Revision 44 posted to TechCenter Chats - Wiki by DELL-Sheetal G on 5/9/2013 7:35:15 AM
5-07-2013 - TechChat: Dell Lifecycle Controller XML Configuration Best Practices
| Dell TechCenter | Hello Everyone, we'll get started on the chat in about 5-6 minutes |
| Dell TechCenter | thanks for joining today for our chat on Dell Lifecycle Controller |
| Shawn (rolltidega) | hello everyone! |
| Dell TechCenter | Before the chat, we have some helpful links for you, you can learn all about Dell Lifecycle Controller at www.delltechcenter.com/LC |
| Kong Yang | Welcome everyone! |
| Shawn (rolltidega) | hey kong will I see you at DellEF? |
| Kong Yang | @Shawn - nope but you will see LB and Jeff :-) |
| Dell TechCenter | Hey Shawn - how are you doing? |
| Shawn (rolltidega) | cool.my wife is coming with me.looking forward to introducing her to whoever is there |
| Jason Kaplan | will there be audio? |
| Dell TechCenter | We have a poll question on the right - about how familiar you all are about the subject today so we know how to proceed |
| hypervfan | Hi all |
| Dell TechCenter | no audio on the call today - we are doing text only and we'll have a powerpoint presentation and poll question |
| Dell TechCenter | hi hypervfan AKA Tom :) |
| Dell TechCenter | glad to see you today |
| Dell TechCenter | We'll get started in 3 minutes - we have lots of Dell Lifecycle controller experts in the room today to answer questions |
| Dell TechCenter | feel free to ask questions throughout the chat.we'll be text only |
| Dell TechCenter | The conversation will be led WayneL@Dell - a technologist at Dell and PIyer - an engineer at Dell |
| kevin_houston | Greetings all. |
| WayneL@Dell | Hello |
| PIyer@Dell | Hey everyone |
| Will West | Hello |
| Ignacio Hernandez | Hello |
| Dell TechCenter | Hi Kevin, glad to see you here. |
| Shawn (rolltidega) | hey Kevin |
| Bryan Belman | what were R720's shipping with say 6 months ago, what version of LCC |
| WayneL@Dell | We will be talking about a few new features in Lifecycle Controller (LC) today |
| WayneL@Dell | Probably 1.1.0 |
| Bryan Belman | OK, in bundle v450 most likely, now at v460 |
| Bryan Belman | tks |
| WayneL@Dell | This features are available in the 1.35 iDRAC |
| WayneL@Dell | And version 1.2 LC |
| Bryan Belman | our repository is still locked at v450 but we update every 6 months so will go to v460 and make sure we have v1.35 on iDRAC or newer |
| WayneL@Dell | iDRAC 7 and LC are embedded Systems Management application on every PE Server |
| Vance@Dell | LC = LifeCycle Controller |
| WayneL@Dell | It supports features such as Firmware Update, Platform configuration, OS deployment, and logs |
| WayneL@Dell | Today we will discuss some new feature for FW Update and Server Configuration |
| WayneL@Dell | These are some other aspects or functions supported with LC and iDRAC |
| Dell TechCenter | New poll question available on the right side of the screen.what systems management |
| WayneL@Dell | So on to FW inventory and Update |
| Dell TechCenter | If you wanted to download the slides - we have them available at http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/extras/m/white_papers/20363621.aspx |
| WayneL@Dell | Firmware Inventory is the firmware version of a given device |
| WayneL@Dell | This is a few of Firmware inventory from the iDRAC UI |
| Shawn (rolltidega) | can idrac6 be updated to idrac7?my blades have idrac6 today. |
| WayneL@Dell | You can also export this inventory using the iDRAC UI or from the LC UI |
| kevin_houston | @shawn - no, the LC is on the server board, not a separate card |
| Shawn (rolltidega) | ah ok |
| kevin_houston | iDRAC resides within the LC |
| WayneL@Dell | BTW....I use "LC UI" to mean the GUI available via F10 during boot |
| YogeshPK@Dell | @Shawn , iDRAC6 and iDRAC 7 are different hardwares so can't be updated |
| WayneL@Dell | This same inventory can be remotely accessed using WSMAN or RACADM |
| Ignacio Hernandez | I had an issue trying to use ftp.dell.com as repository.Is there any particular consideration for using this site? |
| WayneL@Dell | You can use this inventory as a basis to determine which components need a FW update |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | @Ignacio :were you trying the update from F10 Lifecycle Controller GUI ? |
| Ignacio Hernandez | That's correct |
| Raja Tamilarasan @Dell | @Ignacio, that should work as long as you have access to the internet (ie, the proxy settings are configured in LC) |
| SteveW@Dell | firewalls can really slow down the LC access to the ftp site. |
| WayneL@Dell | This is a view of the new firmware update page in iDRAC |
| WayneL@Dell | Previously, this page would only allow you to update iDRAC firmware |
| Ignacio Hernandez | First thing I checked was firewall, then tried from the OS accessing to the ftp site. No problem, but still, the LC was unable to access the site. |
| WayneL@Dell | (or the USC repair pack image) |
| Nick | We have some servers that have 16+ NICs and it seems to be very difficult to try and find the specific adapter to configure an IP for external access. |
| kevin_houston | @Ignacio - check out this TechCenter page for some comments / ideas about ftp issues http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/systems-management/f/4494/p/19474013/20219616.aspx#20219616 |
| Nick | And the LC controller does not seem to be capable of supporting VLANs |
| SteveW@Dell | @nick - Vlan support is coming for the F10 interface |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | @Nick, you should be able to configure any one of those 16 NICs to perform the update using Lifecycle Controller |
| WayneL@Dell | It has now been updated to support Windows Update Packages for firwmare update |
| Nick | the problem is that only one of the 16 has external access, trying to find the right one is difficult |
| WayneL@Dell | One note, this feature requires an Express or Enterprise license in order to use the Windows Update Packages |
| WayneL@Dell | It supports 32 and 64bit Windows DUPs (Dell Update Package) |
| WayneL@Dell | You must first download the DUP to your local system |
| WayneL@Dell | And browse to your local system from this UI |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | @Nick, There is a Test Network Connection that you could use to determine which one is actually connected to the internet |
| Dell TechCenter | Any questions about firmware updates? according to our poll, 77% of you use Lifecycle controller the most for updates |
| WayneL@Dell | The package will upload, determine if is it applicable to the system, and provide the detail about tthe DUP. |
| Bryan Belman | can we touch on the express and ent. lic topic |
| Bryan Belman | who is applying the lic. file, factory? |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | @Nic This does require you to configure the NIC and then use the Test Network Option for each port thats connected... |
| Bryan Belman | is there a lic. file? |
| Ignacio Hernandez | @kevin thanks I'll try downloads.dell.com to see if it does the trick |
| WayneL@Dell | Servers should come from factory with an installed license |
| kevin_houston | Here is a good comparison of Express vs Enterprise iDRAC: http://i.dell.com/sites/doccontent/business/solutions/engineering-docs/en/Documents/idrac7-overview-features.pdf |
| WayneL@Dell | It is possible to update a license though |
| kevin_houston | YES, you can update an Express to an Enterprise license via a license key |
| Nick | That is what I have had to do is use a process of elimination and set the IP on each interface one at a time until it works.It seems to stop working after you set the IP on about 10 or 12 interfaces and then you have to reboot and try again. |
| Bryan Belman | we always purchase ent. but some of the smaller counties get the order mixed up and they do not get it |
| WayneL@Dell | Once all the updates have been uploaded, select install on next boot or install and reboot now |
| Bryan Belman | and I thought updating 6 nics was bad..... |
| Nick | :) |
| Vance@Dell | License whitepaper:License whitepaper: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&sqi=2&ved=0CDAQFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fen.community.dell.com%2Ftechcenter%2Fextras%2Fm%2Fwhite_papers%2F20067892%2Fdownload.aspx&ei=1GKJUZO6DouErQHVwoD4CA&usg=AFQjCNGWOCjT6cAc-LS9VOyCbK5EFhhJeQ&sig2=3coyGn_Q-RgAtK--Pi6Gow&bvm=bv.46226182,d.eWU&cad=rja |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | @Nick, this does seem to be an issue, can you contact Dell support or post in the systems management forum on TechCenter |
| WayneL@Dell | Most firmware updates will require a System reboot, but not all.This normally requires only 1 system boot. |
| Ignacio Hernandez | @vance broken link |
| WayneL@Dell | Again, these features are in the iDRAC UI as well as RACADM and WSMAN (programmatic) |
| WayneL@Dell | When the updates are actually being applied, there is an associated Job created to track progress and success / failure |
| SteveW@Dell | @Nick - configuring machines with 16 nic's would be a great use for the XML feature. More on that later. |
| WayneL@Dell | These jobs can be viewed from the Job Queue page in the iDRAC UI |
| WayneL@Dell | The Job Queue can also be viewed with RACADM and WSMAB |
| WayneL@Dell | WSMAN... |
| WayneL@Dell | You can also delete jobs that are not currently running. |
| sfahey | Sorry if I misssed it.Which versions of iDrac contain the firmware update component? |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | @Sfahey :starting iDRAC 1.30.30, we support firmware updates for all components from the iDRAC UI |
| Bryan Belman | like the gui job queue |
| Wilbert Hollins 2 | We have a Dell Latitude E6520 and the laptop monitor will not display image but when I connect an external monitor everything shows fine.serv tag 66H9WV1 how to get this repaired. |
| WayneL@Dell | NEXT TOPIC is Platform Configuration |
| Bryan Belman | better then running the dos command lines |
| WayneL@Dell | PIyer will be leading that conversation |
| Dell TechCenter | @wilbert - we're talking about Dell Lifecycle Controller today. for those concerns either call support or contact @DellCares on Twitter |
| PIyer@Dell | Server Configuration via XML is a new feature that helps to reduce the complexity of hardware configuration |
| Dell TechCenter | @wilbert - or go to http://support.dell.com |
| Wilbert Hollins 2 | Thanks |
| PIyer@Dell | With this new feature, a system administrator can get a snapshot of the entire system configuration in a human readable XML format |
| PIyer@Dell | The system admin can then make changes to the exported XML and then import it to one or more target servers |
| PIyer@Dell | This is supported via RACADM and WSMAN interfaces |
| Will West | Does the configuration include RAID configuration? |
| Bryan Belman | so, use racadm to connect and upload the XML file |
| Bryan Belman | where does it pull the updates files from ? |
| Dell TechCenter | Here's a working link to the iDRAC7 licensing white paper http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/extras/m/white_papers/20067892.aspx |
| SteveW@Dell | The intention is that you would configure a server as a refrence point, take the XML snapshot, then push the XML file out of other machines to replicate the configuration. |
| Bryan Belman | ok, tks |
| Vance@Dell | Yes can use RACADM |
| PIyer@Dell | yes - you could use WSMAN or RACADM to generate the snapshot, make changes and use either interface to apply the changes |
| WayneL@Dell | @Bryan -- updates meaning FW Updates? |
| Bryan Belman | yes, but once the other files know what fw revs they should be at they would need an http path to get the correct files from like repo manager directory structure or something. |
| Bryan Belman | file servers |
| PIyer@Dell | So the slide on the right shows you a quick comparison |
| PIyer@Dell | Previously, we would need to issue multiple commands (RACADM / WSMAN) to identify what the current hardware configuration is like. |
| WayneL@Dell | @Bryan -- The current feature pulls updates from your local system (the one you used to connect to the iDRAC web UI). |
| WayneL@Dell | The WSMAN or RACADM will pull from NFS or CIFS share |
| YogeshPK@Dell | There is a blog on licensing as well : http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/b/techcenter/archive/2012/09/24/new-digital-license-key-management-in-12th-generation-dell-poweredge-servers.aspx |
| PIyer@Dell | Likewise, to get to a desired "end state", you would need to know the right commands and also the sequence of issuing those commands |
| Bryan Belman | OH, a one to many update method. |
| PIyer@Dell | There might also be multiple server reboots |
| Dell TechCenter | We have a video covering XML Configuration on Lifecycle Controller 2 using WS-MAN @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQLP6hHxG2g |
| Bryan Belman | humm, different than using OME, nice to hit upto 9 things at once |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | @Bryan, yes that is correct, You can perform a one to many update using WSMAN or RACADM |
| Bryan Belman | great, will watch |
| Bryan Belman | will this also do CNA chips, mezz cards and the like |
| John A. - Dell | @Bryan - curious, what do mostly use OME to do? |
| Bryan Belman | we use ome for fw updates |
| Bryan Belman | complience check and update, but one at a time |
| John A. - Dell | OK, thanks for that info |
| Bryan Belman | this would be 1 to many., yes |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | @Bryan, yes, we do support one to many updates for CNA, NICs, BIOS, RAID, CPLD, IDRAC, Lifecycle Controller and Diagnostics |
| WayneL@Dell | We have a large library with WSMAN scripts on Dell TechCenter. |
| Bryan Belman | our support guys will be loving the cna and LPe12000 chip set update ofemulex HBA's |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | @Bryan, you can refer to the update white paper for more information on how to perform one to many updates http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/extras/m/white_papers/20065936/download. aspx |
| steven_zessin | Scripting the Dell Lifecycle Controller http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/systems-management/w/wiki/1981.scripting-the-dell-lifecycle-controller.aspx |
| WayneL@Dell | @Bryan -- One note is that we are talking about Firmware updates, not OS Driver Updates |
| Bryan Belman | yes |
| Bryan Belman | fw |
| Dell TechCenter | for all of you who are not aware of the WSMAN scripting library, follow the link from steven_zessin above |
| Bryan Belman | I need to start cutting and pasting these links, next slide please |
| YogeshPK@Dell | @Bryan yes we do support a large set of CNAs and FC HBAs , however need to check if LPe12000 is supported |
| steven_zessin | Other scripts under Web Services Integration Tools:http://www.delltechcenter.com/lc |
| PIyer@Dell | So the slide on the right shows you a sample snapshot of hardware configuration |
| PIyer@Dell | As you can see, it has RAID, BIOS, NIC, System, iDRAC and FC-HBA configuration |
| PIyer@Dell | You have the option to leave the server shut down post configuration |
| Dell TechCenter | @Bryan - this chat will be archived and posted at www.delltechcenter.com/chat |
| Dell TechCenter | also, the Lifecycle Contorller slide deck in it's entirety is located at http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/extras/m/white_papers/20363621.aspx |
| PIyer@Dell | You can use the XML to create a VD, configure multiple BIOS or NIC attributes, and have all this run via one job with a single host reboot |
| kevin_houston | Another good link to bookmark is the Dell TechCenter iDRAC page at http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/systems-management/w/wiki/3204.dell-remote-access-controller-drac-idrac.aspx#iDRAC7_licensing |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | @Bryan, you can also figure out if a particular device is updateable using Lifecycle Controller by enumerating the Software Inventory using WSMAN and looking at the Updateable field... for example, |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | DCIM_SoftwareIdentity BuildNumber = 0 Classifications = 11 ComponentID = 159 ComponentType = BIOS DeviceID = null ElementName = BIOS FQDD = BIOS. Setup.1-1 IdentityInfoType = OrgID:ComponentType:ComponentID IdentityInfoValue= DCIM:BIOS:159 InstallationDate = NA InstanceID = DCIM:PREVIOUS#741__BIOS.Setup.1-1 IsEntity = true MajorVersion =1 MinorVersion = 4 RevisionNumber = 8 RevisionString = null Status = Available SubDeviceID = null SubVendorID = null Updateable = true VendorID = null VersionString = 1.4.8 impactsTPMmeasurements = true |
| PIyer@Dell | The whitepapers we have here address some of the complicated workflows,such as RAID stacking, setting Hard drive to boot first |
| PIyer@Dell | Here are the links |
| PIyer@Dell | http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/extras/m/white_papers/20269586.aspx |
| PIyer@Dell | http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/extras/m/white_papers/20269601.aspx |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | the Updateable = true for BIOS tells us that Lifecycle Controller supports BIOS update |
| kevin_houston | Here's another great site (non TechCenter) that everyone should bookmark thta highlights all the things you might need to find within Dell's sites: http://www.dellquicklinks.com/ |
| PIyer@Dell | RAID stacking = Create VD, Initialize it and assign a hotspare |
| SteveW@Dell | you can use an editor to modify the XML file you have pulled from the server, if you feel confident editing XML.. If you mess the XML file up, the system will error out.. |
| Dell TechCenter | 10 minutes left on the chat with our Lifecycle controller experts - any questions before they have to go? |
| Will West | Is version 1.2 live? |
| Dell TechCenter | Any feedback on how often you perform firmware updates?once a quarter? once a year? |
| YogeshPK@Dell | @will if you mean LC 1.2 yes |
| SteveW@Dell | @yogesh - LC2 1.2 |
| steven_zessin | Licensing http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/extras/m/white_papers/20067892.aspx |
| Dell TechCenter | Any final questions? |
| Dell TechCenter | ask anything :) |
| Jim | will the recording of this tech chat be available for viewing at a later date? |
| Dell TechCenter | yes |
| Dell TechCenter | we are going to post a transcript which will include all the text and links |
| Dell TechCenter | at www.delltechcenter.com/chat |
| Dell TechCenter | should be live tomorrow.check back at that address |
| Dell TechCenter | Thanks everyone for joining - if you have followup questions feel free to drop into the systems management forum on Dell TechCenter - http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/systems-management/f/4469.aspx |
| Ignacio Hernandez | Thanks folks! |
| RajaTamilarasan @Dell | Thanks everyone... |
| YogeshPK@Dell | Thanks |