Upgrade Status

OpenWISP Firmware Upgrader tracks the progress of firmware upgrade operations through different status values. Understanding these statuses is helpful for monitoring upgrade operations and troubleshooting issues.

Upgrade Operation Status Reference

In Progress

Status: in-progress

Description: The upgrade operation is currently running. This includes all phases of the upgrade process: device connection, firmware validation, file upload, and firmware flashing.

What happens during this status:

  • Device identity verification

  • Firmware image validation

  • Some non-critical services may be stopped to free up memory, if needed

  • Image upload to the device

  • Firmware flashing process

User Actions: Users can cancel upgrade operations that are in progress, but only before the firmware flashing phase begins (typically when progress is below 65%).

Success

Status: success

Description: The firmware upgrade completed successfully. The device has been upgraded to the new firmware version and is functioning properly.

What this means:

  • The firmware was successfully flashed to the device

  • The device rebooted with the new firmware

  • Connectivity was restored after the upgrade

  • All verification checks passed

Next Steps: No action required. The upgrade is complete and the device is running the new firmware.

Failed

Status: failed

Description: The upgrade operation completed, but the system could not reach the device again after the upgrade.

Common causes:

  • Hardware failures

  • Unexpected system errors

  • The network became unreachable after flashing the new firmware

Recommended Actions:

  • Check network connectivity

  • Physical inspection and/or serial console debugging

Aborted

Status: aborted

Description: The upgrade operation was stopped due to prerequisites not being met. The system determined it was unsafe or impossible to proceed with the upgrade.

Common causes:

  • Device UUID mismatch (wrong device targeted)

  • Insufficient memory on the device

  • Invalid or corrupted firmware image

What happens when aborted:

  • The upgrade stops immediately

  • If services were stopped to free up memory, they are automatically restarted

  • No firmware changes are made to the device

  • Device remains in its original state

Recommended Actions:

  • Verify the correct device is selected

  • Check firmware image compatibility

  • Ensure device has sufficient memory

Cancelled

Status: cancelled

Description: The upgrade operation was manually stopped by the user before completion. This is a deliberate action taken through the admin interface or REST API.

Users can cancel upgrades through the admin interface using the "Cancel" button that appears next to in-progress operations.

When cancellation is possible:

  • During the early stages of upgrade (typically before 65% progress)

  • Before the new firmware image is written to the flash memory of the network device

  • While the operation status is still "in-progress"

What happens when the upgrade operation is cancelled:

  • The upgrade process stops immediately

  • If services were stopped during the upgrade, they are automatically restarted

  • No firmware changes are made to the device

  • Device remains in its original state

Status Flow

A firmware upgrade operation always starts in the in-progress state. From there, it can transition into one of several terminal states depending on how the operation concludes.

Successful Flow

In the normal case, the upgrade proceeds without interruption:

  1. in-progress: the upgrade is executed;

  2. success: the device reboots and becomes reachable again.

This indicates a fully completed and verified upgrade.

Interrupted or Unsuccessful Flows

An upgrade may also end prematurely or unsuccessfully:

  • aborted: the system detects that one or more safety preconditions are not met before flashing begins and stops the operation without making any changes to the device;

  • cancelled: the user manually stops the upgrade while it is still safe to do so, firmware flash is prevented;

  • failed: the firmware flashing process completes, but the device does not become reachable afterward, it usually indicates a post-flash failure.

Terminal States

The following statuses are terminal and will not transition further:

  • success

  • failed

  • aborted

  • cancelled

Once a terminal state is reached, a new upgrade operation must be initiated to retry or recover.

Monitoring Upgrades

Real-time Progress: The admin interface provides real-time updates of upgrade operations, including progress percentages and detailed logs. See WebSocket Reference for details on the WebSocket API used to deliver these updates.

Upgrade Logs: Each status change is logged with detailed information about what occurred during the upgrade process.

Batch Operations: When performing mass upgrades, you can monitor the status of individual device upgrades within the batch operation.