Update your Wowza Streaming Engine installation

About Wowza Streaming Engine updates

Updates for Wowza Streaming Engine are packaged in a ZIP archive updater file using the naming convention WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version ].zip where [version] is the update version.

You must have an active Maintenance and Support contract to receive updaters. The Maintenance and Support contract entitles you to free full upgrades and dot-release updates for Wowza Streaming Engine, and email technical support. If you have a valid license for Wowza Streaming Engine, you can create an account on Wowza.com and then sign in to your Account Management page to find available updaters on the Downloads tab.

Before you start

Depending on the version of your base installation of Wowza Streaming Engine and the version you want to update to, you may need to install a supported version of Java before you update.

Updating to Wowza Streaming Engine version 4.8.18 or later

You should complete the following tasks if you are updating to Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.18 from a base installation of Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.17 or earlier:

• Install a supported version of Java, such as Java 11-12 or the OpenJDK Java SE JRE 11.0.2 installed with Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.18 (available from the Downloads tab of My Account). Then instruct Wowza Streaming Engine to use that version of Java according to the instructions in Manually install and troubleshoot Java on Wowza Streaming Engine.

Note: Any custom user modules, designed for previous Java versions, may need to be modified to work in Java version 11.

Updating to Wowza Streaming Engine version 4.7.8 – 4.8.17

You should complete the following tasks if you are updating to Wowza Streaming Engine 4.7.8 – 4.8.17 from a base installation of Wowza Streaming Engine 4.7.7 or earlier:

• Install a supported version of Java, such as Java 9-12 or the OpenJDK Java SE JRE 9.0.4 installed with Wowza Streaming Engine 4.7.8 – 4.8.17 (available from the Downloads tab of My Account). Then instruct Wowza Streaming Engine to use that version of Java according to the instructions in Manually install and troubleshoot Java on Wowza Streaming Engine.

With Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.5, we repackaged the version of OpenJDK Java SE JRE 9.0.4 installed with Wowza Streaming Engine. This custom packaged version of OpenJDK Java SE JRE 9.0.4 is not installed with earlier versions of Wowza Streaming Engine but is recommended for Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.5 – 4.8.17. Also, the java.scripting module, which is included in the custom packaged version of OpenJDK Java SE JRE 9.0.4, is required for Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.8 – 4.8.17 but is not added by the Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.8 updater. If you are updating to Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.5 – 4.8.17 from Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.0 or earlier, before you update, install the custom version of OpenJDK Java SE JRE 9.0.4 available from the the Downloads tab of My Account and then instruct Wowza Streaming Engine to use that version of Java according to the instructions in Manually install and troubleshoot Java on Wowza Streaming Engine.

Note: If you are updating to Wowza Streaming Engine versions 4.7.8 through 4.8.5, the winstone.properties file, and any custom configurations specified in it for Wowza Streaming Engine Manager, will be overwritten with the new Apache Tomcat 9.0 file (tomcat.properties ). To continue using your custom configurations, you must manually add re-add your settings to the tomcat.properties file. For more information, see Stopped using the Winstone servlet container in Wowza Streaming Engine Manager.

Applying an update

Notes:

• Administrator/root privileges are required to apply an update.
• You must stop Wowza Streaming Engine and Wowza Streaming Engine Manager before applying an update. See Start and stop Wowza Streaming Engine for more information about how to do this.
• Applying an update to Wowza Streaming Engine overwrites the [install-dir]/manager/bin/startmgr.sh (macOS and Linux) or [install-dir]/manager/bin/startmgr.bat (Windows) file. If you've modified this file and wish to keep the modifications, you must update the new file accordingly.

Apply an update on Windows (step-by-step instructions)

1. Extract the updater .zip file contents and then copy the included WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version] folder to your [install-dir]/updates directory (where [install-dir] is the install directory of Wowza Streaming Engine).
2. Open an elevated command prompt:
   1. Click Start , and then in the Search programs and files box type Command Prompt.
   2. In the search results, right click on the Command Line program, and then click Run as administrator.
3. Execute the following command to change the active directory to the location of update.bat:
    Copy

   cd [install-dir]/updates/WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version]/windows

    

   Note:  Instead of typing out the file path, you can copy the directory from the Finder window and right-click in the Command Prompt window to paste the selection.

4. Execute the following command to apply the update:
    Copy

   update.bat

5. Follow the prompts on the command line. You'll see something similar to the following:
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   update.batVerifying running as administrative userLocating Wowza Streaming Engine installation directoryRunning Wowza Streaming Engine update installerPath:This will update your installation at : [install-dir]Currently installed version           : Wowza Streaming Engine <version> - Build <#>This will update your installation to : Wowza Streaming Engine <version> - Build <#>Are you sure you want to continue? (y/n)yWowza Streaming Engine <version> Release Notes        Version: Wowza Streaming Engine <new version>This document describes the detailed changes in Wowza Streaming Engine <new version>. For more information about the features and known issues in this version of the server, see the README.txt file in the files directory of this update.========================================Changes in <new version> Build <#>...Press enter/return to continueDetected operating system: windowsChecking file versions.Backing up current files.Successfully created backup: [path-to-backup-file]Updating installation.The update process completed successfully.

6. Restart the server. See Start and stop Wowza Streaming Engine for more information.

Important:   Do not delete the WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version].zip file. You'll need it if you want to remove the update later. Only that version of the update tool will remove that version of the update. See Removing an update for more information about remove (rollback) updates.

Apply an update on Linux and macOS (step-by-step instructions)

1. Extract the updater .zip file contents. In most cases, extracting the .zip file automatically creates a WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version] folder that contains the .zip file contents where [version] is the Wowza Streaming Engine version number. If not, create a folder with that naming convention and copy the extracted .zip file contents into it.
2. Copy the WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version] folder to your [install-dir]/updates directory (where [install-dir] is the install directory of Wowza Streaming Engine).
3. Open a Terminal window and execute the following command to change the active directory to the location of update.sh:
   
   
   Linux:
    Copy

   cd [install-dir]/updates/WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version]/linux

   
   
   macOS:
    Copy

   cd [install-dir]/updates/WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version]/osx

    

   Note:  Instead of typing out the file path, you can drag and drop the folder from Finder into the Terminal window to automatically enter the folder location.

4. Change to root or use the sudo command if you have sudo privileges to perform the following commands:
    
   1. If you must restore the execute permissions on the initial update scripts, execute the following command:
       Copy

      sudo chmod +x *.sh

   2. Execute the following command to apply the update:
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      sudo ./update.sh

5. Follow the prompts on the command line. You'll see something similar to the following:
    Copy

   ./update.shVerifying running as administrative userLocating Wowza Streaming Engine installation directoryRunning Wowza Streaming Engine update installerPath: This will update your installation at : [install-dir]Currently installed version           : Wowza Streaming Engine <version> - Build <#>This will update your installation to : Wowza Streaming Engine <version> - Build <#>Are you sure you want to continue? (y/n)yWowza Streaming Engine <version> Release Notes        Version: Wowza Streaming Engine <new version>This document describes the detailed changes in Wowza Streaming Engine <new version>. For more information about the features and known issues in this version of the Server, see the README.txt file in the files directory of this update.========================================Changes in <new version> Build <#>...Press enter/return to continueDetected operating system: [linux]|[osx]Checking file versions.Backing up current files.Successfully created backup: [path-to-backup-file]Updating installation.The update process completed successfully.

6. Restart the server. See Start and stop Wowza Streaming Engine for more information.

Important:   Do not delete the WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version].zip file. You'll need it if you want to remove the update later. Only that version of the update tool will remove that version of the update. See Removing an update for more information about remove (rollback) updates.

Removing an update

Notes:

• Administrator/root privileges are required to remove an update.
• You must stop Wowza Streaming Engine before removing an update. See Start and stop Wowza Streaming Engine for more information.
• Because Wowza Streaming Engine 4.7.8 – 4.8.17 are built on Java 9 and Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.18 and later are built on Java 11, if you're removing an update to Wowza Streaming Engine 4.8.18 or later and reverting to Wowza Streaming Engine 4.7.8 – 4.8.17, you need to manually change your Java version back to Java 9. For more information, see Manually install and troubleshoot Java on Wowza Streaming Engine.

Remove an update on Windows (step-by-step instructions)

1. Extract the updater .zip file contents and then copy the included WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version] folder to your [install-dir]/updates directory, if you don't already have it there from applying the update.
2. Open an elevated command prompt:
   1. Click Start , and then in the Search programs and files box type Command Prompt.
   2. In the search results, right click on the Command Line program, and then click Run as administrator.
3. Execute the following command to change the active directory to the location of update.bat:
    Copy

   cd [install-dir]/updates/WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version]/windows

    

   Note:  Instead of typing out the file path, you can copy the directory from the Windows Explorer window and right click in the Command Prompt window to paste the selection.

4. Execute the following command to remove the update:
    Copy

   update.bat -u

5. Follow the prompts on the command line. You'll see something similar to the following:
    Copy

   update.bat -uVerifying running as administrative userLocating Wowza Streaming Engine installation directoryRunning Wowza Streaming Engine update installerPath:This will uninstall Wowza Streaming Engine <update version> - Build <#> from your system.This will be removed from your installation at : [install-dir]Detected operating system: windowsFound backupfile.  [backup-file-name]Restoring from detected backup: [path-to-backup-file]Restoring to version: Wowza Streaming Engine <old version> - Build <#>Are you sure you want to continue? (y/n)yRestoring from [path-to-backup-file]Restoration complete.

6. Restart the server. See Start and stop Wowza Streaming Engine for more information.

Remove an update on Linux and macOS (step-by-step instructions)

1. Extract the updater .zip file contents and then copy the included WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version] folder to your [install-dir]/updates directory, if you don't already have it there from applying the update.
2. Open a Terminal window and execute the following command to change the active directory to the location of update.sh:
   
   
   Linux:
    Copy

   cd [install-dir]/updates/WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version]/linux

   
   
   macOS:
    Copy

   cd [install-dir]/updates/WowzaStreamingEngine-Update-[version]/osx

    

   Note:  Instead of typing out the file path, you can drag and drop the folder from Finder into the Terminal window to automatically enter the folder location.

3. Change to root or use the sudo command if you have sudo privileges to perform the following commands:
    
   1. If you must restore the execute permissions on the initial update scripts, execute the following command:
       Copy

      sudo chmod +x *.sh

   2. Execute the following command:
       Copy

      sudo ./update.sh -u

4. Follow the prompts on the command line. You'll see something similar to the following:
    Copy

   update.sh -uVerifying running as administrative userLocating Wowza Streaming Engine installation directoryRunning Wowza Streaming Engine update installerThis will uninstall Wowza Streaming Engine <version> - Build <#> from your system.This will be removed from your installation at: [install-dir]Detected operating system: [linux]|[osx]Found backup file:  [backup-file-name]Restoring from backup:[install-dir]/updates/backup/[backup-file-name]Restoring to version: Wowza Streaming Engine <old version> - Build <#>Are you sure you want to continue? (y/n)yRestoring from backup: [install-dir]/updates/backup/[backup-file-name]Restoration complete.

5. Restart the server. See Start and stop Wowza Streaming Engine for more information.