Update Unraid safely: when the server won't come back

I'm here because… (find your section in 30 seconds)

• I'm about to update and want to do it safely → 'Before you press update', then 'The update itself'.
• Tools → Update OS is blank, or the header has no update badge → 'Update OS page is blank (what we saw and what fixed it)'. On our server this was a broken Unraid Connect plugin update, not the OS.
• I rebooted and the server never came back → 'The server did not come back after the reboot'. Do not re-create the boot device yet.
• It's back, but names don't resolve / it still looks down from my Mac → 'It looked down longer than it was (DNS on the NAS)'.
• A parity check started on its own after the reboot → expected after an unclean shutdown. See 'After it boots, and rolling back' and Unraid parity check errors.
• I want to go back to 7.3.2 → 'After it boots, and rolling back'.

Before you press update

• Unraid's own order, from its Updating Unraid page: back up the boot device, read the release notes for the target version, update all plugins, optionally stop the array, update from Tools → Update OS, then reboot.
• Back up the boot device first. Main → select the boot device → Boot Device tab → Boot Device Backup downloads a zip to your computer (on releases before 7.3.0 the same control is labelled Flash). Store it off the server. This zip holds your configuration and licence key; it is what you restore from if the stick dies during the reboot.
• Read the release notes. 7.3.3 (dated 2026-10-08) is a security and fix release: Linux kernel 6.18.54, Docker 29.8.2, ZFS 2.4.4. It lists no new known issues and points to the 7.3.2 notes for rollback limits. It also updates the bundled Unraid API package (dynamix.unraid.net) to 4.37.5-2.
• Update plugins, then check they still work. Unraid's plugin docs warn that plugins can cause instability after OS updates. On our server a plugin update earlier the same day is what broke the Update OS page, so look at the WebGUI after updating plugins and before starting the OS update.
• Note where the boot stick is plugged in (which port, USB 2.0 or 3.x) and whether you can reach the server's console with a monitor and keyboard. You will want both if the reboot goes wrong.
• If your home DNS, DHCP or VPN runs as a container on this server, write down the server's IP address now. During the reboot those services go away with it.

Update OS page is blank (what we saw and what fixed it)

• What we saw: Tools → Update OS showed an empty panel, and the header area where the version and update badge normally appear was empty too. The browser's developer tools showed 404 errors for the page's web-component files.
• Cause on our server: an Unraid Connect / API plugin update (dynamix.unraid.net) earlier that day had left only 9 of the 146 files listed in its component manifest under `/usr/local/emhttp/plugins/dynamix.my.servers/unraid-components/`. The OS was fine; the page that drives the update could not load.
• Safer first option: Plugins tab → check for updates, then update or reinstall the Unraid Connect plugin. That re-installs the same files through the normal plugin path.
• What fixed it on our server: re-extracting only that folder from the plugin package already stored on the boot device. From Tools → Terminal: `ls /boot/config/plugins/dynamix.my.servers/*.txz` to find the package, then `tar -xJf /boot/config/plugins/dynamix.my.servers/dynamix.unraid.net-<version>.txz -C / usr/local/emhttp/plugins/dynamix.my.servers/unraid-components/` (use the exact file name `ls` printed). A browser refresh brought the page back. No restart was needed.
• That folder lives in RAM, not on the boot device, so a reboot also restores it when the plugin is re-installed at boot. Rebooting first is a valid fix; we avoided it only because we were about to reboot for the OS update anyway.
• If the page is still blank after this, boot in Safe Mode (Main → Array Operation → Reboot in safe mode) to rule out other plugins before updating.

The update itself

• Start from the header Update Available badge or Tools → Update OS, then View Changelog to Start Update → read the changelog → Continue.
• The confirmation dialog states the current and new versions (ours: Unraid 7.3.2 → Unraid 7.3.3) and that the update will require a reboot. Confirm and start update writes the new release to the boot device.
• The log downloads the release zip, extracts it to the boot device and checks the sha256 of each boot image (bzfirmware, bzimage, bzmodules, bzroot, bzroot-gui and memtest on our run). It ends with `Update successful - PLEASE REBOOT YOUR SERVER`. If any check fails, do not reboot; re-run the update.
• Until you reboot, the running system is still the old version; the header shows 'Reboot Required for Update'. On our server the previous release's files were kept in `/boot/previous`, which is what a rollback uses.
• Before rebooting: stop heavy writes, let any running parity check or Mover run finish, and use the WebGUI Reboot button rather than cutting power, so the array stops cleanly.

The server did not come back after the reboot

• What we saw: after the reboot the server dropped off the network and stayed off. No WebGUI, no ping.
• What brought it back: moving the USB boot stick to a different USB 2.0 port and power-cycling the server. It then booted 7.3.3, the array and all containers started, and an unclean-shutdown parity check began.
• We cannot prove the port was the cause, but it is the first item on Unraid's own boot-failure list: use a USB 2.0 port for the boot device if possible, as it is generally more reliable than USB 3.0.
• If yours hangs: connect a monitor if you can and note where boot stops (BIOS, boot menu, loading bz* files, or a login prompt). Unraid's boot-failure steps, in order: USB 2.0 port, BIOS boot order, check the stick on another computer, re-extract the release bz* files, rebuild the boot media from your backup, try Safe Mode.
• A forced power-off during a hung boot is usually unavoidable, but it is an unclean shutdown. Expect a parity check on the next boot.
• Do not reformat or re-create the boot stick as a first step. The `config` folder on it holds your settings and licence; a simple port change fixed ours.

It looked down longer than it was (DNS on the NAS)

• Our home DNS (AdGuard Home) runs as a container on this Unraid server. While the server was down, every device lost name resolution, so the server, the router admin page and the internet all looked broken at once.
• After the server came back, our Mac still failed to resolve names for a while because macOS had cached the failed lookups.
• Use the server's IP address in the browser while you troubleshoot; that skips DNS entirely.
• On a Mac, once the server is back: `sudo dscacheutil -flushcache; sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder` clears the cached failures.
• Longer term, decide whether your router should hand out a second DNS server that does not live on the NAS. That keeps the house online during NAS maintenance, at the cost of some lookups bypassing your filter. See Pi-hole vs AdGuard Home vs NextDNS.

After it boots, and rolling back

• Confirm the version: the header shows 7.3.3, or run `cat /etc/unraid-version` in Tools → Terminal.
• Let the unclean-shutdown parity check finish. Unraid's docs say an unclean shutdown can trigger an automatic parity check at the next boot. Read Tools → Parity History when it ends; if it reports errors, follow Unraid parity check errors before running a correcting check.
• Check the Docker tab and any VMs. Unraid's update page lists one-time Docker migrations, rebuilding the Docker image, and VM bridge and machine-type fixes as known post-upgrade issues.
• Take a fresh Boot Device Backup now that the new version runs, and keep the pre-update one.
• Rolling back: Unraid's docs point to Tools → Downgrade OS, which returns to the previously installed version still on the boot device. If that option is missing, the previous files are not there; use the manual method in Unraid's docs. Read the 'Rolling back' section of the release notes first. Do not upgrade ZFS pool features until you are sure you will stay on the new version: Unraid warns an upgraded pool may not work with older releases.

Screens from our 7.3.2 to 7.3.3 update

Reference images and diagrams. Click any image to view full resolution.

Last reviewed

2026-10-17 · Reviewed by HomeTechOps. First-hand: written from our own Unraid 7.3.2 to 7.3.3 update on 17 October 2026 (blank Update OS page, hung reboot fixed by a USB 2.0 port, NAS-hosted DNS outage, unclean-shutdown parity check), checked against Unraid's Updating Unraid, 7.3.3 release notes, boot-failure, unclean-shutdown, boot-device backup and plugin docs.

Source-backed checks

HomeTechOps turns official docs and conservative safety rules into a shorter runbook. These links are the source trail for the page direction.