Monday, May 24, 2021

Oracle SPARC T4-4 - USB Boot & Install

[SPARC T4-4 Chassis Image, Courtesy Oracle]

Oracle SPARC T4-4 - USB Boot & Install

Abstract

UNIX Systems Manufacturers originated their markets as workstations, during a time when they used 32 bit systems and the rest of the PC market was concentrating on 8 and 16 bit systems, and some CPU vendors like Intel use segmentation to keep their 16 bit software alive while struggling to move to 32 bit architectures. Some of the original servers were stacked workstations on a rack in a cabinet. The former high-powered video cards were merely ignored, as remote management needed command line interfaces. Engineering quickly determined that console access needed to be built into a new class of systems: rack mounted servers. These early servers offered boot functionality from Network and Disk. One such boot capability was from USB Disk.This capability was later carried onto other chassis that Oracle would manufacture, such as the SPARC T4-4.

Creating a USB Boot Stick from Solaris

The USB port can be used to create a Solaris 11.4 USB Boot Stick from Solaris, after inserting a SanDisk USB stick into the front port next to the DVD Drive:

T5120/root# echo | format -e | grep -i SanDisk
       4. c7t0d0 <SanDisk'-Cruzer Fit-1.00 cyl 1945 alt 0 hd 255 sec 63>
       5. c8t0d0 <SanDisk'-Cruzer Fit-1.00 cyl 1945 alt 0 hd 255 sec 63>

T5120/root# ls -al *usb
-rw-r--r--   1 dh127087 staff    1217341440 May  3 19:38 sol-11_4-text-sparc.usb

T5120/root# time dd bs=16k if=sol-11_4-text-sparc.usb of=/dev/rdsk/c7t0d0s2
74300+1 records in
74300+1 records out

real    8m57.25s
user    0m0.47s
sys     0m13.99s

T5120/root# echo "par\nprint\n" | format -e c7t0d0 | tail -14 | nawk '$NF!="0" && !/partition/'
Total disk cylinders available: 148 + 0 (reserved cylinders)

Part      Tag    Flag     Cylinders       Size            Blocks
  0 unassigned    wm       0 - 147        1.13GB    (148/0/0) 2377620
  2 unassigned    wm       0 - 147        1.13GB    (148/0/0) 2377620

T5120/root#

This USB stick can now be tested from, from OpenBoot Firmware

Oracle SPARC T4-4

The Oracle SPARC T4-4 is a server with a 4th generation OpenSPARC processor. The SPARC T4 processor was manufactured to the same process size as the SPARC T3 CPU processor, but the core was upgraded, so equivalent throughput could be reached with half as many cores, at the same processor speed. The T4-4 Chassis comes with a Lights Out Management (LOM) capability referred to as Integrated Lights Out Management (ILOM.) Most remote systems management work can be done from the LOM. The system, when looking at the front of the chassis: the T5120 has 2x USB ports next to the DVD drive on the right and 2x USB ports located in the back left corner.

Attaching to the ILOM

The ILOM can be attached to via TCP/IP, if previously configured, or over a serial port.

T5120/user$ ssh root@sun1234-ilom
Password:

Oracle(R) Integrated Lights Out Manager
Version 3.2.6.8 r128095
Copyright (c) 2018, Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
Hostname: ORACLESP-1207BDY075

->

Insert USB Boot

The USB boot flash stick should be inserted into a powered down chassis, to boot from firmware.

-> show /system power_state actual_power_consumption

  /System
    Properties:
        power_state = Off
        actual_power_consumption = 37 watts

Power Up Chassis

After the USB boot stick is inserted, the chassis should be powered up from the ILOM.

-> start /SYS
Are you sure you want to start /SYS (y/n)? y
Starting /SYS

After the chassis is powered on, once the power usage increases, attach to the console

-> show /system power_state actual_power_consumption

  /System
    Properties:
        power_state = On
        actual_power_consumption = 1384 watts


-> start /SP/console
Are you sure you want to start /SP/console (y/n)? y

Serial console started.  To stop, type #.

{0} ok

Note: If the chassis was recently started, the ability to access a prompt does not really occur until after the actual power consumption rises to an expected level.
Note: if the "ok" prompt does not appear, press [RETURN] or [ENTER] key

Select USB Port

When a SanDisk USB Flash Sticks are plugged into the USB ports located to the right of the DVD drive, they can be seen at the OpenFirmware prompt, and can be selected into a copy-paste buffer, for easy use.

{0} ok show-disks
a) /reboot-memory@0
b) /pci@700/pci@1/pci@0/pci@0/LSI,sas@0/disk
c) /pci@500/pci@1/pci@0/pci@1/pci@0/pci@3/SUNW,emlxs@0,1/fp@0,0/disk
d) /pci@500/pci@1/pci@0/pci@1/pci@0/pci@3/SUNW,emlxs@0/fp@0,0/disk
e) /pci@400/pci@2/pci@0/pci@1/pci@0/pci@3/SUNW,emlxs@0,1/fp@0,0/disk
f) /pci@400/pci@2/pci@0/pci@1/pci@0/pci@3/SUNW,emlxs@0/fp@0,0/disk
g) /pci@400/pci@1/pci@0/pci@8/pci@0/usb@0,2/hub@2/hub@3/storage@2/disk
h) /pci@400/pci@1/pci@0/pci@8/pci@0/usb@0,2/hub@2/storage@2/disk
i) /pci@400/pci@1/pci@0/pci@0/LSI,sas@0/disk
j) /iscsi-hba/disk
m) MORE SELECTIONS
q) NO SELECTION
Enter Selection, q to quit: h
/pci@400/pci@1/pci@0/pci@8/pci@0/usb@0,2/hub@2/storage@2/disk has been selected.
Type ^Y ( Control-Y ) to insert it in the command line.
e.g. ok nvalias mydev ^Y
         for creating devalias mydev for /pci@400/pci@1/pci@0/pci@8/pci@0/usb@0,2/hub@2/storage@2/disk
{0} ok

Note: the USB stick in position "h" (this lettered position may change as new USB sticks are plugged or unplugged) has it's device name copied into a "copy-paste" buffer by selecting "h"

Boot Solaris 11.4 from USB

After shutting down the OS, while on the console port, attempt to boot from 11.4, which is too new:

{0} ok boot ^Y
{0} ok boot /pci@400/pci@1/pci@0/pci@8/pci@0/usb@0,2/hub@2/storage@2/disk
Boot device: /pci@400/pci@1/pci@0/pci@8/pci@0/usb@0,2/hub@2/storage@2/disk  File and args:
/

Install Solaris 11.4

As the USB boot occurs, the Solaris 11.4 installer begins.

SunOS Release 5.11 Version 11.4.0.15.0 64-bit
Copyright (c) 1983, 2018, Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
Remounting root read/write
Probing for device nodes ...
Preparing image for use
Done mounting image
USB keyboard
 1. Arabic                        15. Korean
 2. Belgian                       16. Latin-American
 3. Brazilian                     17. Norwegian
 4. Canadian-Bilingual            18. Portuguese
 5. Canadian-French               19. Russian
 6. Danish                        20. Spanish
 7. Dutch                         21. Swedish
 8. Dvorak                        22. Swiss-French
 9. Finnish                       23. Swiss-German
10. French                        24. Traditional-Chinese
11. German                        25. TurkishQ
12. Italian                       26. UK-English
13. Japanese-type6                27. US-English
14. Japanese
To select the keyboard layout, enter a number [default 27]: 27

 1. Chinese - Simplified
 2. Chinese - Traditional
 3. English
 4. French
 5. German
 6. Italian
 7. Japanese
 8. Korean
 9. Portuguese - Brazil
10. Spanish
To select the language you wish to use, enter a number [default is 3]: 3

User selected: English
Configuring devices.
Hostname: solaris
 
 
Welcome to the Oracle Solaris installation menu

        1  Install Oracle Solaris
        2  Install Additional Drivers
        3  Shell
        4  Terminal type (currently xterm)
        5  Reboot

Please enter a number [1]: 1

                          Welcome to Oracle Solaris

   Thanks for choosing to install Oracle Solaris! This installer enables you
   to install the Oracle Solaris Operating System (OS) on SPARC or x86
   systems.

   The installation log will be at /system/volatile/install_log.

   How to navigate through this installer:
   - Use the function keys listed at the bottom of each screen to move from
     screen to screen and to perform other operations.
   - Use the up/down arrow keys to change the selection or to move between
     input fields.
   - If your keyboard does not have function keys, or they do not respond,
     press ESC; the legend at the bottom of the screen will change to show
     the ESC keys for navigation and other functions.

  F2_Continue  F6_Help  F9_Quit


                              Discovery Selection

   Select discovery method for disks

    Local Disks            Discover local disks

    iSCSI                  Discover iSCSI LUNs

 
F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit


                                     Disks

    Where should Oracle Solaris be installed?
    Minimum size: 4.1GB    Recommended minimum: 6.1GB

    Type     Size(GB) Boot  Device
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------
    scsi        279.4   +   SYS/MB/HDD4                  HITACHI
    scsi        279.4       SYS/MB/HDD0                  HITACHI
    usb           1.1       c2t0d0                       SanDisk'       <


    The following slices were found on the disk.

      Slice        #  Size(GB)             Slice        #  Size(GB)
      ------------------------             ------------------------
      rpool        0     279.4             Unused       5       0.0
      Unused       1       0.0             Unused       6       0.0
      Unused       3       0.0             Unused       7       0.0
      Unused       4       0.0             backup       2     279.4


 
F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit


                         Solaris Slices: 279.4GB scsi

   Oracle Solaris can be installed on the whole disk or a slice on the disk.

   The following slices were found on the disk.

     Slice        #  Size(GB)             Slice        #  Size(GB)
     ------------------------             ------------------------
     rpool        0     279.4             Unused       5       0.0
     Unused       1       0.0             Unused       6       0.0
     Unused       3       0.0             Unused       7       0.0
     Unused       4       0.0             backup       2     279.4

                              Use the whole disk
                            Use a slice on the disk

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit


                                System Identity

   Enter a name for this computer that identifies it on the network.
   It can contain letters, numbers, periods (.) and minus signs (-).  The
   name must start and end with an alphanumeric character and must contain
   at least one non-digit character.

   Computer Name: solaris

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit


                             Network Configuration

   Select a wired network connection to configure

     ^ net6 (e1000g4)
     | net7 (e1000g5)
     | net8 (e1000g6)
     | net9 (e1000g7)
     | net10 (e1000g8)
     | net11 (e1000g9)
     | net12 (e1000g10)
     | net13 (e1000g11)
     | net14 (e1000g0)
     | net15 (e1000g1)
     | net16 (nxge0)
     | net17 (nxge1)
     | net18 (nxge2)
     | net19 (nxge3)
     v net20 (nxge4)

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit


   Select how the network interface should be configured.

     DHCP              Allow DHCP to configure the interface

     Static            Configure the interface with a static IP address

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit


                              Time Zone: Regions

    Select the region that contains your time zone.

      Regions
      ----------------------------------------
      UTC/GMT
      Africa
      Americas
      Antarctica
      Asia
      Atlantic Ocean
      Australia
      Europe
      Indian Ocean
      Pacific Ocean

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit


                               Locale: Language

   Select the default language support and locale specific data format.
   These selections determine the language support, the default date and
   time, and other data formats.
   The language chosen automatically determines the available territories.

     Language
    ----------------------------------------
     No Default Language Support
     Chinese
     English
     French
     German
     Italian
     Japanese
     Korean
     Portuguese
     Spanish

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit


                               Locale: Territory

   Select the language territory

     Territory
    ----------------------------------------
     United States (en_US.ISO8859-1)
     United States (en_US.ISO8859-15)
     United States (en_US.ISO8859-15@euro)
     United States (en_US.UTF-8)

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit


                                 Date and Time

   Edit the date and time as necessary.
   Time shown is the system clock time in UTC and will be interpreted as
   such on installation.
   The time is in 24 hour format.

     Year:    2021 (YYYY)
     Month:     05 (1-12)
     Day:       22 (1-31)
     Hour:      05 (0-23)
     Minute:    46 (0-59)

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit


                                   Keyboard

   Select your keyboard.

   ^ German
   | Italian
   | Japanese-type6
   | Japanese
   | Korean
   | Latin-American
   | Norwegian
   | Portuguese
   | Russian
   | Spanish
   | Swedish
   | Swiss-French
   | Swiss-German
   | Traditional-Chinese
   | TurkishQ
   | UK-English
   - US-English

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit
 
 
                                     Users

    Define a root password for the system and user account for yourself.


    System Root Password (required)

     Root password:    solar1s
     Confirm password: solar1s

    Create a user account (optional)

     Your real name:
     Username:
     User password:
     Confirm password:

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit

 
                            Support - Registration

     Provide your My Oracle Support credentials to be informed of
     security issues, enable Oracle Auto Service Requests.

     See http://www.oracle.com/goto/solarisautoreg for details.

       Email: anonymous@oracle.com
              Easier for you if you use your My Oracle Support email
              address/username.

       Please enter your password if you wish to receive security
       updates via My Oracle Support.

              My Oracle Support password:

  F2_Continue  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit

 
                             Installation Summary

   Review the settings below before installing. Go back (F3) to make changes.

   - Software: Oracle Solaris 11.4 SPARC
   |
   | Root Pool Disk: 279.4GB scsi
   |
   | Computer name: solaris
   |
   | Network:
   | DHCP Configuration: net6/v4
   |
   | Time Zone: UTC
   | Locale:
   | Default Language: English
   | Language Support: English (United States)
   | Keyboard: US-English
   | No user account
   |
   v Support configuration:

  F2_Install  F3_Back  F6_Help  F9_Quit

 
                           Installing Oracle Solaris

               Preparing for Installation

              [                       (4%)                       ]

  F9_Quit

 
                             Installation Complete


   The installation of Oracle Solaris has completed successfully.

   Reboot to start the newly installed software or Quit if you wish to
   perform additional tasks before rebooting.

   The installation log is available at /system/volatile/install_log. After
   reboot it can be found at /var/log/install/install_log.


  F4_View Log  F7_Halt  F8_Reboot  F9_Quit
 

 May 22 06:22:23 solaris reboot: initiated by root
 

Welcome to the Oracle Solaris installation menu

        1  Install Oracle Solaris
        2  Install Additional Drivers
        3  Shell
        4  Terminal type (currently xterm)
        5  Reboot

Please enter a number [1]: syncing file systems... done
rebooting...
Resetting...
NOTICE: Entering OpenBoot.
NOTICE: Fetching Guest MD from HV.
NOTICE: Starting additional cpus.
NOTICE: Initializing LDC services.
NOTICE: Probing PCI devices.
NOTICE: Finished PCI probing.

SPARC T4-4, No Keyboard
Copyright (c) 1998, 2018, Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
OpenBoot 4.38.16, 1023.5000 GB memory available, Serial #99743488.
Ethernet address 0:21:28:f1:f7:0, Host ID: 85f1f700.
 
Boot device: /pci@400/pci@1/pci@0/pci@0/LSI,sas@0/disk@w5000cca0252bf86d,0:a  File and args:
/
SunOS Release 5.11 Version 11.4.0.15.0 64-bit
Copyright (c) 1983, 2018, Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved.
Loading smf(7) service descriptions: 238/238
Booting to milestone "svc:/milestone/config:default".
Configuring devices.
Loading smf(7) service descriptions: 2/2
Booting to milestone "all".
Hostname: solaris
May 22 06:35:06 solaris sendmail[1502]: My unqualified host name (solaris) unknown; sleeping for retry
May 22 06:35:06 solaris sendmail[1507]: My unqualified host name (solaris) unknown; sleeping for retry

solaris console login:

UnConfigure / Configure

Solaris 10, offered an option to perform a "sys-unconfig", to restore an OS back to factory settings. In Solaris 11, this has been replaced with another option called "sysconfig configure -s" or "sysconfig configure -s --destructive" to destroy the initial user home account to also be destroyed.

This option is good if moving a chassis to a different location.

1 comment: