Updated Date: 04/24/2026
BIG-IP In-place Upgrades
In‑place upgrade is a new, faster way to upgrade BIG-IP software. Unlike the traditional full upgrade process that installs all RPMs into a new or existing software volume followed by a system reboot, the in‑place upgrade streamlines the experience by updating only the modified components directly within the active software volume.
Important:
This is not an in‑service upgrade.
Although the upgrade is faster, the device is still expected to be offline during the procedure to ensure safety and consistency.
Initially, only a carefully selected set of Engineering Hotfixes (EHFs) will support in‑place upgrade. The list will expand over time as the feature matures.
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Significantly Faster Upgrades
Only modified RPMs and their dependencies are installed, avoiding the full installation of the base version plus all EHF RPMs. -
Reduced Maintenance Windows
The total downtime required for the upgrade is shortened as fewer components are being processed. -
Focused, Component‑Level Updates
Each affected process is restarted individually in a proper order rather than triggering a full system reboot (unless required).
In‑place upgrade uses a manifest embedded in the image to identify exactly which RPMs changed between versions. Only those modified components and their dependencies are installed into the active volume. This targeted approach avoids reinstalling the entire base image and significantly shortens the upgrade time.
If any updated component requires a reboot or is not supported for in-place upgrade, the dry‑run report will indicate it before the upgrade begins.
The Dry Run feature allows you to evaluate the impact of an upgrade before performing it. It compares the selected image with the version currently running on the active volume and determines whether the system supports
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In‑place upgrade
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In‑place upgrade with reboot
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Full upgrade (reboot‑only)
Dry Run performs a set of compatibility checks to help you understand upgrade requirements and the scope of the change. Some checks apply only to in‑place upgrades, while others apply to both in‑place and full upgrade workflows.
The Dry Run gives you information on the following details:
For In‑Place Upgrade Only
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Disk‑space warnings
Ensures the active volume has sufficient space to install modified RPMs and store backed-up RPMs. -
Number of packages to upgrade
Reports exactly how many RPMs will be updated, helping estimate upgrade duration. -
Reboot required
Indicates whether the in‑place upgrade can be completed without a reboot
(still faster than a full‑upgrade reboot scenario).
For In‑Place and Full Upgrade
- License compatibility
Validates that the current license supports the target version.
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Whether the upgrade path is supported.
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Whether traffic impact is expected.
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Any additional considerations, warnings, or dependencies.
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Other checks that will be introduced in future releases.
Note: When Dry Run determines that a full upgrade is required, it will not display any in‑place‑specific information such as number of packages or disk‑space checks.
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Log in to the BIG-IP Configuration Utility.
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Navigate to System → Software Management → Image List.
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Under Available Images, select the image you want to evaluate.
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Click Dry Run.
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Review the generated results.
Click Details to view reboot requirements and all checks performed.
Note:
If a dry run result already exists for the selected image, you must delete the previous result before running it again.
To initiate a dry run using TMSH,
- Execute the following command:
tmsh install sys software image iso dry-run - To view dry run results, execute the following command:
tmsh show sys software dry-run status - For additional details such as disk space and module impact description, execute the following command:
tmsh list sys software dry-run
To initiate a dry run via API, execute the following cURL command from a system with access to the BIG-IP device. Replace HOST in the command with the BIG-IP management IP address or fully qualified domain name (FQDN), and set $PASS to userpassword, where user is your BIG-IP username and password is your authentication password.
curl -sku $PASS httpsHOSTmgmttmsyssoftwareimage
-X POST -H Content-Type applicationjson
-d '{commandinstall,nameBIGIP-17.5.0-0.0.15.iso,options[{dry-runtrue}]}'In-Place Upgrade installs only the necessary RPMs and their dependent packages directly into the active software volume, focusing specifically on updating impacted components.
To initiate an in-place upgrade using TMSH:
- Execute the following command:
Replace the values of
tmsh install sys software install <iso> volume <active_volume>isoandactive_volumeaccordingly. Example:tmsh install sys software image BIGIP-21.1.0-0.0.10.iso volume HD1.5 - To verify the status, execute the following command:
tmsh show sys software st
Once the in-place upgrade process is complete, the Status column displays Complete for the selected active volume. The Version and Build numbers are updated accordingly.
To initiate an in-place upgrade using GUI:
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Log in to the BIG-IP Configuration Utility.
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In the Main menu, navigate to System > Software Management: Image List.
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From the available images, select the image to which you want to upgrade.
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From the Volume set name dropdown, select the active volume.
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Click Install.
Note: If in-place upgrade is not possible for the selected image, an error message is displayed. You can select an inactive volume and proceed with full upgrade.
The Rollback feature allows you to restore the system to the software version that was running before an in‑place upgrade. Rollback is supported only when the current BIG‑IP version was installed using the in‑place upgrade workflow.
During an in‑place upgrade, BIG‑IP automatically creates a backup of impacted RPMs before any components are updated.
Rollback can be initiated in two scenarios:
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Automatic rollback after a failed upgrade
If the in‑place upgrade encounters a failure that prevents it from completing safely, BIG‑IP can revert to the previously saved system state using the pre‑upgrade backup. -
Manual rollback
Administrators can manually trigger rollback at any time after an in‑place upgrade to restore the system to the exact previous version captured before the upgrade began.
These options provide flexibility and ensure a safer upgrade experience, especially since in‑place upgrades modify only selected components within the active volume.
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Rollback applies only to in‑place upgrades.
Full upgrades install into a separate software volume. Recovery from full upgrades is performed by switching boot locations, not through rollback. -
Indicators in the Image List
For images upgraded using in‑place upgrade, the Image List shows the previous version and build information, indicating that the system retains the pre‑upgrade state for potential rollback.
To initiate a rollback to the previously installed image using TMSH:
- To check the current version, execute the following command:
cat /VERSION - To roll back to the previous installed version, execute the following command:
tmsh run sys rollback - To verify the status of rollback, execute the following command:
tmsh show sys rollback
To initiate a rollback to the previously installed image using GUI:
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Log in to the BIG-IP Configuration Utility.
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In the Main menu, navigate to System > Software Management: Image List.
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From the Installed Images list, select the image that you want to rollback to the previous version. The Rollback button is available only if an in-place upgrade was initiated to install the current software image.
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Click Rollback to revert the image to the previously installed version.
To initiate a rollback via API, execute the following cURL command from a system with access to the BIG-IP device. Replace <HOST> in the command with the BIG-IP management IP address or fully qualified domain name (FQDN), and set $PASS to user:password, where user is your BIG-IP username and password is your authentication password.
curl -sku admin:f5site02 https://10.145.42.106/mgmt/tm/sys/rollback \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"command":"run"}