Sun Fire 4810 Server
 
Sun Fire 3800 Server
 
Sun Fire E6900 Server
 
Sun Fire 6800 Server
 
Sun Fire 4800 Server
 
Sun Fire E4900 Server
 

PLA-Support>Sun Systems>SPARC>Enterprise>SN-SPARC: SF-x8x0/Ex900
 
_Old GCS Categories>Sun Microsystems>Servers>Midrange Servers
 

Applies to:

Goal

The purpose of this document is to provide a better understanding of the Sun Fire[tm] Midrange server Frame Manager.



The scope of this Technical Instruction does not include the following systems:

Sun Fire [TM] 12K, 15K 20K, 25K systems as the the SC is not connected to the Frame Manager.

Sun Fire 3800/48x0/6800/4900/6900 Frame Manager FAQ

1) What does the Frame Manager monitor ?
2) How is the Frame Manager connected on a SF3800/SF4800/SF4810/SF4900 ?
3) How is the Frame Manager connected on a SF6800/SF6900 ?
4) How can I get the status of Rack Fan Trays, RTUs/RTSs and the Frame Manager ?
5) At what Firmware Version the SC, Frame Manager connection is supported ?
6) How can I verify that the SC successfully established a connection to the Frame Manager ?
7) What can I do when the SC lost the connection to the Frame Manager ?
8) What do the LED's on the Frame Manager mean ?
9) The fault LED on the Frame Manager is on. What should be done ?
10) In the Frame Manager LCD display a Hex, error code like looking number is displayed. What is this number ?
11) On the Frame Manager LCD display why is a MAC address shown instead of the Sun Logo ?
12) Why is a rotating ball instead of the rotating wrench shown on the LCD display of the Frame Manager ?
13) Can the Frame Manager be replaced without shutting the system down ?
14) How can the Frame Manager be rebooted ?
15) Is it possible to connect more then one server to the Frame Manager ?
16) Why does showplatform -p frame show only one RTU(two RTSs) when two RTUs(four RTS) are installed ?
17) Why is "Frame 080020:ffaa2b needs attention" message logged on the SC console ?
18) Why does showplatform -p frame say "Frame information is not available" ?
19) Does the Frame Manager notify the SC on errors or events ?
20) Does this FAQ apply to a SF12k SF15k SF20K and SF25K ?
21) Why is the Frame Manager LCD display blank ?
22) I still have questions who should you contact ?

Solution

1) What does the Frame Manager monitor   ?

The Frame Manager monitors the Rack Fan Trays, the RTUs/RTS and the Frame Manager itself. It does NOT reflect the status of any system/component inside the Rack.

2) How is the Frame Manager connected on a SF3800/SF4800/SF4810/SF4900  ?

On the SF3800 SF4800 SF4810, and SF4900 the Frame Manager connection to the SC is established by connecting serial Cables 530-1869 to the system controllers.

 

Note: The Cables 530-1869 are shipped with the system. The P2/P3 cable is tie wrapped on the top right front side of the Sun Fire Rack. With the beginning of Q2FY03 manufacturing ships the systems with the SC connected to the Frame Manager.

3) How is the Frame Manager connected on a SF6800/SF6900  ?

On the SF6800 and SF6900 the connection between SC and Frame Manager is established via the patch panel at rear side of the Sun Fire Rack.

4) How can I get the status of Rack Fan Trays, RTUs/RTSs and the Frame Manager ?

Using the showplatform -p frame on the platform shell the Frame Manager, Rack Fan tray and RTU/RTS status can be obtained.

5) At what Firmware Version the SC, Frame Manager connection is supported  ?

The SC Frame Manager connection is supported with FW version 5.12.X. Because of several Bugs it is recommended to uses the current version.

6) How can I verify that the SC successfully established a connection to the Frame Manager  ?

One way to determine if the SC successfully established a connection to the Frame Manager is to use the showplatform -p frame command, see FAQ 4. Another
way is to check the SC platform console for the following messages:

Jul 19 13:21:31 Platform.SC: [ID 581163 local0.warning] Frame Manager connected. ID: 080020:ffaa2b

This messages will only appear on a successful connect on the sc console.

7) What can I do when the SC lost the connection to the Frame Manager  ?

The SC reconnects to the Frame Manager after an SC reboot. In order to reboot the SC use the reboot command in the platform shell.

8) What do the LED's on the Frame Manager mean ? 

The three LED's have the following function :
# Power : (green) if the Frame Manager is supplied with Power.
# Fault : (amber) If the LED is amber service is required. See FAQ9 for trouble shooting advice.
# Service : (amber) If the amber is on it's save to remove the Frame Manager.
See also the 805-7363.

9) The fault LED on the Frame Manager is on.  What should be done ?

 
The fault LED on the Frame Manager lights on if

• Rack Fan Tray has a Service LED on (typically if a Rack Fan Tray has no Power or a Fan is broken, see FAQ4 how to get the status of the RFT)
• RTS has a Service LED on.
• The communication between Frame Manager and RTU/RTSs or Rack Fan Trays is broken.
  The Frame Manager has a problem, e.g. is booted in maintenance mode (FAQ12), the LCD display is broken.

The best way to trouble shoot the Frame Manager is to reboot the Frame Manager (FAQ14) and see if the problem still exists. If yes, check the RTU/RTSs and Rack FTs for problems, if you can observe any obvious problems there. If there are still problems remove step by step the connection cables between the Frame Manager and RTUs, Rack FTs and SC. In some rare events a broken RTU caused a failing connection to the Frame Manager to fail. After each disconnect operation reboot the Frame Manager (FAQ14) and check if the LED status changes.

Note: It's NEVER the SC or the server inside the Rack which causes the service LED to light on.   The SC reads only the status of the Frame Manager but doesn't set any LEDs, see FAQ1.

10) In the Frame Manager LCD display a Hex, error code like looking number is displayed.  What is this number ?

The number is the MAC address of the Frame Manager. See FAQ11 for more details.

11) On the Frame Manager LCD display why is a MAC address shown instead of the Sun Logo  ? 

Currently are three versions of Firmware are supported on the Frame Manager.
- Version 1.1 will display the Sun logo in the LCD display.

- Version 1.2 will display the MAC address of the Frame Manager.

- Version 1.2.2 will display the MAC address of the Frame Manager.

 Upgrading the Frame Manager Firmware on site is not an option.  The Frame Manager would have to be replaced to get a newer version.

There is a procedure to do this, but it is very difficult. All other options would need to be tried first, and an escalation is necessary.  See this doc for additional information:

Frame Manager "Service LED" is on but no failures are reported by the system (Doc ID 1004235.1)

12) Why is a rotating ball  instead of the rotating wrench shown on the LCD display of the Frame Manager ?

 
When the rotating wrench is displayed the Frame Manager booted in maintenance mode. The Frame Manager boots in maintenance mode when the main PROM is unbootable or when it has been rebooted several times without been powered off. To fix this please reboot the Frame Manager, see FAQ14.

Note: Be ware of Bug ID 4703289 which causes the Frame Manager to reboot more often without being powered off. Bug ID 4703289 is fixed in ScApp Version  5.15.0 and higher.

13) Can the Frame Manager be replaced without shutting the system down  ?

Yes. See the Sun Fire Frame Manager FRU Replacement Procedure in the Service Manual for more information on how to replace the Frame Manager.

Important:  The replacement Frame Manger key switch has to be in the SAME key switch position as the removed Frame Manager.

14) How can the Frame Manager be rebooted  ?

The Frame Manager receives power from the two Rack Fan Trays. Turning both Rack Fan Trays off will cause the Frame Manager to turn off, afterwards turn the Rack Fan Trays on will boot the Frame Manager again.

Note: This can be done without affecting any component in the Rack.

15) Is it possible to connect more then one server to the Frame Manager  ?

No. If more then one system is installed in the Rack, then the lowest system is connected to the Frame Manager.

16) Why does showplatform -p frame show only one RTU(two RTSs) when two RTUs(four RTS) are installed  ?

If the command doesn't report the status for one RTU and the included two RTSs, please check if the Frame Manager RTU data cable is connected.

Note: All systems shipped with 2 RTU will have the cables connected accordingly. If a second RTU was added later to the system, make sure the data cables between RTU and Frame Manager are connected. The two 9 Pin female/male data cables are tie wrapped at the front top/low left side of the Rack.

17) Why is "Frame 080020:ffaa2b needs attention" message logged on the SC console  ?

Check the showplatform -p frame output and the LED status on the front of the Frame Manager. Only when the service LED on the Frame Manager lights on the SC reports this messages, see also FAQ9 and FAQ19

18) Why does showplatform -p frame say "Frame information is not available" ?

Check the logs for a successful Frame Manager SC connection, see FAQ6, check LEDs on the Frame Manager, see FAQ8. Make sure the Frame Manager SC connection cables are installed, see FAQ2 and the correct FW version on the SC is installed, see FAQ5 .

19) Does the Frame Manager notify the SC on errors or events ?

NO. The Frame Manager doesn't notify the SC. The only time the SC generates messages is, when the fault LED on the Frame Manager lights on. Using the showplatform -p frame command the user has to check what the cause of that is. See FAQ 17

20) Does this FAQ apply to a SF12k SF15k  SF20K and SF25K ?

NO. On a SF12k SF15k SF20K SF25K the SC is not connected to the Frame Manager. The SMS software doesn't support the Frame Manager.

21) Why is the Frame Manager LCD display blank ?

Some Frame Manager unit reboot with a blank LCD display. The reasons for rebooting are similar to the "spinning wrench" case. Please upgrade to the current version of ScApp and reboot the Frame Manager afterwards. Applying the latest System Controller Firmware (ScApp) will prevent the random rebooting of the Frame Manager and thereby avoiding the blank LCD.

22) I still have questions who should you contact ? 

Please check the mail alias support archive of the serengeti-support alias at http://mailfinder.us.oracle.com/ if you don't find an answer there please e-mail your questions to Support_E_Series_WW@oracle.com.

Oracle Confidential (INTERNAL). Do not distribute to customers

Frame Manager 
Previously Published As 49128

This solution has no attachment