How to Upgrade Firmware

Use the Firmware Upgrade Wizard to easily upgrade the firmware images on your network devices. The wizard gives you the flexibility of performing an immediate upgrade or scheduling the upgrade to take place at a later time. If you schedule the upgrade, the wizard will automatically perform the upgrade at the scheduled time, and then alert you that the upgraded devices need to be reset via the Reset Wizard.

Instructions on:

Preparing to Upgrade

There are certain steps you must perform before you can upgrade your firmware. The steps vary depending on whether you are using a mapped file transfer server (as configured in the Services for Extreme Management Center Server view of the Suite-Wide Options window) or an alternate remote file transfer server (as configured in the Alternate Firmware Servers view in the Options window) to perform the upgrade.

If you are using a mapped file transfer server:

  • You must have a TFTP, SCP, or FTP server configured and running to perform the download operation. See TFTP Server Setup, SCP Server Setup, or FTP Server Setup for instructions.
  • Set the file transfer method for the devices you wish to upgrade. See How to Set a File Transfer Method for instructions.
  • For TFTP or FTP servers, store the firmware images that you want to download in the default tftpboot\firmware\images directory or a specified alternative firmware directory. For an SCP server, store the firmware images that you want to download in the default root\firmware\images directory or a specified alternative firmware directory. See TFTP Server Setup, FTP Server Setup, or SCP Server Setup for instructions on changing your firmware directory.
  • Discover your firmware images and display them in the Firmware Mgmt tab. See Firmware Discovery for instructions.

If you are using an alternate remote file transfer server:

  • You must have the alternate server configured and running to perform the download operation. See Configuring the Alternate Server for instructions.
  • Set the file transfer method for the devices you wish to upgrade. See How to Set a File Transfer Method for instructions.
  • Store the firmware images that you want to download in a specified alternative firmware directory.
  • Create firmware records to associate with the alternate server and add them to the Inventory Manager database. In addition, you must assign the firmware record to the appropriate product families or device types. See Creating and Assigning Firmware Records for instructions.
  • Specify which alternate server a device will use when performing firmware downloads. See Setting the Firmware Server for instructions.
  NOTE: The Firmware Upgrade Wizard can also be used to downgrade firmware on some devices (not Extreme Access Control and Application Analytics appliances) to a previous revision. Downgrading firmware is inherently risky due to possible feature differences between revisions. Restoring configurations from different firmware revisions carries the same risk. Should you need to downgrade your firmware to an earlier version, it is recommended that you use one of the following two procedures:
  • Downgrade the firmware on a network device using the Firmware Upgrade Wizard. Do not proceed to the Reset Devices portion of the wizard, instead select [Finish]. Restore an archived configuration that was previously created with the firmware image being downloaded. This will reset the device.
    or
  • Downgrade the firmware on a network device using the Firmware Upgrade Wizard. Complete the downgrade using the wizard Reset Devices screens. Clear NVRAM on the device and reconfigure the network configuration parameters of the device using the local console.

In addition, when downgrading firmware on SNMPv3 devices, it is possible that Inventory Manager will lose contact with the device. SNMPv3 adds a level of difficulty to downgrade operations, because counters and timers related to security features of SNMPv3 may get out of sync. Following the downgrade, you will need to restart Inventory Manager to re-establish contact with the device.

  CAUTION: Prior to upgrading firmware on a device, it is recommended that you archive the latest configuration for the device being upgraded. This will aid you in downgrading should you choose to do so.

In addition, if you are upgrading devices that support HAU (Highly Available Upgrade) you should perform a Firmware Discovery or Refresh to ensure you have the latest HAU values before launching the firmware wizard.

If you are upgrading an Extreme Access Control or Application Analytics appliance:

When upgrading an Extreme Access Control or Application Analytics appliance, you must also do the following:

  • Configure the device family definition file name by performing the following steps:
    1. Select the device in the device list in the Network Elements tab.
    2. Open the Image Information tab.
    3. Select Script in the Firmware Download MIB drop-down menu.
    4. Select the appropriate option based on the device type for which the upgrade is occurring and the server type from which the firmware is downloading in the Device Family Definition File Name drop-down menu.
    5. Click Save.
     NOTE:If you select an option in the Device Family Definition File Name field that does not match the method selected in the Extreme Management Center Inventory Manager Options window, an error message displays. Clicking Yes updates the method in the Extreme Management Center Inventory Manager Options window to match the method selected in the Device Family Definition File Name field.

Performing an Upgrade

Use these steps to perform a firmware upgrade. These instructions are for performing an immediate upgrade; to schedule an upgrade for a future time, use the steps in Scheduling an Upgrade. Be sure to perform the steps in Preparing to Upgrade before beginning the upgrade operation.

  NOTE: During the device reset part of the wizard, Inventory Manager learns the current firmware version installed on the device. Inventory Manager uses this information to determine whether the firmware version installed on the device matches the firmware reference image set for the device's binary family. (This information is displayed in the All Devices Details View tab.) If the version number is not available from an image file, you can manually set the version number in the Firmware Image General Tab.
  1. Select Tools > Wizards > Firmware Upgrade Wizard from the menu bar or click   on the toolbar. The Firmware Upgrade Wizard opens.
  2. Select the devices to upgrade:
    1. Expand the folders under the left-panel tree and select the single device or device group, or multiple devices or device groups (using the Control or Shift keys). Click Add. If there were devices that failed the previous upgrade an Add Failed button is displayed. Use the Add Failed button to add those devices to the upgrade.
       NOTE:If you have multiple tree nodes representing the same device but with varying SNMP contexts, keep in mind that not all device contexts will provide access to the MIBs required to perform the operation. When selecting your devices, make sure that any device with SNMP context has access to the required MIBs, or select the device with default context (switch mode).
    2. The devices are listed in the Selected Devices table. Devices that do not support firmware download or have never been contacted, are not listed. If you want to remove a device from the list, select the device and click Remove.
    3. Click Next.
      TIP: If you open the Firmware Upgrade Wizard from a device or device group in the left-panel Network Elements tab, the selected device(s) will be automatically displayed under Selected Devices.
  3. Assign a firmware image to each device type or family:
    1. If necessary, click the Refresh Images button to perform a firmware discovery and update the list of firmware images.
    2. The left panel lists the device types of the devices selected for the firmware upgrade. Select a device type.
    3. The right panel lists firmware images that are compatible with the selected device type. (Select the Show All Images checkbox to display all your firmware images.) Select a firmware image and use the Assign to: buttons to assign the image to the device type or to each entry that is a member of that binary family. The image will appear in the Image Name column in the Assignments table. You must assign an image to each table entry.
    4. If a Device Type and firmware image support HAU (Highly Available Upgrade), you will see HAU compatibility information in both tables. For more information, see HAU Compatible and HAU Compatible Key in the Firmware Upgrade Wizard Help topic.
    5. Before proceeding with the upgrade, verify that boot PROM and firmware images that will be on the device after the upgrade operation are compatible. Refer to the boot PROM and firmware release notes for more information.
    6. Click Next.
  4. Initiate the Firmware Upgrade operation:
    1. Specify the Download Type option. The downloads are performed in parallel (simultaneously) on the number of devices specified in the Groups of field. Enter the value 1 to have the downloads performed serially, one device after another.
    2. Click Start to initiate the firmware upgrade operation. The table at the top of the window updates with status information as does the status area in the bottom left of the screen.
    3. Review results. An alert icon   will appear in the Alert column of the table if a download fails for the specific device. You can select to show all devices or show only those that are incomplete or have failed.
      4.   NOTE: If installing an Extreme Access Control or Application Analytics appliance, the Firmware installation is complete. Click Finish.
    4. Click Next.
  5. Reset devices that support Timed Reset:
    If you are resetting devices that support Timed Reset, a window listing those devices appears. Timed Reset gives you the flexibility to schedule a reset operation, so that the actual device resets take place at a later time. This can be useful when trying to schedule resets for a time when the network is least busy.
    1. In the Selected column, select the devices that you want to reset. You can select an option to display devices that do not support timed reset and devices that failed the firmware upgrade; however, these devices cannot be reset from this window.
    2. In the Reset Time field, click the Select button to open the Select Reset Time window where you can schedule a date and time for the reset. Use the drop-down list to select the month you want the download to start. A calendar corresponding to the selected month is displayed. Select the desired starting day by clicking on the calendar. You can use the arrows on either side of the drop-down list to change the month, and change the year by entering a new year in the text field. Set the starting time for the operation and select AM or PM.
    3. Select the reset type: Warm boot (restarts the device) or Cold boot (same as turning device power off and on).
    4. Click Start to initiate the timed resets. Resets occur simultaneously. Once the devices are back up, click Refresh to see if the new firmware is running.
  6. Reset devices that do not support Timed Reset:
    If you are resetting devices that do not support Timed Reset, you will see a window listing those devices.
    1. In the Selected column, select the devices that you want to reset.
    2. Select the reset type: Warm boot (restarts the device) or Cold boot (same as turning device power off and on).
    3. Click Start to initiate the resets. Resets occur one at a time, continuing only after a device is fully booted.
    4. After the reset operation is completed, click Refresh to see if the devices are running the new firmware.
  7. Click Finish to close the wizard.

Scheduling an Upgrade

Use these steps to schedule a firmware upgrade to take place in the background at a future time. Be sure to perform the steps in Preparing to Upgrade before beginning the upgrade operation. Although a scheduled upgrade runs automatically and does not require your supervision, you will still need to reset any devices that require reset, once the scheduled upgrades have completed.

  1. Select Tools > Wizards > Firmware Upgrade Wizard from the menu bar or click the FW Upgrade button on the toolbar. The Firmware Upgrade Wizard opens.
  2. Select the devices to upgrade:
    1. Expand the folders under the left-panel tree and select the single device or device group, or multiple devices or device groups (using the Control or Shift keys). Click Add. If there were devices that failed the previous upgrade, use the Add Failed button to add those devices.
    2. The devices are listed in the Selected Devices table. Devices that do not support firmware download or have never been contacted, are not listed. If you want to remove a device from the list, select the device and click Remove.
    3. Click Next.
      TIP: If you open the Firmware Upgrade Wizard from a device or device group in the left-panel Network Elements tab, the selected device(s) will be automatically displayed under Selected Devices.
  3. Assign a firmware image to each device type or family:
    1. If necessary, click the Refresh Images button to perform a firmware discovery and update the list of firmware images.
    2. The left panel lists the device types of the devices selected for the firmware upgrade. Select a device type.
    3. The right panel lists firmware images that are compatible with the selected device type. (Select the Show All Images checkbox to display all your firmware images.) Select a firmware image and use the Assign to: buttons to assign the image to the device type or to each entry that is a member of that binary family. The image will appear in the Image Name column in the Assignments table. You must assign an image to each table entry.
    4. Before proceeding with the upgrade, verify that boot PROM and firmware images that will be on the device after the upgrade operation are compatible. Refer to the boot PROM and firmware release notes for more information.
    5. Click Next.
  4. Configure Scheduling Information for the upgrade:
    1. In the Download Progress window, click the Schedule button. The Download Schedule window opens.
    2. Enter a name for the scheduled upgrade, or use the default name which is based on the date the schedule is created.
    3. Use the drop-down list to select the month you want the download to start. A calendar corresponding to the selected month is displayed. Select the desired starting day by clicking on the calendar. You can use the arrows on either side of the drop-down list to change the month, and change the year by entering a new year in the text field.
    4. Set the starting time for the operation and select AM or PM.
    5. The downloads will be performed in parallel (simultaneously) on the number of devices specified in the Groups of field. Enter the value 1 to have the downloads performed serially, one device after another.
    6. Select the Abort on Failure checkbox to stop the downloads after a failure. This is useful if you are scheduling an upgrade operation on multiple devices and you want the operation to stop after a failure on a single device.
    7. Click Finish. When the scheduled upgrade is performed, you can monitor the progress, if desired, via the Active Status panel, just as you do for scheduled archives.
  5. Reset Devices:
    After the firmware has been upgraded at the scheduled time, a Reset Device icon   is displayed in the status bar indicating that there are devices that have received new firmware images and need to be reset. Double-click the icon to open the Devices Need Reset window where you can launch the Reset Device Wizard for those devices.

Viewing Scheduled Upgrades

You can view pending upgrades using the Scheduled Events window (Tools > Scheduled Events).

Canceling a Scheduled Upgrade

You can cancel a scheduled firmware upgrade using the Scheduled Events window (Tools > Scheduled Events).

Related Information

For information on related tasks:

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