Learn about the types of upgrades that are available
with Prisma Access.
Palo Alto Networks upgrades its cloud-based infrastructure
without any intervention required from you. Some upgrades require
that you perform an action, such as install a new plugin.
The following list includes the different types of Prisma Access
upgrades:
Infrastructure Upgrade
—Palo Alto Networks upgrades
the Prisma Access infrastructure, which includes the underlying service
backend, orchestration, and monitoring infrastructure.
Dataplane Upgrade
—Palo Alto Networks upgrades the Prisma
Access dataplane that enables traffic inspection and security
policy enforcement on your network and user traffic.
You use the Prisma Access
app to sign up for dataplane upgrade email alert notifications
and indicate your upgrade preferences.
Cloud Services Plugin Upgrade (
Panorama Managed Deployments
Only
)
—When a new plugin release becomes available, your
network administrator will need to upgrade the Cloud Services plugin
on the Panorama appliance that manages Prisma Access.
The following table shows you what is included with each release,
including the maintenance window we provide and any impact to your
Prisma Access service.
Upgrade Type
Maintenance Window
Impact
Infrastructure Upgrade
2-8 hours
No impact to network traffic; however you
cannot perform commits during the maintenance window.
Palo
Alto Networks schedules the upgrades at a local time that is minimally disruptive
to business functions.
Dataplane Upgrade
72 hours
Palo Alto Networks uses this window to upgrade
the dataplane for all customers. You can make configuration changes
and commits during this window. Our goal is to minimize impact to
network traffic, but in some cases there may be a brief interruption. See Prisma Access Dataplane Upgrades for more
information.
You use the Prisma Access
app to sign up for dataplane upgrade email alert notifications
and indicate your upgrade preferences, including the preferred time
window for your upgrade.
Cloud Services Plugin Upgrade (
Panorama Managed
Deployments Only
)
You install the plugin when it becomes available.
Prisma Access might require you to upgrade
all tenants to a specific plugin version to maintain backward compatibility
and supported software versions.
During the plugin upgrade,
you cannot make configuration changes and commits in Panorama.
Panorama Software Version Upgrade (
Panorama Managed
Deployments Only
)
You schedule and perform the upgrade on
the Panorama that manages Prisma Access.
When Prisma Access upgrades its infrastructure
and dataplane after a major release, the upgrades can be incompatible
with earlier Panorama versions. Because of the fast-paced release
of Prisma Access and the Cloud Services plugin, the software compatibility
(end-of-support) dates for Panorama are shorter than the software
end-of-life dates for Panorama releases and apply to Panorama version compatibility
with Prisma Access only. For more information, including end-of-support
dates for Panorama when used with Prisma Access, see Prisma Access and Panorama Version
Compatibility in the Palo Alto Networks Compatibility
Matrix.
