Upgrade OpenLM Version 26

Upgrade every OpenLM component you run, not only OpenLM SLM. Each installer finds the existing installation and upgrades it in place, keeping its configuration and data. You can go straight to the latest version from an older one, for example from version 22, without installing the versions in between.

While OpenLM SLM and Identity Service are upgrading, users can't open the OpenLM web interface. License usage isn't lost: the Brokers keep collecting it and send it to OpenLM SLM when the upgrade finishes.

To watch the whole process, see the Upgrade OpenLM System video. It shows earlier versions. The steps are the same, except that the OpenLM SLM installer now upgrades the database itself.

Before you begin

• Check the system requirements. Before you upgrade, install the .NET 10 SDK on the Identity Service server. Identity Service needs .NET 10 from v26.10.15.1130, and its installer doesn't add it. OpenLM SLM includes its .NET runtime from v26.11.3.1613, but its service on Linux starts with the dotnet command, so keep .NET installed on a Linux OpenLM SLM server. See System requirements.
• Get a license file for Version 26. Upgrading from an earlier version usually needs a new license file. Request it from OpenLM before upgrade day. OpenLM issues each license file for one server's host name and MAC address, so a move to a new server needs a new one too.
• Back up the databases. Back up the OpenLM SLM, Identity Service, and Directory Sync (DSS) databases. If OpenLM runs on virtual machines, also take a snapshot of each server. For the embedded MariaDB database, see Back up the OpenLM SLM MariaDB database with HeidiSQL.
• List the components on each server. On each server, open Control Panel → Programs and Features and note the OpenLM components and their versions. Compare them with the Version compatibility matrix.
• Download the latest installers from the Downloads page, one for each component you run.

If OpenLM SLM is older than version 21 and still uses a Firebird database, its installer stops and asks you to upgrade to version 5.6 first. Contact OpenLM Support for that path.

Upgrade order

Upgrade the components in this order:

1. OpenLM SLM
2. Identity Service, immediately after OpenLM SLM
3. The Broker on each license server
4. Directory Sync: DSS, then each DSA
5. End-User Services, then the Workstation Agents
6. Reports Scheduler, the ServiceNow Adapter, Applications Manager, and Reporting Hub, if you use them

The installers don't check each other's versions, so nothing stops you from upgrading in another order. Upgrade OpenLM SLM and Identity Service together, though: sign-in and component authorizations go through Identity Service, and an old Identity Service in front of a new OpenLM SLM causes errors such as a missing Authorization page.

Upgrade the Brokers too. OpenLM tests each component with the previous release of the others. An older Broker might keep working with a newer OpenLM SLM, but that combination isn't tested.

Upgrade OpenLM SLM

1. On the OpenLM SLM server, run the OpenLM SLM installer.
2. Accept the license terms. The installer detects the existing installation and offers to upgrade it.
3. Select Install, and then Finish when the upgrade completes. It usually takes about 2 minutes.

The installer also upgrades the OpenLM SLM database and restarts the OpenLM Server service. For the full procedure, including stopping the service first, see Upgrading an existing OpenLM SLM installation.

To check the result, sign in to EasyAdmin and hold the pointer over the version next to the OpenLM logo. The OpenLM SLM version and the database version must match. If they don't, run the OpenLM Server Post Install Tool from the OpenLM folder in the Start menu, as described in Manual database upgrade.

Upgrade Identity Service

1. On the Identity Service server, run the Identity Service installer.
2. Select Next and accept the license terms. The installer detects the existing Identity Service and upgrades it. It keeps the existing appsettings.json settings.
3. When the installer finishes, open Identity Service and sign in to check that it works.

Upgrade the Brokers

You can upgrade a Broker in 3 ways. Use the installer or the Broker web UI on a license server that can reach the internet, and EasyAdmin for one that can't.

With the installer

1. On the license server, run the Broker installer.
2. The installer detects the existing Broker. Select Upgrade.
3. Under Select Instance, select the Broker instance to upgrade, and then select Next.
4. Accept the license terms.
5. On the Java Selection screen, select Install Broker with Java 11 OpenJDK to use the bundled Java, or Already have Java 11 installed? to keep using your own Java 11 or higher.
6. Select Next until the upgrade starts, and then Finish.

From the Broker web UI

1. Open the Broker web UI.
2. Go to Settings → Update Broker Version, and then select Update.
3. Refresh the page to see the new version.

The Broker downloads the latest version from openlm.com, so the license server needs internet access. If the latest version isn't newer than the installed one, the Broker doesn't update.

From EasyAdmin, for Brokers without internet access

EasyAdmin can push an update to Brokers version 22.6.13.105 or higher. Upgrade older Brokers with the installer.

1. In EasyAdmin, go to Start → Management → Brokers, and then select Update Brokers.
2. Copy the download link shown in the instructions and download the OpenLM_Broker_<version>.tar.gz archive on a machine with internet access.
3. Copy the archive to the download folder in the OpenLM SLM installation folder. By default, that's C:\Program Files\OpenLM\OpenLM Server\bin\download on Windows, or /opt/openlm/bin/download on Linux.
4. Back in EasyAdmin, select Continue, select the archive, and select Continue again.
5. Select the Broker hosts to update, and then select Update.

The same archive updates Brokers on Windows and on Linux.

Upgrade Directory Sync

1. On the DSS server, run the Directory Synchronization Service installer. It upgrades DSS in place.
2. On each DSA machine, run the Directory Synchronization Agent installer. It upgrades DSA in place.

If DSS still uses a Firebird database, the installer migrates the data during the upgrade. See Upgrading from Directory Sync 1.4 (Firebird) to Directory Sync v2x.

Upgrade End-User Services and the Workstation Agents

Upgrade End-User Services first, then the Workstation Agents.

1. Run the End-User Services installer. On the Upgrade Detected screen, select Upgrade using existing settings, and then select Install.
2. On each workstation, run the Workstation Agent installer. Select the agent extensions you use, and on the Upgrade Detected screen, select Upgrade using existing settings.

To upgrade many workstations at once, deploy the new agent installer the same way you installed it. See Workstation Agent installation with SCCM.

Upgrade the other components

• Reports Scheduler: on the OpenLM SLM server, run the Reports Scheduler installer. It upgrades in place without asking anything.
• ServiceNow Adapter: run the ServiceNow Adapter installer. It detects the installed version and upgrades the External Platforms service and the adapter. When it finishes, test the connection in the setup page that opens.
• Applications Manager: run the installer, select Upgrade rather than Install a new instance of OpenLM Applications Manager, and then select the instance to upgrade.
• Reporting Hub: replace the ETL folder and keep your license file and kettle.properties. See OpenLM Reporting Hub upgrade.

Verify

• In EasyAdmin, the OpenLM SLM version and the database version match.
• You can sign in to EasyAdmin and to Identity Service.
• Programs and Features on each server lists the new version of every OpenLM component.
• Each license server reports usage again in EasyAdmin.

Troubleshooting

Why doesn't the OpenLM Server service start after the upgrade?

If the service stops with error 1053, check two things:

• If OpenLM SLM is older than v26.11.3.1613, the server has the .NET 8 SDK. An older .NET version, such as .NET 6, isn't enough. From v26.11.3.1613, OpenLM SLM includes its .NET runtime.
• Identity Service still uses its own database. Identity Service needs a database separate from the OpenLM SLM database. If its connection now points at the OpenLM SLM database, point it back to its own database and restart both services.

Why doesn't the Identity Service service start after the upgrade?

From v26.10.15.1130, Identity Service runs on .NET 10. Check that the Identity Service server has the .NET 10 SDK, then start the service again.

Why is the Authorization page missing after the upgrade?

Upgrade Identity Service as well as OpenLM SLM, and sign in with an administrator account. Client authorizations, such as the ones Brokers and DSA use, go through Identity Service.

Why does EasyAdmin ask for a new license file?

Version 26 needs a license file issued for it. Request one from OpenLM with the OpenLM SLM server's host name and MAC address.

Why does a Broker get "Access Denied" after the upgrade?

The Broker service runs the license manager's commands as the service account, Local System by default. If that account isn't allowed to run them, the Broker can't collect usage. Run the same command in an elevated Command Prompt on the license server to confirm, and then ask your IT team to give the account the rights it needs.

Get help with an upgrade

If you want OpenLM Support to review your plan or help on upgrade day, send them:

• The support report. In EasyAdmin, go to Start → Administration → System & Security → Logs and Reports, select Generate Support Report, and download the PDF. Attach the file rather than using Send to OpenLM.
• The audit report. In EasyAdmin, go to Start → Management → Audit Report.
• A screenshot of Programs and Features on each server, showing the OpenLM components and their versions.