DUP Overview

The Driver Update Program (DUP) is a mechanism Red Hat uses to add updated drivers to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) outside of the normal operating system update cycle. It allows newer drivers from the update release of RHEL under development to be backported into ISO image-based "DUP disks" that can be loaded at install time on the currently shipping RHEL release. The intent of the program is to allow vendors to certify new hardware without having to wait for the next update release of RHEL.

Here's an example of how the program works. Network/storage controller vendor Acme is shipping a new converged network adapter (CNA) that became available after the launch of RHEL 7.0 but before the release of RHEL 7.1. Once the driver for the new card has been accepted into RHEL 7.1, it may be possible to take that driver and backport it onto a DUP disk that would allow the card to work in RHEL 7.0. That would allow system vendors who incorporate Acme's new CNA to certify their systems on RHEL 7.0 instead of having to wait until 7.1.

Downloading DUP Disks for RHEL 7, 6, and 5

DUP disks are provided to users through the Red Hat Customer Portal at https://access.redhat.com. It's not possible for us to provide direct links to these files due to the way authentication information is embedded in the RPM/ISO file download URLs. What we can provide are links to the pages on which the DUP packages are listed. Start with the appropriate link below to find the DUP disks for the most current version of RHEL for x86_64 and x86 architectures or for the ppc64 architecture:

x86_64 and x86 Architectures

https://access.redhat.com/downloads/content/69/ver=/rhel---7/7.0/x86_64/product-downloads

If you need a DUP disk for an older release or a different architecture, use the version and architecture drop down boxes to pick the appropriate release (RHEL 6.4, x86, for example).

ppc64 Architecture

https://access.redhat.com/downloads/content/74/ver=/rhel---7/7.0/ppc64/product-downloads

If you need a DUP disk for an older release, use the version drop down box to pick the appropriate release (RHEL 6.4, for example).

Using a DUP Disk

When installing a system that requires a DUP disk for hardware enablement:
1) Burn the DUP disk ISO to a BD/DVD/CD, write it to a USB flash drive, or make it available to the system through a virtual disk.
2) Boot the installer media and use the appropriate boot time option for the version of RHEL you are installing:
2a) For RHEL 6 and 5, use the option "dd". The "dd" option stands for "driver disk" .
2b) For RHEL 7, use the option "inst.dd".
3) Make the DUP disk available to the system when prompted.
4) Choose the driver(s) you need to complete your installation.
5) Proceed with normal installation.

Future Enhancements

Our ultimate goal for the Driver Update Program is to have all the DUP disks available on a single page. This task is being tracked in a private Bugzilla ticket:

https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=725778

Non-Red Hat employees will not be able to view that bug, but customers or partners with questions about the status of the new download location can provide the link or bug number to their support contact who can check the status on their behalf.