Software Update – stay up to date

It is important to update the Bloonix stack regularly. This document describes the most important aspects of the update process, outlines a recommended approach, and explains why it makes sense to always keep Bloonix up to date.

Bloonix Server and WebGUI

The main reason for regular updates is obvious: the Bloonix stack is continuously developed. Bugs are fixed, performance is improved, and new features are added.

Practical experience shows that very large version jumps can be problematic. If many releases lie between the installed and the current version, an update can take a considerable amount of time. In addition, the risk of unexpected issues during the update process increases with every additional version jump.

This also applies to Bloonix: if updates are not performed for a longer period of time, the update process becomes more complex and potentially more error-prone. Regular updates reduce effort, shorten maintenance windows, and minimize the risk of operational disruptions.

Many updates include changes to the database structure, such as creating new tables or adding new columns. If too much time passes between updates, updating the database can result in monitoring being interrupted longer than desired.

Database schema updates are performed by the Bloonix server. Therefore, it is important to update the Bloonix server first, and then immediately update the WebGUI afterwards. On startup, the Bloonix-Server checks the current version of the database schema and executes any required updates before the process pools are started. The progress can be tracked in the Bloonix server log file. The log level should be set to at least warning to see these messages. Example log entries look as follows:

WARNING maintenance start
WARNING run maintenance -> upgrade_to_v12
WARNING run maintenance -> upgrade_to_v13
WARNING run maintenance -> upgrade_to_v14
WARNING maintenance finished

While the database schema is being updated, temporary error messages may appear in the WebGUI and on other Bloonix server instances. If the Bloonix server and Bloonix WebGUI are running on multiple instances, for example in a cluster, it is recommended to update all components simultaneously or in quick succession.

A database schema update can only be executed by a single Bloonix server. If multiple Bloonix servers are started at the same time, only one instance attempts to perform the update, while all others wait until the update process has finished.

Update of the Bloonix Agent

Updating the Bloonix agent usually runs smoothly. The agent is compatible with the Bloonix server across versions, which is particularly important since it is practically impossible to update the Bloonix server and thousands of Bloonix agents on monitored hosts at the same time.

Nevertheless, the Bloonix agent should also be updated regularly in order to benefit from bug fixes, performance improvements, and new features.

Update of the Bloonix Satellite

There are no restrictions when updating the Bloonix satellite. It can be updated at any time.