This document provides and overview and best practices on how to upgrade the VMware SD-WAN Orchestrator from the 3.3.2 or 3.4 release to the 4.0 release. However, please contact VMware Support to asssit you with the 3.3.2 or 3.4 to 4.0 upgrade at https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/53907

Only 3.3.2 and 3.4 Orchestrators can be upgraded to the 4.0 release. If you are running a 3.3.1 or lower version of the Orchestrator, you must upgrade to at least the 3.3.2 version before upgrading to the 4.0 version.

Consider the following when upgrading:
  • This upgrade work does not modify any existing APIs.
  • Just like other releases, there are schema changes with the 4.0 release. However, these changes will not impact the upgrade process.
The OS for the SD-WAN Orchestrator virtual appliance and the underlying data stores that store the configuration and statistics data are being upgraded. The specific upgrades include the following:
  • The OS version is changing from Ubuntu 14.04 to 18.04.
  • The Config store is moving to MySQL 8.0.
  • The Stats store is moving to ClickhouseDB.
Note: The Orchestrator OS, database, and several other dependent components currently in use have reached their end of life, and will no longer be supported.

The benefits to upgrading to the 4.0 release are as follows:

  • A better scale overall in terms of number of Edges, flows, and UI.
  • Faster query performance for statistics, longer retention out of the box for flow stats.
  • Faster initial Disaster Recovery (DR) setup performance.
  • Lower resource utilization - Disk, CPU, RAM.
  • Better security due to components with active LTS.

Best Practices/Recommendations:

Listed below are some upgrade best practices:

  • From the System Properties page in the Orchestrator, make a note of the value of the edge.heartbeat.spread.factor system property. Then, change the heartbeat spread factor to a relatively high value for a large Orchestrator (e.g. 20, 40, 60). This will help reduce the sudden spike of the resource utilization (CPU, IO) on the system. Make sure to verify that all Gateways and Edges are in a connected state before restoring the previous edge.heartbeat.spread.factor value from the System Property page in the Orchestrator.
  • Leave the demoted SD-WAN Orchestrator up for a few hours before complete shutdown or decommission.
  • Freeze configuration modifications to avoid any additional configuration changes until the upgrade process is completed.

Upgrade Procedure Overview

This document provides the steps required to upgrade 3.3.2 or 3.4 release to the 4.0 release. The SD-WAN Orchestrator OS and Disaster Recovery upgrade have some of the same steps as the Disaster Recovery procedures as found in the Configure SD-WAN Orchestrator Disaster Recovery. However, follow the steps in Upgrade Procedures section in this document to complete the 3.3.2 or 3.4 release to the 4.0 release upgrade process. The image below depicts an illustration of the upgrade process. See the Upgrade Procedures below.

Upgrade Procedures

Please contact VMware Support to assist you with the 3.3.2 or 3.4 to 4.0 upgrade at https://kb.vmware.com/s/article/53907