How To Upgrade Firmware of Brocade Fabric Switch

How to upgrade firmware of brocade fabric switch
Requirements:
Filezilla FTP Server
Filezilla FTP Client
Putty
Java JRE installed on admin PC
Log on credential for Brocade website or respective vendor website e.g. IBM/Dell
Downloaded upgrade firmware
Upgrade Path.
Fabric OS 5.0.x to 5.2.3 is supported
Fabric OS 5.1.x to 5.3.1a is supported, but upgrading from Fabric OS 5.0.x or a previous
release directly to 5.3.1a is not.
Fabric OS 6.0.0b is only allowed from Fabric OS 5.3.x.
Fabric OS 6.1.2c is allowed only from Fabric OS 6.0.0b
Fabric OS 6.2.2f is allowed only from Fabric OS 6.1.0a or later.
Fabric OS 6.3.2e is allowed only from Fabric OS 6.2.0a or later. You can upgrade nondisruptively from 6.2
Fabric OS 6.4.3f is allowed only from Fabric OS 6.3.x. Fabric OS 7.0.2 can be done nondisruptively from Fabric OS 6.4.1a or later.
Fabric OS 7.1.2 can be non-disruptively upgraded from 7.0.x and 7.1.x.
Fabric OS 7.2.1 can be done non-disruptively from 7.1.x. Disruptively from 7.0.x is
supported.
Fabric OS 7.3.0 can be done non-disruptively from 7.2.x. Disruptively from 7.1.x is
supported
Note: Disruptively means ports will go offline during the upgrade.

Step1: Turn off firewall.
Turn off firewall on Windows machine where you will install FTP server.
Step2: Configure FTP server
Download Filezilla FTP server for windows.
Install Filezilla FTP server. Installation is pretty simple. just run the installer GUI and accept the
default. You may find there are third party software embedded with Filezilla, decline first two
and then click next to install FTP server. Once installed. Click Edit, Click Settings. Select
following. Setup timed out value to 9999.
Enable logging. so that you can see brocade is connecting to FTP server.
Create an anonymous user account and set password to none.
Set shared folder location and click Set as home dir
Actual location of firmware in my PC.
Step3: Test FTP connectivity

Now install Filezilla client and test connectivity
Step4: Upgrade Firmware in Brocade
Now open Putty, Type IP address of brocade switch. leave the default port 22.
Log on to brocade fabric or rebranded brocade fabric using root and fibranne as password
Type firmwaredownload
IP address: 10.6.0.201 or IP address of your PC where you configured Filezilla FTP server
Username: blank or Hit enter I am using anonymous FTP. No need to type username
Path: /v7.1.2b or the path where you saved firmware. See the screen shoot on FTP client
Password: blank Hit enter I am using anonymous FTP. No need to type password
Do you want to continue? [y/n]:y
Close putty session now. This procedure will reboot the Brocade switch. You are done.
Brocade Reference
Once Brocade Fabric is rebooted, reconnect using putty, log on and type firmwareshow to see the
current version of firmware.
If you would like to upgrade from v7.1.2b to v7.3.0c directly. use the following command. This
is a disruptive upgrade procedure.
firmwareDownload s
IP address: 10.6.0.201 or IP address of your PC where you configured Filezilla FTP server
Username: blank or Hit enter I am using anonymous FTP. No need to type username
Path: /v7.3.0c or the path where you saved firmware. See the screen shoot on FTP client
Password: blank Hit enter I am using anonymous FTP. No need to type password
Do you want to continue? [y/n]:y
Do Auto-Commit after Reboot [Y]: y

Reboot system after download [N]: y
Firmware is being downloaded to the switch. This step may take up to 30 minutes.
In fact this will take approximately 45 minutes to complete. have cup of coffee and relax.
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Firmware Upgrade CLI - Midrange Switch
The following summary describes the default behavior of the firmwareDownload command on
Brocade 200E, 300, 4012, 4016, 4018, 4020, 4024, 4100, 4900, 5000, 5100, 5300, 7500,
and 7600,7800 switches.
1. The Fabric OS downloads the firmware to the secondary partition.
2. The system performs a high-availability reboot (haReboot). After the haReboot, the
former secondary partition is the primary partition.
3. The system replicates the firmware from the primary to the secondary partition.
4. Software application (SA) software is upgraded only when firmwareDownload is issued with
the SA option.
The upgrade process first downloads and then commits the firmware to the switch. After you
start the process, do not enter any disruptive commands (such as reboot) that will interrupt the
process.
The entire firmware download and commit process takes approximately 17 minutes. If there is
a problem, wait for the time-out (30 minutes for network problems). Disrupting the process
can render the switch inoperable. Do not disconnect the switch from power during the process
because the switch could become inoperable when rebooted.
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Introduction
There are two ways by which you can upgrade SAN switches. First is the graphical method and
other is the CLI method. To implement it by the graphical method, you need the SAN switch
management tool. And, to implement it through CLI, you need to use the command prompt. This
tutorial provides step-by-step instructions on both these methods.
Back to top
Method 1 Graphical
1. Log in to SAN switch GUI using root credentials. You will get the graphical
interaction with the switch. In the Manage panel, click Switch Admin.
Figure 1.
2. The Switch Admin option helps in providing details about package

download, such as the path, IP address, mode of package transfer, and
system credentials from where you can download the firmware package. It
also validates your inputs.
Now, first check the current firmware version from the current version frame as shown in the
following figure.
Figure 2.
Note : Make sure that you have the earlier firmware version to take fall back if the upgrade
operation fails. Go ahead and provide the required details to download the firmware package
from the remote system. Here, we are upgrading the SAN switch firmware version from 6.2.2f to
6.3.2e.
After providing all the details, firmware package download begins and installs it to the switch.
Figure 3.
3. You can verify the upgraded package version (same as mentioned in step 2),
after the commit operation has been successfully completed. While the
switch upgrade occurs, you might get warning messages, such as loose
network or disruption in other devices. You can ignore those warning
messages unless you are upgrading to a proper version for proper SAN
switch.
4. After successfully completion of the commit operation, you can verify
whether the upgraded package version is the same as that mentioned in step
2.
Back to top
Method 2 CLI
1. Log in to the SAN switch from a remote system that is in the SAN network.
2. Use the help command to get all the SAN switch commands.
3. Use the version command to check the current firmware version. A sample
output of the command is shown in the following figure.
Figure 4.
4. Use the firmwaredownload command and provide all the details, as required in
Method 1. This command prompts for remote system details and its
credentials, path of the firmware package, and the mode of package transfer.
Here, we are upgrading the SAN switch firmware version from 6.3.2e to
6.4.3c.
Figure 5.
5. After successful download of the package it automatically upgrades the SAN

firmware to the new release. After the commit operation of the firmware
changes, the switch reboots and this causes network disruption for a while
which is negligible. Now again, check the firmware version using the version
command.
Figure 6.
Now, you have upgraded the firmware successfully.
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Upgrade the firmware on a Brocade Fibre Channel Switch

Posted on December 15, 2015
NOTE: content available as pdf download here.
Upgrade the firmware on a Brocade Fibre Channel Switch

In order to maintain a secure, well-functioning fibre channel fabric over the years youll need to
perform a firmware upgrade now and again. Brocade fibre channel switches are expensive but
they do deliver a very solid experience. This experience is also obvious in the firmware upgrade
process. Well walk through this as a guide on how to upgrade the firmware on a Brocade fibre
channel switch environment.
Have a FTP/SFTP/SCP server in place

If you have some switches in your environment youre probably already running a TFTP or FTP
server for upgrading those. For TFTP I use the free but simple and good one provided by
Solarwinds. They also offer a free SCP/SFTP solution. For FTP it depends either we have IIS
with FTP (and FTPS) set up or we use FileZilla FTP Server which also offers SFTP and FTPS. In
any case this is not a blog about these solutions. If youre responsible for keeping network gear
in tip top shape you should this little piece of infrastructure set up for both downloads and
uploads of configurations (backup/restore), firmware and boot code. If you dont have this, its
about time you set one up sport! A virtual machine will do just fine and we back it up as well as
we store our firmware and backups on that VM as well. For mobile scenarios I just keep TFTP &
FilleZilla Server installed and ready to go on my laptop in a stopped state until I need m.
Getting the correct Fabric OS firmware

Its up to your SAN & switch vendors to inform you about support for firmware releases. Some
OEMs will publish those on their own support sites some will coordinate with Brocade to deliver
them as download for specific models sold and supported by them. Dell does this. To get it select
your switch version on the dell support site and under downloads youll find a link.
That link takes you to the Brocade download page for DELL customers.
Make sure you download the correct firmware for your switch. Read the release notes and make
sure youre the hardware you use is supported. Do your homework, go through the Brocade
Fabric OS (FOS) 7.x Compatibility Matrix. There is no reason to shoot yourself in the foot when
this can be avoided. I always contact DELL Compellent CoPilot support to verify the version is
support with the Compellent Storage Center firmware.
When you have downloaded the firmware for your operating system (Im on Windows) unzip it
and place the content of the resulting folder in your FTP root or desired folder. I tend to put the
active firmware under the root and archive older one as they get replaced. So that root looks like
this. You can copy it there over RDP or via a FTP client. If the FTP server is running your laptop,
its just a local copy.
The upgrade process

A word on upgrading the firmware
I you move from a single major level/version to the next or upgrade within a single major
level/version you can do non-disruptive upgrades with a High Availability (HA) reboot meaning
that while the switch reloads it will not impact the data flow, the FC ports stay online. Everything
keeps running, bar that you lose connectivity to the switch console for a short time.
Some non-disruptive upgrade examples:
V6.3.2e to V6.4.3g
V7.4.0a to v7.4.0b
V7.3.0c to v7.4.0b
Note that this way you can step from and old version to a new one step by step without ever
needing downtime. I have always found this a really cool capability.
You can find Brocades recommendations on what the desired version of a major release is in
https://www.brocade.com/content/dam/common/documents/content-types/target-path-selectionguide/brocade-fos-target-path.pdf
I tend to way a bit with the latest as the newer ones need some wrinkles taken care of as we can
see now switch 7.4.1 which is susceptible to memory leaks.
Some disruptive upgrade examples (FC ports go down):
7.1.2b to 7.4.0a
6.4.3.h to 7.4.0b
Our upgrade here from 7.4.0a to 7.4.0b is non-disruptive as was the upgrade from to 7.3.0c to
7.4.0a. You can jump between version more than one version but it will require a reboot that
takes the switch out of action. Not a huge issue if you have (and you should) to redundant fabrics
but it can be avoided by moving between versions one at the time. IT takes longer but its totally
non-disruptive which I consider a good thing in production. I reserve disruptive upgrades for
green field scenarios or new switches that will be added to the fabric after Im done upgrading.
Prior to the upgrade
There is no need to run a copy run or write memory on a brocade FC switch. It persists what you
do and you have to save and activate your zoning configuration anyway when you configure
those (cfgsave). All other changes are persisted automatically. So in that regards you should be
all good to go.
Make a backup copy of your configuration as is. This gives you a way out if the shit hits the fan
and you need to restore to a switch you had to reset or so. Dont forget to do this for the switches
in both fabrics, which normally you have in production!
You log on switch with your username and password over telnet or ssh (I use putty or kitty)
MySwitchName:admin> configupload
Hit ENTER
Select the protocol of the backup target server you are using
Protocol (scp, ftp, sftp, local) [ftp]: ftp
Hit ENTER
Server Name or IP Address [host]: 10.1.1.12
HIT ENTER
Enter the user, here Im using anonymous
User Name [user]: anonymous
Hit ENTER
Give the backup file a clear and identifying name
Path/Filename [<home dir>/config.txt]: MySwitchNameConfig20151208.txt
Hit ENTER
Select all (default)
Section (all|chassis|switch [all]): all
configUpload complete: All selected config parameters are uploaded
Thats it. You can verify you have a readable backup file on your FTP server now.
The Upgrade
A production environment normally has 2 fabrics for redundancy. Each fabric exists out of 1 or
more switches. Its wise to start with one fabric and complete the upgrade there. Only after all is
proven well there should you move on to the second fabric. To avoid any impact on production I
tend plan these early or late in the day also avoiding any backup activity. Depending on your
environment you could see some connectivity drops on any FC-IP links (remote SAN replication
FC to IP IP to FC) but when you work one fabric at the time you can mitigate this during
production hours via redundancy.
Log on to first brocade fabric switch with your username and password over telnet or ssh (I use
putty or kitty). At the console prompt type
firmwaredownload
This is the command for the non-disruptive upgrade. If you need or want to do a disruptive one,
youll need to use firmwaredownload s.
Hit Enter
Enter the IP address of the FTP server (of the name if you have name resolution set up and
working)
Server Name or IP address: 10.1.1.12

User name: I fill out anonymous as this gives me the best results. Leaving it blank doesnt
always work depending on your FTP server.
User Name: anonymous
Enter the path to the firmware, I placed the firmware folder in the root of the FTP server so that
is
Path: /v7.4.0b
Hit enter
At the password prompt leave the password empty. Anonymous FTP doesnt need one.
Password:
Hit enter, the upgrade process preparation starts. After the checks have passed youll be asked if
you want to continue. We enter Y for yes and hit Enter. The firmware download starts and youll
see lost of packages being downloaded. Just let it run.
This goes on for a while. At one point youll see the prom update happening.
When its done it starts removing unneeded files and when done it will inform you that the
download is done and the HA rebooting starts. HA stands for high availability. Basically it fails
over to the next CP (Control Processor, see http://www.brocade.com/content/html/en/softwareupgrade-guide/FOS_740_UPGRADE/GUID-20EC78ED-FA91-4CA6-9044E6700F4A5DA1.html) while the other one reboots and loads the new firmware. All this happens
while data traffic keeps flowing through the switch. Pretty neat.
When you keep a continuous ping to the FC switch running during the HA reboot youll see a
short drop in connectivity.
But do realize that since this is a HA reboot the data traffic is not interrupted at all. When you get
connectivity back you SSH to switch and verify the reported version, which here is now 7.4.0b.
Thats it. Move on to the switch in the same fabric until youre done. But stop there before you
move on to your second fabric (failure domain). It pays to go slow with firmware upgrades in an
existing environment.
This doesnt just mean waiting a while before installing the very latest firmware to see whether
any issues pop up in the forums. It also means you should upgrade one fabric at the time and
evaluate the effects. If no problems arise, you can move on with the second fabric. By doing so
you will always have a functional fabric even if you need to bring down the other one in order to
resolve an issue.
On the other hand, dont leave fabrics unattended for years. Even if you have no functional
issues, bugs are getting fixed and perhaps more importantly security issues are addressed as well
as browser and Java issues for GUI management. I do wish that the 6.4.x series of the firmware
got an update in order for it to work well with Java 8.x.
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BROCADE FIRMWARE UPDATE - firmwareDownload PROCEDURE STEP BY STEP
Brocade Firmware Upgrade Procedure (from the

SFTP):
1. Execute the cfgSave command - done.
2. Execute the configupload command - done.
*3. Run the interactive supportsave command to capture all support information done.
4. Execute the firmwareDownload command to download the new firmware file
onto the switch.
*SolarWinds SFTP server is also SCP server.
FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1:root> firmwaredownload
Server Name or IP Address: X.Y.Z.Z
User Name: zaleksic
File Name: /serveradmins/upgrade/731
Network Protocol(1-auto-select, 2-FTP, 3-SCP, 4-SFTP) [1]: 4
Do you want to input SFTP options (Y/N) [N]: N
Verifying if the public key authentication is available.Please wait ...
The public key authentication is not available.
Password: xxxxxxxxx
Server IP: X.Y.Z.Z, Protocol IPv4
Checking system settings for firmwaredownload...
System settings check passed.
You can run firmwaredownloadstatus to get the status
of this command.
This command will cause a warm/non-disruptive boot but will
require that existing telnet, secure telnet or SSH sessions
be restarted.
Do you want to continue (Y/N) [Y]: Y
... now you will wait for some time ...
5. Wait approximately 5 minutes after you see the above statement about the HA
Rebooting and start another Telnet session to the switch you just rebooted
6. You may be asked to change the passwords for the admin and user IDs the first
time you login after the upgrade. This will happen for new switches or for switches
that are being upgraded and have not had the passwords changed before.
7. Execute the firmwareShow command to verify that the new version of Fabric
OS
*8. Execute the switchStatusPolicyShow command to verify that the policy
settings on the switch are correct.
*9. Execute the switchStatusPolicySet command to change the policy settings on
the switch.
*10. Execute the switchStatusPolicyShow
11. Execute the cfgSave command to ensure that the updated configuration is
saved to flash
12. Execute the configUpload command in order to get a good backup of the
current configuration
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Brocade SupportSave Procedure (to the SFTP):

FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1:root> supportsave
This command collects RASLOG, TRACE, supportShow, core file, FFDC data and
then transfer them to a FTP/SCP/SFTP server or a USB device. This operation can
take several minutes.
NOTE: supportSave will transfer existing trace dump file first, then automatically
generate and transfer latest one. There will be two trace dump files transferred
after this command.
OK to proceed? (yes, y, no, n): [no] Y
Host IP or Host Name: X.Y.Z.Z
User Name: zaleksic
Password: xxxxxxxx
Protocol (ftp | scp | sftp): sftp
Remote Directory: /serveradmins/FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1/supportsave
*Please create the folder "supportsave" on your SFTP Server in the
following location prior to executing the supportsave command:
\\SFTPserver\serveradmins\FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1
Saving support information
module:SSHOW_PLOG...
module:SSHOW_FABRIC...
module:SSHOW_SERVICE...
for
for
for
for
for
for
for
for
for
for
for
switch:FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1,
module:RAS...
module:CTRACE_OLD...
module:CTRACE_NEW...
module:FABRIC...
module:DIAG...
module:RTE...
module:ISCSID_DBG...
module:AGDUMP...
module:AGWWNS...
module:AGWWN_CFG...
for switch:FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1, module:SSHOW_OS...

for switch:FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1, module:SSHOW_EX...
for switch:FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1,
for switch:FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1,
for
for
for
for
switch:FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1, module:SSHOW_SEC...
switch:FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1, module:SSHOW_NET...
switch:FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1, module:SSHOW_SYS...
module:SSHOW_FICON...
Saving support information for switch:FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1,
module:SSHOW_ISWITCH...
module:SSHOW_ASICDB...
module:SSHOW_DCEHSL...
module:CEETECHSUPPORT...
module:FCOESUPPORT...
module:FABRIC_WATCH...
module:DM_FTR_FFDC...
No core or FFDC data files found!
SupportSave completed.
FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1:root>
module:SSHOW_ISCSI...
module:SSHOW_AG...
module:SSHOW_APM...
module:SSHOW_CRYP...
module:SSHOW_FCIP...
module:SSHOW_PORT...
module:CEEDEBUG...
module:C2REGDUMP...
module:C1REGDUMP...
module:PBREGDUMP...
module:REGDUMP...
module:CRYP...
module:FCIP...
module:VFABRIC...
module:MAPS...
module:PSDUMP...
module:CORE_FFDC...
module:ENC_LOGGER...
module:RAS_POST...

How To Upgrade Firmware of Brocade Fabric Switch

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How to upgrade firmware of brocade fabric switch

Filezilla FTP Server

Filezilla FTP Client

Java JRE installed on admin PC

Downloaded upgrade firmware

Fabric OS 5.0.x to 5.2.3 is supported

Fabric OS 6.0.0b is only allowed from Fabric OS 5.3.x.

Fabric OS 6.1.2c is allowed only from Fabric OS 6.0.0b

Fabric OS 6.2.2f is allowed only from Fabric OS 6.1.0a or later.

Fabric OS 7.1.2 can be non-disruptively upgraded from 7.0.x and 7.1.x.

Note: Disruptively means ports will go offline during the upgrade.

Create an anonymous user account and set password to none.

Set shared folder location and click Set as home dir

Actual location of firmware in my PC.

Step3: Test FTP connectivity

Step4: Upgrade Firmware in Brocade

Do Auto-Commit after Reboot [Y]: y

2. The Switch Admin option helps in providing details about package

5. After successful download of the package it automatically upgrades the SAN

Now, you have upgraded the firmware successfully.

Upgrade the firmware on a Brocade Fibre Channel Switch

NOTE: content available as pdf download here.

Upgrade the firmware on a Brocade Fibre Channel Switch

Have a FTP/SFTP/SCP server in place

Getting the correct Fabric OS firmware

The upgrade process

Server Name or IP address: 10.1.1.12

Brocade Firmware Upgrade Procedure (from the

Brocade SupportSave Procedure (to the SFTP):

for switch:FABRIC_A_SWITCH_1, module:SSHOW_OS...

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