Upgrade or downgrade the leaf and spine switches through a Cisco APIC running 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 switch firmware upgrades or downgrades using the Cisco APIC GUI for systems running releases 4.x or 5.0.

This task enables you to upgrade or downgrade the firmware on leaf and spine switches using the Cisco APIC GUI for systems running releases 4.x or 5.0.

This is a switch upgrade or downgrade procedure using the Cisco Application Policy Infrastructure Controller (APIC) GUI that is running on release 4.x or 5.0. If your Cisco APICs are already upgraded to the release 5.1 or later, the GUI procedure is different even if switches are still running releases prior to 14.x or 15.0. In such a case, check the corresponding section, such as Upgrade or Downgrade with APIC Release 5.1 or Later Using the GUI.

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:

Wait until all the controllers are upgraded or downgraded to the new firmware release before proceeding to upgrade or downgrade the switch firmware.
Upgrade or downgrade Cisco ACI fabrics
Pre-Upgrade/Downgrade Checklists
Guidelines and limitations for upgrading or downgrading

Follow these steps to upgrade or downgrade the leaf and spine switches through a Cisco APIC running releases 4.x or 5.0:

Procedure

	1.	Verify that all the controllers are upgraded or downgraded to the new firmware release before proceeding. Do not upgrade or downgrade the switch firmware until all the controllers are upgraded or downgraded to the new firmware release first.
	2.	On the menu bar, choose Admin > Firmware. The Summary window appears, which provides the following information: Nodes tile — Provides information on the firmware releases used by the physical nodes. Virtual Nodes tile — Provides information on the firmware releases used by the virtual nodes. Controller tile — Provides information on the firmware release used by this controller. Also provides information on the catalog version. Controller Storage tile — Provides information on the storage capacity of each controller.
	3.	Click the Infrastructure tab, then click the Nodes sub-tab.
	4.	Click Actions, then select Schedule Node Upgrade, and perform the following actions. 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 release and other items you should check through the AppCenter pre-upgrade validator, either using a script or manually. In the table under Admin > Firmware > Infrastructure > Nodes, there is a column for Upgrade Group (formerly displayed as POD maintenance group) to show which upgrade group each node belongs to. You can see the following options by right-clicking this column for a specific node. Edit Upgrade Group (releases prior to 4.1(2)) View Upgrade Group (For Release 4.1(2) or later) Delete Upgrade Group Prior to release 4.1(2), you can edit the upgrade group using this option to change the target version and trigger the upgrade of nodes. For release 4.1(2) or later, this column can only be used to view the existing upgrade group details. You can delete a selected upgrade group in any release. In the Group Type field, select either Switch or vController. In the Target Version field, select the target release from the available releases in the drop-down list. In the Node Selection area, add the nodes that you want to upgrade by selecting the nodes and clicking the right arrow (>). Click Submit.
	5.	For release 4.1(2) or later, to remove nodes from the upgrade group: Select the nodes in the table that you want to remove from the upgrade group. Click the trashcan icon at the right of the All Nodes area. Click Submit.