Proxy - Major Version Upgrade (X Upgrade)

SUSE Manager Proxy can be upgraded from one major version to the next. The upgrade process is automated, but you will need to do some preparation steps before you can upgrade.

You will need to complete the SUSE Manager Server migration before you start.

The system must be running SUSE Manager Proxy 3.2 with all the latest updates applied. Before you start, ensure that the system is up to date and all updates have been installed successfully.

Prepare to Migrate

Before you can update your proxy, you will need an autoinstallation distribution, and an autoinstallation profile. The distribution must be based on SUSE Linux Enterprise 15 SP2, because SUSE Manager 4.1 is part of the SUSE Linux Enterprise 15 SP2 product family.

Procedure: Preparing Installation Media

  1. On the SUSE Manager Server, create a local directory for the SLE 15 SP2 installation media:

    mkdir -p /srv/images/sle15sp2

  2. Download an ISO image with the installation sources, and mount the ISO image on your server:

    mount -o loop DVD1.iso /mnt/

  3. Copy everything from the mounted ISO to your local file system:

    cp -r /mnt/* /srv/images/sle15sp2

  4. When the copy is complete, unmount the ISO image:

    umount /mnt

This image is the unified installer and can be used for multiple autoinstallation distributions.
Procedure: Creating an Autoinstallation Distribution

  1. In the SUSE Manager Web UI, navigate to Systems  Autoinstallation  Distributions and click Create Distribution.

  2. In the Create Autoinstallable Distribution section, use these parameters:

    • In the Distribution Label section, type a unique name for the distribution. Use only letters, numbers, hyphens, periods, and underscores, and ensure the name is longer than four characters. For example, proxy_41-x86_64.

    • In the Tree Path field, type an absolute path to the installation source. For example, /srv/images/sle15sp2.

    • In the Base Channel field, select SLE-Product-SUSE-Manager-Proxy-4.1-Pool for x86_64.

    • In the Installer Generation field, select SUSE Linux Enterprise 15.

    • In the Kernel Options field, type any options to be passed to the kernel when booting for the installation. The install= parameter and the self_update=0 pt.options=self_update parameter are added by default.

    • In the Post Kernel Options section, type any options to be passed to the kernel when booting the installed system for the first time.

  3. Click Create Autoinstallable Distribution to save.

When you have created an autoinstallable distribution, you can edit it by navigating to Systems  Autoinstallation  Distributions and selecting the distribution you want to edit.

Create an Autoinstallation Profile

Autoinstallation profiles contain all the installation and configuration data needed to install a system. They can also contain scripts to be executed after the installation is complete. For example scripts that you can use as a starting point, see https://github.com/SUSE/manager-build-profiles/tree/master/AutoYaST. For valid AutoYaST upgrade settings, see https://doc.opensuse.org/projects/autoyast/#CreateProfile-upgrade.

Procedure: Creating an Autoinstallation Profile

  1. In the SUSE Manager Web UI, navigate to Systems  Autoinstallation  Profiles and upload your autoinstallation profile script. For example scripts that you can use as a starting point, see https://github.com/SUSE/manager-build-profiles/tree/master/AutoYaST.

  2. In the Kernel Options field, type autoupgrade=1. Optionally, you can also include the Y2DEBUG=1 option. The debug setting is not required but can help with investigating any future problems you might encounter.

  3. Paste the autoinstallation profile or use the file upload field.

  4. Click Create to save.

  5. When the uploaded profile requires variables to be set, navigate to Systems  Autoinstallation  Profiles, select the profile to edit, and navigate to the Variables tab. Specify the required variables, using this format:

    <key>=<value>

For proxies that were registered using Salt, use the spacewalk/minion_script snippet to register the proxy again after migration has completed.

Migration

Before you begin, check that all the channels referenced in the autoinstallation profile are available and fully synchronized.

Procedure: Migrating

  1. On the SUSE Manager Server Web UI, navigate to Systems  System List, select the proxy, navigate to the Provisioning tab, and select the autoinstallation profile you uploaded.

  2. Click Schedule Autoinstallation and Finish. The system will download the required files, change the bootloader entries, reboot, and start the upgrade.

Clean Up

When the SUSE Manager Proxy has finished upgrading, it shows the originally assigned channels. Cleaning up after the migration ensures the correct channels are shown.

If the server reports that there are updates available for the proxy, do not apply them before completing the cleanup.
Procedure: Cleaning Up

  1. On the SUSE Manager Server Web UI, navigate to the System List, select the proxy, and navigate to the Software  Software Channels subtab.

  2. Clear the old channels.

  3. In the Base Channel field, select SLE-Product-SUSE-Manager-Proxy-4.1-Pool for x86_64.

  4. In the Child Channels field, select all the recommended channels.