How to prepare a deployment handover

Assemble a versioned evidence package for an ePT installation.

Before you start

Use an operator account authorized to inspect the target installation. This guide targets ePT 7.6.21 with PHP 8.4 and MySQL 8 or later. Obtain the programme owner, hosting owner and acceptance reviewer names.

Record the baseline

1. Run the version check from the installation directory:

php bin/check-version-sync.php

1. Record the deployment identifier from VERSION.txt, where present.
2. For a Git checkout, record git rev-parse HEAD and git status --short.
3. Record the installed operating system, PHP, MySQL and web-server versions.
4. Record the active schemes, algorithms, instance setting, timezone and report layouts.

Keep secrets out of the handover copy. Describe configuration values by purpose when the actual value is a password, token, encryption key or connection credential.

Capture the physical schema

Use a restricted output directory and a database account authorized for schema export. Replace ept_database with the actual database name.

mysqldump --no-data --skip-comments --no-tablespaces \
  --user=SCHEMA_READER --password ept_database > ept-schema.sql

Inspect the export before sharing. Record the database version, capture date and application version alongside it. Include separate definitions for required views, routines or events if the deployment uses them and the export omits them.

Use the core data dictionary to explain the principal entities. Record unresolved field definitions as gaps instead of guessing their meaning.

Assemble the package

Deliverable	Existing basis	Completion evidence
Functional requirements	Requirements baseline	Programme review and approved local differences
Technical design	Architecture, data model, API inventory	Actual deployment diagram, schema and enabled integration contracts
Security requirements	Security reference	Local control evidence and assessment results
User manual	User guide and training	Reviewed local navigation and screenshots
User administration	User management	Approved assignments and access review record
Installation and maintenance	Setup, updating, troubleshooting	Named operators and maintenance schedule
Recovery	Backup and migration	Backup inventory, off-host location and successful restore exercise
Validation	Validation package	Executed cases, defects, retests and approval
Software inventory	Software and licenses	Actual installed versions and locally supplied assets
Source and release record	Versioned repository reference	Deployed commit, change summary and known issues
Training	Curriculum	Delivery dates, trainers, attendance and competency checks

Complete local operational records

1. Record server or VM resources, storage volumes and network boundaries.
2. Record the hypervisor and VM backup configuration when virtualization is used.
3. Assign backup monitoring, restore execution and escalation owners.
4. Agree recovery time and recovery point objectives with the programme owner.
5. Record a continuity procedure for collecting responses during an outage.
6. Define reconciliation of outage records after service restoration.
7. Obtain the approved retention and disposition policy from the data owner.
8. Attach support contacts, service agreements, contract dates and renewal responsibilities.
9. Attach the deployment workplan, site assessment and facility inventory.

Verify the handover

1. Execute the agreed acceptance cases in the target test environment.
2. Check every supplied document against the recorded release and local configuration.
3. Record each missing document with an owner and target date.
4. Obtain the programme and hosting owners' acceptance decisions.

Keep the completed package under local document control with a revision, owner, review date and approval status for each document.