MikroTik

Sorry - newbie question...

a) I help run a small wISP and we have now two Mikrotik licences, and copies of 2.8.27 running on PCs. We are very impressed with flexibility and power of the programs. Also by the documentation - but there seems to be little about WinBox, probably because it mirrors the general operation in terminal mode.

b) I now want to upgrade to 2.9 - I have downloaded -> Packages (version 2.9rc2) and unzipped it.

c) To upgrade - IS it really as simple as logging in via FTP (I can do this locally as the router is 1 metre away) - and FTP the upgrade files to the router ??!!. Can someone please confirm I do not run a risk of messing up the license??

d) Finally, there is an 'upgrade' option in WinBox -> SYSTEM -> UPGRADE.
Can I use WinBox rather than FTP, by just pointing WinBox at the correct directory on my PC?

e) Presumably my current settings on the router will be preserved?

I apologise for these rather simple questions, and I HAVE RTFM - but I am asking for a little confirmation, that is all.

Yep...
It is about that simple..

Things to watch for..

1) Make sure you FTP the files in BIN mode !!! If you dont it wont upgrade !!!

2) I have heard some issues with rule translation so have your documentation at hand (setings / rules etc) just incase....

3) The Lic. for 2.8X is valid for 2.9 as well (as long as you are within your 1 year upgrade limit) The Lic will also upgrade to 2.9 Full when released.

4) DO NOT use a beta on a production environment unless you can deal with issues yourself or via forums as this is still a "limited support version".

Now that I have the fear of god into you..

I have had no issue with mine..

I am sure others will want to give you some pointers as well...

Craig

Many thanks for helping a newbie...
We have only been running Mikrotik for less than two weeks !!
So we are obviously within our upgrade limit.

Re the BIN mode - the files are .npk files, but I FTP them BIN mode - yes ?? I think that is correct, I just set bin mode in the FTP prog (NOT ASCII, yes, well that is reasonaly clear...)

I noticed from another post, that Winbox 2.9 is different to Winbox 2.8 so I have to log into the router to download the latest Winbox apparently, as 2.8 does not work with 2.9.

My environment here is at the end of the wISP - ie, I access to control the system, I get my broadband via the wISP BUT if all goes wrong, I have an aDSL line as backup ( ))) - so I can remote login to the wISP routers etc to manage the system.

That is why I have the job of testing and assessing Mikrotik (because I can access and play with the program without affecting our customers), and so far I am very pleased and impressed with it.

PS regarding rules, nat etc, I took a full print out so I could fix things in terminal / keyboard mode when I screwed up (ie when I deleted the main routing table etc....)