Upgrade Tenable Nessus

Required user role when using Tenable Nessus Manager: System Administrator

The following topic describes how to upgrade Tenable Nessus on different operating systems, and how to upgrade from an evaluation license.

The upgrade steps assume that you have already downloaded the latest, full-license version of Tenable Nessus from the Tenable Downloads page.

Tip: If you are upgrading an offline instance of Tenable Nessus, download the package on an online system and transfer it to the offline instance using your organization's preferred method.

Upgrade Tenable Nessus on Linux

1. From a command prompt, run the Tenable Nessus upgrade command.

   Note: Tenable Nessus automatically stops nessusd when you run the upgrade command.

   Red Hat 6 and 7, CentOS 6 and 7, Oracle Linux 6 and 7

   # yum upgrade Nessus-<version number and OS>.rpm

   Red Hat 8 and later, CentOS 8 and later, Oracle Linux 8 and later, Fedora

   # dnf upgrade Nessus-<version number and OS>.rpm

   SLES/SUSE

   # zypper in Nessus-<version number and OS>.rpm

   Debian/Kali and Ubuntu

   # dpkg -i Nessus-<version number and OS>.deb

2. From a command prompt, restart the nessusd daemon.

   Red Hat, CentOS, Oracle Linux, Fedora, SUSE

   # service nessusd start

   Debian/Kali and Ubuntu

   # /etc/init.d/nessusd start

   This completes the process of upgrading Tenable Nessus on a Linux operating system.

Upgrade Tenable Nessus on macOS

The process of upgrading Tenable Nessus on macOS using the installation GUI is the same process as a new macOS Install.

Upgrade Tenable Nessus on Windows

1. Navigate to the folder where you downloaded the Tenable Nessus installer.
2. Next, double-click the file name to start the installation process.
3. At the Welcome to the InstallShield Wizard for Tenable, Inc. Nessus screen, select Next.
4. On the License Agreement screen, read the terms of the Tenable Nessus software license and subscription agreement.
5. Select the I accept the terms of the license agreement option, and then select the Next button.
6. On the Destination Folder screen, select the Next button to accept the default installation folder. Otherwise, select the Change button to install Tenable Nessus to a different folder.

7. On the Ready to Install the Program screen, select the Install button.

   The Installing Tenable, Inc. Nessus screen appears and a Status indication bar shows the upgrade progress.

8. On the Nessus InstallShield Wizard Completed screen, select the Finish button.

   Tenable Nessus loads in your default browser, where you can log in.

Upgrade Tenable Nessus from Evaluation

If you used an evaluation version of Tenable Nessus and are now upgrading to a full-licensed version of Tenable Nessus, type your full-version activation code on the Settings page, on the About tab.

Note: If you are using Tenable Nessus scanner, the License Expiration and Activation Code values on the About page show as N/A.

To update the activation code:

1. Select the button next to the Activation Code.
2. In the Registration box, select your Tenable Nessus type.
3. In the Activation Code box, type your new activation code.

4. Click Activate.

   Tenable Nessus downloads, installs the latest engine and plugins, and restarts.

For information about managing activation codes, see Manage Activation Code.