lochDNS MyDNS Appliance Appliance User Guide

Table of Contents

IntroductionAppliance Status and System InformationAppliance LogsBack Up and Restore

SettingsBack Up and Restore

Change PasswordCollection ToolConfiguration

Configure Internet ProxyConfigure NetworkingAppliance Host ServerDNS ServersNetwork InterfacesConfigure NotificationManage EntitlementsRoot PasswordSystem TimeUpload SSL Certificate

Manage ServicesSchedule RebootUpdates

UpdatesSettingsMigrate

User ManagementManage UsersManage Groups

View and Apply Rollbacks

Introduction

lochDNS MyDNS Appliance provides a web-based user interface for appliance administration. Each administration tasks is built in as a plugin to the interface, and appliance developers include plugins specific to the administration needs of the appliance. Plugin functions are provided in pages in the web interface, accessible by links in a menu.

This interface launches a configuration wizard after initial login, prompting for initial entries on specific pages. After a user completes the wizard, all pages are accessible from links in the menu. interface.

This guide describes the purpose and use of each page.

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Appliance Status and System Information

The Appliance Status page displays a summary of information about the appliance and its administration. The following are the default items displayed:

The time and date of the last update of appliance software The time and date of the last check for available updates The time and date of the next scheduled check for available updates The status of backups, including whether any are available The status of configuration, including any tasks that are not configured

The System Information page displays information about the appliance's hardware, disk usage, and installed software. The following are the default items displayed:

The DNS host name of the appliance The amount of memory (RAM) and swap space allocated to the appliance and free for appliance

operations:o If the appliance is running directly on server hardware, this is the total amount of

memory on that hardware.o If the appliance is running as a virtual machine, this is the amount of memory allocated

to that virtual machine, which is only a part of the memory on which the hypervisor is running.

The uptime, which is the amount of time the appliance has been running since its last boot The brand and specifications for the processor hardware on which the appliance is running The storage on and mounted to the appliance, including the total size of each disk partition, the

type of filesystem on each partition, and the available space remaining for storage The installed software on the appliance, stated in the way the software is packaged on the

underlying system:o A "group" in Conary package management is a way of determining all the software that

should be installed on an appliance.o The Conary group is used to create the image originally used to install the appliance.o The group's version number (displayed in this system information) typically matches the

version of the appliance itself. That group, in turn, defines the version of each software package associated with that version of the group.

o The appliance identifies a virtual location (called a "label") within a network-accessible repository on which the software group resides, and it uses that repository label when checking for and obtaining software updates.

o The vendor providing the appliance is responsible for providing the software updates as needed on the repository label.

Note

To monitor and manage the services running on the underlying operating system, clickManage Services from the menu at the left.

Appliance Logs

The Appliance Logs page provides a window to view portions of log files on the appliance or to download the entire selected log. Use these logs to monitor appliance health, troubleshoot errors, and provide information for support personnel.

Use the drop-down list to select a log to view. The page will display the most recent lines in the log. ClickRefresh to refresh the display as needed. Click Download to download and view the entire log.

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The default log selections are as follows:

Agent Service -- This log shows the status of the server service powering rPath Platform Agent which powers this web-based administration tool: /var/log/raa/raa-service.log

Agent Web Service -- This log shows the status of the web service powering rPath Platform Agent which powers this web-based administration tool: /var/log/raa/web

Appliance Logs -- This displays a database table showing what actions the appliance performed and when.

Conary -- This logs shows the state of the underlying Conary package management system: /var/log/conary

System -- This log shows messages concerning the overall health of the working appliance: /var/log/messages

Back Up and Restore

Table of Contents

SettingsBack Up and Restore

The Back Up and Restore task can be used to back up and restore data on the appliance. Use this task to specify a particular backup location, to configure a backup schedule, to perform an immediate backup, and to restore from a backup.

Settings

Use the Backup Settings tab in the Back Up and Restore task to configure the schedule and location for appliance backups. Click Save to save any changes made to this configuration.

Enable backup schedule? -- Select Yes to enable scheduled backups and activate the other fields for configuring backups. Select No to disable the schedule.

Schedule -- Use the radio buttons to select the frequency for scheduled updates: daily, weekly, or monthly.

Daily/Weekly/Monthly Options -- Use the drop-down lists to select the day of the week or month and the time for backups to occur on the selected day.

Number of backups to keep -- Type the whole number of backups that should be stored at the location specified. Note that the minimum number of backups that the system maintains by default is 2, even if the number is set less. If this number is ever reduced, the number of existing backups does not change until the next backup is performed.

Backup type -- Use the radio buttons to select the type of backup location. The following choices are provided:

o Downloadable Backup File (HTTP) -- When this option is available, the appliance creates a backup on its local system and allows the user to download it over HTTP via a web browser.

o Network File System Share (NFS) -- Select this for backup locations accessible as NFS shares. Complete the NFS Options fields as follows:

Example -- An "NFS" server with the hostname 'fileserver.example.com' has an export named '/exported/dir', which contains a subdirectory named 'subdir'. Set Connection hostto 'fileserver.example.com' and Connection path to '/exported/dir/subdir'.

Connection host -- Type the hostname or IP used to connect to the NFS share. Connection path -- Type the full path to the NFS share where the backups

should be stored.o "Windows" Share (CIFS/SMB) -- Select this for backup locations accessible as

Common Internet File System (CIFS), Server Message Block (SMB), or Samba shares. The

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title indicates that this is the type referred to when people say "Windows shares" in reference to file systems on Microsoft(R) products. Complete the CIFS/SMB Options fields as follows:

Example -- A "Windows" server with the hostname 'fileserver.example.com' has a share named 'Share' with a subdirectory named 'subdir'. It is accessed using the username 'guest' with a password 'examplepass'. Set Connection host to 'fileserver.example.com',Connection path to '/Share/subdir' (note the forward slashes), and User name andPassword to 'guest' and 'examplepass' respectively.

Connection host -- Type the hostname or IP used to connect to the CIFS/SMB share.

Connection path -- Type the full path to the CIFS/SMB share where the backups should be stored.

User name and Password -- Use these text boxes to specify the user credentials required to write to the CIFS/SMB share. Either the password, or both the user name and password may be left blank if not required to access this share.

o Mountable File System (Label) -- Select this for backup locations that are visible by file system label to the appliance. Complete the Label Options fields as follows:

Example -- A USB hard drive is plugged in, and has a file system with the label 'BACKUP', and a subdirectory 'backups'. Set Disk label to 'BACKUP', and Connection path to '/backups'.

Disk label -- Type the "LABEL" value associated with the mounted file system. Connection path -- Type the directory path to relative to the mount point

where the backups should be stored.

Back Up and Restore

Use the Back Up and Restore tab on the Back Up and Restore task to perform immediate backups for the appliance and to restore from an existing backup. Note that this tab redirects to the Backup Settings tab until a backup location has been saved.

Click Back Up Now to perform an immediate backup of the appliance. The page displays a status box to inform you of the status of the backup. When the backup is complete, click OK to refresh the page, revealing the new backup in the Restore from Backup list.

Restore from any of the listed backups by clicking the restore link beside the desired backup. If you need to restore from a separate backup file, Browse to select the file, and click the Restore button.

Change Password

Use this page to change the password for the current user. This password applies to accessing this web-based appliance administration interface.

Collection Tool

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The Collect Diagnostic Information task is used to collect diagnostic information about the appliance and provide a downloadable file that can be submitted when requesting support on this appliance. ClickCollect Now to start a new collection of information, and click Download Now when the collection is complete.

Some of the items collected are as follows:

Various log files Appliance Agent configuration information Conary database information Disk Usage information Hardware information Appliance-specific data for software on which the appliance is based

Configuration

Table of Contents

Configure Internet ProxyConfigure Networking

Appliance Host ServerDNS ServersNetwork Interfaces

Configure NotificationManage EntitlementsRoot PasswordSystem TimeUpload SSL Certificate

Several pages make up the Configuration section of appliance administration. Click Configuration on the left to expand the menu, revealing all the available configuration pages.

Configure Internet Proxy

Use the Configure Internet Proxy page to configure the HTTP and HTTPS proxy servers used by the appliance. Click Clear to clear all entries. Click Save to save changes.

HTTP Proxy -- In the text boxes provided, type the IP address or host name for the HTTP proxy followed by the port number and any credentials required by the proxy.

HTTPS Proxy -- In the text boxes provided, type the IP address or host name for the HTTPS proxy followed by the port number and any credentials required by the proxy. To use the same proxy settings as HTTP, check Use HTTP proxy.

Configure Networking

Use the Configure Networking page to configure network interface, host name, and Domain Name Service (DNS) settings for the appliance. Click Save to save changes.

Some settings may be assigned automatically by DHCP according to your network's DHCP configuration. To prevent network access issues, do not override DHCP-assigned settings unless informed otherwise.

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Appliance Host Server

Select whether the host name is provided automatically by DHCP. If you select No, type the desired host name in the text box provided.

DNS Servers

Complete the DNS configuration for the appliance, including the following items:

Obtain DNS servers from DHCP? -- Select whether the DNS servers that the appliance should use are provided automatically by DHCP.

DNS servers -- If you select No to obtaining DNS servers from DHCP, specify one or more DNS servers in this field. Click Add server to add a new server entry, and click the "X" beside the entry to delete it. Modify the entry directly to change it.

Search domain -- Use this to designate one or more domains to search automatically during network interactions when the destination host is not specified with a fully qualified domain name. For example, if the appliance uses the search domain "example.com," and the appliance attempts to find "appliance1," the appliance will search for "appliance1.example.com." Include as many search domains as the appliance requires, separated by spaces and first-to-last in the order in which they should be searched.

Gateway -- Use this to designate the IP address of the gateway that the appliance uses to send network traffic outside of its local network segment.

Network Interfaces

The Network Interfaces part of Configure Networking lists each network interface and its corresponding MAC address. The first interface is typically "eth0" for the first ethernet interface. Each section includes the following configurable fields:

Obtain device configuration from DHCP? -- Select whether this interface should obtain its settings automatically by DHCP. If you select No, complete the IP address, Netmask, and Gateway text boxes with static entries.

IP address -- Use this to designate a valid IP address for the network interface. Netmask -- Use this to provide the network mask for the network segment on which the

interface resides. Gateway -- Use this to provide the gateway for the network segment on which the interface

resides.

Configure Notification

Use the Configure Notification page to manage email notifications from the appliance. These settings determine how the system sends email and what recipients should receive that email.

Use the Relay Server Configuration section to configure how the appliance sends email notifications:

Mail relay server -- Type the host name of the SMTP relay server that the appliance should use to send email notifications.

Send mail from -- Type the email address used to complete each notification email's "From" field.

Click Add Email to add new email addresses which should receive email notifications. Modify addresses directly in the text boxes provided. Click the X next to a corresponding entry to delete that email address from the list.

Manage Entitlements

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When the Manage Entitlements page is available, use it to add an entitlement for this appliance product as provided by the vendor from which it was purchased.

Before entering a new entitlement, be sure the text box is clear of any existing text (current entitlement).

Enter a new entitlement by pasting the entitlement key into the text box and clicking Save. Verify a message appears above the Manage Entitlements task block that indicates that it was saved or that there was an error when saving.

This feature may not be available for all users.

Root Password

When the Root Password page is available, use it set or reset the root user (top-level administrator account) password for the underlying Linux operating system of the appliance. To change the root password, type the new password in both the New password and Confirm new password text boxes, and click Save to save the changes. Passwords must be at least seven (7) characters long. If the password entries do not match, the appliance warns you and prompts you to correct the entires.

This feature may not be available for all users.

System Time

Use the System Time page to set the time zone in which the appliance operates, and to configure the time or Network Time Protocol (NTP) servers. Click Save to save changes.

Set Time Zone -- Select a time zone from the drop-down list. Click Save Time Zone Only to save changes only to the time zone selection.

Set Date and Time -- To manually set the time, use the drop-down lists to select the hour, minute, second, month, day, and year. To synchronize the system time with an NTP server, check the box to select Synchronize time with a Network Time Protocol (NTP) server. When the box is checked, type the IP address or host name of the time server in the NTP server text box.

Note

If the appliance product is deployed as a virtual appliance, you may set the time zone, but the time setting is disabled to ensure the server on which the hypervisor resides has control over the system time. Click Set Time Zone Only to save the time zone selection in these cases.

Upload SSL Certificate

Use the Upload SSL Certificate page to update the secure sockets layer (SSL) certificate used by the appliance. SSL certificates are generated by a Certificate Authority (CA) to identify the certificate owner, authenticate information about the owner, and enable encryption of sensitive information during online transactions.

The page displays information about the current certificate.

To upload or replace the SSL certificate used by the appliance, click Browse and select the certificate file (.pem extension). Click Upload to upload the file and save it as the SSL certificate.

If the host name has changed or the certificate has expired, click Regenerate to have a new certificate generated. Click Regenerate in the confirmation dialog to verify that you want to both regenerate the certificate and that you want to replace the current certificate with the regenerated one.

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Manage Services

The Manage Services page lists services running on the appliance. Services are software that runs on the underlying operating system, in the background of the main applications. These services carry out essential tasks to support those main applications.

Note

Stopping and restarting some of these services could cause the web interface or other appliance features to be inaccessible. Before taking action to stop or restart a service, be sure you know how it will affect the appliance.

Each service in the list includes the following features for controlling the service:

Start on Boot -- Check this box to add the service to the list of services that start when the system boots. Clear the check in this box to remove the service from that list.

Start -- Click the button in this column to immediately start the corresponding service. Stop -- Click the button in this column to immediately stop the corresponding service. Restart -- Click the button in this column to immediately restart the corresponding service.

Schedule Reboot

The Schedule Reboot page can be used to schedule a reboot for the appliance, or it can be used to reboot or shut down the appliance. Only one future reboot can be scheduled at a time.

Click Shut Down Now to shut down the appliance immediately, and click Reboot Now to reboot the appliance immediately. Note that this web interface will not be available until the appliance reboots successfully.

Click the calendar icon beside the date text box and use the calendar tool to select a date on which to reboot. Then, use the drop-down lists to select a time of day to reboot. Click Schedule to add the date and time to the schedule. Confirm that the date and time are displayed on the page with a Cancel button.

Use the same steps to modify an existing schedule. Verify that the new date and time is displayed in place of the previous.

Click Cancel to cancel a scheduled reboot. After a brief moment to process the action, the page should display "No reboot scheduled."

Updates

Table of Contents

UpdatesSettingsMigrate

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The Updates task is used to check whether the appliance is updated to its latest available product version, and to apply updates when they are available. Check and apply updates manually, or schedule checks and updates at specific intervals.

Updates

In the Updates tab, click the Check for Updates button to check for an available update. If the system is configured to check for updates automatically, an update may already be displayed in the Available Update area of the page.

While in progress, the status of the check is displayed in a dialog box. When the check has completed successfully, click OK to confirm the success message. If no update is available, the Available Updatecontinues to read "No updates are available." If an update is available, the interface displays information about that update with an Apply Now button.

Click Apply Now to immediately apply the displayed available update. As the update progresses, a dialog box prevents the user from proceeding.

Settings

Click the Settings tab to configure checking for updates and to select whether to automatically install an updates when it is available.

Use the Update Source section to select whether updates should be obtained over a network connection or from removable media (such as an attached USB drive or CD).

In the Update Settings section, select whether the system should automatically check for updates. If you select YES, use the schedule selections and date drop-down lists to select the frequency for this schedule.

In the Installation, select whether an available update should be automatically applied (installed) when it is found. If you select NO, the available update is displayed on the Updates tab and can be installed from that page.

Note

The availability check will actually be performed at a random time between the hour selected and the following hour. Upon saving the schedule, note the "Next scheduled check at" line indicating the exact time.

Click Save to save changes.

Migrate

Note: The Migrate task may not be enabled for your appliance. If your appliance vendor has enabled this task, you will be instructed when to use it. Normally, you should use the Updates task when updating your appliance.

The Migrate task updates the entire appliance to a different version, including overwriting or discarding files on its current version. This is typically used when the appliance vendor has a new branch of product development and wants customers to get updates from that new branch for supported features and fixes.

The trove name and trove version shown as default values in the text boxes correspond to the current top-level appliance group and its Conary version string. These values are important to appliance developers and vendors as they identify where the appliance searches for updates. If directed to change these values and migrate the appliance, be sure to clear the old values from the text boxes before entering new values.

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User Management

Table of Contents

Manage UsersManage Groups

The User Management page is used to manage users and groups that access this web interface and perform tasks within it. Create groups and users, and use groups to assign roles related to appliance administration tasks.

Manage Users

Click the Manage Users tab to add, modify, and delete users. Prior to assigning users to groups, create groups in the Manage Groups tab.

Click Add User to add a new user, and click the corresponding links in the Edit or Delete columns to modify or delete an existing user in the list.

When adding and modifying a user, complete the form as follows:

Your password -- Type the current user's password to authorize the change. The current user should have the administrative role necessary to add and modify other users.

User name -- Type a user name for the user. Full name -- Type the full name for the user. Password and Confirm password -- Type and retype the password for the user. To ensure an

existing user can continue using the same password, leave these text boxes blank. Groups -- Click the names of the user groups to which the user should belong. Select multiple

groups or unselect a group by holding the Ctrl key while clicking.

Click Save to save the additions or updates, or click Cancel to cancel the action.

Manage Groups

Click the Manage Groups tab to add, modify, and delete groups. Groups associate preconfigured roles in the appliance with the users in that group. After modifying groups, use the Manage Users tab to add and remove each user to one or more groups.

Click Add Group to add a new user group, and click the corresponding links in the Edit or Deletecolumns to modify or delete an existing user group in the list.

When adding and modifying a group, complete the form as follows:

Name -- Type a name for the new group. Roles -- Click the names of the roles that should be assigned to all group members. These roles

are preconfigured by appliance developers and provide the permissions needed to perform certain tasks. Select multiple roles or unselect a role by holding the Ctrl key while clicking.

Click Save to save the additions or updates, or click Cancel to cancel the action.

View and Apply Rollbacks

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The View and Apply Rollbacks page is used to reverse appliance updates. The underlying structure of the appliance allows users to return appliance software to a previous state prior to a recent update performed on the Updates page.

As stated in the guide text, a "rollback" is a prompt to reverse an update to the appliance software. When each update is made, a corresponding rollback is created. The underlying system places the rollback on top of a stack of previous rollbacks. To roll back the appliance software to a previous state, select how many updates must be reversed, and "apply" their corresponding rollbacks, starting from the top of the stack.

The rollbacks displayed are those corresponding to the most recent updates, with the highest number being the most recent. Click the corresponding arrow button for a rollback to see what software packages are affected, and click a package name in that display to see how that package will change if the rollback is applied.

Click the corresponding button in the Roll Back column to apply the rollback, returning the appliance software to its state prior to its corresponding update. Rollbacks must be applied in chronological order starting with the most recent. Click Roll Back in the dialog box to confirm your choice.

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