Managing Device Firmware

Introduction

Starting with sipX release 3.1/3.2 it is now possible to manage firmware upgrade files as well as any other filetype that is loaded by a device using the TFTP protocol through the ConfigServer Web interface. This greatly improves usability as you no longer have to login to a console and manually find the tftproot directory of the server.

For Polycom and Cisco phones some additional intelligence is built into the user interface that allows you to manage firmware upgrades for these devices. However, the unmanaged TFTP option allows you to easily store any file in the server's tftproot directory including speed dial and directory files.

ConfigServer distinguishes between state "active = true" and "active = false". "Active = true" means that the file is in the tftproot directory and therefore accessible to a device looking for it. "Active = false" means that the file is still stored on the server but in a different place so that it is not accessible by a device looking for it.

Obtaining Firmware Files

Generally you would need to obtain the firmware pacakge from the phone/gateway vendor or an authorized reseller. Polycom, for example, makes firmware files publicly available on their support page with the exception of the most recent release.

Creating the Upload Entry

  1. Login as superadmin and navigate to Device / Files
  2. Select the vendor from the list of known firmware types. If you do not see your vendor, select "Unmanaged TFTP" assuming your device uses TFTP

Note: SNOM software upgrades can be managed by entering URLs to SNOM's Web user interface using the "Updates/Firmware URL" phone or phone group setting. If you wish to maintain local copies of the firmware, you can copy files to the docroot directory, which is not yet managed by ConfigServer.

Uploading the Files

  1. Fill in the firmware details. We recommend using the firmware version as a name
  2. Press the "Apply" button
  3. The form should expand to show a list of known files and buttons to browse for files on your local disk
  4. Press "Apply" or "OK" to upload files and save changes. Your files are stored in an unavailable area and are NOT made available to your device at this stage

NOTE: Files are not renamed when uploading and their names cannot be changed without deleting them first, so be sure files are named correctly before uploading.

Unmanaged TFTP Option

If you did not find your firmware vendor and you selected "Unmanaged TFTP", then it's up to you to know what file or files your device needs. This is very powerful as it allows to upload and manage any type file your devices might need.

Activating Device Files

You can activate uploads from either the upload edit page or the manage uploads page. You can only activate one type of upload at a time and once activated, you cannot upload or delete files until you inactivate them. Inactivating an upload will make the files unavailable to the device.

Reboot your devices

For firmware upgrades please follow the instructions for your particular device.

Note: Not all devices support firmware downgrades. Therefore make sure you really want to upgrade. Once the firmware file is active in the tftproot directory every device that reboots will typically pick it up automatically unless disabled in the device specific configuration.

Go to the managing phones or gateways page and reboot respective phones. Phones will pickup new firmware while rebooting.