The software described in this documentation is either no longer supported or is in extended support.
Oracle recommends that you upgrade to a current supported release.
On average, the Linux kernel receives security updates and bug fixes about once per month. Traditionally, applying such updates would require you to obtain and install the updated kernel RPMs, to schedule downtime, and to reboot the server into the new kernel with the critical updates. As system setups become more complex with many interdependencies, and access to services and applications must remain as undisrupted as possible, scheduling such reboots becomes more difficult and costly.
Oracle Ksplice allows you to keep your systems secure and highly available by allowing you to update your systems with the latest kernel security errata and other critical updates. Oracle Ksplice updates the running kernel image without requiring a reboot. Your systems remain up to date with their OS vulnerability patches and downtime is minimized. A Ksplice update takes effect immediately it is applied. It is not an on-disk change that only takes effect after a subsequent reboot.
Oracle creates each Ksplice update from a kernel update that originates either from Oracle or from the Linux kernel community.
Ksplice Offline Client removes the requirement for a server on your intranet to have a direct connection to the Oracle Uptrack server. All available Ksplice updates for each supported kernel version are bundled into an RPM that is specific to that version, and this package is updated every time that a new Ksplice patch becomes available for the kernel.
Ksplice Offline Client is freely available for Oracle Linux customers that subscribe to Oracle Linux Premier Support. If you are an Oracle Linux Basic, Basic Limited, or Network Support subscriber, contact your sales representatives to discuss a potential upgrade of your subscription to a Premier Support plan.
You can configure a Spacewalk server as a mirror of the Ksplice for Oracle Linux channels on ULN. The Spacewalk server does not require access to the Oracle Uptrack server. Instead, you schedule Spacewalk to download the latest Ksplice update packages to a software channel. After installing Ksplice Offline Client on your Spacewalk client systems, they can install the Ksplice update packages from the Spacewalk server. The clients also do not require access the Oracle Uptrack server.
You cannot use the web interface or the Ksplice Uptrack API to monitor systems that are running Ksplice Offline Client as such systems are not registered with https://uptrack.ksplice.com.