Planning software upgrades
Before you perform a software upgrade to a product deployment, there are a few steps to consider. This section describes best practices that you can incorporate into your own upgrade and change control procedures.
For detailed instructions and guidance on upgrading each of the products, see the Edge installation and configuration guide and the Core installation and configuration guide.
Prior to upgrading, complete the following prerequisites:
• Alert users—Depending on your deployment you might have a full-HA product configuration at the data center and at the branch office. This configuration allows you to perform software upgrades with minimal or zero disruption to your production environment. Whether this is your case or not, you should schedule either downtime or an at risk period so that your users are aware of any possible interruption to service.
• Alert IT staff—Because you might also be using your Edge appliances simultaneously for WAN optimization services, you should alert other IT departments within your organization: for example, networking, monitoring, applications, and so on.
• Software—Gather all the relevant software images from the Riverbed Support site and consider using the SCC to store the images and assist with the upgrade. When downloading the software images, make sure to download the release notes so that you are aware of any warnings, special instructions, or known problems that can affect your upgrade plans.
• Configuration data—Ensure all your Cores and Edges have their current running configurations saved to a suitable location external to the appliances themselves. You can use the SCC to assist with this task with the Core.