Oracle ILOM Sideband Management

By default, you connect to the server's service processor (SP) using the out-of-band network management port (NET MGT). The Oracle ILOM sideband management feature enables you to select either the NET MGT port or one of the server's Gigabit Ethernet ports (NET 0, 1, 2, 3), which are in-band ports, to send and receive Oracle ILOM commands to and from the server SP. In-band ports are also called sideband ports.

The advantage of using a sideband management port to manage the server's SP is that one fewer cable connection and one fewer network switch port is needed. In configurations where numerous servers are being managed, such as data centers, sideband management can represent a significant savings in hardware and network utilization.

You can configure sideband management using either the web interface, the command-line interface (CLI), the BIOS, or IPMI. For special considerations and configuration instructions, see the following sections:

• Special Considerations for Sideband Management

• Configure Sideband Management Using the Web Interface

• Configure Sideband Management Using the CLI

• Configure Sideband Management Using the Host BIOS Setup Utility

Special Considerations for Sideband Management

When sideband management is enabled in Oracle ILOM, the following conditions might occur:

• Connectivity to the server SP might be lost when the SP management port configuration is changed while you are connected to the SP using a network connection, such as SSH, web, or Oracle ILOM Remote Console.

• In-chip connectivity between the SP and the host operating system might not be supported by the on-board host Gigabit Ethernet controller. If this condition occurs, use a different port or route to transmit traffic between the source and destination targets instead of using L2 bridging/switching.

• Server host power cycles might cause a brief interruption of network connectivity for server Gigabit Ethernet ports (NET 0, 1, 2, 3) that are configured for sideband management. If this condition occurs, configure the adjacent switch/bridge ports as host ports.

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  Note - If the ports are configured as switch ports and participate in the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP), you might experience longer outages due to spanning tree recalculation.

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Configure Sideband Management Using the Web Interface

1. Log in to the Oracle ILOM web interface.
2. Select Configuration --> Network.

   The Network Settings page is displayed.

   
   
3. In the Network Settings page, do the following:
   1. Select DHCP to acquire the IP address automatically, or select Static to specify the appropriate IP address.
   2. To select a sideband management port, click the Management Port drop-down list and select the desired management port.

      The drop-down list enables you to change to any one of the four Gigabit Ethernet ports, /SYS/MB/NETn, where n is 0 to 3. The SP NET MGT port, /SYS/SP/NET0, is the default.

   3. Click Save for the changes to take effect.

Configure Sideband Management Using the CLI

1. Log in to the Oracle ILOM CLI.

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   Note - Using a serial connection for this procedure eliminates the possibility of losing connectivity during sideband management configuration changes.

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2. If you logged in using the serial port, you can assign a static IP address.

   For instructions, see the information about assigning an IP address in the Sun Server X2-4 Installation Guide.

3. To show the current port settings, type:

   -> show /SP/network

   The network properties are displayed. For example:

   /SP/network
       Targets:
       Properties:
           commitpending = (Cannot show property)
           dhcp_server_ip = none
           ipaddress = xx.xx.xx.xx
           ipdiscovery = static
           ipgateway = xx.xx.xx.xx
           ipnetmask = xx.xx.xx.xx
           macaddress = 11.11.11.11.11.86
           managementport = /SYS/SP/NET0
    outofbandmacaddress = 11.11.11.11.11.86
           pendingipaddress = xx.xx.xx.xx
           pendingipdiscovery = static
           pendingipgateway =  xx.xx.xx.xx
           pendingipnetmask =  xx.xx.xx.xx
           pendingmanagementport = /SYS/SP/NET0
           sidebandmacaddress = 11.11.11.11.11.87 
           state = enabled

   In the above output the current active macaddress is the same as the SP's outofbandmacaddress and the current active managementport is set to the default (/SYS/SP/NET0).

4. To set the SP management port to a sideband port, type the following commands:

   -> set /SP/network pendingmanagementport=/SYS/MB/NETn

   Where n equals 0, 1, 2, or 3.

   -> set commitpending=true

5. To view the change, type:

   -> show /SP/network

   The network properties appear and show that the change has taken effect. For example:

   /SP/network
       Targets:
       Properties:
           commitpending = (Cannot show property)
           dhcp_server_ip = none
           ipaddress = xx.xx.xx.xx
           ipdiscovery = static
           ipgateway = xx.xx.xx.xx
           ipnetmask = xx.xx.xx.xx
           macaddress = 11.11.11.11.11.87
    managementport = /SYS/MB/NETn
           outofbandmacaddress = 11.11.11.11.11.86
           pendingipaddress = xx.xx.xx.xx
           pendingipdiscovery = static
           pendingipgateway =  xx.xx.xx.xx
           pendingipnetmask =  xx.xx.xx.xx
           pendingmanagementport = /SYS/MB/NETn
           sidebandmacaddress = 11.11.11.11.11.87
           state = enabled

   In the above output the macaddress matches the sidebandmacaddress, and the managementport matches the pendingmanagementport.

Configure Sideband Management Using the Host BIOS Setup Utility

You can access the BIOS Setup Utility screens from the following interfaces:

• A USB keyboard, mouse, and VGA monitor connected directly to the server.

• A terminal (or terminal emulator connected to a computer) connected through the serial port on the back panel of the server.

• A connection using the Oracle ILOM Remote Console. To use this interface, you must know the IP address of the server. For instructions on viewing the server IP address, see the Sun Server X2-4 Installation Guide.

To configure sideband management using the host BIOS Setup Utility, perform the following steps:

1. Power on or power cycle the server.
2. To enter the BIOS Setup Utility, press the F2 key while the system is performing the power-on self-test (POST).
   

   When BIOS is started, the main BIOS Setup Utility top-level screen appears. This screen provides seven menu options across the top of the screen.

   
   
3. In the main screen, select Advanced --> IPMI 2.0 Configuration.

   The IPMI 2.0 Configuration screen appears.

   
   
4. In the IPMI 2.0 Configuration screen, select the Set LAN Configuration option.

   The LAN Configuration screen appears.

   
   
5. In the LAN Configuration screen, do the following:
   1. Use the left and right arrow keys to select the IP Assignment option and set it to DHCP to acquire the IP address automatically, or set it to Static to manually specify the IP address.
   2. Use the left and right arrow keys to select the Active Management Port option and set the port to a sideband management port (NET0, NET1, NET2, NET3).

      The NET MGT port is the default.

   3. Select Commit for the change to take effect.