How to Upgrade from AAP 2.5 to AAP 2.6 — Quick Guide

Introduction

If you're running Ansible Automation Platform 2.5, upgrading to 2.6 is even simpler since the platform gateway is already installed. This guide covers the streamlined upgrade process.

See also: AAP 2.6 vs 2.5 — What's Different and Should You Upgrade?

Why Upgrade from 2.5 to 2.6?

AAP 2.6 brings several features not available in 2.5: • Automation dashboard for measuring ROI • Lightspeed intelligent assistant integrated in the UI • Self-service automation portal for scaling to non-Ansible users • Enhanced EDA features including external secret management • Refreshed UI with improved accessibility

Pre-Upgrade Requirements

• AAP 2.5.x currently installed • Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 (for RPM installations) • Platform gateway already operational (included in 2.5) • Current backups

See also: How to Upgrade from AAP 2.4 to AAP 2.6 — Step-by-Step Guide

Upgrade Process

Step 1: Backup

pg_dump -U awx awx > aap25_backup_$(date +%Y%m%d).sql
tar czf aap25_config.tar.gz /etc/ansible-automation-platform/

Step 2: Update Repositories

subscription-manager repos --disable ansible-automation-platform-2.5-for-rhel-9-x86_64-rpms
subscription-manager repos --enable ansible-automation-platform-2.6-for-rhel-9-x86_64-rpms

Step 3: Run the Upgrade

tar xf ansible-automation-platform-setup-2.6.tar.gz
cd ansible-automation-platform-setup-2.6/
./setup.sh

Step 4: Verify

automation-controller-service status

What's Simpler vs 2.4 Upgrade

Since AAP 2.5 already has the platform gateway installed, the upgrade: • Skips the IAM migration step (already done in 2.5) • Has fewer configuration changes • Is generally faster and lower risk

See also: AI-Assisted Inventory Generation in AAP 2.6 — Developer Preview

Important: RPM Deprecation

AAP 2.6 is the last release installable via RPM. Starting with AAP 2.7, only containerized installations are supported. Plan your migration to containers now.

Conclusion

The 2.5 to 2.6 upgrade is the simplest path available. Take advantage of the new features while planning your containerized migration for AAP 2.7.

For more Ansible tutorials and guides, explore the complete article collection on Ansible Pilot.

Related Articles

• the Ansible AWX overview