Girlsloading723

• In this video, we will cover the process of importing a digital license by using iDRAC.
• On the 'iDRAC' line, under the 'License Options' drop-down menu, click 'Import'. Select the license XML file you obtained earlier and click 'Apply'. At this point you should reboot your system once more, as the documentation indicates that some features may not be available.

The Dell Remote Access Controller or DRAC is an out-of-band management platform on certain Dell servers. The platform may be provided on a separate expansion card, or integrated into the main board; when integrated, the platform is referred to as iDRAC.

Garnock12, The link you need for the iDrac7 Express 30 day trial would be here - That contains a 30day trial license. With the 12th generation servers, the hardware is installed already. The use is based on licensing now. In regards to going Express or Enterprise, the largest difference is the remote console, which is on the Enterprise. Dell iDRAC 9 Enterprise License Compatible for Remote Management of PowerEdge R440, R640, R740, R740XD, T340, T440, and T640 Servers 4.6 out of 5 stars 3 $199.00. Apr 29, 2014 THe part number for the Enterprise license is 421-6087. If you give that to your sales rep they should be able to get it ordered. In regards to the hardware. The port card you are referring to is for the dedicated port. The other hardware you can order is the SD card slots. Neither of which are required to use the Enterprise License.

It uses mostly separate resources to the main server resources, and provides a browser-based or command-line interface (or both) for managing and monitoring the server hardware.

Features[edit]

The controller has its own processor, memory, network connection, and access to the system bus. Key features include power management, virtual media access and remote console capabilities, all available through a supported web browser or command-line interface. This gives system administrators the ability to configure a machine as if they were sitting at the local console (terminal).

The DRAC interfaces with baseboard management controller (BMC) chips, and is based on the Intelligent Platform Management Interface (IPMI) 2.0 standard, which allows use of IPMI out-of-band interfaces such as IPMI Over LAN.^[1]

Versions[edit]

The Dell Remote Access Controllers (DRAC) and the Integrated Dell Remote Access Controllers (iDRAC) come in different versions, where a new (i)DRAC version is often linked to a new generation of Poweredge servers.

The hardware is often integrated on the motherboard of the server, and the combined product is termed iDRAC, where the 'i' is for integrated. When iDRAC Express is used, the software and hardware systems management functions are shared with one of the server's on-board network interfaces using a unique IP address. By contrast, iDRAC Enterprise version features a dedicated physical network interface.

iDRAC version 7 was introduced in conjunction with the release of Dell PowerEdge generation 12 servers in March 2012, and is only available on 12th generation models.^[2] Unlike previous versions the functionality of iDRAC 7 is the same for rack, tower and blade-servers.

An overview of the different versions:^[3]

Power management[edit]

With the DRAC enabled and using its own separate network connection, a user may login and reboot the system even if the core operating system has crashed. If the operating system has loaded the correct drivers, the DRAC will attempt to shut down the system gracefully. Without this feature and with the system running, administrators can use the remote console to access the operating system too.

Remote console[edit]

The remote console features of the DRAC allow an administrator to interface with the computer as if sitting in front of it, and one can share the local inputs from keyboard and mouse as well as video output (DRAC does not support remote sound). Remote-console capability relies on either an Active X or Javaplug-in, or HTML5 in the later models, which displays a window showing the video output on the local terminal and which takes mouse and keyboard input. This behavior closely resembles that of other remote access solutions such as VNC or RDP but also works if the operating system of the server doesn't work any more (unlike VNC or RDP). It is used to take the server console remotely.

Virtual media[edit]

The DRAC enables a user to mount remotely shared disk-images as if they were connected to the system. In combination with the remote console, this gives administrators the ability to completely re-install an operating system, a task which traditionally required local console access to the physical machine. Administrators can control virtual media through the browser or through the OpenManage tools provided by Dell, though specific versions of browsers restrict some functionality.^[12]

Access[edit]

The main DRAC management takes place via a web interface. All generations of the DRAC use the default user name root and the default password calvin. Starting with the DRAC 3, Microsoft Active Directory can also provide authentication either with Dell AD Schema Extensions or Standard Schema.^{[13][14][15][16][17]}

Implementation[edit]

The DRAC5 and iDRAC6 and higher are embedded platforms running Linux and Busybox. The firmware source code is available on the Dell website,^[18] but it is not possible to compile the source into a replacement firmware as Dell does not include a build environment.^[19]

The DRAC provides remote access to the system console (keyboard and screen) allowing the system BIOS to be accessed over the Internet when the server is rebooted. This is done by configuring the system BIOS to send its output to a serial port (as a stream of text using VT100-compatible control codes). The chosen serial port is then redirected to the DRAC's serial port. Users can then log into the DRAC via SSH and run a command to connect the SSH session to the serial port, thus allowing the console to be accessed over the Internet.

Earlier versions of the DRAC used ActiveX in Internet Explorer to provide a remote-console interface in a web browser; however, this was unpopular with non-Windows users who did not have access to Internet Explorer. The latest revision of the DRAC6 uses a Java application instead (launched from within the browser), though both the DRAC5 and iDRAC6 also provided the aforementioned platform-independent SSH access.

iDRAC6[edit]

iDRAC6 is available in two levels: iDRAC6 Express and iDRAC6 Enterprise. iDRAC6 Express (which integrates features previously charged for in DRAC5) became a standard offering on Dell's servers. Certain features are not available for the Express version, including the remote console functionality and the vFlash SD card slot. As with iDRAC, iDRAC6 Enterprise is a standard offering on blade servers

• iDRAC6 offers three upgrades: iDRAC6 Express, iDRAC6 Enterprise, and VFlash Media
• iDRAC6 offers power budgeting
• iDRAC6 Enterprise's virtual console and virtual media features are now integrated into a single plug-in
• iDRAC6 Enterprise's virtual console now allows two users to collaborate on the same server
• iDRAC6 now allows customers to view what is on the server LCD without a server-side visit
• iDRAC6 supports IPv6

iDRAC7[edit]

On 6 March 2012, software version 1.00.00 for the iDRAC7 was released for generation 12 servers. iDRAC 7 does not work on earlier generation servers although some of the new functions introduced with iDRAC 7 might be offered in iDRAC 6 releases.^[8][9] As of May 2019, the current version was 2.63.60.62.^[20]

With the introduction of iDRAC 7, the licensing model has changed. iDRAC 7 now supports lifecycle controller. Some features of Lifecycle controller are licensed and to access those features via iDRAC the correct licenses for those functions need to be enabled.

Supported hardware platforms[edit]

iDRAC 7 runs on generation 12 PowerEdge servers. Per introduction in March 2012 the following servers use iDRAC7:^[2]

• PowerEdge T620 – tower model of 620, can be converted to 5U rack system
• PowerEdge R220 – native rack server, 1U
• PowerEdge R320 – native rack server, 1U
• PowerEdge R420 – native rack server, 1U
• PowerEdge R520 – native rack server, 2U
• PowerEdge R620 – native rack server, 1U
• PowerEdge M620 – blade server for M1000e enclosure, half-height (max 16 per chassis)
• PowerEdge R720 – rack-server, 2U
• PowerEdge R720xd – an R720 with additional 2.5' hard drive bays in the front and rear of the enclosure

Supported operating systems[edit]

iDRAC 7 is supported by the following operating systems

• Microsoft Windows Server 2016, x64
• Microsoft Windows Server 2012, x64
• Microsoft Windows Server 2008 SP2 (standard, enterprise and datacenter editions), x86 and x64
• Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 (standard, enterprise and datacenter editions), x64
• Microsoft Small Business Server 2011, x64
• SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES) 10 and 11, x64
• Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), 5.8 (x86/x64), 6.1 (x64) and 6.3 (x64)
• Microsoft Hyper-V (with Windows server 2008) and Hyper-V R2 (Windows Server 2008 R2)
• VMware ESX/ESXi 4.1, Update 2
• VMWare ESXi 5 Patch 01
• Citrix SystemsXen Server 6

Supported web browsers[edit]

The GUI for iDRAC7 uses a Web browser and Java. Internet Explorer 7, 8 and 9, as well as Firefox 6 + 7 were tested for different operating systems.^[2]

Limitations[edit]

To take advantage of storage greater than 256 MB on the iDRAC6 enterprise, Dell requires that a vFlash SD card be procured through Dell channels. As of December 2011, Dell vFlash SD cards differ from consumer SD cards by being over-provisioned by 100% for increased write endurance and performance.^[21]

While there are no other known functional differences between a Dell-branded vFlash SD card and a class 2 or greater SDHC card, the use of non-Dell media prevents the use of extended capacities and functions.

On a Linux client system the standard arrow and print screen keys cannot be used in the iDRAC6 Java virtual console application because of some incompatible key event IDs;^[22] however, the arrow keys on the numeric keypad can still be used.

Some combinations of DRAC firmware, web browser, and Java runtime do not support virtual media via the Java applet or the plugin in DRAC5 and iDRAC6.

References[edit]

1. ^'Exploring the DRAC 5'(PDF). Dell Power Solutions, August 2006. Dell. p. 27.
2. ^ ^abcdDell manuals for iDRAC 7Archived 2012-03-14 at the Wayback Machine, version 1.0, 6 March 2012, visited 7 March 2012
3. ^Dell support website Dell Remote Access Controllers manuals, visited 7 March 2012
4. ^Manual for the Dell Open Manage Remote Assistant Card IIArchived 2012-01-07 at the Wayback Machine, 14 December 1999. Visited 7 March 2012
5. ^Dell support website DRAC 3 manualsArchived 2012-06-03 at the Wayback Machine, visited 7 March 2012
6. ^Dell manuals for DRAC 4Archived 2011-12-19 at the Wayback Machine, 9 August 2004, Visited 7 March 2012
7. ^Dell manuals for DRAC 5Archived 2012-02-28 at the Wayback Machine, 7 June 2006, Visited 7 March 2012
8. ^ ^abDell manuals for iDRAC 6 for blade serversArchived 2012-01-06 at the Wayback Machine, visited 7 March 2012
9. ^ ^abManual for iDRAC 6 for monolithic serversArchived 2012-02-26 at the Wayback Machine, visited 7 March 2012
10. ^Manual for IDrac 6 for blade serversArchived 2012-04-16 at the Wayback Machine, visited 7 March 2012
11. ^Dell manual for iDRAC 8, version 1.0, September 2014, visited 22 April 2015
12. ^'Supported Web Browsers'. Users Guide. Dell. Archived from the original on 2008-12-26.
13. ^'Accessing the DRAC 5 Through a Network'. Users Guide. Dell. Archived from the original on 2008-12-26.
14. ^'Accessing the DRAC 4 Through a Network'. Users Guide. Dell. Archived from the original on 2009-02-07.
15. ^'Accessing the DRAC III Web-Based Interface'. Users Guide. Dell. Archived from the original on 2008-06-20.
16. ^'Accessing the CMC Through a Network'. Users Guide. Dell. Archived from the original on 2010-09-25.
17. ^'iDRAC, Configuring Networking Using the CMC Web Interface'. Users Guide. Dell. Archived from the original on 2009-08-17.
18. ^Dell Open Source repository
19. ^Post on Dell Linux-PowerEdge mailing list, Dec 2010
20. ^https://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/04/product-support/product/poweredge-r220/drivers
21. ^Dell’s vFlash SDFlash Media Card – Better Endurance & Performance via Over-Provisioning
22. ^Post on Dell Linux-PowerEdge mailing list, Jun 2011

External links[edit]

• DRAC II/III product info from Dell
• Managing out-of-band management in InfoWorld

One very important consideration for choosing your blade server is the type of embedded management license you need. I’ve seen organizations attempt to save money by going with the low end license offering for systems management only to find out it doesn’t include a crucial feature. One such feature is the ability to see trends and get early warnings from a server before it alerts. In this blog post I’m going to talk about the iDRAC license options for Dell EMC blade servers including a comparison of the different license versions and why you may want them.

Dell EMC PowerEdge servers all have a dedicated systems management chip known as iDRAC 9 or integrated Dell Remote Access Controller, 9th generation. (If you are familiar with HPe ProLiant servers, the iDRAC serves a similar function as the iLO.) iDRAC provides a secure out-of-band, agent-less connection to allow for a user to manage the lifecycle of the PowerEdge server, even if the server is powered off. It also offers both a HTML 5 GUI web interface and command line interface allowing administrators to perform remote management tasks like monitoring, managing, updating, troubleshooting and remediation. Finally, iDRAC enables connectivity into other Dell Technologies datacenter management tools like OpenManage Enterprise and OpenManage Integration for VMware vCenter.

What Features Come Free

iDRAC9 v4.00.00.00 released in December of 2019 and introduced new features including a new Datacenter License – see below for details. Although there are 3 variations of the iDRAC license for Dell EMC blade servers: iDRAC9 Express, iDRAC9 Enterprise and iDRAC9 Datacenter, you really only have two to choose from. There is not an option to buy the PowerEdge server without an iDRAC9 license, therefore the Express license edition is considered the base license. All of the iDRAC9 4.00.00.00 licenses come with basic instrumentation with web GUI and API support, but here are the items available with all iDRAC9 licenses:

• User Interfaces
  • HTML5 Web GUI
  • Redfish
  • WS-Man
  • IPMI 2.0
  • DCMI 1.5
  • RACADM
  • SMASH-CLP
  • Telnet
  • SSH
  • Serial Redirection
• Connectivity
  • dedicated NIC
  • VLAN
  • IPv4/6
  • DHCP
  • static IP
  • dynamic DNS
  • iDRAC Direct (direct access from a local PC to a dedicated USB port)
  • Connection View
  • NFS v4
  • NTLMv1/2
• Security
  • silicon root of trust in iDRAC and Boot
  • signed firmware updates
  • RBAC (role based access control)
  • local users
  • SSL/TLS encryption
  • FIPS
  • UEFI certs,
  • secure default Password (random)
  • Custom security login banner
  • PKI authentication
  • IP range filtering
• Remote Presence
  • power control
  • boot control
  • serial Over LAN (SOL)
• Power & Thermal
  • real-time power meter and graphic
  • temperature monitoring
  • customized exhaust temperature
  • power thresholds and alerts
  • historical power counters
  • temperature graphic
• Health Monitoring
  • full agent-free monitoring
  • predictive failures (including drive Smart Alerts)
  • SNMPv1/2/3
  • fans
  • PSUs
  • Memory
  • CPU
  • RAID
  • NIC
  • direct attach storage enclosures
  • SSD wear levels
  • customized email alerting
• Firmware Update
  • remote agent-free updates
  • embedded update tools (F10/iDRAC GUI)
• Deployment
  • local configuration via F10 LC GUI
  • remote OS deployment
  • BIOS and RAID configuration pages
  • remote server configuration
  • import/export Server Configuration Profile (SCP)
  • OS driver pack
  • system inventory
  • system erase for server retirement / re-purposing
  • auto-discovery
• Diagnostics, Service and Logging
  • SEL and Lifecycle Controller logs
  • diagnostic tools
  • server configuration restore
  • Easy Restore after motherboard replacement
  • health status LEDs
  • LCD on bezel optional
  • iDRAC Direct service port
  • remote and local iDRAC reset
  • virtual NMI
  • OS watchdog
  • SupportAssist Collection report
  • direct SupportAssist registration
  • work notes
  • license management
  • crash screen capture

If you’ve read this far, congratulations. Give yourself a pat on the back and grab a nice cold one. As you can see, the list is pretty extensive for a base systems management license, so let’s next look at what the iDRAC9 Enterprise and iDRAC9 Datacenter licenses offer.

iDRAC 9 Enterprise Features

In addition to the features listed above, the iDRAC9 Enterprise license adds:

• Zero touch, auto-configuration
• Automatic updates with synchronization with a repository
• MAC Address Reporting (MARS)
• Auto discovery via Layer 2 switches via transmit LLDP
• Directory services (AD / LDAP)
• 2-factor authentication (2FA)
• Single sign-on (SSO)
• System lockdown mode
• Easy multi-factor authentication
• Integration with select Secure Enterprise Key Manager Solutions
• Virtual media
• Virtual Folders
• Remote File Share
• Virtual Console with HTML5 or VNC
• Quality bandwidth control
• Collaboration with up to 6 users
• Virtual console chat
• Group manager supporting linking up to 250 iDRACs
• Out-of-band performance monitoring
• Remote syslog for alerts
• Power capping and integration with OpenManage Power Center
• Crash screen video (agent-free with Windows Server OS)
• Boot capture

iDRAC9 Datacenter License Features

Finally, the newest iDRAC9 license is the Datacenter license. Added in December of 2019, the Datacenter license provides all of the above plus:

• Granular insight and control
  • telemetry streaming – enables users to pick metric reports then choose a transport method (Rsyslog, Redfish SSE, Redfish Subscription or Redfisho Polling) and frequency (every 5 seconds – every 84,400 seconds)
    • metric reports include:
      • sensor data from NIC, FC HBA, CPU, memory, fans, sensors, thermal and storage
      • statistics from NICs, power, performance, GPU, storage and NVMe
      • metrics from CPUs, memory, PSUs, thermal, power, GPUs
  • system serial data buffer capture – snoops system serial data and stores it to be retrieved later for analysis and failure root cause
  • SMART logs for storage drives
  • GPU inventory and monitoring
  • SFP+ optical I/O inventory and monitoring
  • idle server detection – identifies any servers running idle for extended periods of time (aka zombie servers)
• Enhanced security
  • iDRAC auto certificate enrollment for SSL certificates – polls the specified Certificate Authority (CA) and authenticates the SSL certificate using the credentials provided. Can be done via the GUI, via server configuration profile or via script.
• Thermal Manage – provides key thermal telemetry and associated control features
  • PCIe airflow customization – provides a comprehensive PCIe device cooling view of the server and allows cooling customization of 3rd party cards
  • custom exhaust control – specify the temperature limit of the air exiting the server to match your datacenter needs
  • custom Delta-T control – limits air temperature rise from inlet air to exhaust to right-size your infrastructure level cooling
  • system airflow consumption – displays the real-time system airflow consumption (in CFM), allowing airflow balancing at rack and datacenter level
  • custom PCIe inlet temperature – choose the right input inlet temperature to match 3rd party device requirements
• Virtual clipboard – a Dell EMC exclusive that enables cut and paste operations in iDRAC’s HTML5 remote console

UPDATED 2.13.2020

I failed to mention in the original post that the iDRAC9 Datacenter metric reports will not only deliver via the Redfish methods mentioned above, but it will also integrate into typical analytics solutions like Splunk, ElasticSearch and Grafana to name a few.

Summary of Features

Here is an easy chart to assist in choosing the right iDRAC9 license for your Dell EMC blade servers.

Additional Information

Idrac 7 Enterprise License Key

To find out more about Dell EMC’s iDRAC9, check out the links below.

iDRAC9 Spec Sheet – pdf

iDRAC9 Users Guide – PDF

Idrac7 Enterprise License Key Download

iDRAC9 Version 4.00.00.00 Release Notes – PDF

iDRAC9 v.4.00.00.00 Redfish API Guide – PDF

iDRAC9 Version 4.00.00.00 RACADM CLI Guide – PDF

Idrac7 Enterprise License Key Code

Support for Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller 9 (iDRAC9) – website

PowerEdge server lifecycle management with iDRAC9 – video by Product Manager, Doug Iler (a special thanks to him as I stole most of the above from him)

Dell PowerEdge: How to configure the iDRAC & System Management Options on servers – website

Dell EMC iDRAC 9 Review by StorageReview.com

Idrac7 Enterprise License Key Generator

Idrac7 Enterprise License Key Free

Kevin Houston is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of BladesMadeSimple.com. He has over 20 years of experience in the x86 server marketplace. Since 1997 Kevin has worked at several resellers in the Atlanta area, and has a vast array of competitive x86 server knowledge and certifications as well as an in-depth understanding of VMware and Citrix virtualization. Kevin has worked at Dell EMC since August 2011 is a Principal Engineer and Chief Technical Server Architect supporting the Central Enterprise Region at Dell EMC. He is also a CTO Ambassador in the Office of the CTO at Dell Technologies.

Idrac7 Enterprise License Key Download

Disclaimer: The views presented in this blog are personal views and may or may not reflect any of the contributors’ employer’s positions. Furthermore, the content is not reviewed, approved or published by any employer. No compensation has been provided for any part of this blog.