Owner's Manual

Bare Metal Provisioning (BMP) - Config | 17

Bare Metal Provisioning

Bare metal provisioning (BMP) is included as part of the Dell Networking Operating

System (OS) image. BMP is supported on the S4810, S4820T, S6000, Z9000, Z9500

and MXL switch platforms.

Introduction

BMP improves operational efficiency to the system by automatically loading

pre-defined configurations and Dell Networking OS images using standard protocols

such as dynamic host configuration protocol (DHCP) and common file transfer

mechanisms.

Bare metal provisioning:

• Reduces the time to install and configure the network device.

• Helps eliminate configuration errors and ensure consistent configurations.

• Functions on a single system or on multiple systems.

• Includes SNMP support.

• Includes support for pre- and post configuration scripts.

How it Works

With BMP, the system can retrieve a configuration file or a preconfiguration script

indicated in the DHCP offer. Using the preconfiguration script, you can:

• Verify the integrity of the boot image downloaded from the DHCP offer.

• Decide what type of configurations you want to apply based on factors such as

your network reachability, port status, and neighbor discovery.

• Monitor your CPU and memory utilization, your port traffic status, or perform

link and topology checking with link layer discovery protocol (LLDP).

• Retrieve and apply the configuration from a central repository.

If you disable BMP, autoexec support is provided in the Normal mode. Using the

autoexec feature, you can apply script-based configurations at the start-up.