Dell Openmanage Storage Management Download
I recently acquired a couple of Dell PowerEdge R310 servers. These are now part of my testing environment and although not exactly cutting-edge technology, they do the job just fine. Incidentally, these servers are an excellent choice for a home lab as you can find them dirt cheap especially on eBay.
- Storage Management Wikipedia
- Dell Openmanage Software Download
- Dell Openmanage Storage Management Download Free
Intelligent management of the supporting IT infrastructure can help you realize the full value of these investments. Dell EMC OpenManage FlexSelect lets you choose the management features that meet your needs across the IT infrastructure or for a specific project.
An added bonus is the fact that ESXi 6.5 U1 installed like a charm first time around. No issues whatsoever. I used this custom Dell ESXi ISO image to mitigate against missing drivers and I now have both servers running in a cluster. Note that the R310 is not supported by VMware for 6.5 use. This means you lose support should you require it. You can read my How to use VMware compatibility tools post to learn on how to rule out hardware and software compatibility issues.
The Server Administrator Storage Management Service enables you to view the status of local and remote storage attached to a monitored system. The Storage Management Service obtains logical and physical information about attached storage devices from the Array Manager managed system. Dell OpeManage Server Administrator installation v7.2 allows you to install 'Server Administrator' in a granular way on Windows OS flavors where you can choose not to install management interfaces.
The subject of today’s post is the Dell OpenManage suite of management products. These tools will help you to better manage your Dell-based server and network infrastructure. The one product I’ll be covering today is Dell OpenManage Server Administrator, OMSA for short.
- Dell OpenManage Server Administrator: download link? It's available in the driver downloads for a server in the System Management section. Dell OpenManage.
- Where can I download the latest version of OpenManager Server Administrator? Aside from OMSA, what other tools and management software do we need for Dell servers and storage? My experience with Dell servers and storage is not as good as the HP ones. When I was hired, my first project was to install OpenManage on all 130 of our Dell.
Installing OMSA on ESXi is a 2 or 3-part process. The first step is to install a VIB on ESXi which reports back to a free OMSA Web Server component installed separately on a Windows server. Optionally, you can also install the OpenManage Integration for VMware vCenter appliance on vCenter Server which gives you access to features other than what’s available via the Web Server. The Integration appliance can be evaluated, fully, for a 90-day period up to 5 hosts.
If you have a Dell server you likely want the Dell Management tools but it can be confusing to figure out which product you need. Below is a quick summary of Dell OpenManage products: Dell OpenManage Server Manager: OMSA is the core free product that needs to be installed on each server. OMSA provides an easy to use web interface that displays. About Dell EMC OpenManage Enterprise OpenManage Enterprise is a systems management and monitoring application that provides a comprehensive view of the Dell EMC servers, chassis, storage, and network switches on the enterprise network. With OpenManage Enterprise, a web-based and one‑to‑many systems management application, you can.
This post covers the process of deploying the OMSA VIB to ESXi 6.5.
Downloading and Installing the OpenManage VIB
First things first, download your applicable version of the OMSA VIB from here. You’ll find that there’s a corresponding version for every ESXi release. In my case, I selected 8.5 since I’m deploying it to ESXi 6.5.
Download links for the OMSA VIB
When it comes to deploying the OMSA VIB, you can either install it manually using the esxcli shell command or via vSphere Update Manager if you have vCenter Server installed. The latter is the preferred option when you have a sizable amount of hosts to patch, or deploy VIBS to.
The Manual Way
After you download the OMSA VIB file, upload it to the host using Datastore Browser. If ESXi is vCenter managed, use the vSphere Web client or the HTML5 vSphere client instead. For standalone instances, use the embedded host client. Alternatively, use an SCP client to transfer the VIB file to the host.
Once uploaded, enable SSH on the ESXi host and use putty, or similar, to log in as root.
Using the ESXi host client to upload the OMSA VIB to a datastore
Run the following command from the shell command. Substitute datastore with the name of the datastore to which the OMSA VIB has been uploaded.
Installing OMSA from the command line using esxcli
Note: In the screenshot above, the VIB was not installed since I already had it installed it.
The vSphere Update Manager Method
You can also install OMSA using the vSphere Update Manager (VUM). To do this, we first need to add the Dell patch repository link to the list of download sources. First, using the vSphere Web client, click on the Update Manager icon on the Home screen and click again on the vCenter Server name.
Navigate to Settings -> Download Settings and hit the topmost Edit button.
Adding Dell’s patch repository link to Update Manager
Click the Add button on the next dialog. In the Source URL field type http://vmwaredepot.dell.com/index.xml. The Description is optional. Press OK.
Adding Dell’s patch repository link to Update Manager Quick launch bar win 7.
Click on the Download Now button to connect to and download the patch definitions from the Dell site.
Updating the patch definitions for vSphere Update Manager
Once the Download patch definitions task is done running (check the Recent Tasks pane), click on the Patch Repository tab and sort the patches by name by clicking on the first column’s header. You should see several versions of the OpenManage VIBs listed as shown next.
A list of Dell patches available from the repository
Switch to the Host Baselines tab and create a new host baseline called Dell Software. Select the Host Extension option for the baseline type. Press Next.
On the Extensions screen, locate and select the appropriate OMSA VIB. Since I’m deploying to ESXi 6.5, I selected Open Manage 8.5.0 for ESXi650 as shown. Press Next, and Finish on the subsequent dialog screen, to complete the baseline creation process.
Choosing which patches to add to a baseline
In vSphere Web Client, switch to Host and Clusters view and attach the newly created host baseline to an ESXi host, or a cluster if you have one.
Select the ESXi host (2) you want to patch, switch to the Update Manager tab (3) and click on Attach Baseline (4). On the next dialog box, select the previously created host baseline (5) and click OK. After closing the Attach Baseline … dialog click on Scan for Updates (7) and click OK (8).
Wait for the Scan entity task to complete.
A scan entity task in progress
The OMSA 8.5 VIB should now be listed in the Compliance Status pane unless it was installed beforehand. To install the VIB, click on the Remediate button.
A non-compliant ESXi host. The patches that need applying are marked with a red-cross icon
The remediation wizard beings by prompting you to select the type and baseline to remediate. In this case, we select Extension Baselines and tick the check-box next to Dell Software, the host baseline we created earlier. Press Next to continue.
Select the target ESXi host i.e. the host on which the VIB is being deployed. Press Next.
Selecting the target ESXi host to remediate
Since the baseline selected may consist of multiple patches, you’re given the option to select which ones to apply. In this example, there’s just one to choose from which is automatically selected for you. Press Next.
Selecting which patches to apply to the target ESXi host
The Advanced Options screen is where you schedule patch deployments for a later date and time. You can also suppress warnings related to unsupported hardware and configurations. Press Next.
On the Host Remediation Options screen, you get to set a number of options. These include the option to disconnect media devices from virtual machines such as mounted ISOs, which may prevent ESXi from entering maintenance mode. It’s best to leave the settings to their default. Press Next.
Host remediation options
If the host is part of a cluster you can opt to disable HA admission control and migrate powered off VMs to another host in the cluster before a host is put in maintenance mode.
Cluster remediation options are set to ensure that the host can enter maintenance mode for instance
Once you’re done setting the options, press Finish to remediate. Optionally, clicking on the Pre-check Remediation allows you to analyze the effects of the remediation task.
You can optionally run a pre-check remediation task before running the actual remediation task
Wait for the Remediate Entity task to complete. The host will enter maintenance mode after a short while. It will then reboot when the OMSA VIB finishes installing. Once the host is back online, it will exit maintenance mode when the remediation task completes.
ESXi host about to reboot after application of OMSA VIB
In the second part of this mini-series, I’ll cover the process of installing the OMSA Web application as well as the vCenter Server plug-in. Both components will enable you to connect and manage the Dell Server hosting your ESXi instance. Here’s a taster of what’s next.
The web-based component of OpenManage Server Administrator seen here managing a Dell R310 server running ESX 6.5 U1
Until then, do have a look at the other posts on this blog while keeping an eye out for this post’s sequel.
Your thoughts on Dell OpenManage Server Administrator
Have you followed the steps in this guide? If so, please let me know how you got on. If you’ve experienced any problems with the steps above, I’m here to help out. Finally, if you have anything on your mind about Dell OpenManage Server Administrator – installing it on ESXi or otherwiese – let me know in the comment section below. I’m here to help you!
OpenManage, a Dell, Inc. product, consists of a number of network management and systems management applications. Although the name sounds like open source software, it is closed source.
- 1OpenManage Applications
OpenManage Applications[edit]
Dell OpenManage is a set of systems management applications built using industry standard protocols and specifications. Dell OpenManage is not a product within itself, but rather a brand name for the suite of products in the portfolio.
ITA - IT Assistant[edit]
Dell OpenManage IT Assistant is a standards-based console for managing Dell servers, storage arrays, tape libraries, network switches, printers, and clients distributed throughout a network. From a central console, one can gain increased control over the availability of Dell platforms through proactive alerts and notification.
Dell IT Assistant identifies systems experiencing problems and alerts the administrator — helping reduce the risk of system downtime. Using the web-enabled graphical user interface, you can monitor systems anywhere within your network.
Storage Management Wikipedia
NOTE: IT Assistant has been replaced by Dell OpenManage Essentials.
OMNM – OpenManage Network Manager[edit]
Dell EMC OpenManage™ Network Manager (OMNM) monitors and manages multi-vendor networks for vendors such as Dell, Aruba, Cisco, Brocade, Juniper, and HP. OMNM provides a unified management system and automates common network management operations for advanced network element discovery, configuration management, and system health monitoring to proactively alert network administrators to potential network problems.
Examples of OMNM functionality include: Auto Discovery; Configuration File Back-up, Restore and Deploy; Equipment Management; Equipment Group Management; Event Management; Audit Tracking; Reporting; Compliance; Scheduling; Fault and Performance Management; OS/Firmware Management; and Network Topology. This product is based on Cruz by Dorado Software through an OEM relationship between the two companies.
OMSA – OpenManage Server Administrator[edit]
OpenManage Server Administrator allows system administrators to manage individual servers in two ways: from an integrated, web-browser-based graphical-user-interface (GUI) and from a command-line interface (CLI) through the operating system. Server Administrator is designed for system administrators to manage systems locally and remotely on a network.
Compare Dell Systems Management Server Administrator (DSM SA).[1]
SUU - Server Update Utility[edit]
Dell OpenManage Server Update Utility is a dual layer DVD-based application for identifying and applying updates to your system. You can use SUU to update your Dell PowerEdge system or to view the updates available for any system supported by SUU. SUU compares the versions of components currently installed on your system with update components packaged on the Dell PowerEdge Server Update Utility DVD. SUU then displays a comparison report of the versions and provides the option of updating the components.
Content Manager[edit]
Content Manager ships on the Dell OpenManage Systems Build and Update Utility CD. Content Manager allows you to download Dell Update Packages (DUPs) from the official Dell support website. These packages are then kept in Custom Repositories where you can choose which PowerEdge servers and types of OS updates to store.
Content Manager also has a task to compare your custom repository to the latest downloads available from the official Dell support website.
Dell Openmanage Software Download
When the Custom Repositories are created, the Server Update Utility (SUU), both GUI and CMD versions, are included in the repository. This allows you to map a network drive from your servers to the repository and update the servers from a single location knowing that it contains the latest drivers from the official Dell support site.
Note: Content Manager is no longer shipping or supported and has been replaced by Dell Repository Manager
DTK - Deployment Toolkit[edit]
The Dell OpenManage Deployment Toolkit (DTK) includes a set of utilities for configuring and deploying Dell PowerEdge systems. The DTK is designed for customers who need to build scripted installations to deploy large numbers of servers in a reliable fashion without having to dramatically change their current deployment processes.
In addition to the command line utilities used to configure various system features, the DTK also provides sample scripts and configuration files to perform common deployment tasks and documentation. These files and scripts describe the use of DTK in Microsoft Windows Preinstallation Environment (Windows PE) and embedded Linux environments.
The benefits of the DTK:
- Provides the tools necessary to automate the pre-operating system configuration tasks and the unattended operating system installation tasks when deploying PowerEdge systems.
- Scales to support from one to many system deployment efforts.
- Facilitates consistent system configurations across multiple systems.
- Provides diverse and useful deployment tools that can be utilized in many different ways.
Sources[edit]
External links[edit]
- Historic Dell OpenManage Community wiki - OpenManage Demos, White Papers, weekly chat sessions, collaborative learning areas. (Other than a November 2011 notice that the wiki is no longer being updated, there have been no substantive updates to the OpenManage Wiki since 2007.[2])
- OpenManage Resources - Application Demos, Collateral, Dell Power Solutions Articles, Industry Analyst Reports, and White Papers
References[edit]
- ^'Dell OpenManage Server Administrator Version 6.2: User's Guide'. Dell Inc. December 2009. p. 107. Retrieved 2013-02-25.
[..] the Dell Systems Management Server Administrator (DSM SA) Data Manager service must be configured as an interactive service.
- ^http://en.community.dell.com/techcenter/systems-management/w/wiki/openmanage-systems-management/history.aspx