Upgrade Configuration Manager to a New Service Pack

 

Updated: May 14, 2015

Applies To: System Center 2012 Configuration Manager SP1, System Center 2012 Configuration Manager SP2, System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager, System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager SP1

Use the information in the following sections to help you upgrade your System Center 2012 Configuration Manager site and hierarchy to a new service pack successfully.

Pre-Upgrade Configurations for Configuration Manager Sites

Before you upgrade a site to a new service pack, review the applicable upgrade checklist to understand any pre-upgrade configurations that the site or hierarchy requires. Additionally, plan to record details about any configurations and settings that you use and that do not persist after an upgrade to that service pack version.

For more information about pre-upgrade tasks and configurations, see the Planning to Upgrade System Center 2012 Configuration Manager topic.

Test the Configuration Manager Site Database for the Upgrade

Before you upgrade a site, test a copy of that site’s database for the upgrade.

To test the database for an upgrade, you first restore a copy of the site database to an instance of SQL Server that does not host a Configuration Manager site. The version of SQL Server that you use to host the database copy must be a version of SQL Server that the version of Configuration Manager supports that is the source of the database copy.

Next, after you restore the site database, on the SQL Server computer, run Configuration Manager Setup from the Configuration Manager service pack media, with the /TESTDBUPGRADE command-line option.

Use the following procedure on each central administration site and primary site that you plan to upgrade.

To test a Configuration Manager site database for upgrade

  1. Make a copy of the site database, and then restore that copy to an instance of SQL Server that uses the same edition as your site database and that does not host a Configuration Manager site. For example, if the site database runs on an instance of the Enterprise edition of SQL Server, make sure you restore the database to an instance of SQL Server that also runs the Enterprise edition of SQL Server.

  2. After you restore the database copy, run Setup from the source media for the new version of Configuration Manager. When you run Setup, use the /TESTDBUPGRADE command-line option. If the SQL Server instance that hosts the database copy is not the default instance, you must also provide the command-line arguments to identify the instance that hosts the site database copy.

    For example, you plan to upgrade a site database with the database name SMS_ABC. You restore a copy of this site database to a supported instance of SQL Server with the instance name DBTest. To test an upgrade of this copy of the site database, use the following command line: Setup.exe /TESTDBUPGRADE DBtest\CM_ABC

    You can find Setup.exe in the following location on the source media for Configuration Manager SP1: SMSSETUP\BIN\X64.

  3. On the instance of SQL Server where you run the database upgrade test, monitor the ConfigMgrSetup.log in the root of the system drive for progress and success:

    - If the test upgrade fails, resolve any issues related to the site database upgrade failure, create a new backup of the site database, and then test the upgrade of the new copy of the site database.
    
    - After the process is successful, you can delete the database copy.
    
      <div class="alert">
    
    
      > [!NOTE]
      > <P>It is not supported to restore the copy of the site database that you use for the test upgrade for use as a site database at any site.</P>
    
    
      </div>
    

After you successfully upgrade a copy of the site database, proceed with the upgrade of the Configuration Manager site and its site database.

Upgrade a Configuration Manager Site

After you complete pre-upgrade configurations for your site, test the upgrade of the site database on a database copy, and download prerequisite files and language packs for the service pack version that you plan to install, you are ready to upgrade your Configuration Manager site.

When you upgrade a site in a hierarchy, you upgrade the top-level site of the hierarchy first. This top-level site is either a central administration site or a stand-alone primary site. After the upgrade of a central administration site is completed, you can upgrade child primary sites in any order that you want. After you upgrade a primary site, you can upgrade that site’s child secondary sites, or upgrade additional primary sites before you upgrade any secondary sites.

To upgrade a central administration site or primary site, you run Setup from the Configuration Manager service pack media. However, you do not run Setup to upgrade secondary sites. Instead, you use the Configuration Manager console to upgrade a secondary site after you complete the upgrade of its primary parent site.

Before you upgrade a site, close the Configuration Manager console that is installed on the site server until after the site upgrade is completed. Also close each Configuration Manager console that runs on computers other than the site server. You can reconnect the console after the site upgrade is completed. However, until you upgrade a Configuration Manager console to the new version of Configuration Manager, that console cannot display some objects and information that are available in new version of Configuration Manager.

Use the following procedures to upgrade Configuration Manager sites:

To upgrade a central administration site or primary site

  1. Verify that the user who runs Setup has the following security rights:

    - Local Administrator rights on the site server computer.
    
    - Local Administrator rights on the remote site database server for the site, if it is remote.
    
  2. On the site server computer, open Windows Explorer and browse to <ConfigMgrServicePackInstallationMedia>\SMSSETUP\BIN\X64.

  3. Double-click Setup.exe. The Configuration Manager Setup wizard opens.

  4. On the Before You Begin page, click Next.

  5. On the Getting Started page, select Upgrade this Configuration Manager site, and then click Next.

  6. On the Product Key page, click Next.

    If you previously installed Configuration Manager Evaluation, you can select Install the licensed edition of this product, and then enter your product key for the full installation of Configuration Manager to convert the site to the full version.

  7. On the Microsoft Software License Terms page, read and accept the license terms, and then click Next.

  8. On the Prerequisite Licenses page, read and accept the license terms for the prerequisite software, and then click Next. Setup downloads and automatically installs the software on site systems or clients when it is required. You must select all check boxes before you can continue to the next page.

  9. On the Prerequisite Downloads page, specify whether Setup downloads the latest prerequisite redistributable files, language packs, and the latest product updates from the Internet or use previously downloaded files, and then click Next. If you previously downloaded the files by using Setup Downloader, select Use previously downloaded files and specify the download folder. For information about Setup Downloader, see the Setup Downloader section in the Install Sites and Create a Hierarchy for Configuration Manager topic.

    Note

    When you use previously downloaded files, verify that the path to the download folder contains the most recent version of the files.

  10. On the Server Language Selection page, view the list of languages that are currently installed for the site. Select additional languages that are available at this site for the Configuration Manager console and for reports, or clear languages that you no longer want to support at this site, and then click Next. By default, English is selected and cannot be removed.

    Important

    Each version of Configuration Manager cannot use language packs from a prior version of Configuration Manager. To enable support for a language at a Configuration Manager site that you upgrade, you must use the version of the language pack for that new version. For example, during upgrade from Configuration Manager with no service pack to Configuration Manager SP1, if the Configuration Manager SP1 version of a language pack is not available with the prerequisite files you download, support for that language cannot be installed. When a language is already installed for Configuration Manager with no service pack and the language pack for the new version is not available, support for that language is uninstalled when the site upgrades.

  11. On the Client Language Selection page, view the list of languages that are currently installed for the site. Select additional languages that are available at this site for client computers, or clear languages that you no longer want to support at this site. Specify whether to enable all client languages for mobile device clients, and then click Next. By default, English is selected and cannot be removed.

    Important

    Each version of Configuration Manager cannot use language packs from a prior version of Configuration Manager. To enable support for a language at a Configuration Manager site that you upgrade, you must use the version of the language pack for that new version. For example, during upgrade from Configuration Manager with no service pack to Configuration Manager SP1, if the Configuration Manager SP1 version of a language pack is not available with the prerequisite files that you download, support for that language cannot be installed. When a language is already installed for Configuration Manager with no service pack and the language pack for the new version is not available, support for that language is uninstalled when the site upgrades.

  12. On the Settings Summary page, click Next to start Prerequisite Checker to verify server readiness for the upgrade of the site.

  13. On the Prerequisite Installation Check page, if there are no problems listed, click Next to upgrade the site and site system roles. When Prerequisite Checker finds a problem, click an item on the list for details about how to resolve the problem. Resolve all items in the list that have an Error status before you continue Setup. After you resolve the issue, click Run Check to restart prerequisite checking. You can also open the ConfigMgrPrereq.log file in the root of the system drive to review the Prerequisite Checker results. The log file can contain additional information that is not displayed in the user interface. For a complete list of installation prerequisite rules and descriptions, see Technical Reference for the Prerequisite Checker in Configuration Manager.

On the Upgrade page, Setup displays the overall progress status. When Setup completes the core site server and site system installation, you can close the wizard. Site configuration continues in the background.

To upgrade a secondary site

  1. Verify that the administrative user that runs Setup has the following security rights:

    - Local Administrator rights on the secondary site computer
    
    - Infrastructure Administrator or a Full Administrator security role on the parent primary site
    
    - System administrator (SA) rights on the site database of the secondary site
    
  2. In the Configuration Manager console, click Administration.

  3. In the Administration workspace, expand Site Configuration, and then click Sites.

  4. Select the secondary site that you want to upgrade, and then, on the Home tab, in the Site group, click Upgrade.

  5. Click Yes to confirm the decision, and to start the upgrade of the secondary site.

The secondary site upgrade progresses in the background. After the upgrade is completed, you can confirm the status in the Configuration Manager console. To confirm the status, select the secondary site server, and then on the Home tab, in the Site group, click Show Install Status.

Perform Post-Upgrade Tasks on Configuration Manager Sites

After you upgrade a site to a new service pack, you might have to complete additional tasks to finish the upgrade or reconfigure the site. These tasks can include the upgrade of Configuration Manager clients or Configuration Manager consoles, re-enabling database replicas for management points, or restoring settings for Configuration Manager functionality that you use and that does not persist after the service pack upgrade.

For more information about these tasks and settings, see the Planning to Upgrade System Center 2012 Configuration Manager topic.