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ArubaOS-CX, SSR/LSR and the Aruba 8320.

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  • 1.  ArubaOS-CX, SSR/LSR and the Aruba 8320.

    MVP GURU
    Posted Jun 18, 2022 12:37 PM
    Hi all,

    with the ArubaOS-CX 10.10 just around the corner I casually noticed that some AOS-CX Major Software Releases are declared SSR while some others are declared LSR following this list (no info about Major Software Releases older than AOS-CX 10.6 but that it's pretty much understandable):

    • AOS-CX 10.06 is a Long Supported Release (LSR)
    • AOS-CX 10.07 is a Short Supported Release (SSR)
    • AOS-CX 10.08 is a Short Supported Release (SSR)
    • AOS-CX 10.09 is a Short Supported Release (SSR)
    • AOS-CX 10.10 is a Long Supported Release (LSR)
    Provided that, as per what is explained here, running an AOS-CX Long Supported Release (LSR) means:

    - LSRs are long lived releases where Aruba will introduce new features and new hardware, and park hardware (that is, this may be the last major release supported) as needed.
    - LSRs are be maintained and supported for 5 years (i.e., Initial Release + 5 years) but with two phases and with minor differences between AOS 8 and AOS-CX.
    - Initial Release to End of Maintenance (EOM*): Bug and vulnerability patching with releases reducing in frequency over time.
    - EOM to End of Support (EOST): Vulnerability patching on an as needed basis for High or Critical CVSS issues.

    while running an AOS-CX Short Supported Release (SSR) means:

    - SSRs are short lived releases where Aruba will introduce new features and new hardware. This release will not be the last major release supported for any hardware model.
    - The SSR release support period (e.g., Initial Release + n time) are AOS 8 or AOS-CX specific.
    - The End of Maintenance (EOM*) and End of Support (EOST) will be the same date.

    Then, what is the meaning of this particular part of the first sentence of the LSR description "...and park hardware (that is, this may be the last major release supported) as needed." ?

    The above question with the old and glorious Aruba 8320 in mind (the Aruba 8400X, 8320 and 8325 are de-facto the oldest ones in the current CX family) guessing that it would probably be the first Hardware platform to be "parked" in the next coming years.

    My experience with the Aruba 8320 started with AOS-CX 10.01 four years ago in 2018 so, at this point in time, I'm trying to imagine what will be its lifespan and if the AOS-CX 10.10 will be the Last Major Release supported or not (that is just a personal uneducated guess).

    Considering an Aruba 8320, is it time to plan a move to next-to-come AOS-CX 10.10 or continue to keep it parked into, say, one of 10.07 SSR, 10.08 SSR or 10.09 SSR major releases? mine is currently at 10.07 SSR so downgrading to 10.06 just to benefit of LSR is not an option, better to think about 10.10.

    Any opinion?


  • 2.  RE: ArubaOS-CX, SSR/LSR and the Aruba 8320.
    Best Answer

    EMPLOYEE
    Posted Jun 20, 2022 06:35 AM

    If you want a far-off date on 8320, you may consider upgrading to 10.10 (LSR), after one or two maintenance releases.


    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: ArubaOS-CX, SSR/LSR and the Aruba 8320.

    MVP GURU
    Posted Jun 20, 2022 09:57 AM
    Hi Vincent, do you mean start worrying about moving the Aruba 8320 to 10.10 (LSR) once, say, the 10.11 (SSR, I guess) and the 10.12 (SSR, I guess) will be out? if so it's a matter of waiting years (at least two or three, I guess)...is it correct? or - with "after one or two maintenance releases" you really mean "after one or two software builds once the AOS-CX 10.10 will be published" (so in the next few months)? sorry, I'm confused.
    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: ArubaOS-CX, SSR/LSR and the Aruba 8320.

    EMPLOYEE
    Posted Jun 20, 2022 10:44 AM
    No, by maintenance release I mean revision of the main release. For instance, in 10.09, the second maintenance release was: 10.09.1000.
    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: ArubaOS-CX, SSR/LSR and the Aruba 8320.

    Posted Jun 29, 2022 07:59 AM
    Hi, Does LSR directly map with Conservative release, i.e, LSR is deployed for a significant time in real time production environment and has aggressive testing compared to SSR? Or is the difference limited to that LSR will park and SSR won't with difference in lifetime?  In short, is LSR considered safe and stable compared to SSR? Thank you.
    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: ArubaOS-CX, SSR/LSR and the Aruba 8320.

    EMPLOYEE
    Posted Jun 30, 2022 04:48 AM
    As Davide mentioned already :
    • LSRs would be maintained and supported for 5 years (i.e., Initial Release + 5 years) but with two phases and with minor differences between AOS 8 and AOS-CX. Initial Release to End of Maintenance (EOM*): Bug and vulnerability patching with releases reducing in frequency over time. EOM to End of Support (EOST): Vulnerability patching on an as needed basis for High or Critical CVSS issues.

    There is no new features back-porting in LSR.
    There is no test quality differences between LSR and SSR. But as time flies, the LSR will include more fixes than a given SSR would have, as after one year there is no fix any longer on that given SSR. In the same time, a new SSR will include fixes inserted in previous SSR or LSR.
    Original Message


  • 7.  RE: ArubaOS-CX, SSR/LSR and the Aruba 8320.

    Posted May 15, 2023 03:15 PM

    I'm currently running 10.11.1010, which is listed as SSR as well.  Is there any disadvantage of moving to 10.1.1021 SSR?  Is there any advantage of moving back to 10.10.1040 LSR?   What are they referring to when they say, " no hardware will be parked" and why the 3-year SSR vs 5-year LSR support?  Very confusing.


    Original Message


  • 8.  RE: ArubaOS-CX, SSR/LSR and the Aruba 8320.

    MVP GURU
    Posted May 16, 2023 03:40 AM

    Hi!

    "What are they referring to when they say, "no hardware will be parked" and why the 3-year SSR vs 5-year LSR support?"
    I'm not sure having read that "no hardware will be parked"; on the contrary some Aruba hardware, necessarily, is going to be "parked" at some point in the near future.
     
    This thread was started to verify if (it was my main doubt at that time) the AOS-CX 10.10 LSR was supposed to be the last software release supported "for some years to come" to keep oldest hardware platforms still running for few more years...and, as far as I can tell you now, I'm under the impression it is: I personally tend to believe that the AOS-CX 10.12 - being the next SSR after the current AOS-CX 10.11 - will not be supported by the Aruba 8320 platform, that's just a personal thought.
    With regard to using current newest SSR AOS-CX 10.11 (build 1021) versus the LSR AOS-CX 10.10 (build 1060), it is a matter of (new) features you are going to require in your network scenario (new features will not be back-ported into a LSR) and also the pace at with you will plan Switch maintenance for AOS-CX updates (theoretically LSR should show a different software release pace in the medium/long terms with respect to each SSR that will be released during the entire life of a single LSR...actually every time a new SSR's build is published also a LSR's build is...so the pace is quite the same).

    Edit - forgot to add this link to see AOS-CX EoL/EoS timeline for SSR/LSR:

    https://www.arubanetworks.com/support-services/end-of-life/#product=aos-cx-switching-software&version=0


    Original Message


  • 9.  RE: ArubaOS-CX, SSR/LSR and the Aruba 8320.

    EMPLOYEE
    Posted May 16, 2023 08:59 AM

    'hardware parked' means that firmware reached the maximum version for a specific switch. Let's say for a specific switch model is parked in the 10.10LSR release, then you can run up to any 10.10.xxxx LSR, but not 10.11.xxxx or 10.12.xxxx or higher releases. The idea of parking in an LSR version is that you will have patches for the longest extended lifetime of a switch.



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    Herman Robers
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    If you have urgent issues, always contact your Aruba partner, distributor, or Aruba TAC Support. Check https://www.arubanetworks.com/support-services/contact-support/ for how to contact Aruba TAC. Any opinions expressed here are solely my own and not necessarily that of Hewlett Packard Enterprise or Aruba Networks.

    In case your problem is solved, please invest the time to post a follow-up with the information on how you solved it. Others can benefit from that.
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    Original Message