Cisco NX-OS releases version 7 vs verison 9 to upgrade nexus 3064

[ciscokid6969]

Hey there. We have a nexus 3064T ( N3K-C3064TQ-10GT) that is currently running version 6.0(2)U6(4).

I wanted to update it due to security vulnerabilities that were published last year.

When i go to try and download new firmware for it, i see 4 different options as attached. Version 6, version 7 and version 9.

Why is there multiple releases, all seeming to have a current version? I have never done a nexus switch update before, but have updated IOS lots with similar commands to the following:

archive download-sw /leave-old-sw tftp://10.0.2.182/c2960x-universalk9-tar.152-7.E1.tar

Is it the same procedure? and how do i pick which firmware to update. In the screen shot attached, you can see that cisco is recommending version 7, but there is version 9, which is two major releases above it. So why would i install 7? Just seems so weird the way they have done this. Why have 3 concurrent latest releases? what is the difference between nx-os 7 and nx-os 9?

This is a core network switch, so the uptime on it is 1475 days. I have to take the entire network down to do this, so i dont want to have any hiccups. I am considering purchasing a second switch just in case, and because this is a major single point of failure in our environment, which would take some stress off this upgrade. But regardless, i do need to know what firmware to use here. Any help appreciated. thanks.

[Sergiu.Daniluk · Accepted solution]

Hi,

So, there are 3 major train releases for Nexus 3K/9K: 6.x, 7.x, 9.x. They appeared in this order.

You can check the current recommended release here: https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/switches/datacenter/nexus3000/sw/recommended_release/b_Minimum_and_Recommended_Cisco_NX-OS_Releases_for_Cisco_Nexus_3000_Series_Switches.html 

Of course this is the recommendation coming from Nexus 3k/9k BU based on general customer experience, number of bugs etc. That doesn't mean that this is the only version you should run in your network. To see which one is the best version for your network, you should go through the full release notes https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/switches/nexus-3000-series-switches/products-release-notes-list.html check the open caveats and do a bug scrubbing for your network.

Once you found the version you need in your network (or let's say is the recommended release), you need to check the upgrade guides to see what is the upgrade path.

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/support/switches/nexus-3000-series-switches/products-installation-guides-list.html 

I would presume you would go for recommended release, so I am looking at upgrade guide to 7.x:

https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/td/docs/switches/datacenter/nexus3000/sw/upgrade/7_x/b_Cisco_Nexus_3000_Series_NX_OS_Software_Upgrade_and_Downgrade_Release_7_x/b_Cisco_Nexus_3000_Series_NX_OS_Software_Upgrade_and_Downgrade_Release_7_x_newGuide_chapter_... 

IMPORTANT NOTE: read full release notes and upgrade guidelines for the image you will upgrade to. This will save you a lot of problems. Trust me!

The commands to perform the upgrade to 7.x is: 

switch# install all nxos bootflash:nxos-image

Regards,

Sergiu

[Jason Leschnik]

Agreed, carefully read the upgrade path and notes. You have to follow the correct upgrade path otherwise the 3k is liable to become either stuck in loader or possibly bricked.
For newer code there is an ISSU Matrix tool: https://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en/us/td/docs/Website/datacenter/ISSUmatrix/index.html which makes determining the path much easier.

[ciscokid6969]

thank you both. that provides me lots of information to work with here!