SIA Issues

C H A P T E R 6

SIA Issues

This chapter describes issues related to the Sun Installation Assistant (SIA).

SIA supports the following operating systems:

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 6,7 and 8, 32-bit and 64-bit

Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 Update 1, 2 and 3, 64-bit

SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 SP1 and SP2 64-bit

Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition

Windows Server 2003 Enterprise x64 Edition

Windows Server 2003 Standard Edition

Windows Server 2003 Standard x64 Edition

Windows Server 2008 x64 Edition

Windows Server 2008 R2 x86 Edition

Installing Windows 2003 on Compact Flash with SIA Is Not Supported

You cannot install Windows 2003 on compact flash using SIA.

This is fixed in SIA 2.3.10.0, which is included in SW3.1.

Installing Windows 2003 On SSD with SIA is Not Supported

You cannot install Windows 2003 to the Solid State Disk (SSD) using SIA.

This is fixed in SIA 2.2.14.0, which is included in SW3.0.

Problem With Installing Linux on External Storage if a Compact Flash is in the Server Blade

When installing Red Hat or SLES on external storage with a compact flash in the blade, the boot loader is written by default to the compact flash.

If you prefer to have the boot loader on the external disk, you can choose one of two alternative workarounds:

Workaround 1

Remove the compact flash from the server blade. Then the Master Boot Record (MBR) is written to external storage by default.

Workaround 2

Configure the MBR during Linux installation.

Example configuration for Red Hat:

1. In the Boot Loader Configuration window:

a. Check the Configure advanced boot loader options check box on the bottom of the page.

b. Click the Next button.

2. Click the Change Drive Order button in the next window.

3. Use the arrow keys to move the boot disk device you want to the top of the list and then choose OK.

4. In the Install Boot Loader record on: list, select the Master Boot Record (MBR) device, click Next, and then follow the installation instructions.

Example configuration for Sles10 SP1:

1. In the Installation Settings dialog box, choose the Expert tab.

2. Check the Partition section check box and change the configuration, if needed.

3. Select Booting section for Boot Loader Settings. Choose the Boot Loader Installation tab and click the Other button. Select Edit Configuration Files.

4. In the Contents section of /boot/grub/device.map, change the order of the devices by changing the number in hd<x>. For example, edit hd0 and change it to hd1 for /dev/hda; edit hd1 and change it to hd0 for /dev/sda. Then, save the configuration.

5. Next, click Filename list and select the file /boot/grub/menu.lst. Change all hd0 and hd1 entries in the file according to the new /boot/grub/device.map (for example, to hd1 and hd0).

6. Save the new configuration and proceed with the OS installation.

SIA Does Not Install Tools During Post Install (Windows 2008 32/64 Bit)

SIA does not install tools (Intel NIC Teaming, and Sun IPMITool) during post install.

Workaround

Use the Tools and Driver DVD to install tools, as described in the Sun Blade X6250 Operating System Installation Guide.

Firmware Upgrades Not Supported

SP/BIOS firmware upgrade and expander firmware upgrade are not supported on SIA 2.1.8.

This is fixed in SIA 2.2.14.0, which is included in SW3.0.

System BIOS and ILOM Upgrade With Inband Interface Doesn’t Work (CR 6893972)

The selection “System BIOS and ILOM Upgrade (uses inband interface)” does not work.

This is a new SIA 2.3 feature that is not functional in SW 3.1 (SIA 2.3.10.0).

Workaround

Select " System BIOS and ILOM Upgrade (uses network)" to upgrade BIOS and ILOM.

SP Recovery Feature Is Not Functional (CR 6894003)

This is a new SIA 2.3 feature, but it is not functional in SW 3.1 (SIA 2.3.10.0).

Workaround

Use the Tools & Drivers DVD to recover BIOS and ILOM. See the PDF in the firmware directory for instructions

The Next Button on the System Information Page Doesn’t Work Correctly When Clicked Multiple Times (CR 6891807)

The System Information page can take a long time to display its information. If you click the Next button while waiting, the SIA CD hangs and the Next button fails to respond.

Workaround

Don't click any buttons until the System Information page has displayed all its information.

If the system hangs, reboot it.

System Information Error - Can't Show the Storage Device Information of the CF Card (CR 6891791)

If you insert a CF card into the CF slot, then remove other storage and launch SIA, the Storage Device section on the System Information page is empty.

There is no workaround at this time.

It Takes a Long Time to Enter the Next Step on Some Pages (CR 6890464)

While doing an OS installation, after SIA identifies the OS and lists the option cards, when you click Next, it can take a long time to display the next page.

This problem is intermittant.

Workaround

Reboot the system and try again.