This chapter introduces the Sun Installation Assistant (SIA) features and describes how to get started using SIA to perform deployment or recovery tasks on your Sun server. This document applies to SIA versions 1.0 through 2.2.
Topics discussed in this chapter include:
About the Sun Installation Assistant
The Sun Installation Assistant (SIA) is a tool designed to be used with x64 Sun Fire and Sun Blade servers to assist in the deployment of supported Linux and Microsoft Windows operating systems (OS), as well as system firmware upgrades. With SIA, your deployment tasks can be completed using the graphical wizard-based interface or in unattended mode.
- For operating system installation, when used in interactive mode by booting the SIA interface, SIA assists in the OS installation process. You will need to provide a retail version of OS distribution media and SIA will hand you off to the OS native installer as required. SIA will automatically inventory your system hardware and download the latest device drivers supported by Sun. This means you will not need to create a separate drivers disk. SIA does that work for you.
If you decide that you do not want to use SIA to assist in the installation of your server’s operating system, information about manually installing an operating system may be found in the following documents included with your server:
- The installation guide for your server.
- The operating system installation guide for your server.
- For system firmware upgrades, SIA can be used to selectively upgrade the system BIOS, service processor, an optional HBA (host bus adapter used for disk control), or disk expander firmware with the latest fixes and enhancements.
- For automated deployment, SIA can be used in unattended mode to automate the process of OS installation or system firmware upgrades. A special text-based SIA state file is used to automatically answer prompts you would have answered in interactive (attended) mode.
SIA Features and Benefits
SIA provides the following features and benefits:
- Bootable SIA media from either a local drive attached to the server (CD/DVD or USB flash drive), a remote redirected network drive (virtual CD-ROM or ISO image), or a PXE network boot.
- Remote update option that updates the SIA software from the Sun download site to ensure your SIA session has the latest features and enhancements.
- Identification of your platform hardware and installed option cards.
- Identification of the operating system media and the inclusion of the most recent Sun-supported device drivers required for your system. Note that SIA does not provide the operating system software. You must have a licensed retail version of the operating system software available during the SIA installation.
- Assisted operating system installation on platform-supported bootable media (hard disk, compact flash).
- System BIOS and device firmware upgrade capabilities. Upgrade options are server-specific.
- Recovery from a non-functional (corrupt or inaccessible) service processor. This feature is server-specific.
- Unattended installations using PXE-based SIA.
- Intuitive error messages if an error or unexpected condition occurs during the installation.
- Readily available event log file, if required, located at the /root for Linux, or C:\ for Windows on the newly installed server.
SIA Task List
SIA can perform the following server-specific deployment and recovery tasks. The table below provides a list of tasks that may be performed in SIA from the Task Selection dialog screen, however the list of tasks is server-dependant and not all tasks are available for all servers.
Task
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Description
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Operating System Installation
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Assisted operating system installation of supported versions of Microsoft Windows and Linux.
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System BIOS and ILOM Upgrade
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Upgrades the system BIOS and ILOM Service Processor firmware. Displays the installed version and what version is available for an upgrade. These components are upgraded together so that tested version levels are matched Requires a server reboot to use the new version.
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HBA Firmware Upgrade
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Upgrades the firmware of the server’s integrated HBA (Host Bus Adapter). Displays the installed version and what version is available for an upgrade. Requires a server reboot to use the new version.
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Expander Firmware Upgrade
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Upgrades the firmware of the server’s integrated disk expanders. Displays the installed version and what version is available for an upgrade. Requires a server reboot to use the new version.
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SP Recovery
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This feature may be used to recover a service processor that is non-functional (either inaccessible, or displays corrupt data). Requires a server reboot to use the recovered version.
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Server Support and SIA Media Availability
The SIA CD/DVD is available for most new Sun servers that support the x64 processor architecture (might come with the server or be available as an X-option). For a complete list of supported Sun server platforms, refer to the SIA information page at:
http://www.sun.com/systemmanagement/sia.jsp
An ISO CD-ROM image of SIA is also available for download from the Sun download page (select “View by Category” and then “x64 servers & workstations”):
http://www.sun.com/download/index.jsp
Updates to the SIA program can be obtained easily during the SIA installation by using the Remote Update option in the SIA.
Supported Operating Systems
SIA is available for supported Microsoft Windows and Linux installations. A list of supported operating systems is available on the SIA information page:
http://www.sun.com/systemmanagement/sia.jsp
Before You Begin
The following prerequisites must be met before using SIA and the OS installation media.
- You must have the SIA distribution media (on CD/DVD, USB flash drive, or ISO CD-ROM image).
- If you perform the installation from a virtual redirected CD/DVD or ISO CD-ROM image, you should have some knowledge or experience with your server’s service processor Lights Out Manager (Integrated LOM or Embedded LOM).
- You must have supported operating system distribution media (CD/DVD or ISO CD-ROM image). See http://www.sun.com/systemmanagement/sia.jsp for more information.
- For Microsoft Windows installations, you must have the product key information available during the SIA installation.
- If your server uses mass storage connected to a RAID controller and you want to include your boot drive as part of a RAID configuration, you will need to configure a RAID volume(s) on it using the controller’s BIOS configuration utility (accessible by entering a control key sequence when prompted during server boot) before you install the operating system.
Note - If you have a Sun StorageTek RAID disk controller (Adaptec-based), you must configure an array volume through the Adaptec RAID Configuration Utility (accessible by pressing Ctrl-A when prompted during server boot) before it can be made available to SIA. This must be done whether you intend to use RAID or not. Please consult your platform installation documentation for instructions on how to do this.
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- You should review late breaking information and updates about the Sun Installation Assistant in your server’s Product Notes. You can view or download the Product Notes for your server at http://docs.sun.com.
What’s Next
- To start and prepare SIA for deployment or recovery tasks from local or remote media, see Chapter 2.
- To perform an assisted operating system installation, see Chapter 3.
- To perform a system firmware upgrade (BIOS/ILOM, disk controller HBA or disk expander), see Chapter 4.
- To recover from a corrupt or inaccessible service processor, see Chapter 5.
- To perform PXE-based SIA installations, see Chapter 6.
- To troubleshoot an SIA installation, see Chapter 7.
Sun Installation Assistant for Windows and Linux User’s Guide
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820-3357-19
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Copyright © 2009 Sun Microsystems, Inc. All rights reserved.