Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

This Dell Technical White Paper provides information about scripting

WS-MAN Firmware Inventory and Firmware Updates on Dell PowerEdge
servers with iDRAC.

Author(s)

Chris A. Poblete
Raja Tamilarasan
This document is for informational purposes only and may contain typographical errors and
technical inaccuracies. The content is provided as is, without express or implied warranties of
any kind.

© 2012 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. Dell and its affiliates cannot be responsible for errors or
omissions in typography or photography. Dell, the Dell logo, and PowerEdge are trademarks of Dell
Inc. Microsoft, Windows, and Windows Server are either trademarks or registered trademarks of
Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. Other trademarks and trade
names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming the marks and names or
their products. Dell disclaims proprietary interest in the marks and names of others.

February 2012| Rev 1.0

ii Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

 Executive summary
This paper describes how to automate firmware inventory and updates through a secure
and standards-based Web Services-Management (WS-MAN) service on Dell™ PowerEdge™
servers with Integrated Dell Remote Access Controller with Lifecycle Controller (iDRAC).

iii Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

Contents
Introduction....................................................................................... 5
Before You Begin ................................................................................. 5
Performing a firmware update ................................................................ 6
Install firmware information on the system ............................................... 7
Begin the update process .................................................................... 8
Monitor the update execution ............................................................. 12
Performing a firmware rollback.............................................................. 13
Exceptions ...................................................................................... 15
Summary ........................................................................................ 15
Additional Resources .......................................................................... 15

iv Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

Introduction
WS-MAN provides secure, simple, scriptable, and standards-based remote management capabilities
on Dell PowerEdge servers equipped with iDRAC.

WS-MAN is a network transport service that enables a user to access a number of Common
Information Model (CIM) data access and methods supported by the target platform. WS-MAN can be
scripted using command line interfaces (CLI) such as WinRM on Microsoft® Windows® systems and
WS-MAN CLI on Linux systems.

This document uses the Python scripting platform, which run son both Windows and Linux systems.
Some additional reading of specification documents may be required to understand the terminology
and concepts in this paper.

In this document, you will learn how to:

• View firmware information/inventory on a system.

• Perform a firmware update.

• Perform a firmware rollback.

Before You Begin

Before you begin, it is recommended to take the following actions:

1. Make sure the target system is a PowerEdge server with iDRAC enabled, configured, and
network accessible to communicate with WS-MAN.

2. For Windows, make sure the WinRM command line tool is configured and ready (for help, see
Installation and Configuration of Windows Remote Management).

For Linux, make sure the Openwsman CLI is built, installed, and ready (for help, go to the
Openwsman Home and join the mailing list).

3. Make sure Python 2.7 is installed on the target system (for help, see Python Home).

4. Download the following Python scripts:

a. [fw_inventory.py]
b. [fwupdate.py]
c. [fw_poll.py]

5 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

 1 Administrator

3 Update Repository

WSMAN over SSL

FTP / HTTP / TFTP / NFS / CIFS

Download

2 Target System

Figure 1 - Environment Diagram

Figure 2 shows an example of the target environment. It starts with the administrator (1) running
scripts to send WS-MAN commands through an SSL connection. The target system (2) is equipped with
iDRAC, which is a management controller with advanced capabilities. The update repository (3)
contains the Dell Update Packages (DUPs) that will be used to update the firmware on the target
system.

Performing a firmware update

The remote firmware update process involves the following steps

1. View the current firmware inventory of the system

2. Begin the update process

3. Monitor the update process

6 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

Install firmware information on the system
1. Run fw_inventory.py –h to see Usage options.

./fw_inventory.py --help
Usage: fw_inventory.py [options]

Options:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-v, --verbose Prints information verbosely
-f FWUPDATE, --firmware component=FWUPDATE
prints component information(nic, bios, idrac_fw,
drivers_pack, power_supply, raid,
lifecycle_controller, diagnostics)

2. Enter requested information:

Enter iDRAC IP Address: [iDRAC IP]

Enter User Name: [USER NAME]
Enter User Password: [PASSWORD]

The first argument is the IP address of the iDRAC on the target system. The second argument is the
user name; if the user is an Active Directory account, then the syntax is USER@DOMAIN. The third
argument is the user password.

3. The script establishes a connection with the iDRAC and also performs certificate validation.

3 Pinging 192.168.0.206. Waiting for response. Done.

Getting SSL Certificate. Waiting for response. Done

4. Once a successful connection is established, the fw_inventory.py script performs a Software

Inventory and lists components that are installed and available to be rolled back.

Sample output:

OPTION Component Status Comp ID Version Type

1(update) FRMW Installed 26018 0.12 BP12G+ 0:2

2(update) FRMW Installed 68138 D505 Physical Disk 0:2:0

3(update) FRMW Installed Empty 7.0.21 Broadcom NetXtreme Gigabit Ethernet

4(update) FRMW Installed Empty 7.0.21 Broadcom NetXtreme Gigabit Ethernet

5(update) BIOS Installed 159 0.3.32 BIOS

6(update) FRMW Installed Empty 7.0.21 Broadcom NetXtreme Gigabit Ethernet

7(update) FRMW Installed 26041 03.10.13 Power Supply.Slot.1

7 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

 8(update) FRMW Installed 25227 1.00.00 Integrated Dell Remote Access
Controller

9(rollback) FRMW Available 25227 1.00.00 Integrated Dell Remote Access

Controller

10(update) APAC Installed 25806 4216.1 Dell Enterprise UEFI Diagnostics

Diagnostics Utility

11(update) APAC Installed 28897 1.0.0.3551 Dell Lifecycle Controller 2,

1.0.0.3551, X69

12(update) FRMW Installed 27763 0.5.3 System CPLD

13(update) APAC Installed 18981 7.0.0.38 Dell OS Driver Pack, v.7.0.0.38, X38

14(update) FRMW Installed Empty 3.0.0-0135 PERC S110 Controller

15(update) FRMW Installed Empty 20.10.1-0066 PERC H310 Mini

Begin the update process

1. Run fwupdate.py –h for usage options.

./fwupdate.py -h
Usage: fwupdate.py [options]

Options:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-f CONFIG_FILE, --file=CONFIG_FILE
Enter config file with parameters the script needs.
Example of a file is fwupdate.cfg.
-v, --verbose Prints information verbosely
--cleanenv Cleans .log, .xml, and .cer files in current directory.

2. Enter requested information:

Enter iDRAC IP Address: [iDRAC IP]

Enter User Name: [USER NAME]
Enter User Password: [PASSWORD]

The first argument is the IP address of the iDRAC on the target system. The second argument is the
user name; if the user is an Active Directory account, then the syntax is USER@DOMAIN. The third
argument is the user password.

3. The script establishes a connection with the iDRAC and also performs certificate validation.

Pinging 192.168.0.206. Waiting for response. Done.

Getting SSL Certificate. Waiting for response. Done

4. Once a successful connection is established, the fwupdate.py script performs a Software Inventory
and lists the components that are available to be updated.

8 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

 Sample output:

[Firmware Component Inventory List]

b - bios
dp - drivers_pack
i - idrac_fw
n - nic
p - power_supply
r - raid
lc - lifecycle_controller
d - diagnostics
a - all

Each entry in the output lists a device that can either be updated to firmware located on a network
share (ftp/http/tftp/nfs/cifs) or rolled back to a previous firmware version stored on the iDRAC.

5. Select the component alias (from step 3) for the component you would like to inventory. Once a
component type is selected, the script lists options that are available for rollback and update for
that particular component.

View component firmware inventory: n

OPTION Component Status Comp ID Version Type

1(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet

BCM5720 - 18:03:73:0F:45:48

2(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.46 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet

BCM5720 - 18:03:73:0F:45:48

3(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.46 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet

BCM5720 - 18:03:73:0F:45:48

4(update) FRMW Installed None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet

BCM5720 - 18:03:73:0F:45:48

5(update) FRMW Installed None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet

BCM5720 - 18:03:73:0F:45:48

6(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet

BCM5720 - 18:03:73:0F:45:48

7(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet

BCM5720 - 18:03:73:0F:45:49

8(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.46 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet

BCM5720 - 18:03:73:0F:45:49

9(update) FRMW Installed None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet

BCM5720 - 18:03:73:0F:45:49

9 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

 Once the firmware inventory is listed, you can either continue with the firmware update or quit.
To perform a firmware update, select one of the options that are available for update.

The script will prompt for the location of the Dell Update Package (DUP) to be used. iDRAC
supports the following download methods with source URI syntax:

• FTP
ftp://[IPADDRESS]/[LOCATION]/[DUPFILENAME]

• HTTP
http://[IPADDRESS]/[LOCATION]/[DUPFILENAME]

• TFTP
tftp://[IPADDRESS]/[LOCATION]/[DUPFILENAME]

• CIFS
cifs://[USER]:[PASSWORD]@[IPADDRESS]/[LOCATION]/[DUPFILENAME];mountpoint=[MOUNTN
AME]

• NFS
nfs://[IPADDRESS]/[LOCATION]/[DUPFILENAME];mountpoint=[MOUNTNAME]

The all-caps portions of the syntax represent user-provided values. The [IPADDRESS] is the IP address
of the update package repository. The [LOCATION] is the path or directory. The [DUPFILENAME] is the
update package file name; the only supported update package is the “Dell Update Package for
Windows” that can be downloaded from support.dell.com. [USER] and [PASSWORD] refer to the user
credentials required to access and download files from the share. [MOUNTNAME] refers to the share
mount name.

Sample output:

Options

tftp://192.168.0.100/BIOS-2011.exe

nfs://192.168.0.100/BIOS-2011.exe;mountpoint=/pub

cifs://DOMAIN\\USER:PASS@192.168.0.100/pub/BIOS-2011.exe;mountpoint=E

http://192.168.0.100/BIOS-2011.exe

ftp://192.168.0.100/BIOS-2011.exe

Enter the path of the image file: tftp://192.168.0.3/DUP.exe

6. The script will prompt for a reboot type that the host will use reboot before performing the
update. Select an appropriate reboot type.

Reboot Type Options (1,2,3, and 4)

10 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

 1 = Forceful shutdown and reboot

2 = Graceful shutdown and reboot (Recommended)

3 = Forceful shutdown if graceful shutdown does not succeed

4 = No reboot

7. The script asks for permission to delete all existing jobs in iDRAC. It is recommended to choose yes
for a clean start.
Erase all previous jobs stored in the iDRAC? (yes/no) yes

Deleting all iDRAC jobs

Completed job deletion

8. The script requests a start time for the job. The job can be scheduled immediately or for a future
time.
Schedule the nic update now or schedule later (now, schedule)? now

The format of the StartTime argument is defined by the CIM Infrastructure Specification.
Enter now to schedule the jobs immediately, or enter schedule to schedule the job for a
future time. The schedule option will prompt for a start time, which you must enter in the
format MM-DD-YYYY hh:mm:ss

Y = Year, M = Month, D = Day, H = Hour, m = minute, S = second

12-13-2011 11:11:11

Once the start time is specified, the update job is initiated.

The update package is downloaded from the repository. This may take some time depending on the
size of the package and network state. After the update package is successfully downloaded, the
update and the reboot job are scheduled for the specified start time.

Sample output of successful command:

nic update successfully created

Creating reboot job

Reboot job successfully created.

Scheduling nic update job

Scheduling reboot job

The nic updating from version 7.0.21 to version

ftp://10.35.155.122/Release_DUPS/Network_Firmware_JXJWY_WN_7.0.46_X36.EXE

11 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

 Check the status of the reboot job and the nic update job by using the fw_pull.py
script.

Sample output of failed command:

The command failed with error code: CMPI_RC_ERR_INVALID_PARAMETER

If the command fails, check that the InstanceID you provided is accurate by comparing it with output
from the previous step. Remember that characters are case sensitive. Also, check the accuracy of the
source URI to ensure it is accessible with proper permission. Once verified, try the command again.

After the specified start time elapses, the host reboots and launces System Services to perform the
firmware update.

Monitor the update execution

The final step in the update process is to monitor when the update executes, and then to verify the
update by checking the new version from the inventory enumeration.

1. Run fw_poll.py –h for usage options

./fw_poll.py -h
Usage: fw_poll.py [options]

Options:
-h, --help show this help message and exit
-j JOBID, --JobID=JOBID
Provide one of the JobIDs (begins with JID or RID)
within the fwupdate.out file
-v, --verbose Prints information verbosely

2. Enter requested information:

Enter iDRAC IP Address: [iDRAC IP]

Enter User Name: [USER NAME]
Enter User Password: [PASSWORD]

1. The first argument is the IP address of the iDRAC on the target system. The second argument is
the user name; if the user is an Active Directory account, then the syntax is USER@DOMAIN. The
third argument is the user password.

Sample output:

Available JobIDs.

(1) JID_267336093962

- nic updating to image located at

ftp://10.35.155.122/Release_DUPS/Network_Firmware_JXJWY_WN_7.0.46_X36.EXE

(2) RID_267336106745

12 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

 - reboot for nic update

(0) exit out

Enter a number to poll JobID or to exit. (1,2,etc): 1

JobStatus = Scheduled

Message = Task successfully scheduled.

MessageArguments = NA

MessageID = JCP001

Name = update:DCIM:INSTALLED#701__NIC.Integrated.1-2-1

Repeat get JobStatus command for JID_267336093962? (yes, no):

3. Select the number corresponding to your job to display the current status.

The script performs two step executions. The first step is to monitor the status of the job associated
with the update. When it detects the status is completed, it monitors the status of the data sync. At
this time, the update has been executed and the device is running the new firmware level.

Performing a firmware rollback

A firmware rollback applies a device’s previously installed firmware version. This is useful when you
encounter a new firmware level that was just updated and is causing problems or incompatibilities in
the system.

To determine if firmware can be rolled back, examine the inventory list and look for “available” in the
status. For example:

5(update) FRMW Installed None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet

BCM5720 - 18:03:73:0F:45:48

To perform a rollback, select the firmware entry marked “available” and run the update script without
the source URI. The script will detect that the request is a roll back and will execute the proper
commands. Unlike an update, a rollback does not go through the download phase. Jump to scheduling
the update and follow the rest of the process.

Sample output:

./fwupdate.py
Enter iDRAC IP Address: 10.36.0.117
Enter User Name: root
Enter User Password:
Pinging 10.36.0.117. Waiting for response. Done.
Certificate exists!

13 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

[Firmware Component Inventory List]
b - bios
dp - drivers_pack
i - idrac_fw
n - nic
p - power_supply
r - raid
lc - lifecycle_controller
d - diagnostics
a - all

View component firmware inventory: n

OPTION Component Status Comp ID Version Type
1(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet BCM5720
- 18:03:73:0F:45:48
2(update) FRMW Installed None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet BCM5720
- 18:03:73:0F:45:48
3(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.46 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet BCM5720
- 18:03:73:0F:45:48
4(update) FRMW Installed None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet BCM5720
- 18:03:73:0F:45:48
5(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet BCM5720
- 18:03:73:0F:45:48
6(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet BCM5720
- 18:03:73:0F:45:49
7(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.46 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet BCM5720
- 18:03:73:0F:45:49
8(rollback) FRMW Available None 7.0.46 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet BCM5720
- 18:03:73:0F:45:48
9(update) FRMW Installed None 7.0.47 Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet BCM5720
- 18:03:73:0F:45:49

Choices:
d Select different component
OPTION 1,2,3
ENTER: 1
Reboot Type Options (1,2,3, and 4)
1 = Forceful shutdown and reboot
2 = Graceful shutdown and reboot (Recommended)
3 = Forceful shutdown if graceful shutdown does not succeed
4 = No reboot
Enter reboot type: 1
Erase all previous jobs stored in the iDRAC? (yes/no) yes
Deleting all iDRAC jobs
Completed job deletion
Schedule the nic rollback now or schedule later (now, schedule)? now
Creating nic rollback job
nic rollback successfully created
Creating reboot job
Reboot job successfully created.
Scheduling nic rollback job
Scheduling reboot job
The nic rollback from 7.0.47 to the image 7.0.47
Check the status of the reboot job and the nic rollback job by using the fw_pull.py script.

14 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates

Exceptions
One exception to the process described in the previous sections is that certain updates do not require a
reboot and scheduling. After the update package is downloaded, it is immediately applied to the
device. This exception applies to Lifecycle Controller, Diagnostics, and OS Driver Pack firmware
updates. System CPLD Updates are currently not supported by this method.

Summary
In this paper, you have learned how to perform an inventory of firmware installed on your system, a
firmware update on select system devices, and a firmware rollback.

Additional Resources
Lear more about firmware inventory as defined by the Dell CIM profile specification:
http://www.delltechcenter.com/page/DCIM.Library.Profiles.DCIM+Software+Inventory+Profile+1.0

Lear more about firmware update as defined by the Dell CIM profile specification:
http://www.delltechcenter.com/page/DCIM.Library.Profile.DCIM+Software+Update+Profile+1.0

Lear more about job control as defined by the Dell CIM profile specification:
http://www.delltechcenter.com/page/DCIM+Job+Control+Profile+1.1

WS-MAN Interface Guide for Linux:

http://attachments.wetpaintserv.us/BMJk79WsVP3F0jwl50xR_w2088275

WS-MAN Interface Guide for Windows:

http://attachments.wetpaintserv.us/utYVFQFaHmnfG_LHEnx1YQ2026735

WS-MAN command line open source for Linux (OpenWS-MAN):

http://sourceforge.net/projects/openWS-MAN/

WS-MAN command line for Windows (WinRM):

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa384291(v=VS.85).aspx

All about Lifecycle Controller in iDRAC:

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/software/smusc/smlc/lc_1_5/index.htm

15 Scripting WS-MAN Firmware Updates