Upgrade or downgrade the Cisco APIC from releases 4.x or 5.0 | Upgrade or Downgrade with APIC Releases 4.x or 5.0 Using the GUI | Cisco APIC Installation and ACI Upgrade and Downgrade Guide

Configure the upgrade or downgrade of the Cisco APIC software from releases 4.x or 5.0 using GUI-based procedures.

Use GUI-based upgrade or downgrade procedures to upgrade or downgrade the software on the APICs in your fabric.

If you are not able to upgrade or downgrade the software on the Cisco APICs in your fabric using these GUI-based upgrade or downgrade procedures for some reason (such as if you received an Cisco APIC through a new order or Product Returns & Replacements (RMA), and the version is old and not able to join the fabric to perform an upgrade or downgrade using the GUI), you can perform a clean installation of the software on the Cisco APICs through the CIMC instead to upgrade or downgrade your Cisco APIC software. See Install the Cisco APIC software using virtual media for those procedures.

If you are downgrading the software on the Cisco APICs, the process is identical to the process for upgrading the software, except that the target release that you choose will be earlier than the currently installed release. The text for dialogs, fields, buttons, and other controls in the Cisco APIC GUI specify "upgrade" even though you are downgrading the software.

Before you begin

Ensure that you check and follow these guidelines:

Upgrade or downgrade Cisco ACI fabrics
Pre-Upgrade/Downgrade Checklists
Guidelines and limitations for upgrading or downgrading
You must decomission an unsupported leaf switch that is connected to the Cisco APIC and move the cables to the other leaf switch that is part of the fabric before you upgrade the image.
If you are upgrading from a Cisco APIC release earlier than 5.0 to a 5.0 or later release and you have an IPv4 host route (/32) or IPv6 host route (/128) that is learned using MP-BGP, if those host routes overlap with a local attached non-pervasive subnet, such as an L3Out SVI subnet, the forwarding information base (FIB) process skips the hardware programming for those host routes. This behavior is intentional. You can avoid this situation by using one of the following workarounds:
- Do not advertise in the /32 or /128 host route that overlaps with an L3Out interface subnet.
- Advertise using any subnet other than /32 or /128.
- Peer directly from the border leaf switches to the same peers as the original nodes where there is peering.

Follow these steps to upgrade or downgrade the software on the APICs in your fabric:

Procedure

	1.	On the menu bar, choose Admin > Firmware. The Summary window appears, which provides the following information: Nodes tile—Provides information on the firmware versions that are used by the physical nodes. Virtual Nodes tile—Provides information on the firmware versions that are used by the virtual nodes. Controller tile—Provides information on the firmware version that is used by this controller. Also provides information on the catalog version. Controller Storage tile—Provides information on the storage capacity of each controller.
	2.	Click the Infrastructure tab, then click the Controllers sub-tab, if it isn't already selected.
	3.	Choose Actions > Schedule Controller Upgrade. The Schedule Controller Upgrade dialog box appears. In some situations, you might see an error message, similar to the following: See the Pre-Upgrade/Downgrade Checklists for items that are checked by the Cisco APIC pre-upgrade validator in your version and other items you should check through the AppCenter pre-upgrade validator, either using a script or manually.
	4.	In the Schedule Controller Upgrade dialog box, perform the following actions: In the Target Firmware Version field, from the drop-down list, choose the image version to which you want to upgrade or downgrade. In the Upgrade Start Time field,choose Now to begin the upgrade or downgrade immediately, or choose Later and specify the date and time when you want the upgrade or downgrade to begin. Click Schedule Upgrade. Note The actual upgrade process remains the same with release 4.2(5) as it was with previous releases. However, starting with release 4.2(5), additional information is now provided that shows you the stage that you are in during the upgrade process.
	5.	In the browser URL field, enter the URL for the Cisco APIC that has already been upgraded, and sign in to the Cisco APIC as prompted.