After 13+ years of using NetWorker, I still tend to interchangeably use the terms ‘upgrade’ and ‘update’ (or to be more precise, mainly use the term ‘upgrade’).
However, there is, and always has been, a difference between the two terms in NetWorker nomenclature, and it’s useful knowing it in case you’re being asked to qualify your environment to a support person.
Here’s what they mean for NetWorker:
- An upgrade is transitioning from one licensed feature set to a more advanced licensed feature set. For example, you might upgrade from NetWorker, Network Edition to NetWorker, Power Edition. Previously (when tiered licensing was still used for Windows modules), you might upgrade from say, Exchange Module Tier 1 to Exchange Module Tier 2. Alternatively, you can buy an upgrade to slot capacity for an Autochanger license (e.g., upgrading from a 1-64 slot license to a 1-128 slot license).
- An update is where you change the version of a NetWorker product. E.g., you update from NetWorker 7.4.4 to NetWorker 7.4.5, or from NetWorker 7.3 to NetWorker 7.5.1. You would equally update from Oracle Module 4.5 to Oracle Module 5.
Since in both support and data protection it’s useful to avoid ambiguities, understanding the difference between these two terms can be important.