The purpose of this document is to assist with troubleshooting a TCP/IP directed boot for an IBM 7318 model P10 or model S20. The information in this document applies to AIX versions 3.2.5 through 4.x.
This document was designed for AIX System Administrators with a knowledge of AIX administration and the 7318. Using this document, TCP/IP directed boot troubleshooting takes about 25 minutes.
In a directed load configuration, the 7318 requests its boot image and configuration file from a specific host. The host must be configured to transfer the files to the 7318. This document contains modules that troubleshoot the directed load configuration on the 7318 and the host.
This document is designed to troubleshoot a TCP/IP directed boot for a 7318 Model P10 or S20. The document is comprised of modules that contain non-destructive troubleshooting steps. If any step requires a modification or interrupts regular system operation, the command will be labeled with a warning message. This document does not contain detailed explanations about the modules and steps used in the configuration methods.
The 7318 was designed to boot and operate locally to an IBM eServer pSeries or RS/6000. For example, the pSeries or RS/6000 and 7318 are on the same LAN. However, frequently the 7318's functionality is needed in a remote network. For example, the pSeries or RS/6000 and 7318 are on separate networks, linked by a gateway or router. The 7318 is capable of booting while remote from the system, but special care needs to be taken for the communication channel. Remote troubleshooting tips will be listed throughout this document when troubleshooting a remote 7318 varies from one local to the system.
Before using this document, it is assumed that:
To use this document effectively, you must:
The lights on the front of the 7318 show its status. From left to right, the lights correspond to Power, Ready, AUI interface in use, and 10Base-T interface in use. Different light sequences will be shown during the 7318's power-on and hardware check, booting, and normal operation. For more information on the light sequences, refer to page 2-5 in the 7318 Serial Communications Network Server Guide and Reference (SC23-2542-00).
Legend:
Light sequence condition and resolution, if applicable:
0 0 0 0 The 7318 is not powered ON.The 7318 does not have a power on/off switch. You must use the AC plug to power on and off the 7318.
1 0 0 0 The 7318 has a hardware problem, if this sequence persists for more than 1 minute. In that case, the 7318 needs to be serviced or replaced.
1 B 0 0 The 7318 is trying to boot but cannot communicate with the network. Check all cabling connecting the 7318 to the LAN. Replace cabling if necessary. Continue Troubleshooting once the 7318 is able to transmit onto the LAN.
1 B 1 0 The 7318 is trying to boot and can transmit onto the LAN.
1 B 0 1 The 7318 is trying to boot and can transmit onto the LAN. The 7318 is trying to boot but cannot find a load host. Proceed to the next section to continue troubleshooting.
1 1 1 0 The 7318 is booted and can transmit onto the LAN.
1 1 0 1 The 7318 is booted and can transmit onto the LAN. The 7318 has booted and is operating as designed. If you are unable to communicate with the 7318, the problem is beyond booting and the scope of this document.
The host communicates with the network through an interface (tr0, en0, et0, fi0). To configure an interface for TCP/IP, the interface must be active (the words <UP, RUNNING> appear in the flags when the ifconfig command is run).
NOTE:
ent0 Available 00-02 Ethernet High-Performance LAN Adapter (8ef5) fddi0 Available 00-03 FDDI Primary Card, Single Ring Fiber tok0 Available 00-04 Token-Ring High-Performance Adapter (8fc8)Verify that the communications interface is active using the ifconfig command and the adapter name.
ifconfig en0
Sample output is as follows:
en0: flags=8080863<UP,BROADCAST,NOTRAILERS,RUNNING,SIMPLEX,MULTICAST> inet 9.3.6.32 netmask 0xffffffc0 broadcast 9.3.6.63
ifconfig tr0
Sample output is as follows:
tr0: flags=80a0043<UP,BROADCAST,RUNNING,ALLCAST,MULTICAST> inet 9.3.6.68 netmask 0xffffffc0 broadcast 9.3.6.127
If the interface is active (the words <UP, RUNNING> appear in the flags list), then continue to the next section. If the words <UP, RUNNING> do not appear in the flags list, configure the interface through SMIT, execute:
smit inet
tftp (Trivial File Transfer Protocol) is the daemon that services file requests from the 7318 using UDP/IP. This service must be active on the host to send the load image and configuration file to the 7318.
lssrc -ls inetd | grep tftp
Sample output looks like the following:
tftp /usr/sbin/tftpd tftpd -n active
If the process is active, continue to the next section. If the process is inactive or is not listed, continue to start the process with the next step.
An uncommented, sample tftp entry looks like the following:
At AIX 4.2.1 and lower
tftp dgram udp wait nobody /usr/sbin/tftpd tftpd -n
At AIX 4.3
tftp dgram udp6 SRC nobody /usr/sbin/tftpd tftpd -n
An uncommented, sample tftp entry should look like the following:
tftp 69/udp
refresh -s inetd
NOTE: For AIX 3.2.5 systems, first run the command inetimp.
tftp must have permission to access the directories in which the boot image and configuration file reside. The /etc/tftpaccess.ctl file contains the directories tftp is allowed to access. If /etc/tftpaccess.ctl does not exist, then tftp can access all directories.
NOTE: If the /etc/tftpaccess.ctl file does not exist, either create the file (and allow tftp access to the directories in which the files reside) or continue to step 4 of this section. If the /etc/tftpaccess.ctl file does not exist, then tftp is allowed access to all directories.
Sample /etc/tftpaccess.ctl file entry with tftp allowed access to the /usr/lib/cns directory.
###################################################### The following example, when uncommented, only allows access to the Diskless Client boot files. ########################################################## allow:/tftpboot allow:/usr/lib/cns
If tftp is allowed access to the directories in which the 7318's files reside, continue with step 5. If tftp is not allowed access to the directories in which the 7318's files reside (the entry is commented out), continue with the next step.
allow: /usr/lib/cns
ls -l | more
Correct permissions look like the following:
cns-p10 -r--r--r-- 1 root system 442532 Jul 24 01:56 cns-s20e -r--r--r-- 1 root system 1240228 Jul 24 01:56 p10.cfg -rw-r--r-- 1 root system 17539 Sep 09 1995 s20.cfg -rw-r--r-- 1 root system 43120 Jul 24 01:56
chmod 444 <filename>
Continue to the next section.
tftp is responsible for sending the download image and configuration file to the 7318 using UDP/IP. If tftp is not active, the 7318 tftp port requests will be denied and the 7318 will continue to query for a load host. When tftp is configured for debug mode, all file transfers are logged to a specified file by the tftp daemon.
Sample output looks like the following:
tftp dgram udp wait nobody /usr/sbin/tftpd tftpd -n -v
refresh -s inetd
NOTE: On AIX 3.2.5 systems, first run the inetimp command.
Sample output looks like the following:
*.debug /tmp/fileName
touch /tmp/fileName
cat /dev/null > fileName
refresh -s syslogd
NOTE: tftp will log all file transfers and/or errors from the 7318 in the log file specified in the /etc/syslog.conf entry.
Sample log of a successful file transfer:
Sep 7 11:39:43 ivorye syslogd: restart Sep 7 11:43:07 ivorye bootpd[8884]: bootpd 2.1 #77: Tue Jul 16 11:29:48 CDT 1991 Sep 7 11:43:07 ivorye bootpd[8884]: bootptab mtime is Sat Sep 7 11:43:07 ivorye bootpd[8884]: reading "/etc/bootptab" Sep 7 11:43:07 ivorye bootpd[8884]: read 3 entries from "/etc/bootptab" Sep 7 11:43:07 ivorye bootpd[8884]: dumped 3 entries to "/etc/bootpd.dump" Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: bootptab mtime is Sat Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: Received boot request Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: request from hardware address 00406EF000F0 Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: found 9.3.6.7 guppye Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: bootfile = /usr/lib/cns/cns-s20e Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: vendor magic field is 0.0.0.0 Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: RFC1048 vendor data ( bp_vend[64] ) Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: sending RFC1048-style reply
Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: Time to create ARP entry, hardware type is 1 and ifname is en0 Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: Creating 10Mb Ethernet arp table entry Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: ioctl(SIOCSARP): Arp entry created successfully Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: The following addresses are included in the bootp reply Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: Client IP address (bp->bp_ciaddr) = 9.3.6.7 Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: Server IP address (bp->bp_siaddr) = 9.3.6.38 Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: Gateway IP address (bp->bp_giaddr) = 9.3.6.38 Sep 7 11:43:33 ivorye bootpd[8884]: Finished processing boot request Sep 7 11:43:48 ivorye tftpd[8884]: Sent /usr/lib/cns/cns-s20e to 9.3.6.7 Sep 7 11:43:52 ivorye tftpd[8884]: Sent /usr/lib/cns/s20.cfg to 9.3.6.7
The steps listed below stop tftp debugging and restore the tftp entry in the /etc/inetd.conf file to its original form.
NOTE: Do not comment out the tftp line.
Sample output looks like the following:
tftp dgram udp wait nobody /usr/sbin/tftpd tftpd -n
refresh -s inetd
NOTE: On AIX 3.2.5 systems, first run inetimp.
Sample entry looks like the following:
#*.debug /tmp/fileName
refresh -s syslogd
If the booting problem cannot be determined from the tftp log file, make a copy of the tftp log file and send it to an IBM Technical Specialist for evaluation.
In this section, we will verify the boot parameters specified in the NVRAM. For a directed load configuration, all booting parameters, load host and boot files, are specified in the 7318's NVRAM (Non-Volatile RAM), which can be modified through a BIOS Console session. A BIOS Console session can be accessed by connecting a terminal (IBM3151) to one of the ports on the front of the 7318 with an RJ-45 cable and a null-modem adapter.
9600 baud 8 data bits no parity 1 stop bit
When the 7318 is powered back on, hold the Shift key and press 3 (the # sign) repeatedly until four # signs scroll across the screen of the terminal.
NOTE: You can access a BIOS Console between the time the 7318 is first powered on and the ready light (second light) starts blinking. If the ready light begins blinking, you have missed the window to enter the BIOS Console and must recycle the power and try again. Once four # signs scroll across the screen, the 7318 will begin a BIOS Console session.
admin
show
Default load images (in the /usr/lib/cns directory) are as follows:
cns-p10, cns-s20, and cns-s20e
Sample command to set the load image for a P10 is as follows:
set loadimage /usr/lib/cns/cns-p10
Sample command to set the configuration file for 00406ef000f0 is as follows:
set config /usr/lib/cns/00406ef000f0.cfg
NOTE: If the 7318's configuration file has not been created, copy the 7318's default configuration file and name it 00406eXXXXXX.cfg (XXXXXX refers to the last six digits of the 7318's hardware address). The default configuration files in the /usr/lib/cns directory are: s20.cfg, and p10.cfg. You can use the default configuration to boot the 7318 but Do not modify the default configuration file.
To modify the load interface, use the set command to specify the correct load interface. The 7318 can be forced to use either the AUI or 10BaseT Ethernet interface instead of searching for the attached interface. If unsure, leave the default value.
Sample command to set the load interface is as follows:
set interface 1
where:
0 - auto (default) 1 - 10BaseT Interface 2 - AUI Interface
NOTE: This may be needed if the HA feature is being used and the system to load from is on the AUI port (the 10BaseT is checked first). Otherwise, leave the default value.
show
NOTE: The latest BIOS level as of 03/25/99 is 5.23. If you are unsure whether the 7318 is at the latest BIOS level, please contact an IBM AIX Technical Specialist.
The 7318 can be forced to use a packet type by setting the frametype parameter. If unsure, leave the default value.
Sample command to set the frametype is as follows:
set frametype 1
where:
0 - auto (default) 1 - Ethernet Version 2 2 - Ethernet SNAP 3 - Ethernet 802.3 4 - Ethernet 802.2
NOTE: This feature is most useful for speeding up the boot process. If the frametype is specified, the 7318 will not search for the frametype needed.
Sample command to set the protocol is as follows:
set protocol 1
where:
0 - auto (default) 1 - IPX 2 - TCP/IP)
NOTE: Since IPX is tried first, specifying this parameter speeds up the boot process for a 7318 using TCP/IP (UDP). No time will be wasted looking for an IPX boot host when one does not exist.
To force the 7318 to download files from a specific TCP/IP host, set the host1 parameter with the IP address of the host.
Sample command to set a TCP/IP load host (hosts IP address is 9.3.6.71) is as follows:
set host1 9.3.6.71
If any boot parameters were changed, save the modifications, execute:
save
Continue to the next section.
Now that we have verified the 7318's NVRAM configuration:
[ Doc Ref: 90605223614658 Publish Date: Jan. 03, 2001 4FAX Ref: 7441 ]