We have a BizTalk Server 2006 R2 application that we will be shipping this year, with several schemas that customers will use to build Custom Orchestrations. When we deliver the next version of the application next year there is a possibility that these schemas (some are WCF service contracts) may change.
That being the case how can we ensure minimal impact to customer orchestrations/customizations? Basically, the question is what is the upgrade strategy for BizTalk Server applications i.e. from one version of application to another (not BizTalk Server itself – which also another question upgrading to 2009).
Best Answer
Take a look at the BizTalk's Understanding Application Deployment guide. This has a great sections on side by side versioning and leveraging MSIs for upgrades.