> - Serial access: I am running both Dell PE2950 and R710s. They all > have acceptable serial redirection built into the BIOS, though you > need to configure it. This is only enough to get you into the BIOS > screens though. You need to configure GRUB, the Linux kernel, and a > getty to run on the serial line. That's just the way it is. In > reality you will almost never be using this method of access (use ssh > + sudo). > > - Remote console access: This is handled on PC Servers by using > integrated remote console cards like a DRAC, and/or an external > IP-based KVM. I have both of these. As you probably know, once you > get Linux up and running you don't need console access very often, so > you'll only need these in an emergency. They perform acceptably when > you need them, but you won't want to (or need to) use them every day. > DRACs are quite reliable and I have not really seen issues with them. > > I have seen serial redirection/SSH listed in the features for the > DRAC, but have not set it up myself. I think that will still only get > you to the BIOS though. > > - Remote power switch: You need this in case you need to forcefully > power cycle the machine. Most remote access cards (like DRAC) have > the ability to power the server built-in, but you never know if the > DRAC itself will need a power-cycle. This happens rarely and I've > only seen it once when we were testing, but it's a possibility. Also > useful for other equipment that doesn't have built-in power controls.
While the DRACs on my 2650's are old (which may excuse them), I find they're horrible compared to my HP iLo's. They're quite slow. Sometimes the DRACs serial and video redirect become read-only. I've never figured what causes it. They hang more often, though I can't recall off hand I'm sure there's a way to reboot them without pulling power. Except for HP's low end servers, the basic ilo (LO100i) I've fond to be almost useless. I needed a incredible specific java version to get it working and it was still flakey. I hope they have some firmware updates to fix them. > Obviously I'm talking Dell here, as that's what I know. The only > other vendor I've used is HP, but they got on my nerves when they > started charging piecemeal license fees for each feature you wanted to > use in the iLO (such as access to a graphical console window is an > extra fee on top of access to a text console window). Yes, I was very surprised when my new servers had less features than my old ones. _______________________________________________ Tech mailing list [email protected] http://lopsa.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/tech This list provided by the League of Professional System Administrators http://lopsa.org/
