16.14. Upgrading an Existing System
Important
The following sections only apply to upgrading Red Hat Enterprise Linux between minor versions, for example, upgrading Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.4 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6.5 or higher. This approach is not supported for upgrades between major versions, for example, upgrading Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 7.
In-place upgrades between major versions of Red Hat Enterprise Linux can be done, with certain limitations, using the Red Hat Upgrade Tool and Preupgrade Assistant tools. See Chapter 37, Upgrading Your Current System for more information.
The installation system automatically detects any existing installation of Red Hat Enterprise Linux. The upgrade process updates the existing system software with new versions, but does not remove any data from users' home directories. The existing partition structure on your hard drives does not change. Your system configuration changes only if a package upgrade demands it. Most package upgrades do not change system configuration, but rather install an additional configuration file for you to examine later.
Note that the installation medium that you are using might not contain all the software packages that you need to upgrade your computer.
16.14.1. The Upgrade Dialog
If your system contains a Red Hat Enterprise Linux installation, a dialog appears asking whether you want to upgrade that installation. To perform an upgrade of an existing system, choose the appropriate installation from the drop-down list and select .
Figure 16.35. The Upgrade Dialog
Note
Software you have installed manually on your existing Red Hat Enterprise Linux system may behave differently after an upgrade. You may need to manually reinstall or recompile this software after an upgrade to ensure it performs correctly on the updated system.
