HP StorageWorks Advanced Web Tools 7.4.X Administrator Guide (AA-RVHFC-TE, September 2005)

Advanced Web Tools 7.4.x administrator guide 11
1 Introducing Advanced Web Tools
This chapter provides an overview of HP StorageWords XPath OS Advanced Web Tools, its basic features,
components, page contents, and layout. Also included are basic instructions for using Advanced Web
Tools. This chapter contains the following sections:
• Advanced Web Tools advantages and capabilities, next
• Supported operating systems and browsers, page 12
• Supported platforms, page 12
• Launching Advanced Web Tools, page 13
• Switch Explorer, page 13
• Switch Manager, page 15
• Logging in to perform administrative tasks, page 18
Advanced Web Tools advantages and capabilities
Advanced Web Tools is a graphical user interface (GUI) that enables administrators to monitor and
manage fabrics, switches, and ports from a standard workstation. It is an optionally licensed product that
runs on the XPath OS.
Advanced Web Tools provides the administrative control point for fabric services, such as zoning, trunking,
and performance monitoring. Advanced Web Tools also provides an interface to telnet commands to
perform special switch functions and diagnostics that are available only through the telnet interface.
Advanced Web Tools has two components: Switch Explorer and Switch Manager. These components run
in a web browser on a host connected to an MP Router through a private intranet or the Internet. Switch
Explorer and Switch Manager are described later in this chapter.
NOTE: You can access MP Routers simultaneously from different connections (for example, Advanced
Web Tools, CLI, and API). If you do this, changes from one connection might not be updated to the other,
and some modifications might be lost. Make sure, when you connect with simultaneous multiple
connections, that you do not overwrite the work of another connection.
Advantages
Advanced Web Tools is an excellent partner to the traditional XPath OS CLI, and in many ways it can
provide faster and more effective results than can be achieved through the CLI.
The following are some of the features that make Advanced Web Tools an important part of the switch
management and administration process:
• It is easy to use and has an intuitive interface.
• It can be used from a standard workstation.
• It allows you to be “in front” (virtually) of any fabric, switch, or port.
• It makes zoning a simple “click” process, rather than requiring you to enter world wide names (WWNs)
and port numbers to create a zoning configuration.
• It provides a performance monitoring interface, enabling you to the view status and traffic on a switch
or port in seconds by creating a variety of graphs.