PATCHDIAG(1M)

NAME
patchdiag - patch administration profile tool.

SYNOPSIS
patchdiag [-l] [-p pfile sfile os_ver arch [remotename]] [-s sfile os_ver arch [remotename]] [-x xfile ] [-h |-?]

DESCRIPTION
The patchdiag Perl script is a diagnostic tool that enables system administrators to examine a profile of the patches installed on their Solaris system against the most current profiles available from Sun Microsystems with respect to:

1)  Latest revisions

2)  Recommended patches

3)  Security patches

4)  Year 2000 patches

5)  Other patches relevant to the software environment

The results of PatchDiag Tool can help a system administrator quickly determine and analyze the need for applying additional patches or newer revisions of existing patches.

PatchDiag Tool provides only patch profile information. PatchDiag does not deliver and apply any patches. If a system administrator wants to acquire and apply additional patches to a system,
the system administrator should    use their normal Sun authorized service channel,
or can access patches via the web at:

    http://sunsolve.sun.com/

With no options, patchdiag uses the default variables specified during installation. It produces a summary status report that lists:

1)  Installed patches.

2)  Uninstalled recommended patches.

3)  Uninstalled security patches.

4)  Uninstalled year 2000 patches.

COMPATIBILITY AND USAGE NOTES
This tool is a Perl compiled script compatible with all systems running a Solaris 2.3 or later environment and with all patches installed in Solaris patch packet format. As later versions of Solaris are released, earlier versions of Solaris might no longer be supported by this tool.

Patches indicated as "Recommended" patches are the most important patches. They prevent the most critical system, user, or security-related bugs that have been reported and fixed to date. Patches not listed on the recommended should be used if needed. Some patches listed in this report can have certain platform-specific or application-specific dependencies and thus might not be applicable to your system. It is important to carefully review the README file of each patch to fully determine the compatibility of any patch with your system.

REQUIREMENTS AND DEPENDENCIES
To run the PatchDiag Tool, you must have the following on your system (if you have a firewall, using the links requires the ability to access external Web pages):

patchdiag.xref
    The cross-reference data file of patch information required by the patchdiag executable to generate its patch profile report. It is updated daily to contain the latest data about patches. Always use latest version of this file to ensure accuracy; it may be obtained from:

    http://sunsolve.sun.com/private-cgi/show.pl?target=resources/patchdiag/

pkginfo
    The tool supplied with Solaris 2.3 (and later) that is used to obtain information about the packages currently installed on the system.

showrev
    The tool supplied with Solaris 2.3 (and later) that is used to obtain information about the patches installed on the system.

uname
    The command used to determine the system name and OS when that information is not supplied on the command line.

OPTIONS

-l  Produce a long-format report, including all patches available pertinent to software installed on the system:

    1)  Installed patches.

    2)  Uninstalled recommended patches.

    3)  Uninstalled security patches.

    4)  Uninstalled year 2000 patches.

    5)  Other related uninstalled patches.

-p pfile sfile os_ver arch remotename
    Use the output from showrev -p and pkginfo -l to produce a long format report including:

    1)  Installed patches

    2)  Uninstalled recommended patches

    3)  Uninstalled security patches

    4)  Uninstalled year 2000 patches

    5)  Other related uninstalled patches

    The applicable arguments are:

    arch
        The architecture of the system where the data was obtained. Valid settings include:
        sparc (default)

        i386

    sfile
        File containing output from showrev -p

    pfile
        File containing output from pkginfo -l

    os_ver
        The OS version, expressed as a SunOS number (for example, use "5.5" rather than "2.5" for Solaris 2.5).

    remotename
        The remote host name if data is being used from a remote host machine.

-s sfile os_ver arch remotename
    Use the specified output from showrev -p to produce a quick summary status report:

    1)  Installed patches.

    2)  Uninstalled recommended patches.

    3)  Uninstalled security patches.

    4)  Uninstalled year 2000 patches.

    The arguments are as described for -p).

-x xfile
    Allow user to run its own pathch cross reference other than default.

    xfile
        File containing the patch cross-reference data; the default name is patchdiag.xref

FILES

patchdiag.xref
    cross-reference data file of patch information

SEE ALSO
pkginfo(1), showrev(1M), uname(1)

SUPPORT AND USER COMMENTS
This tool is being made freely available for SunService customer usage. There is no implied support for this tool. Future revisions of this tool will be provided on a best effort basis. Please send us your comments via the SunSolve Online patch comment page at:

    http://sunsolve.sun.com/pub-cgi/feedback.pl

and follow the instructions on the page.

AUTHORS
Version 1.0.4 (01 December 1999). Copyright (C) 1999 by Sun Microsystems, Inc. Manual page by R. P. C. Rodgers, Lister Hill National Center for Biomedical Communication, U.S. National Library of Medicine (rodgers@nlm.nih.gov).