- Preface
- Overview
- Installing the Server OS
- Managing Chassis and Dynamic Storage
- Managing the Server
- Viewing Server Properties
- Viewing Sensors
- Managing Remote Presence
- Managing User Accounts
- Configuring Chassis Related Settings
- Configuring Network-Related Settings
- Managing Network Adapters
- Configuring Communication Services
- Managing Certificates
- Managing Firmware
- Viewing Faults and Logs
- Server Utilities
- Troubleshooting
- BIOS Parameters by Server Model
- BIOS Token Name Comparison for Multiple Interfaces
- Index
Managing the
Server
This chapter includes the following sections:
- Managing the Server Boot Order
- Configuring Power Policies
- Configuring DIMM Blacklisting
- Configuring BIOS Settings
- Uploading a PID Catalog
- Activating a PID Catalog
Managing the Server Boot Order
Server Boot Order
Using Cisco IMC, you can configure the order in which the server attempts to boot from available boot device types. In the legacy boot order configuration, Cisco IMC allows you to reorder the device types but not the devices within the device types. With the precision boot order configuration, you can have a linear ordering of the devices. In the web UI or CLI you can change the boot order and boot mode, add multiple devices under each device types, rearrange the boot order, set parameters for each device type.
When you change the boot order configuration, Cisco IMC sends the configured boot order to BIOS the next time that server is rebooted. To implement the new boot order, reboot the server after you make the configuration change. The new boot order takes effect on any subsequent reboot. The configured boot order remains until the configuration is changed again in Cisco IMC or in the BIOS setup.
![]() Note | When you create a new policy using the configure boot order feature, BIOS tries to map this new policy to the devices in the system. It displays the actual device name and the policy name to which it is mapped in the Actual Boot Order area. If BIOS cannot map any device to a particular policy in Cisco IMC, the actual device name is stated as NonPolicyTarget in the Actual Boot Order area. |
![]() Note | When you upgrade Cisco IMC to the latest version 2.0(x) for the first time, the legacy boot order is migrated to the precision boot order. During this process, previous boot order configuration is erased and all device types configured before updating to 2.0 version are converted to corresponding precision boot device types and some dummy devices are created for the same device types. you can view these devices in the Configured Boot Order area in the web UI. To view these devices in the CLI, enter show boot-device command. During this the server's actual boot order is retained and it can be viewed under actual boot order option in web UI and CLI. |
When you downgrade Cisco IMC prior to 2.0(x) verison the server's last legacy boot order is retained, and the same can be viewed under Actual Boot Order area. For example:
-
If you configured the server in a legacy boot order in 2.0(x) version, upon downgrade a legacy boot order configuration is retained.
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If you configured the server in a precision boot order in 2.0(x), upon downgrade the last configured legacy boot order is retained.
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C3260 M4 servers support both Legacy and Precision Boot order configuration through Web UI and CLI.
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Boot order configuration prior to 2.0(x) is referred as legacy boot order. If your running version is 2.0(x), then you cannot configure legacy boot order through web UI, but you can configure through CLI and XML API. In the CLI, you can configure it by using set boot-order HDD,PXE command. Even though, you can configure legacy boot order through CLI or XML API, in the web UI this configured boot order is not displayed.
-
Legacy and precision boot order features are mutually exclusive. You can configure either legacy or precision boot order. If you configure legacy boot order, it disables all the precision boot devices configured. If you configure precision boot order, then it erases legacy boot order configuration.
Configuring the Precision Boot Order
You must log in as a user with admin privileges to configure server the boot order.
What to Do Next
Reboot the server to boot with your new boot order.
Managing a Boot Device
You must log in as a user with admin privileges to add device type to the server boot order.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Compute menu. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Compute menu, click Server 1 or Server 2. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 3 | In the Server pane, click the BIOS tab. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 4 | In the
Action area, click
Configure Boot Order.
A dialog box with boot order instructions appears. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 5 | Review the instructions, and then click
OK.
The Configure Boot Order dialog box is displayed. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 6 | In the
Configure Boot Order dialog box, from the
Add Boot Device table, choose the device that
you want add to the boot order.
To add the local HDD device, click Add Local HDD, and update the following parameters:
To add the PXE device, click Add PXE, and update the following parameters:
To add the SAN boot device, click Add SAN, and update the following parameters:
To add the iSCSI boot device, click Add iSCSI, and update the following parameters:
To add the SD card, click Add SD Card, and update the following parameters:
To add the USB device, click Add USB, and update the following parameters:
To add the virtual media, click Virtual Media, and update the following parameters:
To add the PCH storage device, click PCH Storage, and update the following parameters:
To add the UEFI shell device, click Add UEFI Shell, and update the following parameters:
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Overview to UEFI Secure Boot
You can use Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI) secure boot to ensure that all the EFI drivers, EFI applications, option ROM or operating systems prior to loading and execution are signed and verified for authenticity and integrity, before you load and execute the operating system. You can enable this option using either web UI or CLI. When you enable UEFI secure boot mode, the boot mode is set to UEFI mode and you cannot modify the configured boot mode until the UEFI boot mode is disabled.
![]() Note | If you enable UEFI secure boot on a nonsupported OS, on the next reboot, you cannot boot from that particular OS. If you try to boot from the previous OS, an error is reported and recorded the under system software event in the web UI. You must disable the UEFI secure boot option using Cisco IMC to boot from your previous OS. |
Also, if you use an unsupported adapter, an error log event in Cisco IMC SEL is recorded. The error messages is displayed that says:
System Software event: Post sensor, System Firmware error. EFI Load Image Security Violation. [0x5302] was asserted .
| Components | Types |
|---|---|
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Supported OS |
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QLogic PCI adapters |
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|
Fusion-io |
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|
LSI |
Enabling UEFI Secure Boot
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Compute menu. | ||
| Step 2 | In the Compute menu, click Server 1 or Server 2. | ||
| Step 3 | In the Server pane, click the BIOS tab. | ||
| Step 4 | In the
BIOS
Properties area of the
Configure Boot Order tab, check
UEFI
Secure Boot checkbox.
If you enable UEFI secure boot on a nonsupported OS, on the next reboot, you cannot boot from that particular OS. If you try to boot from the previous OS, an error is reported and recorded under the system software event in the web UI. You must disable the UEFI secure boot option by using Cisco IMC to boot from your previous OS. | ||
| Step 5 | Click Save Changes. |
What to Do Next
Reboot the server to have your configuration boot mode settings take place.
Disabling UEFI Secure Boot
What to Do Next
Reboot the server to have your configuration boot mode settings take place.
Viewing the Actual Server Boot Order
The actual server boot order is the boot order actually used by BIOS when the server last booted. The actual boot order can differ from the boot order configured in Cisco IMC.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Compute menu. | ||||
| Step 2 | In the Compute menu, click Server 1 or Server 2. | ||||
| Step 3 | In the Server pane, click the BIOS tab. | ||||
| Step 4 | In the
BIOS tab, click the
Configure Boot Order tab.
This area displays the boot order devices configured through Cisco IMC as well as the actual boot order used by the server BIOS. The Configured Boot Devices section displays the boot order (Basic or Advanced) configured through Cisco IMC. If this configuration changes, Cisco IMC sends this boot order to BIOS the next time that server boots. The Basic configuration allows you to specify only the device type. The Advanced configuration allows you to configure the device with specific parameters such as slot, port and LUN. To change the configured boot order, or to restore the previously configured boot order, administrators can click the Configure Boot Order button. To have these changes take effect immediately, reboot the server. You can verify the new boot order by refreshing the BIOS tab.
The Actual Boot Devices section displays the boot order actually used by BIOS when the server last booted. The actual boot order will differ from the configured boot order if either of the following conditions occur:
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Configuring Power Policies
Configuring the Power Restore Policy
The power restore policy determines how power is restored to the server after a chassis power loss.
You must log in with admin privileges to perform this task.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Compute menu. | ||||||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Compute menu, click Server 1 or Server 2. | ||||||||||||
| Step 3 | In the Server pane, click the Power Policies tab. | ||||||||||||
| Step 4 | In the
Power Restore Policy area, update the following
fields:
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| Step 5 | Click Save Changes. |
Power Characterization
The chassis power characterization range is calculated and derived from individual server node power characterization status, and from the power requirements of all the unmanageable components of the chassis.
This range varies for each configuration, so you need to run the power characterization every time a configuration changes.
To help you use the power characterization range appropriately for the different power profiles, the system represents the chassis' minimum power as auto profile minimum and custom profile minimum. However, custom power profile minimum is the actual minimum power requirement of the current chassis configuration. For more information see the section Run Power Characterization.
Running Power Characterization
You can run power characterization only on some Cisco UCS C-Series servers.
You must log in with admin privileges to perform this task.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation tab, click the Chassis tab. |
| Step 2 | In the Chassis tab, click the Power Management tab. |
| Step 3 | On the Work pane, click the Power Cap Configuration tab. |
| Step 4 | In the
Power
Cap Configuration tab, click the
Run
Power Characterization link.
A confirmation box appears that says the host is going to be either powered on or rebooted depending on the current power state. Review the message and click OK to close the dialog box.
After power characterization action is performed, the platform power limit range is populated under the Recommended Power Cap area as a minimum and maximum power in watts. |
Power Profiles
![]() Note | Power Management is available only on some C-series servers. |
Power capping determines how server power consumption is actively managed. When you enable power capping option, the system monitors power consumption and maintains the power below the allocated power limit. If the server cannot maintain the power limit or cannot bring the platform power back to the specified power limit within the correction time, power capping performs actions that you specify in the Action field under the Power Profile area.
Automatic power limiting profile sets the power limit of the individual server boards based on server priority selected by you, or as detected by the system, based on the server utilization sensor (which is known as manual or dynamic priority selection). The limiting values are calculated within the manageable chassis power budget and applied to the individual server, and the priority server is allocated with its maximum power limiting value, while the other server with the remaining of the manageable power budget. Power limiting occurs at each server board platform level that affects the overall chassis power consumption.
Custom power limiting profile allows you to set an individual server board’s power limit from the Web UI or command line interface within the chassis power budget. In this scenario you can specify an individual server power limit.
Thermal power profile allows you to enable thermal failure power capping, which means you can set a specific platform temperature threshold and it sets P (min-x) as the power limit to be applied on the temperature threshold.
- Resetting Power Profiles to Default
- Configuring the Power Capping Settings
- Configuring Auto Power Profile
- Configuring Custom Power Profile
- Configuring Thermal Power Profile
Resetting Power Profiles to Default
This option is available only on some Cisco UCS C-Series servers.
You must log in with admin privileges to perform this task.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation tab, click the Chassis tab. | ||
| Step 2 | In the Chassis tab, click the Power Management tab. | ||
| Step 3 | On the Work pane, click the Power Cap Configuration tab. | ||
| Step 4 | In the
Power Cap Configuration tab, click the
Reset Profiles to Default link.
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Configuring the Power Capping Settings
You can enable power characterization only on some Cisco UCS C-Series servers.
You must log in with admin privileges to perform this task.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation tab, click the Chassis tab. | ||||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Chassis tab, click the Power Management tab. | ||||||||||
| Step 3 | On the Work pane, click the Power Cap Configuration tab. | ||||||||||
| Step 4 | In the
Chassis
Power Characterization Details area, review the following
information:
| ||||||||||
| Step 5 | In the
Power Capping and Profiles Configuration area,
complete the following fields:
| ||||||||||
| Step 6 | Click Save Changes. |
What to Do Next
Configure the individual power profiles.
Configuring Auto Power Profile
You must log in with admin privileges to perform this task.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation tab, click the Chassis tab. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Chassis tab, click the Power Management tab. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Step 3 | On the Work pane, click the Power Cap Configuration tab. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Step 4 | In the
Auto tab complete the following fields:
| ||||||||||||||||||
| Step 5 | In the Suspend Period area, click the Configure link to set the time period in which the power capping profile is not active. |
What to Do Next
Configure the custom power profile.
Configuring Custom Power Profile
You must log in with admin privileges to perform this task.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation tab, click the Chassis tab. | ||||||||||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Chassis tab, click the Power Management tab. | ||||||||||||||||
| Step 3 | On the Work pane, click the Power Cap Configuration tab. | ||||||||||||||||
| Step 4 | In the
Custom tab, complete the following fields:
|
What to Do Next
Configure the thermal power profile.
Configuring Thermal Power Profile
You must log in with admin privileges to perform this task.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation tab, click the Chassis tab. | ||||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Chassis tab, click the Power Management tab. | ||||||||||
| Step 3 | On the Work pane, click the Power Cap Configuration tab. | ||||||||||
| Step 4 | In the
Thermal tab, complete the following fields:
|
Viewing Power Monitoring Summary
This option is available only on some Cisco UCS C-Series servers.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation tab, click the Chassis tab. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Chassis tab, click the Power Management tab. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 3 | On the Work pane, click the Power Monitoring tab. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 4 | In the
Power
Monitoring Summary area, review the following information about the
chassis:
The following tables display the power consumed by the chassis and its components since the last time it was rebooted.
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| Step 5 | In the
Power
Monitoring Summary area, review the following information about the
servers:
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| Step 6 | In the
Chart
Properties area, review and update the chart, component, and view
the power consumption details.
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Configuring the Chart Properties
| Step 1 | In the Navigation tab, click the Chassis tab. | ||||||||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Chassis tab, click the Power Management tab. | ||||||||||||||
| Step 3 | On the Work pane, click the Power Monitoring tab. | ||||||||||||||
| Step 4 | In the
Chart
Properties area, click the
Chart
Settings icon to configure the following fields:
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| Step 5 | Click Save Changes. |
Downloading Power Statistics and Server Utilization Data
This option is available only on some Cisco UCS C-Series servers.
You must log in with admin privileges to perform this task.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Chassis tab. | ||
| Step 2 | In the Chassis tab, click Power Management. | ||
| Step 3 | On the Work pane, click the Power Monitoring tab. | ||
| Step 4 | In the
Power Monitoring tab, click
Download Power Statistics and Server Utilization
Data.
The files are downloaded to your local download folder.
|
Configuring DIMM Blacklisting
DIMM Black Listing
In Cisco IMC, the state of the Dual In-line Memory Module (DIMM) is based on SEL event records. A DIMM is marked bad if the BIOS encounters a non-correctable memory error or correctable memory error with 16000 error counts during memory test execution during BIOS post. If a DIMM is marked bad, it is considered a non-functional device.
If you enable DIMM blacklisting, Cisco IMC monitors the memory test execution messages and blacklists any DIMM that encounters memory errors at any given point of time in the DIMM SPD data. This allows the host to map out those DIMMs.
DIMMs are mapped out or blacklisted only when Uncorrectable errors occur. When a DIMM gets blacklisted, other DIMMs in the same channel are ignored or disabled, which means that the DIMM is no longer considered bad.
![]() Note | DIMMs do not get mapped out or blacklisted for 16000 Correctable errors. |
Enabling DIMM Black Listing
Configuring BIOS Settings
Configuring Main BIOS Settings
You must log in with admin privileges to perform this task.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Compute menu. | ||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Compute menu, click Server 1 or Server 2. | ||||||||
| Step 3 | In the Server pane, click the BIOS tab. | ||||||||
| Step 4 | In the Actions area, click Configure BIOS. | ||||||||
| Step 5 | In the Configure BIOS Parameters dialog box, click the Main tab. | ||||||||
| Step 6 | Specify
whether the server should be rebooted after you save your changes.
If you want your changes applied automatically after you click Save Changes, check the Reboot Host Immediately check box. Cisco IMC immediately reboots the server and applies your changes. If you want to apply your changes at a later time, clear the Reboot Host Immediately check box. Cisco IMC stores the changes and applies them the next time the server reboots.
| ||||||||
| Step 7 | In the
Main tab, choose whether you want
TPM Support to be enabled or disabled, and
update the BIOS settings fields with the following options:
The buttons in this dialog box affect all BIOS parameters on all available tabs, not just the parameters on the tab that you are viewing. |
Configuring Advanced BIOS Settings
![]() Note | Depending on your installed hardware, some configuration options described in this topic may not appear. |
You must log in with admin privileges to perform this task.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Compute menu. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Compute menu, click Server 1 or Server 2. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 3 | In the Server pane, click the BIOS tab. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 4 | In the Actions area, click Configure BIOS. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 5 | In the Configure BIOS Parameters dialog box, click the Advanced tab. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Step 6 | Specify
whether the server should be rebooted after you save your changes.
If you want your changes applied automatically after you click Save Changes, check the Reboot Host Immediately check box. Cisco IMC immediately reboots the server and applies your changes. If you want to apply your changes at a later time, clear the Reboot Host Immediately check box. Cisco IMC stores the changes and applies them the next time the server reboots.
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| Step 7 | In the
Advanced tab's
Processor Configuration area, update the following
fields.
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| Step 8 | In the
Memory
Configuration area, update the following fields.
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| Step 9 | In the
QPI
Configuration area, update the following fields.
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| Step 10 | In the
SATA
Configuration area, update the following fields.
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| Step 11 | In the
USB
Configuration area, update the following fields.
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| Step 12 | In the
PCI
Configuration area, update the following fields.
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| Step 13 | In the
Serial
Configuration area, update the following fields.
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| Step 14 | In the
LOM
and PCIe Slots Configuration area, update the following fields.
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| Step 15 | After you
updated the fields, perform the following actions:
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Configuring Server Management BIOS Settings
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Compute menu. | ||||||||||||||
| Step 2 | In the Compute menu, click Server 1 or Server 2. | ||||||||||||||
| Step 3 | In the Server pane, click the BIOS tab. | ||||||||||||||
| Step 4 | Specify
whether the server should be rebooted after you save your changes.
If you want your changes applied automatically after you click Save Changes, check the Reboot Host Immediately check box. Cisco IMC immediately reboots the server and applies your changes. If you want to apply your changes at a later time, clear the Reboot Host Immediately check box. Cisco IMC stores the changes and applies them the next time the server reboots.
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| Step 5 | In the Server Management pane, update the following fields:
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| Step 6 | Complete your action with the following options:
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Entering BIOS Setup
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Compute menu. |
| Step 2 | In the Compute menu, click Server 1 or Server 2. |
| Step 3 | In the Server pane, click the BIOS tab. |
| Step 4 | In the Actions area, click Enter BIOS Setup. |
| Step 5 | Click Enable. Enables enter BIOS setup. On restart, the server enters the BIOS setup. |
Clearing the BIOS CMOS
Restoring BIOS Manufacturing Custom Settings
Uploading a PID Catalog
You must log in as a user with admin privileges to upload a PID catalog.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Admin tab. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Step 2 | On the Admin tab, click Utilities. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Step 3 | In the
Work pane, click the
Upload PID Catalog link.
The Upload PID Catalog dialog box appears. Depending on the location of the catalog file, choose one of the options. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Step 4 | In the
Upload PID Catalog from Local File dialog box,
click
Browse and use the
Choose File to Upload dialog box to select the
catalog file that you want to upload.
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| Step 5 | In the
Upload PID Catalog from Remote Server dialog
box, complete the following fields:
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Activating a PID Catalog
You must log in as a user with admin privileges to activate a PID catalog.
| Step 1 | In the Navigation pane, click the Admin tab. | ||||||||||
| Step 2 | On the Admin tab, click Utilities. | ||||||||||
| Step 3 | In the
Work pane, click the
Activate
PID Catalog link.
The Activate PID Catalog dialog box appears. Complete the following fields:
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