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Dell 5500 stack issues – THIS UNIT WILL BE SHUT DOWN

If you are configuring a new switch stack and for some reason the slave unit keeps displaying THIS UNIT WILL BE SHUTDOWN, there is probably a stack configuration issue.

  1. Plug a console cable into switch
  2. Boot into the startup menu by pressing Enter/Return or ESC when the splash screen appears
  3. Select 5 – Stack Menu
  4. Select 2 – Set Unit Stack ID
  5. Set the ID to 0 or the actual stack number if its known. If you want to be safe, select 0.
  6. Back out of the menu and let the switch reboot.

 

Dell

Dell Firmware Updates – How to create a boot disk

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There is nothing more miserable than a Dell firmware upgrade.  This includes BIOS, DRAC, PERC controllers and any other hardware that needs to be upgraded.  For those of you that are spoiled using HP technologies, you will soon find out what I mean…

HP has the smartstart DVD which is a well compiled single piece of bootable media.  Dell has the Systems Build and Update Utility (SBU) and Server Update Utility (SUU) which depend on each other to make this work.  Yes, that means you need two DVDs in order to flash your BIOS.  Now lets start this miserable task…

The Dell Drivers and Downloads site is confusing and convoluted.  You never really know what utility you need so you download everything and try to sort out the mess later.  The goal of this guide is to remove the confusion.

  1. Download the SBU.  You can typically find this under Systems Management on your systems download page. The iso name starts with “cdu”.  I would highly recommend going to the Dell FTP site ftp://ftp.dell.com/sysman/ and search for cdu.  The latest version, as of this writing, is cdu_1.6_core_173_A01.
  2. Download the SUU.  This is listed under the Systems management page as “Server Update Utility ISO”.  If it is not listed, remove the OS refinement.  Read the readme and verify the SUU applies to your machine.  Download all available parts and combine them together using “copy /b”.  More information here.
  3. Burn both DVDs and boot from the SBU.  This disk can take a while to run so be patient.  Go through the steps and when it asks you to select the repository location, choose CD/DVD and enter the SUU.
  4. For a more detailed run through of the actual firmware update process using DRAC, go to http://www.getyournerdon.com/2010/07/dell-firmware-updates-with-sbu-and-suu/.  A video is also provided which is extremely helpful.
Dell

How to force detach DRAC5 virtual media

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Issue:
Sometimes if DRAC5 virtual media is acting up (which is more often than not), you need to force terminate the session.  Unfortunately, there is no way to detach using the System – Media – Configuration tab since you cannot apply changes.

Solution:
You must terminate all sessions from the Remote Access – Session Management page.  Click the trash can next to the hung session and your virtual media will be detached once again.

Dell Equallogic

How to find the Dell Equallogic service tag in Group Manager web console

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Issue:
The Equallogic is all cabled up and ready to go.  Servers have been installed and there is no room above the array in the rack.  You need the service tag number, but Equallogic has been nice enough to stamp the tag on top of the array.  Brilliant!

You log into the Group Manager and follow a link from Equallogic on how to find the Member Service Information.  Unfortunately the GUI you’re using does not match this interface.  You continue to search around the GUI and find a tab  under Maintenance that says Service Tag, but it says “No service tag”.  Thanks Dell and Equallogic.  (I hope they fix this in the future).

Solution:
Dell Equallogic arrays are defined by serial numbers, not service tags.

  1. Open up Group Manager.
  2. Use grpadmin:grpadmin, if everything is default, to login.
  3. Click Members and choose the appropriate array
  4. Go to the versions tab and highlight backplane
  5. Take note of the backplane serial number.  It will start with “SHU”.
  6. Go to the Dell Equallogic Serial Number Converter website
  7. Type in the serial number and hopefully you will get a response
  8. Since it probably won’t work, you will need to call 1-800-945-3355 and tell support that you want to find your Equallogic Service Tag number.  They will redirect your call to the appropriate number.

Firmware: 2.03
Series: PS5000,6000