Downgrading PaperCut (to an older version)

When you purchase PaperCut your licensing allows you to run the current major version. If you install a newer version of PaperCut, then you might not be eligible to run the newer version (see the upgrade policy page). If you have current Maintenance and Support (M&S) and/or a current active subscription (with PaperCut MF) then you are entitled to upgrade at any time.

If you accidentally installed a newer version of PaperCut NG or MF that your license does not allow you to run, then it is possible to downgrade to a previous version.

Usually the simplest solution to these problems is to purchase an upgrade to the latest version, or renew your subscription. This is often the most sensible way to go, because it will save you time performing the downgrade, and you also will get access to all the new features in the latest release.

The upgrade prices are listed on the following pages:

• PaperCut NG pricing for Commercial Business, Professional Client Billing and Education/Government pricing.
• For PaperCut MF you’ll need to talk with your PaperCut MF Partner. See the Help tab (or About tab in older versions) in the PaperCut MF admin interface, to find their contact information.

Downgrade Instructions

1. Take a copy of the database backup that was performed automatically by PaperCut during the upgrade. This file is located at [app-path]\server\data\backups\. The filename will look like: schema-XX-upgrade-backup-<timestamp>.zip. This is a snapshot of the database before the upgrade occurred. Make sure you copy this file somewhere safe, and importantly outside of the PaperCut directory. It would be a good idea to copy the entire backups directory for safety.
2. Double check that you have a copy of the database backup files outside the PaperCut directory. When you uninstall the current version of PaperCut all files will be deleted. So it is very important to copy this file (or preferably all backup files) outside the PaperCut directory.
3. If you are running PaperCut MF version 24 or later, or PaperCut NG 24.0.3 or later, you’ll need to use the Deactivate Installation button in the PaperCut MF admin interface, under About > Registration > License Info (or Subscriptions if you’re a subscription customer). This will release the entitlements consumed by this server, so that when you install your old version of PaperCut MF, it will be able to use all the entitlements you have purchased. See Managing entitlements (Releasing all entitlements from an Application Server) for more information.
4. Uninstall the version of PaperCut currently installed.
5. Reinstall the older version of PaperCut that you are eligible to run. You can download old versions from here.
6. Complete the PaperCut setup wizard. (e.g. setting up the admin password, etc).
7. Once the setup is completed, restore the data from your previous installation (e.g. “schema-XX-upgrade-backup-[timestamp].zip”). The restore instructions can be found in our RestoringDataFiles KB article.

Special Notes for Apple Mac

The developers have had some reports that the Apple installer in some cases will not allow you to install the older version after installing the new version. The solution is to delete the directory

/Library/Receipts/PaperCut NG Standard Installation.pkg/

before attempting to install the older version. This can be done with a command like:

  sudo rm -rf "/Library/Receipts/PaperCut NG Standard Installation.pkg/"

If you have any questions about this process please email support.

‘Categories: How-to Articles, Upgrading or Downgrading