supermicro | Any IT here? Help Me!

Booting network installation from ipxe disk using IPMI KVM

There is a project for extended PXE Boot features https://ipxe.org/. This article is not for describing what this project may offer, but to show how to boot any Linux distribution (in fact, Windows 10, too) network installation wizard using the virtual CD/DVD of an IPMI KVM, DELL’s DRAC, HP iLO, IBM RSA/IMM and in general, KVM over IP.
Using the iPXE CD bootable disk mounted in the virtual CD/DVD of the server’s remote console (IPMI KVM and so on) will allow:

Booting from a CD/DVD with only a 1M size.
Extends the PXE features of the server’s network card.
Manual set IP address, i.e. not relying on DHCP server. In addition of the DHCP feature, but DHCP feature requires DHCP server, which is not always the case.
Load a Linux kernel and initramfs from a URL.
Boot a Linux live or installation CD/DVD from an URL. The server could load the instllation wizard from an official mirror in the Internet.
Manual install – boot from 1M CD and continue with multi gigabyte installation from an URL. For comparision the CentOS 8 network installation disk is more than 600M versus 1M iPXE CD disk. Booting directly from a 600M CentOS 8 network installation disk is unstable and really slow when the disk is mounted in user’s KVM. And not alwyas is possible to mount a disk next to the server location (or in the same co-location).
Automated install – simple unattended installation with kickstart files without the need of speacial features of the dedicated service provider.
No software installation or code writting needed.

This article uses the iPXE CD to boot and manually set an IP and then load the Linux kernel and initramfs of the CentOS 8 installation disk using an official URL mirror on the Internet. All types of server’s KVM, which supports CD/DVD virtual device, can be used.

Just 1 Mbytes of CD/DVD is required to boot an installation of a (connected to the Internet) server/machine.

Here are the steps and correct (all lines are tested) command lines to boot an installation wizard. The server is a SUPERMICRO server with IPMI KVM for remote management.
The iPXE ISO file is located here http://boot.ipxe.org/ipxe.iso

SCREENSHOT 1) Open the IPMI KVM and click on “Virtual Storage” menu to open the image mount dialog.

Keep on reading!

Pages: 123

Supermicro H11DSU-iN and dual AMD EPYC 7282 with Linux installed – system (GCC flags),kernel and device information

Here is what you can expect if you have new Linux kernel 5.5.11 installed on with AMD EPYC 7282.

8x SATA Controllers – SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
4x Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation I350 Gigabit Network Connection (rev 01)
8x RAM DDIM in eight-channel mode

lspci – devices

Note there are 8 SATA controllers (SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)) for a total of 14 SATA3, 2 SATA DOM, 4 NVMe!

00:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Root Complex
00:00.2 IOMMU: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse IOMMU
00:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:05.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
00:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
00:14.0 SMBus: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SMBus Controller (rev 61)
00:14.3 ISA bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH LPC Bridge (rev 51)
00:18.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 0
00:18.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 1
00:18.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 2
00:18.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 3
00:18.4 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 4
00:18.5 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 5
00:18.6 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 6
00:18.7 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 7
00:19.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 0
00:19.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 1
00:19.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 2
00:19.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 3
00:19.4 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 4
00:19.5 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 5
00:19.6 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 6
00:19.7 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship Device 24; Function 7
01:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Function
01:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
02:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Reserved SPP
02:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
02:00.3 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship USB 3.0 Host Controller
20:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Root Complex
20:00.2 IOMMU: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse IOMMU
20:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:05.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
20:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
20:08.2 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
20:08.3 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
21:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Function
21:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
22:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Reserved SPP
22:00.1 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Cryptographic Coprocessor PSPCPP
22:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
22:00.3 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship USB 3.0 Host Controller
23:00.0 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
24:00.0 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
40:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Root Complex
40:00.2 IOMMU: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse IOMMU
40:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:01.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse GPP Bridge
40:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:05.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
40:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
40:08.2 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
40:08.3 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
41:00.0 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation I350 Gigabit Network Connection (rev 01)
41:00.1 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation I350 Gigabit Network Connection (rev 01)
41:00.2 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation I350 Gigabit Network Connection (rev 01)
41:00.3 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation I350 Gigabit Network Connection (rev 01)
42:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Function
42:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
43:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Reserved SPP
43:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
44:00.0 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
45:00.0 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
60:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Root Complex
60:00.2 IOMMU: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse IOMMU
60:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:03.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse GPP Bridge
60:03.2 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse GPP Bridge
60:03.3 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse GPP Bridge
60:03.4 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse GPP Bridge
60:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:04.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse GPP Bridge
60:05.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
60:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
63:00.0 USB controller: ASMedia Technology Inc. ASM1042A USB 3.0 Host Controller
64:00.0 USB controller: ASMedia Technology Inc. ASM1042A USB 3.0 Host Controller
65:00.0 PCI bridge: ASPEED Technology, Inc. AST1150 PCI-to-PCI Bridge (rev 04)
66:00.0 VGA compatible controller: ASPEED Technology, Inc. ASPEED Graphics Family (rev 41)
67:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Function
67:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
68:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Reserved SPP
68:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
80:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Root Complex
80:00.2 IOMMU: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse IOMMU
80:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
80:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
80:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
80:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
80:05.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
80:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
80:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
80:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
80:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
81:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Function
81:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
82:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Reserved SPP
82:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
82:00.3 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship USB 3.0 Host Controller
a0:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Root Complex
a0:00.2 IOMMU: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse IOMMU
a0:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
a0:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
a0:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
a0:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
a0:05.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
a0:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
a0:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
a0:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
a0:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
a0:08.2 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
a0:08.3 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
a1:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Function
a1:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
a2:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Reserved SPP
a2:00.1 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Cryptographic Coprocessor PSPCPP
a2:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
a2:00.3 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship USB 3.0 Host Controller
a3:00.0 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
a4:00.0 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
c0:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Root Complex
c0:00.2 IOMMU: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse IOMMU
c0:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
c0:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
c0:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
c0:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
c0:05.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
c0:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
c0:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
c0:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
c0:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
c0:08.2 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
c0:08.3 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
c1:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Function
c1:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
c2:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Reserved SPP
c2:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
c3:00.0 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
c4:00.0 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
e0:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Root Complex
e0:00.2 IOMMU: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse IOMMU
e0:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
e0:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
e0:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
e0:03.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse GPP Bridge
e0:03.2 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse GPP Bridge
e0:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
e0:05.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
e0:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
e0:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
e0:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
e0:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to bus[E:B]
e3:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PCIe Dummy Function
e3:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA
e4:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse Reserved SPP
e4:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Starship/Matisse PTDMA

Keep on reading!

Pages: 12

Supermicro H11SSL-i and AMD EPYC 7351P with Linux installed – system (GCC flags),kernel and device information

Here is what you can expect if you have new Linux kernel 5.0.1 installed on H11SSL-i with AMD EPYC 7351P. Here you can see what is inside the BIOS – Supermicro H11SSL-i BIOS screenshot review – AMD EPYC 7351P 16-Core Processor

3x SATA Controllers – SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
2x Ethernet Controllers – Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation I210 Gigabit Network Connection (rev 03)
8x RAM DDIM in eight-channel mode

lspci – devices

Note there are 3 SATA controllers (SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)) for a total of 16 SATA physical onboard ports (8 of them are ordinary SATA physical ports on the board and for the other 8 you will need a cable – Supermicro MiniSAS HD to 4 SATA)!

00:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Root Complex
00:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:01.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe GPP Bridge
00:01.2 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe GPP Bridge
00:01.4 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe GPP Bridge
00:01.5 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe GPP Bridge
00:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to Bus B
00:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
00:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to Bus B
00:14.0 SMBus: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SMBus Controller (rev 59)
00:14.3 ISA bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH LPC Bridge (rev 51)
00:18.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 0
00:18.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 1
00:18.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 2
00:18.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 3
00:18.4 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 4
00:18.5 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 5
00:18.6 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 6
00:18.7 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 7
00:19.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 0
00:19.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 1
00:19.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 2
00:19.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 3
00:19.4 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 4
00:19.5 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 5
00:19.6 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 6
00:19.7 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 7
00:1a.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 0
00:1a.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 1
00:1a.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 2
00:1a.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 3
00:1a.4 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 4
00:1a.5 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 5
00:1a.6 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 6
00:1a.7 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 7
00:1b.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 0
00:1b.1 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 1
00:1b.2 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 2
00:1b.3 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 3
00:1b.4 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 4
00:1b.5 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 5
00:1b.6 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 6
00:1b.7 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Data Fabric: Device 18h; Function 7
01:00.0 PCI bridge: ASPEED Technology, Inc. AST1150 PCI-to-PCI Bridge (rev 04)
02:00.0 VGA compatible controller: ASPEED Technology, Inc. ASPEED Graphics Family (rev 41)
03:00.0 USB controller: ASMedia Technology Inc. ASM1042A USB 3.0 Host Controller
04:00.0 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation I210 Gigabit Network Connection (rev 03)
05:00.0 Ethernet controller: Intel Corporation I210 Gigabit Network Connection (rev 03)
06:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 145a
06:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Platform Security Processor
06:00.3 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] USB 3.0 Host controller
07:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 1455
07:00.1 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 1468
07:00.2 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
20:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Root Complex
20:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:03.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe GPP Bridge
20:03.2 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe GPP Bridge
20:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to Bus B
20:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
20:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to Bus B
21:00.0 USB controller: ASMedia Technology Inc. ASM1042A USB 3.0 Host Controller
22:00.0 USB controller: ASMedia Technology Inc. ASM1042A USB 3.0 Host Controller
23:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 145a
23:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Platform Security Processor
23:00.3 USB controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] USB 3.0 Host controller
24:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 1455
24:00.1 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 1468
40:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Root Complex
40:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to Bus B
40:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
40:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to Bus B
41:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 145a
41:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Platform Security Processor
42:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 1455
42:00.1 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 1468
42:00.2 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)
60:00.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Root Complex
60:01.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:02.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:03.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:04.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:07.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:07.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to Bus B
60:08.0 Host bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) PCIe Dummy Host Bridge
60:08.1 PCI bridge: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Internal PCIe GPP Bridge 0 to Bus B
61:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 145a
61:00.2 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Family 17h (Models 00h-0fh) Platform Security Processor
62:00.0 Non-Essential Instrumentation [1300]: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 1455
62:00.1 Encryption controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] Device 1468
62:00.2 SATA controller: Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. [AMD] FCH SATA Controller [AHCI mode] (rev 51)

Keep on reading!

Pages: 12

Update supermicro X10SLH-F firmware BIOS under Linux with the SUM cli

As you can see our product is:

product: X10SLH-F/X10SLM+-F

The same string is in our KVM IPMI: “Product Name: X10SLH-F/X10SLM+-F” and in the BIOS, but if you go the supermicro site you will find that

X10SLH-F has C226 chipset (supports video in the CPU)
X10SLM+-F has C224 chipset

and because we use the video in the CPU we know our motherboard is X10SLH-F and we downloaded the BIOS firmware for it. You also could check your chipset with lshw command.

STEP 1) Download and unpack the SUM (Supermicro Update Manager) and the BIOS zip file

Unpack the SUM (Supermicro Update Manager), here you can find a detail information about SUM – Update supermicro server’s firmware BIOS under linux with the SUM cli

[root@srv1 ~]# tar xzvf sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64_20171108.tar.gz 
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/ReleaseNote.txt
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/sum
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/ExternalData/
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/ExternalData/VENID.txt
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/ExternalData/SMCIPID.txt
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/driver/
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/driver/RHL4_x86_64/
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/driver/RHL4_x86_64/sum_bios.ko
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/driver/RHL6_x86_64/
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/driver/RHL6_x86_64/sum_bios.ko
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/driver/RHL5_x86_64/
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/driver/RHL5_x86_64/sum_bios.ko
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/driver/RHL7_x86_64/
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/driver/RHL7_x86_64/sum_bios.ko
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/SUM_UserGuide.pdf
[root@srv1 ~]# unzip x10slh8_510.zip
Archive:  x10slh8_510.zip
   creating: x10slh8.510/
  inflating: x10slh8.510/AFUDOSU.SMC  
  inflating: x10slh8.510/ami.bat     
  inflating: x10slh8.510/Readme for AMI BIOS.txt  
  inflating: x10slh8.510/x10slh8.510  
[root@srv1 ~]# cd sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64
sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64/                 sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64_20171108.tar.gz  
[root@conv1 ~]# cd sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64

STEP 2) Flash the BIOS file with sum cli.

Here you can see what to expect flashing the BIOS firmware.

[root@srv1 sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64]# ./sum -c UpdateBios --file ../x10slh8.510/x10slh8.510 
Supermicro Update Manager (for UEFI BIOS) 2.0.0 (2017/11/08) (x86_64)
Copyright©2017 Super Micro Computer, Inc. All rights reserved
Reading BIOS flash ..................... (100%)
Checking BIOS ID ...
Writing BIOS flash ..................... (100%)
Verifying BIOS flash ................... (100%)
Checking ME Firmware ...
Putting ME data to BIOS ................ (100%)
Writing ME region in BIOS flash ...
 - Update success for /FDT!!
 - Updated Recovery Loader to OPRx
 - Updated FPT, MFSB, FTPR and MFS
 - ME Entire Image done
WARNING:Must power cycle or restart the system for the changes to take effect!
[root@srv1 sum_2.0.0_Linux_x86_64]# reboot

During the BIOS flashing your console could have seemed unresponsive for several minutes, but it is OK, the flash process is about 10 minutes. Then reboot and wait for several automatic resets of your system and after that when your system reaches the OS boot you should reboot again and reset your BIOS to the optimized defaults and then you can tune it as it was before.

In some rear cases you could receive “Critical Error” – “FDT is different.” you should reboot and repeat the procedure, more information here – Update supermicro server’s firmware BIOS under linux with the SUM cli

Bonus

Some commands to find the exact information for the server motherboard.

[root@srv1 ~]# lshw|grep -A 14 "core$"
  *-core
       description: Motherboard
       product: X10SLH-F/X10SLM+-F
       vendor: Supermicro
       physical id: 0
       version: 1.01
       serial: ZM1111111111
       slot: To be filled by O.E.M.
     *-firmware
          description: BIOS
          vendor: American Megatrends Inc.
          physical id: 0
          version: 3.0a
          date: 12/17/2015
          size: 64KiB
[root@srv1 ~]# lspci |grep -i c226
00:1f.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corporation C226 Series Chipset Family Server Advanced SKU LPC Controller (rev 05)
conv2 ~ # lspci -vvv|grep -i c226
00:1f.0 ISA bridge: Intel Corporation C226 Series Chipset Family Server Advanced SKU LPC Controller (rev 05)
        Subsystem: Super Micro Computer Inc C226 Series Chipset Family Server Advanced SKU LPC Controller

Supermicro server cannot enter BIOS with F2, DEL or other when UEFI mode OS is installed

If you happen to have a supermicro server (X10SLH-F) and install Linux in UEFI mode in our case CentOS 7 and you want to enter the BIOS you’ll be surprised that you cannot with the keys provided in the very same BIOS boot screen – F2, DEL. The F11 and F12 also does not work for menu selection and network boot!

Even if you manage to press the DEL key and you see on the screen “Entering BIOS setup…” – the server WON’T enter BIOS, but will continue with the UEFI BIOS boot drive!

So what to do? Ammm break temporary your system by removing (renaming or moving) the EFI directory in your efi boot partition, resetting your server and holding pressed DEL key (again) on all start up screens of the server. When the UEFI BIOS boot entry is not valid any more and there are no other boot devices (and probably because we pressed DEL key) we were able to enter in the BIOS without remote hands on the collocation side or any other intervention on the server.

[root@srv ~]# mv /boot/efi/EFI/ /boot/efi/EFI_org
[root@srv ~]# reboot

This is the path in CentOS 7 and our standard partition layout:

[root@srv ~]# df -h
Filesystem      Size  Used Avail Use% Mounted on
/dev/sda3         26G  4.5G    20G  19% /
devtmpfs         7.8G     0   7.8G   0% /dev
tmpfs            7.8G     0   7.8G   0% /dev/shm
tmpfs            7.8G  8.5M   7.8G   1% /run
tmpfs            7.8G     0   7.8G   0% /sys/fs/cgroup
/dev/sda2        976M   98M   812M  11% /boot
/dev/sda1        200M  9.8M   191M   5% /boot/efi
tmpfs            1.6G     0   1.6G   0% /run/user/0

DO NOT forget to remove all other (virtual) CD/DVD ROM Devices and temporary disable your network PXE Server (if you have any in the network)

Because it when the UEFI BIOS cannot find the EFI file saved in the UEFI BIOS BOOT drive it might follow the boot order before entering the BIOS!

Enter the bios by remote console on our X9 boards with UEFI bios

Apparently there is an issue with X8 and X9 supermicro boards in UEFI mode BIOS: https://www.supermicro.com/support/faqs/faq.cfm?faq=14029
So for someone it could be useful pressing and holding “ESC” + “-” or F4 to enter the UEFI BIOS, but we could not make it because of the IPMI KVM we used to manage the server.

Update firmware of AOC-USAS2LP-H8iR (smc2108) – LSI 2108 MegaRAID Hardware Controller

This card

AOC-USAS2LP-H8iR

is really old (probably 7-9 years), but still it works, so you can check if you are with the latest and greatest firmware. Hope the latest fixes more things than it beaks. To flash the firmware you need Megaraid cli and the firmware file, the two files you check in the sub-directories of https://www.supermicro.com/wftp/driver/SAS/LSI/2108/Firmware/ They are still there despite this product is discontinued. In this URL these are the latest, tested and verified versions by Supermicro so it is advisable to download them from this link or at least use the same versions if they are not available (in the future, now they are still available).
As you know LSI (they bought 3ware RAID in 2009) was bought by Avago (2013), then Avago bought Broadcom (2016 and renamed itself to Broadcom, 2018), so not so easy to find stuff for such old hardware (which still works). So this old MegaRAID controller is better managed by MegaCli despite you can do it with “storcli”, which is a modification of the tw_cli utility of 3ware RAID.

Keep on reading!

Enable internal graphics in SUPERMICRO servers

Here are the steps to enable your internal graphics – the CPU internal video chip in your Intel processor. Multiple Intel processors have video unit in it, which could be used for hardware decoding and encoding of video streams. We have two kind of processors:

Intel(R) Xeon(R) CPU E3-1585 v5 @ 3.50GHz

and

Intel(R) Xeon(R) CPU E3-1285 v4 @ 3.50GHz

the two processors packed with the right motherboard will give you a big advance in hardware decoding and encoding with your server! Intel calls it “Intel Quick Sync Video” and to use it your chipset should support it, so when using SUPERMICRO your motherboard must be equipped with C226 (for v4 CPU) and C236 (for v5 CPU)! Your CPU could have video unit in it, but if your chipset does not support internal graphics you won’t be able to use it, so be careful to have C226 or C236 Chipsets!
So if you have another setup (not Supermicro) you should check the chipset of your motherboard if it support internal graphics this is very important, because there are numerous motherboard, which have BIOS options for Enable/Disable of the internal graphics, but you cannot use it!
Here are the compliant platforms to use the video unit properly:

Intel Xeon E3-1200 v4 Family with C226 chipset
Intel Xeon E3-1200 and E3-1500 v5 Family with C236 chipset

If you enabled the internal graphics properly you’ll see it in hardware devices Device manager in MS Windows and in linux with “lspci”:

[root@srv ~]# lspci |grep -i display
00:02.0 Display controller: Intel Corporation Device 193a (rev 09)

Your BIOS menus could vary, but for SUPERMICRO there are vary similar:

STEP 1) The SUPERMICRO server is intializing you. Hit “DEL” button on your keyboard to enter BIOS Setup.

Keep on reading!

Configure and mount samba share in Supermicro IPMI Virtual media (CD-ROM)

Having many Supermicro servers we used multiple times Virtual Media to install, diagnose and rescue Supermicro server. It is really simple to open the Console Redirection – java web start and just mount the ISO file from Virtual Media -> ISO File, but this way if your server is not local to your network and it is located in a colocation as it should be the connection is slow and in many cases bogus! Because it uses UDP it happened many times to remount or just to lose the connection and the media to disappear in the middle of the booting/loading process from the installation media, for example. And probably you have noticed there is additional option in the web interface of mounting ISO file from a windows share. Of course, in linux world it might be samba share as in our case and the share could be easily configured on a server in your colocation.
And we noticed was several times we have no problems using it, but some time the share could not be even saved and respectively could not be mounted. No error reported, just the edit boxes resets to blank and apparently everything was the same as the previous box, which it worked as a charm!
Here are the steps to enable one of your CentOS 7 servers to share a resource and to use it in your Supermicro IPMI KVM. The server is selinux enabled and the policy is Enforcing.

STEP 1) Install samba server in CentOS 7

[root@srv0 ~]# yum -y install samba samba-client samba-common policycoreutils-python
Loaded plugins: fastestmirror
Determining fastest mirrors
epel/x86_64/metalink                                                                                                                           |  30 kB  00:00:00     
 * base: mirrors.neterra.net
 * epel: mirrors.neterra.net
 * extras: mirrors.neterra.net
 * updates: mirrors.neterra.net
base                                                                                                                                           | 3.6 kB  00:00:00     
epel                                                                                                                                           | 3.2 kB  00:00:00     
extras                                                                                                                                         | 3.4 kB  00:00:00     
updates                                                                                                                                        | 3.4 kB  00:00:00     
(1/7): base/7/x86_64/group_gz                                                                                                                  | 166 kB  00:00:00     
(2/7): epel/x86_64/group_gz                                                                                                                    |  88 kB  00:00:00     
(3/7): base/7/x86_64/primary_db                                                                                                                | 5.9 MB  00:00:00     
(4/7): extras/7/x86_64/primary_db                                                                                                              | 147 kB  00:00:00     
(5/7): updates/7/x86_64/primary_db                                                                                                             | 2.0 MB  00:00:00     
(6/7): epel/x86_64/updateinfo                                                                                                                  | 932 kB  00:00:00     
(7/7): epel/x86_64/primary                                                                                                                     | 3.5 MB  00:00:00     
epel                                                                                                                                                      12584/12584
Package samba-client-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64 already installed and latest version
Package samba-common-4.7.1-6.el7.noarch already installed and latest version
Resolving Dependencies
--> Running transaction check
---> Package samba.x86_64 0:4.7.1-6.el7 will be installed
--> Processing Dependency: samba-libs = 4.7.1-6.el7 for package: samba-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Processing Dependency: samba-common-tools = 4.7.1-6.el7 for package: samba-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Processing Dependency: libxattr-tdb-samba4.so(SAMBA_4.7.1)(64bit) for package: samba-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Processing Dependency: libaio.so.1(LIBAIO_0.4)(64bit) for package: samba-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Processing Dependency: libaio.so.1(LIBAIO_0.1)(64bit) for package: samba-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Processing Dependency: libxattr-tdb-samba4.so()(64bit) for package: samba-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Processing Dependency: libaio.so.1()(64bit) for package: samba-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Running transaction check
---> Package libaio.x86_64 0:0.3.109-13.el7 will be installed
---> Package samba-common-tools.x86_64 0:4.7.1-6.el7 will be installed
---> Package samba-libs.x86_64 0:4.7.1-6.el7 will be installed
--> Processing Dependency: libpytalloc-util.so.2(PYTALLOC_UTIL_2.1.9)(64bit) for package: samba-libs-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Processing Dependency: libpytalloc-util.so.2(PYTALLOC_UTIL_2.1.6)(64bit) for package: samba-libs-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Processing Dependency: libpytalloc-util.so.2(PYTALLOC_UTIL_2.0.6)(64bit) for package: samba-libs-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Processing Dependency: libpytalloc-util.so.2()(64bit) for package: samba-libs-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64
--> Running transaction check
---> Package pytalloc.x86_64 0:2.1.10-1.el7 will be installed
--> Finished Dependency Resolution

Dependencies Resolved

======================================================================================================================================================================
 Package                                        Arch                               Version                                     Repository                        Size
======================================================================================================================================================================
Installing:
 samba                                          x86_64                             4.7.1-6.el7                                 base                             661 k
Installing for dependencies:
 libaio                                         x86_64                             0.3.109-13.el7                              base                              24 k
 pytalloc                                       x86_64                             2.1.10-1.el7                                base                              17 k
 samba-common-tools                             x86_64                             4.7.1-6.el7                                 base                             463 k
 samba-libs                                     x86_64                             4.7.1-6.el7                                 base                             275 k

Transaction Summary
======================================================================================================================================================================
Install  1 Package (+4 Dependent packages)

Total download size: 1.4 M
Installed size: 3.8 M
Downloading packages:
(1/5): libaio-0.3.109-13.el7.x86_64.rpm                                                                                                        |  24 kB  00:00:00     
(2/5): pytalloc-2.1.10-1.el7.x86_64.rpm                                                                                                        |  17 kB  00:00:00     
(3/5): samba-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64.rpm                                                                                                            | 661 kB  00:00:00     
(4/5): samba-common-tools-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64.rpm                                                                                               | 463 kB  00:00:00     
(5/5): samba-libs-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64.rpm                                                                                                       | 275 kB  00:00:00     
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total                                                                                                                                 4.5 MB/s | 1.4 MB  00:00:00     
Running transaction check
Running transaction test
Transaction test succeeded
Running transaction
  Installing : pytalloc-2.1.10-1.el7.x86_64                                                                                                                       1/5 
  Installing : samba-libs-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64                                                                                                                      2/5 
  Installing : samba-common-tools-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64                                                                                                              3/5 
  Installing : libaio-0.3.109-13.el7.x86_64                                                                                                                       4/5 
  Installing : samba-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64                                                                                                                           5/5 
  Verifying  : libaio-0.3.109-13.el7.x86_64                                                                                                                       1/5 
  Verifying  : samba-libs-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64                                                                                                                      2/5 
  Verifying  : samba-common-tools-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64                                                                                                              3/5 
  Verifying  : samba-4.7.1-6.el7.x86_64                                                                                                                           4/5 
  Verifying  : pytalloc-2.1.10-1.el7.x86_64                                                                                                                       5/5 

Installed:
  samba.x86_64 0:4.7.1-6.el7                                                                                                                                          

Dependency Installed:
  libaio.x86_64 0:0.3.109-13.el7        pytalloc.x86_64 0:2.1.10-1.el7        samba-common-tools.x86_64 0:4.7.1-6.el7        samba-libs.x86_64 0:4.7.1-6.el7       

Complete!
[root@srv0 ~]#

STEP 2) Configure samba server CentOS 7 for the purpose of using it in IPMI Virtual share.

We are going to use a share without login credentials, because our KVM IP are always local ones and accessed via a vpn network and in addition only the network of the IPMI IPs could access the share (the samba server has a firewall configured).
Set the configuration file of the samba server – one directory storing the files shared with no login credentials (no username/password means anonymous login).
The configuration file is:

/etc/samba/smb.conf

[global]
workgroup = WINSHARE
server string = Samba Server %v
netbios name = centossrv
security = user
map to guest = bad user
dns proxy = no
#============================ Share Definitions ============================== 
[share]
path = /mnt/storage1/samba
browsable =yes
writable = no
guest ok = yes
read only = yes

As you can see we use “/mnt/storage1/samba” for our directory where the ISO files will be located. Change this path if you want to put your ISO files somewhere else.
Set the right permissions for the directory and selinux (if you server is not selinux enabled, you could skip the selinux part) and run the samba daemon:

[root@srv0 ~]# mkdir /mnt/storage1/samba
[root@srv0 ~]# chown -R nobody:nobody /mnt/storage1/samba/
[root@srv0 ~]# semanage fcontext -a -t samba_share_t '/mnt/storage1/samba(/.*)?'
[root@srv0 ~]# restorecon -Rv /mnt/storage1/samba/
restorecon reset /mnt/storage1/samba context unconfined_u:object_r:unlabeled_t:s0->unconfined_u:object_r:samba_share_t:s0
[root@srv0 ~]# cd /mnt/storage1/samba/
[root@srv0 samba]# wget http://mirror.leaseweb.com/centos/7.5.1804/isos/x86_64/CentOS-7-x86_64-Minimal-1804.iso
--2018-06-01 14:15:42--  http://mirror.leaseweb.com/centos/7.5.1804/isos/x86_64/CentOS-7-x86_64-Minimal-1804.iso
Resolving mirror.leaseweb.com (mirror.leaseweb.com)... 37.58.58.140, 2a00:c98:2030:a034::21
Connecting to mirror.leaseweb.com (mirror.leaseweb.com)|37.58.58.140|:80... connected.
HTTP request sent, awaiting response... 200 OK
Length: 950009856 (906M) [application/octet-stream]
Saving to: ‘CentOS-7-x86_64-Minimal-1804.iso’

100%[============================================================================================================================>] 950,009,856 40.1MB/s   in 33s    

2018-06-01 14:16:15 (27.3 MB/s) - ‘CentOS-7-x86_64-Minimal-1804.iso’ saved [950009856/950009856]

[root@srv0 samba]# chown nobody:nobody CentOS-7-x86_64-Minimal-1804.iso
[root@srv0 samba]# systemctl start smb
[root@srv0 samba]# systemctl status smb
● smb.service - Samba SMB Daemon
   Loaded: loaded (/usr/lib/systemd/system/smb.service; disabled; vendor preset: disabled)
   Active: active (running) since Fri 2018-06-01 14:17:57 UTC; 20s ago
 Main PID: 31961 (smbd)
   Status: "smbd: ready to serve connections..."
    Tasks: 4
   Memory: 19.0M
   CGroup: /system.slice/smb.service
           ├─31961 /usr/sbin/smbd --foreground --no-process-group
           ├─31964 /usr/sbin/smbd --foreground --no-process-group
           ├─31965 /usr/sbin/smbd --foreground --no-process-group
           └─31966 /usr/sbin/smbd --foreground --no-process-group

Jun 01 14:17:56 srv0@local systemd[1]: Starting Samba SMB Daemon...
Jun 01 14:17:57 srv0@local smbd[31961]: [2018/06/01 14:17:57.761913,  0] ../lib/util/become_daemon.c:124(daemon_ready)
Jun 01 14:17:57 srv0@local smbd[31961]:   STATUS=daemon 'smbd' finished starting up and ready to serve connections
Jun 01 14:17:57 srv0@local systemd[1]: Started Samba SMB Daemon.

Configure the firewall to allow only connections from the IPMI KVM IP networks (or a single IP if you need to expose it in the Internet). You can work with build in zone “trusted”, but here we prefer more generic approach, which could be used not only for local IP networks but for real IPs:

[root@srv0 samba]# firewall-cmd --new-zone=smbshare --permanent
success
[root@srv0 samba]# firewall-cmd --zone=smbshare --add-source=192.168.7.0/24 --permanent
success
[root@srv0 samba]# firewall-cmd --zone=smbshare --add-service=samba --permanent
success
[root@srv0 samba]# firewall-cmd --zone=smbshare --add-service=samba-client --permanent
success
[root@srv00 samba]# firewall-cmd --reload
success
[root@srv00 samba]# firewall-cmd --zone=smbshare --list-all
smbshare (active)
  target: default
  icmp-block-inversion: no
  interfaces: 
  sources: 192.168.7.0/24
  services: samba samba-client
  ports: 
  protocols: 
  masquerade: no
  forward-ports: 
  source-ports: 
  icmp-blocks: 
  rich rules: 

[root@srv00 samba]#

STEP 3) Mount a disk in IPMI Virutal Media and boot from it

You could check our additional tutorial for it here –

STEP 3.1) Fill “Share host” and “Path image” only, because we configured our samba share without a password

STEP 3.2) Upon a successful configuration saving you’ll get a confirmation dialog.

If no confirmation is shown you would not be able to mount the share, check out our Troubleshooting below!

STEP 3.3) After saving the configuration click on “Mount” to load your ISO file in the virtual CD-ROM.

STEP 3.4) This dialog is always shown no matter there is such share or not: “Please check the device status to confirm whether the image is mounted/unmounted.”

STEP 3.5) If the Supermicro IPMI accessed successfully the share resource it would mount it (load the ISO file as s CD in the virtual CD-ROM).

If not the three Device 1,2,3 will show the same: “No disk emulation set.”, which means the samba share is not accessible, check the permissions for the file and the firewall first (and the logs files, too).

* Troubleshooting

– if you click on button “Save” and just nothing happen – no dialog for successful saving and no dialog at all, probably there is a Javascript error, try to open the web interface from a different browser with clean history or click ctrl+F5 when loading the Virtual Media page! More in Cannot save and mount a Supermicro IPMI Virtual media mount – javascript error?

Cannot save and mount a Supermicro IPMI Virtual media mount – javascript error?

If you have multiple Supermicro servers with many different versions of IPMI KVM software installed it could happen your browser to cache some of the JavaScript and other static content to reuse them, but it could very unpleasant when you have different version of IPMI software on different servers and you might notice strange behavior of the web interface! Especially if you use ssh tunneling to access your multiple Supermicro IPMI KVMs from local IP on your computer – Tunneling the IPMI/KVM ports over ssh (supermicro ipmi ports)

One of the big problems we have when we wanted to mount a Virtual Media

from a windows share (samba share in our case) in IPMI KVM web interface -> Virtual Media -> CD-ROM image -> Save and when the Save is clicked just nothing happen (sometimes it triggers a reload of the iframe) – no error nothing and no confirmation for successful save! At first it seems the web interface accepted the “Share Host” and “Path to Image”:

but when you click “Mount” it does not mount the media:

and when you reload the CD-ROM image page you get again blank edit boxes or (the old values):

Probably a refresh will get the values blank:

And if you check your browser console you’ll see there is a JavaScript error:

Uncaught ReferenceError: FocusOnErrorSpecificCharSet3 is not defined

The error might be different, this was in our case. the problem was

the browser cached “https://192.168.0.170/js/utils.js”

from one of the previous servers and there the version of the IPMI KVM software was different and apparently the

/js/utils.js

was throwing an error and not working (this function did not exist in some older Supermicro IPMI KVM versions, the file is there but it is slightly different). The solution is so simple!

Just refresh the page with CTRL+F5 or delete the history or use another browser.

Such a simple problem, but could lead to big problems if you try to use the mount virtual media. In fact look for problems in the JavaScript if you cannot save the configuration in the “Share Host” and “Path to Image”, because when saving the IPMI do not check if there is a live “Share Host” with a windows/samba share and an image there, the software just check for special in “Shared” characters like:

var SpeficCharFilter = /[,; &'"<>\\=$|^?*~`()\[\]\{\}#%]/;

And for the password:

var SpeficCharFilter = /[,; &'"<>\\=$|^?~`()\[\]\{\}#%]/;

But in both cases you’ll get an alert with an error.

So to summer it up if you put IP and a path to the windows share of Virtual Media and click “Save” and nothing happen – no confirmation for successful saving you got a JavaScript error and probably your browser cached one of the JavaScript files, the solution is simple just refresh with CTRL+F5 or load from different browser!
We often use ssh tunneling for IPMI KVM access – Tunneling the IPMI/KVM ports over ssh (supermicro ipmi ports) and different version of the static files of the supermicro IPMI web interface are cached locally, which as you can see could have really bad consequences!

SCREENSHOT 1) Open the IPMI KVM and click on “Virtual Storage” menu to open the image mount dialog.

lspci – devices

lspci – devices

STEP 1) Download and unpack the SUM (Supermicro Update Manager) and the BIOS zip file

STEP 2) Flash the BIOS file with sum cli.

Bonus

DO NOT forget to remove all other (virtual) CD/DVD ROM Devices and temporary disable your network PXE Server (if you have any in the network)

Enter the bios by remote console on our X9 boards with UEFI bios

STEP 1) The SUPERMICRO server is intializing you. Hit “DEL” button on your keyboard to enter BIOS Setup.

STEP 1) When you are logged in the Supermicro IPMI web interface click on Virtual Media menu and then CD-ROM Image.

STEP 1) Install samba server in CentOS 7

STEP 2) Configure samba server CentOS 7 for the purpose of using it in IPMI Virtual share.

STEP 3) Mount a disk in IPMI Virutal Media and boot from it

STEP 3.1) Fill “Share host” and “Path image” only, because we configured our samba share without a password

STEP 3.2) Upon a successful configuration saving you’ll get a confirmation dialog.

STEP 3.3) After saving the configuration click on “Mount” to load your ISO file in the virtual CD-ROM.

STEP 3.4) This dialog is always shown no matter there is such share or not: “Please check the device status to confirm whether the image is mounted/unmounted.”

STEP 3.5) If the Supermicro IPMI accessed successfully the share resource it would mount it (load the ISO file as s CD in the virtual CD-ROM).

* Troubleshooting

Working Save button

click Save button

Confirmation when everything is OK