Managing Software Patches

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Introducing Solaris OE PatchesA patch contains collection of files and

directoriesPatch replaces existing files and directories

that prevent proper execution of the softwareSome patches contain product enhancements

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Solaris OE Patch types:Standard patches

Patches that fix specific problems

Recommended patchesSolaris OE patches that fix problems that might

occur on a large percentage of systems

Y2K patchesPatches that ensure compliance of Sun

Products with the year 2000

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Patch clustersA group of standard, recommended, security,

or Y2K packages that have been bundled into a single archive for easy downloading and installation

Maintenance UpdateA set of patches that have been tested together

and packaged for one-step installation

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A patch is distributed as a directoryIdentified by a unique number

105050-01105050 is the base code01 is the revision numberPatches are in zip format (105050-01.zip)

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Accessing Patch DocumentsWorld Wide Web

http://sunsolve.sun.comPatch update CD-ROMAnonymous FTP

Sunsolve.sun.comLocated in the /pub/patches directory

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Patch Documents and FilesSolaris9.PatchReport

A summary of all patches for the Solaris 9 OE release

9_Recommended.READMEInstructions for how to install the

recommended patch cluster for the Solaris 9 OE, as well as any important notes or warnings, special installation instructions, and usually a note to reboot the system

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Checking Patch LevelsBefore installing OE patches, you should

know about patches that have been previously installed on a system“# showrev -p”“# patchadd -p”

Historical information about all patches that are currently installed on a system and that can be uninstalled is stored in the “/var/sadm/patch” directory

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Preparing patches for installationDownload the patches to the local system

and place it in “/var/tmp” directory (open to all directory)

Solaris 7,8,9 OE patches are in .zip format, unzip to unpack the patch files“# /usr/bin/unzip 105050-01.zip”

Earlier versions user compressed tar file in a “tar.z” format, for uncompressing “zcat” command is used

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Installing a PatchWhen a patch is installed “patchadd”

command calls the “pkgadd” command to install the patch packages“# cd /var/tmp”“# patchadd 105050-01”“# patchadd -d 105050-01” - will not save

copies of file being updated or replace

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Removing a PatchWhen removing a patch, the “patchrm”

command restores all files that were modified or replaced by that patch, unless:The patch is required by another patchThe patch has been obsoleted by a later patchThe patch was installed with the “patchadd -d”

option

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“# patchrm 105050-01”

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Installing Patch ClustersBe sure the patch cluster has been

unzipped or uncompressed and extractedDecide on which method to use to install

the cluster - the recommended default save option or the “-nosave” option

Change to the directory that contains the patch cluster“# cd patch_cluster_directory”“# ./install_cluster

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