Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials This Dell Technical White Paper addresses the maintenance and enforcement of hardware revision baseline within a datacentre environment using Dell OpenManage Essentials. Authors: Lakshmi.K.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials This document is for informational purposes only and may contain typographical errors and technical inaccuracies. The content is provided as is, without express or implied warranties of any kind. © 2011 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. Dell and its affiliates cannot be responsible for errors or omissions in typography or photography. Dell, the Dell logo, and PowerEdge are trademarks of Dell Inc.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Contents Executive Summary ........................................................................... 5 Introduction .................................................................................... 5 Obtaining the latest version of update packages ......................................... 6 Determining the servers that should be updated and their respective packages (DUPs) ... 8 Updating the hardware at the convenience of IT Administrator ..
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Figures Figure 1. Select a catalog source ................................................................................... 6 Figure 2. Import latest Dell FTP catalog ........................................................................... 7 Figure 3. Software Inventory Information Table ................................................................. 9 Figure 4. Non-Compliant Report ..................................................
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Executive Summary This white paper describes the process of maintaining and enforcing a hardware revision baseline within the Dell PowerEdge server environment using OpenManage Essentials. This document explains the process to update servers without forcing an unplanned shutdown. Using OpenManage Essentials, IT administrator can keep the servers up to date without affecting the production environment.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Obtaining the latest version of update packages You must import the latest catalog.cab file to obtain the latest version of drivers, firmware, and BIOS. You can import the catalog from three different sources provided by Dell: Dell Server Update Utility (SUU) DVD, Dell FTP, and Dell Repository Manager (RM). Figure 1. Select a catalog source Dell Server update utility: Dell server update utility DVD to import catalog.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials The Get the Latest button is automatically activated when a new version of catalog is posted on Dell FTP. To obtain the latest catalog, go to Manage>System Update>Summary and then click on the Get the Latest button. Figure 2. Import latest Dell FTP catalog To import catalog from FTP, configure proxy settings under the Preferences tab.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials 7. Click next 8. Choose save and download repository and click Finish 9. Choose the location to save catalog and DUPs Determining the servers that should be updated and their respective packages (DUPs) In-Band System Update along with OMSA agent In-Band system update uses Operating System [Windows/Linux] environment to update Dell PowerEdge Server. The OS and OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA) should be installed on Dell PE Server.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Figure 3. Software Inventory Information Table Figure 4.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Updating the hardware at the convenience of IT Administrator You must create a system update task and schedule to apply applicable updates to the non-compliant servers. Refer to “Figure 5: Create System Update Task” to view the update task creation page. You can select various combinations to update servers: o Single update on a single server: You can select one package to be applied on an individual server.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Figure 5. Create (In-Band) system update task Once the update task is complete, OpenManage Essentials inventories the updated servers. Comparison between the installed packages version and baseline catalog are automatically completed and the servers are classified as compliant or non-compliant systems accordingly.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials During the system update process, packages are downloaded from the selected source and saved under the “Packages” folder under the “Essentials>System update” folder (C:\Program Files (x86)\Dell\SysMgt\Essentials\SystemUpdate\Packages).
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Dell OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA) Dell™ OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA) is a software agent that provides a comprehensive, one-to-one systems management solution in two ways: from an integrated, Web browser-based graphical user interface (GUI) and from a command line interface (CLI) through the operating system.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials C. On the managed system that you are going to update, run the following command using the command prompt on a Windows managed system: "netsh firewall set service RemoteAdmin". For more information on connecting through the Windows firewall, see Microsoft's MSDN website for Platform SDK: Windows Management Instrumentation (Connecting through Windows Firewall) at http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa389286(VS.85).aspx http://support.microsoft.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials This package is available on the Dell Support site. You can only use this package for upgrading OMSA agent from N to N+1 version; for example, upgrading OMSA version 6.4 to 6.5. For more information about how to install/Upgrade OMSA using OpenManage Essentials, refer to “Deploying Server Administrator using OpenManage Essentials” white paper.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Updating System via OpenManage Server Administrator 1. Enable OMSA update mode from advanced settings Go to System Update Summary Advanced Settings Enable “Server Administrator (OMSA) mode. Figure 6.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials 2. Select Non-Compliant Systems to update. Go to System Update Non-Compliant Systems Select Systems from “Select Any of NonCompliant Systems to Update:” Figure 7. Non-Compliant Systems Note: User Preferred Delivery Mode OMSA. Update Method for Selected Systems – OMSA or iDRAC. Update Method for Selected Components – OMSA or iDRAC & OMSA. 3. Create an OMSA update mode System update task. 4.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials 5. Enter Task name, set the task schedule – Choose Run now or Set Schedule option, Select “After update, if required, reboot the device” and “Skip Signature and Hash Check” check box. Enter Server User name & Password. Click on “Finish” button. System update OMSA task will be created and completed. Figure 8. Create OMSA delivery mode system update task Note: Delivery Mode – OMSA.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials 6. View the System update task status. System Update Summary Task Execution History: OR System Update All System Update Tasks Task Execution History: Figure 9. System Update Task (OMSA) Execution Status Note: On completion of system update task the Task State set to Completed, an auto inventory task is run after 20 minutes to fetch updated inventory data.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Agent Free System Update - Out Of Band System Update without OMSA agent Out Of Band system update uses iDRAC with Life Cycle controller mechanism to update Dell PowerEdge servers. Out Of Band system update is useful for IT administrator when there is managed PE server with/without Operating System and without OpenManage Server Administrator (OMSA).
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Updating System via Intergrated Dell Remote Access controller The following updates can applied via iDRAC - BIOS - Firmware - Applications (Dell 32 Bit Diagnostics, Dell Life Cycle Controller.) 1. Discover and Inventory of iDRAC6/iDRAC7 using WS-Man protocol – 2. Navigate to Manage > Discovery and Inventory >Add discovery range. 3. Add iDRAC6 and iDRAC7 IPs. Click Next and Deselect SNMP protocol. 4.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Figure 10. Advanced Settings preferred update mode iDRAC 9. Download latest catalog – Refer “Obtaining the latest version of update packages” section 10. Click on Non-compliant tab if the discovered iDRAC is non-compliant.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials 11. Select the iDRAC that is non-compliant and package to be updated on the System and click on Apply Selected updates. When “User Preferred Delivery Mode” is set to iDRAC, the “Update Method” will show iDRAC for all the available components (DUPs). Figure 11.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials 12. “System Update Task” window is displayed. - Enter Task name - Set the Task Schedule – Choose Run now or Set Schedule - Enter iDRAC credentials - Click on “Finish” button to create system update task. Figure 12. Create OOB system update task Note: Check “Skip Signature and hash check” to Skip signature and hash check. 13. System update task is created with name specified and “- iDRAC” appended to the task name.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials on the selected managed system, the task status set to “Complete”. An Inventory task is run 20 minutes after the software update task completion to fetch updated inventory. 14. To view the “Execution Details” of the task, double click on the task or right click on the task and select “Details” To copy execution details result, click on “Copy Results” Figure 13.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Perform discover and inventory of Dell PowerEdge server SNMP [Server IP] and WS-Man [iDRAC IP], Windows and Linux OS. Perform discovery and inventory of Dell PowerEdge server WMI [Server IP] and WS-Man [iDRAC IP], Only Windows OS. After performing above discovery and Inventory, To update correlated devices - Go to System Update and import a latest catalog (perfered online ftp.dell.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials 3. Enable iDRAC update mode from advanced settings. Go to System Update Summary Advanced Settings Enable “Remote Access Controller (iDRAC) mode. Figure 15.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials 4. Select Non-Compliant Systems to update. Go to System Update Non-Compliant Systems Select Systems from “Select Any of NonCompliant Systems to Update:” Figure 16. Non-Compliant Systems Note: User Preferred Delivery Mode - iDRAC Update Method for Selected Systems – OMSA or iDRAC. Update Method for Selected Components – OMSA or iDRAC & OMSA Select all PE-Servers which have same server credentials.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials 5. Create an OMSA + iDRAC mode System update task. Figure 17. OMSA + iDRAC mode system update task Note: Delivery Mode – iDRAC & OMSA Updatable components BIOS, Firmware, Drivers & Applications. Server and iDRAC Credentials asked.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials 6. View the System update task status. System Update Summary Task Execution History: OR System Update All System Update Tasks Task Execution History: Figure 18. System Update Task Execution Status Note: On completion of system update task the Task State set to Completed, an auto inventory task is run after 20 minutes to fetch updated inventory data.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials System Update Scalability The scalability of System update is an important consideration for IT administrators of Enterprise Business, Medium Business and Small Business customers. Test environment and methodology The scalability and performance tests for Dell OME were performed on the following environments Small business customer’s environment: This environment consisted of 100 managed systems.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials than OME. Please refer to the whitepaper “Installing Dell OpenManage Essentials” for more information about installing Dell OME on a remote Database. Generic recommendations Based on the analysis of the performance data collected for the various features tested, the following are the recommendations: 1. The minimum hardware and software mentioned in Table 1 must be used in order for better performance of OME. Higher hardware specifications i.e.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials These are the recommendations for using the patch feature, based on the analysis of the test results: 1. Recommendation is to update not more than 30 managed systems at any given time. 2. Dell SUU is recommended as the catalog source for system update as the packages are downloaded at a faster rate. 3. Separate system update tasks must be created for Windows and Linux targets in case of Inband system updates.
Update Dell™ Server Hardware with Dell OpenManage Essentials Conclusion All that an IT administrator needs to do to keep servers up to date in a datacentre is to install Dell agent on servers, inventory the servers, and import the latest version of catalog. Use the following three steps to keep the servers up to date in a datacentre environment using Dell OpenManage Essentials: 1. Discover and Inventory Dell servers. 2. Discover and Inventory Dell iDRAC6 and above. 3.
