Upgrading the PingDirectoryProxy server

Administrators can use the PingDirectoryProxy server’s update utility to update the current server code with the latest features and bug fixes.

Software builds of the PingDirectory server are issued periodically and are distributed in .zip format. To update the server to a newer version, download the build package, and then extract the new server package on the same host as the server you want to update.

During the update process, the updater checks a manifest file that contains a MD5 checksum of each file in its original state when installed from .zip. Next, it compares the checksum of the new server files to that of the old server. Any files that have different checksums are updated. For files that predates the manifest file generation, the file is backed up and replaced. The updater also logs all file changes in the history directory to tell what files have been changed.

For schema updates, the update tool preserves any custom schema definitions (99-user.ldif). For any default schema element changes (if any), the updater warns the user about this condition and then creates a patch schema file and copies it into the server’s schema directory. For configuration files, the update tool preserves the configuration file, config.ldif, unless you need to add new configuration options to the PingDirectoryProxy server.

When the updater finishes processing, it checks if the newly updated server starts without any fatal errors. If an error occurs during the update process, the update tool reverts the server root instance to the server state prior to the update.