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Python Setup and Execution Guide for pan-os-upgrade

This guide provides comprehensive steps for configuring and executing the pan-os-upgrade package within a Python environment. It details command-line execution methods, including the new feature of targeting a Panorama appliance as a connection proxy.

Configuring and Executing pan-os-upgrade

Executing Without Command-Line Arguments

You can start the script interactively by simply issuing pan-os-upgrade from your current working directory. The interactive shell will prompt you to input the required arguments, including whether to target a standalone firewall or use Panorama as a proxy.

pan-os-upgrade firewall
Firewall hostname or IP: lab-fw1.cdot.io
Firewall username: officehours
Firewall password:
Target version: 10.1.4
Dry Run? [Y/n]: n
=================================================================================================
Welcome to the PAN-OS upgrade tool

This script software is provided on an 'as-is' basis with no warranties, and no support provided.

The selected `firewall` subcommand will upgrade a single Firewall appliance.

Settings: Custom configuration loaded file detected and loaded at:
/app/settings.yaml
=================================================================================================
🚀 lab-fw1.cdot.io: Connection to the appliance successful.
📝 lab-fw1: 007054000654320 192.168.255.11
📝 lab-fw1: HA mode: disabled
📝 lab-fw1: Current version: 10.1.3-h3
📝 lab-fw1: Target version: 10.1.4
✅ lab-fw1: Upgrade required from 10.1.3-h3 to 10.1.4
🔧 lab-fw1: Refreshing list of available software versions
✅ lab-fw1: version 10.1.4 is available for download
✅ lab-fw1: Base image for 10.1.4 is already downloaded
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing test to see if 10.1.4 is already downloaded.
✅ lab-fw1: version 10.1.4 already on target device.
✅ lab-fw1: version 10.1.4 has been downloaded.
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing snapshot of network state information.
🚀 lab-fw1: Attempting to capture network state snapshot (Attempt 1 of 3).
✅ lab-fw1: Network snapshot created successfully on attempt 1.
💾 lab-fw1: Network state snapshot collected and saved to assurance/snapshots/lab-fw1/pre/2024-02-25_11-38-57.json
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing readiness checks of target firewall.
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing readiness checks to determine if firewall is ready for upgrade.
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: Check if active support is available
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a given ARP entry is available in the ARP table
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: Check if there are pending changes on device
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if the certificates' keys meet minimum size requirements
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Running Latest Content Version
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: Check if any Dynamic Update job is scheduled to run within the specified time window
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: No Expired Licenses
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a there is enough space on the `/opt/panrepo` volume for downloading an PanOS image.
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Checks HA pair status from the perspective of the current device
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a given IPsec tunnel is in active state
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check for any job with status different than FIN
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if NTP is synchronized
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if the clock is synchronized between dataplane and management plane
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: Check connectivity with the Panorama appliance
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a critical session is present in the sessions table
✅ lab-fw1: Readiness Checks completed
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing backup of configuration to local filesystem.
📝 lab-fw1: Not a dry run, continue with upgrade.
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing upgrade to version 10.1.4.
📝 lab-fw1: The install will take several minutes, check for status details within the GUI.
🚀 lab-fw1: Attempting upgrade to version 10.1.4 (Attempt 1 of 3).
Device 007054000654320 installing version: 10.1.4
✅ lab-fw1: Upgrade completed successfully
🚀 lab-fw1: Rebooting the target device.
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 1 due to error: URLError: reason: [SSL: UNEXPECTED_EOF_WHILE_READING] EOF occurred in violation of protocol (_ssl.c:1000)
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 2 due to error: URLError: reason: [SSL: UNEXPECTED_EOF_WHILE_READING] EOF occurred in violation of protocol (_ssl.c:1000)
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 3 due to error: URLError: reason: [SSL: UNEXPECTED_EOF_WHILE_READING] EOF occurred in violation of protocol (_ssl.c:1000)
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 4 due to error: URLError: reason: [SSL: UNEXPECTED_EOF_WHILE_READING] EOF occurred in violation of protocol (_ssl.c:1000)
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 5 due to error: URLError: reason: [SSL: UNEXPECTED_EOF_WHILE_READING] EOF occurred in violation of protocol (_ssl.c:1000)
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 6 due to error: URLError: reason: [SSL: UNEXPECTED_EOF_WHILE_READING] EOF occurred in violation of protocol (_ssl.c:1000)
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 7 due to error: URLError: reason: [SSL: UNEXPECTED_EOF_WHILE_READING] EOF occurred in violation of protocol (_ssl.c:1000)
📝 lab-fw1: Current device version: 10.1.4
✅ lab-fw1: Device rebooted to the target version successfully.
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing backup of configuration to local filesystem.
🔧 lab-fw1: Waiting for the device to become ready for the post upgrade snapshot.

Executing Using Command-Line Arguments

Alternatively, you can pass these details as command-line arguments. This method now includes an optional --filter argument for targeting devices managed by a Panorama appliance.

Direct Firewall Targeting

pan-os-upgrade firewall --hostname 192.168.255.1 --username admin --password secret --version 10.1.0
INFO - ✅ Connection to firewall established
... shortened output for brevity ...

Using Panorama as a Proxy

When the batch subcommand, your connections will be proxied through Panorama. In versions previous to 1.2.0, you would have passed a regular expression to match the firewalls that you'd like to upgrade, but this workflow has been replaced with an interactive menu of firewalls connected to your Panorama appliance.

You can select devices by entering their numbers, ranges, or separated by commas.

Examples:

  • 1
  • 2-4
  • 1,3,5-7
❯ pan-os-upgrade batch
Panorama hostname or IP: panorama1.cdot.io
Panorama username: officehours
Panorama password:
Firewall target version (ex: 10.1.2): 10.1.3-h3
Dry Run? [Y/n]: n
=================================================================================================
Welcome to the PAN-OS upgrade tool

This script software is provided on an 'as-is' basis with no warranties, and no support provided.

The selected `batch` subcommand will upgrade one or more firewalls.

Settings: No settings.yaml file was found, default values will be used.
You can create a settings.yaml file with 'pan-os-upgrade settings' command.

Inventory: No inventory.yaml file was found, firewalls will need be selected through the menu.
You can create an inventory.yaml file with 'pan-os-upgrade inventory' command.
=================================================================================================
🚀 panorama1.cdot.io: Connection to the appliance successful.
✅ panorama1.cdot.io: Connection to Panorama established. Firewall connections will be proxied!
🔧 panorama1.cdot.io: Retrieving a list of all firewalls connected to Panorama...
🔧 panorama1.cdot.io: Retrieving detailed information of each firewall...
╒═════╤════════════╤════════════════╤═════════╤═══════════╤═══════════╤═══════════╤═══════════╕
│   # │ Hostname   │ IP Address     │ Model   │ PAN-OS    │ Content   │ HA Mode   │ Preempt   │
╞═════╪════════════╪════════════════╪═════════╪═══════════╪═══════════╪═══════════╪═══════════╡
│   1 │ katy-fw1   │ 192.168.255.41 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3-h3 │ 8799-8509 │ passive   │ no        │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   2 │ katy-fw2   │ 192.168.255.42 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3-h3 │ 8799-8509 │ active    │ no        │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   3 │ lab-fw1    │ 192.168.255.11 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3    │ 8729-8157 │ disabled  │ N/A       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   4 │ lab-fw2    │ 192.168.255.12 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3    │ 8729-8157 │ disabled  │ N/A       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   5 │ lab-fw3    │ 192.168.255.13 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3    │ 8729-8157 │ disabled  │ N/A       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   6 │ lab-fw4    │ 192.168.255.14 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3    │ 8729-8157 │ disabled  │ N/A       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   7 │ lab-fw5    │ 192.168.255.15 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3    │ 8729-8157 │ disabled  │ N/A       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   8 │ lab-fw6    │ 192.168.255.16 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.4-h4 │ 8729-8157 │ active    │ yes       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   9 │ lab-fw7    │ 192.168.255.17 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.4-h4 │ 8729-8157 │ passive   │ yes       │
╘═════╧════════════╧════════════════╧═════════╧═══════════╧═══════════╧═══════════╧═══════════╛
You can select devices by entering their numbers, ranges, or separated by commas.
Examples: '1', '2-4', '1,3,5-7'.
Type 'done' on a new line when finished.

Enter your selection(s): 3-4
  - lab-fw1 selected.
  - lab-fw2 selected.
Enter your selection(s): done
🔧 panorama1.cdot.io: Selected 2 firewalls from inventory.yaml for upgrade.
📝 panorama1.cdot.io: Upgrading 2 devices to version 10.1.3-h3...
📝 panorama1.cdot.io: Please confirm the selected firewalls:
  - lab-fw1 (192.168.255.11)
  - lab-fw2 (192.168.255.12)
🟧 panorama1.cdot.io: Dry run mode is disabled, upgrade workflow will be executed.
📝 panorama1.cdot.io: Do you want to proceed with the upgrade? [y/N]: y
🚀 Proceeding with the upgrade...
🚀 Proceeding with the upgrade...
🔧 panorama1.cdot.io: Using 10 threads.
📝 lab-fw1: 007054000654321 192.168.255.41
📝 lab-fw2: 007054000654322 192.168.255.42
📝 lab-fw1: HA mode: active
📝 lab-fw2: HA mode: passive
📝 lab-fw1: Local state: active, Local version: 10.1.3, Peer version: 10.1.3
📝 lab-fw1: Version comparison: equal
🔍 lab-fw1: Detected active target device in HA pair running the same version as its peer. Added target device to revisit list.
📝 lab-fw2: Local state: passive, Local version: 10.1.3, Peer version: 10.1.3
📝 lab-fw2: Version comparison: equal
📝 lab-fw2: Target device is passive
📝 lab-fw2: Current version: 10.1.3
📝 lab-fw2: Target version: 10.1.3-h3
✅ lab-fw2: Upgrade required from 10.1.3 to 10.1.3-h3
🔧 lab-fw2: Refreshing list of available software versions
✅ lab-fw2: version 10.1.3-h3 is available for download
✅ lab-fw2: Base image for 10.1.3-h3 is already downloaded
🚀 lab-fw2: Performing test to see if 10.1.3-h3 is already downloaded.
✅ lab-fw2: version 10.1.3-h3 already on target device.
✅ lab-fw2: 10.1.3-h3 has been downloaded and sync'd to HA peer.
🚀 lab-fw2: Performing snapshot of network state information.
🚀 lab-fw2: Attempting to capture network state snapshot (Attempt 1 of 3).
✅ lab-fw2: Network snapshot created successfully on attempt 1.
💾 lab-fw2: Network state snapshot collected and saved to assurance/snapshots/lab-fw2/pre/2024-02-25_04-14-15.json
🚀 lab-fw2: Performing readiness checks of target firewall.
🚀 lab-fw2: Performing readiness checks to determine if firewall is ready for upgrade.
✅ lab-fw2: Passed Readiness Check: Check if active support is available
🟨 lab-fw2: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a given ARP entry is available in the ARP table
✅ lab-fw2: Passed Readiness Check: Check if there are pending changes on device
🟨 lab-fw2: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if the certificates' keys meet minimum size requirements
🟨 lab-fw2: Skipped Readiness Check: Running Latest Content Version
✅ lab-fw2: Passed Readiness Check: Check if any Dynamic Update job is scheduled to run within the specified time window
✅ lab-fw2: Passed Readiness Check: No Expired Licenses
🟨 lab-fw2: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a there is enough space on the `/opt/panrepo` volume for downloading an PanOS image.
✅ lab-fw2: Passed Readiness Check: Checks HA pair status from the perspective of the current device
🟨 lab-fw2: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a given IPsec tunnel is in active state
🟨 lab-fw2: Skipped Readiness Check: Check for any job with status different than FIN
🟨 lab-fw2: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if NTP is synchronized
✅ lab-fw2: Passed Readiness Check: Check if the clock is synchronized between dataplane and management plane
✅ lab-fw2: Passed Readiness Check: Check connectivity with the Panorama appliance
🟨 lab-fw2: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a critical session is present in the sessions table
✅ lab-fw2: Readiness Checks completed
🚀 lab-fw2: Checking if HA peer is in sync.
✅ lab-fw2: HA peer sync test has been completed.
🚀 lab-fw2: Performing backup of configuration to local filesystem.
📝 lab-fw2: Not a dry run, continue with upgrade.
🚀 lab-fw2: Performing upgrade to version 10.1.3-h3.
📝 lab-fw2: The install will take several minutes, check for status details within the GUI.
🚀 lab-fw2: Attempting upgrade to version 10.1.3-h3 (Attempt 1 of 3).
Device 007054000654322 installing version: 10.1.3-h3
✅ lab-fw2: Upgrade completed successfully
🚀 lab-fw2: Rebooting the target device.
🟧 lab-fw2: Retry attempt 1 due to error: 007054000654322 not connected
🟧 lab-fw2: Retry attempt 2 due to error: 007054000654322 not connected
🟧 lab-fw2: Retry attempt 3 due to error: 007054000654322 not connected
🟧 lab-fw2: Retry attempt 4 due to error: 007054000654322 not connected
🟧 lab-fw2: Retry attempt 5 due to error: 007054000654322 not connected
🟧 lab-fw2: Retry attempt 6 due to error: 007054000654322 not connected
🟧 lab-fw2: Retry attempt 7 due to error: 007054000654322 not connected
🟧 lab-fw2: Retry attempt 8 due to error: 007054000654322 not connected
📝 lab-fw2: Current device version: 10.1.3-h3
✅ lab-fw2: Device rebooted to the target version successfully.
🚀 lab-fw2: Performing backup of configuration to local filesystem.
🔧 lab-fw2: Waiting for the device to become ready for the post upgrade snapshot.
🚀 lab-fw2: Performing snapshot of network state information.
🚀 lab-fw2: Attempting to capture network state snapshot (Attempt 1 of 3).
❌ lab-fw2: Error running snapshots: ElementTree.fromstring ParseError: junk after document element: line 1, column 3703
🚀 lab-fw2: Attempting to capture network state snapshot (Attempt 1 of 3).
✅ lab-fw2: Network snapshot created successfully on attempt 1.
💾 lab-fw2: Network state snapshot collected and saved to assurance/snapshots/lab-fw2/post/2024-02-25_04-32-05.json
💾 lab-fw2: Snapshot comparison PDF report saved to assurance/snapshots/lab-fw2/diff/2024-02-25_04-32-08_report.pdf
🚀 panorama1.cdot.io: Revisiting firewalls that were active in an HA pair and had the same version as their peers.
📝 lab-fw1: 007054000654321 192.168.255.41
📝 lab-fw1: HA mode: active
📝 lab-fw1: Local state: active, Local version: 10.1.3, Peer version: 10.1.3-h3
Waiting for HA synchronization to complete on lab-fw1. Attempt 1/3
HA synchronization complete on lab-fw1. Proceeding with upgrade.
📝 lab-fw1: Version comparison: older
📝 lab-fw1: Target device is on an older version
📝 lab-fw1: Suspending HA state of active
🟧 lab-fw1: Error received when suspending active target device HA state: argument of type 'NoneType' is not iterable
📝 lab-fw1: Current version: 10.1.3
📝 lab-fw1: Target version: 10.1.3-h3
✅ lab-fw1: Upgrade required from 10.1.3 to 10.1.3-h3
🔧 lab-fw1: Refreshing list of available software versions
✅ lab-fw1: version 10.1.3-h3 is available for download
✅ lab-fw1: Base image for 10.1.3-h3 is already downloaded
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing test to see if 10.1.3-h3 is already downloaded.
✅ lab-fw1: version 10.1.3-h3 already on target device.
✅ lab-fw1: 10.1.3-h3 has been downloaded and sync'd to HA peer.
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing snapshot of network state information.
🚀 lab-fw1: Attempting to capture network state snapshot (Attempt 1 of 3).
✅ lab-fw1: Network snapshot created successfully on attempt 1.
💾 lab-fw1: Network state snapshot collected and saved to assurance/snapshots/lab-fw1/pre/2024-02-25_04-33-26.json
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing readiness checks of target firewall.
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing readiness checks to determine if firewall is ready for upgrade.
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: Check if active support is available
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a given ARP entry is available in the ARP table
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: Check if there are pending changes on device
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if the certificates' keys meet minimum size requirements
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Running Latest Content Version
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: Check if any Dynamic Update job is scheduled to run within the specified time window
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: No Expired Licenses
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a there is enough space on the `/opt/panrepo` volume for downloading an PanOS image.
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Checks HA pair status from the perspective of the current device
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a given IPsec tunnel is in active state
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check for any job with status different than FIN
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if NTP is synchronized
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: Check if the clock is synchronized between dataplane and management plane
✅ lab-fw1: Passed Readiness Check: Check connectivity with the Panorama appliance
🟨 lab-fw1: Skipped Readiness Check: Check if a critical session is present in the sessions table
✅ lab-fw1: Readiness Checks completed
🚀 lab-fw1: Checking if HA peer is in sync.
✅ lab-fw1: HA peer sync test has been completed.
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing backup of configuration to local filesystem.
📝 lab-fw1: Not a dry run, continue with upgrade.
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing upgrade to version 10.1.3-h3.
📝 lab-fw1: The install will take several minutes, check for status details within the GUI.
🚀 lab-fw1: Attempting upgrade to version 10.1.3-h3 (Attempt 1 of 3).
Device 007054000654321 installing version: 10.1.3-h3
✅ lab-fw1: Upgrade completed successfully
🚀 lab-fw1: Rebooting the target device.
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 1 due to error: 007054000654321 not connected
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 2 due to error: 007054000654321 not connected
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 3 due to error: 007054000654321 not connected
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 4 due to error: 007054000654321 not connected
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 5 due to error: 007054000654321 not connected
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 6 due to error: 007054000654321 not connected
🟧 lab-fw1: Retry attempt 7 due to error: 007054000654321 not connected
📝 lab-fw1: Current device version: 10.1.3-h3
✅ lab-fw1: Device rebooted to the target version successfully.
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing backup of configuration to local filesystem.
🔧 lab-fw1: Waiting for the device to become ready for the post upgrade snapshot.
🚀 lab-fw1: Performing snapshot of network state information.
🚀 lab-fw1: Attempting to capture network state snapshot (Attempt 1 of 3).
✅ lab-fw1: Network snapshot created successfully on attempt 1.
💾 lab-fw1: Network state snapshot collected and saved to assurance/snapshots/lab-fw1/post/2024-02-25_04-50-28.json
💾 lab-fw1: Snapshot comparison PDF report saved to assurance/snapshots/lab-fw1/diff/2024-02-25_04-50-29_report.pdf
✅ panorama1.cdot.io: Completed revisiting firewalls

CLI Arguments vs. CLI Options

In the context of the pan-os-upgrade application, it's important to distinguish between CLI arguments and CLI options:

  • CLI Arguments are the primary commands that determine the operation mode of the application. They are not prefixed by -- or - and are essential for defining the core action the script should perform.
  • CLI Options, on the other hand, are additional modifiers or settings that further customize the behavior of the CLI arguments. They typically come with a -- prefix (or - for shorthand) and are optional.

CLI Arguments

The following are the main commands (CLI arguments) for the pan-os-upgrade application, each tailored for specific upgrade scenarios:

CLI Argument Description
firewall Targets an individual firewall for upgrade.
panorama Targets an individual Panorama appliance for upgrade.
batch Utilizes a Panorama appliance to orchestrate bulk upgrades of managed firewalls.
inventory Creates a inventory.yaml that will allow users to select the firewalls targeted for upgrade.
settings Creates a settings.yaml that will allow users to customize the script's default settings and behaviors.

CLI Options

Below are the CLI options that can be used in conjunction with the above CLI arguments to customize the upgrade process:

CLI Option Shorthand Description
--dry-run -d Executes all preparatory steps without applying the actual upgrade, useful for testing.
--hostname -h The IP address or DNS name of the target firewall or Panorama appliance.
--password -p The authentication password required for accessing the target device.
--username -u The username for authentication with the target PAN-OS device.
--version -v Specifies the target PAN-OS version for the upgrade operation.

Each CLI option has a specific role in tailoring the upgrade process, from defining the target device and authentication credentials to setting operational parameters like the target PAN-OS version and logging verbosity.

Option 1: Execute pan-os-upgrade without Command-Line Arguments

You can simply get started by issuing pan-os-upgrade from your current working directory, you will be guided to input the missing requirement arguments through an interactive shell.

pan-os-upgrade batch
Panorama hostname or IP: panorama.cdot.io
Panorama username: officehours
Panorama password:
Firewall target version (ex: 10.1.2): 10.1.3-h2
Dry Run? [Y/n]: n
===========================================================================
Welcome to the PAN-OS upgrade tool

You have selected to perform a batch upgrade of firewalls through Panorama.

No settings.yaml file was found, the script's default values will be used.
Create a settings.yaml file with 'pan-os-upgrade settings' command.

No inventory.yaml file was found, getting firewalls connected to Panorama.
Create an inventory.yaml file with 'pan-os-upgrade inventory' command.
===========================================================================
✅ panorama.cdot.io: Connection to Panorama established. Firewall connections will be proxied!
... shortened for brevity ...
🔧 Woodlands-fw1: Waiting for the device to become ready for the post upgrade snapshot.
✅ panorama.cdot.io: Completed revisiting firewalls
Option 2: Execute pan-os-upgrade Using Command-Line Arguments

Alternatively, you can pass these details as command-line arguments when running the script.

Note: You can pass your password as a CLI option with either --password or -p, but make sure you understand the risk of having your password in your terminal's history.

pan-os-upgrade firewall --hostname 192.168.1.1 --username admin --password secret --version 10.1.0

For a dry run:

pan-os-upgrade firewall --hostname 192.168.1.1 --username admin --password secret --version 10.1.0 --dry-run

inventory Subcommand

The inventory subcommand introduces the capability to generate an inventory.yaml file, which lists the devices selected for upgrade. This file is generated based on the selections made through the interactive menu when targeting devices via a Panorama appliance.

pan-os-upgrade inventory
Panorama hostname or IP: panorama1.cdot.io
Panorama username: officehours
Panorama password:
=================================================================================================
Welcome to the PAN-OS upgrade inventory menu

This script software is provided on an 'as-is' basis with no warranties, and no support provided.

The selected 'inventory' subcommand will create `inventory.yaml` in your current directory.
This `inventory.yaml` file will contain firewalls to upgrade and will be loaded at runtime.
=================================================================================================
🚀 panorama1.cdot.io: Connection to the appliance successful.
✅ panorama1.cdot.io: Connection to Panorama established.
🔧 panorama1.cdot.io: Retrieving a list of all firewalls connected to Panorama...
🔧 panorama1.cdot.io: Retrieving detailed information of each firewall...
╒═════╤════════════╤════════════════╤═════════╤═══════════╤═══════════╤═══════════╤═══════════╕
│   # │ Hostname   │ IP Address     │ Model   │ PAN-OS    │ Content   │ HA Mode   │ Preempt   │
╞═════╪════════════╪════════════════╪═════════╪═══════════╪═══════════╪═══════════╪═══════════╡
│   1 │ katy-fw1   │ 192.168.255.41 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3-h3 │ 8799-8509 │ passive   │ no        │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   2 │ katy-fw2   │ 192.168.255.42 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3-h3 │ 8799-8509 │ active    │ no        │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   3 │ lab-fw1    │ 192.168.255.11 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.4    │ 8729-8157 │ disabled  │ N/A       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   4 │ lab-fw2    │ 192.168.255.12 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3-h3 │ 8729-8157 │ disabled  │ N/A       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   5 │ lab-fw3    │ 192.168.255.13 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3    │ 8729-8157 │ disabled  │ N/A       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   6 │ lab-fw4    │ 192.168.255.14 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3    │ 8729-8157 │ disabled  │ N/A       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   7 │ lab-fw5    │ 192.168.255.15 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.3-h3 │ 8729-8157 │ disabled  │ N/A       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   8 │ lab-fw6    │ 192.168.255.16 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.4-h4 │ 8729-8157 │ active    │ yes       │
├─────┼────────────┼────────────────┼─────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┼───────────┤
│   9 │ lab-fw7    │ 192.168.255.17 │ PA-VM   │ 10.1.4-h4 │ 8729-8157 │ passive   │ yes       │
╘═════╧════════════╧════════════════╧═════════╧═══════════╧═══════════╧═══════════╧═══════════╛
You can select devices by entering their numbers, ranges, or separated by commas.
Examples: '1', '2-4', '1,3,5-7'.
Type 'done' on a new line when finished.

Enter your selection(s): 3,6,8-9
  - lab-fw1 selected.
  - lab-fw4 selected.
  - lab-fw6 selected.
  - lab-fw7 selected.
Enter your selection(s): done
Warning: Firewalls lab-fw6, lab-fw7 have 'preempt' enabled, this can cause an interruption.
Are you sure that you want to add these firewalls to the upgrade list? (y/n): n
Firewalls with 'preempt' set to 'yes' have been excluded.
Selected devices saved to inventory.yaml

This inventory.yaml file can then be used in subsequent upgrade commands to pre-define the target devices, streamlining the upgrade process. You can also directly edit this file with other firewall hostnames for future executions.

firewalls_to_upgrade:
- lab-fw1
- lab-fw4

When the subcommand of batch is executed, it will look in the current working directory for a file named inventory.yaml, and if its found it will use the file's contents as a source of inventory, bypassing the firewall selection menu.

Advanced Settings

If you would like to change the default settings of pan-os-upgrade tool, you can run the settings CLI argument. This will walk you through a series of options to change.

Readiness Checks

The following table lists the available readiness checks, their descriptions, and whether they are enabled by default. These checks are designed to ensure the device's readiness for an upgrade by validating its operational and configuration status.

Readiness Check Description Enabled by Default
active_support Check if active support is available Yes
arp_entry_exist Check if a given ARP entry is available in the ARP table No
candidate_config Check if there are pending changes on device Yes
certificates_requirements Check if the certificates' keys meet minimum size requirements No
content_version Running Latest Content Version Yes
dynamic_updates Check if any Dynamic Update job is scheduled to run within the specified time window Yes
expired_licenses No Expired Licenses Yes
free_disk_space Check if there is enough space on the /opt/panrepo volume for downloading a PanOS image Yes
ha Checks HA pair status from the perspective of the current device Yes
ip_sec_tunnel_status Check if a given IPsec tunnel is in active state Yes
jobs Check for any job with status different than FIN No
ntp_sync Check if NTP is synchronized No
panorama Check connectivity with the Panorama appliance Yes
planes_clock_sync Check if the clock is synchronized between dataplane and management plane Yes
session_exist Check if a critical session is present in the sessions table No

State Snapshots

The following table lists the categories of state snapshots that can be captured to document essential data about the device's current state. These snapshots are crucial for diagnostics and verifying the device's operational status before proceeding with the upgrade.

Snapshot Description Enabled by Default
arp_table Snapshot of the ARP Table No
content_version Snapshot of the Content Version Yes
ip_sec_tunnels Snapshot of the IPsec Tunnels No
license Snapshot of the License Information Yes
nics Snapshot of the Network Interfaces Yes
routes Snapshot of the Routing Table No
session_stats Snapshot of the Session Statistics No

Customizing Default Settings

The default settings for readiness checks and snapshots can be customized using the pan-os-upgrade settings subcommand. This interactive command guides you through a series of prompts to configure various aspects of the script's behavior, including which readiness checks and snapshots are enabled.

To override the default settings:

  1. Run the pan-os-upgrade settings command.
  2. Follow the prompts to enable or disable specific readiness checks and snapshots.
  3. The resulting configurations are saved to a settings.yaml file in the current working directory.

Note

The settings.yaml file created by this command can be edited manually for further customization.

pan-os-upgrade settings
===============================================================================
Welcome to the PAN-OS upgrade settings menu

You'll be presented with configuration items, press enter for default settings.

This will create a `settings.yaml` file in your current working directory.
===============================================================================
Would you like to disable all readiness checks? [y/N]:
Would you like to disable all snapshots? [y/N]:
Number of concurrent threads [10]:
PAN-OS download retry interval (seconds) [60]:
PAN-OS maximum download tries [3]:
PAN-OS install retry interval (seconds) [60]:
PAN-OS maximum install attempts [3]:
Logging level [INFO]:
Path for log files [logs/upgrade.log]:
Maximum log file size (MB) [10]:
Number of upgrade logs to retain [10]:
Device reboot retry interval (seconds) [60]:
Device maximum reboot tries [30]:
Would you like to customize readiness checks? [y/N]: y
Would you like to customize snapshots? [y/N]: y
Connection timeout (seconds) [30]:
Command timeout (seconds) [120]:
Enable Check if active support is available? [Y/n]:
Enable Check if a given ARP entry is available in the ARP table? [y/N]:
Enable Check if there are pending changes on device? [Y/n]:
Enable Check if the certificates' keys meet minimum size requirements? [y/N]:
Enable Running Latest Content Version? [Y/n]:
Enable Check if any Dynamic Update job is scheduled to run within the specified time window? [Y/n]:
Enable No Expired Licenses? [Y/n]:
Enable Check if a there is enough space on the `/opt/panrepo` volume for downloading an PanOS image.? [Y/n]:
Enable Checks HA pair status from the perspective of the current device? [Y/n]: n
Enable Check if a given IPsec tunnel is in active state? [Y/n]:n
Enable Check for any job with status different than FIN? [y/N]:
Enable Check if NTP is synchronized? [y/N]:
Enable Check if the clock is synchronized between dataplane and management plane? [Y/n]:
Enable Check connectivity with the Panorama appliance? [Y/n]:
Enable Check if a critical session is present in the sessions table? [y/N]:
Enable Snapshot of the ARP Table? [y/N]:
Enable Snapshot of the Content Version? [Y/n]:
Enable Snapshot of the IPsec Tunnels? [y/N]:
Enable Snapshot of the License Information? [Y/n]:
Enable Snapshot of the Network Interfaces? [Y/n]:
Enable Snapshot of the Routing Table? [y/N]:
Enable Snapshot of the Session Statistics? [y/N]:
Configuration saved to /private/var/tmp/asdf/settings.yaml

Once you have a settings.yaml file in your current working directory, take a moment to review its contents to make sure all of the settings match your expectations.

Example settings.yaml file

concurrency:
  threads: 10
download:
  max_tries: 3
  retry_interval: 60
install:
  max_tries: 3
  retry_interval: 60
logging:
  file_path: logs/upgrade.log
  level: INFO
  max_size: 10
  upgrade_log_count: 10
readiness_checks:
  checks:
    active_support: true
    arp_entry_exist: false
    candidate_config: true
    certificates_requirements: false
    content_version: true
    dynamic_updates: true
    expired_licenses: true
    free_disk_space: true
    ha: false
    ip_sec_tunnel_status: false
    jobs: false
    ntp_sync: false
    panorama: true
    planes_clock_sync: true
    session_exist: false
  customize: true
  disabled: false
  location: assurance/readiness_checks/
reboot:
  max_tries: 30
  retry_interval: 60
snapshots:
  customize: true
  disabled: false
  location: assurance/snapshots/
  max_tries: 3
  retry_interval: 60
  state:
    arp_table: false
    content_version: true
    ip_sec_tunnels: false
    license: true
    nics: true
    routes: false
    session_stats: false
timeout_settings:
  command_timeout: 120
  connection_timeout: 30

You will be able to confirm that the file was discovered by the message within the banner Custom configuration loaded from: /path/to/your/settings.yaml. If you do not see this message in the banner, then you can assume that your settings.yaml file was not properly discovered by the script.

pan-os-upgrade firewall
Firewall hostname or IP: lab-fw1.cdot.io
Firewall username: officehours
Firewall password:
Target version: 10.1.4
Dry Run? [Y/n]: n
=================================================================================================
Welcome to the PAN-OS upgrade tool

This script software is provided on an 'as-is' basis with no warranties, and no support provided.

The selected `firewall` subcommand will upgrade a single Firewall appliance.

Settings: Custom configuration loaded file detected and loaded at:
/app/settings.yaml
=================================================================================================
🚀 lab-fw1.cdot.io: Connection to the appliance successful.
📝 lab-fw1: 007054000654320 192.168.255.11
📝 lab-fw1: HA mode: disabled
📝 lab-fw1: Current version: 10.1.3-h3
📝 lab-fw1: Target version: 10.1.4
✅ lab-fw1: Upgrade required from 10.1.3-h3 to 10.1.4
... shortened for brevity ...

Output and Assurance Functions

This output will include detailed logs of the process, such as establishing a connection, checking versions, performing upgrades, and rebooting the firewall or firewalls, especially when using Panorama as a proxy.

Assurance Functions

The script performs various assurance functions like readiness checks, snapshots, and configuration backups. These are stored in the assurance/ directory, structured as follows:

  • snapshots/: Contains pre and post-upgrade network state snapshots in JSON format.
  • readiness_checks/: Holds results of readiness checks in JSON format.
  • configurations/: Stores backups of the firewall's configuration in XML format.

Log Files and Levels

Log entries are recorded in the logs/ directory. The verbosity of logs can be controlled by creating a settings.yaml file with pan-os-upgrade settings CLI command. Available options being debug, info, warning, error, and critical.

Next Steps

With pan-os-upgrade configured, you're ready to execute the upgrade process. This guide should have provided you with all the necessary information to use the tool effectively within a Python environment. For further assistance or advanced tips, refer to the Python Troubleshooting Guide.