Errors Upgrading to ZCM 11 SP2 seen on setup.exe

  • Document ID:7002974
  • Creation Date:04-Apr-2012
  • Modified Date:08-May-2012
    • Micro Focus Products:
      ZENworks Asset Management
      ZENworks Configuration Management
      ZENworks Endpoint Security Management
      ZENworks Patch Management

Environment

Novell ZENworks 11 Configuration Management Support Pack 2 - ZCM 11 SP2
Novell ZENworks 11 Asset Management - ZAM 11 SP2
Novell ZENworks 11 Patch Management - ZPM 11 SP2
Novell ZENworks 11 Endpoint Security Management - ZESM 11 SP2

Situation

The ZCM Agent upgrade fails when installing the setup.exe (which installs the core ZESService and related files found in the %ZENWORKS_HOME%\esm\ directory) and performs a rollback of this setup.exe, on Windows 2008 x86_64 servers (2008 and 2008 R2). The following things were noticed after the setup.exe rollback finished:
  • An error is seen in ZCC (ZCC > System Updates > Deploying System Updates > "Update for ZENworks (11 SP2)" > Failed) on a device to which the "Update for ZENworks (11 SP2)" is assigned
  • ZESService not created and seen in Windows Services
  • %ZENWORKS_HOME%\esm\ directory not created
  • C:\ProgramData\Novell\ZES\Install\zesm_install_log_<Date and Time stamp>.txt files (in Win XP is under: c:\Document and Settings\All Users\Application Data\Novell\ZES\Install) contain the following entries:
    • About to execute command: C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v2.0.50727\InstallUtil.exe
    • Command Timed out without returning and ExitCode
  • Some systems had a non-standard %ZENWORKS_HOME%\ZENworks Security Agent\ directory containing the files normally found in the %ZENWORKS_HOME%\esm\ directory.

Resolution

A fix for this issue is intended to be included in a future update to the product: however, in the interim, Novell has made a Patch available for testing, as part of a Monthly patch update: it can be obtained at https://download.novell.com/Download?buildid=EWuCrZ4JAO0~ as "ZCM 11.2 Monthly Update 1 - see TID 7004550". This update should only be applied if the symptoms above are being experienced, and are causing problems.

Please report any problems encountered when using this Patch, by using the feedback link on this TID.

Workaround:
  1. Copy the contents of the %ZENWORKS_HOME%\esm\ directory of a known good device, running the same version of the ZCM/ZES agent to the %ZENWORKS_HOME%\esm\ directory on the device where the setup.exe failed.
  2. Manually install the ZESService by browsing to the .NET framework install path and running (C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\):
    installutil "%ZENWORKS_HOME%\esm\zesservice.exe"
  3. Execute the install (setup.exe) with the following MSI properties passed (or run from an administrative command prompt like this):

    setup.exe /V"/L*v esm_inst.log INSTALLDIR=\"%ZENWORKS_HOME%\esm\" TARGETDIR=\"%ZENWORKS_HOME%\esm\" STRBR=ReallySuppress"

    Note: Silent install -- add /qn before the last closed quotation mark as in the following example:

    setup.exe /V"/L*v esm_inst.log INSTALLDIR=\"%ZENWORKS_HOME%\esm\" TARGETDIR=\"%ZENWORKS_HOME%\esm\" STRBR=ReallySuppress /qn"
A server reboot after the setup.exe install completes resolves this issue and finishes the ZCM Agent install.

Cause

The installation of the .NET service took 2 or 3 times longer than normal on these particular systems. This triggered a time-out and the subsequent failure of the setup.exe.

Additional Information

Although this issue surfaced during a ZCM 11.2 Agent update on the Windows 2008 and Windows 2008 R2 platforms. In theory, it could feasibly occur on other Windows platforms or during a ZCM 11.2 agent install. These later possibilities, although not encountered, should not be entirely ruled out as possibilities.