If you are logged into a GNOME session running on the machine you are going to update, switch to a text console. Running the update from within a GNOME session is not recommended. Note that this does not apply when being logged in from a remote machine (unless you are running a VNC session with GNOME).

Run YaST online update to get the latest package updates for your system.

Install the package yast2-migration and its dependencies (in YaST under Software › Software Management).

Restart YaST, otherwise the newly installed module will not be shown in the control center.

Start in YaST System › Online Migration. YaST will show possible migration targets and a summary. If more than one migration target is available for your system, select one from the list.

Select one migration target from the list and proceed with Next.

In case the migration tool offers update repositories, it is recommended to proceed with Yes.

If the Online Migration tool finds obsolete repositories coming from DVD or a local server, it is highly recommended to disable them. Obsolete repositories are from a previous SP. Any old repositories from SCC or SMT are removed automatically.

Check the summary and proceed with the migration by clicking Next. Confirm with Start Update.

After the successful migration restart your system.

If you are logged into a GNOME session running on the machine you are going to update, switch to a text console. Running the update from within a GNOME session is not recommended. Note that this does not apply when being logged in from a remote machine (unless you are running a VNC session with GNOME).

Register your SUSE Linux Enterprise machine if you have not done so:

sudo SUSEConnect --regcode YOUR_REGISTRATION_CODE

Install the latest updates:

sudo zypper patch

Install the packages zypper-migration-plugin and their dependencies:

sudo zypper migration

Run zypper migration:

tux > sudo zypper migration
Executing 'zypper  patch-check'

Refreshing service 'SUSE_Linux_Enterprise_Server_12_x86_64'.
Loading repository data...
Reading installed packages...
0 patches needed (0 security patches)

Available migrations:

    1 | SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP1 x86_64
    2 | SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12 SP2 x86_64

Some notes about the migration process:

Review all the changes, especially the packages that are going to be removed. Proceed by typing y (the exact number of packages to upgrade can vary on your system):

266 packages to upgrade, 54 to downgrade, 17 new, 8 to reinstall, 5 to remove, 1 to change arch.
Overall download size: 285.1 MiB. Already cached: 0 B  After the operation, additional 139.8 MiB will be used.
Continue? [y/n/? shows all options] (y):

Use the Shift–Page ↑ or Shift–Page ↓ keys to scroll in your shell.

After successful migration restart your system.

If you are logged into a GNOME session running on the machine you are going to update, switch to a text console. Running the update from within a GNOME session is not recommended. Note that this does not apply when being logged in from a remote machine (unless you are running a VNC session with GNOME).

Update the package management tools with the old SUSE Linux Enterprise repositories:

sudo zypper patch--updatestack-only

If the system is registered, it needs to be deregistered:

sudo SUSEConnect --de-register

Remove the old installation sources and repositories and adjust the third-party repositories.

Add the new installation sources, be it local or remote sources (for the placeholder REPOSITORY, refer to Table 13.2, “Repository Layout for SUSE Linux Enterprise 11 SP3/SP4 and for SUSE Linux Enterprise 12 SP1”):

sudo zypper addrepo REPOSITORY

You can also use SUSE Customer Center or Subscription Management Tool. The command for SUSE Linux Enterprise 12 SP1 on x86-64 is:

sudo SUSEConnect -p SLES/12.2/x86_64 OPTIONS

Keep in mind, cross-architecture upgrades are not supported.

Finalize the migration:

 sudo zypper ref -f -s
sudo zypper dup --no-allow-vendor-change --no-recommends

The first command will update all services and repositories. The second command performs a distribution upgrade. Here, the last two options are important: -no-allow-vendor-change ensures that third-party RPMs will not overwrite RPMs from the base system. The option --no-recommends ensures that packages deselected during initial installation will not be added again.

Get a list of all Snapper snapshots:

sudo snapper list

Review the output to locate the snapshot that was created immediately before the service pack migration was started. The column Description contains a corresponding statement and the snapshot is marked as important in the column Userdata. Memorize the snapshot number from the column # and it's date from the column Date.

Reboot the system. From the boot menu, select Start boot loader from a read-only snapshot and then choose the snapshot with the date and number you memorized in the previous step. A second boot menu (the one from the snapshot) is loaded. Select the entry starting with SLES 12 and boot it.

The system boots into the previous state with the system partition mounted read-only. Log in as root and check whether you have chosen the correct snapshot. Also make sure everything works as expected. Note that due to the fact that the root file system is mounted read-only restrictions in functionality may apply.

In case of problems or if you have booted the wrong snapshot, reboot and choose a different snapshot to boot from—up to this point no permanent changes have been made. If the snapshot is correct and works as expected, make the change permanent by running the following command:

snapper rollback

Reboot afterward. On the boot screen, choose the default boot entry to reboot into the reinstated system.

Check if the repository configuration and has been properly reset. Furthermore, check if all products are properly registered. If either one is not the case, updating the system at a later point in time may no longer work, or the system may be updated using the wrong package repositories.

Make sure the system can access the Internet before starting this procedure.

1. Refresh services and repositories by running

   sudo zypper ref -fs

2. Get a list of active repositories by running

   sudo zypper lr

   Carefully check the output of this command. No services and repositories that were added for the update should be listed. If you, for example, are rolling back from a service pack migration from SLES 12 SP1 to SLES 12 SP2, the list must not contain the repositories SLES12-SP2-Pool and SLES12-SP2-Updates, but rather the SP1 versions.

   In case wrong repositories are listed make sure to delete them and, if necessary, replace them with the versions matching your product or service pack version. For a list of repositories for the supported migration paths refer to Section 13.4, “Repository Model”.

3. Last, check the registration status for all products installed by running

   SUSEConnect --status

   All products should be reported as being Registered. If this is not the case, repair the registration by running

   SUSEConnect --rollback