Using the KernelCare plug-in
You can use the KernelCare plug-in to patch the Linux kernel on hosts without rebooting them. The plug-in provides job templates to view and live-patch the Linux kernel on hosts and ensures hosts do not report to orcharhino Server that a reboot is required through tracer. For more information, see tuxcare.com/live-patching-services and docs.tuxcare.com/live-patching-services.
The KernelCare plug-in is a technical preview. ATIX AG does not recommend running this in your production environment. |
Installing the KernelCare plug-in
Use the following procedure to install the KernelCare plug-in.
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Install the plug-in on your orcharhino Server:
$ orcharhino-installer --enable-foreman-plugin-kernel-care
KernelCare client
You need to provide the KernelCare client to your hosts. Synchronize the required repositories depending on the operating system of your hosts.
After synchronization, ensure to make the content consumable to your hosts.
Creating KernelCare repositories for CentOS 7
You need to provide the KernelCare client on your hosts to live-patch their Linux kernel.
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In the orcharhino management UI, navigate to Content > Products.
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Click Create Product to create a product named
KernelCare CentOS
. For more information, see Creating a Product in Managing Content. -
On the Repositories tab, click New Repository to create a repository of type
yum
as follows:-
Name:
KernelCare CentOS 7
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Upstream URL:
https://repo.cloudlinux.com/kernelcare/7/x86_64/
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Optional: Add the KernelCare GPG pub key as content credential:
https://repo.cloudlinux.com/kernelcare/RPM-GPG-KEY-KernelCare
.
For more information, see Adding RPM Repositories in Managing Content.
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Installing the KernelCare package on hosts
You can use kernelcare
to patch the Linux kernel on hosts without rebooting them.
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Your hosts have access to the KernelCare repository. For more information, see KernelCare Client.
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In the orcharhino management UI, navigate to Monitor > Jobs and click Run job.
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Select Katello as Job category and Install Package – Katello Script Default as Job template and click Next.
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Select hosts on which you want to run the job. If you do not select any hosts, the job will run on all hosts you can see in the current context.
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In the package field, enter
kernelcare
and click Next. -
Optional: To configure advanced settings for the job, fill in the Advanced fields. To learn more about advanced settings, see advanced settings in the job wizard.
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Click Next.
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Select Immediate execution to execute the job immediately and click Next.
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Review job details. You have the option to return to any part of the job wizard and edit the information.
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Click Run to install
kernelcare
on your hosts.
Viewing patched kernel version
You can use a job template to view the patched kernel version on hosts.
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Ensure the
kernelcare
package is installed on your hosts. For more information, see Installing the KernelCare Package on Hosts.
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In the orcharhino management UI, navigate to Monitor > Jobs and click Run job.
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Select LivePatching – Script Default as Job category and LivePatching – Kernel version as Job template and click Next.
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Select hosts on which you want to run the job. If you do not select any hosts, the job will run on all hosts you can see in the current context.
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Click Next.
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Optional: To configure advanced settings for the job, fill in the Advanced fields. To learn more about advanced settings, see advanced settings in the job wizard.
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Click Next.
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Select Immediate execution to execute the job immediately and click Next.
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Review job details. You have the option to return to any part of the job wizard and edit the information.
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Click Run to view the running Kernel version on your hosts.
Live patching hosts using KernelCare plug-in
You can use kcarectl
provided by TuxCare to live-patch the Linux kernel on your hosts.
By default, kcarectl
checks for updates every four hours.
If the automatic installation of patches is disabled or if you want to install patches manually at a certain time, you can start the process using a remote execution job.
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Ensure your hosts have the
kernelcare
package installed. -
Ensure your hosts run CentOS 7, CentOS 8, or CentOS 9.
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Ensure your hosts have access to the internet to connect to cloudlinux.com.
If your host is in a disconnected environment, you can use ePortal by Tuxcare to provide Linux kernel patches. For more information, see docs.tuxcare.com/eportal.
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In the orcharhino management UI, navigate to Monitor > Jobs and click Run job.
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Select LivePatching – Script Default as Job category and LivePatching – Update kernel as Job template and click Next.
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Select hosts on which you want to run the job. If you do not select any hosts, the job will run on all hosts you can see in the current context.
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Click Next.
-
Optional: To configure advanced settings for the job, fill in the Advanced fields. To learn more about advanced settings, see advanced settings in the job wizard.
-
Click Next.
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Select Immediate execution to execute the job immediately and click Next.
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Review job details. You have the option to return to any part of the job wizard and edit the information.
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Click Run to update to the latest Linux kernel on your hosts.
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For more information on live-patching hosts, see docs.tuxcare.com/live-patching-services.
The text and illustrations on this page are licensed by ATIX AG under a Creative Commons Attribution–Share Alike 3.0 Unported ("CC-BY-SA") license. This page also contains text from the official Foreman documentation which uses the same license ("CC-BY-SA"). |