Getting Firmware and Software

8 Getting Firmware and Software

This section explains the options for accessing server firmware and software updates using My Oracle Support. It also describes how to use Oracle Software Delivery Cloud to download operating systems and software applications.

Customers are required to install the latest available operating system (OS), patches, and firmware versions for optimal system performance, security, and stability.

To ensure continued security of your system, Oracle strongly recommends that you apply the latest Software Releases. Server Software Releases include Oracle ILOM, BIOS, and other firmware updates, often referred to as “patches.” Oracle publishes these patches regularly on the My Oracle Support site. Applying these patches will help ensure optimal system performance, security, and stability. You can identify the latest Software Release for your system at Firmware Downloads and Release History for Oracle Systems.

To download a Software Release, go to My Oracle Support.

Oracle notifies customers about security vulnerability fixes for all its products four times a year through the Critical Patch Update (CPU) program. Review the CPU advisories to ensure that the latest Software Release updates are applied to your Oracle products. Note that updates for Engineered Systems will be specifically published for a specific Engineered Systems product (that is, you need not look at specific updates for individual software components included in your Engineered System). For more information about the Oracle CPU program, go to Critical Patch Updates, Security Alerts and Bulletins.

Oracle also recommends that you update to the latest operating system release when it becomes available. Although a minimum operating system release is supported, updating to the latest OS release will ensure that you have the most up-to-date software and security patches. To confirm that you have the latest OS release, refer to the Oracle Hardware Compatibility Lists or third-party operating system certification information.

Firmware and Software Updates

Firmware and software for your server are updated periodically. These updates are made available as system software releases. Each software release contains a set of downloadable files (patches) that include firmware, software, drivers, tools, and utilities for the server. All of these files have been tested together and verified to work with your server.

Update your server firmware and software as soon as possible after a new software release becomes available. Software releases often include bug fixes, and updating your server ensures that your server has the latest software and firmware. These updates increase your system performance, security, and stability.

The server Product Notes list the current server software release and firmware version that are available. To determine which firmware version is installed on your server, use either the Oracle ILOM web interface or the command-line interface (CLI).

For the web interface, click System Information → Summary, and in the General Information table, for System Firmware Version, view the property value.
For the CLI, at the command prompt, type: show /System
```
→ show /System
```

The ReadMe document that is included with each patch in a software release describes components changed since the last software release and bugs that are fixed with the current release.

Options for Accessing Firmware and Software Updates

Use one of the following options to obtain the latest firmware and software updates for your server:

My Oracle Support – All system software releases are available from My Oracle Support.

For information about what is available on the My Oracle Support web site, see Software Releases.
Other Methods – You can use Oracle Enterprise Manager Ops Center, Oracle Hardware Management Pack, or Oracle ILOM to update your server software and firmware.

For information, see Installing Updates Using Other Methods.

Software Releases

Software releases on My Oracle Support are grouped by product family (such as Oracle Server), the product (specific server), and the software release version. A software release contains all the updated software and firmware for your server as a set of downloadable files (patches), including firmware, drivers, tools, or utilities, all tested together to be compatible with your server. Each patch is a zip file that contains a ReadMe document and a set of subdirectories containing firmware or software files.

The set of software releases for your server are described in the following table. You can obtain these software release packages by downloading the files from My Oracle Support.

Package Name	Description	When to Download This Package
X9-2 or X9-2L SW release – Firmware Pack	Contains system firmware, including Oracle ILOM, BIOS, and option card firmware.	You need the latest firmware.
X9-2 or X9-2L SW release – OS Pack	Includes a package of tools, drivers, and utilities for an OS. An OS Pack is available for each supported operating system version. Software includes Oracle Hardware Management Pack, Broadcom MegaRAID software, and any optional software that Oracle recommends. For the Windows OS, the OS Pack also includes the Intel Network Teaming and Install Pack.	You need to update OS-specific tools, drivers, or utilities.
X9-2 or X9-2L SW release – All Packs	Includes the Firmware Pack, all OS Packs, and all documents. This pack excludes Oracle VTS image.	You need to update a combination of system firmware and OS-specific software.
X9-2 or X9-2L SW release – Diagnostics	Includes Oracle VTS diagnostics image.	You need the Oracle VTS diagnostics image.

Getting Updates From My Oracle Support

You can obtain updated firmware and software from the My Oracle Support web site. See:

Download Firmware and Software Updates From My Oracle Support

Go to My Oracle Support.
Sign in to My Oracle Support.
At the top of the page, click the Patches & Updates tab.
In the Patch Search pane at the right of the screen, in the Search tab area, click Product or Family (Advanced).
In the Product field, select the product from the drop-down list or type a full or partial product name (for example, Oracle Server X9-2) until a match appears.
In the Release field, select a software release from the drop-down list.
Click Search to view a list of the patches for the software release.

See Software Releases for a description of the available software releases.
To select a patch for a software release, click the patch number next to the software release version. Use the Shift key to select more than one patch.

A pop-up action panel appears with the ReadMe, Download, and Add to Plan options action options. For information about the Add to Plan option, on the Add to Plan button, click the down arrow, and select Why use a plan?.
To review the ReadMe document for this patch, click ReadMe.
To download the patch for the software release, click Download, and in the File Download dialog box, click the patch zip file name.

Getting Software From Software Delivery Cloud

You can obtain operating system and application software from Oracle Software Delivery Cloud.

Download Software Using Oracle Software Delivery Cloud

You must have a valid Oracle user account.

Ensure that you have a valid Oracle user account.
Navigate to Oracle Software Delivery Cloud.
On the Sign In screen, sign in.
Fill out the search information.
1. In the Search By drop down list, select Product.
2. In the search field, type a product name.
  
  For example, to search for a copy of Oracle Linux type Oracle Linux.
3. Select a platform.
  
  Click the check box next to x86 64-bit, and click Select. Your selection appears in the Download Queue.
4. Repeat Step a through Step c to add additional items to the Download Queue.
5. When your Download Queue is complete, click Continue.
In the list of downloadable items, select the check box next to the item(s) you want to download, and click Continue.
On the terms and restrictions page, select the check box to accept the terms and restrictions, and click Continue.
In the list of downloadable files, select the files you want to download, and click Download All.
Follow the prompts to complete the download.

Installing Updates Using Other Methods

In addition to using My Oracle Support, you can install firmware and software updates using one of the following methods:

Oracle Enterprise Manager Ops Center – Use Oracle Enterprise Manager Ops Center to automatically download the latest firmware from Oracle and then install the firmware onto one or more servers. You also can load firmware updates manually into the Enterprise Controller. Refer to product information. For documentation, refer to Enterprise Manager Cloud Control Documentation
Oracle Hardware Management Pack – Use the fwupdate CLI Tool in the Oracle Hardware Management Pack software to update firmware in the system. Refer to product information. For documentation, refer to Oracle Hardware Management Pack Documentation at Servers Documentation Systems Management.
Oracle ILOM – Use the Oracle ILOM command-line interface (CLI) or web interface to update Oracle ILOM and BIOS firmware. Refer to product information. For documentation, refer to Oracle Integrated Lights Out Manager (ILOM) Documentation at Servers Documentation Systems Management.

Oracle Support

If you need help getting firmware or software updates, call Oracle Support. Refer to Oracle Support Contacts Global Directory at: https://www.oracle.com/support/contact.html .