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SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTVirtual floppy mediaavoids the needfor PXE serverRemote targetserver(DRAC installed)Remote network33.44.55.xxxInternetVPN connectionNetwork topology does not permittraditional PXE booting on a remote networkAppropriate PXE bootfloppy disk image loadedinto DRAC on remotetarget serverNetwork stack considerationsWhen using the DRAC 4’s virtual media capabilities, administratorsmust take into account network stack considerations. When usingPXE to remotely boot systems into DOS, administrators often use ageneric DOS floppy disk image that they capture and store on thePXE server. Whenever a server attempts to boot via PXE, the PXEserver transmits this virtual floppy disk image to the target server,which boots as if this image were on a floppy disk inserted into thetarget server’s floppy disk drive. Normally, a network connection isnecessary and the virtual floppy disk image must contain drivers forthe target system’s NIC as well as a network stack.Some network administrators may employ a generic driver thatuses the Universal Network Driver Interface (UNDI) and PXE base codeinfrastructure. The generic driver allows use of the network stack withoutthe need for a driver that is specific to a particular type of NIC.When a server boots from the DRAC 4 virtual floppy disk,the PXE network stack may not be present (because PXE may beturned off) or the PXE network stack may not be in the state thatthe driver would expect because the system did not boot via PXE.Administrators who experience problems when booting from theDRAC 4 virtual floppy disk should update the boot floppy diskimage to use DOS network drivers specific to the NIC instead ofthe generic UNDI or PXE base code drivers.Finally, administrators should keep in mind that the NIC integratedinto the DRAC 4 cannot be used for OS network traffic. Thismeans that administrators need to use the embedded NICs on thetarget server or an add-in card to access the network from withinthe deployment OS. The DRAC 4 NIC is used only to communicatewith the DRAC 4 and to perform management functions.Preparation of the virtual imageServer farmManagement stationPrimary corporate network11.12.13.xxxFigure 2. Booting a remote server to an environment running DTK on DOSPXE server sendsout virtual floppydisk images when asystem attempts toboot using PXEPXE/DHCP serverDeployment serverBest practices recommend that administrators include network driversfor the target servers on the DOS image that is booted. 2 Networkdrivers allow the target server to access the file share that containsthe DTK tools and scripts. Note: Administrators must have a validlicense for DOS 6.22 (on Windows 95 and Windows 98 operatingsystems) before deploying servers in their network.Administrators should edit autoexec.bat to enable networkaccess to the file server share that contains the DTK tools andscripts before creating the network boot floppy disk. Once created,the image from the boot floppy disk can be used as a virtual floppydisk or a virtual CD.Although the virtual image strategy avoids the need for PXE,deploying multiple servers using the virtual image method canbe difficult and time-consuming because this process requiresadministrators to access each DRAC 4 one by one. To convenientlydeploy to multiple servers, administrators can use the remoteRacadm command-line utility from either Windows or Linux onthe management station.To use the Racadm utility, administrators should follow thisprocedure:1. During the power-on self-test (POST) of the target server, usethe DRAC 4 Ctrl-E boot utility to set the DRAC 4 IP addressto either static or DHCP. Note: This step requires physicalaccess to the target server.2. Use the F2 BIOS setup utility to set the boot sequence onthe target server so that the virtual floppy disk or CD is thefirst device in the boot sequence, followed by the primaryhard disk (or IDE CD if desired). Note: Administrators canuse DRAC 4 console redirection to accomplish this step if thetarget server is in a remote location.The target server’s boot sequence should be left in thisstate during general use. Each time the server is rebooted,it will not boot to the virtual floppy disk because, without aconnected management workstation, the drive will appearempty to the BIOS.3. When the system needs to be deployed or redeployed, insertthe boot floppy disk image into the floppy disk drive of themanagement station and use a Web browser on the managementstation to connect to the target server’s DRAC 4.4. Use the DRAC 4 power control feature or traditional OSmethods to reboot the target server. The target server willboot and start the deployment using DTK scripts.5. At the appropriate stage of a given DTK deployment script,the Racadm utility can be used to “eject” the virtual floppydisk by sending a vmdisconnect command to the DRAC 4,causing the DRAC 4 to sever connections to the managementstation that sent the DRAC 4 the boot disk. After this, thetarget server will not see a bootable virtual floppy disk imageand instead will fail over to the hard disk.2For information about how to create a DOS floppy disk that includes network drivers, visit www.nu2.nu/bootdisk/network.54DELL POWER SOLUTIONS Reprinted from Dell Power Solutions, August 2005. Copyright © 2005 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. August 2005
SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTNote: Part of the deployment process includes adding thevirtualization drivers to the deployment image so that the OScan access the virtual media after the OS is installed. Pleaseconsult the OS user’s guide for information about scripted driverinstallations.Powerful out-of-band managementThe DRAC 4 is a powerful management device that can help reducecost of ownership. In addition to the convenience of remote out-ofbandaccess to target servers, virtual media capabilities allow theDRAC 4 to be used as a remote boot device. In this way, the DRAC 4can help IT organizations that support small, remote branch officesto save time and money by deploying servers without traveling tothe target servers’ physical locations—and without installing andsupporting a PXE server at each remote location.Alan Brumley is the lead engineer for the Dell OpenManage DeploymentToolkit. He has been at Dell for more than five years. Alan has a B.S. inComputer Engineering from the University of South Carolina.Anusha Ragunathan is a software engineer in the Dell Product Groupand is on a team that develops deployment tools for PowerEdge serversas part of Dell OpenManage systems management offerings. Anushahas a B.S. in Computer Science Engineering from Bharathiyar Universityin India and an M.S. in Computer Science Engineering from Arizona StateUniversity.FOR MORE INFORMATIONRemote management using DRAC 4:Pan, Weimin, and Gang Liu. “Remote Management with VirtualMedia in the DRAC 4.” Dell Power Solutions, October 2004.www.dell.com/downloads/global/power/ps4q04-20040105-Pan.pdf.Remote OS deployment using the DRAC 4:Brown, Michael E., Manoj Gujarathi, and Gong Wang. “Remote OSDeployment Using Dell OpenManage Server Assistant 8 andDRAC 4.” Dell Power Solutions, February 2005. www.dell.com/downloads/global/power/ps1q05-20040170-Gujarathi.pdf. www.dell.com/powersolutions Reprinted from Dell Power Solutions, August 2005. Copyright © 2005 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. DELL POWER SOLUTIONS 55
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Gigabit EthernetMulti-Gigabit Ether
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TABLE OF CONTENTSPOWERSOLUTIONSTHE
Page 6 and 7: TABLE OF CONTENTSDATABASE TECHNOLOG
Page 8 and 9: EDITOR’S COMMENTSRelational Bliss
Page 10 and 11: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTTake Control with
Page 12 and 13: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTInstrumented plat
Page 14 and 15: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTinterface (CLI) a
Page 16 and 17: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTIntroducing Dell
Page 18 and 19: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTA query definitio
Page 20 and 21: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTremote agents. Fo
Page 22 and 23: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTError code Error
Page 24 and 25: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTFigure 3. Wbemtes
Page 26 and 27: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTSoftware Change M
Page 28 and 29: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTDell UpdatePackag
Page 30 and 31: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTFigure 5. Summary
Page 32 and 33: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTIT Assistant UI I
Page 34 and 35: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTFigure 3. Configu
Page 36 and 37: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTConsole, Altiris
Page 38 and 39: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTDeploying Server
Page 40 and 41: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTAdvancing the Upd
Page 42 and 43: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTallows administra
Page 44 and 45: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTTime-Savings Vali
Page 46 and 47: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTBENEFITS OF ALTIR
Page 48 and 49: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTLANDesk Server Ma
Page 50 and 51: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENT• SEL event cre
Page 52 and 53: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTAdministrators ca
Page 54 and 55: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTUsing the DRAC 4
Page 58 and 59: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTUpdating theDell
Page 60 and 61: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTthe overall Power
Page 62 and 63: SYSTEMS MANAGEMENTFor the firmware
Page 64 and 65: DATA CENTER TECHNOLOGYGuidelines fo
Page 66 and 67: DATA CENTER TECHNOLOGYusing the tem
Page 68 and 69: DATA CENTER TECHNOLOGYInformation L
Page 70 and 71: DATA CENTER TECHNOLOGYdata center:
Page 72 and 73: DATA CENTER TECHNOLOGYresources and
Page 74 and 75: BUSINESS CONTINUITYe-mail systems u
Page 76 and 77: BUSINESS CONTINUITYGalaxy and Backu
Page 78 and 79: STORAGE TECHNOLOGYWhen migrating fr
Page 80 and 81: STORAGE TECHNOLOGYwhich can lead to
Page 82 and 83: STORAGE TECHNOLOGYChannel ports; al
Page 84 and 85: STORAGE TECHNOLOGYMaximum zone sets
Page 86 and 87: STORAGE TECHNOLOGYbenefits includin
Page 88 and 89: STORAGE TECHNOLOGYmemory manager wa
Page 90 and 91: STORAGE TECHNOLOGYLink-Level Error
Page 92 and 93: STORAGE TECHNOLOGYThe extended link
Page 94 and 95: STORAGE TECHNOLOGYMigrating from De
Page 96 and 97: STORAGE TECHNOLOGYFigure 3. Managin
Page 98 and 99: DATABASE TECHNOLOGYFast, Flexible C
Page 100 and 101: DATABASE TECHNOLOGYScaling Out SQL
Page 102 and 103: DATABASE TECHNOLOGYMSN Communicatio
Page 104 and 105: DATABASE TECHNOLOGYThe MSN CSP appl
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DATABASE TECHNOLOGY1,20070Transacti
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DATABASE TECHNOLOGYAdvantages of OC
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DATABASE TECHNOLOGYASM instance ins
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VIRTUALIZATION TECHNOLOGYDomain 0 V
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SYSTEM ARCHITECTUREImproving Fault
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SYSTEM ARCHITECTUREBIOS Hot Hotopti
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SYSTEM ARCHITECTUREinitialized. The
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