Locking and Unlocking User Accounts

If a user enters an invalid password five consecutive times, the Security Lock-Out feature will temporarily disable that account. If a user attempts to log in again, the software client application displays an appropriate error message.

NOTE: All accounts (user, administrator, and remote console switch administrator) are subject to this lock-out policy.

A remote console switch administrator can specify the number of hours (1 to 99) that accounts will remain locked. When Enable Lock-outs is unchecked, the security lock-out feature will be disabled and no users will be locked out.

If an account becomes locked, it will remain locked until the duration time has elapsed, the remote console switch is power-cycled or an administrator unlocks the account via the MP. An Administrator may unlock only user accounts, whereas a Remote Console Switch Administrator may unlock any type of account.

To unlock an account:

1 Select the Users category in the MP.

2 Select the user to unlock.

3 Click the Unlock button. The lock icon next to the username will disappear.

4 Click OK or Apply. This allows the user to log in again.
-or-
Click Cancel to exit without saving.

To specify the length of time a user account remains locked:

1 Click the Users category in the MP.

2 Click to enable the Enable Lock-outs check box.

3 Type the number of hours that a user will be locked out (1 to 99).

To disable the Security Lockout feature:

1 Select the Users category in the MP.

2 Click the Enable Lock-outs check box. The Duration field is disabled.

NOTE: Disabling Security Lock-out will have no affect on users that are already locked out.

Viewing the SIPs and Avocent AVRIQs

The Server Interface Pods (SIPs) category lets you view the SIPs and Avocent AVRIQs in your system, their port and Electronic ID number (EID) as well as the computer type and keyboard layout.

You can also view the SIP status. A green circle indicates that the SIP is online. A yellow circle indicates the SIP is being upgraded and a red X indicates that the SIP is offline. To clear offline SIPs click Clear Offline and click OK when prompted.

The Language button displays the Language dialog, in which you can set language and keyboard parameters for all the Sun/USB SIPs of the whole appliance.

NOTE: The Clear Offline button is not displayed when managing Avocent A1000R and A2000R Remote Console Switches.

NOTE: It is not possible to clear Offline SIPs or Avocent AVRIQs that are attached to a tiered analog Console Switch.

NOTE: This operation will clear all offline SIPs on the Remote Console Switch, including those associated with any powered down Servers.

NOTE: User access rights will also be updated to remove the Servers associated with the cleared offline SIPs.

Figure 4-6. SIPs Dialog Box - 2161DS-2 Console Switch

 

NOTE: The Remote Console Switch supports Avocent AVRIQs as well as Dell SIPs. Therefore, although Dell SIPs are available with PS/2 and USB connections, the addition of Avocent AVRIQs provides support for Sun and Serial connections.

 

NOTE: To determine if an item identified as PS2 or USB is a Dell SIP or an Avocent AVRIQ, access the SIPs Versions panel. For more information see SIPs Subcategory.

Enabling and Configuring SNMP

SNMP is a protocol used to communicate management information between network management applications and Remote Console Switches. Other SNMP managers can communicate with your Remote Console Switch by accessing MIB-II and the public portion of the enterprise MIB. When you select the SNMP category for the first time, the MP will retrieve the SNMP parameters from the unit.

In this dialog box, you can enter system information and community strings. You may also designate which stations can manage the Remote Console Switch as well as receive SNMP traps from the switch. For more information on traps, see Enabling Individual SNMP traps in this chapter. If you check Enable SNMP, the unit will respond to SNMP requests over UDP port 161.

NOTE: The MP does not use standard SNMP to control switches and therefore does not use UDP port 161. The MP uses a secure, proprietary protocol to communicate with the Remote Console Switches over a different network port.

Figure 4-7. SNMP Configuration Dialog Box

To configure general SNMP settings:

1 Select the SNMP category in the left column in the MP.

2 Click to enable the Enable SNMP check box to allow the Remote Console Switch to respond to SNMP requests over UDP port 161.

3 Type the system’s fully qualified domain name in the Name field, as well as a node contact person in the System section.

4 Type the Read, Write, and Trap community names. These specify the community strings that must be used in SNMP actions. The Read and Write strings only apply to SNMP over UDP port 161 and act as passwords that protect access to the Remote Console Switch. The values can be up to 64 characters in length.

5 Add up to four management workstations that are allowed to manage this Remote Console Switch or leave this blank to allow any station to manage the Remote Console Switch.

a Click Add to define an allowable manager. The Allowable Manager dialog box appears.

b Type the IP address of the management station that you wish to add.

c Click OK to add a management station.

6 Add up to four management workstations to which this Remote Console Switch will send traps in the Trap Destination field.

a Click Add to define a trap destination. The Trap Destination dialog box appears.

b Type the IP address of the trap destination that you wish to add.

c Click OK to add a trap destination.

7 Click OK to save the settings and close the window.
-or-
Click Apply to save the settings and remain in the open window.
-or-
Click Cancel to exit the window without saving.

Enabling Individual SNMP traps

An SNMP trap is a notification sent by the Remote Console Switch to a management station indicating that an event has occurred in the Remote Console Switch that may require further attention. The Dell OpenManageTM IT Assistant software is the event manager. You can specify what SNMP traps are sent to the management stations by simply clicking the appropriate check boxes in the list. When you select the Traps category for the first time, the MP will retrieve and display a list of SNMP traps from the Remote Console Switch. You can select Enable All or Disable All to easily select or deselect the entire list.

Figure 4-8. Traps Dialog Box

Viewing and Resynchronizing Server Connections

When you select the Servers category for the first time, the MP will retrieve the servers that exist in the Remote Console Switch Software database as well as information on how the servers are connected to the selected Remote Console Switch.

The Connection column displays the current server connection. This can be to either a SIP or a tiered switch. If connected to a SIP, the SIP’s EID will display in the Connection column. If connected to a tiered switch, the switch and all of its channels will be displayed. If no unit is currently connected to the path, then this field will display as None. If you click either a SIP or switch in the Connection column, the Viewer will launch.

Figure 4-9. Servers Dialog Box

Resynchronizing the Server Listing

You may wish to periodically resynchronize the database on your client workstation with the database stored in the Remote Console Switch. Do this if the local user has changed server names or if SIPs have been added or moved.

NOTE: This procedure only re-synchronizes your own client workstation. If you have multiple client workstations, you may wish to save your re-synchronized local database and load it into the other client workstations to ensure consistency.

To resynchronize the server listing:

1 Click the Resync button in the Server category of the MP. The Resync Wizard launches. Click Next. A warning message displays indicating that the database will be updated to match the current configuration in the Remote Console Switch. Your current local database names will be overridden with the switch names. To include unpowered SIPs or Avocent AVRIQs in the re-synchronization, click to enable the Include Offline SIPs check box.

2 Click Next. A polling Remote Console Switch message box appears with a progress bar indicating that the switch information is being retrieved.

3 If no changes were detected in the appliance, a completion dialog box appears with this information.
-or-
If server changes were detected, then the Detected Changes dialog box will be displayed. Click Next to update the database.

4 If a cascade switch was detected, the Enter Tiered Switch Information dialog box appears. Select the type of switch connected to the appliance from the drop-down list. If the type you are looking for is not available, you can add it by clicking the Add button. For more information, see Viewing and Configuring Tiered Switch Connections.

5 Click Next. The completion dialog box appears.

6 Click Finish to exit.

Modifying a Server Name

The Modify button in the Servers dialog allows you to rename a selected server. The dialog box allows you to change a server name from a remote workstation rather than from the OSCAR of the Remote Console Switch.

To modify a device name:

1 In the Server category, click to select the server whose name you wish to change.

2 Click Modify. The Name Modify dialog is displayed.

Figure 4-10. Name Modify Dialog Box

3 Type the name you want to assign to the server.

4 Click OK. The name you have supplied is updated in both the remote console switch and local client database.