Setup Guide

The appliance itself does not implement any policies. If you require more control over remote access to your appliance, you can
use a Policy Manager to set authorization permissions. The Policy Manager software component can be installed on a customer-
supplied server. It controls remote access to your devices, maintains an audit log of remote connections, and supports file
transfer operations. You can control by whom, what, and when access to your appliance occurs. For more information about the
Policy Manager, go to https://www.dell.com/support. After logging in, locate the applicable Support by Product page and
search for the link to the specific SupportAssist product technical documentation.
SupportAssist communication
NOTE: SupportAssist cannot be enabled on PowerStore models configured with IPv6 for the management network.
SupportAssist is not supported over IPv6. Also, management network reconfiguration from IPv4 to IPv6 is not allowed when
SupportAssist is configured on a cluster.
Access to a DNS server is required for the SupportAssist feature to work.
The Connection Status of SupportAssist indicates both the state of the connection between PowerStore and the Dell EMC
backend Support services and the quality of service of the connection. The connection state is determined over five minute
periods and the quality of service of the connection is determined over 24 hour periods. The Connection Status of the
connection can appear as one of the following based on any of the appliances in the cluster:
● Unavailable – Connectivity data is unavailable. You may have lost contact with an appliance or SupportAssist has just
been enabled and there is insufficient data to determine the state.
● Disabled – SupportAssist has not been enabled.
● Not connected – Connectivity has been lost. Five consecutive keepalive failures have been detected.
● Reconnecting – PowerStore is attempting to reconnect after loss of connectivity. Five consecutive successful keepalive
requests are needed to transition back to a connected status.
The Connection Status of the connection can appear as one of the following based on the average of all the appliances in the
cluster when PowerStore is connected to the Dell EMC backend Support services:
● Evaluating – The quality of service for the connection will be undetermined for the first 24 hours after SupportAssist is
first initialized.
● Good – 80% or more of the consecutive keepalive requests were successful.
● Fair – Between 50% and 80% of the consecutive keepalive requests were successful.
● Poor – Less than 50% of the consecutive keepalive requests were successful.
SupportAssist options
The SupportAssist feature provides an IP-based connection that enables Dell EMC Support to receive error files and alerts from
your system, and to perform remote troubleshooting resulting in a fast and efficient time to resolution.
The SupportAssist options that are available by which to send appliance information to Dell EMC Support for remote
troubleshooting are:
● Gateway Connect without remote access – For centralized SupportAssist and runs on a customer-supplied gateway server
with two-way file transfer, which includes:
○ Call-homes
○ CloudIQ support
○ Software notifications
○ Operating environment/firmware download from Dell EMC Support to the cluster
The SupportAssist gateway server is the single point of entry and exit for all IP-based SupportAssist activities for the
appliances associated with the gateway.
● Gateway Connect with remote access – For centralized SupportAssist and runs on a customer-supplied gateway server with
the same two-way file transfer as Gateway Connect without remote access along with remote access for Dell EMC Support
personnel.
● Direct Connect without remote access — For distributed SupportAssist that runs on individual appliances with the same
two-way file transfer as Gateway Connect without remote access.
● Direct Connect with remote access — For distributed SupportAssist that runs on individual appliances with the same two-
way file transfer as Gateway Connect without remote access along with remote access for Dell EMC Support personnel.
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SupportAssist