---
title: Updating to the latest maintenance release
description: For PingFederate maintenance releases, you can update your installation using the incremental update package. This in-place update method lets you replace and merge only the files that have changed.
component: pingfederate
version: 13.0
page_id: pingfederate:upgrading_pingfederate:pf_updating_latest_maintenance_release
canonical_url: https://docs.pingidentity.com/pingfederate/13.0/upgrading_pingfederate/pf_updating_latest_maintenance_release.html
revdate: December 26, 2025
section_ids:
  before-you-begin: Before you begin
  about-this-task: About this task
  steps: Steps
  example: Example:
  example-2: Example:
---

# Updating to the latest maintenance release

For PingFederate maintenance releases, you can update your installation using the incremental update package. This in-place update method lets you replace and merge only the files that have changed.

## Before you begin

* Ensure your installation is running a version of PingFederate that's older than the version you want to upgrade to. To check which version of PingFederate you're running, click the **Question Mark** icon in the navigation bar, then click **About**.

* Make a backup copy of the PingFederate home directory.

## About this task

The in-place update doesn't contain files from Ping Identity integration kits. You can upgrade an integration kit manually by downloading the latest kit from the [PingFederate Downloads](https://www.pingidentity.com/en/resources/downloads/pingfederate.html) page's **Add-ons** tab and following the instructions provided by the kit's documentation.

|   |                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            |
| - | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ |
|   | You can't use the in-place update method to upgrade to a newer minor version of PingFederate, such as 10.3.2 or 11.1.4, to version 11.3.x. For those older versions, you must use the standard upgrade method for your platform described in [Upgrading PingFederate](pf_upgrade_pf.html). |

|   |                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  |
| - | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
|   | The in-place update method involves manual modification of PingFederate files. If you're not comfortable moving and editing these files, you should use the standard upgrade method for your platform described in [Upgrading PingFederate](pf_upgrade_pf.html). |

If your installation includes a cluster, perform the following procedure on each node starting with the administrative console node.

## Steps

1. Go to the [PingFederate Downloads](https://www.pingidentity.com/en/resources/downloads/pingfederate.html) page on the Ping Identity website.

2. In the **Maintenance Update** section, download the **In-place Update (ZIP)** file and extract its contents.

3. Stop PingFederate.

4. Copy the files in the in-place update's `pingfederate` directory and paste them into their corresponding locations in your current PingFederate installation, replacing the old files.

   ### Example:

   If the in-place update contains `pingfederate/server/default/lib/pf-protocolengine.jar`, copy the `pf-protocolengine.jar` file to the same location in your PingFederate installation: `<pf_install>/pingfederate/server/default/lib`.

5. Compare each file in the in-place update's `merge_required` directory with the version of the file in your current PingFederate installation and manually merge the changes into the file in your current installation.

   ### Example:

   If the in-place update contains `merge_required/pingfederate/server/default/conf/language-packs/pingfederate-messages.properties`, copy the changes in the new version into the `pingfederate-messages.properties` file in your PingFederate installation.

6. Start PingFederate.