Hi, after the release of ArubaOS-CX 10.03.0071 (very few days after the previous 10.03.0070 and just for a very specific OSPF related fixes) I start thinking that, considering we are now in 2020, would be nice to see an ArubaOS-CX capable of being Hot Patched without requiring the Switch to reboot [*],[**].
I didn't a deep research about this item but, since ArubaOS-CX has its roots into OpenSwitch (gets its heritage from it), I easily found an interesting thread (started mid October 2015!) around the idea of an OpenSwitch supporting Hot-Patching exactly looking for OpenSwitch and Hot Patching...and, without surprise, most of those posters, plus the OP (Marcelo Magallon), were/still are HPE developers or software engineers...the full read is indeed very interesting (especially because it explains how complex would it be to handle and because it was considered quite a tall challenge). I know ArubaOS-CX is not OpenSwitch (ArubaOS-CX looks totally developed internally and probably OpenSwitch and ArubaOS-CX's code diverged during development of both (nevertheless I suspect some architectural mechanisms could be still the same).
Will there ever be an ArubaOS-CX NOS capable of being Hot-Patched (considering both Standalone and VSX scenarios)?
What do you think?
[*] especially when we refer to code security/network protocol deamons related fixes released within the same software release (say when we see a fix to LACP, STP or to OSFP as examples): those fixes can be applied to a Standalone/VSX deployment and, as of now, those fixes will always require a reboot of involved switches...that, IMHO, is seen quite often as a problematic procedure (nobody is granting it will totally trouble free) and a proper maintenance window must always be planned in advance in case of unexpected troubles...so hot patching could be an interesting approach.
[**] Worth a look (to understand how complex things are behind the scene just considering the Linux Kernel).