ASTi Comms Logger systems User Guide

Product Name: Comms Logger
Comms
Logger Cold
Start Guide

Red Hat ® Enterprise Linux
Red Hat ® Subscription
ASTi’s Comms Logger software is designed to run on an installation of the Red Hat® Enterprise Linux® client. This ensures optimal interoperability with ASTi’s software, host routing software, and external communications servers. As such included in the cold start DVDs is the complete installation of the Red Hat® Enterprise Linux® client. This software is not activated to a current Red Hat subscription. It is the end users’ responsibility to activate their subscriptions and connect to the Red Hat Network. The Red Hat subscription will provide the end user with support, maintenance, software, and security updates. For details on Red Hat activation, go to the Red Hat website:
www.redhat.com/apps/activate

Export Restriction

Countries other than the United States may restrict the import, use, or export of software that contains encryption technology. By installing this software, you agree that you shall be solely responsible for compliance with any such import, use, or export restrictions. For full details on Red Hat export restrictions, go to the following:
www.redhat.com/licenses/export

Revision history

drives’ status.”
3/10/2021| F| 0| Removed all deprecated Red Hat 6. X references, including “Comms Logger cold start procedure for
Red Hat 6.X.” Updated “(Optional) Perform an m media check.” Mapped ASTi system part numbers, software versions, and BIOS versions for clarity in “Set up the BIOS.”
7/28/2021| F| 1| Updated the 2U chassis diagram.
1/27/2022| F| 2| Removed all Unified Comms references from the cold start procedure. Made minor edits to grammar
and style.
6/23/2022| F| 3| Updated the 2U chassis diagram to include the Power and Hard Drive LEDs.

Introduction

The cold start procedure(s) described in this document allows you to build Comms Logger systems from scratch. This cold start guide refers to Comms Logger software running on a specialized, three-drive hardware system, consisting of one main drive and two additional drives, set in a RAID1 array used only for storing Comms Logger data. There are three main reasons for using the cold start procedure:

• Installing the latest software version
• Rebuilding a damaged hard disk
• Creating spare hard disks

Caution: Performing a cold start procedure erases the main drive; however, the cold start procedure preserves data on the two RAID1 array data drives.

The following steps outline the cold start procedure:

1. To back up the Comms Logger server, go to Section 3.0, “Back up the Comms Logger server” on page 4.
2. To set up the BIOS, ensuring the cold start procedure runs properly, go to Section 4.0, “Set up the BIOS” on page 6.
3. (Optional) To perform a media check, go to Section 5.0, “(Optional) Perform a media check” on page 10.
4. Complete the cold start procedure, erase the hard drive, and install the Red Hat and  =Comms Logger software. For cold start procedure instructions, go to Section 6.0, “Comms Logger cold start procedure for Red Hat 7. X” on page 11.
5. To restore the Comms Logger server, go to Section 7.0, “Restore the Comms Logger system” on page 12.

Required equipment

To complete the Comms Logger cold start procedure, you will need the following items:

• Comms Logger 2U or 4U platform with removable hard drive
• Keyboard
• Monitor
• (Optional) Mouse
• Comms Logger Software Installation DVD
• Network data
  • Eth0 IPv4 address
  • Subnet mask

2.1 Record network data
To record your server’s network data, follow these steps:

1. From the top right, go to Manage ( ) > Network Configuration.
2. Record your device’s IPv4 Address and Subnet Mask for future reference.

Back up the Comms Logger server

The cold start procedure completely erases the Comms Logger server’s hard drive. To back up your data then, follow these steps:

1. Open a web browser on a computer or tablet sharing a network with the Comms Logger server.
2. In the address bar, enter the Comms Logger server’s IP address.
3. Log into the Comms Logger web interface using the following default credentials:
   Username| Password
   ---|---
   admin| astirules
4. From the top right, go to Manage ( ) > Backup/Restore.
5. To create a new backup of your Comms Logger server, select.
6. To download the backup to your computer’s local hard drive, choose a backup to save.
7. To save your backup, select Download Selected ( ).

Set up the BIOS

To ensure the cold start procedure runs properly, set up the BIOS as described in the following sections. First, check the ASTi label on the rear of the chassis for the system’s part number. Table 1, “Verify the system’s BIOS” below shows which BIOS version the system is using:

Part Number| ASTi Software Version| Red Hat Version| BIOS Version
---|---|---|---
VS-REC-SYS VSH-57310-89| v2.0 and later| THE 7| Q17MX/AX
VS-REC-SYS VSH-27210-86| v1.0–1.1| THE 6| Q67AX

Table 1: Verify the system’s BIOS

4.1 BIOS Q17MX or Q17AX
To set up BIOS version Q17MX or Q17AX, follow these steps:

1. Reboot the server, and immediately press Del as the system boots to enter BIOS Setup Utility.

2. Press F3 to open “Load Optimal Defaults?”, and select Yes.

3. On Main, set System Date and System Time using Greenwich Mean Time.

4. Go to Chipset > PCH-IO Configuration, and set the following:
   a. Onboard LAN1 Controller to Enabled
   b. Onboard LAN2 Controller to Enabled
   c. System State After Power Failure to Always On

5. Press Esc. Go to Chipset > System Agent (SA) Configuration, and set VT-d to Enabled.

6. Press Esc. Go to Advanced > CSM Configuration, and set Network to Legacy.

7. To save and reset, press F4. A confirmation message requests, “Save configuration and reset?” Select Yes.

8. As the system reboots, press Del to return to BIOS Setup Utility.

9. Go to Advanced > CPU Configuration, and set the following:
   a. Hyper-threading to Disabled
   b. Intel Virtualization Technology to Enabled

10. Press Esc. Go to Advanced > SATA Configuration, and set SATA Mode Selection to AHCI.

11. Press Esc. Go to Super IO Configuration > Serial Port 1 Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

12. Press Esc. Go to Serial Port 2 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

13. Press Esc. Go to Serial Port 3 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

14. Press Esc. Go to Serial Port 4 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

15. Press Esc. Go to Serial Port 5 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

16. Press Esc. Go to Serial Port 6 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

17. Press Esc twice, go to Boot, and set the Boot Option Priorities as follows:
    a. Boot Option #1 to the DVD drive
    b. Boot Option #2 to the hard drive option
    c. Boot Option #3 to the network option
    d. Boot Option #4 for Disabled
    Note: Hardware names and model numbers may vary depending on your hardware type.

18. To save and reset, press F4. When the “Save configuration and reset?” message appears, select Yes. Wait as the server reboots.

4.2 BIOS Q67AX 2.14.1219 and later
To set up BIOS Q67AX 2.14.1219 and later, follow these steps:

1. Reboot the server, and immediately press Del as the system boots to enter BIOS Setup Utility.

2. Press F3, and set “Load Optimized Defaults?” to Yes.

3. On Main, set System Date and System Time using Greenwich Mean Time.

4. Go to Chipset > PCH-IO Configuration, and set the following:
   a. Onboard LAN1 Controller to Enabled
   b. Onboard LAN2 Device to Enabled
   c. Restore AC Power Loss to Power On

5. Press Esc. Go to Chipset > System Agent (SA) Configuration, and set VT-d to Enabled.

6. presses. Go to Boot > CSM parameters, and set Launch PXE OpROM policy to Legacy only.

7. To save and reset, press F4. A confirmation message requests, “Save configuration and reset?” Select Yes.

8. As the system reboots, press Del to return to BIOS Setup Utility.

9. Press Esc. Go to Advanced > CPU Configuration, and set the following:
   a. Hyper-threading to Disabled
   b. Intel Virtualization Technology to Enabled

10. Press Esc. Go to SATA Configuration, and set SATA Mode Selection to AHCI.

11. Press Esc. Go to SMART Settings, and set SMART Self Test to Enabled.

12. Press Esc. Go to Super IO Configuration > COM1 Port Configuration, and set  Serial Port to Disabled.

13. Press Esc. Go to COM2 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

14. Press Esc. Set CIR Controller to Disabled.

15. Press Esc. Go to Second Super IO Configuration > COM3 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

16. Press Esc. Go to COM4 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

17. Press Esc. Go to COM5 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

18. Press Esc. Go to COM6 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

19. Press Esc twice, and go to Third Super IO Configuration > COM7 Port Configuration.
    Set Serial Port to Disabled.

20. Press Esc. Go to COM8 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

21. Press Esc. Go to COM9 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

22. Press Esc. Go to COM10 Port Configuration, and set Serial Port to Disabled.

23. Press Esc twice, go to Boot, and set Boot Option Priorities as follows:
    a. Boot Option #1 to the DVD drive option
    b. Boot Option #2 to the hard drive option
    c. Boot Option #3 to the network option
    Note: Hardware names and model numbers may vary depending on your hardware type.

24. Press Esc. Go to Network Device BBS Priorities, and set the following:
    a. Boot Option #2 to Disabled
    b. Boot Option #3 to Disabled (if present)
    c. Boot Option #4 to Disabled (if present)
    d. Boot Option #5 to Disabled (if present)
    e. Boot Option #6 to Disabled (if present)
    Note: The number of boot options may vary depending on your external Ethernet configuration.

25. To save and reset, press F4. When the “Save configuration and reset?” message appears, select Yes. Wait as the server reboots.

(Optional) Perform a media check

Follow the instructions below to verify the integrity of the Comms Logger installation media.
This procedure is useful if you suspect a problem with your DVD. The verification will fail if a file on the DVD is unreadable due to scratches or marks. The DVD contents should only be verified once, whether you are cold- starting one or several systems with the same DVD.

Caution: If verification succeeds, the cold start procedure automatically starts, erasing your hard drive. You cannot perform a media check separately from the cold start procedure.

To verify DVD contents, follow these steps:

1. Turn on the Comms Logger server. As it boots, insert the Comms Logger Software Installation DVD into the disc drive within 10 seconds of turning it on.
   Important: If the Comms Logger server boots from the hard drive, reboot the system, and hold the Alt key as it restarts.

2. At the boot prompt, enter media check, and press Enter.

3. The screen displays “Starting media check on device,” where the device represents the hardware device’s name. To abort the check, press Esc. The test takes approximately five to ten minutes to complete.

4. If the media check passes, the cold start procedure automatically begins. If DVD verification fails, the screen displays a “System halted” message. In that case, contact ASTi
   to receive new software DVDs.

Comms Logger cold start procedure for Red Hat 7. X

To complete the Comms Logger cold start procedure for Red Hat 7. X, follow these steps:

1. Connect a monitor, keyboard, and mouse to the Comms Logger server.

2. Turn on the server.

3. Insert the Comms Logger Software Installation DVD, and reboot the server.

4. When the Comms Logger welcome screen appears, press Enter to begin installing the software. Wait 10–15 minutes for the installation to complete. Depending on your network configuration, iSCSI installation may take 20–25 minutes to complete.

5. Eject and/or remove the Comms Logger Software Installation DVD.

6. Reboot the server.
   Important: If the system hangs after reboot, press the RESET button on the front of the chassis.

7. Log into the system using the following default credentials:
   Username| Password
   ---|---
   root| abcd1234

8. (Optional) To set the IP address and subnet mask, enter ace-net-config -a xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx -n yyy.yyy.yyy.yyy, where xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx is the IP address and yyy.yyy.yyy.yyy is the netmask.
   This configuration sets the IP address and netmask for Eth0, which you can use to access the Comms Logger web interface via a browser to complete the network setup.

9. (Optional) For more network settings, enter ace-net-config -h, and press Enter.

10. To activate the changes, enter reboot, and press Enter.

Restore the Comms Logger system

To restore the data saved in Section 3.0, “Back up the Comms Logger server” on page 4, follow these steps:

1. Open a web browser on a computer or tablet sharing a network with the Comms Logger server.
2. In the address bar, enter the Comms Logger server’s IP address.
3. Log into the Comms Logger web interface using the following default credentials:
   Username| Password
   ---|---
   admin| astirules
4. From the top right, go to Manage ( ) > Backup/Restore.
5. Select Browse, and find the backup on your local system.
6. Select .
7. When prompted, reboot the Comms Logger server.
8. Following reboot, log back into the web interface.
9. From the top right, go to Manage ( ) > Network Configuration.
10. On Network Configuration, go to Settings.
11. Under General Networking, in Cloud ID, enter a cloud ID for the Comms Logger server.
12. In the bottom right, under Pending Changes, select Save Changes.
13. In the top right, go to Scenario > Restart.
14. Ensure a valid USB License Key is installed on the Comms Logger server.

Appendix A: Memory Test
The Memory Test is a useful troubleshooting tool if you are experiencing problems such as system lockup, freezing, random rebooting, or graphics/screen distortion. ASTi recommends running this test several times to ensure that the memory is fully functional. You may wish to run the test overnight.

This Memory Test procedure applies to the Red Hat 6. X operating system. To complete the Memory Test, follow these steps:

1. Turn on the Comms Logger server.
2. Insert the Comms Logger Software Installation DVD, and reboot the server.
3. At the prompt, enter memtest, and press Enter. For best results, let the Memory Test run overnight.
4. The Memory Test will run indefinitely until manually stopped. To stop the Memory Test, press the Esc key. If the Memory Test failed, contact ASTi for assistance.
5. To restore the Comms Logger to service, remove the DVD, restart the server, and wait for it to reboot.

Appendix B: RAID arrays
The Comms Logger server comes with two removable RAID1 drives that store recording.
You will need to complete these configuration instructions if you install a new RAID array or wipe your drive (e.g., for security reasons). Before starting, make sure you have already completed the Comms Logger cold start procedure described in Section 6.0, “Comms Logger cold start procedure for Red Hat 7. X” on page 11.

This chapter discusses the following topics:

• RAID array configuration
• RAID array verification

B-1 Configure the RAID array
To set up the RAID array, follow these steps:

1. For hardened systems, log into the system with the following credentials:
   Username| Password
   ---|---
   astiadmin| admin

To switch to the root user account, do the following:
a. Enter su, and press Enter.
b. Enter the root password (i.e., abcd1234 by default), and press Enter.
For non-hardened systems, log into the system directly as root:

2. At the prompt, enter ace-dis cap-setup-raid1, and press Enter. If the command is successful, the system generates a lengthy output that ends with the following:
   Creating a file system may take a few minutes Finished setting up raid1 array Make sure there is a current recording running *created and started recording {rid recording ID} Making sure describe directory is created and has the right permissions !!! please restart the machine !!!

3. Reboot the server.

4. Log into the system using the following default credentials:
   Username| Password
   ---|---
   root| abcd1234

5. To verify the drive configuration, enter cat /proc/mdstat, and press Enter.

6. The screen displays resync=N.N%, where N.N is the completed resync percentage.
   Wait for approximately one to two hours for the resync to finish.
   Note: The system will not resync if you previously configured the drives as a RAID (e.g., you removed and reinstalled the drives to replace a failed motherboard).
   Instead, the system will generate a successful output, as described below.

7. Run cat /proc/mdstat periodically to check the resync status. When the system is finished resyncing, it generates an output similar to the following:
   Personalities: [raid1] md0 : active raid1 sdb[0] sdc[1] 488386496 blocks [2/2] [UU] unused devices:
   The numbering of the sub, sdc, and blocks may vary depending on your configuration.
   Important: If an (F) appears next to sdb or sdc (e.g., sdb0 or sdc1), the drive has failed. Contact ASTi at support@asti- usa.com for assistance.

8. Reboot the server.

B-2 Verify the RAID drives’ status
To verify the RAID drives are correctly configured, follow these steps:

1. Log into the system using the following default credentials:
   Username| Password
   ---|---
   root| abcd1234
2. To obtain the Comms Logger server’s IP address, at the prompt, enter /sbin/ifconfig/eth0, and press Enter.
3. Write down the Comms Logger server’s IP address (e.g., xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx).
4. Open a web browser on a computer or tablet sharing a network with the Comms Logger server.
5. In the address bar, enter the Comms Logger server’s IP address.
6. Log into the Comms Logger web interface using the following default credentials:
   Username| Password
   ---|---
   admin| astirules
7. Under RAID Status, verify Drive A and Drive B display “Up:”

Revision F
Version 3
June 2022
Document DOC-UC-CL-CS-F-3
Advanced Simulation Technology inc.
500A Huntmar Park Drive • Herndon, Virginia 20170 USA
703-471-2104 • Asti-usa.com
Comms Logger Cold Start Guide
© Copyright ASTi 2022
Restricted rights: copy and use of this document are subject to terms provided in ASTi’s Software
License Agreement (www.asti-usa.com/license.html).
Asti
500A Huntmar Park Drive
Herndon, Virginia 20170 USA
Copyright © 2022 Advanced Simulation Technology inc.

References

• ASTi
• USA Location information - USA.com
• ASTi Software License Agreement
• Activate App
• Export Control Product Matrix
• ASTi Software License Agreement
• Activate App

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