HP Tru64 UNIX Version 5.1B-2 and Higher Patch Kit Installation Instructions (March 2009)

No-Roll Patching
The no-roll patch process lets you install patches on a cluster without performing a rolling
upgrade. This chapter provides the following information:
• An overview of the no-roll patch process (“Overview”)
• A step-by-step description of the process as it differs from a normal dupatch session (“Steps
for Running a No-Roll Procedure”)
• Throwing the version switch (“Throwing the Version Switch”)
• How to remove patches from a cluster using the no-roll patch method (“Removing Patches”)
Note:
The no-roll technology is included in Rev. 34–00 and higher of the dupatch utility. You can find
the revision number on the first output line you see when you run dupatch (see the example
in “Steps for Running a No-Roll Procedure”). The first kit that includes this technology was
issued in April 2002.
Overview
A rolling upgrade lets you perform a software upgrade on a cluster while maintaining high
availability of the cluster. To provide this high availability, a certain amount of setup work is
required to build tagged files and to reboot the cluster members to use the tagged files. This can
take a considerable amount of time.
However, if you have a mission-critical environment and want to use a patch method that applies
patches quickly, minimizes down time of the cluster, and reduces the number of reboots required,
you might want to use the no-roll patch process. This process patches your cluster in one operation
that requires only one or two reboots of the whole cluster to complete the operation. You will
need the second reboot only if you install a patch that contains a version switch (see “Throwing
the Version Switch”).
The no-roll patch process is a modification of dupatch; that is, all patches are installed or removed
entirely using the dupatch utility, as opposed to the clu_upgrade and dupatch utilities used
in the rolling upgrade procedure. The no-roll process conducts significantly fewer operations
than the rolling upgrade procedure.
While a no-roll patch installation is in progress, no other critical operations should be running
on the cluster because the cluster will change state and reboot automatically at various stages of
the procedure.
In addition, the no-roll patch procedure employs the use of the Tru64 UNIX Event Management
System (EVM) to send cluster-wide events. As a result, patches must be applied to the system
in multi-user mode. If you attempt to use the no-roll procedure while in single-user mode, you
will be advised to change the cluster to multi-user mode before continuing.
Steps for Running a No-Roll Procedure
The following steps describe how to patch your cluster using the no-roll procedure.
NOTE:
To use the no-roll patch method, you must not use the clu_upgrade utility to prepare the
cluster, as you would for a rolling upgrade prior to running dupatch. If a rolling upgrade is in
progress before attempting to run dupatch, then the no-roll option will not be available until
the cluster is restored to the state prior to the roll attempt.
1. With your system running in multi-user mode, enter the dupatch command:
# dupatch
Tru64 UNIX Patch Utility (Rev. 48-00)
No-Roll Patching 73