Updating host agents

The process to update Instana agents varies depending on multiple factors such as the type of agent deployment dynamic or static, the type of environment, and the type of update schedule (manual or automatic).

For more information on the difference between static and dynamic agents, see Host agent types.

See the following sections to learn how to update the host agents:

Updating dynamic agents automatically

You can use the self-update capability of the dynamic agents and further customize the capability to suit your business requirements by scheduling updates, controlling updates, and pinning versions.

To learn how to configure the agent for controlled updates and version pinning, see Configuring updates of dynamic host agents.

The automatic updates of the dynamic host agents update only the agent bundles. To update the agent bootstrap, you must reinstall the agent manually. You are suggested to periodically (for example, every 6 months) reinstall the agent to make sure that you get the necessary bootstrap changes. See the Planned updates to the agent section plan your manual updates to avoid risks.

Updating dynamic agents manually

You can manually start an update for a dynamic agent by using the Instana agent management dashboard.

From the Instana navigation menu, select More > Agents to open the dashboard. In the dashboard, click Update agent.

Additionally, you can update dynamic agents that are installed on some hosts by using the Instana UI or command line inputs.

For more information, see the following sections:

Updating dynamic agents on containerized environments

For containerized environments such as Kubernetes or Red Hat OpenShift, you can use the agent operator or Helm chart to update the agent. For more information, see the following sections:

Updating static agents

The static agent is a self-contained host agent that includes all the newest components at the time of its release. However, this type of agent cannot self-update. Therefore, you must manually update the static agents by reinstalling the agent. You can use technologies such as Ansible or Terraform to perform the update.