Updating the product on distributed and IBM i operating systems

Product fix packs contain bundled service to bring WebSphere® Application Server up to a new product level. Interim fixes provide corrective service for specific known problems. You can use IBM® Installation Manager to update the product with the interim fixes and fix packs that are available for your service level of WebSphere Application Server Version 9.0.

Before you begin

For the most current information about upgrades for WebSphere Application Server offerings, see the IBM Software Support Center and Fix Central.

To view available fix packs and interim fixes, perform the following actions:

Go to Fix Central.
Select the Select product tab.
Select WebSphere as the product group.
Select WebSphere Application Server as the product.
Select your installed product version.
Select your operating system as the platform, and click Continue.
Select Browse for fixes, and click Continue.
Click More Information under each fix to view information about the fix.

About this task

IBM Installation Manager is used to apply and remove product maintenance, which comes packaged in the form of fix packs and interim fixes.

Fix pack: A fix pack contains bundled service to bring your WebSphere Application Server installation up to a new product level. The product level for the fix pack is denoted by the last numeral in the version number, such as 1 in Version 9.0.0.1.
Fix packs are cumulative. When a prerequisite or co-requisite fix pack is recommended, you can install that specific fix pack or a later fix pack. For example, if a functionality requires Version 9.0.0.1, you can apply Version 9.0.0.2 or any later fix packs to get it.
Interim fix: Interim fixes provide corrective service for specific known problems. These fixes are released between fix packs so that you can apply critical updates to your installations as soon as possible.

When you install a fix pack, Installation Manager automatically reapplies any installed interim fixes if they apply to the updated fix pack level. Interim fixes that do not apply, such as if the updated fix pack contains the fix, are uninstalled. In some cases, Installation Manager must uninstall an interim fix that you must manually reapply. For example, you might update to a fix pack that does not contain the fix and requires an updated interim fix level. Installation Manager notifies you if any interim fixes must be manually reapplied. You can verify which interim fixes are installed by running the versionInfo -ifixes command.

Tip: You can use the IBM Packaging Utility to generate a new local or web-based repository that contains all of the fixes that you want to install and then use Installation Manager to update WebSphere Application Server Version 9.0 with all of the interim fixes as a group. For information on using the Packaging Utility, see the IBM Installation Manager documentation.