Unity Upgrade Help !

[Anil Sharma]

Hello,

We are planning to perform a upgrade of unity connection (my first time). Current version is : 8.6.2ES19.21013-19  & we want to move to version 8.6(2a) SU2. Is there any simple way to find if we can proceed like this or not ?  I have gone through few pages on Cisco.com and I am confused

In one of cisco's pdf I found below, Could you clarfiy what does it mean ?

If the Connection server is running an engineering special with a full Cisco Unified Communications

Operating System version number between 8.6.2.22034-1 and 8.6.2.22899-x, do not upgrade the server

to Connection 8.6(2a) SU 2 because the upgrade will fail. Instead, upgrade the server with an ES released

after 8.6(2a) SU 2 that has a full Unified Communications OS version number of 8.6.2.229xx.x or later

to get the SU functionality.

Any support would be appreciated.

Regards,

Anil Sharma.

[Harmit Singh · Accepted solution]

Hi Anil,

The above statement basically means the following:

++     If your Unity Connection build version is between 22034-1 to 22899-x, then you should upgrade to 8.6(2a)SU2 since it will fail.

++     If the above is true, then upgrade to an Engineering Special which is greater than 8.6.2.229xx.x.

However, since the build version of your Unity Connection system is 21013-19, it should be fine to upgrade to SU2. You can also double check the build version of the Cisco Unified Operating System by doing a "show version active" or "show status". That version will be similar to your Unity Connection version. Ensure that the build version given there is less than 22034-1 and you should be good to go to install SU2.

HTH.

--
Regards,
Harmit.

[Rob Huffman · Accepted solution]

Hi Anil,

You would be good to go here

The key number(s) in the reference you linked are;

between 8.6.2.22034-1 and 8.6.2.22899-x

and you are @;

21013-19 (note the "1")

So you are not running an ES that would prevent this upgrade.

Cheers!

Rob

EDIT** + 5 to my friend Harmit for his great info and for stomping

my horrid typing skills

"Spend your life waiting,
for a moment that just don't come,
Well, don't waste your time waiting" 

-Springsteen

[Harmit Singh · Accepted solution]

Thanks Rob! :-D

I'll share the points with you since I found your response easier to understand than mine :-P (+5)! Short and Crisp!

--
Regards,
Harmit.

[Anil Sharma]

Thanks to both of you for the information Appreciated

[Harmit Singh]

Glad we could help Anil, thanks for the nice rating! :-) See you around.

--
Regards,
Harmit.

[Rob Huffman]

Hi Anil,

You are always welcome Best of luck with

your upgrade.

Cheers!

Rob

"Spend your life waiting,
for a moment that just don't come,
Well, don't waste your time waiting" 

-Springsteen

[Anil Sharma]

Let me ask you guys another questions so that I can rate you guys again ...

Whats the impact during the upgrade ... I mean what all things will not function... ??

And Can you help me understand the concept of active and inactive partitions as well ??

Regards,

Anil Sharma

[Rob Huffman · Accepted solution]

Hi Anil,

I'm sure Harmit will have a better answer here, but I'll give it

a try

The upgrade can actually be done during business hours on the

inactive partition and there will be no impact until the "switch-version"

is activated. You don't want to leave "days" between the upgrade and the

"switch-version" but it is handy to minimize the downtime during the

maintenance window!

Here's a pretty good clip that details the process;

Note the following considerations about the Cisco Unity Connection upgrade process:

•When  you upgrade a server, the existing version of Connection continues to  run, and the version you are upgrading to is installed on a different  partition:

–If you have never upgraded the Connection server before, the upgrade copies the new version to an empty partition.

–If  you have upgraded the Connection server before, the upgrade copies the  new version to the inactive partition, which usually contains a version  of Connection older than the version that is running on the active  partition. (If you previously upgraded to a later version and then  reverted to the older version, the inactive partition includes a version  of Connection later than the version that is currently running.) The  software that was on the inactive partition before you started the  upgrade is overwritten.

–Depending  on your current version, you may be required to upgrade twice to reach  the desired version. In that case, the current version is no longer  available when the upgrade is complete because the partition that  contains the current version will be overwritten by the second upgrade.

•At  the start of the upgrade, you choose whether to restart to the inactive  partition. If you choose to restart, when the upgrade is complete, the  server automatically restarts, running the upgraded version of  Connection. If you choose not to restart, after the upgrade is complete,  you must manually switch to the upgraded version.

•Installing  the software upgrade requires approximately two hours for each server.  When upgrading a Connection cluster, an upgrade requires approximately  four hours.

•Switching to the upgraded software requires a few minutes.

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/voice_ip_comm/connection/8x/upgrade/guide/8xcucrug009.html

Cheers!

Rob

"Spend your life waiting,
for a moment that just don't come,
Well, don't waste your time waiting" 

-Springsteen

[Harmit Singh · Accepted solution]

Rob you were spot on as always (+5)! :-)

Just adding to what you said:

You can install upgrade software on your server while the system continues to operate. Two partitions exist on your system: an active, bootable partition and an inactive, bootable partition. The system boots up and operates entirely on the partition that is marked as the active partition.

When you install upgrade software, you install the software on the inactive partition. The system continues to function normally while you are installing the software. When you are ready, you activate the inactive partition and reboot the system with the new upgrade software. The current active partition will then get identified as the inactive partition when the system restarts. The current software remains in the inactive partition until the next upgrade. Your configuration information migrates automatically to the upgraded version in the active partition.

If for any reason you decide to back out of the upgrade, you can restart the system to the inactive partition that contains the older version of the software. However, any configuration changes that you made since upgrading the software will be lost.

Note:You can only make changes to the database on the active partition. The database on the inactive partition does not get updated. If you make changes to the database after an upgrade, you must repeat those changes after switching the partition.

HTH.

--
Regards,
Harmit.

[Anil Sharma]

Both you guys are champs

Thanks for such a wonderful explanations