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UniFi - UDM/UCK: How to Change the Controller Version Using SSH

Overview

Readers will learn how to change the UniFi Controller version on the UniFi Dream Machine (UDM or UDM-Pro) and UniFi Cloud Key models (UCK-G2, UCK-G2-PLUS and UC-CK) via SSH.

NOTES & REQUIREMENTS:

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Changing the UniFi Controller version using SSH
  3. Related Articles

Introduction

The software version of the UniFi Controller that is running on the UDM (UniFi Dream Machine) or UCK (UniFi Cloud Key) models can be upgraded or downgraded using SSH. This feature is especially useful if you want to manually change the software a specific Stable or Beta version. 

The latest UniFi Controller versions can be found in the Software Releases section on the Ubiquiti Community. If you are interested in Beta releases, then it is necessary to log in with your Ubiquiti Community user account that has Early Access enabled.

ATTENTION: Please read the firmware instructions and notes before upgrading your UniFi Controller to a Beta release and make sure to create a backup.

Changing the UniFi Controller version using SSH

Use the table below to select your model and follow the steps to change the UniFi Controller version:

UDM / UDM-Pro
UCK-G2 / UCK-G2-PLUS / UC-GK (Gen1)

1. Navigate to the Ubiquiti Downloads page to obtain the UniFi Controller firmware download link.

2. The latest UniFi Controller releases are listed in the Software section.

3. Expand the UniFi Network Controller for Debian/Ubuntu Linux and UniFi Cloud Key option and select download.

4. Accept the EULA and copy the firmware download URL. An example URL is:

https://dl.ui.com/unifi/x.xx.xx_version/unifi_sysvinit_all.deb
NOTE: You can also obtain the firmware link from the Ubiquiti Community Software Releases page. Open the relevant UniFi Network Controller General or Beta release page and copy the UniFi Controller for Debian/Ubuntu and UniFi Cloud Key link.

5. Open a SSH session using your favorite SSH/Telnet client program (for example PuTTY or the macOS/Linux Terminal).

CLI: Access the Command Line Interface on the UDM using SSH. See the UniFi - UDM: How to Login to the Dream Machine using SSH article for more information on how to connect to the UDM using SSH.

6. Access the UniFi OS shell:

unifi-os shell

7. Navigate to the /tmp directory:

cd /tmp

8. Verify if there are any previous installation files present in the directory and delete them if applicable:

ls -l
rm unifi_sysvinit_all.deb

9. Use the curl command with the previously copied link to download the UniFi Controller installation file and store it in the /tmp directory.

10. Replace https://dl.ui.com/unifi/x.xx.xx_version/unifi_sysvinit_all.deb with the previously copied URL.

curl -o "unifi_sysvinit_all.deb" https://dl.ui.com/unifi/x.xx.xx_version/unifi_sysvinit_all.deb

11. Wait for the firmware download process to complete and install the new version using the dpkg command:

dpkg -i unifi_sysvinit_all.deb

12. Wait for the installation process to complete and remove the unifi_sysvinit_all.deb file afterwards.

rm unifi_sysvinit_all.deb

1. Navigate to the Ubiquiti Downloads page to obtain the UniFi Controller firmware download link.

2. The latest UniFi Controller releases are listed in the Software section.

3. Expand the UniFi Network Controller for Debian/Ubuntu Linux and UniFi Cloud Key option and select download.

4. Accept the EULA and copy the firmware download URL. An example URL is:

https://dl.ui.com/unifi/x.xx.xx_version/unifi_sysvinit_all.deb
NOTE: You can also obtain the firmware link from the Ubiquiti Community Software Releases page. Open the relevant UniFi Network Controller General or Beta release page and copy the UniFi Controller for Debian/Ubuntu and UniFi Cloud Key link.

5. Open a SSH session using your favorite SSH/Telnet client program (for example PuTTY or the macOS/Linux Terminal).

CLI: Access the Command Line Interface on the UCK using SSH. See the Intro to Networking - How to Establish a Connection Using SSH article for more information on how to connect to the Cloud Key using SSH.

6. Navigate to the /tmp directory:

cd /tmp

7. Verify if there are any previous installation files present in the directory and delete them if applicable:

ls -l
rm unifi_sysvinit_all.deb

8. Use the wget command with the previously copied link to download the UniFi Controller installation file and store it in the /tmp directory.

9. Replace https://dl.ui.com/unifi/x.xx.xx_version/unifi_sysvinit_all.deb with the previously copied URL.

wget https://dl.ui.com/unifi/x.xx.xx_version/unifi_sysvinit_all.deb

10. Wait for the firmware download process to complete and install the new version using the dpkg command:

sudo dpkg -i unifi_sysvinit_all.deb
NOTE: If the UniFi Controller version needs to be downgraded to an older release, then the currently installed version can be removed with the sudo dpkg -P unifi command.

11. Wait for the installation process to complete and remove the unifi_sysvinit_all.deb file afterwards.

rm unifi_sysvinit_all.deb

Related Articles

UniFi - How to Create and Restore a Backup

UniFi - How to Manage & Upgrade the Cloud Key

UniFi - Upgrade the Firmware of a UniFi Device

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