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 Compatibility Levels for the Databases

Justin Wooton's profile image
Justin Wooton posted Tue September 09, 2025 09:02 AM

Does anyone have experience lowering compatibility levels on the Databases for Content/Audit/Notifications?

We currently have 2 Cognos environments (versions 11.0 and 11.1) connected to a 2016 MicrosoftSQL host for their respective databases and we are rolling out a 3rd environment (version 12.1) and would like to update the SQL host to 2019. However, I don't believe Cognos 11.0 supports SQL 2019, so we were considering updating it but then lowering the compatibility level to keep it functional (eventually the goals is to update or decommission 11.0 and 11.1).

Any advice on whether this is doable and/or advisable?

Patrick Neveu's profile image
Patrick Neveu IBM Champion posted Wed September 10, 2025 03:18 AM

Hi Justin,

I did not find any IBM Cognos Analytics 11.0.x Supported Software Environments page, only for v11.1.x :

IBM Cognos Analytics on Premises 11.1.x: Supported Software Environments

With Cognos Analytics v11.1.1.0 (I cannot find something older because it is not supported anymore), only MS SQL Server 2014, 2016 and 2017 are supported.

MS SQL Server 2016 is still supported with v12.1.0.

Best regards,

brenda grossnickle's profile image
brenda grossnickle IBM Champion posted Fri September 12, 2025 08:48 AM

I do not have this exact experience. But we have A LOT of SQL Servers where the SQL database compatibility level lags behind (sometimes many versions behind) the SQL version. The databases with the lower compatibility level work as if they were on a matching SQL Server version. Meaning the SQL Server version could be 2012 and the compatibility level is of a database is 2005. The database with 2005 compatibility behaves has if it was on SQL version 2005. And for testing we often flip the compatibility levels. Easy to move it lower and then move it back higher. We have not had any problems.

Pierre-Frank MOUZON's profile image
Pierre-Frank MOUZON posted Fri September 19, 2025 12:01 PM

If you connect an old Cognos version to a recent SQL Server database, you may encounter TLS issues, CA 11.0 cannot use TLS 1.3 for example.

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