Sitecore upgrade from Sitecore 10.0 to 10.1 - Can we upgrade without installing vanilla instance?

Question

We like to upgrade from Sitecore 10.0.1 to 10.1. But, the official documentation is stating that we need to:

1. Install vanilla instance parallel to our main instance.
2. Attach the databases to the new installation.
3. Deploy your solution on top of the new installation.

Is there any other way to upgrade which does not involve installing the vanilla instance? Any detailed explanation will be much appreciated!

Answer 1

Other option to install it is to override the Sitecore 10 files with Sitecore 10.1 files. Looks like just files were changed in Sitecore 10.1 release.

From my point of view is much more simpler to install a vanilla of 10.1, upgrade your NUGET packages to use 10.1 version and deploy it on vanilla solution.