When I logged on to my Object First Appliance again, I saw that an update was available once more.
Honestly, it’s almost too simple to write a blog post about, but why not ;-)
Updating your Object First (Ootbi) appliance is super easy and quick (and much faster than it took to write this post).
Updates roll out security patches, bug fixes, performance improvements, and new features — and the best part is that the whole thing is driven from a easy Web UI with only some clicks.
In this post, I’ll walk you through updating your Ootbi cluster end to end: the online method (for internet-connected appliances), the offline method (for air-gapped or security-restricted environments), and the pre- and post-update checks I always recommend before calling the job done.
Good to know: Ootbi updates are applied at the cluster level, not node by node. When you trigger an update, it’s automatically pushed across every node in the cluster, so all your nodes stay on the same version without any extra effort on your part.
Notification about updates
Object First notifies you by email about new updates. There are two mechanisms:
– The appliance’s own email notifications, which you enable under Settings in the Notifications tab to be informed about events including available updates.
– The second is automatic notifications via the Telemetry service, which uses the outbound port 443 access. When Telemetry is enabled, Object First automates update notifications as part of the added value it provides.
Alternatively, you can see the update notifications when you log in to the appliance or the new Fleet Manager.
Pre-Update Checks
A few things worth confirming before you start:
- Access to the Web UI: You need to access the cluster’s WebUI using an admin account. You can access it via the cluster’s IP address in your web browser.
- Network requirements for online updates: Port 443 must be open so the appliance can pull updates and send telemetry. If your appliance can’t reach the internet, skip straight to the offline method below.
- A quick health check: Make sure the cluster is healthy and there are no active alerts indicating a node problem.
- Timing: While updates usually complete in minutes and most happen without disrupting backups, it’s still smart to schedule the update for a quiet window outside of major backup jobs.
- Disable Backup Jobs: I would recommend that you disable backup jobs that run continuously (e.g., transaction log jobs), but it’s best to simply disable all backup jobs
Step 1: Log In to the Web UI
Open a browser on a machine with local network access to the cluster and navigate to your cluster IP over HTTPS: https://<your-cluster-ip>
Sign in with your administrator credentials. Use the administrator account you configured during initial setup or an personalized admin account.
If the appliance has internet access, the first thing to glance at is the Alerts and Events area on the dashboard. If a newer version is available, Ootbi surfaces it here as a notification — so you’ll often know an update is waiting before you even go looking for it.
Step 2: Open the Cluster Update Page
From the dashboard, head to Settings, then select Cluster Update.
This is the control center for all things update-related. If your appliance is online, it automatically checks for the latest version and displays it right here. If you’re already current, you’ll see a message confirming that the installed version is up to date.
Step 3: Update
Online Update (Internet-Connected Appliance)
This is the simplest path. When the appliance can reach the vendor’s update servers, it handles both the download and the install in a single flow.
Step 3a: Review and Start the Update
On the Cluster Update page, the newest available version is shown automatically. If not, click on “check Updates” to initialize an update check.
Click Update Cluster to begin the update.
A window will appear with the release notes for the new version. Read these — they tell you what’s changing, whether there are any prerequisites, and whether the release introduces features you’ll want to enable afterward.
Step 3b: Install
Once you’ve reviewed the notes, click Install. The update installation kicks off, and you’ll see the progress on screen.
Sometimes a reboot is required as part of the update. The appliance handles this automatically, so you don’t need to manually power-cycle anything. Just let it finish.
Step 3c: Confirm Success
When the process completes, the cluster comes back online running the new version. Return to the Cluster Update page and you should now see the “installed version is up to date” confirmation.
That’s it — your cluster is updated.
Offline Update (Air-Gapped or Restricted Environment)
If your appliance is isolated from the internet — common in security-hardened or air-gapped setups — you can apply the same updates manually using an offline bundle. This keeps an isolated system patched without ever connecting it to the outside world.
Step 3a: Download the Offline Bundle
From a machine/server that does have internet access, head to the Object First Release Notes page for the version you want. There you’ll find the latest offline bundle along with the full list of improvements. Download the bundle.
Link: Object First Help: Release Notes
The offline bundle must be requested through a short form, after which Object First emails you a download link. If you need it quickly, contacting Object First Support can speed up the approval
Step 3b: Upload the Bundle + Install
Transfer the downloaded bundle to a machine that can reach the cluster Web UI, then:
- Log in to the Web UI and go to Settings → Cluster Update.
- Select Upload Offline Bundle.
- Browse to the bundle file, select it, and click Open.
- Wait for the upload and installation to complete (steps are the same as online update after upload).
When it finishes, you’ll get confirmation that the offline update completed successfully. As with the online method, the clustern sometimes reboots as part of the process and returns running the new version.
Step 4: Post-Update Steps
- Check repository availability: After the update, check in the Veeam Console to make sure that the repository is accessible from Veeam and is not displayed as “offline.”
- Enable Backup Jobs: If you disabled the backup jobs before the update, you’ll need to re-enable them.
- Test Backup Job: This step is optional but I recommend it. After any cluster update, run a Veeam Backup & Replication (VBR) job against the Ootbi repository to confirm everything still works as expected.
Troubleshooting Tips
- No update is showing up online: Confirm the appliance can reach the internet and that port 443 is open. A blocked outbound connection is the usual culprit.
- “Installed version is up to date” but you expected a newer one: The release may be staged/gradual, or you may need to clear an intermediate prerequisite version first. Check the release notes.
- Offline bundle won’t upload: Verify you downloaded the correct bundle for your model and current version, and that the file wasn’t corrupted during transfer.
- Cluster doesn’t come back after reboot: Give it a few minutes — the reboot is part of the process sometimes. If it stays unreachable, the IPMI interface is your out-of-band lifeline for diagnostics, and Object First Support can help from there (Please unplug it after use)
Conclusion
As you can see, the update is really super easy and straightforward.
Original post on my blog: Object First: How to Update Your Object First Cluster from the Web UI - petersvirtualworld.de
