# Upgrade Snow Owl

When a new Snow Owl Terminology Server release is available, we recommend performing the following steps.

New releases are going to be distributed the same way: a Docker stack and its configuration within an archive.

It is advised to decompress the new release files to a temporary folder and compare the contents of `./snow-owl/docker` .

```diff
[root@host]# diff /opt/snow-owl/docker/ /opt/new-snow-owl-release/snow-owl/docker/
Common subdirectories: /opt/snow-owl/docker/configs and /opt/new-snow-owl-release/snow-owl/docker/configs
diff /opt/snow-owl/docker/.env /opt/new-snow-owl-release/snow-owl/docker/.env
10c10
< ELASTICSEARCH_VERSION=8.19.14
---
> ELASTICSEARCH_VERSION=8.19.15
24c24
< SNOWOWL_VERSION=10.0.0
---
> SNOWOWL_VERSION=10.1.0

```

The changes are usually restricted to version numbers in the `.env` file. In such cases, it is equally acceptable to overwrite the contents of the `./snow-owl/docker` folder as is or cherry-pick the necessary modifications by hand.

Once the new version of the files is in place, it is sufficient to just issue the following commands; an explicit stop of the service is not even required (in the folder `./snow-owl/docker`):

```sh
docker compose pull
docker compose up -d
```

{% hint style="warning" %}
Do not use `docker compose restart` because it won't pick up any .yml or .env file changes. See the explanation in the [official Docker guide](https://docs.docker.com/compose/reference/restart/).
{% endhint %}


---

# Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation

If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question.

Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter:

```
GET https://docs.b2ihealthcare.com/snow-owl/setup-and-administration/upgrade-snow-owl.md?ask=<question>
```

The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language.
The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation.

Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.