Black Box RAS-PutIn Installation And User Manual

RAS-PutIn
Installation and User
Guide
Based on Firmware 03.02.07
©
Copyright 2003 Blackbox Inc.
All rights reserved
This publication contains proprietary information, which is protected by copyright. No part of this publication can be reproduced, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, translated into any language or computer language, or transmitted in any form whatsoever without the prior written consent of the publisher, Blackbox Inc.. Blackbox Inc. acknowledges the following trademarks:
Intel is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation.
Windows 98, Microsoft Windows, and Windows NT are trademarks of Microsoft Corpo­ration.
IBM, AT, VGA, PS/2, and OS/2 are registered trademarks and XT and CGA are trade­marks of International Business Machines Corporation.
Blackbox is a registered trademark of Blackbox Inc. Zwickau, Germany.
Authors: Blackbox Team
This document was created on February 10, 2004.
ii
The RAS-PutIn(ServSwitch RAS-PutIn) provides server management capabilities. You can use RAS-PutIn to manage and monitor components in your servers through a modem, an ISDN line or LAN, even if your network is down (Modem/ISDN). RAS-PutIn offers a comprehensive hardware solution to server management.
Limited Warranty
Limitations of Liability
Blackbox Inc. shall in no event be held liable for any loss, expenses or damages of any kind whatsoever, whether direct, indirect, incidental, or consequential (whether arising from the design or use of this product or the support materials provided with the product). No action or proceeding against Blackbox Inc. may be commenced more than two years after the delivery of product to Licensee of Licensed Software.
Licensee agrees to defend and indemnify Blackbox Inc. from any and all claims, suits, and liabilities (including attorney’s fees) arising out of or resulting from any actual or alleged act or omission on the part of Licensee, its authorized third parties, employees, or agents, in connection with the distribution of Licensed Software to end-users, including, without limitation, claims, suits, and liability for bodily or other injuries to end-users resulting from use of Licensee’s product not caused solely by faults in Licensed Software as provided by Blackbox Inc. to Licensee.
Technical Support
If you need help installing, configuring, or running RAS-PutIn, call your Blackbox OEM or VAD Technical Support representative.
We invite you to access Blackbox’s Web site at:
http://www.blackbox.com/
There you shall find all modifications made after the editorial deadline.
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iv
Contents
1 The Quick Installation Guide 1
2 Introduction 5
2.1 When the server is up and running . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2.2 When the server is dead . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3 Installation 9
3.1 Operation Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.2 Connectors and Jumpers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.2.1 Front Side Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.2.2 Rear Side Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.3 Connecting RAS-PutIn to the host system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.3.1 Connecting system management option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.3.2 Connecting IPMI option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.3.3 Connecting the Internal Reset/Power Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
3.3.4 Connecting the External Reset/Power Option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
3.3.5 Connecting Ethernet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.3.5.1 10 Mbps Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.3.5.2 100 Mbps Connection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.3.6 Connecting ISDN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
4 Configuration 15
4.1 Initial Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.1.1 Initial configuration via DHCP server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.1.2 Initial configuration via local console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.1.3 Mouse, Keyboard and Video configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
4.1.3.1 RAS-PutIn mouse settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
4.1.3.2 Host system mouse settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
4.1.3.3 RAS-PutIn Video Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
5 Usage 19
5.1 Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
5.2 Login into RAS-PutIn and logout . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
5.2.1 Login into RAS-PutIn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
5.2.2 Main Screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
5.2.3 Logout from RAS-PutIn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
5.3 Remote Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
5.3.1 Show Remote Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
5.3.2 Remote Chat Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
5.3.3 RAS-PutIn Mouse Synchronization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
5.3.4 RAS-PutIn Video Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
vi Contents
5.3.4.1 Video Settings through the HTML-Frontend . . . . . . . . . . . 28
5.3.4.2 Video Settings through the remote console . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
5.3.4.3 Custom Video Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
5.3.5 Remote Console Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.3.6 Telnet Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
5.4 Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
5.4.1 Power Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
5.4.2 Keyboard/Mouse Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.4.3 KVM Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
5.5 Administration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
5.5.1 User/Group Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
5.5.1.1 Add User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.5.1.2 Delete User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.5.1.3 Modify User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.5.1.4 Copy User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.5.1.5 Add Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.5.1.6 Delete Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.5.1.7 Modify Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.5.1.8 Copy Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
5.5.2 User/Group Permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
5.5.3 Network Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
5.5.3.1 Dynamic DNS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
5.5.4 SNMP Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
5.5.5 Serial Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
5.5.6 Modem Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
5.5.7 ISDN Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50
5.5.7.1 I want to allow non-callback dial in for everyone. . . . . . . . . . 52
5.5.7.2 I want to allow non-callback dial in for selected people. . . . . . 52
5.5.7.3 I want to allow non-callback dial in for everyone except some
people that should be called back. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.5.7.4 I want to allow non-callback dial in for selected people except
some people that should be called back. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.5.7.5 I want to allow callback connections only. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.5.8 IPMI Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.5.8.1 Generals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
5.5.8.2 IPMI Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
5.5.8.3 Power Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
5.5.8.4 Event Log via IPMI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
5.5.8.5 Status via IPMI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
5.5.9 LDAP Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
5.5.9.1 Generals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
5.5.9.2 LDAP Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
5.5.10 Security Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
5.5.10.1 SSL Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
5.5.10.2 Telnet Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
5.5.10.3 IP Access Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
5.5.11 SSL Certificate Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58
5.5.12 Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
5.5.12.1 Update Firmware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
5.6 Access via Telnet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
Contents vii
6 Frequently Asked Questions 65
A Glossary 67
B RAS-PutIn Video Modes 69
C Key Codes 71
D Pin Assignments 73
D.1 VGA HD-15 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
D.2 RJ 45 Connector Ethernet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
D.3 RJ 45 Connector ISDN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
D.4 Serial SUB-D 9 Connector 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
D.5 Serial SUB-D 9 Connector 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
D.6 KVM SUB-D 25 Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
D.7 Power Supply Connector . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75
E Blackbox Warranty information 77
F Specifications 79
F.1 Size and Weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
F.2 Environmental . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
G Operation advices 81
viii Contents
List of Figures
1.1 Front Side Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
1.2 Rear Side Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
1.3 Top part of the Remote Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
2.1 RAS-PutIn total view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
2.2 Internal Reset/Power Option - PC bracket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
3.1 RAS-PutIn usage scenario . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.2 Multiple users on multiple servers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
3.3 RAS-PutIn Front Side Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.4 Rear Side Connectors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
3.5 Connections of RAS-PutIn KVM signals to the controlled system . . . . . . . . . 11
3.6 Connections of RAS-PutIn with local console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.7 Connecting RAS-PutIn system management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.8 Top view of internal reset/power option . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
5.1 Internet Explorer showing the encryption key length . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
5.2 RAS-PutIn login screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
5.3 RAS-PutIn home menu window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
5.4 Remote Console window showing a desktop screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
5.5 Example for the Chat window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
5.6 Video Settings in HTML frontend . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
5.7 Video Settings Panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
5.8 Custom Video Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
5.9 Example of Remote Console settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.10 Telnet Console . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
5.11 Internal Power Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
5.12 External Power Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
5.13 Power Control via IPMI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.14 Keyboard/Mouse settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
5.15 KVM Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
5.16 User/Group Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
5.17 User/Group Permissions panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
5.18 RAS-PutIn network settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
5.19 Dynamic DNS Scenario . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
5.20 Dynamic DNS configuration panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
5.21 SNMP settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
5.22 Serial Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
5.23 Internal Power Option Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
5.24 RAS-PutIn ISDN settings panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
5.25 IPMI settings panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
x List of Figures
5.26 IPMI Event Log . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
5.27 Example of IPMI State panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
5.28 LDAP settings panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
5.29 Security settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56
5.30 SSL Certificate Request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
5.31 SSL Certificate Signing Request . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
5.32 Panel for uploading a new firmware . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
5.33 Panel to update a new firmware that was previously uploaded . . . . . . . . . . . 62
5.34 Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
C.1 English (US) Keyboard Layout, used for key codes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
List of Tables
1.1 Initial configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
1.2 Serial parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
2.1 Host system failures and how they are detected . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
4.1 Initial IP configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
4.2 Serial line parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
5.1 Meaning of the main menu RAS-PutIn features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
5.2 Remote reset and power button effects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
5.3 RAS-PutIn user and group permissions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
B.1 RAS-PutIn Video Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
C.1 Key Names . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
xii List of Tables

1 The Quick Installation Guide

Installation
RAS-PutIn redirects local keyboard, mouse and video data to a remote administration console. All data is transmitted via IP. RAS-PutIn can be used in a multi administrator and multi server environment as well. Combining RAS-PutIn with a KVM switched matrix allows to access multiple remote servers over a single remote console.
Connectors
Front Side Connectors (Figure 1.1)
Figure 1.1: Front Side Connectors
Reset Pushing this button performs a reset of RAS-PutIn. The button is important for the
initial configuration of RAS-PutIn
VGA Indicates, that the VGA input is active and a video signal is received by RAS-PutIn
RUN Indicates whether the RAS-PutIn system is running or not
100 Indicates that the Ethernet connection is in 100 Mbit mo de
FULL Indicates that the Ethernet connection is in full-duplex mo de
ISDN Indicates that the ISDN subsystem is available and active
GRAB Indicates that a remote user is logged onto RAS-PutIn and the video engine is outputting
data
Rear Side Connectors (Figure 1.2 on the next page)
SUB-D 9 Serial 1 The standard serial connector is used in multiple ways:
2 CHAPTER 1. THE QUICK INSTALLATION GUIDE
I
S
DN
Etherne
t
Serial 1
Keyboard/Video/Mou
se
Pow
e
r
Serial 2
Figure 1.2: Rear Side Connectors
IPMI Version 1.5 connection to the host system using the IPMI Option cable
Serial output for modem dial in connection
Serial pass-through via Telnet
Initial configuration
SUB-D 9 Serial 2 The serial connector 2 supports the internal and external power options
SUB-D 25 KVM The supplied Keyboard VGA Mouse extender cable has an aggregated SUB
D 25 connector to RAS-PutIn
Power supply A power supply with the following parameters must be attached:
Voltage: 12 V
Current: >= 1 A
RJ 45 ISDN Using this connector RAS-PutIn can be connected to an EURO ISDN network
(EMEA versions only)
RJ 45 Ethernet UTP3/5 cables may be used to connect RAS-PutIn to an Ethernet LAN
Connecting RAS-PutIn to the host system
1. Connect the SUB-D 25 to PS2/PS2/Video cable to the SUB-D 25 connector on RAS-PutIn
2. Connect the (purple) PS/2 Keyboard jack to the keyboard connector of the host system
3. Connect the (green) PS/2 mouse plug to the mouse connector of the host system
4. Connect the VGA HD-15 connector to the VGA monitor output of the host system
5. Connect the power supply as well as Ethernet and/or modem,ISDN, depending how you want to access RAS-PutIn
In case you want to connect a local console to the host system besides RAS-PutIn, you can attach monitor, keyboard and mouse to the according RAS-PutIn connectors on its front.
Video modes
Initial IP configuration
Initially the RAS-PutIn network interface is configured with the parameters shown in Table 1.1.
Table 1.1: Initial configuration
parameter value
IP auto configuration DHCP IP address ­Netmask 255.255.255.0 Gateway none IP access control disabled
If this initial configuration doesn’t meet your local requirements, you need to do the initial IP configuration.
3
Note: If the DHCP connection fails on boot up, RAS-PutIn will not have an IPv4 address. If IP auto configuration is set to ”None” the standard IP address 192.168.1.22 is assigned to RAS-PutIn.
Use one of the following ways:
1. Connect the enclosed NULL modem cable to the serial interface on the rear side .
The serial interface needs to be adjusted with the parameters shown in table Table 1.2:
Table 1.2: Serial parameters
parameter value
Bits/second 115200 Data bits 8 Parity No Stop bits 1 Flow Control None
Use a terminal software (e.g. hyperterm or minicom) to connect to RAS-PutIn. Reset RAS-PutIn and immediately press < ESC >. You will see some device information and a ’=>’ prompt. Enter the command ’config’ and press < Enter >. After waiting a few moments you may configure IP auto configuration, IP address, net mask and default gateway. Pressing < Enter > without entering values does not change settings. The gateway value must be set to 0.0.0.0 (for no gateway) or any other value. You will be asked if the values are correct and get a chance to correct them. After confirming, RAS­PutIn performs a reset.
2. Use an Ethernet cable to connect RAS-PutIn to a subnet where a DHCP server is available. After the DHCP server has assigned an IP address to RAS-PutIn you can use the web interface to configurate the device (see Section 4.1.1 on page 15 for details).
4 CHAPTER 1. THE QUICK INSTALLATION GUIDE
Web interface
RAS-PutIn may be accessed using a standard web browser. You may use the HTTP protocol or a secure encrypted connection via HTTPS. Just enter the configured IP address of RAS-PutIn into your web browser. Initially there is only one user configured who has unrestricted access to all RAS-PutIn features:
Login name super Password servswitch
Please login and change the password immediately according to your own policies.
The Remote Console
Figure 1.3: Top part of the Remote Console
There are some options to choose from, the important ones are the following:
Auto Adjust button
If the video displayed is of bad quality or distorted in some way, press this button and wait a few seconds while RAS-PutIn tries to adjust itself for the best possible video quality.
Sync Mouse
Choose this option in order to synchronize the local with the remote mouse cursor. This is especially necessary when using accelerated mouse settings on the host system. In general there is no need to change mouse settings on the host.
Video Settings in Options Menu This opens a new window with elements to control the RAS-
PutIn Video Settings. You can change some values, for instance related to brightness and contrast of the picture displayed, which may improve the video quality. It is also possible to revert to the default settings for all video modes or only the current one.

2 Introduction

Features
RAS-PutIn defines a new class of remote KVM access devices (see Figure 2.1). RAS-PutIn combines digital remote KVM access via IP networks with comprehensive and integrated system management.
RAS-PutIn offers convenient, remote KVM access and control via LAN, Internet, or ISDN. It captures, digitizes, and compresses video and transmits it with keyboard and mouse signals to and from a remote computer. RAS-PutIn provides a non-intrusive solution for remote access and control. Remote access and control software runs on the RAS-PutIn embedded processors only but not on mission-critical servers, so that there is no interference with server operation or impact on network performance.
1
Figure 2.1: RAS-PutIn total view
Furthermore, RAS-PutIn offers remote power management and remote system management according to the interfaces of the remote server. RAS-PutIn supports three ways of power management:
via the internal reset/power option
via external scalable power switch box
via IPMI Version 1.5
1
RAS-PutIn— ServSwitch RAS-PutIn
6 CHAPTER 2. INTRODUCTION
Other features of RAS-PutIn are:
KVM (keyboard, video, mouse) access over IP, ISDN or analogous telephone line.
No impact on server or network performance
Automatically senses video resolution for best possible screen capture
High-performance mouse tracking and synchronization
Port to connect a user console for direct analogous access to KVM switch
Local Mouse suppression (only when using SUN’s Java Virtual Machine)
RAS-PutIn supports consoles consisting of PS/2 style keyboards, PS/2 style mouse and HD 15 video output. Please refer to Appendix D.1 on page 73 for more details. RAS-PutIn will automatically detect the current video mode of the console, however manual fine tuning is recommended to receive the best video quality. RAS-PutIn will accept video streams up to 110 MHz dot clock. This results in a screen resolution of 1280x1024 dots with a frame rate of 60 Hz.
IPMI Version 1.5 defines a serial connection to access certain system parameters
and to perform system actions like powering down the system or performing a hard reset. Modern server systems, supporting the IPMI V1.5 specification, provide a mode where the exter­nally available COM2 serial connection can be configured as system management port (sometimes also referred to as emer­gency management port). RAS-PutIn may use this port in order to enable remote system management operations.
Internal Reset/Power Option The internal Reset/Power Option may be applied to remote
systems where no IPMI Version 1.5 is available. The provided bracket is mounted in a free PCI/AGP slot. Main board pins for reset and power on/off have to be connected to the bracket. With this option it is possible to perform a remote reset, a remote power cycle, and a remote power on/off.
External Power Switch Option In case there is neither an IPMI V1.5 option available nor the
chance to place a bracket in the remote system, an external power switch box can switch the power on and off.
RAS-PutIn System Components
RAS-PutIn is a fully configured stand-alone product consuming one quart of a 1U 19” rack mount chassis space. Up to four RAS-PutIn devices can be mounted in 1 U chassis using the 19” rack mount kit (Item No: 8400200)
Each RAS-PutIn (Item No: 8400000) is shipped with:
1. RAS-PutIn base unit
2. Utility CD-ROM including
a) RAS-PutIn Installation and User Manual
2.1. WHEN THE SERVER IS UP AND RUNNING 7
b) RAS-PutIn utilities
3. RAS-PutIn keyboard video mouse connection cable (Sub D 25)
4. NULL modem cable
5. RAS-PutIn external power supply
IPMI Option (Item No. 8400300) The IPMI Option consists of a serial cable (SUB-D 9 fe­male ←→ SUB-D 9 female) for the connection between RAS-PutIn and an IPMI V1.5 compliant serial management port on the remote system.
Internal Reset/Power Option (Item No: 8400100) The internal reset/power option (see Figure 2.2) consists of a PC bracket with a Sub-D 9 jack on the outside and 4x2 pin connector in the inner side. The Sub-D 9 jack is connected to the RAS-PutIn Serial Port 2. The internal 4x2 pin connector allows to connect the reset and power on/off switching signals of the main board to RAS-PutIn. Figure 2.2 shows the PC bracket.
Figure 2.2: Internal Reset/Power Option - PC bracket
2.1 When the server is up and running
RAS-PutIn gives you full control over the remote server. The Management Console allows you to access the remote server’s graphics, keyboard and mouse and to send special commands to the server.
You can also perform periodic maintenance of the server. Using the Console Redirection Service, you are able to do the following:
Reboot the system (a graceful shutdown).
Watch the boot process.
Boot the system from a separate partition to load the diagnostic environment.
Run special diagnostic programs.
8 CHAPTER 2. INTRODUCTION
2.2 When the server is dead
1. Hard disk failure 50%
2. Power cable detached, power supply failure 28%
3. CPU, Controller, main board failure 10%
4. CPU fan failure 8%
5. RAM failure 4%
Table 2.1: Host system failures and how they are detected
Type of failure Detected by
Hard disk failure Console screen, CMOS set-up information Power cable detached, power supply failure CPU, Controller, main board failure CPU fan failure By IPMI or server specific management software RAM failure Boot-Sequence on boot console
Server remains in power off state after p ower on command has been given. Power supply is on, but there is no video output.
2
According to a survey made by the Intel Corp.

3 Installation

3.1 Operation Overview
Figure 3.1 shows the connections of RAS-PutIn to its host,to peripheral devices, to the power source and to the local area network.
Figure 3.1: RAS-PutIn usage scenario
RAS-PutIn redirects local keyboard, mouse, and video data to a remote administration console. All data is transmitted via IP.
Using more than one RAS-PutIn in a configuration as shown in Figure 3.2 prevents blocking administrators who use the switching matrix.
Figure 3.2: Multiple users on multiple servers
10 CHAPTER 3. INSTALLATION
I
S
DN
Etherne
t
Serial 1
Keyboard/Video/Mou
se
Pow
e
r
Serial 2
3.2 Connectors and Jumpers
3.2.1 Front Side Connectors
Figure 3.3 shows the connectors on RAS-PutIn’s front side.
Figure 3.3: RAS-PutIn Front Side Connectors
RST Pushing this button performs a reset of RAS-PutIn. One has to use this button for the
initial configuration of RAS-PutIn
VGA Indicates, that the VGA input is active and a video signal is received by RAS-PutIn
RUN Indicates whether the RAS-PutIn system is running or not
100 Indicates that the Ethernet connection is in 100 Mbit mo de
FULL Indicates that the Ethernet connection is in full-duplex mo de
ISDN Indicates that the ISDN subsystem is available and active (EMEA version only)
GRAB Indicates that a remote user is logged onto RAS-PutIn and the video engine is outputting
data
In case you want to connect a local console to the host system besides RAS-PutIn, you can attach monitor, keyboard and mouse to the according RAS-PutIn connectors on its front.
3.2.2 Rear Side Connectors
Figure 3.4 shows the connectors on RAS-PutIn’s rear side.
Figure 3.4: Rear Side Connectors
SUB-D 9 Serial 1 The standard serial connector is used in multiple ways:
3.3. CONNECTING RAS-PUTIN TO THE HOST SYSTEM 11
IPMI Version 1.5 connection to the remote system using the IPMI Op­tion cable
Serial output for modem dial in connection
Serial pass-through via Telnet
Initial configuration
SUB-D 9 Serial 2 The serial connector 2 supports the internal and external power options
SUB-D 25 KVM The supplied Keyboard VGA Mouse extender cable has an aggregated SUB
D 25 connector to RAS-PutIn
Power supply A power supply with the following parameters can be attached:
Voltage: 12 V
Current: >= 1 A
RJ 45 ISDN Using this connector RAS-PutIn can be connected to an EURO ISDN network
RJ 45 Ethernet UTP3/5 cables can be connected to RAS-PutIn using this standard RJ 45
Jack
3.3 Connecting RAS-PutIn to the host system
1. Connect the SUB-D 25 to PS2/PS2/Video cable to the SUB-D 25 connector on RAS-PutIn
2. Connect the (purple) PS/2 Keyboard jack to the keyboard connector of the host system
3. Connect the (green) PS/2 mouse plug to the mouse connector of the host system
4. Connect the VGA HD-15 connector to the VGA monitor output of the host system
5. Connect the power supply as well as Ethernet and/or modem,ISDN, depending how you want to access RAS-PutIn
In case you want to connect a local console to the host system besides RAS-PutIn you may attach monitor, keyboard and mouse to the connectors on the front side. Figure 3.5 shows the resulting connections from RAS-PutIn to the host system, whereas Figure 3.6 on the following page shows the same connections including the local console ones.
Figure 3.5: Connections of RAS-PutIn KVM signals to the controlled system
12 CHAPTER 3. INSTALLATION
To Resetan
d Power on/off Pins on main boar
d o
r internal
Adapter Kit
KVM
Extra
Bracket
in server
IPM
I
KVM
IPM
I
KVM
IPM
I
ExternalPower
Switchbo
x
IPMI V1.5 Interface
Serve
r
Serve
r
Serve
r
Figure 3.6: Connections of RAS-PutIn with local console
3.3.1 Connecting system management option
Figure 3.7 gives an overview over the three different options to perform remote reset and remote power management to the controlled PC.
Figure 3.7: Connecting RAS-PutIn system management
3.3.2 Connecting IPMI option
At http://developer.intel.com/design/servers/ipmi/index.htm You will find further information about IPMI 1.5.
In order to use the IPMI over serial interface it has to be enabled in the host system. This can be done using BIOS settings or special utilities provided by the server manufacturer. Refer to the server manufacturer’s manual site to find out how the IPMI over serial line can be enabled and configured and where the IPMI serial port is placed.
3.3. CONNECTING RAS-PUTIN TO THE HOST SYSTEM 13
To Reset Pin o
n
Mainboard
To Reset Front
Panel switc
h
To Power on Pin o
n
Mainboard
To Power Fron
t
Panel switc
h
Hint: IPMI V1.5 is only supported by modern server systems. No server system manufactured before 2002 supports IPMI 1.5. By the date of printing this manual only the Intel SDS2 server main board has a proper support of IPMI Verson 1.5.
Connect the IPMI option serial cable to the RS232 port 1 on the rear side of RAS-PutIn and to the serial port of the controlled system.
3.3.3 Connecting the Internal Reset/Power Option
Figure 3.8 shows the top view of the reset/power bracket.
Figure 3.8: Top view of internal reset/power option
Additional cables are required in order to enable the remote reset and the remote power function of RAS-PutIn:
1. Mount the reset/power bracket in a free slot of the controlled system.
2. Find the cable connecting the front panel reset button and the main board.
3. Disconnect this cable from the main board and connect it to the pin connector on the bracket as shown in Figure 3.8.
4. Take the supplied red/black reset cable and connect the cable with one end to the main boards reset jumper connector (where you just disconnected the cable to the front panel) and with the other end to the bracket connector as shown in Figure 3.8.
5. Find the cable connecting the front panel power button and the main board.
6. Disconnect this cable from the main board and connect it to the pin connector on the bracket as shown in Figure 3.8.
7. Take the supplied red/black power cable and connect the cable with one end to the main board’s power jumper connector (where you just disconnected the cable to the front panel) and with the other end to the bracket connector as shown in Figure 3.8.
8. Check the cabling: finally, there are four cables connected to the jumper connector on the bracket.
Now, connect the bracket to the RAS-PutIn serial port 2 using the supplied SUB-D 9 to SUB-D 9 connector.
3.3.4 Connecting the External Reset/Power Option
Please refer to the manual of the Blackbox external power switch option or a third party external power option to connect those external devices to one of the serial interface on the rear side of
14 CHAPTER 3. INSTALLATION
RAS-PutIn. By the date of printing this manual supported options are:
AvocentSPC1800/1600
Sentry In-Line Power Module
Leuning ePowerSwitch
3.3.5 Connecting Ethernet
The rear side of RAS-PutIn provides a RJ-45 connector for Ethernet. The connector is used either for a 100 Mbps 100BASE-TX connection or for a 10 Mbps 10BASE-T connection. The adapter can sense the connection speed and will adjust to the appropriate operation mode automatically.
3.3.5.1 10 Mbps Connection
For 10BASE-T Ethernet networks, the Fast Ethernet adapter uses Category 3, 4, or 5 UTP cable. To establish a 10 Mbps connection, the cable must be connected to a 10BASE-T hub.
1. Make sure that the cable is wired appropriately for a standard 10BASE-T adapter.
2. Align the RJ-45 plug with the notch on the adapter’s connector and insert it into the adapter’s connector.
3.3.5.2 100 Mbps Connection
1. Make sure that the cable is wired appropriately for a standard 100BASE-TX adapter.
2. Align the RJ-45 plug with the notch on the adapter’s connector and insert it into the adapter’s connector.
Note: The UTP wire pairs and configuration for 100BASE-TX cable are identical to those for 10BASE-T cable when used with Category 5 UTP cable.
3.3.6 Connecting ISDN
1
Avocent is a registered trademark of Acovent Corp. Huntsville
4 Configuration
4.1 Initial Configuration
RAS-PutIn’s communication interfaces are all based on TCP/IP. It comes pre-configured with the IP configuration listed in Table 4.1.
Table 4.1: Initial IP configuration
Parameter Value
IP auto configuration DHCP IP-Address ­Net-mask 255.255.255.0 Default-Gateway none IP access control disabled
4.1.1 Initial configuration via DHCP server
By default, RAS-PutIn will try to contact a DHCP server in the subnet to which it is physically connected. If a DHCP server is found it may provide a valid IP address, gateway address and net mask. Before you connect the device to your local subnet be sure to complete the corresponding configuration of your DHCP server. It is recommended to configure a fixed IP assignment to the MAC address of RAS-PutIn. You can find the MAC address on the outside of the shipping box and labelled on the bottom side. If the DHCP connection fails on boot up, RAS-PutIn will not have an IPv4 address.
4.1.2 Initial configuration via local console
1. Using a serial terminal: RAS-PutIn has a serial line interface at its rear side (refer to Section 3.2 on page 10). The connector is compliant to RS 232 serial line standard. We are offering an according serial cable that can be used for connecting the connector of RAS­PutIn with a Sub-D 9 connector of a terminal or the serial line interface of a computer running a terminal program. The serial line has to be configured with the parameters given in Table 4.2 on the next page.
16 CHAPTER 4. CONFIGURATION
Table 4.2: Serial line parameters
Parameter Value
Bits/second 115200 Data bits 8 Parity No Stop bits 1 Flow Control None
As you go along you will see the following lines, which you have to answer or to which you may provide the default value by pressing < Enter >. The default value is shown in square brackets.
IP auto configuration (none/dhcp/bootp) [dhcp]: IP [192.168.1.22]: NetMask [255.255.255.0]: Gateway (0.0.0.0 for none) [0.0.0.0]: Enable IP Access Control (yes/no) [no]: LAN interface speed (auto/10/100) [auto]: LAN interface duplex mode (auto/half/full) [auto]:
IP autoconfiguration
With this option you can specify whether RAS-PutIn should fetch it’s network settings from a DHCP or BOOTP server. For DHCP you have to enter dhcp and for BOOTP supply bootp accordingly. If you specify none then IP autoconfiguration is disabled and you will subsequently be asked for the following network settings.
IP address
The IP address the RAS-PutIn should use. This option is only available if IP autoconfig­uration is disabled.
Subnet mask
The mask of the connected IP subnet. This option is only available if IP autoconfiguration is disabled.
Gateway address
The IP address of the default router of the connected IP subnet. If you have no default router, you may enter 0.0.0.0. This option is only available if IP auto configuration is disabled.
Enable IP Access Control
‘Enable IP Access Control’ allows you to switch IP packet filtering on or off. It is mainly intended to re-enable access to RAS-PutIn after a faulty IP access control configuration has been activated. Refer to Section 5.5.10.3 on page 57 for more information about IP access control.
LAN interface speed
‘LAN interface speed’ allows you to switch the LAN Ethernet interface speed to autosens­ing/autonegotiation (auto), 10Mbps (10) or 100Mbps (100).
LAN interface duplex mode
The last question ‘LAN interface duplex mode’ allows you to switch LAN interface mode to autosensing/autonegotiation (auto), half duplex (half) or full duplex (full).
4.1. INITIAL CONFIGURATION 17
You will be asked if the values are correct and get a chance to correct them. After confirming, RAS-PutIn performs a reset.
4.1.3 Mouse, Keyboard and Video configuration
The correct operation of the remote mouse depends on two settings which will be discussed in the following subsections. In case the remote mouse doesn’t work properly at least one of the following settings is probably not correct.
4.1.3.1 RAS-PutIn mouse settings
The RAS-PutIn settings for the host’s mouse type and the host’s keyboard type must be correct in order to make remote keyboard and mouse work properly. Check the settings in the RAS­PutIn front-end. See Section 5.4.2 on page 36 for details.
4.1.3.2 Host system mouse settings
Special Mouse Driver There are mouse drivers, which influence the synchronization pro-
cess leading to desynchronized mouse pointers. If this happens, make sure you don’t use a special vendor-specific mouse driver on your host system
Windows XP Mouse Setting Windows XP knows a setting to ’improve mouse acceleration’,
which has to be deactivated
4.1.3.3 RAS-PutIn Video Modes
18 CHAPTER 4. CONFIGURATION

5 Usage

5.1 Prerequisites
The following interfaces are supported:
1. HTTP/HTTPS: The most complete access is provided by an embedded web server. Thus the RAS-PutIn environment can be entirely controlled by a standard web browser. De­pending on the web browser you can access the RAS-PutIn using the unsecured HTTP protocol or, in case the browser supports it, the encrypted HTTPS protocol. It is recom­mended to use HTTPS whenever possible.
2. SNMP1: Any standard SNMP client can use this protocol. The according MIB2is provided on the RAS-PutIn tools CD or can be downloaded over the RAS-PutIn front-end.
3. Telnet: A standard Telnet client can be used to access an arbitrary device connected to RAS-PutIn’s serial port via a terminal mode.
We recommend the following browser for an unsecured connection to RAS-PutIn.
Microsoft Internet Explorer version 5.0 or higher on Windows 98, Windows ME and Windows 2000, Windows XP
Netscape Navigator 7.0 or Mozilla 1.0 on Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Linux and other UNIX like Operating Systems
1
SNMP — Simple Network Management Protocol
2
MIB — Management Information Base
20 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
However the US export regulations have been declared obsolete recently. Therefore, new browser versions do support strong encryption.
We recommend the following browser for a secured connection to RAS-PutIn.
Microsoft Internet Explorer version 5.5 or higher on Windows 98, Windows ME and Windows 2000 and Windows XP
Netscape Navigator 7.0 or Mozilla 1.0 on Windows 98, Windows ME, Windows 2000, Windows XP, Linux and other UNIX like Operating Systems
Figure 5.1: Internet Explorer showing the encryption key length
5.2 Login into RAS-PutIn and logout
5.2.1 Login into RAS-PutIn
Start your web browser and direct it to the address of your RAS-PutIn that has been configured during installation. The address used might be a plain IP address or a host and domain name, in case you have given your RAS-PutIn a symbolic name in the DNS.
http://192.168.1.22/
or in case you like to use a secure connection:
https://192.168.1.22/
This leads you to the RAS-PutIn login page as shown in Figure 5.2 on the next page.
Login name super Password servswitch
5.2. LOGIN INTO RAS-PUTIN AND LOGOUT 21
Figure 5.2: RAS-PutIn login screen
Attention: Please make sure to change the super user password immediately after you have installed and firstly accessed your RAS-PutIn. Not changing the super user password is a severe security risk and might result in unauthorized access to RAS-PutIn and the host system with all possible consequences!
Hint: The browser must be configured to accept cookies, else login is not p ossible.
5.2.2 Main Screen
The upper left frame contains a home link that brings you instantly back to the home page after you stepped down to one of the administration menu points. The logout link logs you out of RAS-PutIn. That means the current session will be terminated and you have to type username and password again to login.
Note: The RAS-PutIn will log you out automatically after there is no administration activity for half an hour. In this case each click on one of the links will lead you to the login screen where you have to provide the login information again.
The lower left frame of the RAS-PutIn main window, called the menu frame, contains the main menu that leads you to the pages for various administration tasks. The functions of the menu frame will be described in detail during the following sections.
The different function pages selected by one of the menu links will be presented in the big right frame, called the function frame.
Initially the function frame contains a short summary of your RAS-PutIn. Table 5.1 on page 23 gives you a description of the meaning of each point.
22 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
Figure 5.3: RAS-PutIn home menu window
5.2.3 Logout from RAS-PutIn
5.3 Remote Console
5.3.1 Show Remote Console
Starting the Remote Console causes an additional window popping up that contains a copy of the screen of your host system (see Figure 5.4 on the facing page). The Remote Console will behave exactly in the same way as if you were sitting directly in front of the screen of your remote system. That means keyboard and mouse can be used in the usual way. However,
5.3. REMOTE CONSOLE 23
Table 5.1: Meaning of the main menu RAS-PutIn features
Feature Description
Server Power Status Shows whether the host system is switched on or off Firmware Version Version number of the firmware installed on your RAS-
PutIn
Device Management Shows, if RAS-PutIn is entirely self-managed or if its con-
nected to a management device.
Users Shows all currently logged in users with their identity and
the IP address from where they are logged in (note: in case a user connected his web browser over a proxy server the IP address field will show the IP address of the proxy server and not that of the user machine itself ). RC means that the user has opened the Remote Console. Exclusive is a sign that the Remote Console is opened in exclusive mode. Idle is the time since last access during the current session.
Figure 5.4: Remote Console window showing a desktop screen
With respect to the keyboard, the very exact remote representation might lead to some confusion as your local keyboard changes its keyboard layout according to the remote host system.
For instance, special keys on the German keyboard won’t work anymore as expected but will result in their US English counterpart if you are using a German administration system but your host system uses a US English keyboard layout.
The Remote Console window is a Java Applet that tries to establish its own TCP connection to RAS-PutIn. The protocol that is run over this connection is not HTTP or HTTPS but a protocol called RFB (Remote Frame Buffer Protocol). Currently RFB tries to establish a connection to port number 443. Your local network environment must allow this connection to be made, i.e. your firewall and, in case you have a private internal network, your NAT (Network Address Translation) settings must be configured accordingly.
24 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
The Remote Console window always tries to show the remote screen with its optimal size. That means it will adapt its size to the size of the remote screen initially and after the screen resolution of the remote screen has been changed. However, you can always resize the Remote Console window in your local window system as usual.
Hint: In difference to the remote host system, the Remote Console window on your local window system is just one window among others. In order to make keyboard and mouse work, your Remote Console window must have the local input focus.
The upper part of the Remote Console window contains a control bar. Using its elements you can see the state of the Remote Console and influence the local Remote Console settings. The follwing section describes the meaning of each control.
Description of Remote Console Options
Ctrl+Alt+Delete
Special button key to send the ‘Control Alt Delete’ key combination to the remote system (see also Section 5.3.5 on page 31 for defining new button keys).
State line
Shows console and connection state. Normally it displays the size of the remote screen in pixels. The value in round brackets describes the connection to the remote system: Norm stands for a standard connection without encryption; SSL stands for a secured connection. In case there is a connection error, it will be displayed in this line as well. You can double click the state line in order to see a history of all the state messages.
Auto adjust
Starts the auto adjustment procedure to determine the settings for best visual quality of the grabbed image. This may take a few moments. During the pro cess the display is turned off and you will see a notification message.
Sync mouse
Activates the mouse synchronization process. Have a look at Section 5.3.3 on page 27 for further information about this topic.
Single/Double mouse mode
Switches between the Single Mouse Mode (where only the remote mouse pointer is visible) and the Double Mouse Mode (where remote and local mouse pointers are visible and need to be synchronized). Single mouse mode is only available if using SUN JVM 1.3 or higher.
Options
Exclusive Access
5.3. REMOTE CONSOLE 25
If a user has the appropriate permission, he can force the Remote Consoles of all other users to close. No one can open the Remote Console at the same time again until this user disables the exclusive access or logs off.
Options
Scaling
Allows you to scale down the Remote Console. You can still use mouse and keyboard, however the scaling algorithm won’t preserve all display details.
Options
Readability Filter
Toggles the Readability Filter on or off. If the filter is switched on in scaling mode, it will preserve most of the screen details even if the image is substantially scaled down. This option will be available only with a Java Virtual Machine version number of 1.3 or higher.
Options
Chat Window
Opens up the RAS-PutIn Chat Frame. See Section 5.3.2 on the next page for a detailed description!
Options
Soft Keyboard
Opens up the Menu for the Soft-Keyboard.
Options
Soft KeyboardShow
Pops up the Soft-Keyboard. The Soft-Keyboard is necessary in case your host system runs a completely different language and country mapping than your administration machine.
Options
Soft KeyboardMapping
Used for choosing the according language and country mapping of the Soft-Keyboard.
Options
Local Keyboard
Used to change the language mapping of your browser machine running the Remote Con­sole Applet. Normally the Applet determines the correct value automatically. However, depending on your particular JVM and your browser machine settings this is not always possible. A typical example is a German localized system that uses an US-English key­board mapping. In this case you have to change the Local Keyboard setting manually to the right language
Options
Video Settings
Opens a panel for changing the RAS-PutIn video settings. Have a look at Section 5.3.4 on page 28 for a detailed description of the available options.
Options
Mouse handling
The submenu for mouse handling offers two options for synchronizing the local and the remote mouse pointer , explained in Section 5.3.3 on page 27. The option for ’Fast Sync’ shows the hotkey in parentheses in case you defined one using the Remote Console Settings.
26 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
It is also possible to activate the ’Exclusive Mouse Mode’ (see Section 5.3.5 on page 31 for an explanation).
Options
Local cursor
Offers a list of different cursor shapes to choose from for the local mouse pointer. The selected shape will be saved for the current user and activated again next time this user opens the Remote Console. The number of available shapes depends on the Java Virtual Machine, only a version of 1.2 or higher offers the full list.
If you are using the compressed encoding, compressed and uncompressed incoming traffic will be shown.
5.3.2 Remote Chat Frame
The RAS-PutIn Remote Console features a Chat Frame that allows you to communicate with other parties logged into the same device. Figure 5.5 shows an example of the Chat Frame.
Figure 5.5: Example for the Chat window
The Chat Frame is helpful especially for discussing problems and questions among logged in RAS-PutIn users in case the remote host’s screen should not be changed or misused for that purpose.
Chat Frame element description
Title Bar
Shows the IP address of the RAS-PutIn you are connected to.
Chat Area
Read-only text area showing the messages, which have been received so far, inclusive your own messages sent to others. The identity string of the sender precedes each message.
Identity Label
Shows the identity string used to precede messages sent by this Chat Frame. The first
5.3. REMOTE CONSOLE 27
part of the identity string is the user ID that has been used to log into the client system, i.e. the system the browser runs on. The second part, behind ‘@’, is the hostname of the client system. The last part in round brackets is the user name that was used to log into RAS-PutIn (‘super’ in the example).
Chat Line
This is an editable text line, where a new message can be entered. Once the Enter key is hit the message is broadcasted to every other connected party. In case a connected user has not yet opened the Chat Frame it will be opened automatically in order to deliver the message.
Note: Any message sent to the Chat will be broadcasted to ALL connected users, which are using the Remote Console at the time the message was sent. There is no option to direct a message to a particular user only. The Chat has no message history. That means, messages will be received only after opening the Remote Console. Messages that p ossibly have been sent among other users will be lost for a user who opens up his Remote Console afterwards.
5.3.3 RAS-PutIn Mouse Synchronization
Introduction A common problem with KVM devices is the synchronization between the local
Direct Mode This mode just translates the mouse movements from the Remote Console in
a way that one pixel move will lead to ’n’ pixel moves on the remote system. This parameter ’n’ is adjustable with the scaling. The direct mode works only when mouse acceleration is turned off on the remote system.
Automatic Mode The automatic mode tries to detect the speed and acceleration settings of
the host system automatically. See the section below for a more detailed explanation.
Automatic mode and mouse synchronization The automatic mode performs the speed de­tection during mouse synchronization. Whenever the mouse doesn’t move correctly, there are two ways for re-synchronizing local and remote mouse:
Fast Sync The fast synchronization is used to correct a temporary, but fixed skew. Choose
the option using the Remote Console options menu (see Section 5.3 on page 22) or press the mouse synchronization hotkey sequence in case you defined one (refer to Section 5.3.5 on page 31).
Intelligent Sync If the fast sync doesn’t work or the mouse settings have been changed on the
host system, use the intelligent resynchronization. This method takes more time than the fast one and can be accessed with the appropriate item in the Remote Console option menu. The intelligent synchronization requires a cor­rectly adjusted picture. Use the auto adjustment function or the manual cor­rection in the Video Settings panel (refer to Section 5.3.4 on the next page) to setup the picture.
28 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
The ’Sync mouse’ button on top of the Remote Console can behave differently, depending on the current state of mouse synchronization. Usually pressing this button leads to a fast sync, except in situations where the KVM port or the video mode changed recently.
Limitations of the mouse synchronization While the intelligent algorithm works fine for com­mon cases, there are some special limitations which may prevent the synchronization from working properly:
Special Mouse Driver There are mouse drivers, which influence the synchronization pro-
cess leading to desynchronized mouse pointers. If this happens, make sure you don’t use a special vendor-specific mouse driver on your host system
Windows XP Mouse Setting Windows XP knows a setting to ’improve mouse acceleration’,
which has to be deactivated
Badly adjusted picture To have the intelligent sync working, a correctly adjusted picture
is necessary. Use the auto adjustment function or the manual correction in the Video Settings panel (refer to Section 5.3.4) to setup the picture. The video also has to be of sufficiently good quality.
Active Desktop Check if you have the Active Desktop feature of Microsoft Win-
dows enabled. If so, don’t use a plain background, use some kind of wallpaper. You could also disable the Active Desktop entirely.
Single and Double Mouse Mode The information above applies to the Double Mouse Mode, where remote and local mouse pointers are visible and need to by synchronized. RAS-PutIn also features another mode, the Single Mouse Mode, where only the remote mouse pointer is visible. Activate this mode in the op en Remote Console (see Section 5.3 on page 22) and click into the window area. The local mouse pointer will be hidden and the remote one can be controlled directly. To leave this mode, it is necessary to define a mouse hotkey in the Remote Console Settings Panel (Section 5.3.5 on page 31). Press this key to free the captured local mouse pointer.
Single Mouse mode needs at least a Sun Java Virtual Machine 1.3
5.3.4 RAS-PutIn Video Settings
RAS-PutIn features two different dialogs which influence the video settings.
5.3.4.1 Video Settings through the HTML-Frontend
One side is the video options panel in the RAS-PutIn HTML-Frontend (see Figure 5.6 on the next page)
Enable local video port: This option decides if the local video output of RAS-PutIn is active and passing through the incoming signal from the host system.
5.3. REMOTE CONSOLE 29
Figure 5.6: Video Settings in HTML frontend
Noise filter: This option defines how RAS-PutIn reacts to small changes in the video input signal. A large filter setting needs less network traffic and leads to a faster video display, but small changes in some display regions may not be recognized immediately. A small filter displays all changes instantly but may lead to a constant amount of network traffic even if display content is not really changing (depending on the quality of the video input signal). All in all the default setting should be suitable for most situations.
Video Quality and Speed: Using this option it is possible to tune the video system of RAS­PutIn to either maximize picture quality or speed. When set to ’best quality’ the picture looks clean but the video update speed won’t be as fast as possible. If responsivness is more important to you than achieving the best quality, set the option to ’high speed’. In this mode, artifacts will apear. Please note, that the difference is only clearly visible when using fast network links and the normal compression for the Remote Console.
5.3.4.2 Video Settings through the remote console
RAS-PutIn features a panel to setup the following video options (see Figure 5.7 on the following page), available in the Remote Console Options menu.
Brightness Controls the brightness of the picture
Black level Defines what intensity of color is still recognized as black
Contrast Controls the contrast of the picture
Clock Defines the horizontal frequency for a video line and depends on the video
mode. Different video card types may require different values here. The default settings in conjuction with the auto adjustment procedure should be adequate for all common configurations. If the picture quality is still bad after auto adjustment you may try to change this setting together with the sampling phase to achieve a better quality.
30 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
Figure 5.7: Video Settings Panel
Phase Defines the phase for video sampling, used to control the display quality
together with the setting for sampling clock.
Horizontal Position Use the left and right buttons to move the picture in horizontal direction
while this option is selected
Vertical Position Use the left and right buttons to move the picture in vertical direction while
this option is selected
Reset this Mode Resets mode specific settings to their factory defaults
Reset all Modes Resets all settings to their factory defaults
Save changes Save changes permanently
Undo changes Restore last settings
5.3.4.3 Custom Video Modes
Using this option (see Figure 5.8) it is possible to add video modes to RAS-PutIn, which are not recognized using the factory settings. This may be useful when using special modelines in a X-Window configuration on the host or with uncommon hosts or operating systems.
This option is for advanced users only, it is possible to influcence the correct video trans­mission by using this option, so use it with care!
Figure 5.8: Custom Video Modes
5.3. REMOTE CONSOLE 31
To change the parameters for a mode, choose the number and press ”‘Update”’. It is necessary to provide some information so the video mode may be correcly recognized:
X Resolution Visible number of horizontal pixels.
Y Resolution Visible number of vertical pixels.
Horizontal Frequency (Hz) The horizontal (line) frequency in Hz.
Vertical Frequency (Hz) The vertical (refresh) frequency in Hz.
Total horizontal pixels The total amount of pixels per line, including the non-visible and blanking area.
Polarity The polarity (positive/negative) of the synchronization signals. V means verti­cal, H means horizontal.
Description Here you can provide a mode name which is displayed in the Remote Console if this custom mode is activated.
5.3.5 Remote Console Settings
All the settings for the Remote Console window are user specific. That means, each user can individually customize the Remote Console for his needs. Changing the settings for one user does not affect the settings for others.
User select box
This control will show the user ID for which the values are shown and for which changes will take effect. You might change the settings of other users in case you have the necessary access rights.
Transmission Encoding
The Transmission Encoding setting allows changing the image-encoding algorithm that is used to transmit the video data to the Remote Console window. Using those settings it is possible to optimize the speed of the remote screen depending on the number of parallel users and the bandwidth of the connection line (Modem, ISDN, DSL, LAN, etc.).
Transmission Encoding
Automatic detection
The encoding and the compression level is determinded automatically from the available bandwidth and the current content of the video image.
Transmission Encoding
Fix
The pre-configured settings delivers the best result b ecause of optimized adjustment of compression and color depth to the indicated network speed.
32 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
Transmission Encoding
Advanced: Compression + Color depth
Allows to adjust compression rate and color depth individually. Depending on the selected compression rate the data stream between RAS-PutIn and remote console will be com­pressed in order to save bandwidth. Since high compression rates are very time consuming, they should not be used while several users are accessing RAS-PutIn simultaneously.
The standard color depth is 8 Bit (256 colors). The other color depths are intended for slower network connections in order to allow a faster transmission. Therefore compression level 0 (no compression) uses only 8 Bit color depth. At lower bandwidths only 4 Bit (16 colors) and 2 Bit (4 grey scales) are recommended for typical desktop interfaces. Photo like pictures have best results with 4 Bit (16 grey scales). 1 Bit color depth (black/white) should only be used for extremely slow network connections.
Start in Monitor Mode
Sets the initial value for the monitor mode. By default the monitor mode is off. In case you switch it on, the Remote Console window will be started in a read only mode.
Exclusive Access
Enables the exclusive access mode immediately at Remote Console startup. This forces the Remote Consoles of all other users to close. No one can open the Remote Console at the same time again until this user disables the exclusive access or logs off.
Remote Console Type
Specifies, which Remote Console Viewer to use.
Default Java-VM
Uses the default Java Virtual Machine of your Browser. This may be the Microsoft JVM for the Internet Explorer or the Sun JVM if it is configured this way. Use of the Sun JVM may also be forced (see below).
Sun Microsystems Java Browser Plugin
Instructs the web browser of your administration system to use the JVM (Java Virtual Machine) of Sun Microsystems. The JVM in the browser is used to run the code for the Remote Console window, which is actually a Java Applet. If you check this b ox for the first time on your administration system and the appropriate Java plug-in is not already installed on your system, it will be downloaded and installed automatically. However, in order to make the installation possible, you still need to answer the according dialogs with YES. The download volume is around 11 Mbytes. The advantage of downloading Sun’s JVM lays in providing a stable and identical Java Virtual Machine across different platforms. The Remote Console software is optimized for this JVM versions and offers wider range of functionality when run in SUN’s JVM. (Hint: If you are connected over a slow connection to the Internet you can also pre-install the JVM on your administration machine. The software is available on the CD that is delivered along with RAS-PutIn.)
ActiveX control
This option instructs the web browser to use the ActiveX-Control of the KVM Vision Viewer, an application available separately. You have to install this program on your local system, please refer to the manual of the KVM vision viewer for further information. This option only works with Microsoft Internet Explorer on Win32 Systems.
Mouse hotkey
5.3. REMOTE CONSOLE 33
Allows to specify a hotkey combination which starts either the mouse synchronization pro­cess if pressed in the Remote Console (see Section 5.3.3 on page 27 for more information) or is used to leave the single mouse mode. The key codes are listed in Appendix C on page 71.
Button Keys
Button Keys are meant for simulating keystrokes on the remote system that cannot be generated locally. The reason for this might be a missing key or the fact, that the local operating system of the Remote Console is unconditionally catching this keystroke already. Typical examples are ‘Control Alt Delete’ on Windows and DOS, what is always caught or ‘Control Backspace’ on Linux for terminating the X-Server. The syntax to define a new Button Key is as follows: [confirm] < keycode > [+| − [] < keycode >]
confirm requests confirmation by a dialog box before the key strokes will be sent. keycode is the key to be sent. Multiple key codes can be concatenated with a + or a
sign. The + sign builds key combinations, all keys will be pressed until a sign or the end of the combination is encountered. In this case all pressed keys will be released in reversed sequence. So the sign builds single, separate keypresses and -releases. The inserts a pause with a user-defineable duration(see Section 5.4.3 on page 37). For a list of key codes and aliases RAS-PutIn recognizes refer to Appendix C on page 71.
Figure 5.9: Example of Remote Console settings
Pressing the Apply button finally changes the values permanently in RAS-PutIn.
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5.3.6 Telnet Console
This option offers a Java applet for the Telnet protocol (5.10) to open a connection to RAS­PutIn. Its main use is the passthrough option for the serial port 1 (see also 5.5.5). The Telnet access has to be enabled in the security settings as well (see 5.5.10). Of course it is also possible to connect with a standard Telnet client. For details regarding the Telnet interface please refer to 5.6.
Figure 5.10: Telnet Console
5.4 Server
5.4.1 Power Control
The appearance of the power control options depends on the power control option connected to RAS-PutIn and on the currently activated setting (see Section 5.5.5 on page 47 for an explanation). There are three options available:
power control disabled
internal power option
external power option
Internal power option
For connecting the internal power option please refer to Section 3.3.3 on page 13. Once connected it has to be enabled using the serial settings (see Section 5.5.5 on page 47).
The Power Control panel enables access to the most important external buttons of your host system besides of the keyboard. These buttons are the reset and the ATX power button.
Figure 5.11: Internal Power Control
The power button is the representation of the ATX power button on your host system. It is used to switch on and off the power supply. The ATX power button knows two operation modes: pressing it shortly and pressing it for about 4 seconds. As shown in Figure 5.11 these two modes are supported separately. Table 5.2 on the facing page explains the different effects.
5.4. SERVER 35
Table 5.2: Remote reset and power button effects
Button Description
Reset Pressing this button is similar to pressing the reset button
directly on the remote system (see Figure 5.11 on the preceding page). Be aware that pressing the reset button will result in unconditional and immediate cold start of the system. This might damage open files and the file system itself.
Power (short press) A short press on the ATX button is normally caught by the
running operating system that tries to initiate a controlled shutdown. Usually this should always be the first action you try in case you would like to power off your system. Only in case this is not working you should try the long press button. Please note that after you have pressed this button the power state displayed in the administration panel won’t immediately reflect the requested change. A controlled shut down of the system may take up to some minutes. You can observe the action caused by your button press using the Remote Console window or by reloading the Server Power Control panel.
Power (long press) This will unconditionally power off the system. Even if you
have submitted a short press before, this will shut down the power supply of the host system. The effect of the long button press can be immediately ob­served on the panel that is loaded into the browser because of the button press. The power state will be off.
Note: The prerequisite for the remote power/reset button to work is a correct installation of RAS-PutIn. The additional cabling as described in Section 3.3.3 on page 13 must be properly connected.
External power option
If an external power option is enabled the power control will look like shown in Figure 5.12.
Figure 5.12: External Power Control
The upper half is used to switch the power for the KVM port currently active. Use the KVM settings (Section 5.4.3 on page 37) to assign a port of the external power control to a KVM
36 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
port. If no assignment exists, the option is disabled.
The lower half offers controls for switching each port of the external power control directly. Select the appropriate port and decide whether to power it off or on.
The ’Get State’ option is used to determine the current status of the selected port. It is executed once when the page gets loaded, if it is necessary to get the power state later just choose this option.
Power Control via IPMI When IPMI is enabled (Section 5.5.8), the power control section features the possibility to switch power or reset a system using IPMI (see Figure 5.13).
Figure 5.13: Power Control via IPMI
5.4.2 Keyboard/Mouse Settings
RAS-PutIn supports different keyboard and mouse models. The panel shown in Figure 5.14 is used to adjust those settings as well as some other ones. Their meaning is listed below:
Figure 5.14: Keyboard/Mouse settings
Targeted KVM port
Selects the KVM port the settings made below will be applied to. Choosing update will display the current values for this port and select it for alteration of its settings.
Keyboard Model
Selects the keyboard model used on the remote host system.
5.4. SERVER 37
Mouse Model
Selects the mouse model that is used on the remote system. A wrongly selected mouse model may result in strange mouse effects.
Mouse Mode
Direct (1:n) mouse mode
Use a direct translation of mouse movements between the local and the remote pointer. You may also set a fixed Scaling which determines the amount the remote mouse pointer moved when the local mouse pointer is moved by one pixel. This option only works when the mouse settings on host are linear, means that there is no mouse acceleration involved.
Mouse Mode
Automatic speed detection
Use this option if the mouse settings on host use an additional acceleration setting. RAS­PutIn tries to detect the acceleration and sp eed of the mouse during the mouse sync process.
Reset mouse/keyboard emulation
This option will reset the RAS-PutIn keyboard and mouse emulation for the host system. Use it if the keyboard or mouse seems to react irrationally. Its just like pulling out the keyboard and mouse connectors and plugging them in again.
5.4.3 KVM Settings
The RAS-PutIn KVM settings (Figure 5.15) allow to control a KVM switch located between RAS-PutIn and the hosts. Have a look at Section 3.1 on page 9 for a connection example.
Figure 5.15: KVM Settings
38 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
The syntax to define a new Hotkey is as follows:
< keycode > [+| − [] < keycode >]
For example: Ctrl-Ctrl-A-Enter
or Ctrl+A-*1-Enter
Thereby keycode is the key to be sent. Multiple key codes can be concatenated with a + or a sign. The + sign builds key combinations, all keys will be pressed until a sign or the end of the combination is encountered. In this case all pressed keys will be released in reversed sequence. So the sign builds single, separate keypresses and -releases. The inserts a pause of user­defineable length, more than one signs may be concatenated. The duration of a single pause is set in milli seconds using the appropriate option on the KVM settings page. See Appendix C on page 71 for a list of key codes that can be used as hotkeys.
Note: The settings will be saved only after pressing ‘Apply’.
If the settings are correct, the KVM port can be switched using the option ‘Active port’ on top of this page or with the KVM switching matrix on the RAS-PutIn homepage (see Section 5.2.2 on page 21). RAS-PutIn uses separate mouse synchronization settings (see section 5.3.3 on page 27) and video-settings (see Section 5.3.4 on page 28) for each port.
Note: It is still possible to apply KVM key combinations through the Remote Console for switch­ing KVM port, however, in this case video and mouse synchronization settings will b e shared among the ports and may unintentionally be changed for one of those ports.
External Power Switch Option If an external power option is enabled it is additionally possible to assign a port of this control for power switching to each KVM port (see Section 5.4.1 on page 35).
5.5 Administration
5.5.1 User/Group Management
The user and group management of RAS-PutIn is based on configurable users and groups. Each user or group may have different permissions.
Figure 5.16 on the facing page shows the User/Group Management panel of the front-end. Its use will be described in the following text.
Existing user
Select an existing user for modification or deletion. Once a user has been selected, click the lookup button to see the complete user information.
New user name
In order to create a new user, enter a new login name in this field. The new name must not yet exist as user or group. In case it does, an error message will be displayed on top of the panel.
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 39
Figure 5.16: User/Group Management
Full user name
This name is the full name belonging to the login name.
Password
The password for the login name. It must be at least four characters long.
Confirm password
Confirmation of the password above.
Email address
This is optional.
Mobile number
This information may be optionally provided.
Group membership
Each user can be a member of one or more groups.
Existing groups
Selects an existing group for copying, modification or deletion.
New group name
In order to create a new group, enter a new and unused group name.
The user management of RAS-PutIn allows many different users. The following sections will describe how to add, change and delete users.
40 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
5.5.1.1 Add User
5.5.1.2 Delete User
Select a user in the ‘Existing user’ control. Click the ‘Lookup’ button. The complete user information will be shown. Click the ‘Delete user’ button.
Hint: The pre-configured supervisor user ‘super’ can’t be deleted. This user can be renamed only.
5.5.1.3 Modify User
5.5.1.4 Copy User
Select a user in the ‘Existing user’ control. Enter a new user name in the field ‘New user name’. Click the ‘Copy User’ button. This will create a new user with the given name. All properties of the selected user will be copied to the new one, except user specific permissions.
5.5.1.5 Add Group
Type the name of the new group into the field ‘New group name’ and click the ‘Create group’ button.
5.5.1.6 Delete Group
Select a group in the ‘Existing group’ control. Click the ‘Delete group’ button.
5.5.1.7 Modify Group
5.5.1.8 Copy Group
Select a group in the ‘Existing group’ control and type the name of the new group into the field ‘New group name’. Click the ‘Copy Group’ button. This will create a new group and copy all properties and permissions of the selected group to the newly created group.
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 41
5.5.2 User/Group Permissions
Figure 5.17: User/Group Permissions panel
The User/Group Permissions panel as shown in Figure 5.17 allows you to change the permissions of a certain user or group. The right of one user for changing another user’s or group’s access rights is determined by the parent/child relationship between them. When one user is creating another user, he will implicitly become the parent of that new user and hence has the right to change his permissions. More general, a certain user has the right to change another user’s or group’s permissions in case he stands higher in the ancestry than the other one. The ’super’ user stands at the top (or the root) of the ancestry, hence has the right to change everybody’s permissions.
Additionally, there is the restriction that a user can never give more permission to others than those he has. For example, if a user has no permission to change the network settings he won’t be able to grant this right to somebody else. However, a user has always the right to reduce the set of permissions of his descendants.
The displayed columns differ, depending on the user/group selected and the one logged in:
Effective Permission The final permission which decides if a user may access a specific
RAS-PutIn function or not.
User Permission Permission for the currently selected user/group. If the user se-
lected equals to the one logged in it is only possible to view the value, otherwise a select box appears to change it.
Inherited Group Permission Permission value inherited from the groups a user belongs to. This
column is not available while a group is selected.
42 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
Table 5.3: RAS-PutIn user and group permissions
Field Description
deny access The user cannot use this function. allow view The user can view the entry. deny change The user cannot change the entry’s settings. allow change The user can change the entry settings. allow access The user can use this function. group setting No permission, use the one inherited from the group(s) the
user belongs to. Default is to deny access.
5.5.3 Network Settings
The Network Settings panel as shown in Figure 5.18 allows changing network related param­eters. Each parameter will be explained below. Once applied the new network settings will immediately come into effect.
Note: The initial IP configuration is usually done directly at the host system using the special procedure described in Section 4.1 on page 15. However you can also connect to the RAS­PutIn using its pre-configured IP settings.
Attention: Changing the network settings of RAS-PutIn might result in losing connection to it. In case you change the settings remotely make sure all the values are correct and you still have an option to access the RAS-PutIn.
Figure 5.18: RAS-PutIn network settings
IP auto configuration
With this option you can control if RAS-PutIn should fetch it’s network settings from a DHCP or BOOTP server. For DHCP you have to enter dhcp and for BOOTP supply bootp accordingly. If you specify none then IP autoconfiguration is disabled.
IP auto configuration timeout
Time within a DHCP/BOOTP server is expected to respond to the RAS-PutIn DHCP/BOOTP
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 43
client request. If there is no response, the last known IP settings will be used to configure RAS-PutIn.
IP address
IP address in the usual dot notation.
Subnet mask
The net mask of the local network.
Gateway IP address
In case the RAS-PutIn should be accessible from networks other than the local one, this IP address must be set to the local network router’s IP address.
Primary DNS Server IP address
IP address of the primary Domain Name Server in dot notation. This option may be left empty, however RAS-PutIn won’t be able to perform name resolution.
Secondary DNS Server IP address
IP address of the secondary Domain Name Server in dot notation. It will be used in case the Primary DNS Server can’t be contacted.
Primary Time Server
IP address of the primary NTP (Network Time Protocol) compliant timeserver in dot notation. RAS-PutIn will synchronize its own absolute time with the timeserver’s one. This is important for writing log entries and for the Dynamic DNS Service.
Secondary Time Server
IP address of the secondary NTP compliant timeserver in dot notation. It will be used in case the Primary Time Server can’t be contacted.
Remote Console & HTTPS port
Port number at which RAS-PutIn’s Remote Console server and HTTPS server are listen­ing. If left empty the default value will be used.
HTTP port
Port number at which RAS-PutIn’s HTTP server is listening. If left empty the default value will be used.
Telnet port
Port number at which RAS-PutIn’s Telnet server is listening. If left empty the default value will be used.
Bandwidth limitation
The maximum network traffic generated through the RAS-PutIn ethernet device. Unit is Kbit/s.
Disable Peppercon-EMX Support
With this option you may exclude this RAS-PutIn from management by an Peppercon­EMX.
Disable Setup Protocol
With this option you may exclude this RAS-PutIn from setup protocol.
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5.5.3.1 Dynamic DNS
Figure 5.19: Dynamic DNS Scenario
RAS-PutIn is reachable via the IP address of the DSL router, which is dynamically assigned by the provider. Since the administrator doesn’t know the IP address assigned by the provider, RAS-PutIn connects to a special dynamic DNS server in regular intervals and registers its IP address there. The administrator may contact this server as well and pick up the same IP address belonging to his card.
The administrator has to register a RAS-PutIn that is supposed to take part in the service with the Dynamic DNS Server. He will get an approved nickname and password in return to the registration process. This account information is needed in order to determine the IP address of the registered RAS-PutIn.
Figure 5.20: Dynamic DNS configuration panel
You have to perform the following steps in order to enable Dynamic DNS:
1. Make sure the LAN interface of RAS-PutIn is prop erly configured.
2. Enter the Dynamic DNS Settings configuration dialog as shown in Figure 5.20 (Menu Network Settings Dynamic DNS Settings)
3. Enable Dynamic DNS and change the settings according to your needs (see below).
Enable Dynamic DNS
This enables the Dynamic DNS service. This requires a configured DNS server IP address.
Dynamic DNS server
Here you enter the server name where RAS-PutIn registers itself in regular intervals. If
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 45
left blank the default will be used.
Nickname
You have registered this nickname during your manual registration with the Dynamic DNS Server. Spaces are not allowed in the Nickname!
Check time
RAS-PutIn card registers itself in the Dynamic DNS server at this time.
Check interval
This is the interval for reporting again to the Dynamic DNS server by RAS-PutIn.
Note: RAS-PutIn has its own independent real time clock. Make sure the time setting of RAS­PutIn is correct. This can be achieved by configuring a timeserver (see Figure 5.18 on page 42)
Note: RAS-PutIn registers itself to the Dynamic DNS server slightly different from the time configured. To reduce load peaks on the server we add a random time (0-10 min) to the absolute time value.
5.5.4 SNMP Settings
The following information is available via SNMP:
Serial number
Firmware version
MAC address / IP address / Netmask / Gateway of LAN interface
Configured users
Currently active users with login time (login time is only valid if time is synchronized on RAS-PutIn)
Server’s power state
The following actions can be initiated via SNMP:
Reset server
Power on/off server
Reset RAS-PutIn
The following events are reported by RAS-PutIn via SNMP:
Login trial at RAS-PutIn failed.
Login trial at RAS-PutIn succeeded.
Denying access to a particular action.
Server was reset.
Server was powered on/off.
46 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
The SNMP settings panel as shown in Figure 5.21, described below, allows you to change SNMP related parameters.
Figure 5.21: SNMP settings
Enable SNMP Agent
If this option is checked, RAS-PutIn will answer to SNMP requests. Hint: If a community is left blank, you cannot perform the according request. E.g. if you want to disable the possibility to reset RAS-PutIn via SNMP then don’t set a write community.
Read Community
This is the SNMP community, which allows you to retrieve information via SNMP.
Write Community
This community allows you to set options and to reset RAS-PutIn or the host via SNMP, i.e. all that effects the host or RAS-PutIn.
System Location
Enter a description of the physical location of the host. The description will be used in reply to the SNMP request ”sysLocation.0”.
System Contact
Enter a contact person for the host. The value will be used in reply to the SNMP request ”sysContact.0”.
Enable SNMP Authentication Traps
If this option is checked, an SNMP trap will be sent in case somebody has tried to access RAS-PutIn via SNMP using a wrong SNMP community.
Enable RAS-PutIn Authentication Traps
If this options is checked, an SNMP trap will be sent in case somebody has tried to login via
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 47
the Web front-end. Both successful and failed logins trials will be indicated. Furthermore, there will be notification about other security violations like trying to perform an action via Web front-end for which a user has no permission.
Enable Host Traps
If this option is checked, RAS-PutIn will send SNMP traps whenever the host is reset, powered down or powered up.
Trap destinations
Here you can enter the IP addresses, to which the traps will be sent. For every IP address, you have to set an according community. This is necessary so that your management client can identify the SNMP traps.
The RAS-PutIn SNMP MIB This link allows you to download the RAS-PutIn SNMP MIB file. This file may be necessary for an SNMP client to communicate with RAS-PutIn.
5.5.5 Serial Settings
The RAS-PutIn Serial Settings (Figure 5.22 on the next page) allow you to specify, what devices are connected to the two serial ports and how to use them.
Serial Port 1 This port may be used for different purposes. All possible options are listed and described below.
Configuration login
Don’t use the serial port for any special function, use it only for the initial configuration (see Section 4.1 on page 15).
Modem
Allows to access RAS-PutIn via modem, see Section 5.5.6 on page 49 for details.
IPMI over Serial
Enables the possibility to use this serial port for IPMI 1.5 over serial, check Section 5.5.8 on page 52 for more information.
Passthrough
Using this option, it is possible to connect an arbitrary device to the serial port and access it (assuming it provides terminal support) via telnet. Select the appropriate options for the serial port and use the Telnet Console (see Section 5.3.6 on page 34) or a standard telnet client to connect to RAS-PutIn. For more information about the telnet interface have a look at Section 5.6 on page 62.
Serial Port 2 This serial port provides the power control options for RAS-PutIn (see also Section 5.4.1 on page 34). Choose a suitable setting and fill in additional required options. By the date of printing this manual RAS-PutIn supports the following options
Internal Power Option The optionally available internal power bracket allows to access the
ATX power and reset functions of a single system connected to RAS­PutIn. See Section 3.3.3 on page 13 for details. For this power option it is possible to change the duration of each button press. Choosing the link besides the option will lead to the form in Figure 5.23 on the
48 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
Figure 5.22: Serial Settings
next page. It features an entry field for the durations of a reset, a short and a long power press.
SPC 800/1600 Using the AvocentSPC3it is possible to switch power for more than
one system connected to RAS-PutIn through a KVM switch. To use this device you have to enter an username and a password which must exist on the SPC and have the privileges to switch power for each port.
Intelligent Power Module This is an optionally available external module to switch power of a
single system by putting it in the power supply line of the controlled system.
ePowerSwitch The ePowerSwitch is a 4-port power socket. Each single port can be
switched using an integrated web browser or the serial port. RAS­PutIn supports the serial connection.
3
Avocent is a registered trademark of Acovent Corp. Huntsville
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 49
ePowerSwitch-M/S The ePowerSwitch-M/S is a cascade of up to 4 power so ckets with
8 ports. RAS-PutIn has to be connected to the first socket of the cascade via a serial connection.
Figure 5.23: Internal Power Option Settings
5.5.6 Modem Settings
Enable modem on RS 232
Enable or disable the modem on the serial interface adapter of RAS-PutIn. In case it is enabled, RAS-PutIn tries to initialize the modem using an initial string of AT commands and waits for incoming connections.
Serial line speed
The speed RAS-PutIn is communicating with the modem. Most of all modems available today will support the default value of 115200 bps. In case you are using an old modem and discovering problems try to lower this speed.
Modem Init String
The initialization string used by RAS-PutIn to initialize the modem. The default value will work with all modern standard modems directly connected to a telephone line. In case you have a special modem or the modem is connected to a local telephone switch that requires a special dial sequence in order to establish a connection to the public telephone network, you can change this setting by giving a new string. Refer to the modem’s manual about the AT command syntax.
Client IP address
This IP address will be assigned to your console computer during the PPP handshake. Since it is a point-to-point IP connection virtually every IP address is possible but you
50 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
must make sure, it is not interfering with the IP settings of RAS-PutIn and your console computer. The default value will work in most cases.
5.5.7 ISDN Settings
Logically, connecting to RAS-PutIn using an ISDN line means nothing else than building up a dedicated point to point connection from your console computer to RAS-PutIn. With other words, RAS-PutIn acts as an Internet Service Provider (ISP) to which you can dial in. The connection is established using the Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP). Before you connect to RAS­PutIn, make sure to configure your console computer accordingly.
The ISDN settings panel (see Figure 5.24 on the next page) allows you to configure RAS-PutIn for an ISDN connection. The according ISDN options are described below.
Enable ISDN
Enables or disables the ISDN adapter.
MSN
This Multiple Subscriber Number is assigned to RAS-PutIn. Hint: The RAS-PutIn ISDN function does not work with empty MSN.
Layer-2 protocol
The Layer-2 Protocol (the Data Link Layer) of the ISO 7-layered architecture. It is responsible for the error-free movement of data between network nodes. You can choose between the High-level Data Link Control (HDLC) and X.75. You can leave this option untouched in case you use a standard network connection as built in Windows or Linux.
Enable hang-up timer for incoming calls
If you want RAS-PutIn to hang up an incoming connection, you have to check this box. The time out value is configured using the next option.
Hang-up timeout
The hang-up time out measured in seconds. Normally it is valid for outgoing connections only. That means, in case RAS-PutIn is configured for callback. In case the ‘Enable hang-up timer for incoming calls’ option is checked, the time out will apply for incoming calls also.
IP address range
Addresses from this range will be assigned to RAS-PutIn and the console computer during establishing an ISDN connection. The first address will be used for RAS-PutIn itself. The range must enclose 3 addresses at least.
Enable channel bundling
Enables or disables the channel bundling. If it is enabled RAS-PutIn can use both ISDN channels if free and the the calling device supports it.
Last incoming call status
This shows the last incoming call values for caller number and called number. The infor­mation can be used to check if the configured numbers (MSNs) are correctly.
4
ISDN is available for EMEA versions of RAS-PutIn only
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 51
After pressing the apply button these numbers will not be displayed again.
Enable callback
This enables the callback mechanism. If you have callback entries configured (see below) RAS-PutIn will reject any call from the configured number(s) and make a call to a number, which can be configured too.
Force callback
Only callback connections are enabled if you enable this option. That means nobody can dial in without callback. This option has effect only if you have callbacks enabled.
Calling #
This is the calling number - the client that tries to dial into RAS-PutIn.
Called #
If you want to call the caller back, you have to enter his number here.
User / Password
If RAS-PutIn calls back these are the user name and the corresponding password for authentication on the console computer.
Call back after [x] seconds
The entry is marked as a callback entry in case this checkbox is checked. Additionally, the delay, after which the callback connection will be established, can be configured. Callback entries are only effective when the callback mechanism is enabled.
Figure 5.24: RAS-PutIn ISDN settings panel
In the following, we will present some example use cases for a proper ISDN configuration.
52 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
5.5.7.1 I want to allow non-callback dial in for everyone.
5.5.7.2 I want to allow non-callback dial in for selected people.
5.5.7.3 I want to allow non-callback dial in for everyone except some people that should be called back.
Make sure you have callback enabled and ”Force callback” is switched off. Now configure an entry for every number that should be called back. Don’t forget to mark the entries as callback entries! The list should contain callback entries only.
5.5.7.4 I want to allow non-callback dial in for selected people except some people that should be called back.
5.5.7.5 I want to allow callback connections only.
Make sure you have callback enabled and ”Force callback” is switched on. You have to make an entry for every allowed client. Don’t forget to mark the entries as callback entries!
5.5.8 IPMI Settings
5.5.8.1 Generals
IPMI over Serial (IPMI V1.5 is required)
IPMI over LAN (IPMI V1.5 is required)
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 53
Figure 5.25: IPMI settings panel
5.5.8.2 IPMI Settings
Figure 5.25 shows the RAS-PutIn IPMI settings panel. Its options will be explained below.
IPMI disabled
Disables IPMI on RAS-PutIn. This means that Status via IPMI and Event Log via IPMI are not available and the power on/off and reset functions don’t use IPMI rather than the ATX and the reset cable connected from RAS-PutIn to the motherboard.
BMC address
The hexadecimal Baseboard Management Controller address, which is needed for all com­munication types to the IPMI-interface. Usually you can find this address in the BIOS of the host system. The default and common value for this address is 20.
IPMI over Serial
If your host system supports IPMI V1.5 and has an Intel EMP (Emergency Management Port, usually COM2) connector, you can connect IPMI through serial port 1 on RAS­PutIn There are some additional points to note:
– The EMP port must be set to ’Always enable’ and the ’Restricted Mode’ must be
switched off.
The BMC should accept a ’null username’ and a ’non-null password’ account as login.
Passwords are 4 - 16 characters long.
A null modem cable is used for connection
IPMI over LAN
You can connect the IPMI over a LAN connection too. The prerequisite for this access type is a host system with IPMI V1.5 and a network adapter with a sideband connection to the BMC (mostly on board). In the IPMI Settings, you must enter the IP-address of this host system and thecorrect password for the LAN connection. You can also access other IPMI systems when you enter their IP address.
54 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
5.5.8.3 Power Control
If IPMI is disabled, the power control functions (power on, power off, reset) are performed over the internal or external power control options.
5.5.8.4 Event Log via IPMI
The Event Log via IPMI accesses the SEL (System Event Log) repository and reads every entry sequentially. The first time you use this function after starting RAS-PutIn the complete repository has to be read, what may take 1 or 2 minutes.
Figure 5.26: IPMI Event Log
When all entries have been read, RAS-PutIn displays the entries with their time, sensor and description in accordance with the filter settings. You have the choice between several pre­settings (i.e. last day, last week) or an exact declaration of the start and the end date.
With the button ‘Clear Event Log’ you can delete all entries in the SEL repository.
5.5.8.5 Status via IPMI
The Status via IPMI function shows the current values and the min/max-thresholds of all fans, temperatures and voltages existing in the host system. An example of such an IPMI panel is shown in Figure 5.27 on the facing page. You can change the thresholds by editing the according values and pressing ’Apply’.
Note: If IPMI is disabled, Status via IPMI and System Log via IPMI are not available (the corresponding menu options are not visible).
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 55
Figure 5.27: Example of IPMI State panel
5.5.9 LDAP Settings
5.5.9.1 Generals
With RAS-PutIn you have the possibility to keep authentication information in a central LDAP directory. To use this feature you need to configure an LDAP server that contains these infor­mation. The settings are explained in the following.
5.5.9.2 LDAP Settings
Figure 5.28 shows the RAS-PutIn LDAP settings panel. Its options will be explained below.
Figure 5.28: LDAP settings panel
User LDAP Server
Here you enter the name or IP address of the LDAP server containing all the user entries. If you choose a name instead of an IP address you need to configure a DNS server in the network settings.
Base DN of User LDAP Server
Here you specify the distinguished name (DN) where the directory tree starts in the user LDAP server.
56 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
Type of external LDAP Server
With this option you set the type of the external LDAP server. This is necessary since some server types require special handling. Additionally the default values for the LDAP schema are set appropriately. You can choose between Generic LDAP Server, Novell Directory Service and Microsoft Active Directory. If you have neither Novell Directory Service nor Microsoft Active Directory then choose Generic LDAP Server and edit the LDAP schema used (see below).
Name of login-name attribute
This is the name of the attribute containing the unique login name of a user. To use the default leave this field empty. The default depends on the selected LDAP server type.
Name of user-entry objectclass
This is the objectclass that identifies a user in the LDAP directory. To use the default leave this field empty. The default depends on the selected LDAP server type.
User search subfilter
Here you can refine the search for users that should be known to the RAS-PutIn.
Active Directory Domain
This option represents the active directory domain that is configured in the Microsoft Active Directory server. This option is only valid if you have choosen Microsoft Active Directory as the LDAP server type.
5.5.10 Security Settings
Figure 5.29 shows the panel for security related SSL, Telnet and IP address settings. Each of those categories will be explained in the following subsections.
Figure 5.29: Security settings
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 57
5.5.10.1 SSL Settings
Table ?? on page ?? explains the possible adjustments related to the usage of SSL.
Force HTTPS
If this option is enabled access to the web front-end is only possible using an HTTPS connection. RAS-PutIn won’t listen on the HTTP port for incoming connections.
In case you want to create your own SSL certificate that is used to identify this RAS-PutIn refer to Section 5.5.11 on the following page.
KVM encryption
This option controls the encryption of the RFB protocol, the protocol used by the Remote Console to transmit the screen data to the administrator machine and keyboard and mouse data back to the host.
If set to ‘Off ’ no encryption will be used.
If set to ‘Try’ the applet tries to make an encrypted connection. In case connection establishment fails for any reason an unencrypted connection will be used.
If set to ‘Force’ the applet tries to make an encrypted connection. An error will be reported in case connection establishment fails.
5.5.10.2 Telnet Settings
Enable Telnet access
If this option is enabled, access over Telnet client is possible. For higher security we recommend to disable Telnet access.
5.5.10.3 IP Access Control
Note: The IP access control settings apply to the LAN interface only!
Enable IP Access Control
Enables access control based on IP source addresses.
Default policy
This option controls what to do with arriving IP packets that don’t match any of the configured rules. They can be accepted or dropped.
ATTENTION:
If you set this to DROP and you have no ACCEPT rules configured, access to the web front-end over LAN is actually disabled! To enable access again you can change the security settings via modem or ISDN dial in or by temporarily disabling IP access control with the initial configuration procedure (see Section 4.1 on page 15).
58 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
Rule Number
This should contain the number of a rule for which the following commands will apply. This field will be ignored, in case of appending a new rule.
IP/Mask
Specifies the IP address or IP address range for which the rule applies.
Examples (the number concatenated to an IP address with a ‘/’ is the number of valid bits that will be used of the given IP address):
192.168.1.22/32 matches the IP Address 192.168.1.22
192.168.1.0/24 matches all IP packets with source addresses from 192.168.1.0 to 192.168.1.255
0.0.0.0/0 matches any IP packet
Policy
The policy determines what to do with matching packets. They can be accepted or dropped.
NOTE: The order of the rules is important. The rules are checked in ascending order until a rule matches. All the rules below the matching one will be ignored. The default policy applies if no match has been found.
Appending a rule
Enter the IP/Mask and set the policy. Finally, press ‘Append’.
Inserting a rule
Enter the rule number, the IP/Mask and set the policy. Finally, press ‘Insert’.
Replacing a rule
Enter the rule number, the IP/Mask and set the policy. Finally, press ‘Replace’.
Deleting a rule
Enter the rule number and press ‘Delete’.
5.5.11 SSL Certificate Management
RAS-PutIn uses the SSL5protocol for any encrypted network traffic between itself and a con­nected client. During connection establishment, RAS-PutIn has to expose its identity to a client using a cryptographic certificate. Upon delivery, this certificate is the same for all RAS-PutIns ever produced and certainly won’t match the network configurations that will be applied to the devices by its user. The certificate’s underlying secrete (private) key is also used for securing the SSL handshake. Hence, this is a security risk (but far better than no encryption at all).
Common name
This is the network name of RAS-PutIn once it is installed in the user’s network (usually the fully qualified domain name). It is identical to the name that is used to access the device with a web browser (without the ‘http://’ prefix). In case the name given here and the actual network name differ, the browser will pop up a security warning when the device is accessed over HTTPS.
5
SSL — Secure Socket Layer
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 59
Organizational unit
This field is used for specifying to which department within an organization RAS-PutIn belongs.
Organization
The name of the organization to which RAS-PutIn belongs.
Locality/City
The city where the organization is located.
State/Province
The state or province where the organization is located.
Country
The country where the organization is located. This is the two-letter ISO code, e.g. DE for Germany or US for the USA.
Challenge Password
Some certification authorities require a challenge password to authorize later changes on the certificate (e.g. revocation of the certificate). The minimal length of this password is 4 characters.
Confirm Challenge Password
Confirmation of the Challenge Password
Email
The email address of a security contact person that is responsible for RAS-PutIn.
Key length
This is the length of the generated key in bits. 1024 Bits are supposed be sufficient for most cases. Larger keys may result in slower response time of RAS-PutIn during connection establishment.
However, it is possible to generate and install a new certificate that is unique for a particular device. In order to do that, RAS-PutIn is able to generate a new cryptographic key and the associated so called Certificate Signing Request that needs to be certified by a so called certification authority (CA). A certification authority verifies that you are who you claim you are and signs and issues a SSL certificate to you.
The following steps are necessary to create and install a RAS-PutIn SSL certificate:
1. Create a SSL Certificate Signing Request using the panel shown in Figure 5.30 on the next page (Security Settings SSL Settings Create your own SSL certificate). You need to fill out a number of fields that are explained above. Once this is done, click ‘Create CSR’ which will initiate the Certificate Signing Request generation. The CSR can be downloaded to your administration machine with the ‘Download CSR’ button (see Figure 5.31 on page 61).
2. Send the saved CSR to a CA for certification. You will get the new certificate from the CA after a more or less complicated traditional authentication process (depending on the CA).
3. Upload the certificate to RAS-PutIn using the ‘Upload’ panel as shown in Figure 5.31 on page 61.
60 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
Figure 5.30: SSL Certificate Request
Important Note: If you destroy the CSR on RAS-PutIn there is no way to get it back! In case you deleted it by mistake, you have to repeat the three steps.
5.5.12 Maintenance
RAS-PutIn Board Summary This section contains a summary with various information about
this RAS-PutIn and its current firmware and allows you to reset the device. Have a look at Figure 5.34 on page 62 for an example.
Data file for support This link allows you to download the RAS-PutIn data file with support information. This is an XML file with certain customized supp ort information like the serial number etc. You may send this information along together with a support request. It will help us troubleshooting your problem.
Reset RAS-PutIn This part allows you to reset RAS-PutIn. This function is mainly needed to activate a newly updated firmware. A reset will close all current connections to the admin­istration console or to the Remote Console. The whole process will take about half a minute.
5.5.12.1 Update Firmware
A new firmware update is a binary file which will be sent to you by email or which you can download from the Blackbox web site. If the firmware file is compressed (file suffix .zip) then you must unzip it before you can proceed. Under the Windows operating system you may
5.5. ADMINISTRATION 61
Figure 5.31: SSL Certificate Signing Request
use WinZip from http://www.winzip.com/ for uncompression. Other operating systems might provide a program called unzip.
Updating the firmware is a three-stage process:
Firstly the new firmware file is uploaded onto RAS-PutIn. In order to do that you need to select the file on your local system using the Browse button of the Upload Firmware panel (see Figure 5.32). Once the firmware file has been uploaded, it is checked whether it is a valid firmware file and whether there were any transmission errors. In case of any error the Upload Firmware function will be aborted.
Figure 5.32: Panel for uploading a new firmware
Secondly, if everything went well, you see the Update Firmware panel (see Figure 5.33 on the following page). The panel shows you the version number of the currently running firmware and the version number of the uploaded firmware. Pressing the up date button will store the new version over the old one. Attention: this process is not reversible and might take some minutes. Make sure the RAS-PutIn’s power supply won’t be interrupted during the update process, because this may cause an unusable device.
Thirdly, after the firmware has been stored, the panel will request you to reset RAS-PutIn manually. Half a minute after the reset, RAS-PutIn will run with the new firmware version and should be accessible. However, you are requested to login once again.
62 CHAPTER 5. USAGE
Figure 5.33: Panel to update a new firmware that was previously uploaded
Attention: The three-stage firmware update process and complete consistency check are making a mis­take in updating the firmware almost impossible. However, only experienced staff members or administrators should perform a firmware update. Make sure RAS-PutIn’s power supply won’t be interrupted!
Figure 5.34: Maintenance
5.6 Access via Telnet
The RAS-PutIn firmware features a Telnet server that enables a user to connect via a standard Telnet client. It is used for passthrough access to a device possibly connected to the serial port
5.6. ACCESS VIA TELNET 63
1. This means you may connect any serial device which offers terminal access via its serial port to RAS-PutIn and access it using the Telnet interface. Set the serial settings (see Section 5.5.5 on page 47) according to the requirements of the device.
Connecting to RAS-PutIn is done as usual and as required by the Telnet client, for instance in a UNIX shell:
telnet 192.168.1.22
6
Once you have successfully logged in RAS-PutIn will present you the command line where you can enter according management commands.
In general, the Telnet interface supports two operation modes: the command line mode and the terminal mode. The command line mode is used to control or display some parameters. In terminal mo de the pass-through access to serial port 1 is activated (if the serial settings were made accordingly). All inputs are redirected to the device on serial port 1 and its answers are displayed at the Telnet interface
The following list shows the according command mode command syntax and their usage.
help
Shows the list of the following commands
cls
Clear screen
logout
Logs out the current user and disconnects from the client
version
Shows a comp ound string off all available version numbers
terminal
Starts the terminal passthrough mode for serial port 1. The key sequence ‘<esc> exit’ switches back to command modus.
6
The IP address has to be replaced by the one that is actually assigned to RAS-PutIn.
64 CHAPTER 5. USAGE

6 Frequently Asked Questions

Q 001: The remote mouse doesn’t work or is not synchronous A 001: Make sure the mouse settings in RAS-PutIn match the mouse model. There are
some circumstances where the mouse synchronization process could behave incor­rectly, refer to Section 5.3.3 on page 27 for further explanation.
Q 002: The video quality is bad or the picture is grainy A 002: Try to correct the brightess and contrast settings (see Section 5.3.4 on page 28) until
they are out of a range where the picture looks grainy. Use the auto adjustment feature to correct a flickering video.
Q 003: Login on RAS-PutIn fails. A 003: Was the correct combination of user and password given? On delivery, the user
”super” has the password ”servswitch”. Moreover your browser must be configured to accept cookies.
Q 004: The Remote Console window can’t connect to RAS-PutIn. A 004: Possibly a firewall prevents access to the Remote Console. Make sure the TCP
port numbers 443 or 80 are open for incoming TCP connection establishments.
Q 005: No connection can be established to RAS-PutIn. A 005: Check whether the network connection is working in general (ping the IP address
of RAS-PutIn). If not, check network hardware. Is RAS-PutIn powered on? Check whether the IP address of RAS-PutIn and all other IP related settings are correct! Also verify that all the IP infrastructure of your LAN, like routers etc., are correctly configured. Without a ping functioning, RAS-PutIn can’t work either.
Q 006: Special key combinations, e.g. ALT+F2, ALT+F3 are intercepted by
the console system and not transmitted to the host.
A 006: You have to define a so-called ’Button Key’. This can be done in the Remote
Console settings.
Q 007: In the browser the RAS-PutIn pages are inconsistent or chaotic. A 007: Make sure your browser cache settings are feasible. Especially make sure the cache
settings are not set to something like ”never check for newer pages”. Otherwise RAS-PutIn pages may be loaded from your browser cache and not from the card.
Q 008: Windows XP doesn’t awake from standby mode A 008: This is possibly a Windows XP problem. Try not to move the mouse while XP
goes in standby mode.
Q 009: Using MacOS X a HTTPS connection fails
66 CHAPTER 6. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
A 009: You have to install the Blackbox certificate using our certificate installer, available
on the utility CD. Please refer to the instructions on this CD for further information how to install the certificate.
Q 010: Can’t upload the signed certificate in MacOS X A 010: If an ’internal error’ occurs while uploading the signed certificate either change
the extension of the file to .txt or add a file helper using the Internet Explorer preferences for this type of file. Make sure that the encoding is plain text and the checkbox ’use for outgoing’ is checked. Another possibility is to use a Mozilla based browser.
Q 011: Everytime I open a dialog box with some buttons the mouse pointers
are not synchronous anymore
A 011: Please check, if you have an option like ”‘Automatically move mouse pointer to
the default button of dialog boxes”’ enabled in the mouse settings of the operating system. This option needs to be disabled.
Q 012: Remote Console doesn’t open with Opera in Linux A 012: Some versions of Opera don’t grant enough permissions if the signature of the
applet can’t be verified. You can add the lines
grant codeBase "nn.pp.rc.RemoteConsoleApplet" { permission java.lang.RuntimePermission "accessClassInPackage.sun.*"; };
to the java policy file of opera (e.g. /usr/share/opera/java/opera.policy) to solve the problem.

A Glossary

ACPI A specification that enables the operating system to implement power management
and system configuration.
ATX Advanced Technology Extended: A particular specification of a motherboard intro-
duced by Intel in 1995.
BMC Board Management Controller: implements the IPMI based main board management
functions.
DHCP Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol: protocol for dynamically assigning IP config-
urations in local networks.
DNS Domain Name System: protocol used to locate computers on the Internet by their
name.
EMP Emergency Management Port: provides remote emergency access and control of server
resources. EMP offers operating system independent, fundamental remote manage­ment access regardless of the server’s current state or network availability.
FAQ Frequently Asked Questions
HTTP Hypertext Transfer Protocol: the protocol used between web browsers and servers.
HTTPS Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure: secure version of HTTP.
IPMI Intelligent Platform Management Interface
LED Light Emitting Diode
MIB Management Information Base: describes the structure of the management informa-
tion that can be accessed via SNMP.
PS/2 The PS/2 device interface was developed by IBM and is used by many mice and
keyboards.
SNMP Simple Network Management Protocol: a widely used network monitoring and control
protocol.
SSL Secure Socket Layer: encryption technology for the Internet used to provide secured
data transmissions.
SVGA Super VGA: A refinement of Video Graphics Array (VGA) that provides increased
pitch and resolution performance.
UTP Unshielded Twisted Pair: a cable with two conductors twisted as a pair and bundled
within the same outer PVC covering.

B RAS-PutIn Video Modes

Table B.1 lists the video modes RAS-PutIn supports. Please don’t use other custom video settings besides of these. If done so, RAS-PutIn may not be able to detect them.
Table B.1: RAS-PutIn Video Modes
Resolution (x,y) Refresh Rates (Hz)
640x350 70, 85 640x400 56, 70, 85 640x480 60, 67, 72, 75, 85, 90, 100, 120 720x400 70, 85 800x600 56, 60, 70, 72, 75, 85, 90, 100 832x624 75 1024x768 60, 70, 72, 75, 85, 90, 100 1152x864 75 1152x870 75 1152x900 66 1280x960 60 1280x1024 60, 75
70 APPENDIX B. RAS-PUTIN VIDEO MODES

C Key Codes

~
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 − = Bs
p
Esc
F1
F2
F3
F4
F5
F6
F7
F8
F9 F10 F11 F12 Prnt Scrl Br
k
tab
q w e r t y u i o p [ ]
Caps a s d f g h j k l ; ’
\
LShift z x c v b n m , . ? Rshift
Lctrl Win Alt
Sp
ace
AltGR Menu RCtrl
Left Down
Righ
t
U
p
Ins
Pos1Pg
up
Del
End Pgdn
CR
Num
/ *
7 8
9
4 5
6
1 2
3
0
,
+
CR
Table C.1 shows the key codes used to defines key strokes or hotkeys for several functions. Please note that these key codes do not represent necessarily key characters that are used on international keyboards. They name a key on a standard 104 key PC keyboard with an US English language mapping. The layout for this keyboard is shown in Figure C.1. However, most modifier keys and other alphanumeric keys used for hotkey purposes in application programs are on an identical position, no matter what language mapping you are using. Some of the keys have aliases also, means they can be named by 2 key codes (separated by comma in the table).
Figure C.1: English (US) Keyboard Layout, used for key codes
Key (and aliases)
0 - 9 A - Z
, TILDE
-, MINUS =, EQUALS ; ’ <, LESS , . /, SLASH BACK SPACE TAB [ ] ENTER CAPS LOCK \, BACK SLASH LSHIFT, SHIFT Continued on next page
Table C.1: Key Names
72 APPENDIX C. KEY CODES
Key (and aliases)
RCTRL RSHIFT LCTRL, CTRL LALT, ALT SPACE ALTGR ESCAPE, ESC F1 F2 F3 F4 F5 F6 F7 F8 F9 F10 F11 F12 PRINTSCREEN SCROLL LOCK BREAK INSERT HOME PAGE UP DELETE END PAGE DOWN UP LEFT DOWN RIGHT NUM LOCK NUMPAD0 NUMPAD1 NUMPAD2 NUMPAD3 NUMPAD4 NUMPAD5 NUMPAD6 NUMPAD7 NUMPAD8 NUMPAD9 NUMPADPLUS,NUMPAD PLUS NUMPAD/ NUMPADMUL,NUMPAD MUL NUMPADMINUS,NUMPAD MINUS NUMPADENTER WINDOWS MENU
Table C.1 – continued from previous page

D Pin Assignments

123456789
10
1112131415
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
D.1 VGA HD-15
Pin Assignment Pin Assignment 1 Red 9 5 V 2 Green 10 GND sync 3 Blue 11 Not connected 4 Not connected 12 SDA, DDC, ... 5 GND 13 HSYNC 6 GND red 14 VSYNC 7 GND green 15 DATA CLOCK 8 GND blue
D.2 RJ 45 Connector Ethernet
Pin Assignment Pin Assignment 1 TX + 5 Not connected 2 TX - 6 RX ­3 RX + 7 Not connected 4 Not connected 8 Not connected
74 APPENDIX D. PIN ASSIGNMENTS
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
123456789
123456789
D.3 RJ 45 Connector ISDN
Pin Assignment Pin Assignment 1 Not connected 5 RX ­2 Not connected 6 TX ­3 TX + 7 Not connected 4 RX + 8 Not connected
D.4 Serial SUB-D 9 Connector 1
Pin Assignment Pin Assignment 1 DCD 6 DSR 2 RX 7 RTS 3 TX 8 CTS 4 DTR 9 RI 5 GND
D.5 Serial SUB-D 9 Connector 2
Pin Assignment Pin Assignment 1 DCD 6 DSR, Reset2 2 RX 7 RTS, Power1 3 TX 8 DTS, Power2 4 DTR, Reset1 9 Not connected 5 GND
Pins 1 and 6 are bridged
D.6. KVM SUB-D 25 CONNECTOR 75
12345
14
151617
6
91078111213
18
19202122232425
1
2
3
4
D.6 KVM SUB-D 25 Connector
Pin Assignment Pin Assignment 1 VGA blue 14 GND 2 VGA green 15 GND 3 VGA red 16 GND 4 VGA hsync 17 VGA vsync 5 GND 18 Not connected 6 VGA SCL 19 VGA SCL 7 GND 20 GND 8 Not connected 21 GND 9 KBD data 22 KBD clock 10 GND 23 RS232 2 TX 11 MOUSE clock 24 RS232 2 RX 12 MOUSE data 25 MOUSE +5V 13 KBD +5V
D.7 Power Supply Connector
Pin Assignment 1 +12V 2 +12V 3 GND 4 GND
76 APPENDIX D. PIN ASSIGNMENTS

E Blackbox Warranty information

LIMITED WARRANTY
Blackbox manufactures its hardware products from parts and components that are new or equivalent to new in accordance with industry-standard practices. Blackbox warrants that the hardware products including the firmware will be free from defects in materials and workmanship under normal use. Any implied warranties on the Blackbox firmware and hardware are limited to 24 months, respectively, beginning on the date of invoice. Some states/jurisdictions do not allow limitations on duration of an implied warranty, so the above limitation may not apply to you.
CUSTOMER REMEDIES
Blackbox’s entire liability and exclusive remedy shall be, at Blackbox’s option, either (a) return of the price paid, or (b) repair or replacement of the firmware or hardware that does not meet this Limited Warranty and which is returned to Blackbox with a copy of your receipt. Damage due to shipping the products to you is covered under this warranty. Otherwise warranty does not cover damage due to external causes, including accident, abuse, misuse, problems with electrical power, servicing not authorized by Blackbox, usage not in accordance with product instructions, failure to perform required preventive maintenance and problems caused by use of parts and components not supplied by Blackbox. Any replacement hardware will be warranted for the remainder of the original period or thirty (30) days, whichever is longer.
Blackbox will repair or replace products returned to Blackbox’s facility. To request warranty service you must inform Blackbox within the warranty period. If warranty service is required, Blackbox will issue a Return Material Authorization Number. You must ship the products back to Blackbox in their original or an equivalent packaging, prepay shipping charges, and insure the shipment or accept the possibility of loss or damage during shipment.
NO OTHER WARRANTIES
To the maximum extend permitted by applicable law, Blackbox disclaim all other warranties, either express or implied, including, but not limited to implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, with regard to the firmware, the accompanying written materials, and any accompanying hardware. This limited warranty gives you specific legal rights. You may have others, which vary from state/jurisdiction to state/jurisdiction.
NO LIABILITY FOR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES
78 APPENDIX E. BLACKBOX WARRANTY INFORMATION
arising out of the use of or inability to use this product, even if Blackbox has been advised of the possibility of such damages. In any case, Blackbox entire liability under any provision of this agreement shall be limited to the amount actually paid by you for the firmware and/or hardware. Because some states/jurisdictions do not allow the exclusion or limitation of liability for consequential or incidental damages, the above limitation may not apply to you.
F Specifications
F.1 Size and Weight
Height: 44 mm 1 HU (Height Unit) Width: 105 mm 1/4 19 Length (Box): 223 mm Length (Box with connectors): 233 Weigth: 700 g
F.2 Environmental
Temperature
Operating 0°C to 40°C (32°F to 131°F) Storage -18°C to 70°C (-20°F to 158°F)
Humidity:
Operating 10% to 90% (non-condensing) Storage 5% to 95% (non-condensing)
00
80 APPENDIX F. SPECIFICATIONS

G Operation advices

This device has to be operated with the provided power supply ’BLACKBOX ENG/EPA­121DA-12’ only. Use of other power supplies voids the product liability of the manu­facturer. If the power supply shows a malfunction, it must not be opened. Instead a replacement has to be requested from the manufacturer or the vender.
The power cord of the power supply is the point of junction to the supply network AC 230 V. Therefore the power supply and socket have to be easily accessible to disconnect them quickly if it is necessary.
The device contains a lithium battery CR 1632. Gladly we exchange this battery for you. When changing the battery yourself, please notice: ’Attention, explosion hazard while exchanging the battery improperly. Disposal of old batteries has to be done as mentioned on the package of the new one.’
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