With the Software Upgrade window, you can upgrade switch software. If you configured
several switches in a cluster, you can upgrade all or selected switches simultaneously.
To download a new version of switch software and the Cisco TFTP server application from
CCO to your PC or UNIX station hard disk:
Log into CCO by following the instructions in the Release Notes for the Catalyst
2900 Series XL and the Catalyst 3500 Series XL, Cisco IOS Release 12.0(5)XU.
Download the TFTP server application by following the instructions in CCO. Note: To ensure full technical support, Cisco Systems recommends using
the TFTP server application (Version 1.1). Earlier versions of this application will not
properly copy the files during the upgrade process.
Follow the instructions in CCO to download the .tar file (combined IOS image
and HTML software for Visual Switch Manager) for 2900 and 3500 XL switches or the .bin
file for Catalyst 1900 and 2820 switches. Note: The tar file contains the same software as the corresponding .bin
and HTML files.
For information about the image filenames, see the release notes for your products.
The following procedure shows you how to upgrade from Release 12.0(5)XU to a later
version of software. When you upgrade switches from different product lines, follow these
guidelines to ensure success and streamline the upgrade process:
Do not upgrade switches from different product lines at the same time: upgrade 2900 and
3500 XL switch separately. Note: Catalyst 1900 and 2820 switches can be grouped together for an
upgrade, but neither can be grouped with 2900 or 3500 XL switches while upgrading.
Use the .tar version of the upgrade image for 2900 and 3500 XL switches; use the .bin
image for Catalyst 1900 and 2820 switches. These file types (.tar and .bin) contain the
software image and management code needed for the upgrade.
Upgrade Catalyst 1900 and 2820 switches last. These switches must be rebooted soon after
the upgrade. If you fail to select Reboot Cluster in 30 seconds after the
upgrade, these switches reboot automatically (allow a five-minute delay).
Do not upgrade 2900 XL switches with 4 MB of memory to Cisco IOS Release 12.0(5)XU
(WS-C2908-XL, WS-C2916M-XL, WS-C2924C-XL, and WS-C2924-XL). Check Cisco Connection Online
for the latest original edition software for these switches. (To check memory size on your
switch, use the CLI command show version.)
Review the upgrade rules if you are
upgrading a switch cluster.
In the TFTP Server IP Address field, enter the IP address of your TFTP server. Note: To perform group upgrades, your TFTP server must be capable of
handling multiple requests and sessions simultaneously. If you are using Cisco's TFTP
server application, which is capable of handling multiple requests and sessions, you must
disable the Show File Transfer Progress and the Enable Logging
options to avoid TFTP server failures. To disable these options, select View >
Options from the Cisco TFTP server menu bar and deselect these options.
In the New Image File Name field, enter the name of the file to download from CCO.
For 2900 and 3500 switches, a .tar file contains the image. For Catalyst 1900 and 2820
switches, a .bin file contains the image. For information about image filenames, see the
release notes for your products. Note: You can enter the path and filename in this field; you can precede
the path with a single slash (/) or no slash. If you enter only the filename in this
field, you must set up the path in the TFTP root directory of the TFTP server application.
Select the Retain Current Image File Names checkbox if you want the new
image to retain the old image name.
By default, this checkbox is deselected, so a new name is assigned to the new image. Note: This checkbox does not apply to Catalyst 1900 and 2820 switches.
In the Available Devices list box, select the cluster member to be upgraded, and click Add.
Repeat this process until all members to be upgraded are displayed in the Selected Devices
list box. Note: See the upgrade
rules for important selection information.
To remove switches from the Selected Devices list box, select the switches and click Remove.
Click UpgradeDevices to start the upgrade.
On Catalyst 2900 and 3500 XL switches, the new image is copied over the existing one if
the switch has insufficient Flash memory for two images. If the switch has sufficient
Flash memory, the new image is copied to the selected switches, but it does not replace
the current running image. The old image is erased only after the new image is completely
downloaded, so if you experience a failure during the copy process, you can reboot your
switch using the old image.
On Catalyst 1900 and 2820 switches, the new image always overwrites the existing one.
Review the Software Upgrade Status Messages area to see the history of the upgrade
process.
The status messages tell you which devices successfully upgraded and which ones failed.
If you have more switches to upgrade, repeat Steps 2 through 6. (Save Catalyst 1900 and
2820 upgrades for last.)
Click Reboot Cluster to reboot all switches in the cluster.
All configuration changes are automatically saved to Flash memory. After a one minute
delay, the new image is loaded and run after rebooting. Note: You lose connectivity to the switch when you reboot the cluster.