Sun Remote System Control (RSC) 2.2 User's Guide

This chapter provides information about how to configure Sun Remote System Control (RSC) software. For installation instructions, see the instructions that accompany your release media. Downloadable software is also available at the following web site: http://www.sun.com/servers/rsc.html.

The RSC configuration script allows you to set up RSC configuration. You can change RSC configuration after initial configuration using RSC shell commands, the RSC graphical user interface (GUI), or the rscadm utility. However, before running the configuration script, you must decide how you will use RSC software to manage your server. The basic decisions you need to make are:

• Which RSC communication ports to enable
• Whether to enable alert messages, and by what means

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Choosing RSC Communication Ports

RSC has three dedicated communication ports on the rear of the RSC card: a serial port, an Ethernet port, and a connector to RSC's PCMCIA internal modem. RSC can use any or all of these to communicate with users. You can connect the serial port to an ASCII terminal or workstation, or to a terminal "concentrator"; see your hardware owner's guide for more information.

RSC Ethernet Port

The RSC Ethernet port, when connected to your local Ethernet, is most useful for accessing RSC from within your company network. You can connect to RSC remotely using any standard telnet and PPP (point-to-point protocol) clients with TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol). For example, you may use a pool of modems attached to a terminal server running PPP.

RSC Modem

You can use the RSC modem to send alerts to pagers. For sending pager alerts, RSC is designed to operate with any modem paging service that complies with the Telocator Alphanumeric Protocol (TAP).

To use the RSC GUI, users must have RSC client software installed on their machines. If an incoming connection uses PPP, then RSC can support several remote user sessions simultaneously. Otherwise, only one remote user can be active at a time.

RSC Serial Port

The RSC serial port allows access to the RSC command line interface (CLI). You can connect an ASCII terminal or a workstation to the serial port, or you can connect a serial line to a workstation or PC that is running a terminal emulator. You can also connect a terminal server or a concentrator port to the serial port.

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Choosing Alert Message Types

When a server problem occurs, RSC sends an alert message. RSC always sends alert messages to all users who are logged in to RSC accounts on that server.

You can also configure RSC to send alerts to people who are not logged in to RSC accounts on that server. These additional alerts can be sent to an email address, to alphanumeric pagers, or to both. After receiving an alert, an RSC user can connect to their RSC account for that server and address the alert condition.

Email Alerts

If the RSC Ethernet port is enabled, you can set an email address to use for alerts. Although only a single email address is permitted, you can notify several people that a problem has occurred by using an email alias or mailing list.

Pager Alerts

If the RSC modem is enabled and connected, you can page one or two alphanumeric pagers when an alert occurs. Use this alert mechanism if your system administrators typically carry pagers. For sending pager alerts, RSC is designed to operate with any modem paging service that complies with the Telocator Alphanumeric Protocol (TAP).

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Planning Configuration Settings

After deciding which communication ports to enable and how to configure alerts, write down your planned responses to the RSC configuration script system prompts shown below. After you have recorded this information, you can refer to it when you configure RSC software on the server. If some of this information is not available yet or changes, you can use RSC interfaces or the rscadm utility to change your configuration after installation.

• Server hostname (40 characters maximum, including alphanumeric characters and hyphen):

• Customer information string to identify the server in alert messages (40 characters maximum, including alphanumeric characters and hyphen):

You may want to use the server's service contract number (recommended), location, system administrator's name, or responsible department as customer information.

• Do you want to enable Ethernet connection to RSC? (y|n):
• If you will enable the Ethernet connection, how do you want to control network configuration? Configure manually or use Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) protocol for a DHCP server:
• Configure the network manually if you want to enter Internet addresses
• Choose DHCP if you want to use DHCP protocol and a DHCP server to assign appropriate network configuration settings.

• If RSC will use configured Ethernet protocol:
• Internet address for RSC:
• Internet address for the subnet mask:
• Internet address for the default gateway to use when the destination is not on the same subnet as RSC:

• Do you want RSC to send alerts when problems occur? (y|n):
• Do you want RSC to send alert messages by email? (y|n):
• If you want RSC to send alert messages by email:
• Internet address for Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) mail server:
• Internet address for backup SMTP mail server (optional):
• Email address to use:

• Do you want RSC to send alert messages to a pager? (y|n):
• Do you want to enable verbose alerts, which may not be allowed by some pagers or paging services? (y|n):

• If you want RSC to send alert messages to a pager:
• Pager 1 telephone number:
• Pager 1 modem initialization string:
• Pager 1 account password:
• Pager 1 baud rate:
• Pager 1 data bits:
• Pager 1 parity:
• Pager 1 stop bits:

• Do you want RSC to send alert messages to an additional pager? (y|n):
• If you want RSC to send alert messages to an additional pager:
• Pager 2 telephone number:
• Pager 2 modem initialization string:
• Pager 2 account password:
• Pager 2 baud rate:
• Pager 2 data bits:
• Pager 2 parity:
• Pager 2 stop bits:

• Do you want to enable the RSC modem? (y|n):

• If you will enable the RSC modem:
• Modem data bits:
• Modem parity:
• Modem stop bits:
• Do you want to enable PPP over the RSC modem? (y|n):

• If you will enable PPP:
• PPP local IP address (if not dynamically configured):
• PPP remote IP address (if not dynamically configured):

• Do you want to set up an RSC user account during installation? (y|n):
• If you will set up an RSC user account during installation:
• Account username:
• Permission level for the user: (a, u, c, r, none):
• Account password:

See Chapter 4 for information about account usernames, permissions, and passwords.

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Running the Server Configuration Script

After you have installed RSC software on the server and decided how you want to configure RSC, log in to the server as root and run the configuration script using the following command:

# /usr/platform/platform-name/rsc/rsc-config

You can obtain the string to use for platform-name using the Solaris command
uname -i. For example:

% uname -i

SUNW,Sun-Fire-280R

The script prompts you for configuration information. Some prompts may not appear, depending on choices you make. To respond to the prompts, refer to the information you recorded following the instructions in "Invalid Cross-Reference Format" beginning on "Invalid Cross-Reference Format".

Prompts relating to enabling alerts, the RSC Ethernet port, or the RSC modem include a skip option. This option is useful only if you run the script again after initial configuration to change selected options of the RSC configuration. When you choose skip when running the script after initial configuration, configuration for that option will not change. If you choose skip and that option has not been previously set, RSC uses the default setting (shown in brackets).

After you have responded to all configuration setting prompts, the configuration script displays a summary for each section of the procedure and asks whether it is correct. For each section, respond y or yes to confirm your choices, or respond n or no to revisit that section of the configuration procedure.

When you have confirmed all sections, the configuration procedure updates the RSC flash PROM.

Caution - It takes a few minutes to update the RSC flash PROM. Do not interrupt this process by aborting the configuration procedure or removing system power. If the update is interrupted, you must restart the configuration script, and it must complete successfully, before RSC can function properly.

After setting up RSC as you specified, the configuration procedure prompts you for the password for the user account, if you chose to create a user account. Then it prompts you to repeat the password.

Finally, the procedure asks if you want to reset RSC. A reset is required before Ethernet configuration takes effect. This completes RSC server software configuration.

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Redirecting the Console to RSC

After RSC software is installed and configured, the system console is still available as on any normal Sun machine. To enable RSC as the system console device instead, you must access the server console, shut down the system, and type the following commands at the ok prompt:

ok diag-console rsc

ok setenv input-device rsc-console

ok setenv output-device rsc-console

These commands take effect after the next server reset. At any time, you can use the following command to remove RSC as the default console:

ok diag-console ttya

If your server has a keyboard and monitor, you also need to type the following commands after removing RSC as the default console:

ok setenv input-device keyboard

ok setenv output-device screen

If RSC is not designated as the system console, you cannot use RSC to access the console. You can temporarily redirect the console to RSC using the RSC bootmode -u command, or by choosing Set Boot Mode using the RSC GUI and checking the box labeled "Force the host to direct the console to RSC." These methods affect the next boot only.

After initial configuration, you can control configuration and add or modify user accounts by using the GUI or RSC shell commands. You can also log in to the host as root and use the rscadm utility to control RSC configuration and user accounts; see Chapter 5.

If you are using an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) for the host, you must configure it properly. For an example of UPS configuration, see Appendix A.

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Configuring Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP)

If PPP is enabled on the modem, RSC supports multiple sessions, either shell or GUI, through one modem connection. If PPP is not enabled, you can run only one session over the modem, and it must be a shell session. RSC supports multiple sessions over its Ethernet port.

To use PPP for dialing in to the RSC modem, the RSC configuration variable ppp_enabled must be set to true, or PPP must be enabled using the RSC GUI. In addition, you must configure PPP on each client machine that will use PPP to dial in to RSC accounts on the RSC modem.

Configuring PPP on the Client

To allow connection to RSC from a remote client using PPP, you must configure PPP on the client. For a Solaris client, see Configuring and Using Solstice PPP 4.0 Clients. For a Microsoft Windows client, see your Microsoft Windows documentation.

The Solstice PPP client configuration script /usr/bin/pppinit creates a CHAT script in /etc/opt/SUNWconn/ppp/script that defines the dialog that occurs between a client and server during the connection phase. The contents of this CHAT script are not needed to establish a PPP connection to RSC. In order to successfully establish connection to RSC from a Solstice PPP client, comment or delete the contents of the CHAT script, but do not delete the file.

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Completing Alert Configuration

To complete alert configuration, choose Configure Alerts in the GUI, or set the following configuration variables using the RSC shell or rscadm utility:

• customerinfo
• hostname
• page_enabled
• mail_enabled
• page_info1
• page_info2 (optional)
• mailuser
• mailhost
• page_verbose

The GUI provides help for configuring RSC alerts. For help configuring RSC alert variables in the shell, see Alert Variables. RSC generates alert messages with the following format:

$HOSTID $EVENT $TIME $CUSTOMERINFO $HOSTNAME message

You can also use the rscadm subcommand send_event -c to send a customized alert at any time. You can do this directly at the superuser prompt, and you can also create a command file that runs and sends the alert under special circumstances. See Appendix C.

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Backing Up RSC Configuration

You should periodically use rscadm commands to create a backup file that records RSC configuration settings on a remote system. For example (after setting your path to the rscadm utility):

# rscadm show > remote-filename

# rscadm usershow > remote-filename

#

Use a meaningful file name that includes the name of the server that RSC controls.

Later, you can refer to this file to restore the settings if you need to reinstall RSC software on the server or replace RSC hardware.

Sun Remote System Control (RSC) 2.2 User's Guide

816-3314-12

Copyright © 2004, Sun Microsystems, Inc. All Rights Reserved.