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FREEBSD-UPDATE(8)	     System Manager's Manual	       FREEBSD-UPDATE(8)

NAME
     freebsd-update -- fetch and install binary updates to FreeBSD

SYNOPSIS
     freebsd-update [-b basedir] [-d workdir] [-f conffile] [-k KEY]
		    [-r newrelease] [-s server] [-t address] command ...

DESCRIPTION
     The  freebsd-update tool is used to fetch, install, and rollback binary up-
     dates to the FreeBSD base system.	Note that updates are only available  if
     they  are	being built for the FreeBSD release and architecture being used;
     in particular, the FreeBSD Security Team only builds updates  for	releases
     shipped  in  binary  form	by  the  FreeBSD Release Engineering Team, e.g.,
     FreeBSD 6.1-RELEASE and FreeBSD 6.2-RC1,  but  not  FreeBSD  6.2-STABLE  or
     FreeBSD 7.0-CURRENT.

OPTIONS
     The following options are supported

     -b basedir   Operate  on  a  system mounted at basedir.  (default: /, or as
		  given in the configuration file.)

     -d workdir   Store     working	files	  in	 workdir.      (default:
		  /var/db/freebsd-update/,  or	as  given  in  the configuration
		  file.)

     -f conffile  Read	 configuration	 options   from   conffile.    (default:
		  /etc/freebsd-update.conf)

     -k KEY	  Trust  an  RSA  key  with SHA256 of KEY.  (default: read value
		  from configuration file.)

     -r newrelease
		  Specify the new release to which freebsd-update should upgrade
		  (upgrade command only).

     -s server	  Fetch files from the specified server or  server  pool.   (de-
		  fault: read value from configuration file.)

     -t address   Mail	output	of  cron command, if any, to address.  (default:
		  root, or as given in the configuration file.)

COMMANDS
     The command can be any one of the following:

     fetch	  Based on the currently installed world and  the  configuration
		  options set, fetch all available binary updates.

     cron	  Sleep a random amount of time between 1 and 3600 seconds, then
		  download updates as if the fetch command was used.  If updates
		  are  downloaded, an email will be sent (to root or a different
		  address if specified via the -t option or in the configuration
		  file).  As the name suggests, this  command  is  designed  for
		  running  from cron(8); the random delay serves to minimize the
		  probability that a large number of  machines	will  simultane-
		  ously attempt to fetch updates.

     upgrade	  Fetch  files necessary for upgrading to a new release.  Before
		  using this command, make sure that you read  the  announcement
		  and  release	notes  for the new release in case there are any
		  special steps needed for upgrading.

     install	  Install the most recently fetched updates or upgrade.

     rollback	  Uninstall the most recently installed updates.

     IDS	  Compare the system against a "known good"  index  of	the  in-
		  stalled release.

TIPS
     *	 If your clock is set to local time, adding the line

	       0 3 * * * root /usr/sbin/freebsd-update cron

	 to  /etc/crontab  will check for updates every night.	If your clock is
	 set to UTC, please pick a random time other than 3AM, to  avoid  overly
	 imposing an uneven load on the server(s) hosting the updates.

     *	 In  spite  of	its name, IDS should not be relied upon as an "Intrusion
	 Detection System", since it if the system has	been  tampered	with  it
	 cannot be trusted to operate correctly.  If you intend to use this com-
	 mand for intrusion-detection purposes, make sure you boot from a secure
	 disk (e.g., a CD).

FILES
     /etc/freebsd-update.conf  Default location of the freebsd-update configura-
			       tion file.

     /var/db/freebsd-update/   Default location where freebsd-update stores tem-
			       porary files and downloaded updates.

SEE ALSO
     freebsd-update.conf(5)

AUTHORS
     Colin Percival <cperciva@FreeBSD.org>

FreeBSD 			November 11, 2007	       FREEBSD-UPDATE(8)
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