TL2000/TL4000: Collecting tape library and drive diagnostic logs for troubleshooting

This article explains how to generate a troubleshooting log for PowerVault TL2000/TL4000 using the graphical interface for recent firmware or Telnet for older revisions.

1. Graphical Method
2. Telnet Method

Graphical method

Open an Internet page and connect to the tape library interface (RMU).
Select the Admin account in the drop-down menu.
The default username and password are:
 

User ID: Admin
Password: Secure

1. Collect Tape Library Logs.
Click the symbol "+" located next to Service Library (1) to deploy the menu.

Click Save Library Dump (2).
Click then on Save Service Dump (3).


 


A pop-up message asking you for the record of the file DumpAllTrace.trc appears.
 

2. Collect Tape Drive Logs.

Click Save Drive Dump from the Service Library (1) menu.
Select the tape drive to analyze (3).
Click Save Drive Dump (4).

 


A pop-up message appears to inform you that the creation of the file takes time. Drive_Dump.bin is generated.
The drive operation can be made again on the other tape drives if necessary.

DumpAllTrace.trc and Drive_Dump.bin can be sent to Dell Technical Support for troubleshooting. 

Telnet Method

If the previous option is not available for some reason, you can telnet into the TL2000 or TL4000 and retrieve the service dump files.
 
In TL2000/TL4000 firmware version 6.60 and later, enable Telnet by selecting "Enable Telnet Port" from the "Service" menu on the front panel.

The Telnet port cannot be enabled from the web interface, and is disabled by default in firmware revisions from 6.60 forward.

 
Once the telnet port is enabled, you can use the Microsoft Telnet Client. The syntax to follow is:

C:\>telnet -f dumpall.txt <IP address>

Where <IP address> is the IP address of the TL.
The -f option saves the output of the telnet command to a specified file: in this case, dumpall.txt.

If your telnet session is successful, you should see the following:

FLMON>

You can type "login." The system prompts for User Name and Password, the default credentials are Admin or secure. Once logged you should see:

Login ok
FLMON>

You can type "dumpAll" and the TL executes the command, which dumps the internal logs from the unit.
After the command finishes, you can then type "logout" to exit the TL and close the telnet session.

The dumpall log will be saved in the file specified on the command line.