C H A P T E R 3 - Configuring the Preinstalled Solaris 10 Operating System

C H A P T E R 3

Configuring the Preinstalled Solaris 10 Operating System

This chapter walks you through the steps for configuring the Solaris 10 Operating System (OS) that might be preinstalled on your Sun Fire X2100 M2 server, depending on your hard drive configuration. Solaris 10 6/06 is the earliest supported version.

Note - Unlike with SPARC^® systems, you will not see the output of the preinstalled Solaris 10 image through a monitor when you power on the server. The output of the pre-installed image is directed to a serial console instead of a monitor that is attached to the server.

Before You Begin

Before you begin configuring the preinstalled OS, be sure to do the following:

1. Perform initial configuration of the service processor and determine the server's network settings, as described in Chapter 2.

2. Gather the information that you will need for the configuration, as listed in the Installation Worksheet.

Installation Worksheet

Use the worksheet in TABLE 1 to gather the information that you need to configure the pre-installed Solaris 10 OS. You only need to collect the information that applies to your application of the system.

TABLE 1 Installation Worksheet
Information for Installation		Description or Example	Your Answers: Defaults are noted with an asterisk. (*)
Language		Choose from the list of available languages for the Solaris 10 software.	English*
Locale		Choose your geographic region from the list of available locales.	English (C - 7-bit ASCII)*
Terminal		Choose the type of terminal that you are using from the list of available terminal types.
Network connection		Is the system connected to a network?	Networked Non-networked*
DHCP		Can the system use Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) to configure its network interfaces?	Yes No*
If you are not using DHCP, note the network address.	IP address	If you are not using DHCP, supply the IP address for the system. Example: `129.200.9.1`
	Subnet	If you are not using DHCP, is the system part of a subnet? If yes, what is the netmask of the subnet? Example: `255.255.0.0`	`255.255.0.0`*
	IPv6	Do you want to enable IPv6 on this machine?	Yes No*
Host name		A host name that you choose for the system.
Kerberos		Do you want to configure Kerberos security on this machine? If yes, gather the following information: Default Realm: Administration Server: First KDC: (Optional) Additional KDCs:	Yes No*
Name service: if the system uses a name service, provide the following information.	Name service	Which name service should this system use?	NIS+ NIS DNS LDAP None*
	Domain name	Provide the name of the domain in which the system resides.
	NIS+ and NIS	Do you want to specify a name server or let the installation program find one?	Specify One Find One*
	DNS	Provide IP addresses for the DNS server. You must enter at least one IP address, but you can enter up to three addresses. You can also enter a list of domains to search when a DNS query is made. Search Domain: Search Domain: Search Domain:
	LDAP	Provide the following information about your LDAP profile: Profile name: Profile server: If you specify a proxy credential level in your LDAP profile, gather the following information: Proxy-Bind Distinguished Name: Proxy-Bind Password:
Default route		Do you want to specify a default route IP address or let the Solaris installation program find one? The default route provides a bridge that forwards traffic between two physical networks. An IP address is a unique number that identifies each host on a network. You have the following choices: You can specify the IP address. An `/etc/defaultrouter` file is created with the specified IP address. When the system is rebooted, the specified IP address becomes the default route. You can let the Solaris installation program detect an IP address. However, the system must be on a subnet that has a router that advertises itself by using the ICMP router discovery protocol. If you are using the command-line interface, the software detects an IP address when the system is booted. You can choose None if you do not have a router or do not want the software to detect an IP address at this time. The software automatically tries to detect an IP address on reboot.	Specify One Detect One None*
Time zone		How do you want to specify your default time zone?	Geographic region* Offset from GM Time zone file
Root password		Choose a root password for the system.

Configuring the Preinstalled Solaris 10 Operating System

Note - Before you perform this procedure, you need to set up the service processor if you have not done so. See Chapter 2.

Use the information that you gathered in the Installation Worksheet as you perform the configuration.

Note - The Solaris 10 preinstall image has been configured to default output to the serial port. If a monitor is attached or KVM over IP is to be used for display, Solaris 10 will need to be reinstalled or the serial output will need to be redirected to the video port. See To Redirect the Console Output to the Video Port (Optional).

Note - Solaris 10 6/06 (and later) uses a grub boot loader. The grub menu allows the user to select to direct output to either the either the serial port or the video port. Once the configuration is complete you can modify the Solaris 10 6/06 grub menu to direct output to the video port by default. See To Change the Default Output After Initial Configuration of the Preinstalled Solaris OS

After configuring the Embedded LOM SP, you can configure the preinstalled Solaris 10 operating system (OS) by using another system to connect to the server. There are two methods that you can use. See the following topics:

To Connect to the Server Using the Service Processor's IP Address

If you use this method, you first need to determine the service processor's IP address and the server must be connected to the network.

To Connect to the Server Using a Serial Capture Program

If you use this method, you do not need to determine the service processor's IP address, but you will need to have a cable connection from the server to the serial port of the serial capture host system.

To Connect to the Server Using the Service Processor's IP Address

Note - This procedure assumes that you have connected the server to your network through an Ethernet cable.

1. If you have not already done so, determine the service processor's IP address as follows:

a. Power on main power to the platform by using a stylus to press the recessed Power button on the front panel.

POST messages appear on your screen as the OS boots up.

b. Initialize the BIOS Setup utility by pressing the F2 key when the Sun logo screen is displayed.

The BIOS Setup Utility is displayed.

See Changing Serial Output to Display the System Information if you are using serial direction and a monitor is not attached.

c. Select Advanced.

The Advanced screen is displayed.

d. Select IPMI 2.0 Configuration.

The IPMI 2.0 Configuration screen is displayed.

a. Select the LAN Configuration menu item.

b. Select the IP Address menu item.

The service processor's IP address is displayed using the following format:
Current IP address in BMC: xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx

2. Using a client system, establish a Secure Shell (SSH) connection to the service processor's IP address by typing:

ssh -l root sp_ip_address

3. Log in to the service processor as an Administrator, for example:

4. Start the Embedded LOM console mode by typing the following command:

start /SP/AgentInfo/console

Only accounts with Administrator privileges are enabled to configure the SP serial port.

5. If you have changed the SP Serial Port default settings, make sure you reset them to the default settings.

6. Follow the Solaris 10 preinstallation onscreen prompts.

7. Use the information gathered in Installation Worksheet to help you enter the system and network information as you are prompted.

The screens that are displayed will vary, depending on the method that you chose for assigning network information to the server (DHCP or static IP address).

After you have entered the system-configuration information, the server completes the boot process and displays the Solaris login prompt.

To Redirect the Console Output to the Video Port (Optional)

After completing the preceding steps and while logged in to the SP, if you wish to redirect the console output to the video port, type the eepromcommand at the prompt with the following arguments:

Caution - This procedure is intended for advanced users of Solaris only. You can seriously disrupt the proper functioning of the server or render the server unbootable if you introduce a problem in the bootenv.rcfile.

1. Use a text editor to open the /boot/solaris/bootenv.rc file.

2. Modify the following line in the file to change the video output to the VGA monitor:

setprop console 'text'

1. Reboot the server.

eeprom output-device=screen eeprom input-device=keyboard

To Connect to the Server Using a Serial Capture Program

To connect to the server using a serial capture program:

1. Use a cable to connect the serial port of the server to the serial port of the serial capture host system.

2. Make sure that the communication properties of the serial port of the system are set to the default.

The defaults are 9600 baud, 8N1 (eight data bits, no parity, one stop bit), and disable flow control.

3. Start a terminal session to capture the serial port output.

On a client running the Solaris OS, type:

$ tip -9600 /dev/ttya

On a client running Windows, start a program such as Hyperterminal.

On a client running Linux, start a program such as Minicom, a text-based serial communication program that is included in the Linux distributions. For more information, see the man pages included in the Linux distribution.

4. Log in to the service processor as an Administrator, for example:

5. Power on main power to the server by using a ball-point pen or other stylus to press the recessed Power button on the front panel or use the following command:

set /SP/SystemInfo/CtrlInfo PowerCtrl=on

POST messages appear on your screen as the OS boots up.

6. Start the Embedded LOM SP GUI by typing the following:

start /SP/AgentInfo/console

7. Follow the Solaris 10 pre-installation onscreen prompts.

8. Use the information gathered in the Installation Worksheet to help you enter the system and network information as you are prompted.

The screens that are displayed will vary, depending on the method that you chose for assigning network information to the server (DHCP or static IP address).

After you have entered the system-configuration information, the server completes the boot process and displays the Solaris login prompt.

To Change the Default Output After Initial Configuration of the Preinstalled Solaris OS

The Solaris 10 preinstall image is configured by default to direct the console output to the serial port. In Solaris 10 6/06 (and later versions), on start-up, the user is presented with a grub-level menu and can select to direct the output to either the serial port or the video port. If the user doesn't make a selection, the menu reaches a time-out and the system boots using the default output (serial port). You can modify the grub menu to change the default output to the video port. To make the video port the default output, use this procedure:

1. Open the /boot/grub/menu.lst file in a text editor.

2. Modify the following line in the file to change the default so that the console output goes to the video port:

default 1

3. Run the following command to add the Xserver startup scripts:

/usr/dt/bin/dtconfig -e

4. Reboot the server.

When the system reboots, the console output goes to the video port by default.

Solaris 10 Operating System User Information

This section provides pointers to information on the Solaris 10 operating system.

Accessing Solaris 10 User Documentation

You can access the various collections of the Solaris 10 OS user documentation at:

http://docs.sun.com/app/docs/prod/solaris.10

Specifically, you can access the Solaris 10 OS Release and Installation collection at:

http://docs.sun.com/app/docs/coll/1236.1

Downloading Solaris 10 OS Software

If you need to install the Solaris 10 6/06 OS or re-install the OS after removing it, you can download the CD or DVD image from the following URL:

http://www.sun.com/software/solaris/get.jsp

Solaris 10 6/06 is the minimum supported version for the Sun Fire X2100 M2 server.

See the Sun Fire X2100 M2 Server Operating System Installation Guide for specific instructions on Solaris 10 installation.

Solaris 10 OS Training

Sun provides flexible training options that accommodate your personal schedule and learning style. The training options include instructor-led, web-based online,
CD-ROM, and Live Virtual Class. For Solaris 10 Training and Certification options at a glance, please visit:

http://www.sun.com/training/catalog/solaris10.html