Are system updates without reboots possible?

[Arthur Chance]

On 10/03/2016 15:17, krad wrote:
> From what i remember there is an equivalent of linux pivot mount coming in
> freebsd 11. Doing that technically isn't a reboot, but it will definitely
> ensure everything is restarted.
> 
> Is there any motive to this though, as the safest way is to create a new
> boot env with the new patched stuff in, and then reboot. You have fail back
> then, incase of issues.

Partly pure curiosity, partly wishing to minimise server downtime. I
know reboots are the safest way, I currently always reboot. However,
I've never had problems with a security update, so I wondered if I could
avoid even the small amount of down time a reboot takes. I've been
looking at Erlang & Elixir recently and love the ability to update
running code without interruption in suitably written servers.

-- 
Moore's Law of Mad Science: Every eighteen months, the minimum IQ
necessary to destroy the world drops by one point.