How to Start SIA and Prepare for Tasks Using Local or Remote Media

This section guides you through the initial steps of identifying the system hardware, setting up network access, updating SIA software, and preparing you for a deployment task (such as assisted operating system installation or system firmware upgrade) or recovery task (such as service processor recovery).

Note - In the instructions that follow, example dialog screen shots have been provided as a reference. Information displayed in each dialog may differ depending on your server model.

Start SIA using one of the supported methods:
- Locally using a CD/DVD: Insert the SIA CD/DVD into the server’s CD/DVD drive and power on or reboot the server.
- Locally using a USB flash drive: Plug the USB flash drive prepared with SIA software directly into one of the server’s USB ports. Redirect the server to boot from the USB flash drive as described in Creating a Bootable SIA USB Flash Drive.
- Remotely from a CD/DVD or image file: Log in to the server’s service processor from a remote console (or KVMS) using its LOM (Lights Out Manager) interface and use the Remote Control Launch Redirection feature to redirect the server to the virtual CD/DVD-ROM that contains the SIA CD/DVD image. Then, reboot the server and direct it to boot from your virtual CD/DVD-ROM (typically done using the F8 menu available during server boot).
- Remotely using a PXE-based image: If you are using PXE network booting to load the Sun Installation Assistant image from a Linux-based PXE server, proceed to Performing an SIA PXE-Based Attended Installation or Performing an SIA PXE-Based Unattended Installation.
  
  Note - The instructions below assume local CD/DVD drive access. Be sure to modify the instructions accordingly if you are using a local USB flash drive prepared with SIA software, or if you are running SIA from a remote console (or KVMS) with CD-ROM redirection.
As SIA starts, you will see various start up messages and then the Software License Agreement dialog will be displayed.
In the Software License Agreement dialog, click Accept to accept the license agreement, and then click Next.
The SIA Welcome dialog appears identifying the tasks that the Sun Installation Assistant performs.
In the SIA Welcome dialog, click Next to proceed with the installation.
The Remote Update dialog appears.
In the Remote Update dialog, select Yes or No to allow a remote update, and then click Next.
Remote Update is used to download updates to the SIA program. These updates can include server device drivers and firmware from Sun.
If you select Yes to perform a remote update of the current SIA session to obtain the latest SIA software, the Gathering Information screen is displayed. Do the following:
1. Select the active network interface on your server (for example: eth0).
  This will enable the network interface used to access the update image. If your server has multiple network cards, be sure to use the network-connected interface that enables access to the host where the update image files reside (whether this is the Sun remote update Internet site, or an internally mounted image on your company intranet).
2. Select the network interface configuration method (DHCP or Static IP).
  If static method is selected, provide the necessary information (for example, your server’s IP address, netmask address, gateway address, and so on).
3. Provide proxy information if an HTTP proxy is needed for Internet access (proxy host and port for client connections), for example:
  Proxy Host: webproxy.mycompany.com
  Proxy Port: 8088
4. Click Next to establish a connection to the Sun SIA Remote Update web site.
  The remote update process checks for updates to the SIA program (see example below). If updates are available the update components are listed.
  
  The Identifying the System dialog appears.
In the Identifying the System dialog, ensure that the appropriate hardware is installed and that there is sufficient memory for your operating system, then click Next.
SIA then scans the systems for disk drives and displays a list at the Scanning for SCSI Devices dialog.
In the Scanning for Storage Devices dialog, you will see the disks identified by SIA. Click Next to proceed.
The Supported Option Cards dialog then appears.
In the Supported Option Cards dialog, if you plan on using SIA to install an operating system select the option cards for which you want SIA to install drivers. Click Next when done.
SIA automatically selects option cards it finds installed in your system. If you want to install operating system drivers for other option cards, you will need to select them.

The Task Selection dialog appears.

Note - The Task Selection dialog will only appear if your server supports more SIA tasks than OS installation. If it does not, SIA will proceed to OS installation.
In the Task Selection dialog, choose a deployment or recovery task to perform. Refer to the appropriate section for more information.
The dialog lists only task options supported for your server. For example, your list may include operating system installation, server BIOS/ILOM upgrade, or other tasks.

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	Sun Installation Assistant 2.2 User's Guide for the Sun Fire X4640 Server Sun Fire X4640 Server Documentation Library