SLES for SAP 12 Migration (Service Pack Update) Issues

This document (7023698) is provided subject to the disclaimer at the end of this document.

Environment


SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications Service Pack 1
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications Service Pack 2
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications Service Pack 3
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications Service Pack 4

Situation

The existing migration documentation for SUSE Linux Enterprise 12 for SAP Applications does not make it clear if the migration paths are the same as those for SUSE Linux Enterprise 12 Server.

Also, migration issues that can be encountered due to the presence of product extensions (such as the LTSS extension) are not documented.

Resolution

The migration paths available for SUSE Linux Enterprise 12 for SAP Applications are the same as those for SUSE Linux Enterprise 12 Server:
https://www.suse.com/documentation/sles-12/book_sle_deployment/data/sec_update_sle_paths.html

Before using any of the migration methods mentioned in the deployment book or this TID, registered extensions, server product files and subscribed software repositories should be checked and if necessary the appropriate remedial action should be taken.

Depending on the chosen migration path, it may be necessary to add/register the Long Term Software Support (LTSS) extension and fully patch the server as the first step in the migration process (a purchased subscription code is required for LTSS access).

However, if there are any extensions configured/registered on the server to be migrated, at the time of migration, then it's likely the migration process will fail at some point before the migration actually starts to update any programs. Therefore once any LTSS patching is completed, the LTSS extension must be removed from the server prior to migration.


The contents of  the /etc/products.d/ directory should look similar to the following before trying to migrate a SLES for SAP 12.x server:

-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 2854 Mar 15  2017 SLES_SAP.prod
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root   13 Jul 28  2018 baseproduct -> SLES_SAP.prod


There is a potential problem with SLES for SAP 12 (no service pack) where, depending on how the server was installed, there might be unwanted product files present in the /etc/products.d/ directory:-
e.g.
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 2705 Oct 14  2014 SLES.prod
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 2839 Apr 23  2015 SLES_SAP.prod
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root   13 Feb  2 20:54 baseproduct -> SLES_SAP.prod
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 1598 Oct  2  2014 sle-ha.prod

Note that in this case the SLES.prod and sle-ha.prod files should not be present.


If an LTSS extension is present, you will see a product entry for LTSS in the /etc/products.d/ directory:

-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 2648 May 22  2017 SLES-LTSS.prod
-rw-r--r-- 1 root root 2854 Mar 15  2017 SLES_SAP.prod
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root   13 Jul 28  2018 baseproduct -> SLES_SAP.prod



Procedure for removing unwanted product extensions and files:

The LTSS extension: /etc/products.d/SLES-LTSS.prod

Check to see if there is a zypper service for LTSS:  zypper ls

# | Alias                                           | Name                                            | Enabled | GPG Check | Refresh | Type
--+-------------------------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------+---------+-----------+---------+------
1 | SUSE_Linux_Enterprise_Server_LTSS_12_SP2_x86_64 | SUSE_Linux_Enterprise_Server_LTSS_12_SP2_x86_64 | Yes     | ----      | Yes     | ris 


Remove the LTSS service using:    zypper rs <line_number>  (where '1' is the line number listed in the output of 'zypper ls')

                                                e.g.  zypper rs 1

Removing the zypper LTSS service should also remove any software repositories for LTSS.

Check for any remaining LTSS software repositories using 'zypper lr'  and remove them if present, using 'zypper rr <line_number>' or by using YaST > Software Repositories

Repositories that may be present include:



Check for the presence of any LTSS related rpms:   rpm -qa | grep -i ltss

e.g.
    sles-ltss-release-12.2-8.4.1.x86_64
    sles-ltss-release-POOL-12.2-8.4.1.x86_64

If present, remove them:  rpm -e sles-ltss-release
                                       rpm -e sles-ltss-release-POOL

Check the contents of /etc/products.d/ and look for an LTSS product file: SLES-LTSS.prod

If it is present, remove it:  rm /etc/products.d/SLES-LTSS.prod


The SLES product file: /etc/products.d/SLES.prod

  If  present, removed the prodcut file manually:  rm /etc/products.d/SLES.prod


The High Availability extension: /etc/products.d/sle-ha.prod

   rpm -e sle-ha-release
   rpm -e sle-ha-release-POOL

   By removing the sle-ha rpms, the '/etc/products.d/sle-ha.prod' file should also have been removed. If not, delete it manually.



Cause

Undocumented behavior - it may not be possible to migrate whilst product extensions or other product files are present.

Additional Information

The migration methods tested that this document is relevant too are:  YaST Online Migration, Online Zypper Migration, Offline Media Migration

The following methods are not currently covered in this document but may also need product extensions removing in order to be successful:  via SUSE Manager, via SMT,  via network source, Automatic using AutoYaST, using 'Plain Zypper'

Note that this document is a supplement to the documented upgrade process and not a replacement for the upgrade process. The appropriate documentation for SUSE Linux Enterprise 12 migration process should still be followed (usually found in the deployment guide).

NOTE: If a server's registration to the SUSE Customer Center has expired or been corrupted, you may see errors indicating problems 'restoring the repository configuration' or 'raise_pkg_exception' errors. If this occurs, follow the necessary steps to de-register/clean out the current registration data using the appropriate SUSEConnect commands and then re-register the server using valid subscription codes.

NOTE: There are separate subscription codes for the SLES for SAP product and the LTSS extension.

NOTE: You can not use a 'SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12' subscription code to register a 'SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 for SAP Applications' server.

NOTE: When migrating from 'SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 for SAP applications (no service pack)', the most recent version you can upgrade directly too is 'SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 for SAP applications SP3'.

NOTE: When migrating from 'SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 for SAP applications SP1', the most recent version you can upgrade directly too is 'SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 for SAP applications SP4'.




Disclaimer

This Support Knowledgebase provides a valuable tool for SUSE customers and parties interested in our products and solutions to acquire information, ideas and learn from one another. Materials are provided for informational, personal or non-commercial use within your organization and are presented "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND.

  • Document ID:7023698
  • Creation Date: 02-Feb-2019
  • Modified Date:03-Mar-2020
    • SUSE Linux Enterprise Server for SAP Applications

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