Using  the  baseboard  management  controller 
The  baseboard  management  controller  provides  environmental  monitoring  for  the 
server.  If  environmental  conditions  exceed  thresholds  or  if  system  components  fail, 
the  baseboard  management  controller  lights  LEDs  to  help  you  diagnose  the 
problem  and  also  records  the  error  in  the  system  event/error  log. 
The  baseboard  management  controller  also  provides  the  following  remote  server 
management  capabilities  through  the  OSA  SMBridge  management  utility  program: 
v  Command-line  interface  (IPMI  Shell) 
The  command-line  interface  provides  direct  access  to  server  management 
functions  through  the  IPMI  protocol.  Use  the  command-line  interface  to  issue 
commands  to  control  the  server  power,  view  system  information,  and  identify  the 
server.  You  can  also  save  one  or  more  commands  as  a  text  file  and  run  the  file 
as  a  script. 
v  Serial  over  LAN 
Establish  a  Serial  over  LAN  (SOL)  connection  to  manage  servers  from  a  remote 
location.  You  can  remotely  view  and  change  the  BIOS  settings,  restart  the  server, 
identify  the  server,  and  perform  other  management  functions.  Any  standard  Telnet 
client  application  can  access  the  SOL  connection.
Enabling  and  configuring  SOL  using  the  OSA  SMBridge  management 
utility  program 
To  enable  and  configure  the  server  for  SOL  by  using  the  OSA  SMBridge 
management  utility  program,  you  must  update  and  configure  the  BIOS  code;  update 
and  configure  the  baseboard  management  controller  (BMC)  firmware;  update  and 
configure  the  Ethernet  controller  firmware;  and  enable  the  operating  system  for  an 
SOL  connection. 
BIOS  update  and  configuration 
Complete  the  following  steps  to  update  and  configure  the  BIOS  code  to  enable 
SOL: 
1.  Update  the  BIOS  code: 
a.  Download  the  latest  version  of  the  BIOS  code  from  http://www.ibm.com/
systems/support/. 
b.  Update  the  BIOS  code,  following  the  instructions  that  come  with  the  update 
file  that  you  downloaded.
2.  Update  the  BMC  firmware: 
a.  Download  the  latest  version  of  the  BMC  firmware  from  http://www.ibm.com/
systems/support/.
 
b.  Update  the  BMC  firmware,  following  the  instructions  that  come  with  the 
update  file  that  you  downloaded.
3.
  Configure  the  BIOS  settings: 
a.  Restart  the  server  and  press  F1  when  you  are  prompted  to  start  the 
Configuration/Setup  Utility  program. 
b.  Select  Devices  and  I/O  Ports;  then,  make  sure  that  the  values  are  set  as 
follows: 
v  Serial  Port  A:  Auto-configure 
v  Serial  Port  B:  Auto-configure
c.
  Select  Remote  Console  Redirection;  then,  make  sure  that  the  values  are 
set  as  follows: 
 
Chapter  4.  Configuring  the  server  43