Hardware Management Console Installation and Operations Guide


Installing and Configuring the HMC

This chapter contains information about installing the HMC and configuring the service software.


Installing the Hardware Management Console

Perform the following to install your HMC.

Position the HMC and Monitor

Caution:
Follow handling precautions provided with the unit.

Position the HMC and monitor at or near their desired location, using the following guidelines:

Connect the Cables

Use the following steps to connect the cables to your HMC. Look for the small icons on the back of your HMC, which show where to attach the cables for the keyboard, mouse, and monitor.

  1. Attach the monitor cable to the monitor connector, and tighten the screws.
  2. If a label for the monitor was shipped with your system, attach the label to the bottom-right corner of the monitor.
  3. Attach the power cord to the monitor (item 1 in the following illustration). If the HMC has a voltage switch, ensure that it is in the correct position for the supply voltage.

    Attention: Do not plug the power cords into the electrical outlet at this point.

  4. Connect the mouse and keyboard to their connectors.
  5. Connect the HMC serial cable to serial port HMC1 on the primary I/O book. For two HMCs, connect the redundant HMC into serial port HMC2 on the primary I/O book. The following illustration shows the location of the serial ports on the back of the HMC and the HMC connectors located on the primary I/O book.

    1 Primary Rack 4 Primary HMC Connected to serial port HMC1* in Primary I/O Book
    2 Primary I/O Book 5 Optional Second HMC Connected to Serial Port HMC2* in Primary I/O Book
    3 Power Plug to External Power Source (wall plug)
    * May be labeled HSC1 and HSC2

    The part numbers for the serial cables for the HMC are as follows:

    Part Number and Description Position
    Part Number 11P3955 6m cable 9 Position to 9 Position
    Part Number 11P3956 15m cable 9 Position to 9 Position
    Part Number 31L7196 15m cable 9 Position to 25 Position

Connect the 8-Port Adapter Cables

If you are using any optional 8-port adapters, connect the cables to the appropriate connectors in slots 1 through 4, as shown in the following illustration.

Connect the External Modem

To connect the external HMC modem, do the following:

  1. Connect the modem cable to the external HMC modem.
  2. Connect the other end of the modem cable to serial port 2.
  3. Connect the phone cable line port of the external modem.
  4. Connect the other end of the phone cable to the analog jack on your wall.

Check the Microswitch Settings on the Modem

Check the microswitch settings on the modem. The settings should be as follows:

Switch Position Function
1 Up Force Data Terminal Ready (DTR)
2 Up Hardware Flow Control (&E4)
3 Down Result Codes Enabled
4 Down Modem Emulation Disabled
5 *Down Auto Answer Disabled
6 Up Maximum Throughput Enabled
7 Up Ready to Send (RTS) Normal Functions
8 Down Enable Command Mode
9 Down Remote Digital Loopback Test Enabled
10 Up Dial-Up Line Enabled
11 Down Asynchronous Terminal (AT) Responses Enabled (Extended Responses Enabled)
12 *Down Asynchronous Operation
13 UP 28.8 KB Line Speed
14 Up
15 Up Carrier Detect (CD) and Data Set Ready (DSR) Normal Functions
16 Up 2-Wire Leased Line Enabled
Note:
* Only switches 5 and 12 are changed from the factory default settings.

Connect the LAN Cable

The LAN cable is recommended because each active partition reports errors to the HMC's Service Focal Point application through the LAN network. The HMC must be attached to the system's LAN, and each partition should have a LAN adapter assigned as a resource.

Connect the LAN to the adapters assigned to each partition and to the LAN connection on the HMC system hardware.

Plug in the HMC Power Cords

  1. Plug in the power cord, as shown in the following illustration.
  2. Plug the power cords for the monitor, HMC, and modem into electrical outlets.

Getting Started

Use the steps in this section to start using your HMC.

Change the Keyboard Settings

During the system boot, you are prompted to change the HMC keyboard settings. If you do not take any action, this prompt times out in 30 seconds and defaults to an English keyboard setting. If you only want to use an non-English keyboard setting, you can select the language you want and disable this prompt for future sessions.

Log in to the HMC

The HMC is shipped with a predefined user ID and password. Both the user ID and password are case-sensitive and must be typed exactly as shown. This default user ID and password are as follows:

When the console is powered on for the first time, use this user ID to log in. For more information about user management and roles, see User Management. This hscroot user ID is a member of the System Administrator role.

After you power on your HMC, the HMC login window displays, and prompts you to enter your user ID and password.

Change the Predefined hscroot Password

To restrict access, change the predefined hscroot password immediately. To change the predefined hscroot password, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation area (the area on the left side of the screen), click the User icon.
  2. In the Contents area (the area on the right side of the screen), right-click the hscroot icon.
  3. Select Change Password.
  4. Type the new password in the first field.
  5. Confirm the new password by typing it again in the Retype new password field.

Change the Predefined Root-User Password on the HMC

The HMC is shipped with the following predefined root-user password:

passw0rd

The root-user ID and password cannot be used to log in to the console. However, the root-user ID and password are needed to perform some maintenance procedures.

To control access to the HMC, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation area (the area on the left side of the screen), select the User icon.
  2. In the Contents area (the area on the right side of the screen), right-click the root icon.
  3. Select Change Password.
  4. Type the new password in the first field.
  5. Confirm the new password by typing it again in the Retype new password field.

Check Your HMC Software Version

You can use the HMC interface to check your current HMC software version.

To check, do the following:

  1. Log in to the HMC as hscroot or as a user with System Administrator role.
  2. At the top of HMC interface, select Help.
  3. Select About Hardware Management Console. A window opens that displays HMC software-level information.

For more information about updating the HMC code, see Upgrading the HMC Software.

Create Users

After you have logged in and changed both passwords, you are ready to create additional HMC users. The additional users can be assigned different roles to control their access to different HMC tasks. For more information about user management and roles, see User Management.


Installing the HMC Interface after Replacing the Hard Drive

If you replace the HMC hard drive, you must re-install the HMC interface. To re-install the HMC interface, do the following:

  1. Power on your HMC.
  2. When the HMC reboots, a window opens with the following options:

    Select the Install/Recovery option by pressing F8.

  3. Press F1 to confirm.
  4. When the installation is complete, the DVD ejects from the drive. Remove the Recovery CD from the drive and close the DVD-RAM drive. Press Enter to reboot HMC.
    Note:
    If there is a modem installed, ensure that it is powered on.
  5. When the HMC reboots, if the KUDZU screen opens, immediately start the Hardware Discovery Utility.
  6. For each Hardware Removed window (if any), click Remove Configuration. This task logically removes hardware devices from the system configuration.
  7. For each Hardware Added window, click Configure. This task configures the devices. Most devices, such as modems, will require no additional settings. Added devices like an Ethernet adapter will prompt you to migrate to an existing network. If this occurs, click Migrate Existing Network.
  8. The Keyboard Mapping Section window opens. There is a timer on the keyboard mapping selection screen. Select an applicable keyboard option for your locale. You can also select an appropriate language for your HMC interface. For more information about changing the HMC interface language, see Changing the HMC Interface Language.
  9. When the HMC finishes booting, reconfigure the HMC. For more information about configuring the HMC, see System Configuration. If you recorded the rexec, ssh, or scheduled operation facilities, reset them now.

Upgrading the HMC Software

This section describes how to upgrade the HMC software to the latest release level. If you recently purchased your HMC, it is preinstalled with the latest software.

If you need to upgrade the HMC software and do not follow these steps, you will lose the HMC's configuration settings when the new software is installed. Before performing any upgrade task, you must perform the Backup Critical Console Data task to save the current state of the HMC software to DVD.

Software upgrades on the HMC can be performed in two ways:

To upgrade the HMC software from one release to another, do the following:

Prepare for the Upgrade

To prepare your HMC for the upgrade, you must record configuration information and back up console information. To prepare for the upgrade, do the following:

Check the Current HMC Software Level

First, you must determine your current HMC software version. To check, do the following:

  1. Login to the HMC as hscroot or as a user with System Administrator role. For more information about user tasks and roles, see User Management.
  2. Select Help at top of HMC console.
  3. Select About Hardware Management Console.

A window opens that displays HMC software-level information. If you do not have Version 3, continue with the following steps.

Record Current HMC Configuration Information

Before you upgrade to the new version, you must first write down HMC configuration information. To record HMC configuration information, do the following:

  1. In the Navigation area, click the HMC Maintenance folder.
  2. In the Navigation area, select System Configuration.
  3. In the Contents area, select Scheduled Operations. The Scheduled Operations window opens.
  4. Select Sort.
  5. Select By Object.
  6. Select each object. Record the following details:
  7. Repeat the previous step for each scheduled operation.
  8. Close the Scheduled Operations window.
  9. Back up the managed system information and record the backup file names for each managed system. In the Navigation area, click the Server and Partition folder.
  10. In the Contents area, double-click Server Management.
  11. In the Contents area, right-click the managed system and select Profile Data -> Backup.
  12. Type a backup file name and record this information.
  13. Click OK.
  14. Repeat steps 11-13 for each managed system.
  15. Check the rexec and ssh settings. In the Navigation area, click the Software Maintenance icon.
  16. In the Navigation area, click the System Configuration icon.
  17. In the Contents area, click Enable/Disable Remote Command Execution.
  18. Record the settings of the following two options:

    For more information about using these facilities, refer to the documentation shipped with your operating system.

Back Up Critical Console Information

Next, you must back up critical console information. To back up critical console information, do the following:

  1. If you previously backed up the HMC during the HMC software installation, remove the old label from the DVD.
  2. Ensure that the DVD is not write protected by examining the switch in the lower-left corner on the front. The switch should be in the lower position.
  3. Insert either the DVD into the HMC's DVD-RAM drive.
  4. In the Contents area, click Backup Critical Console Data.
  5. Click Continue and wait for the HMC to complete the task.
  6. Click OK.
  7. Remove the DVD from the drive and write the date, time and code level on the DVD.

Upgrade the HMC Software

This section describes how to upgrade your HMC interface.

  1. Log in to your HMC as hscroot.
  2. In the Navigation area, double-click the Software Maintenance folder.
  3. In the Contents area, select HMC.
  4. In the Contents area, click Save Upgrade Data.
  5. Click Hard Drive.
  6. Click Continue.
  7. Select Continue again to start the task. Wait for the task to complete. If the Save Upgrade Data task fails, contact software support before proceeding. Do not continue the upgrade process if the Save Upgrade Data task fails.
  8. Click OK.
  9. Insert the HMC Recovery CD into the DVD-RAM drive.
  10. Reboot the HMC Console. Select Console menu option, then select Exit.
  11. Click Exit now.
  12. The Exit Hardware Management Console window opens. Click Reboot Console.
  13. When the HMC reboots, a window opens with the following options: Select the Upgrade option by pressing F1.
  14. Press F1 again to confirm.
  15. When the upgrade is complete, the DVD ejects from the drive. Remove the Recovery CD from the drive and close the DVD-RAM drive. Press Enter to reboot the HMC.
    Note:
    If there is a modem installed, ensure that it is powered on.
  16. When the HMC reboots, if the KUDZU screen appears, immediately press Enter to start the Hardware Discovery Utility.
  17. For each Hardware Removed window (if any), click Remove Configuration. This task logically removes hardware devices from the system configuration.
  18. For each Hardware Added window, click Configure. This task configures the devices. Most devices, such as modems, require no additional settings. Added devices such as an Ethernet adapter will prompt you to migrate to an existing network. If this occurs, click Migrate Existing Network.
  19. The Keyboard Mapping Section window opens. There is a timer on the keyboard mapping selection screen. Select an applicable keyboard option for your locale.
  20. When the HMC finishes booting, reconfigure the new version. For more information about configuring the HMC, see System Configuration. If you recorded the rexec, ssh, or scheduled operation facilities, reset them now.

Setting Up Your HMC Software for Service

Perform the following steps to configure your managed system for service.

  1. Complete the required planning information in Planning for Partitioned-System Operations.
  2. Log in to the HMC.
  3. Configure the HMC's date and time. For more information about setting the HMC's date and time, see Setting and Viewing the Console Date and Time.
  4. Configure the network settings on your HMC. For more information about setting up the network, see Customizing Network Settings.
  5. Reboot the HMC. For more information about rebooting the HMC, see Shutting Down, Rebooting and Logging Out of the HMC.
  6. Create a partition and install an operating system on it. For more information about creating partitions, see Creating Logical Partitions. For more information about installing an operating system on a partition, refer to the installation information shipped with your operating system.
  7. Verify that Service Focal Point is operating properly by generating a test error. For more information about testing Service Focal Point's error reporting, see Testing Error Reporting.
  8. Configure the Inventory Scout application. For more information about configuring Inventory Scout, see FORM='TEXTONLY'..
  9. Configure the Service Agent application. For more information about configuring Service Agent, see FORM='TEXTONLY'..

Setting Up Service Authority

A service representative can install firmware upgrades on the managed server. Firmware upgrades are done at the system level, not on a per-partition basis. A firmware upgrade can be performed from a partition that is running AIX or from the service processor menus.

When partitions are being created, it is recommended that one partition be given service authority. Service technicians use the partition designated as having service authority to perform system firmware upgrades and set other system policy parameters without having to power off the managed system. All other partitions must be shut down before the firmware upgrade is initiated.

The partition that has service authority must also have access to the firmware upgrade image. If the firmware upgrade image is going to be read from diskettes, the diskette drive must be assigned to the partition that has service authority. If you are downloading the firmware upgrade from the network, download it to the partition that has service authority.

For more information about how to set service authority on a partition, read Setting Service Authority.

If you powered on with the Full System Partition, you do not have to take additional steps to prepare for firmware upgrades.


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