25 Aug 2010 by Simon Greaves
01:On a Windows box, download the patch bundle directly from VMware. This will be .zip file.
02:On a Windows box with the vSphere client installed, download and install FastSCP. Create a folder called updates in the var file and copy the upgrade files into the Updates on the ESX host. 03::Obtain local console access, or SSH putty.exe, to the ESX 4 host that the bundle file was uploaded to and confirm there is enough free space by running vdf –h
Note: The directory /var/updates is used in this document, but any directory on a partition with adequate free space could substituted.
04:Verify that the patch bundles aren’t already installed (or if they are required), using the command:
esxupdate query
05:Use the vSphere client to put the ESX 4 host in maintenance mode. Alternatively, use the command:
vimsh -n -e /hostsvc/maintenance_mode_enter
06:With networks with multiple hosts and shared storage the virtual machines can be left powered on.
The following commands can be used to list and then shut down virtual machines. This is for environments without VMotion or for single hosts.
vmware-cmd -s listvms
vmware-cmd <full path to .vmx file> stop soft
07:To determine which bulletins in the bundle are applicable to this ESX 4 host, use the command:
esxupdate --bundle file:///var/updates/upgrade_file_name.zip scan
08::To check VIB signature, dependencies, and bulletin order without doing any patching (a dry run), use the command:
esxupdate --bundle file:///var/updates/ *upgrade_file_name*.zip stage
09::If the stage (dry run) found no problems, then the bundle can be installed using the command:
esxupdate --bundle file:///var/updates/ upgrade_file_name.zip update
10:When (or IF) prompted to reboot, use the command:
reboot
Note: Not all patches will require an ESX host reboot.
11:After the system boots, verify patch bundles were installed with the command:
esxupdate query
12:If applicable, take the ESX host out of maintenance mode with the command:
vimsh -n -e /hostsvc/maintenance_mode_exit
13:If applicable, restart virtual machines using the vSphere client or the following command:
vmware-cmd <full path to .vmx file> start
note: automatic virtual machine startup will not work if the ESX host is powered on in maintenance mode
14:Delete the bundle zip file from the /var/updates folder, using the command:
rm /var/updates/*.zip
15:Verify that host disk free space is still acceptable, using the command:
vdf -h
Tagged with: vSphere Command Line
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