When upgrading or applying patches to a production runtime database, we strongly recommend that you perform both of the following actions.
Conduct a "trial run" on a copy of the production database.
Take a copy of the production database and then apply the upgrade to this copy. Ensure that the patches can be applied without errors and that the reorganization (if required) can be completed successfully.
Run the application to ensure that it functions correctly. If possible, run both the original and the upgraded (copy) application in parallel for a period.
Take a backup copy of the production database before doing the final upgrade.
It is essential that you take a backup copy of the database before performing the upgrade. This will allow you to revert to the original database should the upgrade be unsuccessful for any reason.