ESX 4.0 U1 to 4.1 via Update Manager

[AngelC2]

Ok, after reading up on this I feel I have the answer but would like a confirmation from the community to be safe 

I have upgraded all of my ESX 3.5 to 4.0 using VUM on vCenter 4.0.  Now, some of my ESX are 4.0 (original release) others are at U1 version.

My question is...do I have to go U1 --> U2 or can I go directly from original release or U1 --> 4.1 via zip file update/upgrade using VUM?

or do I need to upgrade my vCenter first to 4.1 then go from original release/U1 directly to 4.1 using VUM 4.1?

[DSTAVERT · Accepted solution]

You will need to upgrade vCenter first before upgrading any of your ESX hosts. http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1022140

http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vsphere4/r41/vsp_41_upgrade_guide.pdf

[idle-jam]

and do take note that vcenter requires 64bit OS. So there are chances that you might need to do a fresh rebuild if yours is a 32bit.

[AngelC2]

Yes, I read this article but it shows Update Manager at 4.1 being required to upgrade ESX 4.0 but I wasn't sure since it's logical to have VUM 4.1 you would normally have vCenter 4.1 as well but since it wasn't very clear I wanted further confirmation...so thanks.

Also, this answers my question about going from 4.0 directly to 4.1, so I'm guessing going from U1 to 4.1 instead of U1 --> U2 --> 4.1 also applies?

[AngelC2]

Yes, I was aware of this change and it's exactly what I'll be doing since my vCenter is currently at 32-bit.  Thanks!