System Administration Guide: Basic Administration

Accessing Solaris Patches

All Sun customers can access patches through the SunSolve Online^SM web site. The following table describes the various ways to access Solaris patches.

Table 24–1 Ways to Access Solaris Patches


Customer Type	Description
SunSpectrum contract customer	You have access to the SunSolve database of patches and patch information. They are available from the SunSolve Online web site or by using anonymous `ftp`. These patches are updated nightly.
Not a SunSpectrum contract customer	You have access to a general set of security patches and other recommended patches. These patches are available through SunSolve Online.

You can access Solaris patches from a web site or by using anonymous ftp.

To access patches from a web site, you need a system that is:

Connected to the Internet
Capable of running a web browser such as the Netscape^TM software.

To access patches by anonymous ftp, you need a system that is:

Connected to the Internet
Capable of running the ftp program

Access patches from the SunSolve Online^SM web site by using the following URL:

http://sunsolve.Sun.COM/pub-cgi/show.pl?target=patches/patch-access

You can install either a patch cluster of recommended patches or individual patches that are freely available. Patch reports are also available.

Solaris Patch Numbering

Patches are identified by unique alphanumeric strings, with the patch base code first, a hyphen, and a number that represents the patch revision number. For example, patch 108528-10 is a patch ID for the SunOS 5.8 kernel update patch.