Hi,
We are looking in to the issue related to DRM on CentOS and we'll get back to
you at the earliest.
Regards,
Sashi
-----Original Message-----
From: linux-poweredge-bounces-Lists On Behalf Of linux-poweredge-request-Lists
Sent: Saturday, April 21, 2018 1:42 AM
To: linux-poweredge-Lists
Subject: Linux-PowerEdge Digest, Vol 167, Issue 25
Send Linux-PowerEdge mailing list submissions to
[email protected]
To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit
https://lists.us.dell.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-poweredge
or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to
[email protected]
You can reach the person managing the list at
[email protected]
When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re:
Contents of Linux-PowerEdge digest..."
Today's Topics:
1. Re: PE Update Strategy & Questions (Prashant Sun)
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Message: 1
Date: Fri, 20 Apr 2018 16:11:47 -0400
From: Prashant Sun <[email protected]>
To: [email protected]
Cc: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [Linux-PowerEdge] PE Update Strategy & Questions
Message-ID:
<can4qtgjjvpd5bpepchq3f51bl8s_hnpfhunsu8mhcniozr0...@mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"
Thanks Kevin.
I tried DRM for Linux(v3.0.0.385) on Centos 7.4 and it is buggy. After creating
the repo and updating preferences, it just suddenly disappeared from console. I
can't create a new repo or change preferences it just keeps circling on the
dots. Seems very unstable to me.
Can you share the link to OME Linux download? Not the appliance version. Is it
GA or still in tech preview?
Thanks
On Fri, Apr 20, 2018 at 3:45 PM, <[email protected]> wrote:
> OpenManage Enterprise the successor to OpeManage Essentials (both OME
> for
> simplicity) is available now. It is supplied as a CentOS based virtual
> appliance which can run on VMware, Hyper-V or KVM - so yes OME is
> available for Linux.
>
> If you want more information, let me know and I will provide when I am
> online.
>
>
>
> Sent from my Samsung Galaxy smartphone.
>
>
> -------- Original message --------
> From: Cameron Smith <[email protected]>
> Date: 20/04/2018 19:22 (GMT+00:00)
> To: R S <[email protected]>
> Cc: linux-poweredge-Lists <[email protected]>
> Subject: Re: [Linux-PowerEdge] PE Update Strategy & Questions
>
> You are welcome!
>
> Sadly OME is not Linux ready yet. I have heard rumors that it might be
> in the works but I wouldn't hold my breath.
>
> If using the .EXEs in the DRAC GUI here are some tips.
>
> Before you start, go to the Lifecycle Controller job queue which is
> the Job Queue link on the main DRAC page and see if there is anything
> already in there. If there are any jobs in there that are failed or
> pending (that you don't want) delete them.
>
> Reboot the DRAC from the main drac page with the Reset link (This does
> not affect the OS)
>
> Once DRAC is back up which is usually within 90 seconds then do your
> firmware uploads. You can set these to immediately reboot the server
> and run or to be queued to run when the server is rebooted by you at a
> later time manually.
>
> Then go to the Job Queue and monitor their status.
>
> Cameron
>
> On Fri, Apr 20, 2018 at 11:11 AM, R S <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>> Thanks for sharing this. Makes me want to spent time and try out OME.
>> I used the 64bit EXEs in iDRAC just recently for the first time
>> wondering how the iDRAC can handle EXEs?!?! :) It worked though.
>> Is OME available for GNU/Linux?
>>
>> On Fri, Apr 20, 2018 at 12:37 PM, Cameron Smith
>> <[email protected]
>> > wrote:
>>
>>> For localizing the repo you can look into Dell Repo Manager:
>>>
>>> https://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/04/Drivers/DriversDe
>>> tails?driverId=2GY7P
>>>
>>> You can customize the repo if you need to hold back a version for
>>> anything and it's a great tool. Runs on Linux now!!!
>>>
>>> For firmware updates I used to use .BIN files in the OS. I then
>>> moved to 64-bit .exe files through DRAC. I now use OME to DRAC for
>>> almost everything for managing about 600 servers (11/12/13Gen).
>>>
>>> OME has gotten much better. Based on your numbers though I believe
>>> you would need to run multiple installs of OME as I "think" it maxes
>>> out at close to 2000 devices. It's is also good to batch update
>>> smaller groups of devices at a time (20 or so) rather than trying to update
>>> 1000 at a time.
>>> Just something to think about if you need to end up going this route.
>>>
>>> Cameron
>>>
>>> On Fri, Apr 20, 2018 at 6:32 AM, Prashant Sun
>>> <[email protected]
>>> > wrote:
>>>
>>>> Thanks RS & Florian for your suggestions.
>>>>
>>>> I intend to use Catalog.xml file as my primary tool to approve
>>>> updates that are applied by iDRAC or dsu. I plan to download this
>>>> Catalog.xml and publish via ftp/http internally and do a phased
>>>> roll-out. Say dev servers get first.I understand the firmware
>>>> behaves differently even on same model at different times but that's a
>>>> risk we are willing to take.
>>>>
>>>> Couple of more questions:
>>>>
>>>> Q1) Does anyone here use iDrac or dsu based updates? Do you mirror
>>>> the upstream repo locally and point to it somehow? Please respond
>>>> to this list or directly so we can talk further.
>>>>
>>>> Q2) Any other strategies for updating large(3000+) servers that is
>>>> OS agnostic? I am keeping OME as last option.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Thanks all
>>>>
>>>> On Thu, Apr 19, 2018 at 2:40 AM, Florian Haller-Casagrande <
>>>> [email protected]> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> Hi,
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> Another solution is to setup an OpenManage Essential server (or
>>>>> "OME", available for free on Dell website), let is scan your
>>>>> network and find all you iDRAC (no need to go further, like
>>>>> OS-level or with OMSA agents). It will then display you all the
>>>>> available updates for your machines, and you will be able to
>>>>> schedule them (or apply them immediately), through the iDRAC (and the LC).
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> That is clearly, IMHO, the easiest way to go with dozens/hundreds
>>>>> of servers.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> But, these are some limitations I have with this solution :
>>>>>
>>>>> - OME is heavy, requiring a SQL server (embedded) and eating a lot
>>>>> of CPU/RAM when you have hundreds of machines ;
>>>>>
>>>>> - OME offers many features, such as managing iDRAC/BIOS/etc
>>>>> configurations, licenses, hardwares issues and so on, but it is
>>>>> not easy to handle, and to be honest I only use it to update my
>>>>> firmwares ;
>>>>>
>>>>> - 80% of my servers are pretty well detected, but for some of them
>>>>> the inventory task fail, and they are not listed (so I can't
>>>>> update them with OME, I still need to go with a Dell ISO or
>>>>> whatever) ;
>>>>>
>>>>> - As Rene Shuster said, BIOS and LC updates are (almost) the first
>>>>> to run. Personally, I first update all the iDRACs, as OME will go
>>>>> through it to push updates to the LC. So : iDRAC, then BIOS+LC,
>>>>> then everything else ;
>>>>>
>>>>> - I still have many iDRAC6, and the iDRAC update is strangely not
>>>>> "reboot-less" (if you upgrade through its webUI, no need to reboot
>>>>> the server, only the iDRAC). With OME, the update is loaded (into
>>>>> the LC ?), and waiting for server reboot to be applied...
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> I was previously using the ISO solution, but having to connect to
>>>>> every single iDRAC, reboot and then go to PXE boot is
>>>>> time-consuming. And, most of the time, you have to reboot twice
>>>>> with the ISO, as some updates fail the first time because of some
>>>>> dependences (the Dell support teams are very insistent on this point).
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> As we have various Linux/*BSD systems, we can't rely on DSU or
>>>>> such tools (Dell still doesn't support Debian 9...), and that is
>>>>> why I focus on out-of-band solutions.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> My 2cts.
>>>>>
>>>>> [image: Logo] <http://www.smile.fr/>
>>>>>
>>>>> 107 Boulevard de Stalingrad
>>>>> 69100 Lyon Villeurbanne
>>>>> www.smile.fr
>>>>> *Florian HALLER-CASAGRANDE*
>>>>> Ing?nieur Infrastructures
>>>>> Email : [email protected]
>>>>> Tel : +33 4 26 29 12 25
>>>>>
>>>>> [image: Facebook] <https://www.facebook.com/smileopensource> [image:
>>>>> Google%2B] <https://plus.google.com/u/0/+SmileFrOpenSource/posts> [image:
>>>>> LinkedIn] <https://www.linkedin.com/in/florianhc> [image: Twitter]
>>>>> <https://twitter.com/GroupeSmile>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> [image: eco]Pour la plan?te, n'imprimez ce mail que si c'est
>>>>> n?cessaire.
>>>>> On 04/18/2018 09:27 PM, R S wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>> I recommend to apply BIOS update and LC update separately from all
>>>>> other updates and do them first with whatever route you choose.
>>>>> They go together is what DELL documentation says. BIOS first, then
>>>>> LC, then reboot and hope for the best.
>>>>>
>>>>> Here are the pitfalls I encountered:
>>>>> * updating the LC controller will result that all other updates
>>>>> chained behind the LC update cannot be applied when using for
>>>>> example an ISO that has been created with DELL Repo Manager.
>>>>> * You might loose KVM capability when updating LC
>>>>> * There is a high chance that a LC update will render your
>>>>> iDRAC/LC into a brick
>>>>> * replacing a bricked iDRAC used to be swapping out the iDRAC card
>>>>> (available used for $60), starting with iDRAC7 DELL decided to
>>>>> solder it on the mainboard.
>>>>> * Check the warranty of all 3000 servers first as you will be
>>>>> opening tickets with DELL to get your mainboard replaced due to
>>>>> bricked iDRAC/LC if they are still under warranty.
>>>>> * a lot of PSU updates are not listed in the catalog and you will
>>>>> need to apply them in a different way. I do them last as they need
>>>>> up to 30 minutes to apply to both PSU. Don't make the mistake and
>>>>> get impatient and power the server on during the firmware update.
>>>>> The FW update will fail and you will need to start over
>>>>> * NIC updates sometimes fail to apply. Sometimes they need stepped
>>>>> updates, for example to fix the underlying issue of not beeing
>>>>> able to update to a more recent FW
>>>>> * a lot of HDD/SSD updates are not listed in the catalog either
>>>>> and need to be installed in a different way.
>>>>> * iDSDM update is not listed in catalog.
>>>>>
>>>>> All of the above depends on a lot of factors. You could have two
>>>>> servers with the same FW level and one fails and the other applies
>>>>> all FW fine. Even heavily outdated servers might apply the latest
>>>>> FW updates just fine, but then again a server just one month
>>>>> behind might fail updating to the latest.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> On Wed, Apr 18, 2018 at 2:10 PM, Prashant Sun <
>>>>> [email protected]> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Greetings!
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I am taking up a project to consolidate the bios/LC/idrac/hw
>>>>>> firmware updates for powerEdge 12G+ servers and would appreciate
>>>>>> if you can answer few questions noted below.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Environment: 3000+ Linux servers(RHEL6, 7) all running in
>>>>>> multiple sites. Primarily PE R600 & 700 series with idrac enterprise
>>>>>> 7,8,9.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Update Plan: Create a local mirror of the upstream repo and use
>>>>>> it in some fashion.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I narrowed down my update strategy to following options.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> A. Install using yum repo (os-independent & os-dependent)
>>>>>>
>>>>>> B. Install using DSU by passing catalog.xml(update
>>>>>> definitions) & location of .BIN files(using config.xml)
>>>>>>
>>>>>> C. Create an iso using DSU by passing Catalog.xml &
>>>>>> config.xml(pointing to local .BIN repo). Then PXE boot to this iso to
>>>>>> patch.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> D. Setup iDrac scheduled updates using local copy of repo
>>>>>> and use multiple Catalog.xml to roll-out in phased manner.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> __Questions__:
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Q1. I like option:D as it is OS agnostic and uses iDRAC/LC to
>>>>>> apply patches in a scheduled way. Has anyone encountered issues
>>>>>> where certain category of updates fail for some reason? Will
>>>>>> probably make windows server team happy too with this. :)
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Q2. I can also deal with option:C which involves creating iso and
>>>>>> pxe booting servers into it. This has historically worked well
>>>>>> for me using Dell Repo Mnager but the nv is too large and I'd
>>>>>> like to avoid manual work having to do this. So curious to know
>>>>>> if folks here prefer this over option:C.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Q3. In order to go with option C or D ), is there a .BIN repo
>>>>>> that I can mirror locally? Sorry I may not have google'd hard
>>>>>> enough. If you have the link handy, please share. Thx. I found
>>>>>> the Catalog.xml file from 'https://downloads.dell.com/catalog/' but
>>>>>> don't see fw files there.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Q4. I have never used RPM based updates(option A), but curious to
>>>>>> know your experiences? Are all updates available via DRM
>>>>>> typically also packaged into rpms or only a subset?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Q5. Option B sounds like a custom tailored updates for each
>>>>>> server but I have heard from fellow admins that it is a hit or
>>>>>> miss. Do you agree with this? Do you recommend even looking at this?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Any other ideas to fully automate bios/lc/idrac/hw firmware
>>>>>> updates is welcome.
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Cheers
>>>>>> P
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>>> Linux-PowerEdge mailing list
>>>>>> [email protected]
>>>>>> https://lists.us.dell.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-poweredge
>>>>>>
>>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> --
>>>>> Tech III * AppControl * Endpoint Protection * Server Maintenance
>>>>> Buncombe County Schools Technology Department Network Group
>>>>> ComicSans Awareness Campaign <http://comicsanscriminal.com>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> Linux-PowerEdge mailing
>>>>> [email protected]https://lists.us.dell.com/mailman/list
>>>>> info/linux-poweredge
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>>> Linux-PowerEdge mailing list
>>>>> [email protected]
>>>>> https://lists.us.dell.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-poweredge
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> _______________________________________________
>>>> Linux-PowerEdge mailing list
>>>> [email protected]
>>>> https://lists.us.dell.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-poweredge
>>>>
>>>>
>>>
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> Linux-PowerEdge mailing list
>>> [email protected]
>>> https://lists.us.dell.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-poweredge
>>>
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Tech III * AppControl * Endpoint Protection * Server Maintenance
>> Buncombe County Schools Technology Department Network Group ComicSans
>> Awareness Campaign <http://comicsanscriminal.com>
>>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Linux-PowerEdge mailing list
> [email protected]
> https://lists.us.dell.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-poweredge
>
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL:
<http://lists.us.dell.com/pipermail/linux-poweredge/attachments/20180420/f3ebef46/attachment.html>
------------------------------
Subject: Digest Footer
_______________________________________________
Linux-PowerEdge mailing list
[email protected]
https://lists.us.dell.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-poweredge
------------------------------
End of Linux-PowerEdge Digest, Vol 167, Issue 25
************************************************
_______________________________________________
Linux-PowerEdge mailing list
[email protected]
https://lists.us.dell.com/mailman/listinfo/linux-poweredge
