HP Network Direr Software Products manual Feature

664CHAPTER 16: UPGRADING DEVICE SOFTWARE

Key Concepts	This section describes the key concepts associated with the Agent Update
	feature.

Agent Image Files You can use the Agent Update Wizard to import agents that you have obtained from elsewhere, for example downloaded from the web. This allows you to import older agents, to create a comprehensive database of agent versions.

Some agent files can be applied to more than one specific type of device or to any type of device within a particular device family.

The Internal TFTP 3Com Network Director contains a built in TFTP server that is started Server when you begin an Agent Update operation. The server is responsible for

transferring agent software to each device when the device requests an agent image file. The Agent Update operation stops the internal TFTP Server once the operation has completed.

TFTP is an insecure file transfer protocol that requires no username or password. Therefore, 3Com Network Director places restrictions on any requests in order to prevent any unauthorized TFTP activity. The internal TFTP Server incorporates the following safeguards:

■TFTP requests are accepted only from the IP address of the devices included in the current Agent Update operation.

■Only requests for file downloads are permitted.

■The TFTP server only runs for the duration of an Agent Update operation.

Scheduling You can schedule an Agent Update operation to be carried out when the network is at its least active and will cause the least disruption to you on the network. Scheduling requires the application to be running when the operation is due to take place. It is dependant on the system clock, so in order for a scheduled agent update to run at the correct time, the system clock must be accurate.