Updating from 11.2 to 11.3 on a headless machine

[Doug Hardie]

> On 30 November 2019, at 12:50, Paul Schmehl <pschmehl_lists at tx.rr.com> wrote:
> 
> On 11/30/19 10:27 AM, Joe A. wrote:
> 
>> Hello...
>> 
>> I have a machine that I moved into a headless with no keyboard
>> role and now I wish to update it to 11.3 from 11.2-RELEASE-p9.
>> 
>> Since it's headless, and it seems that FreeBSD update works on
>> a headless machine, I plan to use it as outlined in the
>> handbook in chapter 23.2.
>> 
>> First question: am I correct in understanding that FreeBSD update
>> will work on an headless machine, as distinct from svnlite and a
>> build from source?
> Yes, you are correct. I maintain three servers, and all three are headless. I update them routinely over ssh. The only downside is if the server fails to reboot properly, you have to make a trip to the hosting company site to complete the update. Usually, that does not happen.
>> In section 23.2.3. Performing Major and Minor Version Upgrades,
>> this appears: freebsd-update -r 9.1-RELEASE upgrade. On my
>> desktop with a monitor and keyboard, I use snvlite; so when
>> moving between major and minor upgrades, I use svnlite switch.
>> 
>> Second question: is it the case that 'freebsd-update -r'
>> is a substitute for 'snvlite switch'?
> I've never used snvlite, so I can't say. But freebsd-update works fine for me.

I also have a number of remote headless machines.  Freebsd-update has generally worked cleanly for me.  However, I have encountered situations where the bootstrap process would just hang  Generally that has been the result of a typo in rc.conf.  It's a 3-4 hour drive (longer in rush hours) to the farthest server.  What we did was get a Rhapsberry Pi 3 and load FreeBSD on it.  I set it up to connect to the internet and also a serial port connected to the serial port of the server.  Now I can access the server's console which makes it a lot easier when problems do occur.  SSH to the PI, cu to the server.  It will not help when the power gets disconnected.  That requires a human to plug it back in.  That is usually not an issue during a system upgrade though.  I don't have to use the Pi connection very often, but when it's needed it is a real time saver - not to mention the gas that otherwise would be involved.

-- Doug