2.3 Troubleshooting

If the ZENworks Server Upgrade fails, you must rectify the problem and re-run the ZENworks Upgrade Installer.

  • You must re-run the Upgrade Installer on the same server where the upgrade was started.

  • If the upgrade fails during the post-package upgrade database action, then on re-running and after zone authentication, the pre-upgrade Summary page displays and the upgrade proceeds to perform the database actions.

  • If Embedded PostgreSQL database is used, ensure that the .dbR and .logR files are deleted from the database folder before re-running the Upgrade Installer.

The following sections provide solutions to the problems that you might encounter while upgrading the ZENworks Primary Server:

ZENworks Upgrade Stuck at ZoneAuthConfigureAction

Source: ZENworks 2020 Update 2, ZENworks Upgrade
Explanation: While upgrading the ZENworks Management Zone with the Oracle database, the upgrade is stuck at ZoneAuthConfigureAction.
Possible Cause: The Oracle database listener was configured to accept connection from DMZ on the customer-defined port, but during the upgrade, this port is being overridden with the port that is meant for connection from the internal server.
Action: In the Oracle database, if you have configured multiple listeners at the database layer, then temporarily allow Oracle to accept the connection from other servers (DMZ) to communicate using the internal port.

Externally mounted content-repo is not recognized

Explanation: Externally mounted content-repo is not recognized by ZENLoader after upgrading to ZENworks 2020 Update 2. Hence, rebuilding is never completed.
Action: While upgrading ZENworks 2020 Update 1 and earlier versions to ZENworks 2020 Update 2, ZENworks might not function properly, after upgrade, if you have content-repo as a symbolic link to a folder that is outside the ZENworks folder structure.

For example, if the content is available in /var/my-external-content-repo and /var/opt/novell/zenworks/content-repo points to that directory, then it might not work.

Hence, ensure that you move the /var/my-external-content-repo to a different partition and mount it to /var/opt/novell/zenworks/content-repo.

You can store your data on a local mount or on a network share such as NFS, SMB, or CIFS and mount the share in your content-repo directory to access your data.

Let us assume that /dev/sdb is a partition on which you are planning have the content-repo, perform the following steps:

  1. Stop all the ZENworks services.

  2. Create a directory by running mkdir /tmp/temp-mount

  3. Mount the partition: mount </dev/sdb> /tmp/temp-mount

  4. Move the content-repo by using mv /var/my-external-content-repo/* /tmp/temp-mount

  5. Unmount the directory by using umount /tmp/temp-mount

  6. Remove the directory by running rmdir /tmp/temp-mount

  7. Remove the symbolic link by tunning rm /var/opt/microfocus/zenworks/content-repo/

  8. Create a directory by running the mkdir /var/opt/microfocus/zenworks/content-repo/ command

  9. mount </dev/sdb> /var/opt/microfocus/zenworks/content-repo. Ensure that this steps is performed automatically by adding an entry in the /etc/fstab file.

    Example: //localhost/zenshare /var/opt/microfocus/zenworks/content-repo cifs username=root,password=rootpass 0 0

  10. To verify, run ls /var/opt/microfocus/zenworks/content-repo

    If the command lists the content and images folder, then the content-repo is configured successfully.

  11. Run permissions.sh

  12. Start all the ZENworks services.

ZENworks upgrade fails as the PostgreSQL Engine upgrade failed

Explanation: While upgrading ZENworks, the ZENworks upgrade fails if the PostgreSQL engine upgrade failed. This might be because the PostgreSQL service was in an inconsistent state before the upgrade was initiated.
Action: If the Database Service Creation (dbsvc) failed with return code: 2 exception is logged in the Upgrade log, then open zen20u2_upgrade_status file present at /etc/opt/novell/zenworks on Linux and %ZENWORKS_HOME%\conf on Windows and remove POSTGRES_ENGINE_UPGRADE = stop service line from the file. Start the embedded database service, and then re-trigger the upgrade.

The workaround should be performed only in case of stop service failure. However, this workaround is not recommended for failure at other stages.

Upgrade completes with an error on a Linux Primary Server

Explanation: An explanation of the message.
Possible Cause: When you upgrade a Linux Primary Server, the upgrade could complete with an error. However, this could be a false alarm and the upgrade could be successful.
Troubleshooting: Open the Upgrade log and check whether the following statement is logged:

“![CDATA[Docker service check failed: Format specifier '%s']]. Severity is CDATA[8]]”

Search for the number of instances of “![CDATA[8]]” in the upgrade log. If there is only one instance, along with the above statement, then the upgrade is successful. Please verify the same by logging into ZCC.

Upgrading to ZENworks 2020 fails on Windows Primary Server

Explanation: While upgrading the Windows Primary Server to ZENworks 2020, the upgrade fails.

If the following error is seen in the system-update.log under folder %zenworks_home%\logs\system-update\5020000000fc50000000002019100412

[SystemUpdate] [MSI_INSTALL_ERROR] [ERROR] [novell-zenworks-primary-agent-20.0.0.3138.msi,1603] [] [] [ZENworks]

For more information, see TID.

Action: Perform the following steps:

  1. If the server upgrade has already failed, then run the following command as a super user:

    icacls "%zenworks_home%\cache" /remove:d Users

  2. After running the command, retry the upgrade using the ZENworks 2020 Media Upgrade (ISO).

The MDM device displays inconsistent status after upgrading to ZENworks 2020 Update 2

Source: ZENworks
Explanation: When you apply ZENworks 2020 Update 2 on an MDM device that was enrolled in ZENworks 2020 or 2020 Update 1 (MDM only), the System Update device status displays Update Not Applicable.
Action: None

After updating all the devices in the zone, you can ignore the MDM devices to baseline the update.

System Update Failed Due to Pending Reboot Error

Source: ZENworks
Explanation: While deploying the system update, the system will restart multiple times. Even after shutting down the system, the system update failed and displayed the pending reboot error.
Action: It is recommended that you restart or reboot the device after updating the device. On the latest Windows devices, due to the Fast Startup mode, shutting down and starting is not considered a device reboot. Hence, you need to restart or reboot the device or disable the “Fast Startup” mode.

The Inventory-Only Agent (IOA) System Update Fails on SLED 15 SP1 devices

Source: ZENworks
Explanation: When you deploy an Inventory-Only Agent (IOA) system update on SLED 15 devices using the ‘zac su’ command, the system update might fail. This might be because the 'at' package might not be installed on the SLED 15 devices, by default.

To verify this, the Inventory-Only Agent (IOA) users or administrators can check the zmd-messages.log file and check for the 'Cannot run program "at": error=2, No such file or directory’ error.

Action: If the ‘at' package is not installed on the Inventory-Only Agent (IOA) device, then install the ‘at’ command using the zypper command or other tools. After installing the ‘at’ command, rerun the zac su command.

In case the zypper command fails to identify the 'at' package, we can install the following RPMs:

The RPMs can be downloaded from https://rpmfind.net/linux/rpm2html/search.php

  1. Search for ‘libHX28’ and download the rpm applicable to your OS platform.

    Example: libHX28-3.22-lp150.1.7.x86_64.rpm

  2. Search for ‘libfl2’ and download the rpm applicable to your OS platform.

    Example: libfl2-2.6.4-lp150.2.48.x86_64.rpm

  3. Search for ‘at’ and download the rpm applicable to your OS platform.

    Example: at-3.1.20-lp150.2.27.x86_64.rpm

During the Upgrade of any Windows Primary Server, Windows Explorer Automatically Restarts a Few Times

Explanation: During the upgrade of any Windows Primary Server, Windows Explorer automatically restarts a few times and the command prompt window with the following message is automatically launched: 
For each prompt presented, press 'enter' to accept the <default> value, type 'back' to return to the previous action, or type 'quit' to exit.
Action: Ignore the messages.

When ZENworks Upgrade is launched, if the database is executing any transactions, it might conflict with the upgrade process

Source: ZENworks; Upgrade
Explanation: When the ZENworks Upgrade is launched, if the database is executing any transactions, it might conflict with the upgrade process.
Action: Kill the database session that conflicts with the upgrade process. Perform the following steps, to kill a database session:

  1. Log in to the database as a system user and launch the SQL client.

  2. Execute one of the following scripts, based on the database type:

    • Oracle:

      select 'ALTER SYSTEM KILL SESSION '''||SID||','||SERIAL#||''';' AS "Drop Query",b.sql_text,a.* from gv$session a, gv$sql b where (case when a.sql_id is null then a.prev_sql_id else a.sql_id end)=b.sql_id and a.program='JDBC Thin Client' and a.logon_time< (sysdate-3/60/24) and a.username='<<ZENWORKSUSER>>';

      Where:

      ZENWORKSUSER is the ZENworks database user name.

    • MS SQL:

      select 'KILL '+cast(spid as varchar(100)) as "Drop Query", r.text,s.* from sys.sysprocesses s cross apply sys.dm_exec_sql_text (sql_handle) r where s.program_name='jTDS' and s.spid!=@@spid and s.login_time < dateadd(minute,-3,getdate()) and s.loginame='<<ZENWORKSUSER>>';

      Where:

      ZENWORKSUSER is the ZENworks database user name.

    • SQL Anywhere:

      SELECT 'Drop connection '+cast(sa_conn_info.Number as varchar(100))+';' as "Drop Query", sa_conn_info.Number AS connection_number, DB_NAME( DBNumber ) AS database_name, sa_conn_info.name AS connection_name, sa_conn_info.userid, CONNECTION_PROPERTY( 'LoginTime', Number ) as "Login Time", CONNECTION_PROPERTY( 'LastStatement', Number ) As "Query" FROM sa_conn_info() where sa_conn_info.Number != @@spid and CONNECTION_PROPERTY( 'LoginTime', Number ) < dateadd(minute,-3,getdate()) and userid='<<ZENWORKSUSER>>';

      Where

      ZENWORKSUSER is the ZENworks database user name.

While using an Oracle database, during the upgrade or database creation, the TNS error message is displayed

Source: ZENworks; Upgrade
Explanation: While using an Oracle database during the upgrade or database creation, you get an error message: TNS:listener could not find available handler with matching protocol stack.
Action: Increase the maximum load for dedicated connections, which is determined by the PROCESSES parameter. If the issue persists, contact Micro Focus Customer Support.

While using an MS-SQL database, during the upgrade or database creation, there are connection issues

Source: ZENworks; Upgrade
Explanation: While using an MS-SQL database, during the upgrade or database creation, there are connection issues with the following error message: 
org.hibernate.exception.JDBCConnectionException: Cannot open connection
Caused by: java.sql.SQLException: I/O Error: Connection reset
Caused by: java.net.SocketException: Connection reset
Action: Run select * from sys.configurations where name='user connections'

By default, the maximum connection is 32,767. You can adjust it to Number of Primary Servers * 200.For more information on how to configure the user connections, see http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms187030.aspx.

Check whether the MS-SQL server has high CPU utilization and database server load. Contact Micro Focus Customer Support for further assistance.

Incorrect values displayed for the inventory records to be pruned

Source: ZENworks; Upgrade
Explanation: When you opt for pruning in the Upgrade wizard, the number of records specified for deletion is displayed in the Pre-prune summary page.

For example, if you have marked 8,000,000 records out of the total 10,000,000 records for pruning, then 8,000,000 of 10,000,000 is displayed in the number of records specified for deletion field.

After successful pruning, when you relaunch the Upgrade wizard for pruning, the Database Pruning page displays an incorrect value in the Total number of records found to be deleted field.

For example, if 8,000,000 inventory records have been deleted out of 10,000,000 inventory records, then the ideal value to be displayed in the Total number of records found to be deleted field is 200,000.

Currently, an incorrect value is displayed. As a result, there is a mismatch in the values displayed for deleted Inventory records and for Inventory records that are yet to be deleted.

Action: There is no workaround.

An error occurs when you delete a folder with a long name

Source: ZENworks; Upgrade
Explanation: In a ZENworks zone that uses an SQL Server database, when you try to delete a ZENworks object (for example, device or folder) that has a name which exceeds 900 bytes, you will receive the following error:

com.novell.zenworks.datamodel.exceptions.InternalDataModelException: org.hibernate.exception.GenericJDBCException: Operation failed. The index entry of length 912 bytes for the index 'idx_zZENObject_Name' exceeds the maximum length of 900 bytes.

Action: Ensure that the length of ZENworks Object names in the zone does not exceed 900 bytes. For more information, see https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms191241%28v=sql.105%29.aspx.

The ZENworks schema fails to upgrade due to collation incompatibility in MS SQL database

Source: ZENworks; Upgrade
Explanation: The ZENworks schema fails to upgrade if the MS SQL server and audit database collations are incompatible.
Action: Execute the following SQL queries on both databases (ZENworks and audit) to verify database collation compatibility:

  • SQL Query to get Database Collations:

    SELECT collation_name FROM sys.databases WHERE name = db_name();

  • SQL Query to get Database columns Collations:

    select distinct collation_name from information_schema.columns where collation_name is not null;

Share the upgrade logs and queries output with the Micro Focus customer support for further analysis.

The upgrade XML log file is not displayed properly in Google Chrome and Firefox

Source: ZENworks; Upgrade
Explanation: When you try to view the upgrade XML log file in Google Chrome and Firefox, the log file was not displayed properly.
Action: To view the log file in a browser, run the following configure action:

microfocus-zenworks-configure -c

ConvertLogToHTMLConfigureAction -DlogFile=<LogFilePath>

The configure action converts the XML log file to HTML and opens the log file in a web browser.

Alternatively, you can view the log file using any text editor.

On a Linux Primary Server, the legacy Novell services are listed in start configure action

Source: ZENworks; Upgrade
Explanation: After upgrading to ZENworks 2020 Update 2 on a Linux Primary Server, when you run the following command:

novell-zenworks-configure -c Start

The legacy Novell services are listed and not the new Micro Focus services. If you try to start, stop, or restart services, an exception error is displayed.

Action: Log out of the Linux server and then log in again. Open a new terminal window and run the following command:

novell-zenworks-configure -c Start

The new Micro Focus services are now listed. You can start, stop, or restart the services.

ZENworks Primary Server Upgrade fails with the 'Zulu Platform x64 Architecture has stopped working' error

Source: ZENworks; Upgrade
Explanation: While upgrading ZENworks 2020 or Update 1 Windows Primary Server to 2020 Update 2, upgrade fails with the following error:

Zulu Platform x64 Architecture has stopped working

Possible Cause: The error occurs due to Data Execution Prevention (DEP) setting that conflicts with the program.
Action: Check the DEP on the server by navigating to by navigating to Control Panel > System > Advanced system settings. In the System Properties window, click Advanced, under Performance, click Settings. In the Performance Options window, click Data Execution Prevention.

Note the current setting. Select Turn on DEP for essential Windows programs and services only if it is not selected. Restart the Windows server and retry upgrading ZENworks Primary Server. If the error persists, contact Micro Focus Support.

Important: If the setting was changed prior to upgrade, please revert the value and restart the Windows server.