Friday, November 16, 2012

Setup a Management Port on your Dell PowerConnect 6200 series switch

When you setup your iSCSI network it's always best practice to put it on separate subnet from your management network.  To manage your switch, you must vlan a port and setup an IP address.  If you are using the Dell PowerConnect 6224 or 6248 switches, this can easily be created at the console prompt.

Before you begin, you need to choose a vlan ID, an IP address that the switch can be managed on, and a switch port that will be connected to the management network.

In this example, our management port will be port 8 on switch 1.  The management IP address will be 192.168.100.100 with a netmask of 255.255.255.0 and a default gateway of 192.168.100.1.  We also set the vlan ID to 10.

console>en
console#conf
console(config)#vlan dat
console(config-vlan)#vlan 10
Warning: The use of large numbers of VLANs or interfaces may cause significant
delays in applying the configuration.

console(config-vlan)#exi
console(config)#exi
console#conf
console(config)#interface ethernet 1/g8
console(config-if-1/g8)#switchport access vlan 10
Warning: The use of large numbers of VLANs or interfaces may cause significant
delays in applying the configuration.

console(config-if-1/g8)#exi
console(config)#ip address vlan 10
console(config)#no ip default-gateway
console(config)#ip address 192.168.100.100 /24
console(config)#ip default-gateway 192.168.100.1
console(config)#end

At this point you want to verify that you can indeed get to the managment interface from the web browser.  In this example:  http://192.168.100.100.  If it's working, save your running config as shown below.

console#copy running-config start
This operation may take a few minutes.
Management interfaces will not be available during this time.
Are you sure you want to save? (y/n) y
Configuration Saved!
console#

That's all there is. 

Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Better USB support for Dell FX100 and VMware View 4.6, using Teradici’s latest firmware upgrade 3.3


Although you won’t find it on the Dell support site, go to the Teradici support site to download the latest firmware release 3.3.1 v327 at http://techsupport.teradici.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=15164http://techsupport.teradici.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=15164&task=knowledge&questionID=622.

The install is simple and trouble free.  Unzip the downloaded files to your local drive.  Log into your Dell FX100 Remote Access Device via https.  The default password is blank.  Click on Upload, Firmware, then browse to the location of the .all file from the download.  The install only takes a couple minutes.  Click the button to Reset the device once the firmware install completes.  The new version info will look like this:

If  you are trying to implement softphones in a call center, you will now have support for isochronous USB devices for headsets and microphones.  Although Teradici does support this technology; it is not supported in large scale implementations of VMware View virtual desktops.  We will be rolling out about a dozen of these softphones in the next several weeks.  If there are any issues, I will let you know.  Currently we are testing the Jabra  Link 350 and Plantronics BUA-200 USB headsets with the Nortel IP Softphone 2050 client running on Windows 7 Pro 64-bit OS.  From the web interface of the DX100, Info, Attached Devices, you can now see the USB headset.


Here is a breakdown of all the features that were added to 3.3.0.  You can also find this information at (http://techsupport.teradici.com/ics/support/default.asp?deptID=15164 ):
  • ·         Enhancements for improved USB peripheral support for PCoIP zero clients. Requires VMware View 4.6 or newer in order to use this capability.
o    Enhancements to the Teradici USB interface modules (PCoIP zero client firmware and PCoIP server within the VMware View Agent) that connect to the VMware View USB drivers in the virtual machine.
o    Support for USB devices behind a hub (including devices with integrated hubs – multimedia keyboards, mice etc).
o    Support for isochronous USB devices (USB headsets, USB microphones, etc). Note that large scale soft phone and videoconferencing applications (e.g. unified communications) using USB headsets and webcams are not supported in a VMware View virtual desktop environment.
o    Updates to enable support for certain USB devices such as iPhones, iPads, iPods and Blackberries. Support includes device sync; OS update is not currently supported. Please contact VMware regarding schedules for specific smartphone support.
o    USB bridging override for devices that may be inadvertently locally terminated
  • ·         Enhancements for operation over Wide Area Networks (WAN)
    • Improved tolerance for network packet loss.
    • Support for vertical motion compensation to reduce bandwidth when connecting to VMware View virtual desktops.
  • ·         Mobility option for 3D remote workstation users.  Requires VMware View 4.6 or newer in order to use this capability. 
    • Allows notebooks running VMware View Clients to connect to PCoIP Hardware Hosts.
    • Supports dual-display and USB keyboard/mouse only (other USB peripherals are not supported)
    • This capability is not intended to replace workstation zero clients since the PCoIP protocol decode performance of PCoIP software in the VMware View client is limited compared to the PCoIP decode performance of PCoIP hardware zero clients. 
  • ·         Support for RSA SecureID when connecting PCoIP Zero clients to VMware View 4.5 or newer. 
  • ·         Desktop pool enhancements
    • Auto-logon with optional username, password, domain and desktop pool pre-configuration
    • Increased support for up to 100 desktop pools
  • ·         Optional PCoIP Zero Client and Host Card web server and on-screen-display menu lockdown 
  • ·         CAC smartcard enhancements including support for HP USB smartcard keyboard (model# KUS0133.ED707AA) 
  • ·         Keyboard support enhancements
    • Language updates: Hungarian, Serbian, Latvian, Estonian
  • ·         Discontinued support of the Microsoft RDP mode from PCoIP zero clients. Note, customers can use firmware 3.2.2 or prior if they require RDP support.


In addition to above the firmware maintenance release 3.3.1 v327, resolved the following issues:
  • Fixed USB audio issue with VMware View guests running Microsoft Windows 7 64-bit host OS
  • Fixed an issue where PCoIP Zero Clients could not connect to the VMware View Connection Server through certain load balancers
  • Fixed an issue with a Logitech ClearChat wireless headset
  • Fixed degraded performance with PCoIP Host cards on networks with packet loss, high latency, and/or low bandwidth
  • Fixed password protection default setting
  • Fixed CAC PIV endpoint smart card issue
  • Fix for invalid OEM VPD (vendor product information) content
  • Fixed issue with OSD appearing on the wrong set of monitors in certain quad display PCoIP Zero Clients
  • Fixed issue with Power-over-Ethernet failing to power devices if VLAN enabled
  • Language translation updates 

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Configuring the Dell FX100 (zero client) to work with VMware View 4.5 and 4.6


Have you tried looking for documentation on the Dell FX100 zero client?  Sure there is some when connecting using the Dell Precision R5400 Rack Workstation, but what about connecting directly with VMware View.  The Dell Support site lacks this product when searching by name or even Service Tag number.  Without downloading the updated firmware, the Dell FX100 will not work with VMware View 4.5 or 4.6.

To get the latest firmware version, go to http://support.us.dell.com/support/downloads/download.aspx?c=us&cs=555&l=en&s=biz&releaseid=R291621&formatcnt=0&libid=0&typeid=-1&dateid=-1&formatid=-1&source=-1&fileid=434645.  Here you will find version 3.2.1 with a release date of 12/17/2010.  If you are using the FX100 with the R5400, keep your firmware at 3.1.2 on both the FX100 and R5400.  Also, Dell notes that “this firmware release can only be installed on PCoIP processors running firmware release 1.4 or greater.  Are they planning to integrate this into other products?

Unzipping the downloaded file gives you “tera1x00_rel3-2-1_v296. all” and “version.txt”.  Version text gives you the following information:
Title      : Video:USI FX100 Remote Access Portal Firmware
Version    : A11
OEM Name   : USI
OEM Ver    : 3.2.1
Computers  : Precision - R5400

To update the firmware on the DX100, you must first find the device on your network.  It is configured for DHCP.  A network scan will reveal the open ports of 80, 427, and 443.  The MAC address will be from Teradici (00:22:5B), not Dell.  Just https to the IP address to gain access to the portal.  Go to Info, Version to check the Firmware Version.  Now click Update, Firmware, then browse to select “tera1x00_rel3-2-1_v296. all” and Upload.

Once the unit has restarted, the remaining configuration is fairly simple.  Go to Configuration, Initial Setup.  Select your Audio, Network, and Session options then Apply changes.
  Go to Configuration, VMware View to enable View and add the IP address of the Connection Server.
The Dell FX100 zero client should now prompt you with the VMware View login screen.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

In-store Media Marketing with Roku


So you want to do some dynamic media marketing in your stores on an extremely tight budget?  All you need is a TV, PowerPoint (or Presentation from OpenOffice), ROKU box, and a Picasa account.  By using an Internet connection and a ROKU box, you can present your PowerPoint presentations (or any picture files) to your TVs located at multiple locations.

At the heart of this solution is a Roku (http://roku.com) streaming media device.  For a onetime cost of $60, you can easily convert a non-networked TV into an instant streaming entertainment system.  Roku presents over 100 channels with most of them available for free, such has Picasa.  For those more adventurous, download the SDK to create your own public or private channels.  For example, convert your presentation to video, overlay current weather and commodity prices, then present as a private channel to your sites.  Only a PIN is required to access it.

To get started, first create your PowerPoint presentation and save it as picture files (.png format seems to work best).   In PowerPoint, you might want to go to Design, Page Setup, and change the “Slides sized for” to “On-screen Show (16:9)”.  This will format it to fit the wide screen of most HD TVs.  It will work in the default size too, but it won’t completely fill the screen.

Next, create a Picasa Web Album.  If you don’t have an account, create one for free at https://picasaweb.google.com/.   Once that is complete, simply click on Upload and select your PowerPoint pictures.  The pictures will remain in the same order as the slideshow but you can easily reorganize with Picasa.

Connect the Roku box to the TV then fire it up.  Add the Picasa channel and link it to your Roku.  You will be presented with a code that must be entered at http://roku.chrishoffman.org/ to complete the link.  Now you can view your Picasa pictures, in a slideshow format, on the TV.  There are setting options to change the duration to your liking.

The great thing about this solution is that you can link geographically dispersed TVs to the same Picasa account - creating a dynamic world-wide media marketing solution.  In addition, we are leveraging free cloud services, eliminating monthly fees associated with most commercial solutions.