Home > APEX > Cloud Platforms > White Papers > Dell APEX Cloud Platform for Red Hat OpenShift > Lifecycle Management
Lifecycle Management of APEX Cloud Platform is automated through the Cloud Platform Foundation Software, and is controlled via the APEX Cloud Platform menu in the OpenShift Web Console. In a connected system you have the ability to apply the latest update from the Dell support endpoint. For disconnected systems you can download the update package from an internet connected system and then move it using USB to a system that can connect to the OpenShift Web Console. The update process will update the following components:
- OpenShift Platform, including CoreOS
- Cloud Platform Foundation Software
- BIOS, firmware, and drivers for the physical nodes
- Dell SDS components (coming soon)
The APEX Cloud Platform Lifecycle Management (LCM) process uses the concept of Known Good State by delivering platform updates as an update bundle. Each update bundle is thoroughly validated by Dell to ensure that the solution as a whole continues to function as expected. The update bundle is applied using a single update workflow that updates the entire solution stack. By performing all these updates in a single workflow, we can sequence the updates to prevent downtime and reduce the time needed to apply the updates. For example, we can pre-stage all the firmware and BIOS updates on all the nodes in parallel, but wait for each node reboot triggered by the OpenShift software update before applying the hardware updates.