Dell OpenManage Essentials Troubleshooting

Deployment and Managing Configurations with Dell OpenManage Essentials

A how to and best practices guide for using Dell OpenManage Essentials to deploy bare metal Dell servers and to manage and detect configuration drift.

Dell Engineering September 2014

A Dell Technical White Paper

Date

Description

2014

Revisions

September

Initial release

THIS WHITE PAPER IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY, AND MAY CONTAIN TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS AND TECHNICAL INACCURACIES. THE CONTENT IS PROVIDED AS IS, WITHOUT EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND. © 2013 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction of this material in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of Dell Inc. is strictly forbidden. For more information, contact Dell. PRODUCT WARRANTIES APPLICABLE TO THE DELL PRODUCTS DESCRIBED IN THIS DOCUMENT MAY BE FOUND

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Performance of network reference architectures discussed in this document may vary with differing deployment conditions, network loads, and the like. Third party products may be included in reference architectures for the convenience of the reader. Inclusion of such third party products does not necessarily constitute Dell’s recommendation of those products. Please consult your Dell representative for additional information. Trademarks used in this text: Dell™, the Dell logo, Dell Boomi™, Dell Precision™ ,OptiPlex™, Latitude™, PowerEdge™, PowerVault™, PowerConnect™, OpenManage™, EqualLogic™, Compellent™, KACE™, FlexAddress™, Force10™ and Vostro™ are trademarks of Dell Inc. Other Dell trademarks may be used in this document. Cisco Nexus®, Cisco MDS

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Table of contents

Revisions .................................................................................................................................................................................................. 2

Executive Summary ............................................................................................................................................................................... 5

1 Covered Features .......................................................................................................................................................................... 6

2 Preparing OME for Device Configuration ................................................................................................................................. 7

2.1 Target device requirements .............................................................................................................................................. 7

2.2 File share settings ................................................................................................................................................................ 7

2.2.1 File share requirement explanation ................................................................................................................................. 7

2.2.2 How to setup the file share ............................................................................................................................................... 7

2.2.3 Troubleshooting the file share ...................................................................................................................................... 38

3 How to deploy to a bare metal device ..................................................................................................................................... 9

4 How to automate hardware configuration and operating system deployment (Auto Deploy) of recently

ordered devices ........................................................................................................................................................................... 10

5 How to detect and manage configuration drift of a device in a production environment ......................................... 15

6 Create Templates .........................................................................................................................................................................16

6.1 Template definition ...........................................................................................................................................................16

6.2 Requirements for creating a template ..........................................................................................................................16

6.3 How to create a template from a reference device ..................................................................................................16

6.3.1 Create a template from a reference server .................................................................................................................16

6.3.2 Create a template from a reference chassis .............................................................................................................. 18

6.4 How to create a template from an XML or INI configuration file .......................................................................... 18

6.4.1 File requirements .............................................................................................................................................................. 18

6.4.2 Create a template from an XML file ............................................................................................................................. 18

6.4.3 Create a template from an INI file .................................................................................................................................19

7 Deploy Templates ....................................................................................................................................................................... 20

7.1 Deploy requirements ....................................................................................................................................................... 20

7.2 Purpose and definition of the ‘Repurpose and Bare Metal’ device group ........................................................... 20

7.2.1 How to add devices to the ‘Repurpose and Bare Metal’ device group ................................................................ 20

7.3 How to deploy a template ............................................................................................................................................... 21

7.3.1 Deploy a template to servers .......................................................................................................................................... 21

7.3.2 Deploy a template to chassis ......................................................................................................................................... 22

7.3.3 How to edit the device specific attributes of a deploy template task .................................................................. 22

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8 Auto Deploy Templates ............................................................................................................................................................. 24

8.1 Auto deploy requirements .............................................................................................................................................. 28

8.2 How to setup auto deploy of a template .................................................................................................................... 28

8.2.1 Create a service tag CSV file .......................................................................................................................................... 28

8.2.2 Setup auto deploy of a template to server service tags........................................................................................... 28

8.2.3 Setup auto deploy of a template to chassis service tags ......................................................................................... 30

8.3 How to modify the auto deployment settings ........................................................................................................... 30

9 Deploy Network ISO Image ...................................................................................................................................................... 32

9.1 Deploy network ISO image requirements .................................................................................................................. 32

9.2 How to deploy network ISO image .............................................................................................................................. 32

10 Configuration Compliance ........................................................................................................................................................ 34

10.1 Configuration compliance requirements .................................................................................................................... 34

10.2 How to setup and run the configuration inventory .................................................................................................. 34

10.2.1 Modify configuration inventory credentials and/or schedule ................................................................................ 34

10.2.2 Run configuration inventory per target .................................................................................................................. 36

10.3 How to associate devices to a template ..................................................................................................................... 36

10.4 How to view and leverage the compliance report ................................................................................................... 36

11 Troubleshooting .......................................................................................................................................................................... 38

11.1 Troubleshooting creating a template .......................................................................................................................... 38

11.2 Troubleshooting deploying a template ....................................................................................................................... 40

11.3 Troubleshooting auto deploying templates ................................................................................................................41

11.4 Troubleshooting deploying a network ISO ................................................................................................................ 45

11.5 Troubleshooting configuration compliance .............................................................................................................. 45

A Additional resources ................................................................................................................................................................... 46

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Executive Summary

Configuring a server or chassis to match precise standards can be an arduous task. Configuring an entire datacenter is even more difficult. OpenManage Essentials (OME) version 2.0 introduces two new portals and features to streamline device configuration management. This white paper covers using the new features to configure a bare metal device, automatically configure and image recently ordered devices and detect drift of a device from a baseline.

This white paper also describes step by step how to create, deploy and check compliance using the deployment and configuration features in OpenManage Essentials version 2.0 as well as best practices and troubleshooting for the deployment and configuration features.

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1 Covered Features

This white paper covers the following topics and features.

1. Full use case examples for using OpenManage Essential’s device configuration features.

2. Requirements and setup for using the features.

3. Create a template from a server or chassis.

4. Deploy a template to a server or chassis.

5. Deploy a template to undiscovered devices by service tag (‘Auto Deploy’).

6. Deploy an ISO image from your network to a server.

7. Check the compliance of devices against a template.

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2 Preparing OME for Device Configuration

Device prerequisites and file share settings are required to use the configuration and deployment features in OME. This section covers the device requirements, how to setup the file share settings and troubleshooting for the file share settings.

2.1 Target device requirements

Target Server requirements:

1. For Dell’s 12th generation PowerEdge servers, the minimum supported version of iDRAC is 1.57.57.

2. For Dell’s 13th generation PowerEdge servers, the minimum supported version of iDRAC is 2.0.

3. ‘Server configuration for OpenManage Essentials’ license installed on the iDRAC. This is a separate

license from the iDRAC license.

4. iDRAC Enterprise or iDRAC Express license. This is a separate license from the ‘Server

configuration for OpenManage Essentials’ license.

Target Chassis requirements:

1. For the PowerEdge M1000e, the minimum supported version of CMC firmware for is 4.6.

2. For the PowerEdge VRTX, the minimum supported version of CMC firmware is 1.3.

2.2 File share settings

The device configuration and deployment features require a staging area (file share). This section explains the details of the file share and how to setup the file share.

2.2.1 File share requirement explanation

The file share is a staging area for deployment. To use the deployment and configuration feature, a file share is required to send and receive configuration files to and from a device. During a create or deploy task, configuration files will briefly exist in the file share folder. On completion of the create or deploy task, the file is deleted. Security attributes (passwords and other sensitive data) are not included in the file.

2.2.2 How to setup the file share

The file share settings must be entered in OME. The file share settings require a username and a password. The username and password must be a user on the OME system that has enough privileges to read and write files on the system. During a deployment/configuration task, the username and password are sent to the remote targets to access the file share. Using an administrator account is recommended.

1. Navigate to the ‘Deployment’ portal.

2. Click ‘File Share Settings’ in the left hand navigation under the ‘Common Tasks’ section.

3. Enter the username and password of a user on the OME system that has enough privileges to read

and write files to the system and click ‘Apply’.

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Figure 1 The file share settings popup

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3 How to deploy to a bare metal device

Example use case – Based on your data center’s needs, you configure all the settings of one server or chassis. You have a new bare metal device or device you want to repurpose. You wish to copy all of the settings of the configured device and apply them to bare metal/repurpose device.

To accomplish this use case you must perform the following steps.

1. Get the configuration from the device that is already configured and save it in OME as a template.

(See the How to create a template from a reference device

2. Add the target device (the bare metal device) to the ‘Repurpose and Bare Metal’ device group. (See

the How to add devices to the ‘Repurpose and Bare Metal’ device group

3. Deploy the template to the target device. (See the How to deploy a template section).

Note: Creating a template and deploying a template have requirements for the OME system and for the target devices. To review the requirements for creating a template, see the Template definition A template is a collection of attributes that describe the settings of a device. The settings describe the behavior of a device’s hardware. A device may have several hundred attributes depending on the device’s hardware. An attribute is a name value pair that describes a particular setting of a device. OME installs with sample server and chassis templates for specific use cases. A user can deploy, edit, clone, delete, or rename a template. Sample templates must be cloned to deploy or use for compliance. Requirements for creating a template section. To review the requirements for deploying a template, see the Deploy requirements section.

section).

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4 How to automate hardware configuration and operating

system deployment (Auto Deploy) of recently ordered devices

Example use case - Your Company orders several new devices. The devices are shipped and may come in at different times. When a device is connected to the network, you want a template you created deployed to the device and for the devices to boot to an ISO on your network.

Note: Auto deploy is only for devices that have not been discovered by OME. To deploy to devices discovered by OME, see the Create Templates

Understanding and creating templates is necessary for using the deployment and configuration features. This section explains what a template is and how to create a template from a reference device or from a file.

4.1 Template definition

A template is a collection of attributes that describe the settings of a device. The settings describe the behavior of a device’s hardware. A device may have several hundred attributes depending on the device’s hardware. An attribute is a name value pair that describes a particular setting of a device. OME installs with sample server and chassis templates for specific use cases. A user can deploy, edit, clone, delete, or rename a template. Sample templates must be cloned to deploy or use for compliance.

4.2 Requirements for creating a template

To create a template from a reference device, the device must meet the same requirements in the Target device requirements section. To create a template, a server does not need a license.

4.3 How to create a template from a reference device

This section describes how to create a template from a discovered device. A ‘reference device’ is a device that has been discovered in OME, configured a desired way and the functionality of the device is intended to be replicated on other devices. The reference template is crucial to the success of configuring your other devices. Make sure that the reference device is correctly configured before you create a template from it.

4.3.1 Create a template from a reference server

1. Navigate to the ‘Deployment’ tab.

2. Click ‘Create Template’ (located in the left hand navigation under ‘Common Tasks’).

3. Enter a unique name for the template.

4. Select ‘Create from Device’.

5. Select the target server from the device tree

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Note: Alternatively you can select the target by entering the device name or service tag in the search box next to the ‘Create from Device’ button.

6. Enter ‘Execution credentials’ for the target. The credentials must have administrator privileges on

the target iDRAC.

Figure 2 Create template from reference device wizard

7. Click ‘Finish’.

8. Click ‘OK’ to the task created message.

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A task is created when the wizard is closed. To view the created task, click the ‘Tasks’ tab in the ‘Deployment’ portal. To view the progress of the task, look at the ‘Task Execution History’ grid. To view the details of the execution history, double click the task execution history entry, or right click the task execution history entry and select ‘Details’. The details will inform you if any problems occurred (such as incorrect credentials, etc.).

If the task is successful, a template is created and displayed in the ‘Server Templates’ tree.

If the task is not successful, view the details of the task by double clicking the execution history. The task can be run again by right clicking the task execution history or the task and clicking ‘Run’. Rerunning the task requires entering the iDRAC credentials.

4.3.2 Create a template from a reference chassis

Follow the steps in the Create a template from a reference server section. After step 4, select ‘Chassis’ in the device type section. The execution credentials in step 6 must have administrator privileges on the CMC.

4.4 How to create a template from an XML or INI configuration file

The section below describes how to create a template from an XML or INI configuration file. Configuration XML is used for server templates. The INI format is used for chassis templates. A configuration file can be obtained by exporting a template to file in OME. Configuration template files are also available from the Dell TechCenter.

4.4.1 File requirements

Files used for a template must meet the following requirements.

XML file:

1. Must be well formed XML.

2. Must contain at least one attribute.

INI file:

1. Must be well formed INI.

4.4.2 Create a template from an XML file

1. Navigate to the ‘Deployment’ tab.

2. Click ‘Create Template’ (located in the left hand navigation under ‘Common Tasks’).

3. Enter a unique name for the template.

4. Select ‘Create from File’.

5. Click the ‘Browse’ button and browse to the file’s location.

6. Select the file and click ‘Open’.

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Figure 3 Create template from file wizard

7. Click Finish to create the template.

8. The template name will be added in the ‘Server Templates’ tree.

4.4.3 Create a template from an INI file

The INI format is for chassis devices and creating a template from an INI file will create a chassis template. Follow the same steps in the Create a template from an XML file section. In step 5 when browsing for the file’s location, select the ‘.ini’ file type option. The template will be added in the ‘Chassis Templates’ tree.

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Deploy Templates section.

To accomplish this use case you must perform the following steps.

1. Create a template from a configured device or sample template. (See the

How to create a

template from a reference device section).

2. Add deployment instructions for the devices (auto deploy entries) you want automatically

configured after they are discovered. Devices are added by service tag. (See the

How to setup auto

deploy of a template section).

3. Discover the devices in OME when the devices are running and connected to the network.

Note: Creating a template and auto deploying a template has requirements for the OME system and for the target devices. To review the requirements for creating a template, see the Template definition A template is a collection of attributes that describe the settings of a device. The settings describe the behavior of a device’s hardware. A device may have several hundred attributes depending on the device’s hardware. An attribute is a name value pair that describes a particular setting of a device. OME installs with sample server and chassis templates for specific use cases. A user can deploy, edit, clone, delete, or rename a template. Sample templates must be cloned to deploy or use for compliance. Requirements for creating a template section. To review the requirements for auto deploying a template, see the Auto deploy requirements section.

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