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Monitor Booster Upgrades

What

The Booster upgrade feature gives FileWave administrators a centralized way to schedule and monitor Booster upgrades from within FileWave.

When/Why

Having to use SSH or remote control for every Booster upgrade takes too much time. Starting with FileWave 14.4, the Boosters and Booster Details tabs provide upgrade actions when an applicable upgrade is available. Starting with FileWave 16.3.0, compatible outdated Boosters can also be scheduled automatically after a FileWave Server upgrade. The default delay is seven days. On FileWave 16.3.x, change it in FileWave Central > Preferences > General. Starting with FileWave 16.4.0, the setting is in FileWave Central > Preferences > Upgrades. Make the change before upgrading the Server. A value of 0 days schedules eligible Boosters immediately. The preference is evaluated when the Server upgrade creates the schedule; changing it afterward does not retroactively move work already in the queue.

Starting with FileWave 16.4.0, automatic Booster reporting validates the installed version as well as the reported status, and failed attempts can be retried automatically within defined limits.

An upgrade is offered only when all applicable eligibility checks pass:

  • The Booster is running FileWave 14.4 or later.
  • The Booster operating system is supported by the target FileWave version.
  • The Booster is running when FileWave triggers the upgrade.
  • The target version is newer than the installed version. This workflow does not reinstall the same version or perform a downgrade.

This article discusses the reporting and monitoring functions around both manually scheduled Booster upgrades and the automatic post-Server-upgrade scheduling introduced in FileWave 16.3.0.

How

The Booster Details tab has three fields for monitoring the upgrade queue. They apply to upgrades scheduled manually and to automatic scheduling after a FileWave Server upgrade:

Booster Status Fields 2.png

Upgrade Status — Shows the Booster's current progress:

  • No upgrade in progress: Currently, no upgrade is being installed. This status is also shown when the last upgrade was successful.
  • Downloading: Indicates that the booster is currently downloading a new booster upgrade from the server; a necessary step before the upgrade can be installed.
  • Installing: The booster is currently installing an update. This should either lead to the "No upgrade in progress" or "Failed" state. The default timeout is one hour.
  • Failed: The upgrade did not complete.

Available Upgrade Version — Shows the version available for this Booster and its operating system.

Scheduled for Upgrade — Shows whether the Booster is currently in the upgrade queue.

  • 'true': Booster is either processing an upgrade or waiting for a preceding Booster to finalize an upgrade, including failures.
  • 'false': No upgrade is scheduled

Automatic-upgrade behavior depends on the FileWave version.

  • FileWave 16.3.x: each Booster receives one automatic attempt in the scheduled run. A failure can require the administrator to address the Booster or remove it from the schedule before continuing.
  • FileWave 16.4.0 and later: FileWave verifies both the reported upgrade result and the installed Booster version before marking the work complete. Failed attempts can be retried automatically within defined limits, and each attempt is logged.

After a FileWave 16.4 retry sequence, investigate any Booster that still reports Failed or remains below the Available Upgrade Version. Do not treat a restart or No upgrade in progress status by itself as proof that the target version was installed.

Related Content

Digging Deeper

When an upgrade is triggered through FileWave Central, the server sends a notification to the Booster with a URL parameter pointing to the upgrade package (deb for Linux, pkg for Mac, MSI for Windows) that shall be downloaded and installed. Currently, this URL will point to the FileWave CDN (https://fwdl.filewave.com/) for official releases. Both "Boosters" and "Booster Details" view offer a filter to only show Boosters that can be upgraded.

Automatic-upgrade logs are stored at:

  • Linux and macOS: /var/log/fwbooster_upgrade.log
  • Windows: C:\ProgramData\FileWave\FWBooster\Data Folder\upgradeBooster.log

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