Messaging Gateway software update best practices

Products

Messaging Gateway

Issue/Introduction

Recommended best practices for software update preparation and execution.

Carefully review the release notes for the new release
Ensure that the existing hardware or vm meets minimum requirements for the release
If possible, reduce the amount of quarantine, report, and log data to be migrated
Collect a full backup of the Control Center pre-upgrade
Download an ISO or OVA image for the current release
Stage the upgrade files on all systems prior to the scheduled upgrade maintenance window
Perform the uprade

Resolution

When planning to upgrade, first

Read the Release notes specifically for the SMG version that you are planning to upgrade to. The Release Notes have specific information and upgrade steps for each release that may differ from the information provided here.
You should also refer to Release Notes to check the Known Issues and the Issues that have been fixed in the new version.
Ensure that you meet the System Requirements for the version that you are planning to upgrade to, by referring to the version-specific Installation Guide.
SMG version-specific documents (Release Notes, Installation Guide, Administration Guide, and Command-line reference) are available at SMG Related Documents

Preparing for the Upgrade

Reducing Control Center data before the upgrade (The upgrade process might be lengthy if you have large data sources in the Control Center)
- Reduce messages in the spam quarantine (Spam -> Quarantine Settings)
- Reduce messages in the Content Incident folders (Content -> Content Incident Folders) Edit settings for each Quarantine folder
- Reduce reports data storage (Administration -> Reports) by clicking "Delete Data Now".
- Reduce operational Logs (Administration -> Logs) to Warning.
It is recommended to clear as much data as you can before upgrading to make the process smoother as well as reduce the backup size before the upgrade.

To make a backup of the current version

(Symantec recommends backing up the current version when moving to any new release before proceeding with the upgrade)

Log in to the Control Center
Navigate to Administration -> Version
Click Backup Now
Select Full Backup
Select Store backup on the server
Click Backup Now
Once the backup is complete, go to Administration -> Version -> Restore/Download
Select Restore/Download backup from the server
Click Download and save the backup on the workstation

(NOTE: Backups can only be restored to the same version. eg: If you made a backup of a Symantec Messaging Gateway running version 10.6.4-3, you must be using 10.6.4-3 to restore the backup. Make sure you have the ISO available with the current version in the event that you need to rollback)

Prepare for Rollback

In the event of a failed upgrade, we recommend having the on hand:

A backup from the previous version
The ISO for that version - Downloadable from https://support.broadcom.com
A copy of your license file

This allows you to OS Restore to the previous version, restore the backup, and getting back up as quickly as possible.

Performing the upgrade

Download the latest updates from the Control Center
- Navigate to Administration -> Version -> Updates -> Select the host from the drop-down ->Select the version -> Download Only
Configure the Symantec Messaging Gateway Scanner(s) to NOT accept incoming mail:
- Navigate to Administration -> Configuration Click the name of a scanner
- Click “Do not accept incoming messages”
- Click SAVE
Ensure that all deliverable mail has been cleared from the Delivery queue.
- Navigate to Status -> Message Queues
- On the right-hand side: Change the queue to “Delivery”, list to “All” and click Display Filtered
Start the upgrade
- Navigate to Administration -> Version -> Updates -> Select the host from the drop-down -> Select the version -> Click Install
Wait until the upgrade finishes and the appliance reboots
After updating the Control Center, repeat steps 1 through 5 for each Scanner.