DELL S50V User Manual

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E-Series TeraScale Debugging and Diagnostics

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In a dual RPM system, the two RPMs send synchronization messages via inter-RPM communication 
(IRC). As described in the High Availability chapter, an RPM failover can be triggered by loss of the 
heartbeat (similar to a keepalive message) between the two RPMs. FTOS reports this condition via syslog 
messages, as follows:

FTOS automatically saves critical information, about the IRC failure, to NVRAM. Use the same three-step 
procedure to capture this file for analysis by Dell Force10. 

FTOS actually saves up to three persistent files depending upon the type of failure. When reporting an 
RPM failover triggered by a loss of the IPC or IRC heartbeats, look for failure records in the following 
directories: 

— Application or kernel core dump RP in the CORE_DUMP_DIR

— CP trace log file (look for a filename with the phrase “failure_trace”) in the 

TRACE_LOG_DIR

— RP and/or CP sysinfo file in the CRASH_LOG_DIR, as explained above

FTOS supports an extensive suite of debug commands for troubleshooting specific problems while 
working with Dell Force10 technical support staff. All debug commands are entered in privileged EXEC 
mode. See the FTOS Command Reference for details. 

The hardware watchdog command automatically reboots an FTOS switch/router with a single 
RPM that is unresponsive. This is a last resort mechanism intended to prevent a manual power 
cycle.

Message 7  RPM heartbeat report

20:29:07: %RPM1-S:CP %IRC-4-IRC_WARNLINKDN: Keepalive packet 7 to peer RPM is lost

20:29:07: %RPM1-S:CP %IRC-4-IRC_COMMDOWN: Link to peer RPM is down

%RPM1-S:CP %RAM-4-MISSING_HB: Heartbeat lost with peer RPM. Auto failover on heart beat lost.

%RPM1-S:CP %RAM-6-ELECTION_ROLE: RPM1 is transitioning to Primary RPM.

Enable the hardware watchdog mechanism.