DELL poweredge 1855 User Manual

Reprinted from Dell Power Solutions, August 2005. Copyright © 2005 Dell Inc. All rights reserved

.

August 2005

quipped with 10 server blades and several I/O mod-

ules and management modules, the Dell PowerEdge

1855 blade server contains numerous system software

components to update during the change-management

process. Although best practices dictate careful planning

and methodical implementation when deploying system

software updates for the PowerEdge 1855 blade server,

such change management need not be difficult. As is

the case with other PowerEdge servers, administrators

can manage software updates for the PowerEdge 1855

blade server using standards-based Dell OpenManage

™

tools, third-party enterprise change-management 

tools, or both.

The process for updating system software components on 

PowerEdge 1855 server blades is designed to be the same

as on other PowerEdge servers. This similarity allows 

administrators to leverage existing change-management 

processes in their IT organization to manage updates to

PowerEdge 1855 server blades. On PowerEdge 1855 server 

blades, administrators can typically update firmware on 

the following system software components:

Server system BIOS

Baseboard management controller (BMC)

PowerEdge Expandable RAID Controller 4,

Integrated Mirroring (PERC 4/IM)

Adaptec SCSI Card 39160

SCSI hard disk drives

OS-level drivers

As part of the change-management planning

process, administrators must decide which update

method best fits their environment. System software

components on a PowerEdge 1855 server blade can be

updated using one of two methods: offline updates or

online updates.

Dell PowerEdge 1855 Blade Server

Many hardware components in the Dell

™

 PowerEdge

™

 1855 blade server have been 

designed with a firmware upgrade option—including the Dell Remote Access Controller/

Modular Chassis (DRAC/MC) management module; server baseboard management 

controllers; I/O modules; and keyboard, video, mouse modules. This article discusses 

standards-based frameworks for updating individual server blades and available 

software utilities as well as recommended methods and best practices for updating 

chassis component firmware.