User's Manual
Table Of Contents
- Contents
- Notes, Cautions, and Warnings
- Overview
- Dell Management Plug-in Configuration
- Understanding How To Configure or Edit the Dell Management Plug-in
- Dell Management Plug-In Home Page
- Configuration Wizard Welcome Page
- Creating A New Connection Profile [Wizard]
- Configuring Events And Alarms [Wizard]
- Setting Up A Proxy Server [Wizard]
- Scheduling Inventory Jobs [Wizard]
- Running A Warranty Retrieval Job [Wizard]
- Configuring the Deployment Credentials [Wizard]
- Setting The Default Firmware Update Repository [Wizard]
- Enabling The OMSA Link [Wizard]
- Configuring Dell iDRAC Auto-Discovery And Initial Start-up
- Configuring NFS Shares
- Settings Overview
- About Host, Bare Metal, and iDRAC Compliance Issues
- Upgrading Dell Management Plug-In For VMware VCenter
- About Dell Management Plug-in Licensing
- End-To-End Hardware Management
- Monitoring the Datacenter And Host System
- vSphere Client Host Overview
- About Inventory Schedule
- Viewing Storage Inventory
- Viewing Host Power Monitoring
- Displaying The Entire Datacenter Hardware Configuration And Status
- Managing Connection Profiles
- Understanding System Event Logs In vSphere Client Host View
- About Firmware Updates
- Advanced Host Management Using vCenter
- Zero-Touch Hardware Provisioning And Deployment
- Hardware Prerequisites
- Provisioning Overview
- Understanding Deployment Job Times
- Server States Within The Deployment Sequence
- Downloading Custom Dell ISO Images
- Understanding How To Configure A Hardware Profile
- About Managing Hardware Profiles
- Creating A New Hypervisor Profile
- Managing Hypervisor Profiles
- Building A New Deployment Template
- Running The Deployment Wizard
- Deployment Wizard - Step 1: Select Servers
- Deployment Wizard Step 2: Deployment Templates
- Deployment Wizard Step 3: Global Settings
- Deployment Wizard Step 4: Server Identification
- Deployment Wizard Step 5: Connection Profile
- Deployment Wizard Step 6: Scheduling Jobs
- Understanding Job Queue
- Adding A Server Manually
- Removing A Bare Metal Server
- Dell Management Plug-In Administration
- Web-based Administration Portal
- Managing vCenter Server Connections
- Virtual Appliance Management
- Setting Up Global Alerts
- Managing Backup And Restore
- Understanding vSphere Client Console Tab
- Troubleshooting
- Upgrading Issues
- Common Questions
- How Do I Test Event Settings By Using OMSA To Simulate A Temperature Hardware Fault?
- I Have The OMSA Agent Installed On A Dell Host System, But I Still Get An Error Message That OMSA Is Not Installed.What Should I Do?
- Can The Dell Management Plug-in Support ESX/ESXI with Lockdown Mode Enabled?
- Inventory is Failing on Hosts ESXi 4.0 Update2 and ESXi Update 3 in Lockdown Mode After a Reboot.
- When I tried to use lockdown mode, it failed.
- What Setting Should I Use For UserVars.CIMoeMProviderEnable With ESXi 4.1 U1?
- I Am Using A Reference Server To Create A Hardware Profile But It Failed. What Should I Do?
- I Am Attempting To Deploy ESX/ESXi On A Blade Server And It Failed. What Should I Do?
- Why Do I See Auto-discovered Systems Without Model Information In The Deployment Wizard
- The NFS Share Is Set Up With The ESX/ESXI ISO, But Deployment Fails With Errors Mounting The Share Location.
- How Do I Force Removal Of The Virtual Appliance?
- Entering A Password In The Backup Now Screen Receives An Error Message
- In vSphere, Clicking The Dell Server Management Tab Or Dell Management Icon Returns A 404 Error
- My Firmware Update Failed. What Do I Do?
- My vCenter Update Failed. What Can I Do?
- Performance during Connection Profile Test Credentials is extremely slow or unresponsive
- Bare Metal Deployment Issues
- Contacting Dell
- Where To Get Additional Help For This Software
- Dell Management Plug-in For VMware vCenter Related Information
- Virtualization—Related Events
About Firmware Updates
The location where servers receive firmware updates is a global setting that is available in the Dell Management Center.
The firmware repository is set up in the Dell Management Center, but updates are run on the specific Dell Host tab in
vSphere Client.
Firmware repository settings contain the firmware catalog location used to update deployed servers. There are two
location types:
Dell (ftp.dell.com) Uses the firmware update repository of Dell (ftp.dell.com). The Dell Management Plug-In
downloads selected firmware updates from Dell.
Local/shared repository Created with Dell Repository Manager™. These local repositories are located on CIFS or NFS
file share.
NOTE: Once the repository is created, save it to a location that the registered hosts can access. Repository
passwords cannot exceed 31 characters. Do not use any of the following characters in a password: @, &, %, ', ", ,
(comma), < >
The Firmware Update Wizard always checks for the minimum firmware levels for iDRAC, BIOS, and Lifecycle Controller,
and attempts to update them to required minimum versions. Once iDRAC, Lifecycle, and BIOS firmware versions meet
minimum requirements, the Firmware Update wizard allows updates for all firmware including: iDRAC, Lifecycle
Controller, RAID, NIC/LOM, Power Supply, BIOS, and so on.
NOTE: For 9th and 10th generation servers, BIOS/BMC/DRAC firmware versions are viewable only at the Cluster
View level in vCenter or on the Overview page of the individual host view. Firmware version information is not
active in the individual host view under Firmware, and that page appears grayed out, and remote firmware updates
are not available.
Firmware Versions After October 14, 2010
For Firmware updated on or after October 14th, 2010, the Firmware Update Wizard runs.
Firmware Versions Newer Than July 29, 2009 and Prior to October 14th
If your firmware was updated on or after July 29, 2009 and prior to October 14, 2010, you still will not see the Firmware
Update Wizard, but you are delivered an ISO bundle to update your firmware. After this update, you may not have the
latest firmware. After you run the bundle, it is recommended that you run the update again.
Firmware Versions Older than July 29, 2009
If your firmware is older than July 29, 2009, you may have to download and run the ISO file to update your machines.
After you run the ISO, it is recommended that you run the Firmware Update Wizard again.
Related Information:
• Setting Up The Firmware Repository And Credentials
• Running the Firmware Update Wizard
• Updating Older Firmware Versions
Running The Firmware Update Wizard
This functionality is only available for 11th generation Dell servers that have either an iDRAC Express or Enterprise card.
When your firmware was installed on or after October 14th, 2010, you can automatically update your firmware versions
using the Firmware Update Wizard.
To run the Firmware Update Wizard:
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