In-Place Conversion
The in-place conversion was developed to support companies with large databases, limited disk space, and limited conversion time. This method updates the source database with target data and schema changes, avoiding the copy of production data from the source to the target database.
The advantages of the in-place method include:
• A faster conversion. Depending on database size, the in-place conversion can eliminate many hours of processing time since the production data is never copied from the source database to the target.
• Reduced disk space. Any sensible conversion protocol requires a full backup of the source database. The buffer copy creates an additional target database resulting in three, full-sized production databases. The in-place option, by updating the source database with target data and schema changes, results in only two full-sized production databases.
Note: In-place conversions do not allow you to retain existing system data unless you have created a backup of your production databases.