

Catalyst Modules​

The AI modules now available with Ignition are the Catalyst Core and Catalyst Agent modules. The Catalyst Agent module is not available in Ignition Edge.

Docker Module Lists​

If you deploy Ignition with the Docker image and use the GATEWAY_MODULES_ENABLED environment variable, review your module list after upgrading. Remove the identifiers of any modules that no longer exist, and add identifiers for any new modules you want to enable. See the Module Identifiers Table for the current list.

Database Connections​

The bundled Microsoft SQL Server JDBC driver has been updated from version 9.4 to 13.2.1. Starting with version 10, the Microsoft driver encrypts connections by default. If your SQL Server instance does not use a certificate trusted by the Gateway, your database connections may fail after upgrading. To resolve this, install a trusted certificate on the SQL Server, or adjust the encryption settings in the database connection's Extra Connection Properties.

Historian​

Historian queries can return different results in 2027 than in 8.3:

Review scripts, bindings, and reports that use aggregated history queries to confirm they return the expected results.

Launchers​

The version checks between launchers and Gateways have changed in Ignition 2027. Before upgrading, review the compatibility of your launchers and Perspective Workstation installations with your Gateways. See the Upgrading Launchers section for more information.

Security​

Create Project Permission​

The Create Project Roles and Create Project Permissions settings, deprecated in 8.3.7, have been removed. Use the Designer Roles and Permissions settings on the Gateway General Security Settings page to control who can create projects. See the Create Project Permission page in the Deprecated Manual for more information.

Config API Error Responses​

HTTP 422 error responses from configuration REST API calls now use a different format. If you have external integrations that parse these responses, update them to handle the new format.

Audit Log View Drawer​

The View Log drawer for an Audit Profile now displays record contents in a formatted, readable layout instead of raw JSON. If you have automated tests or tools that parse the contents of this drawer through a browser, update them accordingly. We recommend using the REST API or querying the audit database directly to work with audit record contents.

Changes To Be Aware Of​

The following sections detail other changes made in Ignition 2027.

Changed Defaults on Fresh Installs​

The following defaults apply to new installations of Ignition 2027. Upgraded Gateways keep their existing settings.

  • Fresh installs include a default Audit Profile. Upgrades do not create one.
  • Commissioning a new Gateway includes an AI acknowledgment step.

Catalyst Defaults​

Catalyst agents and MCP connections default to Authenticated access.

Bundled Components​

  • Docker images now use Ubuntu 26.04 as the base image. If you build custom images on top of the Ignition image, confirm that any packages you install are available.
  • The Docker volume check no longer relies on the config.idb file.
  • JxBrowser has been updated to version 9.5.3.

Gateway Webpage​

  • A resource's description and enabled state are now managed at the resource level, rather than within the Edit drawer for each primary or backup configuration.
  • Configuration controls are disabled for users with read-only access and on backup Gateways in a redundant pair.

Identity Providers​

Ignition 2027 supports multiple Identity Providers for a single Gateway or project. Identity Providers are configured as an ordered list under Security > General Settings and in the Designer's Project Properties. When more than one Identity Provider is configured, users see a page to choose an Identity Provider when logging in to the Gateway, Designer, Vision Clients, or Perspective Sessions.

Single Identity Provider settings from 8.3 are migrated automatically.

Module Changes​

The Beckhoff ADS Driver module has been added, and is bundled and selected by default in the installer.

Version Numbering​

Ignition versions now use a YEAR.MONTH.PATCH format, such as 2027.2.0.

Discontinued Features​

The following features have been removed in Ignition 2027:

  • Direct upgrades and Gateway backup restores from Ignition 8.1 and earlier
  • The Allow Java Serialization Gateway Network setting
  • The OPC COM Tunneller module
  • The 32-bit ARM ZIP installer
  • The Create Project Roles and Create Project Permissions settings

New Platform Features​

The following sections detail new major features added in Ignition 2027. See the New in this Version page for information on all new features.

Designer​

  • The Translation Manager has been replaced and now opens from the Tools menu. It supports ZIP and XLSX formats. A new system.i18n scripting namespace is also available for working with localization.
  • Transaction Groups now open in a tabbed workspace, so you can work with multiple Transaction Groups at the same time.

Gateway Webpage​

The following pages and sections have been added to the Gateway:

  • Services > Catalyst
  • Services > Historians > Historians is now Services > Historian > Providers
  • Platform > System > Export & Import for importing and exporting .gwex files
  • Home > Perspective > Chart Styles

Scripting​

Post Upgrade Actions​

The following sections detail different actions to take after upgrading to 2027.

Verifying System Health​

It is good practice to ensure everything is working correctly after upgrading. The following list of tips is not exhaustive, but can help ensure your system is working properly.

  • Check the Diagnostics Overview page for a quick top-level view of your system. This page is found on the Gateway Webpage > Diagnostics > Overview.
  • Check your Gateway and wrapper logs for any repeated warnings or errors. See the Logs section for more details.
  • Check the status of your Audit Profiles to confirm they match the expected state, such as Running or Disabled. If a profile is Buffering or Faulted, hover over the status and review the logs for more information.
    • A Buffering status can indicate a database or remote Gateway connection issue. Audit records are held in the Store and Forward system until the issue is resolved.
    • A Faulted status indicates a configuration issue. Audit records are not retained until the issue is resolved.
  • Check your Gateway Network connections for any Faulted connections.
  • Verify that historical data is still being stored.
  • Verify your projects are still functioning correctly.
  • Make sure that all behavior after upgrading is expected, and that there are no unintended actions or consequences.
Modules Running in Trial Mode?

If your modules show a Trial license status after upgrading when Activated is expected, you may need to reactivate your license. Once your license has been reactivated, the modules will display an Activated status.

Troubleshooting Issues​

If you run into any problems while upgrading or after upgrading, we recommend reaching out to our Support team. When creating a ticket, please provide a detailed explanation and any relevant resources, including any photos or screenshots that help illustrate the problem.

The section below details the various logs and locations that pertain to an upgrade that you can provide our Support team. If you are able to reliably reproduce the issue, please document the exact steps and include any necessary resources used during your replication attempts. For instructions on how to roll back to a previous version, refer to the System Rollback section of the Installing and Upgrading page.

Logs​

The following table displays different types of logs that can help troubleshoot errors from upgrading and the log locations.

Log DirectoryType of LogDescription
%IgnitionInstallationDirectory%/logs/WrapperProvides information about the Gateway, its subsystems, and errors from Gateway-scoped resources.
%IgnitionInstallationDirectory%/logs/install_{YYYYMMDD-HHmm}Provides information about the installer for the extraction and replacement of the core Ignition file system, after which the Ignition service is started.
Last updated on by Susan Shamgar