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Etherlite Boot Console HOWTO Etherlite Boot Console HOWTO Purpose
Due to popular demand, a Boot Console has been added to the Etherlite product line. The Boot Console is intended to address several problems outlined below.
1. Multiple BOOTP and DHCP Server Configuration Problem.
Large network installations may have several BOOTP and/or DHCP Servers intermixed. Because of the dynamic operation of DHCP, it is possible to have an unintended server assign an IP address to an Etherlite. You will not know what server assigned the address, and you will not know what the address is.
2.BOOTP/DHCP Server is down or none being used.
Your server is down or you don't have or want to use a BOOTP or DCHP server but you need to get an Etherlite up and running.
3. Provides an additional troubleshooting tool.
The boot console has ping capability, but also provides an additional method to change settings if other methods are not working.
Activating the Boot Console
To gain access to the Boot Console, you will need to attach a terminal or terminal emulator to Port 1 of the Etherlite.
A three-wire connection is all that is necessary, connecting TXD, RXD, and GND. The Etherlite does not assert DTR or RTS. If your terminal requires these signals, you will need to loop them at the terminal side.
The Boot Console operates at 19200 baud, 8 bits, 1 stop, and no parity.
To activate the console:
1. Remove the Ethernet cable from the Etherlite.
2. Cycle power on the Etherlite. The Link LED should be off and the Power LED flashing.
3. On the terminal keyboard, press the # key repeatedly until you get a console prompt (should only take 3 strokes).
An example of the EL-32 prompt:
Using the "show" command:
? show
EL-160 V1.2
Enet: 00:A0:E7:21:5E:B2
IP: 10.1.3.92
SM: 255.255.0.0
GW: 0.0.0.0
AHIP: 0.0.0.0
AHM: 0.0.0.0
TFTPIP:10.1.3.91
Commands
Below is the list of commands that the Boot Console supports. Commands are case sensitive.
help - Displays the command list with a brief description.
show - Shows current settings
boot - Resumes booting, status messages appear on terminal.
ip - Set IP address (default: 0.0.0.0).
gw - Set gateway address (default: 0.0.0.0).
sm - Set subnet mask (default: 255.255.0.0).
ahip - Set authorized host IP (default: 0.0.0.0).
ahm - Set authorized host mask (default: 0.0.0.0).
tftpip - Set tftp boot host server IP address (default: 0.0.0.0). *
bf - Set firmware filename (default: elxx.prm). *
store - Store settings in flash RAM
erase - Erase settings from flash RAM and reset all defaults.
reset - Reset all defaults.
ping - Ping an ip address.
* Value not supported by "store" command. This information will be lost on power loss.
NOTE: The ethernet cable must be reattached after the commands are entered to allow the changes to be stored and activated.
Multiple BOOTP/DHCP Server Problem
If you are trying to debug a multiple BOOTP/DHCP server problem:
1. Activate the boot console
2. Replace the Ethernet cable
3. Issue the "boot" command.
The Etherlite will display the host IP address, assigned IP address, gateway, subnet mask, and bootfile received from the server.
Note: If you've set an IP address using the "ip" command or the Etherlite has a stored IP address, it will not generate a BOOTP request when you enter the "boot" command. You will need to clear it first by setting the IP address to 0.0.0.0.
Temporary Setting of an IP address
To temporarily set an IP address:
1. Activate the boot console
2. Enter the "ip x.x.x.x" command
3. Issue the "boot" command.
The Etherlite will skip the BOOTP portion of the boot sequence and simply use the assigned IP. There is no need to set the Gateway or Subnet Mask.
Permanent Setting of an IP address
To permanently store an IP address or other configuration information:
1. Activate the boot console.
2. Enter the "ip x.x.x.x" command.
3. Issue the "store" command.
The store command will save the configuration to flash memory then reboot the Etherlite.
Other configuration information that can be stored is gateway IP, subnet mask, and one Authorized Host List entry.
Configuration information stored using the boot console, is compatible with the BOOTP/DHCP method of storing configuration information in an Etherlite. See the white paper on "Configuring a stored IP address".
Pinging a Host
The ping command will send a single ICMP echo request to the specified host, then wait up to 20 seconds for a response.
In order for ping to work, the IP address, gateway address, and subnet mask must be correctly configured. If the target host is on the same LAN segment, the default gateway and subnet values will work.
Updating Firmware
Etherlite firmware is updated using a TFTP server and the
bootfile option of BOOTP/DHCP. Even if you don't use a BOOTP/DHCP server you can still update the firmware using the Boot Console.
To update the firmware:
1. Setup a tftp server (see OS documentation for details) and copy the firmware file to the tftp directory.
2. Enter "tftpip xxx.xxx.xxx.xxx" where xxx is the IP address of the TFTP server in step 1.
3. Enter the "bf filename" where filename is the name of the firmware file.
4. Plug in the Ethernet cable.
5. Issue the "boot" command.
The Etherlite will attempt to download the named bootfile from the TFTP server. In order for this to work correctly, you must set a valid IP address, gateway address, and subnet mask. Please note that TFTP boothost and bootfile are not stored.
Authorized Host Entry
The Authorized Host List is a security feature used to limit which hosts may make "socket" connections to the Etherlite. You may set and store only one entry from the Boot Console. If you need to set more than one entry, you must use a BOOTP or DHCP server.
The authorized host IP (ahip) and authorized host mask (ahm) function similar to an IP address and subnet mask. ahm is a bit mask indicating which bits are important. ahip is used for comparison.
Example 1: You only want to only allow host 192.9.200.40 to connect to an Etherlite. You would set ahm to 255.255.255.255 and ahip to 192.9.200.40. The Etherlite will logically "AND" ahm with the connecting hosts IP address, then compare the result against ahip. If the result does not match, access is denied.
Example 2: You want to limit access to hosts on a subnet range of 192.9.200.0 through 192.9.200.255. You would set ahm to 255.255.255.0 and the ahip to 192.9.200.0.
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