Overview

This topic describes the procedure for performing a standalone SBC SWe upgrade on VMware vCenter using the OVA package. 

Scope

This procedure only applies to a Standalone SBC installed using an OVA package on VMware vCenter.

Prerequisites

The following are the prerequisites:

  1. Enable SSH access to VMware ESXi server (managed by vCenter) for the root user.
  2. Use the new OVA package for the SBC SWe to upgrade.

SBC SWe Upgrade

Use the following steps to perform a standalone SBC SWe upgrade on VMware vCenter using an OVA package.



Action
1

Download the OVA package.

Download the new OVA package and upload it to VMware ESXi host (managed by vCenter) on the standalone SBC to upgrade.

For example, using the following configurations, use scp to upload the package to the VMware ESXi server:

  • sbc-V11.01.00R000-connexip-os_11.00.00-R000_12_amd64.ova as the new OVA package for the SBC SWe upgrade
  • 172.19.201.11 as the IP address for the VMware ESXi server
  • 'datastore1' as the datastore name for this VMware ESXi server


Example:
scp sbc-V11.01.00R000-connexip-os_11.00.00-R000_12_amd64.ova root@172.19.201.11:/vmfs/volumes/datastore1/
Options:
  • You may use the hostname.domain_name, if configured, instead of the IP address during the upgrade.
  • You may use other file transfer tools instead of 'scp' to upload the package to the VMware ESXi datastore (For example, WinSCP on Windows).
2

Save SBC SWe Configuration.

  1. Log in to VMware vCenter UI and then log in to SBC SWe VM Console as ‘linuxadmin’ and change to ‘root’ user using ‘sudo su –‘

  2. Save instance-specific configuration of VM using the following script:

    /opt/sonus/sbx/scripts/saveConfig_fe.sh

This script backs up the configuration and relevant files and then saves the backup on the DRBD disk under the /home/sftproot/evlog/backup directory.

Ribbon recommends copying the backup directory (/home/sftproot/evlog/backup) to an external location outside the VM using 'scp' for disaster recovery.

3

Shut down the SBC SWe VM from the VMware vCenter console by selecting the VM and clicking Shut down.

4

Upgrade the SBC SWe to a new version.

  1. Log in to the VMware ESXi server using SSH and the ‘root’ user where the standalone SBC is present, and extract the VMDK image from the OVA package using the 'tar' command.

    For example, using the following configurations, SSH to the VMware ESXi server using the 'root' user and run the commands below.

    - 172.19.201.11 as the IP for VMware ESXi server
    - OVA package: sbc-V11.01.00R000-connexip-os_11.00.00-R000_12_amd64.ova
    - 'datastore1' as the datastore name for this VMware ESXi server

    Example:
    ssh root@172.19.201.11
cd /vmfs/volumes/datastore1/
tar xvf sbc-V11.01.00R000-connexip-os_11.00.00-R000_12_amd64.ova sbc-V11.01.00R000-connexip-os_11.00.00-R000_12_amd64.vmdk
  2. Take a backup of the previous SBC SWe root disk.

    (In this example, the SBC SWe VM name is ‘SBC1’. Replace it with your VM name, if different)

    Example:
    cd /vmfs/volumes/datastore1/SBC1  
mv SBC1.vmdk SBC1.vmdk_backup
mv SBC1-flat.vmdk SBC1-flat.vmdk_backup

  3. Make a compatible root disk from the new VMDK image using ‘vmkfstools’.
    (In this example, the SBC SWe VM name is ‘SBC1’. Replace it with your VM name, if different)

    Example:
    cd /vmfs/volumes/datastore1/SBC1  
vmkfstools -i /vmfs/volumes/datastore1/sbc-V11.01.00R000-connexip-os_11.00.00-R000_12_amd64.vmdk SBC1.vmdk -d thin

    The above command takes a minute or so to clone the disk. Wait for the control to return before proceeding.

  4. Expand the new root disk to a size greater than 35 GB, where <Size_in_GB> is the new disk size in GB.

    vmkfstools -X <Size_in_GB>G SBC1.vmdk
    Example: New size is 65 GB
    vmkfstools -X 65G SBC1.vmdk
    Note

    Match the new root disk size with the existing one.

5

Power on SBC SWe VM from VMware vCenter console by selecting the VM and clicking Power on.

6

Validate SBC SWe Upgrade

After powering it on during the SBC SWe bootup, the SBC application comes up with the upgraded version, and the configuration saved as part of step 2.2 is automatically restored.

  1. Log in to VMware vCenter UI.
  2. Log in to SBC SWe VM Console as ‘linuxadmin’ and change to ‘root’ user using ‘sudo su –‘
  3. Run the swinfo command to check the SBC SWe version.

SBC SWe Rollback

Using an OVA package, follow the procedure to perform a standalone SBC SWe rollback on the VMware vCenter.



Action
1

Shut down the SBC SWe VM from the VMware vCenter console by selecting the VM and clicking Shut down.

2

Roll back SBC SWe to the old version.

Log into VMware ESXi server using SSH and ‘root’ user where standalone SBC is present and restore the disk to backed up SBC SWe root disk.

For example, If 172.19.201.11 is the IP for VMware ESXi server, the SBC SWe VM name is ‘SBC1’ and 'datastore1' is the datastore name for this VMware ESXi server, then SSH to VMware ESXi server using 'root' user and restore the disk to backed up SBC SWe root disk using the following steps:

NOTE: Replace 'SBC1' with the name of the VM in the below commands if the VM name is different.

ssh root@172.19.201.11
cd /vmfs/volumes/datastore1/SBC1  
mv -f SBC1.vmdk_backup SBC1.vmdk
mv -f SBC1-flat.vmdk_backup SBC1-flat.vmdk
3

Power on the SBC SWe VM from VMware vCenter console by selecting the VM and clicking Power on.

4

Validate the SBC SWe Rollback.

Once the SBC SWe boots up after a power-on, the SBC SWe application comes up to the previous version on both the active and standby VMs. 

  1. Log in to VMware vCenter UI
  2. Log in to SBC SWe VM Console as ‘linuxadmin’ and change to ‘root’ user using ‘sudo su –‘
  3. Run the swinfo command to check the SBC SWe version.