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The Provision Bare Metal Device automated task enables automated installation of new switches and routers into the network.

Provision Bare Metal Device (which we will refer to as BMP, for Bare Metal Provisioning) is used in initial deployments of many instances of the exact same device model, that will all use very similar configurations. For example, a company named Genuine Parts has 5500 storefront locations that will each use a new Cisco 2812 router as their gateway. Each device uses the exact same configuration, excepting the IP address, interface description and VLAN ID. Bare Metal Provisioning is defined for specific cases of this type.

BMP jobs cannot be executed across multiple types of devices in the same Job (e.g. a few 2812 routers, several 3750 switches, a dozen 2960 switches in the same job) because the Lists for BMP are written for a single device type for each job execution, to account for different numbers, interface types and other parameters. The job script must be modified to support the changes to the List for each job execution.

The BMP process is quite different from simply plugging a new Cisco appliance, giving it an IP address through a terminal program, allowing NetMRI to discover it and then pushing a configuration to it. BMP automates the process for deployments of the same device across many individual locations.

The Automation task enables cost and convenience savings by detecting the default behavior of new devices on the network, pointing them to TFTP servers from which the new devices download and install standardized bare-metal configuration files.

Configuration for the Provision Bare Metal Device automated task is primarily done in the NetMRI user interface. The automated task is automatically triggered by detection of a network device requiring configuration.

  1. Ensure the DHCP Options configuration is defined for all NIOS DHCP servers/DHCP ranges that will inter-operate with the Automation Change Manager. For more information, see Notes on DHCP Configuration for ACM Operation.
  2. Configure the NIOS appliance to forward Syslog notifications to NetMRI; on the NIOS appliance, choose Grid > Grid Manager > Members > Grid Properties. Choose UDP as the transport protocol.
  3. Ensure the NIOS appliance is running the NTP protocol:
    1. From the Grid tab, select the Grid Manager tab > Members tab > Grid_member checkbox.
    2. Expand the Toolbar and click NTP > NTP Member Config. If the Enable this Member as an NTP Server checkbox is enabled, nothing else needs to be done and you continue to Step 4.
  4. Ensure the TFTP server is up and running with the desired initial configuration files ready for download, and reachable within the network. For more information, see Notes on TFTP Service for ACM Operation .
  5. The required admin user accounts should receive the appropriate notifications when Bare Metal Provisioning jobs occur. Consult the topic Defining a Job Notification for more information.
  6. Ensure that the proper license is installed in the NetMRI appliance by going to the Settings icon > Setup > Settings Summary; check the Module Settings list. Automation Change Manager should read Enabled. (If necessary, also ensure the proper license is already installed in the NIOS system.)
  7. Register NetMRI with the NIOS system. This is done in NIOS through the following:
    1. From the Dashboards tab, select the Tasks tab.
    2. In the Automation Tasks pane, click the down arrow gadget and select ACM Registration.
    3. Under ACM Settings, do the following:

      1. Enter the IP address or resolved host name of the Automation Change Manager system supporting the Automation task pack.

        Note

        Optionally, you can load a CA certificate from NetMRI to NIOS to secure communications between the two systems.

d. Click Register to commit settings.

After registration, the ACM Registration menu item changes to read ACM Deregistration to support disconnection from the Automation Change Manager appliance.

8. To set NetMRI to receive Syslog from the NIOS appliances running DHCP, do the following on the NIOS system:

    1. Choose the Grid tab > Grid Manager > Members. Any member in the NIOS network running DHCP shows a green box under the DHCP column, indicating the members of the network that act as DHCP servers.
    2. Click the checkbox for at least one of the members running DHCP. (You can select more than one to perform this action.)
    3. Choose Grid Properties, and then choose Monitoring.
    4. Enable the Log to External Syslog Servers checkbox.
    5. To define NetMRI to receive Syslog messages, click the Add icon of the External Syslog Servers table and enter the Address information in the new row. Choose UDP as the transport. (Other table row settings should normally be left at their defaults.)
    6. Click Save and Close.

Individual NIOS appliances may need to be restarted for the changes to take effect.

9. Set up the DHCP protocol in the NIOS appliances. On each NIOS system running DHCP that you expect to participate in auto-configuring network devices, set the DHCP ranges as follows.

For the NIOS Grid, do the following:

    1. Choose the Grid tab > Grid Manager > Services. Select DHCP. All members in the NIOS network running DHCP show a green box under the DHCP column, indicating members acting as DHCP servers.
    2. Click the link for the member with a DHCP range you want to use for serving DHCP configuration to new devices through ACM. The Members Home page for the select appliance appears, displaying the list of DHCP ranges running on the appliance.
    3. Select the checkbox for the DHCP Range to modify and click Edit.
    4. Click IPv4 DHCP Options and scroll to Custom DHCP Options.

Example: for Cisco devices, choose option 66 and enter the FQDN, or the IP address of the TFTP server (which could be the NetMRI system, a NIOS appliance or another system).

e. Click Save and Close.

f. Follow the same steps for any other DHCP range as necessary.

10. In the NetMRI appliance, choose Settings icon > General Settings > Advanced Settings and make sure the following two settings are turned On:

    • Discovery Ignore Duplicate MACs
    • Discovery Truncate IP History

11. Choose Settings icon > Setup > Credentials > CLI and add a new USER credential of admin/infoblox, with an ENABLE password of infoblox. These credentials are pushed to the bare metal device after it boots with its TFTP configuration.

12. Choose Settings icon > Setup> Credentials > SNMPv1/2c and click the autoconfig community string (it defaults to Priority 16). Click Edit and change its Priority value to 1.

13. Also in the SNMPv1/2c page, click New and create a new community string infoblox. Assign it a Priority value of 2 and click Add.

14. Continue to the following topic, Deployment for Bare Metal Provisioning, Pt. 2

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