5.5 PatchiX Training

Customizing the Set of Patches
Patch Qualification
In the past only PowerPatch patches went through some sort of qualification on your
system. This was because the AUTOINST tool performed limited patch qualification.
The AUTOINST tool could not qualify and install reactive patches however. The patch
qualification phase of HP Patch/iX is responsible for determining which patches
can/should be installed on your system. HP Patch/iX performs a more robust qualification
than is available with AUTOINST. HP Patch/iX references three types of information
when determining whether a patch qualifies:
• The current software components on the system (new with reactive patching).
• Information about the set of installed patches (new with HP Patch/iX).
• Information about the set of available patches (new with HP Patch/iX).
To qualify a patch for your system, HP Patch/iX:
• Analyzes each patch to make sure that all dependent patches are present on the
system.
• Analyzes each patch to make sure there isn't already a newer patch on the system.
• Analyzes each patch that has multiple versions present in the patch set, and only
qualifies the newest version.
• Analyzes each patch to determine what family of patches the patch belongs to and
only qualifies the newest member of the family. The supersedes tree discussed
later will show you how to analyze a patch family.
• Analyze each patch to make sure that the patch is not already installed. Note: in
some cases patches are reinstalled. See Patch-on-Patch described next.
What is Patch-on-Patch ?
In the past with AUTOINST all patches that qualified for the system were applied even if
they were previously installed . HP Patch/iX will recognize if a patch was previously
installed with HP Patch/iX and in most cases will not reapply the patch. In some cases a
patch will be marked as a reworked patch, and HP patch/iX will reapply the patch. This
typically means that the patch changed in some important, but indiscernible way, and HP
Patch/iX will reapply the patch just in case the installed version was the older (non-
reworked) version. You can always veto a patch that you feel has already been applied.
Why does a patch fail to qualify ?
There are many reasons a patch will fail to qualify. To determine why a patch failed to
qualify highlight the patch in the Qualify Patches screen and press the [Return] Key.