Cisco Cisco MDS 9000 NX-OS Software Release 4.2 Installation Guide

Each switch is shipped with a Cisco MDS NX-OS or SAN-OS operating system for Cisco MDS 9000 
Family switches. The Cisco MDS NX-OS and SAN-OS software consists of two images: the kickstart 
image and the system image. 

To select the kickstart image, use the KICKSTART variable. 

To select the system image, use the SYSTEM variable.

The images and variables are important factors in any install procedure. You must specify the variable 
and the respective image to upgrade or downgrade your switch. Both images are not always required for 
each install.

http://www.cisco.com/cisco/software/navigator.html

For Storage Services Interface image compatibility information, refer to the 

. 

For information on Fabric Manager upgrade and downgrade paths, and software images that are 
supported on your Cisco switches, refer to the 

.

The software image install procedure is dependent on the following factors: 

Software images—The kickstart and system image files reside in directories or folders that can be 
accessed from the Cisco MDS 9000 Family switch prompt.

Image version—Each image file has a version.

Flash disks on the switch—The bootflash: resides on the supervisor module and the CompactFlash 
disk is inserted into the slot0: device.

Supervisor modules—There are single or dual supervisor modules. 

On switches with dual supervisor modules, both supervisor modules must have Ethernet 
connections on the management interfaces (mgmt 0) to maintain connectivity when switchovers 
occur during upgrades and downgrades. Refer to the