What is the Banner Cloud Migration Project?
Administrative Systems completed a collaborative 18-month Banner Cloud Migration project with Ellucian and other representatives from VCU. The project migrated our existing Banner ERP solution, Degree Works, and ODS systems from our University Computer Center (UCC) on the VCU campus into the Amazon Web Services (AWS) cloud managed by Ellucian. Ellucian is the vendor that created and maintains the Banner software suite and licenses its use to VCU and other colleges and universities worldwide. Our journey to the Ellucian Cloud began in September 2021. We completed the Banner Cloud Migration project on December 9, 2022. Banner, Degree Works, Operational Data Store (ODS), and eServices are now available and accessible in the Ellucian Cloud.
Why move Banner to the Ellucian Cloud?
The Banner, Degree Works, and ODS systems are currently housed at the University Computer Center (UCC) at the State-owned Pocahontas Building at 900 East Main Street. VCU must vacate the building by the end of next year and is working to move the data center to a new Technology Operations Center at 707 West Broad Street, next to the VCU Technology Administration Building (TAB).
"Migrating Banner from our current on-premise solution to the Ellucian Cloud is a critical component of VCU's technology roadmap and strategy. One of the many benefits is a level of redundancy and business continuity capability we've not previously enjoyed, and having the Banner system out of scope as we move our primary network and data center operations from the Pocahontas building to the new Technology Operations Center also reduces complexity and risk to the institution," said Alex Henson, chief information officer at VCU.
When will the Banner Cloud Migration Project go live?
The Banner Cloud Migration project is complete. Banner, Degree Works, ODS, and eServices are now available and accessible.
Essential notes on the timing of the maintenance window:
- Friday, December 2: At 5:00 pm on Friday, December 2, VCU Technology Services will shut down the on-site Banner and ODS systems to begin the Banner ERP Cloud Migration to the Ellucian AWS cloud.
- All Reporting Center, SAS, and Banner Applications will be unavailable starting at 5:00 pm on Friday, December 2. Banner processing will end, and your Banner-related applications will lose their connections until the migration is complete.
- All data integrations to and from Banner and ODS databases will be inactive until the migration is complete.
- The VCU Reporting Center and SAS Visual Analytics reports and dashboards will be DOWN until the ODS migration is complete.
- Monday, December 5: At approximately 8:00 am, Banner Admin Pages, Degree Works, and eServices access will be limited to technical and functional testers to validate systems are functioning properly. We estimate 2 days of validating between technical and functional.
- Wednesday, December 7: At approximately noon, the VCU community can access Banner production, Degree Works, and eServices in the Ellucian AWS Cloud.
- Thursday, December 8: ODS access will be limited to technical testers to validate that systems are functioning correctly. We estimate 1 day of validating between technical and functional.
- Friday, December 9: At approximately 10 am, the ODS, VCU Reporting Center reports, and dashboards will be available to the VCU community in the Ellucian Managed Cloud. We will need to refresh the ODS to update the data. All data integrations to and from Banner and ODS databases should be active after the refresh.
We are providing you with this information to ensure you can plan around the dates. However, the dates and times are subject to change. Communications will be sent with information when the Banner systems are unavailable and when they are available in Ellucian's managed cloud.
During the maintenance window, the following Banner and ODS services will be UNAVAILABLE:
| Affected Banner Services | Affected ODS Services |
|---|---|
|
Banner Database |
ODS Database |
|
Banner Admin Pages (and ImageNow) |
SAS Enterprise Guide |
|
eServices - The Banner Self-Service Apps:
|
SAS EBI Reporting Center |
|
DegreeWorks - all interfaces |
SAS VA Dashboards - Finance, Research |
|
eTranscripts |
TOAD and SQL Developer access to ODS Database |
|
Transcript Printing |
All file transfers from ODS |
|
Banner ePrint |
Cornerstone daily load into ODS |
|
Job Submission |
WebServices Training Load into ODS |
|
Automic Scheduler |
TimeClock Daily load into ODS |
|
Intellecheck |
Self-Service Employee - Total Rewards |
|
PubApps Banner Security Reports |
Math Placement Loads to ODS |
|
All file transfers from Banner and ODS |
Portlets on the myVCU portal (leave, student schedule, holds, etc.) |
|
TOAD and SQL Developer access to Banner Database |
|
|
Image Now with Banner |
|
Have an additional question about the Banner Managed Cloud Project?
Visit FAQ to check out the answers to our most commonly asked questions.
Important dates:
Friday, December 9: The Banner Cloud Migration project is complete!
- Student Registration is now available for the fall and spring 2023 semesters in eServices.
- Banner, Degree Works, and eServices are now available and accessible.
- The ODS, VCU Reporting Center, and dashboards are now available and accessible.
Please visit the Banner Cloud Migration Links page for updated links.
