####################################################################### AVOCENT(TM) DIGITAL ACCESS KVM SWITCH VERSION 1.3 ####################################################################### This document contains information about the Avocent Digital Access KVM, which is an optional accessory for the Dell Modular Server Enclosure. For more information about the Avocent Digital Access KVM version 1.3, including installation and configuration information, see the "Dell Remote Access Controller/Modular Chassis User's Guide Version 1.3" located on the Dell Support website at "support.dell.com." ####################################################################### TABLE OF CONTENTS ####################################################################### This file contains the following sections: * Criticality * Minimum Requirements * Release Highlights - Features * Release Highlights - Fixes * Supported Systems * Supported Web Browsers * Updating the DKVM Firmware * Known Issues * User Notes * Common Avocent Digital Access KVM Features ####################################################################### CRITICALITY ####################################################################### 2 - Recommended NOTE: You must be running the DRAC/MC 1.5 or later firmware to use the latest features of the Digital Access KVM module. ####################################################################### MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS ####################################################################### Upgrade the DRAC/MC firmware to version 1.2 or later before configuring or using the Avocent Digital Access KVM. DRAC/MC firmware versions prior to 1.2 cannot update, configure, or access the Avocent Digital Access KVM. ####################################################################### RELEASE HIGHLIGHTS - FEATURES ####################################################################### * Support for Red Hat(R) Enterprise Linux(R) version 5 (32 & 64 bit * Support for Microsoft(R) Windows Server 2008 (32 & 64 bit) * Support for configurable DKVM Web download port ###################################################################### RELEASE HIGHLIGHTS - FIXES ###################################################################### * None. This version of firmware is a feature release only. ####################################################################### SUPPORTED SYSTEMS ####################################################################### Avocent Digital Access KVM version 1.3 is supported on the Dell Modular Server Enclosure that contain the Dell PowerEdge(TM) 1855/1955 systems. ======================================================================= SUPPORTED MANAGED SERVER OPERATING SYSTEMS ======================================================================= * Microsoft Windows Server(R) 2003 R2 Standard, Enterprise, and Datacenter x64 Editions with SP2 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003 R2 Standard and Enterprise Editions with SP2 (32-bit x86) * Microsoft Windows(R) 2000 Server and Advanced Server with SP4 * Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Web Edition SP1 * Microsoft Windows 2000 Server and Advanced Server with SP4 * Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS, ES, and AS (Version 4) (x86) * Red Hat Enterprise Linux WS, ES, and AS (Version 4) (x86_64) * Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 5 (x86) * Red Hat Enterprise Linux Server 5 (x86_64) * SUSE(R) Linux Enterprise Server 9 (x86_64) * SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 10 (x86_64) ####################################################################### SUPPORTED WEB BROWSERS ####################################################################### * Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 SP2 on Windows 2000 * Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 SP2 on Windows Server 2003 * Microsoft Internet Explorer 7.0 on Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, and Vista(TM) * Mozilla Firefox 1.5.0.9, 2.0 on Red Hat Enterprise Linux versions 4 and 5 * Mozilla Firefox 1.5.0.9, 2.0 on SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server versions 9 and 10 NOTE: To use the Avocent Digital Access KVM, the management station must be running Java(R) Runtime Engine (JRE) version 1.4.2_05 or later. ###################################################################### UPDATING THE DKVM FIRMWARE ###################################################################### NOTE: After you upgrade the KVM firmware, you must delete the Java temporary Internet files from the Java Control Panel. ====================================================================== UPDATING THE FIRMWARE USING THE DRAC/MC WEB-BASED USER INTERFACE ====================================================================== 1. Extract the KVM binary file - “dkvm_01.30.xx.bin” from the firmware update package and copy the file to a TFTP server root directory. 2. Launch a supported Web browser and log on to the DRAC/MC Web user interface (UI). 3. In the DRAC/MC GUI main window, click the "Update" tab. 4. In the Firmware Update screen, select "KVM Update." 5. In the KVM Update screen, enter the TFTP server address and the KVM firmware image name in the appropriate fields. 6. Click "Update Firmware." NOTE: The TFTP download and firmware update process may take several minutes to complete. After the update completes, the KVM resets. ====================================================================== UPDATING THE FIRMWARE USING THE COMMAND LINE INTERFACE (CLI) ====================================================================== 1. Extract the "dkvm_01.3O.xx.bin" file from the firmware update package and copy the file to a TFTP server root directory. 2. Log on to the DRAC/MC telnet or serial interface. 3. From the telnet/serial interface, type the "racadm fwupdate" command. For example: racadm fwupdate -a -d dkvm_01.30.xx.bin -m kvm NOTE: The TFTP download and firmware update process may take several minutes to complete. After the update completes, the KVM resets. ####################################################################### KNOWN ISSUES ####################################################################### The following are known issues regarding the Digital Access KVM version 1.3 implementation and operation: * Disconnecting the network cable while running Diskercise on the virtual floppy and running CD Check on the virtual CD drive may result in being unable to open the virtual floppy device or eject the CD. Reboot the target system to recover. * With a Windows 2003 client running Internet Explorer 7 and a Windows 2000 Target, if the Ethernet cable is temporarily disconnected, the virtualized CD may have problems while being ejected. Reboot the target system to recover. * If your client system is running Microsoft Window Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 (SP1), you must disable the Enhanced Security Configuration feature in Internet Explorer. To disable Enhanced Security Configuration, perform the following steps: 1. On the Windows desktop, click “Start” and select “Settings”-> “Control Panel”-> “Add or Remove Programs”. 2. In the “Add or Remove Windows Components” window, click “Add or Remove Windows Components”. 3. In the “Windows Components” window, deselect “Internet Explorer Enhanced Security Configuration” and click “Next.” 4. When prompted, click “Finish”. 5. Start Internet Explorer. 6. In the “Tools” menu, click “Internet Options”. 7. In the “Internet Options” window, click the “Advanced” tab. 8. Under “Settings”, ensure that “Do not save encrypted pages to disk” is deselected, and click “OK”. 9. Start the DRAC/MC user interface. A dialog box appears, prompting you to save this file. 10. Click “Save” and, when prompted, click “Save” again. The "viewer.jnlp" file is saved to your desktop. 11. When the “Download Complete” dialog box appears, click “Open”. ####################################################################### USER NOTES ####################################################################### * The OSCAR interface supports English, French, German, and Spanish languages. * To access the USB memory keys and diskettes on a Red Hat Enterprise Linux system, you must have block device access. * To change the digital KVM OSCAR language, update the KVM firmware using a language-specific firmware package. * Use the DRAC/MC Web interface to configure the KVM and access the digital KVM features. * The Virtual Media and Virtual KVM applications are Java Web Start applications and not plug-ins. These applications can be registered with Firefox browser, by selecting javaws as the helper application. You can register the javaws as the helper application from the download dialog box by using "open with." Select the option "Do this automatically ..." to save the registration for future use. * The Avocent Digital Access KVM and the DRAC/MC must be configured on the same subnet. * To access a recording drive on a Red Hat Enterprise Linux system, mount the drive as a CD-ROM device. * Before you boot to a Virtual Media device, use the Virtual Media application to connect to the drive. * Virtualized devices do not support formatting and partitioning commands. * If you are running a Virtual Media session and you want to change the media in the media device (for example, removing and installing a CD in the virtual CD drive), the Virtual Media session will not recognize the new media. To access the new media, perform the following steps: 1. In the Virtual Media application, click “Disconnect.” 2. Replace the media (for example, install a new CD in the CD drive). 3. Click “Connect.” * Before you boot from a Virtual Media device in a server module, disconnect all direct-attached USB devices from the modules in the Dell Modular Server Enclosure. * If you are running Windows XP(R) on the management station, disable the Internet Connection Firewall before running a console redirection session. Otherwise, the console redirection session may stop responding when you access the various features in the user interface. * In the DRAC/MC GUI, the “Firmware Update” page and the command line interface, the Digital Access KVM image file name cannot be more than 20 characters (155856). * To create image files from existing bootable media: For Linux operating systems: - Use the dd (data duplicator) utility: dd if= of= =input device (for example, /dev/fd0, /dev/cdrom) = output file (for example, myfloppy.img, mycd.iso) For Microsoft Windows operating systems: - A number of utilities are available to create floppy and/or ISO images from removable media on Windows. Ensure that you use a utility that supports copying the CD/DVD boot sectors. The following Web addresses provide information on available imaging utilities: - http://www.fdos.org/ripcord/rawrite/ - http://blogs.technet.com/brucecowper/archive/2005/03/09/391268.aspx To create a bootable CD/DVD image file, use one of the following imaging programs or a program with equivalent features: Imaging Programs for Linux Users - k3b: http://www.k3b.org/ - NeroLINUX: http://www.nero.com/ Imaging Programs for Windows Users - Nero: http://www.ahead.de/ - MediaCreator: http://www.roxio.com/ - Magic ISO: http://www.magiciso.com/ ####################################################################### COMMON AVOCENT DIGITAL ACCESS KVM FEATURES ####################################################################### The following features are available on the Avocent Digital KVM switch. Your system may have updates that enable additional features. * Graphical Console Redirection to the managed system modules * Virtual Media Access * OSCAR user interface For more information about the DRAC/MC, see the "Dell Remote Access Controller/Modular Chassis Version 1.3 User's Guide” located on the Dell Support website at "support.dell.com". ####################################################################### Information in this document is subject to change without notice. (C) 2007 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of Dell Inc. is strictly forbidden. Trademarks used in this text: "Dell," "PowerEdge," and OpenManage" are trademarks of Dell Inc.; "Microsoft," "Windows," "Windows Server," And “XP” are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation; "Red Hat" and Red Hat Enterprise Linux are registered trademark of Red Hat, Inc; SUSE is a registered trademark of Novell, Inc. in the United States and other countries; Java is a registered trademark of Sun Microsystems, Inc. Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming the marks and names or their products. Dell Inc. disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and trade names other than its own. October 2007