HP ProCurve firmware upgrade

HP Switches have made there way into our network. In some applications I like them. In some applications I still prefer Cisco. Regardless, there is a slightly different skill set required to administer them. I also use my tech notes as my own reference book so here is a note on doing a firmware upgrade (IOS upgrade in Cisco speak).


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One nice feature of the ProCurve switch is that it contains a primary and secondary image. When reloading the switch you can specify which image to use. So only upgrade one image first and once you have successfully loaded the system and verified functionality, then upgrade the secondary image. If for some reason the upgrade has problems, you can easily revert to the old image with a reload command.

Let's first determine the version of firmware the switch is running.

HC-MDFBridge# sh ver
Image stamp:    /sw/code/build/btm(t4a)
                Nov  6 2009 13:20:26
                K.14.47
                188
Boot Image:     Primary
HC-MDFBridge# sh flash
Image           Size(Bytes)   Date   Version
-----           ----------  -------- -------
Primary Image   : 9839140   11/06/09 K.14.47
Secondary Image : 9839140   11/06/09 K.14.47
Boot Rom Version: K.12.20
Default Boot    : Primary

HC-MDFBridge#

The switch is currently running firmware version K14.47.

Use HP's Support site to specify and select your switch and download the latest version of firmware. Use the show modules to determine the type and model of switch.

HC-MDFBridge# sh modules

Status and Counters - Module Information

  Chassis: E3500yl-24G J8692A         Serial Number:   SG949TF039
 
Core  Mod Slot Module Description           Serial Number  Status   Dump  Ver
---- -------------------------------------- -------------- -------- ----- ---

HC-MDFBridge#

Download the firmware appropriate for your model switch and extract the contents of the ZIP file to the root of your TFTP server. I find it is easiest to use the same file name that HP uses to keep things straight.  In this case the most recent version is K15.07.0008 so the file name would be K_15_07_0008.swi. 

Now copy the new firmware version to Primary flash (I like to leave secondary flash alone until I am sure everything is good).

HC-MDFBridge# copy tftp flash 192.168.1.101 K_15_07_0008.swi primary
The Primary OS Image will be deleted, continue [y/n]?  y

This command tells the switch to copy from a TFTP server to flash memory, the TFTP server has IP address 192.168.1.12, the filename on the TFTP server is K_15_07_0008.swi, and that we want that file saved to the primary flash on the switch. You’ll see a progress counter as the file is transferred, then:

Validating and Writing System Software to FLASH...

The validating will take a while, be patient. Once it has completed, we can verify success by examining the contents of flash:

HC-MDFBridge# sh flash
Image           Size(Bytes)   Date   Version
-----           ----------  -------- -------
Primary Image   : 15192576  04/23/12 K.15.07.0008
Secondary Image : 9839140   11/06/09 K.14.47
Boot Rom Version: K.12.20
Default Boot    : Primary

HC-MDFBridge#

Time to reload and use the new firmware:

HC-MDFBridge# boot system flash primary
System will be rebooted from primary image. Do you want to continue [y/n]?  y

After the switch boots back up, we can verify that it is running the latest firmware:

HC-MDFBridge# sh ver
Image stamp:  /ws/swbuildm/ec_rel_ftcollins_qaoff/code/build/btm(ec_rel_ftcollins_qaoff)
              Apr 23 2012 11:32:35
              K.15.07.0008
              1323
Boot Image:   Primary

HC-MDFBridge#

Once you have successfully loaded the system and verified functionality you can now load the new firmware to the secondary image. Use the TFTP command again and this time specify the Secondary flash.

copy tftp flash 192.168.1.101 K_15_07_0008.swi secondary

After the file is uploaded and validated, finally verify that the secondary image is updated.

HC-SO-MDF-R10A# sh flash
Image             Size (bytes) Date     Version
----------------- ------------ -------- --------------
Primary Image    :    15192576 04/23/12 K.15.07.0008
Secondary Image  :    15193021 04/23/12 K.15.07.0008

Boot ROM Version : K.15.28
Default Boot     : Primary

HC-SO-MDF-R10A#

All done.

HINT: Always read the release notes before upgrading firmware, especially on a production device!