MX7000 - How to Create a Custom MX Validated Catalog

Dell Enterprise Support YouTube Video:



Overview:
When upgrading an MX7000 baseline, there may be use cases for creating a custom catalog. The Configuration > Firmware Compliance > Catalog Management section of OpenManage Enterprise Modular (OME-M) gives three options:

1. Validated firmware solution baseline on dell.com
2. Latest component versions on dell.com
3. Network Path
   1. NFS
   2. CIFS
   3. HTTP
   4. HTTPS

Dell recommends being on the validated MX baseline firmware versions, which can be accomplished using the first option or the third option. Cases where the first option may not work could be firewall related or DNS related. Also, if your MX chassis management modules are at firmware versions 1.20.10 or lower, the first option will not work. This is due to the move from HTTP to HTTPS for Dell online firmware catalogs, which is further described in Dell Article Number 000130335 titled, iDRAC System Updates from Dell Online Repository Restricted to HTTPS Protocol. Management module firmware versions at 1.20.10 or lower will attempt to connect to Dell's online catalog using HTTP, which has been deprecated. Thus, alternate options to updating your MX7000 baseline if on 1.20.10 or lower would be to use a custom validated catalog (instructions listed below for CIFS share method), or to update via the individual package method detailed out in the Dell OpenManage Enterprise-Modular Edition for PowerEdge MX7000 Chassis User's Guide. The OME-M User's Guide can be obtained by navigating to www.dell.com/support, under the documentation section for the MX7000 product type .

Steps on how to create a custom MX validated catalog:

1. Install Dell Repository Manager (DRM) .
2. Open Dell EMC Repository Manager, and select Add Repository.
3. Give your repository a name.
4. In the Base Catalog dropdown, select Index Catalog.

5. In the Catalog Group dropdown, select Validated MX Stack Catalog.

6. In the Catalogs dropdown, select the catalog you wish to obtain firmware versions from. Catalogs are listed by date, as well as a Validated MX Stack Catalog Version. You can compare catalog version to baseline version in the Dell OpenManage Enterprise-Modular Edition for PowerEdge MX7000 Chassis User's Guide.

7. After selecting the catalog you wish to use, select Save and then Add.
8. If updating via iDRAC or OME-M, you will not need the Linux bundles, and instead will need the Windows bundles. Linux bundles are in BIN format. The update interface for the iDRAC and OME-M requires firmware to be in EXE format. Select the Linux system bundles and delete these.

9. Other bundles or firmware versions that are not needed may also be deleted. For example, if your chassis does not have an MX5108n switch, or MX750c sleds, delete the firmware for these components in your repository:

10. When ready to export your repository, select the checkbox next to your repository and then select Export. Choose a save location for the repository. The Export only catalog option will only export the catalog file, and not all of the firmware folders containing the firmware executables.

11. You can confirm the export job has started by reviewing Alerts in the top right corner. You may also navigate to the job queue from the Repository Manager button at the top left of the application, to review the progress of the export.

12. Once complete, Alerts should have a message stating the job completed successfully.

13. Review the location you saved your repository to. If both the catalog and firmware were exported, you should see firmware folders along with a catalog XML file. These folders will need to be in the root directory of your network share, along with the catalog file, in order for the catalog to reference the firmware properly. This is because the catalog references each firmware file by folder names.

14. Setup your repository folder as a share, and ensure the correct user has permissions to access the folder. Read and execute permissions will be needed.
15. Login to OME-M, and navigate to Configuration > Firmware Compliance > Catalog Management.
16. Select Add, and then choose Network Path and fill out the information for the share in the same format you see below. The connection to the share may be tested using the Test Connection option.

17. Click Finish. Your catalog should now be populated in the Catalog Management section of OME-M.