Copyright
We believe the information in this manual is accurate and reliable. However, we assume no
responsibility, financial or otherwise, for any consequences of the use of this product or manual. This manual is publishe d by Black Box Co rporation, which reserves the r ight to make
improvements or changes in the products described in this manu al as well as to revise this
publication at any time and without notice to any per son of such revision or change. The
operating system covered in this manual is v2.1.4. All brand and product names mentioned in
this pu blication are trademarks or register ed trademarks of thei r respecti ve holders.
Black Box, BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server, LS1032A, LS1016A are registered
trademark of Black Box Corporation.
Microsoft, Windows 95, 98, XP, ME, NT, and 2K are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.
UNIX is a tradem ark of UN IX System Laboratories, Inc.
Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds.
Black Box Corporation, 2003
This document contains pro prietary information of Black Box and is not to be disclosed or
used except in accordance with applicable contracts or agreements.
All rights reserved. This document may not, in whole or part, be copied, photocopied, reproduced, translated, or converted to any electronic or machine-readable form without the prior
written consent of Black Box.
The purpose of this guide is to provide instruction for users to independently install, configure, and maintain the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server. This manual should be read
in the order written, with exceptions given in the text. Whether or not you are aUNIX user,
we strongly recommend that you follow the steps given in this manual.
Audience and User Levels
This guide is intended for the user who is respons ible for the d eployment and day-to-day
operation and mainte nance of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Consol e Server. It assumes that
the r e a de r u nd ers ta n ds ne tworking ba si c s a nd i s famil ia r w ith the te rm s and conc ep t s u se d i n
Local and Wide Area Networking. UNIX and Linux u sers will find the configu ration process
very familiar. It is not necessary to be a UNIX exper t, however, to get the BLACK BOX ®
Advanced Console Server up and running. There are two audiences or user levels for this
manual:
New Users
These are users new to Linux and/or U NIX with a primarily PC/Microsoft background. You
might want to brush up on such things a s common Linux/UNIX commands and how to use
the vi editor prior to attempting installation and conf iguration. This essential background
information appears in Appendix A - New User Background Information
that N e w Use rs con fi g u r e th e BLACK BOX ® Advanced Conso le Server using a Web browser,
however, New Users can also configure the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server with vi,
the Wizard or the Command Line Interface (CLI).
. It is recommended
Power Users
These are UNIX/Linux experts who will use this manual mostly for reference. Power Users
can choose b etween configur ing the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server via Web
browser, vi, Wizard, or CLI.
User Guide13
Page 14
Preface
Each configuration task will be separated into a section (a clicka ble link on t he PDF file) for
each user type. Users then can skip to the appropriate level tha t matches their expertise and
comfort level.
How to use this Guide
This guide is organized into the following sections:
•Chapter 1 - Introduction and Overview
default CAS setup. It also includes safety guidelines to be followed.
•Chapter 2 - Installation, Configuration, and Usage
Advanced Console Server should be connected and what each cable is used for. It
describes the basic configuration process to get the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console
Server up and running for its most common uses.
•Chapter 3 - Additional Features
tures of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Se rver. It provides configu ration instructions for syslog, data buffers, authentication, filters, DHCP, NTP, SNMP, clusterin g , and
sniffing.
•Appendix A - New User Background Information
new to Linux/UNIX.
•Appendix B - Cabling, Hard ware, and Electrical Spe cificatio ns
and pinout d iagrams for cables used with the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server.
•Appendix C - The pslave Co nfiguration File
urations as well as the master file.
is dedicated to users wanting to explore all available fea-
contains an explanation of the product and its
explains how the BLACK BOX ®
contains information for those w ho are
has detailed information
contains example files for the various config-
•Appendix D - Linux-P AM
ticate users.
•Appendix E - Software Upgrades and Troubleshooting
dures for typical problems.
•Appendix F - Certificate for HTTP Security
enable you to obtain a Signed Digital Certificate.
•Appendix G - IPSEC
Protocol) level of the network protocol stack.
14BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
enables the local system administrator to choose how to authen-
provides encryption and authentication services at the IP (Internet
includes solutions and test proce-
provides configuration information that will
Page 15
Preface
•Appendix H- Web User Management covers default and optional configuration, and the
addition/deletion of users, groups, and access limits.
•Appendix I - Connect to Serial Ports from Web
serial port is configured.
•Appendix J - Examples for Con figuration Testing
Advanced Secure Console Port Server after configuratio n.
•Appendix K - Wiz Application Parameters
ters.
•Appendix L - Copyrights
product.
•The Glossary
provides definitions for commonly-use d terms in this manual.
lists details about ap plica tions that were incorporated into th e
enables this process, based on how the
provides exampl es for tes ting the
contains all basic and custom wizard parame-
Convent ions an d Symbols
This section explains the significance of each of the various fonts, formatting, and icons that
appear throughout this guide.
Fonts
This guide uses a regular text font for most o f the body text and Courier for da ta that you
would input, such as a com mand line ins t ruction, or data that you would receive back, such
as an error message. An example of this wo uld be:
telnet 200.200.200.1 7001
Hypertext Links
References to another section of this manual are hyp ertext links that are underlined (and are
also blue in the PDF version of the manual). When you click on them in the PDF version of
the manual, you will be taken to that section.
User Guide15
Page 16
Preface
Glossary En tr ies
Terms that can be found in the glossary are underlined and slightly larger than the rest of
the text. These terms have a hypertext link to the glossary.
Quick Steps
Step-by-step instructions for installing and c onfiguring the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console
Ser v er are numbered with a summarized description o f the step for quick referen ce. Und erneath the quick step is a more detailed description. Steps are numbered 1, 2, 3, etc. Additionally, if there are sub-steps to a step, they are indicated as Step A, B, C, and are nested within
the St ep 1, 2 , 3, etc. For example:
Step 1: Modify files.
You will mo dify four Linux files to let the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server
know about it s local environment.
Step A: Modify pslave.conf.
Open the file plsave.conf and add the following lines . . .
Parameter Syntax
This manua l uses standard Linux command syntaxes and conventions for the
parameters described within it.
Brackets and Hyphens (dashes)
The brackets ([])indicate that the parameter inside t hem is optional, meaning that t he
command will be accepted if the parameter is not defined. When the text inside the brackets
starts with a dash (-) and/or indicates a list of characters, the parameter can be one of the
letters listed within the brackets.
When a config uration parameter is d ef ined, the Linu x co mmand syntax conventions will be
also used, with a difference.
Greater-than and Less-than signs
When the text is encapsulated with the “<>” characters , the meaning of the text will be
considered, not the literal text. When the text is not encapsulated, the literal text will be
considered.
Spacing and Separators
The list of users in the following example must be separated by semicolons (;); the outlets
should be separated by commas (,) to indicate a list or with dashes (-) to indicate range; there
should not be any sp aces between the values.
sXX.pmusers: The user access list. For example: jan e:1,2;j ohn:3,4. The format of this field is:
Note boxes contain instructional or cautionary information that the read er especially needs
to bear in mind. The re are five levels of note b ox icons:
Tip. An informational tip or tool that
explains and /or expedite s th e use of
the BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Console Server.
Important! An important tip that
should be read. Review all of these
notes for critical infor m ation.
Wa rning! A very important type of
tip or warning. Do not ignore this
information.
DANGER! Indicates a dir ect danger
which, if not avoided, may result in
personal injury or damage to the system.
Security Issue. Indicates securityrelated information where it is relevant.
18BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
Page 19
Introduction and Overview
Chapter 1 - Introduction and Overview
The BLACK BOX® Advanced Console Server
The BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server is line of Console Access Servers that allow
both lo ca l an d dial-in acce s s f or in - ban d an d out -of- band netwo r k man ag em e nt. run an embedded version of the L inux operating system. Configuration of the is done by editing a few
plain - text files, and then up dating the versions of the files o n the BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Console Server. The fil es can b e edited usi ng the vi editor provided or on anothe r comp uter
with the env i ron men t an d t ext editor of your ch oic e. T he default “profile” of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server is that of a Console Access Server.
You can access the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server via three methods:
•A console directly connected to the B LACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server
•Telnet/ssh over a network
•A browser
And configure it with any of the following four options:
•vi
•Wizard
•Browser
•Command Line Interface (CLI) - only for certain configuration parameters
With the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server set up as a Console Access Server, you can
access a server conn ected to the BLACK B OX ® Adva nc ed Co nsol e Ser ver throug h the
server’s serial console port from a workstation on th e LAN or WAN. There is no authentication by default, but the system can be configured for authentication to be performed by a
Radius server, a TacacsPlus server, or even by a local database. Eith er t elnet or ssh (a secure
shell session) can be used. See Appendix A - New Us er Background Information
information about ssh. The instructions in Chapter 2 - Installation, Configuration, and Usage
will set up a fully-functional, default CA S environment. More o ptions can be added after the
initial setup, as illustrated in Chapter 3 - Additional Features
.
for more
User Guide19
Page 20
Introduction and Overview
What’s in the box
Ther e are sev e r al m ode l s o f the BLACK BOX ® Advanc ed Cons o l e S erver. Bl ack Box wi ll shi p
eithe r Cable Package #1 or #2 with the product according to current ava ilability.
RJ-45 straightthrough cable
Black Box/Sun Netra
cable
RJ-45 to DB-9 F
adapter
RJ-45 to DB- 25
Male adapter
Figur e 1: Cabl e Package #1
RJ-45 to DB- 25
Male crossover cable
Black Box/Sun Netra adapter
RJ-45 to DB-25
Female adapter
RJ-45 to DB-9
Femalecrossover cable
The following figures show the main units and accessories included in package.
20BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
RJ-45 to DB-25
Female crossover cable
Figur e 2: Cabl e Package #2
Page 21
Introduction and Overview
Note: Although some BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server units in the
figures are shown with a dual power supply (A/C or -48VDC), some models
may have single power supply. The single power units will have just one power
cable.
Back View of the 32-Port
Modem Cable
Manual
SEPTEMBER 2003LS1016ALS1032A
BLACK BOX®Advanced Console Server
Version2.1.4 Revision 1a
- User Guide
Loop-back
CUSTOMER
Black Box Corporation -1000 Park Drive - Lawrence, PA15055-1018
Tocontact usabout Black Box productsor services: info@blackbox.com
- User Guide
Loop-back
Connector
Cable Package #1
OR
Cable Package #2
Manual
Figure 4 : The BLACK B OX ® Advanced Console Server16-po rt, its cables, connector s and
other box contents
22BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
Page 23
Introduction and Overview
Safety Instructions
Read all the follo wing safety guidelin es to protect y ourself and your BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Console Server.
DANGER! In order to a voi d sh orti ng o ut your BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console
Server when disconnecting the network cable, first unplug the cable from the
and then fro m the network jack. When reconnec ting a network cable to the,
first plug the cable into the network jack, and then into the.
Important! To help protect the BLACK BOX ® Advanced C onsole Server from
electrical power fluctuations, use a surge suppressor, line conditione r, or
uninterruptible power supply.
Important! Be sure that nothing rests o n the cables of the BLACK BOX ®
Advanced Console Server and that they are not located where they can be
stepped on or tripped over.
Important! Do not spill food or liquids on the BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Console Server. If it gets wet, contact Black Box.
DANGER! Do not push any objects th r ough the openin gs of th e BLACK BOX ®
Advanced Console Server. Doing so can cause fire or electric shock by shorting
out interior components.
User Guide23
Page 24
Introduction and Overview
Important! Keep your BLACK BOX ® Advanced C onsole Server away from
heat so urces an d do n ot block cooling vents.
Important! The BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server product (DC
version) is only intended to be installed in restricted access areas (Ded icated
Equipment Rooms, Equipment Closets or the like) in accordance with Articles
110-18, 110-26 and 110-27 of the National Electrical Code, ANSI/NFPA 701,
1999 Edition.
Use 18 AWG or 0.75 mm2 or above cable to connect the DC configured unit to
the Centralized D.C. Power Systems.
Install the required double-pole, single-throw, DC rated UL Listed circuit
breaker between the power source and the BLACK BOX ® Adva nced Co nsol e
Server DC version. Minimum Bre aker Rating: 2A. Required conductor size: 18
AWG.
Working inside the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Co n s ole Server
Do not a tt empt t o se rvice th e BLACK B OX ® Advanced Console Server yourself, except when
following instructions from Black Box Technical Support personnel. In the latter case, first
take the following precautions:
•Turn the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server off.
•Ground yourself by touching an unpainted m etal surface on the back of the equipment
before touching anything inside it.
•Ground yourself by touching an unpainted m etal surface on the back of the equ ipment
before touching anything inside it.
24BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
Page 25
Introduction and Overview
Battery
WAR NI NG: There is the danger of explosion if the battery is replaced
incorrectly. Replace the battery only with the same or eq uivale nt type
recomm ended by the manufacturer. Dispose of used ba tteries acc ording to the
manufacturer's instructions.
WAR NUNG: Bei Einsetzen einer falschen Batte rie besteht Explosi onsgefahr.
Ersetzen Sie die Batterie nur durch den gleichen ode r vom Hersteller
empfohlenen Batterietyp . Entsorgen S ie die benutzten Ba tterien nach den
Anweisungen des Herstellers.
User Guide25
Page 26
Introduction and Overview
FCC Warning Statement
The BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server has been tested and found to comply with the
limits for Class A digital devices, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC rules. These limits are
designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference when the equipment
is operated in a commercial environment. This equipment gen erates, uses, an d can radiate
radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the Installation &
Service Manual, may cause harmful interference to radio communications . Operation of this
equipment in a reside ntia l area is likely to cause harmful int erference in which case the user
is required to correct the problem at his or her own expense.
Canadian DOC Notice
The BLACK BOX ® Adv anced Co nsole Server does not exceed the Class A l imits for radio
noise emissions from digital apparatus se t out in the Ra dio Interference Regula tions of the
Canadian Department of Communications.
Le BLACK BOX ® Adva nc ed Con so le S erv er n’émete pas de bruits radioélectrique s dépassant
les limites applicables aux appareils numériques de la classe A prescrites d ans le règlement
sur le brouillage radioélectrique edicté par le Ministère des Communications du Canada.
Aviso de Precaución S-Mark Argentina
Por favor de leer todos los avisos de preca ución como medida pr eventiva para el operador y
el BLACK BOX ® Advanc ed Co nsole Ser ver.
¡Peligro! No hacer funcionar el BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server con la
tapa abierta.
¡Pel igro! Para prevenir un corto circuito en el BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Console Server al desconectarlo de la red, primero desconectar el cable del
equipo y luego el cable que conecta a la red . Para conectar el equi po a la red,
primero conectar el ca ble a la red y l uego al equipo.
26BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
Page 27
Introduction and Overview
¡Pel igro! Asegurarse que el equipo este conectado a tierra, para prevenir un
shock eléctrico. El cable eléctrico del equipo viene con tres clavijas para
cone ctar asegur ar conexión a tierra. No use adaptadores o quite la clavija de
tierra. Si se tiene que utilizar una extensión, utilice una que tenga tres cables
con clavija para conexión a tierra.
¡Importante! Para proteg er al BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server de fluc-
tuaciones en corriente eléctrica, utilice una fuente eléctrica de respaldo.
¡Importante ! Asegurarse de que nada descanse sobre los cables del BLACK
BOX ® Advanced Console Server, y qu e los cables no obstruyan el paso.
¡Importante ! As egurarse de no de jar ca er alimentos o bebidas en el BLACK
BOX ® Ad vanced Console Server. Si esto ocurre, avise a Black Box.
¡Peligro! No empuje ningún tipo de objeto en los compartimientos del BLACK
BOX ® Advanced Console Server. Hacer esto p odría ocasionar un ince ndio o
causar un corto circuito dentro del equipo.
User Guide27
Page 28
Introduction and Overview
¡Importante ! Mantenga el BLACK BOX ® Ad vanc ed C on sol e Server fuera del
alcancé de calentadores, y asegurarse de no tapar la ventilación del eq uipo.
¡Importante! El BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server con alimentación de
corriente directa (CD) solo debe ser instalado en áreas con restricción y de acuerdo a los artículos 110-18, 110-26, y 110-27 del Na tiona l Electrical Code,
ANSI/NFPA 701, Edición 1999.
Para conectar la corriente directa (CD) al sistema, utilice cable de 0.75 mm (18
AWG).
Instalar el interruptor corriente di recta (CD) aprobado por UL entre la fuente
de alim entaci ón y el BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server. El limite mínimo
del interruptor deberá ser 2 amperes, con conduct or de 0.75 mm (18 AWG).
Trabajar dentro del BLAC K BOX ® Advanced Co n s ole S erver
No intente dar servicio al BLACK BOX ® Advan ced Console Se rver, solo que este bajo la
dirección de Soporte Técnico de Black Box. Si este es el caso, tome las s iguientes precauciones:
Apague el BLACK BO X ® Advanced Console Server. Asegurase que este tocando tierra antes
de tocar cualquier otra cosa, que puede ser al tocar la parte trasera del equipo.
28BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
Page 29
Introduction and Overview
Batería
¡Peligro! Una batería nuev a puede explot ar, si n o e s ta ins t alada corre ct am ent e.
Remplace la batería cuando sea necesario solo con el mismo tipo recomendado
por el fabricante de la batería. Deshacerse de la batería de acue rdo a las ins t rucciones del fabricante de la batería.
.
User Guide29
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Introduction and Overview
This page has been left intentionally blank.
30BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
Page 31
Chapter 2 - Inst allation, Configuration, Usage
Chapter2-Installation,Configuration,andUsage
Introduction
This chapter will allow you to install and configure the BLACK BOX ® Advanc ed Console
Server as the default CAS configu ration. Please read the entire chapter before beginning. A
basic installation and configuration should take a half hour a t the most, either done manual ly
or with the Wizard.
The BLACK BO X ® Advanced C on sole Serve r o pe r at i ng sys tem is embedded Li nu x. I f y ou a r e
fairly new to Linux, you will want to brush up prior to proceeding with this chapter with the
essential background information presented in Appendix A - New User Background Informa-
tion. E ve n if y ou ar e a UNIX user and f ind th e tools and f iles famil iar, do not conf i gure t his
product as you would a regular Linux s erver.
The chapter is divided into the following sections:
•System Requ irements
•Default Configuration Parameters
•Pre-Install Checklist
•Task List
•The Wiz ard
•Quick Start
•The Installation and Configuration Process
System Requirements
Black Box recomm ends either of the following specifications for configuration of the
BLACK BOX ® Advanced Conso l e Serv e r:
•A workstation with a console s erial port, or
•A workstation with Ethernet and TCP/IP topology
User Guide31
Page 32
Chapter 2 - Inst allation, Configuration, Usage
The following table shows the different hardware required for various configuration methods:
Table 1: Hardware vs. Configuration Methods
HardwareConf igurati on Me th od
Console, Console Cable (constructed from
RJ-45 straight-through cable + adapter)
Workstation, Hub, Ethernet C ablesvi, Wizard, CLI, or brow ser
If you will be using vi, the files that need to be changed are discussed in Co nfiguration using
Telnet in t his c h apt er. If you will be us ing t he W iz ar d , bas ic W iz ar d ac cess c an be f o un d unde r
Configuration Wizard - Basic Wizard
method are discussed under the appropriate optio n title in the same chapter. If you choose
the browser method, the Quick Start
needed for this configuration mode. If you choose the CLI (Command Line Interface)
method, this allows you to con figure certain parameters for a spe cified serial port or some
network-related parameters. Specifics of this method are discussed under the appropriate
option title in Chapter 3 - Additional Features
in Chapter 3 - Add itional Features and specifics of this
in this chapter shows the screen flow and input values
.
vi, Wizard, or CLI
Default Configuration Parameters
•DHCP enabled (if there is no DHC P Server, IP for Ethernet is 192.168.160.10 with a Netmask of 255.255.255.0)
•CAS configuration
•socket_ server in all ports (access method is telnet)
•9600 bps, 8N1
•No Auth entication
32BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
Page 33
Chapter 2 - Inst allation, Configuration, Usage
Pre-Install Checklist
There are several things you will need to confirm prior to installing and configuring the
BLACK BOX ® Advanced Conso l e Serv e r:
Root AccessYou will need Root Access on your loc al UNIX machine in order
to use the serial port.
HyperTerminal,
Ke rmi t, or Mi nicom
IP Address of:
PC or terminal,
BLACK BOX ®
Advanced Con sol e
Server, Name Server,
and Gateway
Network Acc essYou will need to have a NIC card installed in your PC to provide
If y ou are u s ing a PC , you wi ll n e ed to en sure that Hyper Terminal
is set up on your Windows o perating system. If you have a UNIX
operating system, you will be using Kermit or Minicom.
You will need t o locate the IP address of you r PC or wo rkstation,
the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server, and the machine
that resolves names on your network. Your Network
Administrator can supply you w ith these. If there is outsid e
access to the LAN that the BLA CK BOX ® Advanced Consol e
Server will be connected with, you will need the gateway IP
address as well.
an Ethernet port, and have network access.
User Guide33
Page 34
Chapter 2 - Inst allation, Configuration, Usage
Task List
There are eight key tasks that you will need to perform to install and configure the
BLACK BOX ® Advanced Conso l e Serv e r:
Task 1: Connect the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server to the Net work and other
Devices.
Task 2: Configure the COM Port Connection and Log In.
Task 3: Modify the System Files.
Task 4: Edit the pslave.conf file.
Task 5 : Activate the changes.
Task 6: Test the configuration.
Task 7: Save the changes.
Task 8: Reboot the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server
The Wizard
The eight key tasks can also be done through a wizard in th e 2.1 plus versions of the BLACK
BOX ® Advanced Console Server.
Basic Wizard
The Basic Wizard will configure the fol lowing param eters:
•Hostname
•DHCP enabled/disabled
•System IP (if DHCP is disabled)
•Netmask (if DHCP is disabled)
•Default Gateway
•DNS S erver
34BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
Page 35
Chapter 2 - Inst allation, Configuration, Usage
•Domain
Basic Wizard access is covered in the Quick Start in this chapter and also in Configuration
Wizard - Basic Wizard in Chapter 3 - Additional Features.
Cust o m Wi z ard
Further configuration of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server can be done through
one of several customized w izards. These pr ocedures are explained under their respective
topic heading in Chapter 3 - Additional Features
optional configurations:
•Access Method
•Generating Alarms
•Authentication
•Data Buffering
. There are custom wizards for the following
•Help
•Serial Settings
•Session Sniff ing
•Syslog
•Terminal Appearance
User Guide35
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Chapter 2 - Inst allation, Configuration, Usage
Quick Start
This Quick Start gives you all the necessary information to quickly configure and star t using
the BLACK BOX ®Advanced Console Server as a Console Access Server (CAS). The complete
version of this process is listed later in this chapter under The Installation and Co nfiguration
Process. New Users may wish to follow the latter instruction set, as th is Quick S tart d oes not
con ta in a lot of ass ume d kn ow le dg e. You can c onf i gu re t he BLAC K BOX ® Advanced Con sol e
Server by any one of four methods:
•Console
•Browser
•Telnet
•CLI (Command Line Interface)
If you have a serial por t that you can use as a console port, use the Console metho d. If you
have access to telnet, you can use this method, while New Users
method for its user-friendliness.
Important! Take care when changing the IP address of the BLACK BOX ®
Advanced Console Server. Confirm the address you are changing it to. (You
may want to write it down.)
may prefer the Browser
Configuration using a Console
Step 1: Connect the console cable.
Connect the console cable (created from the RJ-45 straight-through cable and the
appropriate console adapter) to the port la beled “Console” on the BLACK BOX ®
Advanced Console Server with the RJ-45 connector end, and to your PC’s availabl e
COM port with the serial port end.
36BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
Page 37
Chapter 2 - Inst allation, Configuration, Usage
Step 2: Power on the BLACK BOX ® Adv anced Console Server.
After the BLACK BOX ® Ad vanced Console Server finishes booting, you will see a
login prompt on the console screen.
Step 3: Ente r root as login name and tslinux as password.
Step 4: Type wiz and press En ter.
A configuration wizard screen will appear in your Hyperterminal session, asking yo u
a series of questions.
1) Enter the appropriate information for your system
and press ENTER or
2) Press ENTER if you are satisfied with the value
within the brackets [ ] and want to go on to the
next parameter or
3) Press ESC if you want to exit.
NOTE: For some parameters, if there is nothing within
the brackets, it will continue to ask for a value.
In that case, you must enter a valid value or # if you
do not wish to configure the value.
Press ENTER to continue...
You will want to configure the following settings:
• Hostname
• DHCP enabled/disabled
• System IP (if DH CP is disabled)
• Domain Name
• Primary DNS Server
User Guide37
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Chapter 2 - Inst allation, Configuration, Usage
• Gateway IP
• Network Mask (if DHCP is disabled)
After you input th e requested parameters you will receive a confirmation screen:
Current configuration:
Hostname : CAS
DHCP : enabled
Domain name : mycompany.com
Primary DNS Server : 197.168.160.200
Gateway IP : 192.168.160.1
If the parameters are correct, “y” should be typed; otherwise, type “n” and then “c”
when asked to change the pa rameters or quit the program. After the parameters are
confirmed, the next question will be whethe r to save the configuration to flash.
Select “y” to make the new configuratio n permanent in n on-volatile memory.
After you confirm and save the basic parameters, you will be presented with the shell
promp t. From th er e , ei t h er se lect to co n ti nue conf ig ur at i on us i n g th e v i edi t o r or us e
the browser or CLI method (if appropriate).
The BLACK BOX ® Advanc ed Console Server is now configured a s a CAS with its
new IP address, with no authentication, and accepting telnet to the serial po rts. You
can telnet the CAS IP + serial port 1 with the following command:
telnet <IP assigned by DHCP Server or by you> 7001
Note. Serial port 1 is configured as 9600, 8N1 by default. The server connected
to this serial port has to have the same configuration for its serial port.
To explore the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server features, either continue
configuration using the vi editor from the console or use a browser from a
workstation and point to the BLACK BOX ® Advanc ed C onso le Ser ver.
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Confi guration using a Web browse r
The BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server comes with DHCP client enabled. If you have a
DHCP Server installed on your LAN, you can skip Step 2 below. If not, the DHCP request will
fail and an IP address pre-configured on the Console server’s Ethernet interface
(192.168.160.10) will be used instead. To access the using your browser:
Step 1: Connect Hub to workstation and BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server.
Your workstation and your BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Ser ve r must b e on the
same physical LAN. Connect one RJ-45 cable from the Ethernet port of the BLACK
BOX ® Advanced Console Server to a spare port from a hub, and another cable from
another spare port of that same hub to the works tation used to mana ge the servers.
Step 2: If you do not have a DHCP Ser ver in your LAN, add a route pointing to the BLACK
BOX ® Advanced Console Server IP.
From the workstation, issue a command to add a route pointing to the network IP
address of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Conso l e Server (192.168.160.0) accessed
through the wo rkstation’s Ethernet interface.
For Linux, the command would be:
route add -net 192.168.160.0/24 gw <IP address assigned to
the workstation’s Ethernet interface>
Example: if the workstation has IP address 200.246.93.150 the command would be :
route add -net 192.168.160.0/24 gw 200.246.93.150
For Windows, the command would be:
route add 192.168.160.0 mask 255.255.255.0 <IP address
assigned to the workstation’s Ethernet interface>
Example: if the workstation has IP address 200.246.93.150 the command would be :
Step 3: Point your browser to the IP address assigned by the DHCP Server (or to
192.168.160.10 if there is no DHCP Server in your LAN).
The login p age shown in the following figure will appear.
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Need new screen shot with new product # in Red (LS1032A)
Figure 5: Login page of the Web Configuration Manager
Step 4: Ente r root as login name and tslinux as password.
Step 5: Click the Submit button.
This will take you to the C onfiguration & Admini stration Menu page, shown in the
following figure:
Link fo r
changing
password
Fi g ure 6: Configur a tion & Adminis tra t ion Menu page
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This page gives a brief description of all menu options. A menu of links is provided along the
left side of the page. A summary of what each link leads to is shown on Tab le 3: Configuration
Section through Table 6: Information Section.
Security Issue. Change the password of the Web root user as soon as possible.
The user database for the Web Configuration Manager is different than the system user database, so the root p assword can be different. See Changing the
Root Password in Appendix H- Web User Management.
Step 6: Click on the General link.
Step 7: Conf i gure pa rame ters presented in the fields.
Step 8: Click on the Submit button.
Step 9: Make the cha nges effecti ve.
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Figu re 7: Genera l pa g e
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Click on the Administration > Run Configuration link, check the Serial Ports/
Ethernet/Static Routes box and click on the Activate Configuration button.
If you disabled DHCP and changed your Ethernet IP, you will lose your connection.
You will need to use your browser to connect to the new IP.
Step 10: Click on the Save Configuration to Flash button.
The configuration was saved in flas h. The new configuration will be valid a nd running. The BLACK BOX ® Advanc ed Co ns ole Server is n o w co nf i g ur e d as a CA S wi t h
its ass ig n ed (b y DHC P S erv er or you) IP address, w i th no a uthentication, and accepting telnet to the serial ports. You can telnet the CAS IP + serial port 1 with the following command:
telnet <IP assigned> 7001
Note. Serial port 1 is configured as 9600, 8N1 by default. The server connected
to this serial port has to have the same configuration for its serial port.
To explore the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server features, either continue
configuration using browser, use the vi editor from the console, or use CLI, if appropriate.
A description of each of the links on the five sections of the Configuration and
Administration menu page is provided on the following five tables:
Table 2: Applications Section
Link NameDescription of Page Contents
LogoutExits the Web Mana gement Service
Connect to
Serial Ports
Telnet/SSH connection to Portsl ave
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Table 3: Configuration Section
Link NameDescription of Page Contents
ConfigurationThis section contains the configuration tools
GeneralUnit Description, Ethernet, DNS, Name Service Access, Dat a Buffering
SyslogConfiguration for the syslog-ng
SNMPConfiguration for the SNMP server
Serial PortsConfiguration of Portslave package
Serial Port
Groups
Host TableTable of hosts in /etc/hosts
Static Ro ut esStatic routes defined in /etc/network/st_routes
IPsecIPsec connections configuration
IP TablesStatic IPTables Filter in /etc/network/firewall
Boot
Configuration
Edit Text FileTool to edit a configuration file
System UsersManagemen t of syst em users defined in /etc/password
System GroupsManagement of system grou ps defined in /etc/groups
Configuration of User Groups for Serial Ports
Configuration of parameters used in the boot process
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Table 4: Administration Section
Link NameDescription of Page Contents
RebootResets the equipm ent
Download/
Upload Image
Load/Save
Configuration
Run
Configuration
Set Date/TimeSet the BLACK BOX ® Advanc ed C onso le Ser ver ’s date and t ime
Active
Sessions
CAS Sess ions
Process StatusShows the running processes and al lo ws the a dminist rator to kill the m
Restart
Processes
PCMCIAAllows the admi nistrator to insert an d eject PCMCIA cards
Uses an FTP server to load/save a kernel image
Uses fl ash memory or an FTP server to load or save the BLACK BOX ®
Advanced Co nsole Server’s configuration
Makes the configuration changes effective
Shows the active sess ions
Shows the CA S session s
Allows the administra tor to start o r stop some specific processes
Table 5: Web Us er Man agement Section
Link NameDescription of Page Contents
UsersList of user s allowed to access the Web server
GroupsList of possible access groups
Access LimitsList of access limits for specific URLs
Load/Save
Configuration
44BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
Load/Save Configuration in /etc/websum.conf
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Table 6: Informa tio n Sec tio n
Link NameDescription of Page Contents
Interface
Statistics
DHCP clientShows host information from DHCP
Serial PortsShows the s tatus of all se rial ports
Routing TableShows the routing table and allows the administrator to add or delete
ARP CacheShows the A RP cache
IP StatisticsShows IP protocol statistics
ICMP
Statistics
TCP Stat istic sShows TCP protocol statistics
UDP StatisticsShows U DP protocol statistics
RAM Disk
Usage
Shows statistics for all active interfaces
routes
Shows ICMP protocol statistics
Shows the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Consol e Server File S ystem status
System
Information
Note: The link Connect to Serial Ports is on ly available for all BLACK BOX ®
Advanced Console Server models. See “Appendix I - Connect to Serial Ports
from Web” on page 415.
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Shows information about the kernel, time, CPU, and memory
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Configuration using Telnet
The BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server comes with DHCP client enabled. If you have a
DHCP Server installed on your LAN, you can skip Step 2 below. If not, the DHCP request will
fail and an IP address pre-configured on the Console server’s Ethernet interface
(192.168.160.10) will be used instead . To access the using telnet:
Step 1: Connect Hub to workstation and BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server.
Your workstation and your BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Ser ve r must b e on the
same physical LAN. Connect one RJ-45 cable from the Ethernet port of the BLACK
BOX ® Advanced Console Server to a spare port from a hub, and another cable from
another spare port of that same hub to the works tation used to mana ge the servers.
Step 2: If you do not have a DHCP Ser ver in your LAN, add a route pointing to the BLACK
BOX ® Advanced Console Server IP.
From the workstation issue a command to add a route pointing to the network IP
address of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Se rver (192.168.160.0) accessed
through the wo rkstation’s Ethernet interface.
For Linux, the command would be:
route add -net 192.168.160.0/24 gw <IP address assigned to
the workstation’s Ethernet interface>
Example: if the workstation has IP address 200.246.93.150 the command would be :
route add -net 192.168.160.0/24 gw 200.246.93.150
For Windows, the command would be:
route add 192.168.160.0 mask 255.255.255.0 <IP address
assigned to the workstation’s Ethernet interface>
Example: if the workstation has IP address 200.246.93.150 the command would be :
1) Enter the appropriate information for your system
and press ENTER. Enter '#' if you want to
deactivate that parameter or
2) Press ENTER if you are satisfied with the value
within the brackets [ ] and want to go on to the
next parameter or
3) Press ESC if you want to exit.
NOTE: For some parameters, if there is nothing within
the brackets, it will continue to ask for a value.
In that case, you must enter a valid value or # if you
do not wish to configure the value.
Press ENTER to continue...
After you input th e requested parameters you will receive a confirmation screen:
Current configuration:
Hostname : CAS
DHCP: disabled
System IP : 192.168.160.10
Domain name : mycompany.com
Primary DNS Server : 197.168.160.200
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Gateway : eth0
Network Mask : 255.255.255.0
If the parameters are correct, “y” should be typed; otherwise, type “n” and then “c”
when asked to change the pa rameters or quit the program. After the parameters are
confirmed, the next question will be whethe r to save the configuration to flash.
Select “y” to make the new configuratio n permanent in n on-volatile memory.
At this point you may lose your connection when saving the changes, if you disabled
DHCP and as sig ne d an I P ad dr ess . Don’t worry! The new configura tion will be valid.
The BLACK BOX ® Advanc ed Console Server is now configured a s a CAS with its
assigned (by DHCP or you) IP address, with no authentication, and accepting telnet
to the serial ports. You can telnet the CAS IP + serial port 1 with the following
command:
telnet <IP assigned> 7001
Note. Serial port 1 is configured as 9600, 8N1 by default. The server connected
to this serial port has to have the same configuration for its serial port.
Afte r yo u con f irm t he b asi c p ar ameters, y o u w i ll be p r e se n te d w i th th e s hell pr om pt.
From there, either select to continue configuration using the vi editor or continue
using a browser. For additional configuration, see Chapter 3 - Additional Features
this guide.
in
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The Installation and Configuration Process
Task 1: Connect the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Con sole Server to the Network and other Devices
Power Users
Connect a PC or te rminal to the BL ACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server using the console
cable. If you are using a PC, HyperTerminal can be used in the Windows operating system and
Kermit or Minicom in the UNIX operating system. When the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server boots properly, a login banner will appear. Log in as root (default password is
linux). A new password should be cre at ed as soon as possible. The ter minal parameters
should be set as follows:
•Serial Speed: 9600 bps
•Data Length: 8 bits
•Parity: None
•Stop Bits: 1 stop bit
•Flow Control: none
•ANSI emulation
You may now skip to Task 4: Edit the pslave.conf file
Important! Any configuration change must be saved in flash once validated.
To save in
vate a configuration, run signal_ras hup (see Task 5: Activate the changes
Note: If your terminal does not have ANSI emulation, select vt100 ; then, on theBLACK BOX ® Ad va nced Console Server, log in as root and switch to vt100 by
typing:
Flash run saveconf (see Task 7: Save the changes). To validate/acti-
.
).
TERM=vt100;export TERM
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Tip. We strongly recommend to use 9 600 bps console speed. In cas e you need
to use another speed please check Appendix E - Software Upgrades and Trou-
bleshooting.
Important! Always complete ALL the steps for your chosen configuration
before testing or switching to another configuration.
New User s
If you are using a PC, you will be using HyperTerminal to perform the initial configuration of
the BLACK BOX ® Advanc ed C on s ol e Se rv er directly thr ough yo ur PC’s COM port connected
with the BLACK B O X ® Advanced Console Server console port. HyperTerminal, which
comes with Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 2K, and XP is often loca ted under Start > Program >
Accessories. HyperTermina l emu l ates a dumb terminal when your PC connects to the ser i al
port (console por t) of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Conso le Server.
After the initial configuration through the HyperTerminal connection, you will be connecting
your PC (or another terminal) to the BLACK BOX ® Advanced C on so l e S e rv er via an Eth ernet
connecti on in or der to m anage the BL ACK B OX ®Advanced Conso le Serv er . Th e wo rks t atio n
used to access the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Conso le Server t hrough telnet or ssh uses a LAN
connection.
These events can be summ arized as follows:
•PC (Hy p er te rm i na l) : COM po rt connects via se ri al c a bl e to t he BL ACK B O X ® Advanced
Console Server’s console port.
•PC (Ethernet): Ethernet port connects via hub to the BLA CK BOX ® Advanced Console
Server’s Ethernet port.
•Use the HyperTerminal to configure the box.
•Use th e PC Ethernet to access the box as client (telnet/ssh).
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Step 1: Plug the power cable into the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server.
Insert the female end of the black power cable into the power socket on the BLACK
BOX ® Advanced Con sole Server and t h e three-pron g end into a wall outlet.
DANGER! To help prevent electric shock, plug the BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Console Server into a properly grounded power source. The cable is equ ipped
with a 3-prong plug to help ensure proper grounding. Do not use adapter plugs
or remove the grounding prong from the cable. If you use an extension cable,
use a 3-wire cable with properly grounded plugs.
Step 2: Connect the console cable.
You will be constructing a Conso le Cable out o f the RJ-45 s trai ght-through cable and
the appropriate adapter provided in the product box. (There are four options: all
adapters have an RJ-45 connector on one end, and either a DB25 or DB9 connector
on the other end, male or female). Connect this cable to the por t labeled “Console”
on the BLACK BO X ® Ad vanced Console S erver with the RJ-45 connector end, and
conn ect the adapter end to your PC’s available COM port. For more detailed
information on cables, see Appendix B - Cabling, Hardware, and Elec trical
Specifications.
Note: The modem cable is not necessary for a standard installation and config-
uration. Use it when the configuration is comp lete and you want to access the
box re motely through a serial por t.
Step 3: Connect Hub to PC and the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server.
Your workstation and BLACK BOX ® Advanced Consol e Server must be on the same
physical LAN. Connect one RJ-45 ca ble from the Ethernet port of the BLACK BOX ®
Advanced Console Server to the hub, and another from the hub to the workstation
used to manage the servers.
Step 4: Install and launch HyperTerminal, Kermit or Minicom if not already installed.
You can obtain the latest update to Hyp erTerminal from:
http://www.hilgraeve.com/htpe/downlo ad.html
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Task 2: Configure the COM Port Connection and Log In
Step 1: Select available COM port.
In HyperTerminal (Start > Program > Accesso ries), select File > Properties, and click
the Connect To tab. Select the available COM port number from the Connectio n
dropdown.
Figure 8: Choose a free COM port
Step 2: Configure COM port.
Click the Configure button (hidden by the dropdown menu in the above figure).
Y our PC, considered here to be a “dumb terminal,” should be configured to use 9600
bps, 8 data bits, no parity, 1 stop bit, and no flow c ontrol (as shown in the following
figure).
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9600
Figure 9: Port Settings
Step 3: Power on the BLACK BOX ® Adv anced Console Server.
Step 4: Click OK on the Properties window.
You w ill see the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server booting on your screen.
After it finishes booting, you will see a login prompt.
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Task 3: Modify the Sys tem Files
When the BLACK BOX ® Advanced C onsol e Serve r finishe s boot i ng, a promp t will appea r (a
flashing underline cursor) in your HyperTerminal window. You will modify the following
Linux files to let the BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server know about its loc al environment:
The Linux files must b e modifie d to identify t he BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server and
other devices it will be communicating with. The operating system provides the vi editor,
which is described in Appendix A - New User Background Information
The BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server runs Linux, a UNIX-like operating system, and
those not familiar with it will want to refer to Append ix A.
for the uninitiated.
Step 1: Type root and press Enter.
Step 2: At the password prompt, type tslinux.
Press Enter.
Step 3: Modify /etc/hostname.
In HyperTerminal, type “vi /etc/hostname” (without the quotes) and press Enter.
Arrow over the existing text in the file, type “r” (for replace) and type the first
number of the model of your BLACK BOX ® Ad vanced Console Server. (Or, you can
replace the default naming convention with anything you’d like for your hostname.)
When finished, press the Esc key, (to retur n to command mo de), then type “:”
(colon) , an d then “wq” and press Enter. This will save the file. (The only entry in this
file should be the hostname of the BLACK B OX ® Advanced Console Server.) An
example is shown in the following figure. (The HyperTerminal screen is shown in
this first example for clarity, however, for the other Linux files we will modify, only
the command line text will be shown.)
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LES2800A-16
Figure 10: The /etc/hostname file with hostname typed in
Step 4: Modify /etc/hosts.
This file should contain the IP address for the Ethernet interface and the same
hostname that you entered in the /etc/hostname file. It may also contain IP addresses
and host names for other hosts in the network. Modify the file using the vi as you did
in Step 1.
Obtain IP address
from your System
Administrator
Step 5: Modify /etc/resolv.conf.
This file must contain the domain name and nameserver information for the network.
Obtain the nameserver IP address from your Network Administrator. The default
contents of this fi le are:
domainmycompany.com
nameserver200.200.200.2
127.0.0.1localhost
192.168.160.10LS1016A
129.6.15.28ntphost
Figure 11: Contents of the /etc/hosts file
Replace to match hostname from
previous step
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Step 6: Modify /etc/network/st_routes.
The fourth file defines static rout es. In the console server example in the router is a
gateway router and thus its IP address is configured in this file to be the default
gateway. Other static routes are also configured in this file. If you will be managing
servers through a LAN, you don’t need to alter this file. If you will be managing via
Internet, you will be connecting through a router, and thus need to modify this file.
You would get the IP address from your Network Administrator. The default contents
of this file are:
route add default dev eth0
Step 7: Change password for root and new users.
The default /etc/passwd file has the user “root” with password “tslinux”. You should
chan g e t h e p as s word for us er root as so on as poss ib l e. B e f or e c ha ngin g any pass w o rd
or adding new users y ou should also activate shadow password, if it is needed. The
BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server has support for sh adow password, but it is
not active by default. To activate shadow password follow the steps listed below:
Step A: Create an empty file called /etc/shadow.
# cd /etc
# touch shadow
Step B: Add a temporary user to the system. It will be removed later.
# adduser boo
Step C: Edit the file shadow.
For each user in passwd file, create a copy of the line that begins with “boo:”
in the shadow file, then replace “boo” with t he user name. The line beginning with “root” must be the first line in the fil e /etc/shadow.
Step D: Edit the passwd file.
Replace the password in all password fields with an “x”. The root’s line will
look like this:
“root:x:0:0:root:/root:/bin/sh”
^
^ password field
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Tip. Using the vi editor, put the cursor in the first byte after “root:”, then type
“ct:x” plus <ESC>.
Step E: Remove the temporary user boo.
# deluser boo
Step F: Change the password for all users and add the new ones needed.
# passwd <username>
or
# adduser <username>
Step G: Edit /etc/config_files and add a line with “/etc/shadow.”
Task 4: Edit the pslave.conf file
This is the main configuration file (/etc/portslave/pslave.conf) that contains most product
parameter s and defines the functio nality of the BLACK BOX ® Advanc ed Cons ole Server.
Only three parameters need to be modified or confirmed for a bas ic configuration:
•conf.eth_ip (if you disabled DHCP)
•all.authtype
•all.protocol
Tip. You can do a fin d f or e ac h of thes e par a mete rs i n vi , on ce you open t his f i le
by typing / <your string> to search the file downward for the string specified
after the /.
A listing of the pslave.conf file with all possible parameters, as well as the files used to create
other configurations from paramete rs in this file, is provided in Appendix C - The pslave Con-
figurat ion File. Additional, optional modifications made to this file will depend on the config-
urat ion desired.
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There are three basic types of parameters in this file:
•conf.* parameters ar e global or apply to the Ethernet interfac e.
•all.* param eters are used to set default parame ters for all ports.
•s#.* parameters change the default port parameters for individual ports.
An all.* parameter can be overridden by a s#.* parameter appearing later in the pslave.conf
file (or vi ce-ver sa).
Power Users: To find out what to input for these three parameters so that yo u
can configur e what you need, go the appropriate appendix, where y ou will
find a complete table with an explanation for each parameter. You can use the
templates from that same Appendix (pslave.conf.cas, etc.) as reference.
conf.eth_ipThis is the IP addres s of the Ethernet i nterface. Use it if you don’t have
DHCP Server in your LAN. An example value would be:
200.200.200.1
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all.authtypeThis parameter controls the authe nticati on requi r ed by the BLACK BOX
® Advanced Console Server. The authentication required by the device to
which the user is connecting is controlled separately. There are several
authentica tion type options:
•none (no au thenti cation)
•local (aut hentication is performed us ing the /etc/passwd file)
•remote (This is for a terminal profile only. The unit takes in a user-
name but does not use it for authentication. Instead it passes it to the
remote serve r where it is then used for authentication.)
•radius (authentication is performe d using a Radius authentication
server)
•TacacsPlus (authentication is performe d using a TacacsPlus authenti-
cation server)
•ldap (authentication is performed against an ldap database using an
ldap server. The IP address and oth er details of the ldap server are
defined in the file /etc/ldap.conf)
•local/radius (authentication is performed locally first, switching to
Radius if unsuccessful)
•radius/local (the opposite of the previous option)
•local/TacacsPlus (authentication is performed locally first, switching
to TacacsPlus if unsuccessful)
•TacacsPlus/local (the opposite of the previous option)
•RadiusDownLocal (local authentication is tried only when the
Radius server is down)
•TacacsPlusDownLocal (local authentication is tried only when the
TacacsPlus server i s down)
An example value would be:
radius
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all.protocolFor the console server configuration, the possibl e protocols are:
•socket_server (when telnet is u sed)
•socket_ssh (when ssh version o ne or two is used)
•raw_data (to exchange data in transparent mode – simila r to
socket_server mode, but without telnet negotiation, breaks to serial
ports, etc.)
An example value would be:
socket_server
The Authen tication featur e
See Authentication in Chapter 3 - Additional Features.
Task 5: Ac tivate the chan ges
Execute the following command in HyperTerminal to activate the changes:
signal_ras hup
Task 6 : Te st the configurati on
Now you will want to m ak e sure that the por ts have been set up properly.
Step 1: Ping the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server from a DOS prompt.
Open a DOS window, type in the following, and then press Enter:
ping <IP assigned to the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server
by DHCP or you>
An example would be:
ping 192.168.160.10
If you receive a reply, your BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server connection is
OK. If there is n o reply see Appendi x E - Software Upgrades a nd Troubleshooting
Step 2: Telnet to the server connected to the first port of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Console Server.
.
(This will only work if you selected socket_server as your all.protocol parameter.)
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While still in the DOS window, type the following and then press Enter:
telnet <IP assigned to the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console
Server by DHCP or you> 7001
An example would be:
telnet 192.168.160.10 7001
If everythin g is configured correctly, a telnet session should open on the server
connected to port 1. If not, check the configura tion, follow the above steps again,
and check Appendix E - Software Upgrades and Troubleshooting
Task 7: Save the changes
Execute the following command in HyperTerminal to save the configuration:
.
saveconf
Task 8: Reboot the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server
After rebooting, the initial configuration is complete.
Note: restoreconf does the opposite of saveconf, copying the contents of the
/proc/flash/script file to the corresponding files in the ramdisk. The files on the
ramdisk are overwritten. Restoreconf is r un automatically ea ch time the
BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server is booted.
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Accessing the Serial Por ts
There are four ways to access the serial ports, depending on the protocol you configured for
that serial port (all.protocol being socket_server for telnet access, socket_ss h for ssh access,
etc). One can access the serial port by statically addressing it (using TCP port number, alias
name or IP address) or just access the next free serial port available from an existent pool (by
using the pool's TCP port number, alias or IP address). For details on configuration to
access using telne t or ssh please see Access Method
Opening and closing a telnet session to a serial port
To open a t elnet s es si on to a s eri al port or t he fi rs t fre e serial p ort b e l on g i ng t o a pool of s eri al
ports, issue the co mma nd:
, Configuration for CAS in Chapter 3.
telnet <CAS hostname> <TCP port number>
<CAS hostname> is the hostname configured in the workstation whe re t he telnet client will
run (through /etc/ho sts or DNS table). It can also be just the IP address of the BLACK BOX ®
Advanced Console Server (Ethernet's interface) configured by the user or learned from
DHCP.
<TCP port number> is the number associated to the serial port or pool of serial ports. From
factory, 7001 corresponds to serial port 1, 7002 to serial port 2 and so forth, and 3000 is a
pool with all serial ports.
To close the telnet session, just press the telnet hot key configured in telnet client application
(usually it's "Ctrl ]") and "q" to quit.
Opening and closing an SSH session to a serial port
To open a ssh ses sio n to a serial port or the next free serial port from a po ol, issue the command:
ssh -l <Username>:<Server> <CAS hostname>
<Username> is the user configured to access that seria l port. It is prese nt either in the local
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CAS database or in a Radius/Tacacs/LDAP/Kerberos, etc database.
<Server> can be just the TCP port number assigned for that serial port (7001, 7002, etc), pool
of ports (3000, etc), the alias for the server connected to that serial port or the alias of a pool
of po rts.
<CAS hostname> is the hostname configured in the workstation where the ssh client will run
(through /etc/hosts or DNS table ). It c an also be just the IP address of the BLACK BOX ®
Adva n ced Console Serv e r (Et h ern et ' s i n te r face) co nfigur ed by t he user or le arn ed from DHCP.
To exit the ssh session, press the hot ke y config ured for that ssh cl ient (usually "~ .").
Secure Console Port Server
Acce ssing Serial Ports using “ts_menu”
To acce ss the serial port (telnet or ssh) using ts_menu, login to the CAS unit and, after receiving the shell prompt, run ts_menu. The servers (aliases) or serial ports will be shown as
option to start a connection (telnet/ssh). After typing ts_menu, you will see something similar
to the followin g:
Serial Console Server Connection Menu for your Master Terminal
Server
Type 'q' to quit, a valid option[1-8], or anything else to refresh:
How to close the session from ts_menu (from the console of y ou r uni t)
Step 1: Ente r the e scape character.
The escape character is shown when you first connect to the port.
In character/text Mode, the Escape character i s ^]
After entering the escape character, the following is shown:
Console escape. Commands are:
l go to line mode
c go to character mode
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z suspend telnet
b send break
t toggle binary
e exit telnet
Step 2: Press “e” to exi t from the session and return to the origina l menu.
Select the exit option and you will ret urn to the shell prompt.
How to clo s e the sessi o n fro m ts_menu (fro m a tel n e t session to yo ur uni t)
You have to be sure that a dif ferent esc ape character is used for exiting your telnet session;
otherwise, i f y ou were to ex it from the session cre ated through the ts_menu, you will close
your entire telnet session to your unit. To do this, when you first telnet to your unit, use the
“-e” option. So for example, t o set Ctrl-? as the escape character, type:
telnet -e ^? 192.168.160.10
To exit from the session created through the ts_menu, just follow Step 1 from above. To exit
from the entire telnet session to your uni t, type the esc ape character yo u had set.
Acce ssing Serial P orts using the Web Interface
From the Web, there's a “Connect to Serial Port” option that has to be selected. A serial port
is chosen and a Java window will open on the user's screen. F or a telnet session, just log in
and provide the p assword (whenever necessary). For ssh, enter
<username>:<TCP port number or alias for the server>
as log in name and provide the password (whenever necessary) . To exit the session, select
“Disconnect” f r om th e Java win dow. See the Step-by-Step Process
nect to Serial Ports from Web for m ore details.
secti on of Appendix I - Con-
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Chapter 3 - Additional Features
Chapter3-AdditionalFeatures
Introduction
After the Configuration Wizard section in this chapter, each of the following sections is listed
alphabetically and sh ows how to configure the option using vi, the c ustom Wizard (when
available), browser, where appropriate, and the Command Line Interface (CLI), when
avail able. This chapt e r con tains the following sections:
•Configuration Wizard - Basic Wizard
•Access Method
•Authentication
•CAS Port Pool
•Clustering
•CronD
•Data Buffering
•DHCP
•Dual Power Management
•Filters and Network Address Translation
•Generating Alarms
•Help
•NTP
•PCMCIAPorts Configured as Terminal ServersSerial Settings
•Session Sniff ing
•SNMP
•Syslog
•Terminal Appearance
•Time Zone
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Configuration Wizard - Basic Wizard
Configuration Wizard - Basic Wizard
The configuration wi za rd application is a quicker a nd easier way to configure the
BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server. It is recom mended that you use t his application if
you are not familiar with the vi edito r or if you just want to do a quick installation of the
BLACK BOX ® Advanced Conso l e Serv e r.
The command wiz gets you started with some basic configuration. After executing this c ommand, you can continue the configuration of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server
using any browser or by editing system files with the vi editor. What follows are the basic
parameters to get you quickly started. The files that will be eventually modified if you decide
to save to flash at the e n d of thi s applicatio n are:
1./etc/hostname
2./etc/hosts
3./etc/resolv.conf
4./etc/network/st_routes
5./etc/network/ifcfg_eth0
6./etc/portslave/pslave.conf
Step 1: Ente r the comm and wiz.
At the command prompt type “wiz” in your terminal to bring up the wizard. You will
receive an initial instruction s creen.
1) Enter the appropriate information for your system
and press ENTER or
2) Press ENTER if you are satisfied with the value
within the brackets [ ] and want to go on to the
next parameter or
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3) Press ESC if you want to exit.
NOTE: For some parameters, if there is nothing within
the brackets, it will continue to ask for a value.
In that case, you must enter a valid value or # if you
do not wish to configure the value.
Press ENTER to continue...
Step 2: Press Enter to continue with the wizard.
You will see the current configurations and have the choice of setting them to default
values, or not.
Hostname: CAS
DHCP: enabled
Domain name: #
Primary DNS Server: #
Gateway IP: eth0
Set to defaults? (y/n) [n] :
Step 3: Press Enter or type n or y.
The default answ er or value to any question is in the brackets. You can take one of
three actions:
• Either just press the ENTER key to execute whatever is in between the brackets, or
• Type n to NOT reset the curr ent configurations to the Black Box defaults, or
• Type y to re set to Black Box default config urations.
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Configuration Wizard - Basic Wizard
Tip. On most of the following configuration screens, the default or current
value of the parameter is displayed inside brackets. Just press the ENTER key if
you are satisfie d with the value in the brackets. If not, enter the a ppropriate
parameter and press ENTER.
If at any time af ter choo sing whether to set your configurations to default or
not, you want to exit the wizard or skip the rest of the config urations, press
ESC. This will immediately display a summary of the current conf igurations for
your verification before exiting the application. This w ill not work if you did
not enter a valid choice for the parame ter you are currently on.
For some parameters, if there is nothing within the brackets, it will continue to
ask f or a v a l ue. In t hat c as e, you must ente r a v alid valu e or # if you do not w i sh
to configure the value.
Step 4: Ente r Hostnam e a nd then press the Enter key.
This is an alias for your BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server that allows you to
refer to the BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server by this name rather than its IP
address. Enter hostn ame after the prompt:
Hostname[CAS]:
Step 5: Type y, n, or press Enter to enable or disable DHCP client.
Type y or press En ter if there is a DHCP Se rver in your LAN, to have the Dynamic
Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) automatically assign an IP address for your
BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server. Type n to manually assign an IP address.
Do you want to use dhcp to automatically assign an IP for
your system (y/n) [y]:
Note: Ty ping y omit s Steps 6 and Step 10.
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Step 6: If DHCP client is disabled, enter IP Address of your BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console
Server an d then press t h e Ente r key.
If the DHCP client is ena b led , sk ip this step. This question will only appear if DHCP
client is disabled. This is the IP address of the BLACK B O X ® Advanced Console
Ser ver wi thin your network. See your network administrator to ob tain a vali d IP
address for the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Co nsole Server .
IP of your system[]: 192.168.160.10
Step 7: Ente r D omain name and then press Enter.
Domai n name locates or identifies your organi zation within the Inter net.
Domain name[#]: mycompany.com
Step 8: Enter IP address of Domain Name Server and press Enter.
At the prompt, ente r the IP address o f the server that resolves domain names. Your
domain name is alphabetical so that it is easier to remem b er. Every time you see the
domain name, it is a ctually being translated into an IP address by the domain name
server. See your network administrator to obtain this IP address for the domain name
server.
Domain Name Server[#]: 192.168.160.200
Step 9: Ente r Gateway IP address and press Ent er.
The Gateway is a node on a network that serves as an entrance point into another
network. See your network admini strato r to find out your organization's gateway
address.
Gateway IP[eth0]: 192.168.160.1
Step 10: If D HCP cli en t is d is abled, enter Netmask and press En ter.
If the DHCP client is enabled, skip this step. This question will appear only if DHCP
client is disabled. The Netm as k is a string of 0s and 1s that mask or screen out the
host part of an IP address so that only the network part of th e address remains.
Netmask[#]: 255.255.255.0
Step 11: Revi ew configurati on para meters.
You will now have the parameters you just configured displayed back to you. If you
entered y in Step 5:
You can now use the browser to finish your system configurations, but before that, please read below.
(Note: If you are NOT connected to this unit through a
console, and you have just reconfigured the IP of this
unit, activating the new configurations may cause you to
lose connection. In that case, please reconnect to the
unit by the new IP address, and manually issue a saveconf
to save your configurations to flash.)
Do you want to activate your configurations now? (y/n) [y] :
Step 15: Choose whether to save to flash.
Flash is a type of memory that will maintain the information saved on it even after
the BLACK BOX ® Adva nced Console Server is turned off. Once it is turne d on
again, t he sav ed in format ion can be rec ov ere d. If y is entered, the screen will display
an explanation of what saving to flash means:
Flash refers to a type of memory that can be erased and
reprogrammed in units of memory known as blocks rather than
one byte at a time, thus making updating to memory easier.
If you choose to save to flash, your configurations thus far
will still be in the memory of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Servereven after you reboot it. If you don't save to
flash and if you were to reboot the system, all your new
configurations will be lost and you will have to reconfigure
the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server.
Do you want to save your configurations to flash? (y/n) [n]:
Step 16: Type 'y' if you want to save to flash. Type 'n' if you don't want to save to flash.
You can now continue BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server conf igurations
using the Web browser by typing in the IP address of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Console Server.
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Configuration Wizard - Basic Wizard
Using the Wizar d through yo ur Browser
The Web interface supports wizards for serial ports configuration. The wizard is a useful tool
that simplifies configuration of seria l por ts. The Web interface will access the following wizard files:
•/etc/portslave/psl ave.wiz.cas (C AS)
•/etc/portslave/psl ave.wiz .ts (TS)
•/etc/portslave/pslave.wiz.ras (Dial-in Access)
The step-by-step proce ss to configuring ports for a specific profile appear in the following
secti ons, and the exact screen flow begins with.
To summarize the process, the wizard configuration is started by first selecting the desired
port(s) on the Port Selection page (Figure 13: Port Selection pa ge
selecting either the CAS, TS, or RAS profile buttons on the subsequent Serial Port C onfiguration Page. Change the appropriate parameters, and then click the Submit button on the Serial
Port Configuration Page. For most applications , the parameters to be changed are:
), clicking Submit, and then
For CAS:
•Port Speed
•First RADIUS/Tacacs Plus Authentication Server
•First Accounting Server
•RADIUS/TacacsPlus secret
•Protocol (if the pro tocol is Socket SSH, Soc ket Telnet, or Socket Raw)
•Socket Port (keep the “Incremented” option on)
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For TS:
•Port Speed
•First RADIUS/TacacsPlus Authen tica t ion Server
•First Accounting Server
•RADIUS/TacacsPlus secret
•Protocol (if the protocol is Login, Rlogin, SSH, or Socket Client)
•Socket Port (write the TCP port for the protocol selected; keep the “incremented” opti on
off)
For Dial-in access:
•First RADIUS/TacacsPlus Authen tica t ion Server
•First Accounting Server
•RADIUS/TacacsPlus secret
•Remote IP Address (keep the “Incremented” option on)
Access Method
Access method is how a us er accesses a serv er connected to one of the serial ports on the
BLACK BOX ® Advanced Co nsole Se rver ( CAS p r of i l e ) o r ho w a use r co nn ec ted to o ne o f th e
serial ports accesses a server in the network (TS profile or Dial-In profile).
Configuration for CAS
Parameters Involved and Passed Values
The parameter s involved in configu ring Access Method for CAS are as follows:
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Access Method
all.ipnoThis is the default IP a ddress of the BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Console Server's serial ports. Any host can access a port using its IP
address as long as a path to the address exists in the host's routing
table. An example value would be 192.168.1.101+. The “+”
indicates that the first port should be addressed as 192.168.1.101
and the following ports should have consecutive values.
all.socket_portIn th e CAS pro fi l e , th i s d efines a n a l te rn at i v e labeli n g sy s t em for the
BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server ports. An example value
would be 7001+. The “+” after the nu meri c a l value cause s th e serial
interfaces to be numbered consecutively. In this example, serial
interface 1 is assigned the port value 7001, serial interface 2 is
assigned the port value 7002, etc. One example on how this could
be used is in the case of all.protocol or s<n>.protocol socket_ssh
and the port value (7001, 7002, etc), if supplied by the ssh client
like username:port value, the ssh client will be directly connected
with the serial interface.
all.protocolThe possible protocols are telnet, ssh1/ssh2 or raw data:
socket_server = telnet protocol,
socket_ssh = ssh1/ssh2 protocol,
raw_data = used to exchange data in transparent mode . Raw_data
is simi lar to socket_server mode b ut without telnet n egotiation
breaks to serial ports.
An examp le value would be so cket_ser ver.
all.usersRestricts access to ports by user name (only the users listed can
access the port or , using the character “!,” all but the users listed can
acces s the port .) A si ngle comma and spaces/tabs m ay be used
between names. A comma may not appear between the “!” and the
first user name. The users may be local, Radiu s o r TacacsPlus. User
groups (defined with the parameter conf.group) can be used in
combination with user names in the param eter list. Notice that
these are common u sers, not admin istrators. Example: all.users !
joe, mark, user_group . In this example, the use rs joe, mark, and
members of user_grou p cannot access the p ort.
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all.poll_intervalValid only for protocols socket_server and raw_data. When not set
to zer o, th is par amet er se ts th e wai t f or a TCP co nne cti on kee p-a liv e
timer. If no traff ic passes through the BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Consol e Se rver f or t his perio d of ti me , th e BLACK BOX ® Advanced
Console Server will sen d a line status m essage to the remote device
to see if the connection is still up. If not configured, 1000 ms is
assumed (the unit for this parameter is ms). If set to zero, line status
messages will not be sent to the socket client.
all.tx_intervalValid for protocols socket_server and raw_data. Defines the delay
(in milli seconds) before tra n smissio n to the Ethernet of data
received through a serial port. If not configured, 100ms is assumed.
If set to zero or a value above 1000, no buffering will take place .
all.idletimeoutValid only for the CAS configuratio n (protocols socket_server,
socket_ssh, and raw_data). Specifies h ow long (in minutes) a
connection can remain inactive before it is cut off. If set to zero (the
default), the connection will not time out.
conf.groupUsed to group users to simplify configuration of the parameter
all.users later on. This parameter can be used to de fine more than
one group. The forma t is:
<group name>:<user1>{,<user2>[,<user3>]]
Example: conf.group group_name: user1, user2.
s<n>.serverfarmAlias name given to the server connected to the serial p ort.
Server_con nected.
Example: s 1.serverfarm Server_conn ected_ser ial1.
vi Method
The parameters described above must be changed by directly editing the
/etc/p ortslave/pl s ave.conf file.
Browser Met hod
To configure Access Method with your browser:
Step 1: Point your browser to the Console Server.
In the address or locatio n field of your browser type the Console Access Server’s IP
address. For example:
http://10.0.0.0
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Access Method
Step 2: Log in as root and type the Web root password configured by the Web server.
This will take you to the Configuration and Administration page.
Serial
Ports
links
Link
Panel
Figure 12: Configuration and Adminis tration pa ge
Step 3: Select the Serial Ports link.
Click on the Serial Ports link on the Link Panel to the left of the pa ge or in the
Configuration section of the page. This will take you to the Port Selection page.
Figure 13: Port Selection page
Step 4: Select port(s).
On the P or t Se le ct ion p ag e, c h oos e all ports or an in div i dua l po rt fr o m th e d r opdo wn
menu. This will take you to the Serial Port C onfiguration page.
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Chapter 3 - Additional Features
Step 5: Click the CAS profile button.
Click the CAS profile button in the wizards section. The default CAS profile
parameters are now loaded.
Step 6: Scroll down to the Profile section.
You can change the settings for all.ipno, all.socket_port, and all.protocol in this
section.
Figure 14: Profile Section of Ser ia l Port Configuration pa ge
Step 7: Scroll to the Authentication Section.
You can configure the parameter all.users here under Access Restriction on Use rs.
Step 8: Scroll to Console Access Server Section.
You can configure the following paramet ers here:
• all.sttyCmd
• all.poll_interval
• all.tx_interval
• all.idletimeout
Step 9: Configure s<n>.serverfarm.
This parameter will not appear on the configuration page when “All ports” is
selected. Scroll to the SSH section. Each port can be named after the server or device
connected to it. Th is makes the process of associating what is connecting to which
port easier.
Step 10: Click the Submit button.
This will take you back to the Port Selec tio n page. At this point, the co nfiguration
file is written in the RAMdisk.
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Step 11: Click on the Serial Port Groups link on the Link Panel.
Click the Add Group button that appears. A Se rial Ports - Users Group Table Entry
page appears.
Figure 15: Serial P orts - Users Group Table Entry page
Access Method
Step 12: Configure conf.group.
Fill in the Group Name and Users fields to configure the group.
Step 13: Click the Submit button.
At this point, the con figuration file is written in the RAMdisk.
Step 14: Make the changes effective.
Click on the Administration > Run Configuration link, check the Serial Ports/
Ethernet/Static Routes box and click on the Activate Configuration button.
Step 15: Save it in the flash.
Go to the link Adm inistration > Load/Save Con figuratio n and click the Save to Flash
button.
Wizard Method
Step 1: Bring up the wizard.
At the command prompt, type the followi ng to bring up the Access Method c ustom
wizard:
1) Enter the appropriate information for your system
and press ENTER. Enter '#' if you want to
deactivate that parameter or
2) Press ENTER if you are satisfied with the value
within the brackets [ ] and want to go on to the
next parameter or
3) Press ESC if you want to exit.
NOTE: For some parameters, if there is nothing within
the brackets, it will continue to ask for a value.
In that case, you must enter a valid value or # if you
do not wish to configure the value.
ALL.IPNO - This is the default IP address of the system's
serial ports. If configured as 192.168.1.101+, the '+'
indicates that the first port should be addressed as
192.168.1.101 and the following ports should have
consecutive values. Any host can access a port using
its IP address as long as a path to the address exists
in the host's routing table.
all.ipno[#] :
ALL.SOCKET_PORT - This defines an alternative labeling
system for the system ports. The '+' after the numerical
value causes the interfaces (or ports) to be numbered
consecutively.
(e.g. interface 1 of your system is assigned port 7001,
interface 2 has the value 7002, etc.)
ALL.PROTOCOL - The possible protocols are telnet,
ssh1/ssh2, or raw data.
(e.g. socket_server -telnet protocol, socket_ssh -ssh1/ssh2
protocol, raw_data -used to exchange data in transparent
mode; similar to socket_server mode but without telnet
negotiation breaks to serial ports.)
all.protocol[socket_server] :
ALL.USERS - Restricts access to ports by user name. Only
the users listed can access the port, or using a '!',
all but the users listed can access the port.
A single comma and spaces/tabs may be used between names.
A comma may NOT appear between the '!' and the first user
name. The users may be local, Radius or TacacsPlus. User
groups (defined with the parameter conf.group) can be
used in combination with user names in the parameter list.
Notice that these are common users, not administrators.
(e.g. !joe, mark, grp1 -the users, Joe, Mark, and members
of grp1, cannot access the port.)
ALL.POLL_INTERVAL - Valid for protocols socket_server and
raw_data. When not set to 0, this parameter sets the wait
for a TCP connection keep-alive timer. If no traffic passes
through the system for this period of time, the system will
send a line status message to the remote device to see if
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Access Method
the connection is still up. If not configured, default is
1000ms. If set to 0, line status messages will not be sent
to the socket client.
all.poll_interval[#] :
ALL.TX_INTERVAL - Valid for protocols socket_server and
raw_data. This parameter defines the delay (in milliseconds) before transmission to the Ethernet of data
received through a serial port. If not configured, 100ms
is assumed. If set to 0 or a value above 1000, no buffering
will take place.
ALL.IDLETIMEOUT - This parameter specifies how long (in
minutes) a connection can remain inactive before it is cut
off. If set to 0 (the default), the connection will not
time out.
all.idletimeout[#] :
CONF.GROUP - Used to combine users into a group. This
simplifies the parameter, all.users. You can define more
than one group. (e.g. groupName: user1, user2)
conf.group[#] :sales: john, jane
Would you like to create another group? (y/n) [n] :
Note: Answering yes to this question will dis card only the pa rameter(s) which
you are currently configuring if they were configured for a specific port in a
previous session. For instance, if you are currently configuring parameter, all.x,
and there was a specific po rt, s2.x, configured; then, answering yes to this
question will discard s2.x.
Type 'c' to CONTINUE to set these parameters for specific
ports or 'q' to QUIT :
Typing 'c' leads to Screen 8, typ i ng 'q ' lea ds to Screen 9.
Type 'q' to quit, a valid port number[1-8], or anything
else to refresh :
Note: The number of available ports depends on the system you are on. Typing
in a valid port number repeats this program except this time it's configuring for
the port number you have chosen. For “wiz --ac cas,” an additional parameter is
asked: serverfarm. Typing 'q' leads to Screen 9.
(Note: If you are NOT connected to this unit through a
console, and you have just reconfigured the IP of this
unit, activating the new configurations may cause you to
lose connection. In that case, please reconnect to the
unit by the new IP address, and manually issue a saveconf
to save your configurations to flash.)
Do you want to activate your configurations now? (y/n) [y] :
Flash refers to a type of memory that can be erased and
reprogrammed in units of memory known as blocks rather than
one byte at a time; thus, making updating to memory easier.
If you choose to save to flash, your configurations thus
far will still be in the memory of the system even after you
reboot it. If you don't save to flash and if you were to
reboot the system, all your new configurations will be lost
and you will have to reconfigure the system.
Do you want to save your configurations to flash? (y/n) [n] :
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Access Method
CLI Method
To configure certain parameters for a specific serial port:
Step 1: At the command prompt, type in the appropriate command to configure desired
parameters.
To activate the serial port. <string> should be ttyS<serial port number> :
config configure line <serial port number> tty <string>
To configure the ipno:
config configure line <serial port number> ipno <string>
To configure the socket_port:
config configure line <serial port number> socket <number>
To configure the protocol. <string> i s the type of protocol desired:
config configure line <serial port number> protocol <string>
To configure modbus_smode:
config configure line <serial port number> modbus <string>
To configure users:
config configure line <serial port number> users <string>
To configure the poll_interval:
config configure line <serial port number> pollinterval
<number>
To configure tx_interval:
config configure line <serial port number> txinterval <number>
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To configure idletimeout:
config configure line <serial port number> idletimeout <number>
To configure conf.group:
config configure conf group <string>
Tip. You can configure all the parameters for a serial port in one line.
To activate your new configurations a nd save them to flash, type:
config write
(This is essentially typing signal_ras hup and saveconf from the normal terminal
prompt.)
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Access Method
Configuration for TS
Parameters and Passe d Va lues
For TS configuration , you will need to configure the following parameters:
all.hostThe IP address of the host to which the terminals will connect.
all.protocolFor the terminal server configuration, the possible protocols are
login (which requests username and password ), rlogin (receive s
usernam e f r om th e BLACK BOX ® Advanced Con so l e S e rver an d
requests a pas sword), telnet, ssh, ssh2, or socket _client. If the
protocol is configured as telnet or socket_client, the parameter
socket_port needs to be configured.
all.socket_portThis parameter is valid only if all.protocol is configured as
socket_client or telnet. The socket_port is the TC P port number
of the application th at will ac ce pt conn ec tio ns r eque s te d by this
serial port.
all.telnet_client_modeWhen the protocol is TELNET, this parameter configured as
BINARY (1) causes an attempt to negotiate the TELNET BINARY
option on bot h input and output with the Telnet se rver. So it
puts the telnet client in binary mode. The acceptable values are
"0" or “1”, where “0” is text mode (default) and “1” is a binar y
mode.
all.userauto
(unique to TS)
Username used when c onnected to a UNIX server from the
user’s seria l ter mi na l.
vi Method
The p arameters described above must be chan ged by di rectly editing the
/etc/portslave/pslave.conf file.
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Browser Met hod
Step 1: Follow the steps 1 to 4 in the section titled Configuratio n f or CAS, “Browse r
Method” on page 75.
Step 2: Click the TS Profile button in the Wizard section.
Configure the following parameters:
Profile section:Protocol (telnet, ssh, rlogin or socket client)
Socket port (23 for telnet, 22 for ssh, 513 for rlogin)
Terminal Server section:Host (the name or the IP address of the host)
Automatic User
Step 3: Click the S ubm it button.
At this point, the configuration file is written in the RAMdisk.
Step 4: Make c hanges effective.
Click on the Administration > Run Configuration link, check the Serial Ports/
Ethernet/Static Routes box and click on the Activate Configuration button.
Step 5: Save it in the flash.
Go to the link Admini stration > Loa d/Save Configuration and click the Sa ve to Fla sh
button.
Wizard Method
Step 1: Bring up the wizard.
At the command prompt, type the followi ng to bring up the Access Method c ustom
wizard:
1) Enter the appropriate information for your system
and press ENTER. Enter '#' if you want to
deactivate that parameter or
2) Press ENTER if you are satisfied with the value
within the brackets [ ] and want to go on to the
next parameter or
3) Press ESC if you want to exit.
NOTE: For some parameters, if there is nothing within
the brackets, it will continue to ask for a value.
In that case, you must enter a valid value or # if you
do not wish to configure the value.
ALL.PROTOCOL - Users can access the servers through the
serial port using ssh, ssh2, telnet, login, rlogin,
or socket_client.
(e.g. login -requests username and password, rlogin receives username from the system and requests a password,
etc.)
all.protocol[rlogin] :
ALL.SOCKET_PORT - This defines the port(s) to be used by
the protocols telnet and socket_client. For these two
protocols a default value of 23 is used when no value
is configured.
ALL.TELNET_CLIENT_MODE - This parameter only applies if
the current protocol configured is telnet. Configuring as
binary (1) causes an attempt to negotiate the TELNET
BINARY option on both input and output with the Telnet
server. Thus, it puts the telnet client in binary mode.
The default is 0 which represents text mode.
all.telnet_client_mode[0] :
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Access Method
ALL.USERAUTO - Username used when connected to a Unix
server from the user's serial terminal.
all.userauto[#] :
Note: all.host is configured under th e wiz - - tso.
Note: Answering yes to this question will dis card only the pa rameter(s) which
you are currently configuring if they were configured for a specific port in a
previous session. For instance, if you are currently configuring parameter, all.x,
and there was a specific po rt, s2.x, configured; then, answering yes to this
question will discard s2.x.
Type 'c' to CONTINUE to set these parameters for specific
ports or 'q' to QUIT :
Typing 'c' leads to Screen 6, typ i ng 'q ' lea ds to Screen 7.
Type 'q' to quit, a valid port number[1-8], or anything
else to refresh :
Note: The number of available ports depends on the system you are on. Typing
in a valid port number repeats this program except this time it's configuring for
the port number yo u have chosen. Typing 'q' lea ds to Screen 7.
(Note: If you are NOT connected to this unit through a
console, and you have just reconfigured the IP of this
unit, activating the new configurations may cause you to
lose connection. In that case, please reconnect to the
unit by the new IP address, and manually issue a saveconf
to save your configurations to flash.)
Do you want to activate your configurations now? (y/n) [y] :
Flash refers to a type of memory that can be erased and
reprogrammed in units of memory known as blocks rather than
one byte at a time; thus, making updating to memory easier.
If you choose to save to flash, your configurations thus
far will still be in the memory of the system even after you
reboot it. If you don't save to flash and if you were to
reboot the system, all your new configurations will be lost
and you will have to reconfigure the system.
Do you want to save your configurations to flash? (y/n) [n] :
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CLI Method
To configure certain parameters for a specific serial port:
Step 1: At the command prompt, type in the appropriate command to configure desired
parameters.
To activate the serial port. <string> should be ttyS<serial port number> :
config configure line <serial port number> tty <string>
To configure the protocol (<string> is the type of protocol desired):
config configure line <serial port number> protocol <string>
To configure the socket_port:
config configure line <serial port number> socket <number>
To configure the telnet_client_mode:
config configure line <serial port number> telnetclientmode
<number>
To configure userauto:
config configure line <serial port number> userauto <string>
Tip. You can configure all the parameters for a serial port in one line.
config configure line <serial port number> tty <string>
protocol <string> socket <number> telnetclientmode
<number> userauto <string>
Step 2 : Activate and Save.
To activate your new configurations a nd save them to flash, type:
config write
(This is essentially typing signal_ras hup and saveconf from the normal terminal
prompt.)
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Access Method
Confi guration for Dial-in Access
Parameters and Passe d Va lues
The parameters that ne ed to be configu red are shown in the following list. Note: The character “\” at the end of a line mea ns th a t the str ing continu es on the next line.
conf.pppdLocation of the ppp daem on wi th Radius. Default value:
/usr/local/sbin/pppd.
all.ipnoThis is the default IP address of the BLACK BOX ® Ad vanced Console
Server's serial ports. Any host can access a port using its IP address as long
as a path to the address exist s in the host's routing table. An example value
would be 192.168.1.101+. The “+” indicates that the first port should be
addressed as 192.168.1.101 and t he following por ts should have
consecutive values.
all.initchatModem initialization st ring. Example value:
TIMEOUT 10 "" \d\l\dATZ \OK\r\n-ATZ-OK\r\n “” \“” ATMO OK\R\N “”\
TIMEOUT 3600 RING “” \
STATUS Incoming %p:I.HANDSHAKE “” ATA\
TIMEOUT 60 CONNECT@ “” \
STATUS Connected %p:I.HANDSHAKE
all.autopppO ptions to auto-dete ct a ppp session . The cb-script parameter defines the
file used for callback and enables negotiation with the callback server.
Callback is available in combination with Radius Server authentication.
When a r e gi st ered use r ca l ls the BLACK B OX ® Advanced C onso le Serv er, it
will disconnect the user, then cal l the user back. The fo llowing three
parameters must be configured in th e Ra dius Server.
•attribute Service_type(6): Callback Framed;
•attribute Framed_Protocol(7): PPP;
•attribute Callback_Numbe r(19): the dial number (example: 50903300).
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Chapter 3 - Additional Features
Example value:
%j novj \
proxyarp modem asyn cmap 000A0000 \
noipx noccp lo gin auth require-pap refusechap\
mtu %t mru %t \
cb-script /etc/portslave/cb_script \
plugin /usr/lib/li bpsr.so
all.pppoptPPP options when user has already been authenticated.
all.protocolFor the Dial-in configuration, the available protocols are PPP, SLIP and CSLIP.
Tip. Documentation about PPP options can be found on the Linux pppd m an
page.
vi Method
The p arameters described above must be changed by directly editing the /etc/portslave /
pslave.conf file.
Browser Met hod
For the serial ports you would have all the parameters described above but conf.*.
To configure Access Method with your browser:
Step 1: Follow the steps 1 to 4 in the section titled Configuratio n f or CAS, “Browse r
Method” on page 75.
Step 2: Click the Dial in Profile button in the Wizard section.
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Step 3: Scroll down to the Profile section.
You can change the settings for all.ipno and all.protocol in this section.
Step 4: Scroll to the modem Section.
You can configure the parameter all.initchat here.
Step 5: Scroll to the PPP Secti on.
You can configure the parameter a ll.autop pp a n d all.pppo pt here.
Step 6: Click the Submit button.
At this point, the con figuration file is written in the RAMdisk.
Step 7: Make the cha nges effecti ve.
Click on the Administration > Run Configuration link, check the Serial Ports/
Ethernet/Static Routes box and click on the Activate Configuration button.
Access Method
Step 8: Save it in the flash.
Go to the link Admini stration > Loa d/Save Configuration and click the Sa ve to Fla sh
button.
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Chapter 3 - Additional Features
CLI Method
To configure certain parameters for a specific serial port:
Step 1: At the command prompt, type in the appropriate command to configure desired
parameters.
To activate the serial port. <string> should be ttyS<serial port number> :
config configure line <serial port number> tty <string>
To configure the protocol. <string> is the type of protocol desired:
config configure line <serial port number> protocol <string>
To configure ipno:
config configure line <serial port number> ipno <string>
Tip. You can configure all the parameters for a serial port in one line.
config configure line <serial port number> tty <string>
protocol <string> ipno <string>
Step 2 : Activate and Save.
To activate your new configurations a nd save them to flash, type:
config write
(This is essentially typing signal_ras hup and saveconf from the normal terminal
prompt.)
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Authentication
Authentication
Authentication is the process of identifying an individual, usually based on a username and
password. In security systems, authentication is distinct from authorization, which is the process of giving individuals access to sys tem objects based on their identity. Authentication
merely ensures that th e individual is who he or she claims to be, bu t says nothing about the
access righ ts of the individual. With the BLACK BOX ® Advanced Console Server, authentication can be performed locally, or with a remo te Radius, Tacacs, or ldap database, or kerbe ros.
Parameters Invol ved and Passed Values
The authentication feature utiliz es the following parameter s:
all.authtypeType of authentication used. There a r e several authentication type
options:
•none (no au thentication)
•local (authentication is performed using the /etc/passwd file)
•remote (This is for a terminal profile only. The unit takes in a us er-
name but does not use it for authentication. Instead it passes it to
the rem ote server where it is then used for authentication.)
•radius (authentication is performed usin g a Radius authentication
server)
•TacacsPlus (authentication is performe d using a TacacsPlus authen-
ticati on server)
•ldap (authentication is performed against an ldap database using an
ldap server. The IP address and other details of the ldap server are
defined in the file /etc/ldap.conf)
100BLACK BOX ® A dvanced Console Server
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