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  4. F5 BIG-IQ Centralized Management: Upgrading a 5.2 or 5.3 DCD Cluster to Version 5.4 With Minimal Downtime
  5. Upgrade the Data Collection Devices in Your Cluster with Minimal Downtime
Manual Chapter : Upgrade the Data Collection Devices in Your Cluster with Minimal Downtime

Applies To:

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BIG-IQ Centralized Management

  • 5.4.0
Manual Chapter
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Prerequisites for upgrading the data collection device to the latest version

Before upgrading the F5® BIG-IQ® Centralized Management data collection device, perform these tasks.

Tasks Additional information
Reactivate the BIG-IQ system license. You must do this for each data collection device in the cluster. For specific instructions about how to reactivate a license, refer to the F5® BIG-IQ® Central Management: Licensing and Initial Setup guide.
Decide which disk volume to install the upgrade on. At least two volumes are required to upgrade BIG-IQ. If the machine you are upgrading does not have two volumes, you must create one using a CLI command. The upgrade task provides options for either case.

Upgrade the data collection devices to the latest version

After you prepare the data collection device (DCD) cluster for upgrade, use these procedures to upgrade the data collection devices in your cluster. Perform the following tasks for each DCD in the cluster.

  1. Upload the latest version of the BIG-IQ version software image.
  2. From the BIG-IP device(s), take the DCD out of the alert-traffic flow.
  3. Deactivate data collection services.
  4. Upgrade the DCD to the latest version.
  5. Confirm that the DCD is back in service
  6. Reactivate data collection services.
  7. From the BIG-IP device(s), bring the DCD back online.
Important: To successfully upgrade your DCD cluster with minimal downtime, it is critical that you perform this sequence of tasks to each DCD in the cluster serially, not in parallel.

Upload the latest version of the BIG-IQ software image

Before you can upload the software image to your data collection device (DCD), you must have first downloaded it from the F5 Downloads site.

You upload the latest BIG-IQ® version of the software image to your DCD to make it available for this upgrade.

  1. At the top of the screen, click System.
  2. On the left, click THIS DEVICE > SOFTWARE MANAGEMENT > Available Images .
  3. Click the Upload Image button.
  4. Click the Choose File button and go to the location to which you downloaded the image, and click the Open button to upload it to BIG-IQ.
  5. Click the Upload button.
    The screen refreshes to display the progress of the upload.
When the image is finished uploading, it shows in the Available Images list.

Stop sending alerts to the DCD

To upgrade your DCD cluster with minimum downtime, before you begin the process of updating your DCDs, you must complete the upgrade preparation detailed in Prepare for Data Collection Device Upgrade With Minimal Downtime.

This is the first task you must perform on each DCD in the cluster to make sure that you do not lose any data during the upgrade. When you take the DCD you are about to upgrade offline, the BIG-IP® device routes the data to another DCD in the cluster.

Log in to each BIG-IP device that sends data to your DCD cluster, and revise the configuration so that the data it sends to the cluster does not include the particular DCD you are preparing to upgrade.
Note: The process for stopping data collection for one DCD in the cluster depends on the kind of data you collect.
Option Description
If you collect FPS alerts or IPsec events:
  1. On the BIG-IP device, select Local Traffic > Pools > Pool List .
  2. Select the pool that sends alerts and events to the DCD.
  3. Click Members.
  4. Select the pool member that sends alerts to the target DCD, and disable it.
If you collect ASM event:
  1. On the BIG-IP device, select Local Traffic > Pools > Pool List .
  2. Select the pool that contains the members that send events to the DCD.
  3. Click Members.
  4. Select the pool member that sends alerts to the target DCD, and disable it.
If you collect APM events: You don't need to disable the DCD from the BIG-IP device. All you need to do is deactivate the service.

Deactivate data collection services

You must perform this task for each DCD in the cluster to make sure that you minimize data loss during the upgrade. When you take the DCD you are about to upgrade off line, the BIG-IP® device routes the data to another DCD in the cluster.

  1. At the top of the screen, click System, and then, on the left, click BIG-IQ DATA COLLECTION > BIG-IQ Data Collection Devices .
    The BIG-IQ Data Collection Devices screen opens to list the data collection devices in the cluster.
  2. Select the device name of the DCD that you want to upgrade first.
    The Properties screen for the selected DCD opens.
  3. On the left, select Services.
  4. For each active service, click Deactivate.
    Important: Before you exit this screen, make a note of the Listener Address for this DCD. You will need it later in the upgrade process.
  5. Click Cancel.

    The screen closes and BIG-IQ deactivates your services.

Upgrade the data collection devices to the latest version

Note: If the machine you are upgrading does not have two volumes, you must create one using a CLI command. The following steps provide options for either case.
Before upgrading the data collection device (DCD), you must have downloaded the latest version of the BIG-IQ software image from the F5 downloads site.

The upgrade process installs the new version of the software on one DCD. You must repeat this process for each DCD in your cluster.

  1. At the top of the screen, click System.
  2. On the left, expand THIS DEVICE > Software Management , and then click Available Images.
    The Available Images screen lists the software image files that are available for install on this BIG-IQ system.
  3. Select the check box for the image you want to install and click Install.
  4. From the Target Volume list, select the volume you want to install the image on.
    Note: If the Target Volume list is empty, the machine you are upgrading does not have a second volume available for you to install the upgrade. You must create one to proceed.
    • If you selected a target volume, complete the remaining steps to finish the upgrade.
    • If you do not have a second volume, use the following procedure to install the upgrade for this machine:
      • Use SSH to log in to the machine you want to upgrade. You must log in as root to perform this procedure.
      • Navigate to the folder where you install software using the command: cd /shared/images
      • Install the upgrade to a new volume by running one of the following commands:
        • If you are upgrading a virtual machine: tmsh install sys software image <full name of the iso file> volume hd1.2 create-volume reboot
        • If you are upgrading a BIG-IQ 7000 series platform: tmsh install sys software image <full name of the iso file> volume md1.2 create-volume reboot
      • While the system installs the upgrade to the new volume, you can check on the status of the upgrade using the command: tmsh show sys software status.
      • When the upgrade finishes installing, the machine reboots. Proceed to the next to the last (login) step in this task.
  5. To prompt the data collection device to reboot into the new software installation volume, select the Reboot into Target Volume check box.
  6. Click the Install button.
    A confirmation dialog box appears.
  7. Click the Continue button.
  8. Wait while the data collection device loads the new software and reboots.
    Depending on your configuration and the number of devices you are managing, this could take up to 15 minutes. During this time, it is important that you not interrupt the installation process by restarting services or the server.
  9. Log back in to the data collection device to confirm that the upgrade succeeded.
  10. If needed, extend the /var partition.
    The default size of the /var file system in a newly installed or upgraded node is 30 GB. This amount of available storage might not be enough to store your data. If you previously extended your disk space, you'll need to do it again after you upgrade, as explained in K16103: Extending disk space on BIG-IQ Virtual Edition.
    Important: Upgrading a node requires at least two volumes, so be sure you can extend the /var file system on both volumes to the same size; otherwise, upgrades might fail.
Note: Remember to complete this process for each DCD in the cluster.
Important: In the unlikely event that you are unable to log in to a BIG-IQ® 7000 series platform after you upgraded it, refer to SOL40338232: The BIG-IQ system interface might be inaccessible after the BIG-IQ system is upgraded from BIG-IQ Centralized Management version to 5.2.0 at support.f5.com/kb/en-us/solutions/public/k/40/sol40338232.html for more information.

Confirm that the upgraded DCD is back in service

After you upgrade a DCD as part of the minimum downtime workflow, confirm that it is back in service before proceeding to upgrade the next DCD in the cluster.

  1. Log in to the BIG-IQ system primary with your admin user name and password.
  2. At the top of the screen, click System, and then, on the left, click BIG-IQ DATA COLLECTION > BIG-IQ Data Collection Devices .
    The BIG-IQ Data Collection Devices screen opens to list the data collection devices in the cluster.
  3. Note the status icon color for the DCD that you just upgraded. If it is not green yet, wait until it turns to green before proceeding.
    When the icon turns green, it indicates that the primary BIG-IQ system and the DCD are communicating.
  4. Use SSH to log in to the DCD you just upgraded.
    You must log in as root to perform this procedure.
    Important: It is critical that you log in to the correct device. Log in to the DCD, not the primary BIG-IQ.
  5. Determine whether the DCD cluster service restarted, using the following command:
    bigstart status elasticsearch
    In this example, the DCD cluster has been up and running for less than an hour.
    elasticsearch run (pid 5110) .5 hours
  6. Determine whether this DCD has rejoined the DCD cluster, using the following command:
    curl localhost:9200/_cat/nodes?v
    In the following example, the recently upgraded DCD (10.11.0.96) has rejoined the cluster (three other DCDs, the primary BIG-IQ, and the secondary BIG-IQ).
    curl localhost:9200/_cat/nodes?v
host          ip            heap.percent ram.percent load node.role master name                                                                                                                                                              
10.11.0.96    10.11.0.96               2          63 0.01 d         m      d6211
10.11.0.97    10.11.0.97               2          63 0.01 d         m      d6212
10.11.0.98    10.11.0.98               2          63 0.01 d         m      d6213
10.11.0.99    10.11.0.99               2          63 0.01 d         m      d6214
10.144.73.126 10.144.73.126           22          45 0.04 -         *      09020 b0c-7021-458f-89f4-5e89faf64670
10.144.73.127 10.144.73.127           22          45 0.05 -         m      09020 c0c-2235-234a-54b2-2f45fab3233b
  7. If the DCD did not rejoin the cluster, restart the cluster service using this command:
    bigstart restart elasticsearch
    The cluster service restarts, and the DCD rejoins the cluster. Repeat step 7 to confirm.
  8. Log in to the BIG-IQ system primary again with your admin user name and password.
  9. At the top of the screen, click System, and then, on the left, click BIG-IQ DATA COLLECTION > BIG-IQ Data Collection Devices .
    The BIG-IQ Data Collection Devices screen opens to list the data collection devices in the cluster.
  10. Note the Data Cluster Status icon color. Do not proceed until it turns green.
    When the icon turns green, it indicates that data is again distributed to all members of the DCD cluster.
    Note: If the DCD cluster status icon does not turn green, refer to Troubleshooting Minimal Downtime Upgrade Issues. There are several common issues that you can resolve by following the recommended actions.
The DCD cluster is now fully restored to service.
Now you need to reactivate services and bring the upgraded DCD back online so that it can start collecting data again.

Reactivate data collection services after upgrade

After you upgrade a DCD and it is again a fully functioning member of the DCD cluster, you need it to start collecting data again.

Note: Perform this task only if you are upgrading from BIG-IQ version 5.2 or 5.3 to version 5.4.
  1. At the top of the screen, click System, and then, on the left, click BIG-IQ DATA COLLECTION > BIG-IQ Data Collection Devices .
    The BIG-IQ Data Collection Devices screen opens to list the data collection devices in the cluster.
  2. Select the device name of the DCD you just upgraded.
    The Properties screen for the selected DCD opens.
  3. On the left, select Services.
  4. For each service that you deactivated previously, click Activate.
    Important: Use the value from the Listener Address setting that you noted when you deactivated services for this DCD.
  5. Click Cancel.

    The screen closes and BIG-IQ activates your services.

Bring the data collection device back online

After you upgrade a DCD and reactivate data collection services, you need to start sending data to it again.

Log in to each BIG-IP® device that sends data to your DCD cluster and revise the configuration so that the data it sends to the cluster includes the DCD you just upgraded.
Note: The process for starting data collection for one DCD in the cluster depends on the kind of data you collect.
Option Description
If you collect FPS alerts:
  1. On the BIG-IP device, select Local Traffic > Pools > Pool List .
  2. Select the pool that sends alerts and events to the DCD.
  3. Click Members.
  4. Select the pool member that sends alerts to the target DCD, and enable it.
If you collect ASM events:
  1. On the BIG-IP device, select Local Traffic > Pools > Pool List .
  2. Select the pool that contains the members that send events to the DCD.
  3. Click Members.
  4. Select the pool member that sends alerts to the target DCD, and enable it.
If you collect APM events: You don't need to enable the DCD from the BIG-IP device. All you need to do is activate the service.
Now that the upgraded DCD has rejoined the cluster, the services are reactivated, and the BIG-IP devices are sending data again, you can update the next DCD in the cluster.
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