Upgrading System Software

Caution: You must use the new software loading procedure explained in "Upgrading system software" to load this version of software onto your system. Read the instructions carefully before upgrading your system.

If you are upgrading your software using TFTP, you must use the fsave command immediately after executing the tload command. Failure to do so may cause your Ascend unit to lose its configuration.

Each incremental release contains new features and corrections. To use this release note:

1. Read through the table of contents to determine which software release and (new features) apply to your environment.

2. Obtain the file from Ascend anonymous FTP server (ftp.ascend.com). If you need Technical Assistance, contact Ascend in one of the following ways:

   Telephone in the United States	800-ASCEND-4 (800-272-3634)
   Telephone outside the United States	510-769-8027 (800-697-4772)
   - UK	(+33) 492 96 5671
   - Germany/Austria/Switzerland	(+33) 492 96 5672
   - France	(+33) 492 96 5673
   - Benelux	(+33) 492 96 5674
   - Spain/Portugal	(+33) 492 96 5675
   - Italy	(+33) 492 96 5676
   - Scandinavia	(+33) 492 96 5677
   - Middle East and Africa	(+33) 492 96 5679
   E-mail	support@ascend.com
   E-mail (outside US)	EMEAsupport@ascend.com
   Facsimile (FAX)	510-814-2312
   Customer Support BBS by modem	510-814-2302

3. Upgrade to the new software by following the instructions in the next section, "Upgrading system software." Then configure the features that apply to your site.

Upgrading system software

Caution: The procedure for uploading new software to Ascend units have changed significantly. Carefully read the new software loading procedures explained in this section before upgrading your system.

This section explains how to upgrade your system software. It contains the following sections:

• Definitions and terms

• Guidelines for upgrading system software

• Before you begin

• Upgrading system software

• Using TFTP to upgrade to a fat or thin load

• Upgrading software with an extended load

• Upgrading software from versions earlier than 4.6C to version 5.0A or above

• Using the serial port to upgrade to a standard or a thin load

• System messages

Guidelines for upgrading system software

Caution: Before upgrading, consider the following very important guidelines:

• Use TFTP to upgrade if possible. TFTP is more reliable and saves the Ascend unit configuration when you upgrade.

• You cannot load or a fat load, a restricted load, or an extended load through the serial port. You must use TFTP.

• If you are using TFTP to upgrade your software, use the fsave command immediately after executing the tload command. Failure to do so might cause your Ascend unit to lose its configuration.

• If possible, you should always stay with the same build of software when you upgrade. If you load a different version, your Ascend unit may lose its configuration. If this happens, you must restore your configuration from a backup.

• If you are upgrading to a software version 5.0A or 5.0Aix fat load for the first time, you must be on a load that supports the fat load format. All versions of software 5.0A or above support fat loads. You should perform the upgrade in two steps:

  • Upgrade to a thin load of the same build

  • Upgrade to the fat load

• If you are upgrading to a software version 6.0.0 or above, you must be on a load that supports the extended load format. All versions of software 6.0.0 or above support extended loads. You should perform the upgrade in two steps:

  • Upgrade to a restricted load of the same build

  • Upgrade to the extended load

• You can upgrade to a thin load or a restricted load from any version of software.

• If you are upgrading from software version 4.6C or earlier to software version 5.0A or later, see Upgrading software from versions earlier than 4.6C to version 5.0A or above for important information before you start.

Table B-1. Ascend system software versions

Before you begin

Table B-2. Before upgrading

Upgrading system software

Using TFTP to upgrade to a standard load

To upgrade to a standard load via TFTP:

1. Obtain the software version you want to upgrade to and place it in the TFTP server home directory.

2. From the Ascend unit's VT100 interface, access the diagnostics monitor by typing the following characters in rapid succession:

   Esc [ Esc =

   Or, press Ctrl-D to invoke the DO menu and select D=Diagnostics.

3. At the > prompt, use the Tsave command to save your configuration as in the following example:

   > tsave tftp-server router1.cfg

   This saves the configuration of your unit to the file named router1.cfg in the TFTP home directory of the server named tftp-server. This file must already exist and be writable. Normally, TFTP upgrades save the configuration. Tsave is a precaution.

Caution: The file you save with the Tsave command contains all the passwords in clear text. You should move this file from the TFTP directory to a secure location after the upgrade procedure is complete.

At the > prompt, enter:

tloadcode hostname filename

where hostname is the name or IP address of your TFTP server, and filename is the name of the system software on the server (relative to the TFTP home directory).

Caution: If you want to upgrade your system for the first time to a software version 6.0.0 or later, you must first upgrade your system to a restricted load. Failure to do so can cause your Ascend unit to lose its configuration.

For example, the command:

tloadcode tftp-server rtbam.m40

loads the restricted load rtbam.m40 into flash from the machine named tftp-server.

Caution: You must use the Fsave command immediately after executing the Tload command. Failure to do so can cause your Ascend unit to lose its configuration.

1. Enter the following command to save your configuration to flash memory:

   fsave

2. Enter the following command:

   nvramclear

   After the Ascend unit clears NVRAM memory, it automatically resets.

If you have downloaded the extended load, the upgrade is complete.

If you have loaded a restricted load, your system boots up in restricted mode. Restricted mode only allows you to load software. You cannot change or save profiles. While in restricted mode, the Edit menu displays the following banner:

* * RESTRICTED MODE * * * YOU MUST RERUN THE LAST tloadcode COMMAND * *

If your system boots up in restricted mode, repeat the step 5 through step 7 to download the extended load.

Upgrading software from versions earlier than 4.6C to version 5.0A or above

If you are upgrading from software version 4.6C or earlier to version 5.0A or later, perform the upgrade in the following order:

1. Load version 4.6Ci18, following the procedure in Upgrading system software.

2. Load version 5.0A, following the procedure in Using TFTP to upgrade to a fat or thin load.

3. Load version 5.0Aix or 6.0.0, following the procedure in Using TFTP to upgrade to a fat or thin load (for software versions 5.0Aix) or Upgrading software with an extended load (for software version 6.0.0).

Caution: Failure to follow this procedure might cause your Ascend unit to lose or corrupt its configuration, and could render the unit unusable.

Using the serial port to upgrade to a standard or a thin load

Caution: Uploading system software via the serial console overwrites all existing profiles. Save your current profiles settings to your hard disk before you begin upgrading system software. After the upgrade, restore your profiles from the backup file you created. Since the backup file is readable text, you can reenter the settings through the Ascend unit's user interface. To avoid having existing profiles overwritten, use TFTP to upgrade your unit.

Caution: You cannot upload a fat load or an extended load using the serial port; it must be done using TFTP.

Upgrading through the serial port consists of the following general steps:

• Saving your configuration

• Uploading the software

• Restoring the configuration

Before you begin

Before upgrading your system through the serial port, make sure you have the following equipment and software:

• An IBM compatible PC or Macintosh with a serial port capable of connecting to the Ascend unit's Console port.

• A straight-through serial cable.

• Data communications software for your PC or Mac with XModem CRC/1K support (for example, Procomm Plus, HyperTerminal for PCs or ZTerm for the Mac).

Caution: If you use a Windows-based terminal emulator such as Windows Terminal or HyperTerminal, disable any screen savers or other programs or applications that could interrupt the file transfer. Failure to do so might cause the software upload to halt, and can render the Ascend unit unusable.

Saving your configuration

Before you start, verify that your terminal emulation program has a disk capture feature. Disk capture allows your emulator to capture to disk the ASCII characters it receives at its serial port. You should also verify that the data rate of your terminal emulation program is set to the same rate as the Term Rate parameter in the System Profile (Sys Config menu).

You can cancel the backup process at any time by pressing Ctrl-C.

To save the Pipeline configuration (except passwords) to disk:

1. Open the Sys Diag menu.

2. Select Save Config, and press Enter.

   The following message appears:

   Ready to download - type any key to start....

3. Turn on the Capture feature of your communications program, and supply a filename for the saved profiles. (Consult the documentation for your communications program if you have any questions about how to turn on the Capture feature.)

4. Press any key to start saving your configured profiles.

   Rows of configuration information appear on the screen as the configuration file is downloaded to your hard disk. When the file has been saved, your communications program displays a message indicating the download is complete.

5. Turn off the Capture feature of your communications program.

6. Print a copy of your configured profiles for later reference.

You should examine the saved configuration file. Notice that some of the lines begin with START= and other lines begin with END=. A pair of these START/STOP lines and the block of data between them constitute a profile. If a parameter in a profile is set to its default value, it does not appear. In fact, you can have profiles with all parameters at their defaults, in which case the corresponding START/STOP blocks are empty. Make sure that there are no extra lines of text or characters either before START= or after END=. If there are, delete them. They could cause problems when you try to upload the file to the Ascend unit.

Uploading the software

To upload the software:

1. Type the following four-key sequence in rapid succession (press each key in the sequence shown, one after the other, as quickly as possible):

   Esc [ Esc -

   (Press the escape key, the left bracket key, the escape key, and the minus key, in that order, in rapid succession.) The following string of Xmodem control characters appears:

   CKCKCKCK

   If you do not see these characters, you probably did not press the four-key sequence quickly enough. Try again. Most people use both hands and keep one finger on the escape key.

2. Use the Xmodem file-transfer protocol to send the system file to the Ascend unit.

   Your communications program normally takes anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes to send the file to your Ascend unit. The time displayed on the screen does not represent real time. Do not worry if your communication program displays several "bad batch" messages. This is normal.

After the upload, the Ascend unit resets. Upon completion of the self-test, the Ascend unit's initial menu appears in the Edit window with all parameters set to default values. This completes the upgrade.

If the upload fails during the transfer, try downloading another copy of the binary image from the Ascend FTP server and re-loading the code to the Ascend unit. If you still have problems, contact Ascend technical support for assistance.

Restoring the configuration

Under certain circumstances, the serial-port method might not completely restore your configuration. You should therefore verify that your configuration was properly restored every time you use this method. If you have many profiles and passwords, you should consider using TFTP to upgrade your software. (See Using TFTP to upgrade to a standard load.)

To restore the configuration, you must have administrative privileges that include Field Service (such as the Full Access Profile, for example). You use the Restore Cfg command to restore a full configuration that you saved by using the Save Cfg command, or to upload more specific configuration information obtained from Ascend (for example, a single filter stored in a special configuration file).

To load configuration information through the serial port

1. From the Ascend unit's VT100 interface, access the diagnostics monitor by typing the following characters in rapid succession:

   Esc [ Esc =

   Or, press Ctrl-D to invoke the DO menu, and select D=Diagnostics.

2. At the > prompt, enter the Fclear command:

   > fclear
   

3. At the > prompt, enter the NVRAMClear command:

   > nvramclear
   

   This causes the system to reset. When it comes back up, proceed with restoring your configuration.

4. Enter quit to exit the Diagnostic interface.

5. Open the Sys Diag menu.

6. Select Restore Cfg, and press Enter.

   The following message appears:

   Waiting for upload data...
   

7. Use the Send ASCII File feature of the communications software to send the configuration file to the unit. (If you have any questions about how to send an ASCII file, consult the documentation for your communications program.)

   When the restore has been completed, the following message appears:

   Restore complete - type any key to return to menu
   

8. Press any key to return to the configuration menus.

9. Reset the Ascend unit, by selecting System > Sys Diag > Sys Reset and confirming the reset.

Restoring passwords

For security reasons, passwords are not written to configuration files created through the serial console. A configuration file created using the Tsave command, however, does contain the system passwords. You can restore the Tsave configuration file using the serial console.

After upgrading you may have to re-enter all the passwords on your system. If you edit your saved configuration file, however, and enter passwords in the appropriate fields (by replacing the word *SECURE* in each instance), these passwords will be restored. But note that if you do choose to edit your configuration file, you must save it as text only or you will not be able to load it into your unit.

If you restored a complete configuration, the passwords used in your Security profiles have been wiped out. To reset them:

1. Press Ctrl-D to invoke the DO menu, select Password, and choose the Full Access profile.

2. When you are prompted to enter the password, press Enter (the null password).

   After you have restored your privileges by entering the null password, you should immediately open the Connection profiles, Security profiles, and Ethernet profile (Mod Config menu), and reset the passwords to their previous values.

System messages

Table B-3 explains the messages that can appear during your upgrade.

Table B-3. System software messages

Message	Explanation
UART initialized fat load: bad CRC!! forcing serial download at 57600 bps please download a "thin" system...	The fat load has a CRC (cyclic redundancy check) error. Immediately after this message appears, the serial console speed is switched to 57600 bps, and the Ascend unit initiates an Xmodem serial download. Load a thin load that understand the fat load format, as explained in Using TFTP to upgrade to a fat or thin load.
File tbam.m40 incompatible fat load format--discarding downloaded data	You attempted to upgrade to a fat load from a version of system software that does not understand the fat load format. You must first load a thin load that is fat load aware, as explained in Using TFTP to upgrade to a fat or thin load.
This load has no platform identifier. Proceed with caution.	This message can occur if you are running software version 5.0Ai11 or later and you load an earlier incremental or patch release onto your system. The message indicates that Tloadcode cannot determine which platform the code is intended for. If you are using the correct software version, you can ignore this message.
This load appears not to support your network interface. Download aborted. Use \Qtloadcode -f' to force.	Indicates you are attempting to load a version of code intended for a different network interface (for example, loading MAX 4000 T1 software onto a MAX 4000 E1 unit).
This load appears to be for another platform. Download aborted. Use \Qtloadcode -f' to force.	Indicates you are attempting to load a version of code onto a platform for which it is not intended (for example, loading MAX 4000 software onto a MAX 2000). This is not recommended
UART initialized fat load: inflate ...................................... ...................... starting system...	Indicates you have successfully loaded a fat load.
UART initialized hybrid load: inflate essential .+.+.................................. . invalid CRC!! entering restricted mode starting system...	Indicates the extended load has failed and that your system is being brought up in restricted mode. You must reload the software as explained in Upgrading software with an extended load.
UART initialized hybrid load: inflate essential .+.+.................................. . invalid length!! entering restricted mode starting system...	Indicates the extended load has failed and that your system is being brought up in restricted mode. You must reload the software as explained in Upgrading software with an extended load.
UART initialized hybrid load: inflate essential .+.+.................................. . inflate expendable ..........................|..... starting system...	Indicates you have successfully loaded an extended load.
UART initialized thin load: inflate ...................................... ..................... starting system...	Indicates you have successfully loaded a thin load.

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