On 10/16/05, Grant Peel <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Hi all, > > I have asked this question before, so if it looks familiar ... > > I am hoping all the reading I have done over the past few weeks makes this > instance of the qeustion clearer. > > Background: > > 1 Dell 24 Port Switch, WAN connection to my ISP. > 5 Dell Serers, each with 2 NICs. > 1 NIC on each connected to SWITCH - VLAN 1 -WAN (Many different IP's). > 1 NIC on each connected to SWITH - VLAN 2 -LAN (192.168.0/24) > > Each Server has 2 Serial ports, unused. > Each Server has 2 USB ports, unused. > > All servers running FreebSD > 2 Running 4.10 > 1 Running 5.2.1 > 1 Running 5.4 > 1 Running 4.4 (Slave3 Nameserver only). > > I am ~ 120 miles from the server cage these are located in. So traveling to > there is a real pain. > > I have been reading everything I can find on consoles, ttys, blackboxes, > Lantronix serial cables etc, etc ,etc ,etc ... > > What I am looking to do, is to connect all the servers to a device, or, > daisychain them together so that even if I reboot a broken machine, I can > still get to a "boot ?" prompt, not to mention single user mode and normal > ssh shell prompt. (of course I already have the latter through IP when the > machine boots correctly. > > So my question is, can a machine be made to still be remotely accessable > (any method), when file systems are not mounted, or, kernel not loaded? If > so, using what setup? > > -Grant > > > _______________________________________________ > freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list > http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions > To unsubscribe, send any mail to "[EMAIL PROTECTED]" > >
First, you should check with your servers' specs. Many vendors include basic LOM (Lights-out- management) support in their boxes. If they do, you should turn it on in the BIOS - and it will redirect all text-based screen output and keyboard input to a COM port. If all goes right, you'll be able to even edit your BIOS settings remotely. Secondly, you can place "console comsonsole" line in /boot/loader.conf. That should allow you to access that "boot ?" prompt. Thirdly (preferred method for servers without good LOM) - you can buy a 3d-party LOM, available in a dozen of forms, from PCI and what not cards to KVM-over-IP solutions. _______________________________________________ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to "[EMAIL PROTECTED]"
