CUCM Upgrade from 7.1.2 to 7.1.3SU2

williams-keith · ‎08-04-2010

Hello Experts,

I've just recently purchased a 2951 voice gateway but unfortunately can't configure it in my current version of UCM (7.1.2), it's not an option in the drop down list of gateways. I've read quite a few posts here and from what I understand, I need to upgrade to version 7.1.3 in order to gain the 2951 option. My only concern in doing this upgrade is firmware upgrades on the phones. I would like to prevent upgrading the firmware on all the phones if at all possible. Our current version of 79417961 phones is SCCP41.8-5-2S and the default for version 7.1.3 is sccp.8-5-2SR1. My question is which one is, will my phones go through a firmware upgrade?

Thank you in advance for your input.

Keith

Justin Brenton · ‎08-04-2010

Hi there,

Please see the release notes.

Firmware Upgrade Issues

For all SCCP and SIP firmware upgrades from firmware release versions earlier than 8.3(3) to version 8.5(2)SR1 or greater, you must first upgrade your firmware to version 8.5(2). Once you have upgraded to version 8.5(2), you can upgrade your IP Phone to version 8.5(2)SR1 or later. Refer to the

Firmware Versions in this Release section of this document to determine the firmware load provided in this Service Update.

For additional details, Firmware Upgrade Instructions, and Firmware Download locations please see:

SCCP

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/voice_ip_comm/cuipph/firmware/8_5_2/english/release/notes/7900_852SR1.html#wp57602

SIP

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/docs/voice_ip_comm/cuipph/firmware/8_5_2/english/release/notes/7900_852SR1.html#wp147343

HTH, Please rate if so.

Regards,

Justin

Wes Sisk · ‎08-05-2010

" I would like to prevent upgrading the firmware on all the phones if at all possible. Our current version of 79417961 phones is SCCP41.8-5-2S and the default for version 7.1.3 is sccp.8-5-2SR1. My question is which one is, will my phones go through a firmware upgrade?"

Keith,

What is behind the reluctance to upgrading phone firmware?

While it is possible to prevent phones from upgrading when CM is upgraded it is not recommended. New versions of CM add enhancements and make subtle changes to existing behaviors. If phones are not upgraded in sync then unusual behavior is frequently observed. Also note the combination of older phone loads and newer CM versions is not specifically tested.

It is possilbe to change device defaults back to old versions or specify specfic load version on the device config page which overrides system defaults. However, this is not recommended, is not tested, and does cause problems.

/Wes

williams-keith · ‎08-05-2010

Wes,

Thanks for the reply Wes. I totaly agree with what you are saying, and if my current version was 8.3.3 or older, I wouldn't even ask, I'd go through the firware upgrade. In this particular case my current firmware version is not old, compared to what comes with CUCM 7.1.3SU2. With that said, I need to know if I should expect my phones to upgrade or not.

Current Firware: SCCP41.8-5-2S

CUCM 7.1.3SU2 Version: SCCP41.8-5-2SR1

Will my phones go through a firmware upgrade?

Wes Sisk · ‎08-05-2010

I need to restate my previous question:

What is behind the reluctance to upgrading phone firmware? I'd like to better understand your concerns about upgrading firmware.

8.5.2 is different from 8.5.2SR1 so yes, phones will upgrade.

It's not a matter of being 'old'. There are changes between 8.5.2 and 8.5.2SR1 including:

CSCsz68389 Noise Reduction causes saturated speech on Handsfree Send

In this case it's not a matter of protocol interoperability. Still best to keep them in sync and marching forward.

williams-keith · ‎08-05-2010

Thanks for the input Wesley.

My reluctance is pushing firmware to hundreds of phones across the WAN

Wes Sisk · ‎08-05-2010

Got it. So we need to get http download or Peer Firmware Sharing (PFS) up and going. Thanks Keith!

Tom Menges · ‎08-05-2010

No problem.

--tom

williams-keith · ‎08-10-2010

Wesley,

You mentioned http download as an option. Can you tell me more? I'm definately considering PFS but would like to learn more about http download before I make a decision. Your help is greatly appreciated.

Keith

Wes Sisk · ‎08-10-2010

CM's TFTP server currently has an HTTP server built in to enable centralized TFTP for multi-cluster deployments (and now cross cluster extension mobility). This came in with "CSCsb38067 CM 5.0 Centralized TFTP compatibility enhancement". HTTP is more efficient data transfer protocol than TFTP. Unfortuantely phones do not yet make use of http. There is discussion but nominal action as it is not perceived to be a major issue. Cisco Phone product managers need to hear from more customers who are challenged by phone load upgrades over the WAN.

On the promising side the 89xx and 99xx model phones perform download in the background while the phone is operational. Phone reboots to upgrade only after download is complete. This retains the existing network implications but improves the user experience.

http://www.cisco.com/en/US/partner/docs/voice_ip_comm/cuipph/9971_9951_8961/firmware/9_0_3/english/release/notes/9900_8900_903.html#wp200971

Message was edited by: Wes Sisk

Tom Menges · ‎08-05-2010

I have been having similar issues related to upgrading my phones with version 7.1.3 but I am working through it. I wanted to point something out to you. If you are using IPCC servers in conjunction with you CUCM 7.1.3 you are going to run into another issue with time out's related to the CTI route points and the JTAPI Ports on the IPCC's. What happens is the communication between the servers times out which in turns causes your IPCC servers to go into partial service. Resetting the CTI route points and Re-sync'ing the JTAPI does not always work. We have this issue and have to upgrade to 7.1.5 to clear this issue up. Just FYI.