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Version 2.0.0 5
Auto-Discovery Network Setup Specification
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1 Purpose
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The Dell Auto-Discovery Network Setup Specification (DCIM2003) was prepared by Dell Enterprise
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Product Group Engineering. The Auto-Discovery feature enables the remote provisioning of servers out-
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of-the-box without the need for an individual setup of every server. The information in this specification is
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sufficient for a server administrator to prepare the network infrastructure for automated discovery and
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remote configuration. Specifically, this document describes a set of procedures that can be used for the
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Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller (iDRAC) service processor in the Dell server to receive an IP
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address of a trusted provisioning server. This IP address is used to establish communication to receive a
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username and password for subsequent configurations using WS-Management Web Services protocol
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(WS-Man) or iDRAC RACADM command line utility from a remote console. Therefore, the end goal of
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this set of procedures is the acquisition (discovery) of an IP address by the iDRAC service processor of a
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management console that is hosting a provisioning server.
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2 Scope
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The procedures described in this document detail what occurs after the power and Ethernet cables are
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attached to the server until the time that a management console provisioning server IP address is
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discovered by the server service processor (iDRAC). The document does not cover the details of remote
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configuration, since it occurs after the discovery phase using WS-Man or the remote RACADM command-
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line utility for the iDRAC, for information on these topics consult the iDRAC Web Services Interface Guide
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or the iDRAC RACADM Users Guide. An alternative to Auto-Discovery is to set up a static IP address
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and user credentials at the server for every machine in the installation. The advantage this set of
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procedures provides is the ability to set up a specified remote provisioning user account without being
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present at every server. Using this procedure provides the added benefit of populating the management
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console inventory systems with service tags and iDRAC IP address of new servers that are ready to be
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provisioned as they are initially connected to the management network and plugged into AC power,
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although this is not the topic of this paper. This document specifies the first step: the discovery of a
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management console provisioning server IP address by a newly installed and powered Dell server.
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3 Audience
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The target audiences for this specification are the following groups:
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1. Server administrators responsible for Dell server installations
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2. Network administrators servicing Dell server installations
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This is required information for the implementation of Auto-Discovery installations, as it describes the
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DHCP and DNS servers configuration requirements on either the management network or the network
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connected to the iDRAC service processor.
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4 References
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RFC 2782, A DNS RR for specifying the location of services (DNS SRV)
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RFC 2131, Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol
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RFC 1035, Domain Names – Implementation and Specification
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RFC 2132, DHCP Options and BOOTP Vendor Extensions
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