The up2date command is a utility that is used to update Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) systems. It is part of the Red Hat Network (RHN) infrastructure, which is used to manage software updates and patches for Red Hat systems.
To use the up2date command to update a RHEL system, you need to have an active subscription to the Red Hat Network and be connected to the Internet. You also need to be logged in as the root user or a user with root privileges.
To update the system with the up2date command, simply type up2date at the command prompt. This will check for available updates and patches, and prompt you to install any that are found. You can use the -i option to install the updates automatically, without prompting:
up2date -i
You can also use the -p option to display a list of available updates and patches, without installing them:
up2date -p
For more options and usage examples, you can refer to the up2date man page by typing man up2date at the command prompt.
Note that the up2date command is no longer available in newer versions of Red Hat Enterprise Linux, such as RHEL 8. In these versions, you can use the dnf command to manage software updates and patches. For example:
dnf update
This will update the system with the available updates and patches.
You can also use the yum command to manage software updates and patches in older versions of Red Hat Enterprise Linux.