IBM NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 7
The IBM Support web site for IBM NetVista Thin Clients is occasionally updated to include hints and tips. Please take a look at this web site for additional information:
- http://www.pc.ibm.com/support
- Click NetVista and NetVista thin client
- Click NetVista thin client
- Click Hints and tips
- Select All for the Hints and tips by category (and click Go if the page is not refreshed automatically)
- Scroll down to see all the hints and tips available by publication date
Significant changes have been made in IBM NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 7. To use the NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 7 on model N2200 and N2800 thin clients, the firmware level (12/06/01 or later) must be installed on these clients. An automatic upgrade of the firmware has been implemented in for clients with the 07/16/01 level firmware).
How do
you manually upgrade the firmware for clients with the 01/12/01, 07/17/00
or 12/06/01 level?
To upgrade
to the new firmware level, use the NSBoot Setup Utility. When the
client is starting to boot, after the message "Hardware testing in progress"
is removed, press the ESC key to start the NSBoot Setup Utility and then
follow these steps:
Rebooting
will cause your firmware level to be updated. Follow the instructions during
this process.
Do not power off your thin client while the firmware is
being updated.
The firmware
has been updated...now what?
If the firmware
was updated manually, you may need to reset the boot protocol and other
settings within the NSBoot Setup Utility. As the thin client starts,
press the ESC key just after the message "Hardware testing in progress"
has been removed.
Once the client
is up and running, you can use the Setup Utility or the TCM Operations
Utility to change the client's profile server or boot source (to switch
the client to boot to/from flash/server).
Updating Flash Images from
NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux for Model 2200 and Model 2800 Thin Clients
It is necessary to perform a flash recovery to update your flash card image from the old release. There are several suggested methods for performing this update and they depend on the firmware level on the client. However, before you use any method, be sure to boot a client to the server with NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 7 and setup the server settings and desktop settings required profile components (see NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 7 Release in this document for more information on profile components).
- For clients with firmware older then 7/16/01,, use the TCM Operations Utility to first upgrade the firmware to the current Linux firmware level and then reboot the flash booted client and perform the flash recovery.
- For clients with the 07/16/01 firmware, use the TCM Operations Utility. Using the GUI interface you can identify the clients with flash cards and have them all perform a recovery (and you can schedule this task to run at a convenient time).
- For clients with the firmware dated before 07/16/01 manually upgrade the firmware (steps provided previously in this document) and then server boot to the server with the IBM NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 7 and perform flash recovery:
- Start the Setup Utility (press Ctrl+Alt+Shift)
- Click Management, Click Flash Recovery
- Enter the server IP containing the new release and click Continue
- Click the mount point (/nstation/linux) and click Continue
- Click on the desired flash image (be sure to specify a flash image with name starting as NetVista_2x00 as this identifies images for the model 2200 and model 2800) and click Continue
- Click Continue on the confirmation screen
- The client will be restarted and the flash card will be updated. Following the flash card update, the client will be set to boot to the flash card.
- For clients with the 07/16/01 firmware, use the Setup Utility from the flash booted client. This method is not difficult but is required to be performed on each client. This method can be used if you have the NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux release and the 07/16/01 firmware. The flash card will be upgraded and the firmware will automatically be updated if needed. On the flash booted client, start the Setup Utility (press Ctrl+Alt+Shift) and do the following:
- Click Management, Click Flash Recovery
- Enter the server IP containing the new release and click Continue
- Click the mount point (/nstation/linux) and click Continue
- Click on the desired flash image (be sure to specify a flash image with name starting as NetVista_2x00 as this identifies images for the model 2200 and model 2800) and click Continue
- Click Continue on the confirmation screen
- The client will be restarted
- If the client is using the DHCP protocol, the client will not boot to the server without the following manual steps:
- Press the ESC key after an error is displayed and then press any key when prompted to do so to continue
- Use the down cursor key to highlight Configure network settings and press ENTER
- Highlight the field for "Local (NVRAM)" and press the PageDown key several times until the value is changed to Disabled
- Highlight the field for "DHCP" and press PageDown to switch the value to First
- Again, highlight the field for "Local (NVRAM)" and press the PageDown key several times until the value is changed to Override
- Press F3 to save and return
- Press F10 to reboot
- You may notice the client booting twice. This is because the first boot to the server will cause the firmware to be updated. The second boot to the server will cause the flash card to be updated.
- Following the flash card update, the client will be reset to boot to the flash card.
Thin Client Model | Boot Path Settings for Server or Peer Boot
(note: flash boot path is automatic -- no prompting) |
N2200 and N2800 | Boot path
/nstation/linux/kernel.2x00 Profile server default path for boot or remote NFS server /nstation/profiles Profile server default port for TCM Operations Utility server 8561 |
N70 | Boot Path
/nstation/linux Profile Server in URL format nfs://x.x.x.x/nstation/profiles for boot or remote NFS server http://x.x.x.x:8561 for TCM Operations Utility server (be sure to specify the port) |
Thin Client Model | DHCP Settings |
N2200 and N2800 | Option 66 - server IP
0.0.0.0 for flash boot x.x.x.x for server or peer boot Option 67 - path /kernel.2x00 for flash boot /nstation/linux/kernel.2x00 for server or peer boot Option 211 for boot protocol nfs |
N70 | Option 17 - server and path in URL
format
nfs://127.0.0.1/nstation/linux for flash boot (or not specified) nfs://x.x.x.x/nstation/linux for server or peer boot |
All Models | Option 214 - profile server in URL
format
nfs://x.x.x.x/nstation/profiles for boot or remote NFS server http://x.x.x.x:8561 for TCM Operations Utility server |
SDF Creator is used to create software
packages such as Netscape that you would like to install on a flash card.
IDF Builder is a tool that is used to create an IDF that includes a SDF
that defines what will be placed on the flash card. These tools only
run on server booted clients. There is online help for these tools
where you can learn more about the tools and how to use them.
NOTE: A flash recovery is required to upgrade flash cards from releases prior to IBM NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux.
Custom Flash Images
N70 Flash Support
In order to use peer boot support, the Master must enable peer boot support. This setting is found in the Services Profile Component used by the Master.
Note, the boot path for peer booted clients has changed from the NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux release. It is now the same as server booted clients:
The term profile component means a "logical set" of configuration information. For example, desktop settings is a set of information that defines the desktop -- it contains configuration information about the applications and desktop.
There are many profile components you can configure and use on the thin clients. However, only two of them are required and if they are not found, the Setup Utility is automatically started and the user is prompted to setup these profile components via a wizard like interface. The two required profile components are:
Following is the complete list of
user and workstation profile components:
The profile server identifies the
server storing the profile components to be used. And, the profile server
types allow for different naming conventions to identify the profile components
to be sent to the client. Specifically,
As you can see there are many profile
components available to configure and using profile components can be a
very powerful and easy way to manage your clients and users. It is
essential the Administrator understands profile components, the profile
server types, and the naming conventions for profile components based on
the profile server location. For additional details, please see the
document on profile component available on the Hints and Tips web site
(follow the steps at the top of this document to locate this web site).
The most current NS Boot firmware version is 07/29/02. The 07/29/02 firmware better handles network noise during the initial kernel load. If your hardware has the 07/16/01 level of firmware, the firmware will automatically be upgraded when booting to NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 7 SU 2. To update from other versions of the firmware please reference the "How do you manually upgrade the firmware section of this README.The operating system uses the Linux 2.4 kernel In addition, the following applications are part of IBM NetVista with Turbolinux 7:
The following support is in NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 7:
- GDM Login and the ICE Window Manager
- IBM JVM (version 1.3)
- ICA Client (version 6.x)
- Netscape Communicator ( version 4.x)
- Authentication methods - Additional authentication methods along with the ability to set the user's HOME directory on a remote server is provided (see the details included later in this document).
- Language selection - this setting is included in the Language / Environment Variables profile component and includes Euro support.
- Screen lock - the settings in the Window Manager profile component allow you to add the screen lock icon to the launch bar or enable the key sequence to activate the screen lock program.
- Seriald - this is configured within the Seriald profile component.
- RDATE time server protocol support - the time server configuration is set in the Server Settings profile component. Both NTP and RDATE time server protocols are supported (note that in this release, you can use an RDATE time server without any manual configuration).
- Flash Recovery while server booted - the Flash Recovery option within the Setup Utility is enabled for Flash and Server booted clients.
- Wireless enablement - this is supported for N70 flash booted clients only and requires manual configuration (see the details included later in this document).
Mount points - the ability to configure additional user mount points is included in the Mount Points profile component.
When you install NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 7, system defaults from a NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07 install will automatically be migrated to the new profile component format. In addition, you can elect to have the 6.07 release machine and user configurations migrated to the new profile component format.The migration of system defaults, client, and user configuration information takes place when the first client boots to the upgraded server. The upgrade process takes a few minutes and messages are displayed on the client in order to keep you informed of the progress.
Specific details regarding the naming of profile components once migrated and the manual steps you may need to perform in order to make use of the migrated profile components is provided further in this document.
NOTE: A flash recovery is required to upgrade flash cards from the NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07 release.
SA93569 | Corrected a problem so that the host name defined with the IBM NetVista Setup Utility will be used as the client's host name. |
SA94034 | Corrected a problem so the host name is correctly defined when flash booting. |
SA94035 | Corrected a problem following a change to the client IP address when the client was not immediately restarted. The Setup Utility will now automatically reboot after the IP Address is changed so the user does not need to remember to do so. |
SA94204 | Resolved the problem which resulted in a lock file error when using Netscape on peer booted clients. |
SA94237 | Resolved the NFuse errors that happen when HOME on the flash card is full. |
SA94278 | Corrected a problem whereby the client was not properly failing over to the backup DNS server defined in the Setup Utility. |
SA94303 | Corrected a problem so that an Xterm that is started from the setup utility can be closed with a click on the term window decoration 'x'. |
SA94335 | Added the Swedish language to the keyboards listed in the Setup Utility. |
SA94370 | Resolved a print problem for flash booted clients by adding Ghostview to the provided flash images. |
SA94372 | Corrected a problem for Finnish customers so they no longer need to manually set the LANG environment variable -- the Setup Utility now allows for a language profile component and Finnish is one of the selectable languages. |
SA94544 | Resolved a problem whereby flash booted clients with non-English keyboards defined were sometimes getting English as the language setting. |
SA94575 | Corrected the definition for the German keyboard such that the degree, "*", and "/" keys will behave as they are expected with a German configuration. |
SA94587 | Resolved a problem in the emulator SDF so that now the emulator SDF no longer requires the Netscape SDF in order to use the 5250 Setup Utility or 3270 Setup Utility on a flash card. |
SA94588 | Removed the need for the strip command to be available on the Linux server. To physically fit the 32 MB flash images onto a 32 MB compact flash card, the Thin Client binaries need to be stripped. The strip binary used during install was expected to be part of the Linux server code. And, if the Linux distribution on the server did not contain strip, the Thin Client binaries would then be larger than they needed to be causing the 32 MB flash images to not fit onto 32 MB compact flash cards. |
Non Authentication
Windows accounts do not have a Linux
user ID (UID) or group id (GID) association. There are two methods
for assigning UID/GID values to a Windows authenticated users.
Note: Local user accounts are still
supported and have priority when Windows authentication is enabled.
Supported Windows Servers
Configuration Parameters
|
|
Authentication Server | Primary Windows authentication server. You must enter the server's host name, not IP address. |
Authentication Server Alternate | Alternate authentication server to use if the primary server is not available. You must enter the server's host name, not IP address. |
Domain | Windows domain name. |
Common UID | UID that is used for all Windows authenticated users that do not have a special entry in the local /etc/passwd file. |
Common GID | GID that is used for all Windows authenticated users that do not have a special entry in the local /etc/passwd file. |
Limitations
The migration of system defaults, client, and user configuration information takes place when the first client boots to the upgraded server. The upgrade process takes a few minutes and messages are displayed on the client in order to keep you informed of the progress.
- For servers installed with NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07 setup for user authentication, the configurations for userid root will be saved as profile component DEFAULT and if user configurations were selected to be migrated, they will be created as profile components name <USERID>.
- For servers installed with NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07 setup for non authentication, the configurations for the systemdefault be saved as profile component DEFAULT and if machine configurations were selected to be migrated, they will be created as profile components name <CLIENT> (where <CLIENT> is the MAC Address or IP Address of the client).
User Profile Components Created During Migration:
- A single Authentication profile component will be created (named DEFAULT) with settings equivalent to the installation mode of NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07 Similarly, a single Server Settings profile component will be created (named DEFAULT) with settings including the time server information as defined by the system defaults in NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07
Workstation Profile Components Created During Migration:
- Desktop Settings - This is a required profile component and a DEFAULT is created during migration based on the root user settings for authentication installations and the system default settings for non authentication installations. <USERID> and <CLIENT> profile components are created as appropriate. NOTE: ICA Client sessions will not be migrated to the desktop so you will need to recreate them as needed.
- Window Manager Settings - <USERID>, and <CLIENT> profile components are created as appropriate. The DEFAULT profile component is created during migration if the root user had ICE Window Manager settings in NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07
- Netscape Settings - <USERID>, and <CLIENT> profile components are created as appropriate. The DEFAULT profile component is created during migration if the root user had Netscape preferences in NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07
- Audio Settings - <USERID>, and <CLIENT> profile components are created as appropriate. The DEFAULT profile component is created during migration if the root user had audio settings in NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07
- Mouse Settings - <USERID>, and <CLIENT> profile components are created as appropriate. The DEFAULT profile component is created during migration if the root user had mouse settings in NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07
- Printer - User Settings - The DEFAULT profile component is created during migration if the root user had printer settings in NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07
- Language/Environment Variables - <USERID> and <CLIENT> profile components will be created during migration. The DEFAULT profile component is created based on the root user settings for authentication installations and the system default settings for non authentication installations. Note however, these profile component will contain environment variables only as language settings are new this release. Also note, the default language for the thin client is based on the keyboard language if the language setting is not found in this profile component.
After the migration process completes, the profile components created are stored at /nstation/profiles/user and /nstation/profiles/machine on the server. Further action is needed by the Administrator in order to fully deploy these profile components.
- Server Settings - DNS and Time - No profile component is created during migration. As this is a required profile component, the Setup Utility will automatically start on the next client boot and will prompt you via the wizard like interface to create this profile component.
- Printer - Machine Settings - The DEFAULT profile component is created during migration if the root user or system default for non authenticated installations had printer settings in NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07
- Seriald Settings - No profile component is created during migration as this support is new.
- Authentication Server Settings - Only the system DEFAULT is created during migration and it contains settings based on the NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07 installation (authentication or non authentication ).
- Trap Server Settings - No trap server profile components are created during migration.
- Mount Point Settings - No profile component is created during migration as this support is new.
- Services - Telnetd, Peer Boot - DEFAULT, <USERID>, and <CLIENT> profile components will be created during migration, however, they will contain the setting for Peer Boot only as the ability to set Telnetd services is new this release.
- The profile components created during the migration process can be moved to a TCM Operations Utility server so they can be managed and assigned to user and client groups. Specifically, the directories on the TCM Operations Utility server where the profiles should be copied to are
- /NetVista/TCM/profiles/user/
- /NetVista/TCM/profiles/machine/
- ICA Client sessions will not be migrated to the desktop settings profile component so you will need to recreate them as needed.
- Workstation or user specific settings will be created as <CLIENT> and <USERID> profile components. In order to use these profile components, you may need to rename them accordingly.
- In general, installations with NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07 configured for Authentication migrate without the need for manual renaming of profile components by the Administrator.
- If your installation with NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07 was setup for IP Addressing (rather than MAC Addressing for workstation configurations), you will need to rename these profile components as the NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 7 does not support IP Addressing for workstation profile components.
- Installations with NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07 configured for Non Authentication require more action by the Administrator. Specifically, notice that during migration, some user profile components named <CLIENT> will be created because all of the settings were saved to client specific directories in NetVista Thin Client with Turbolinux 6.07 However, because these profile components are user profile components, they must be renamed to a USER name (such as KIOSK) if they are going to be used by clients/users with an NFS profile server (boot location or remote NFS server).
- Regardless of the installation, the type of profile server you use may also dictate renaming of profile components. The profile server identifies the server storing the profile components to be used. And, because the profile server types allow for different naming conventions to identify the profile components to be sent to the client, you may need to rename some profile components. Specifically,
- When using the boot server or a Remote NFS server as the profile server, the profile components sent to the client must be named DEFAULT (to obtain system default profile components), <CLIENT> for workstation profile components, and <USERID> for user profile components.
- When using a TCM Operations Utility server as the profile server, the profile components sent to the client can be named anything...however, in TCM Operations Utility, you must identify the client in a workstation group and the user in a user group, and have profile components assigned to these groups.
IBM High Rate Wireless LAN PCI Adapter support is available for the N70 flash booted clients. This 802.3b PCI Wireless Adapter offers a solution for NetVista Customers who require wireless LAN capability in a Thin Client environment.Setup Steps for Both Installation Methods:This section contains a general description of the steps required to setup the wireless environment. More details on the wireless parameters can be found at http://www.linux-wlan.com
To enable wireless on the flash booted N70 client, two options are described. The second option requires more commands to run but allows the user a little more flexibility.
When using a wireless LAN connection, please note the following:
1. The flash recovery and update options are not supported and should not be used.
2. The profile server must be the local flash (boot location) -- profile components must be stored and retrieved from the flash card.
1. Install the IBM High Rate Wireless LAN PCI Adapter in your N70. Use the standard bracket and standard length antenna.Installation method 1 (recommended): Running as user root, execute the following steps:2. Power on the N70 and it should boot and present the "IBM NetVista Thin Client Configuration Program" screen. Set the following parameters to the values outlined below:
Move the cursor to highlight the Save option and press ENTER to save the changes and continue the boot sequence.
- Configuration --> Static IP Address
- Network Adapter --> Ethernet
- Boot Mode --> Local
- Client IP --> 0.0.0.0
3. The system should continue to boot to the "IBM NetVista Setup Utility". In the Setup Utility, configure the application as appropriate, keep in mind that:
Profile Server must be the boot location (local flash) -- profile components must reside on the flash card. You will need root access to an Xterm to complete configuration of the wireless adapter. Set the appropriate DNS for the wireless network in the Server Settings profile component (you can change this profile component by using the Setup Utility menus Profiles->Workstation Profile Components->Server Settings - DNS and Time.
Installation method 2: Running as user root, execute the following steps. Note the wlanctl-ng command may require additional parameters.
1. Copy the sample wlan configuration file (/etc/wlan.conf.sample) to file /configs/wlan.conf2. Edit /configs/wlan.conf file. Outlined below are the sections of this file that need modification and the symbol --> indicates the particular settings that will most likely need changing. Note, there are two settings that are needed for the initial run: First set the SSID to your AP's SSID. Then set the WEP settings accordingly.
Subset of /configs/wlan.conf -- first section to edit:
========================================================= --> USER_MIBS="p2CnfRoamingMode=1 \ --> p2CnfOwnChannel=6 \ --> dot11DesiredBSSType=infrastructure" #=======WEP=========================================== # [Dis/En]able WEP. Settings only matter if PrivacyInvoked # is true --> dot11PrivacyInvoked=true # true|false dot11WEPDefaultKeyID=0 # 0|1|2|3 dot11ExcludeUnencrypted=true # true|false, in AP this means WEP # is required for all STAs # If PRIV_GENSTR is not empty, use PRIV_GENTSTR to generate # keys (just a convenience) PRIV_GENERATOR=/sbin/nwepgen # nwepgen, Neesus compatible PRIV_KEY128=false # keylength to generate --> PRIV_GENSTR="snoopy"
Subset of /configs/wlan.conf -- second section to edit:
#=======STA START===================================== # SSID and authtype are all we have for now AuthType="opensystem" # opensystem | sharedkey --> DesiredSSID="linux-wlan" =========================================================
3. If static IP address are used in the configuration of the wireless lan, edit the /configs/rc.local file and add the following commands:4. If DHCP is to be used for IP address, edit the /configs/rc.local file and add the following commands:/etc/rc.d/init.d/wlan start wlan0 ifconfig wlan0 <IP> netmask <netmask> broadcast <broadcast> route add default gw <gateway> 5. Verify the /configs/rc.local and /configs/wlan.conf files have execute permission, and then restart the N70./etc/rc.d/init.d/wlan start wlan0 dhclient wlan0 /etc/rc.d/rc.IBM_NS.env /etc/rc.d/rc.IBM_NS.netconfig
1. If static IP address are used in the configuration of the wireless lan, edit the /configs/rc.local file and add the following commands:2. If DHCP is to be used for IP address, edit the /configs/rc.local file and add the following commands:insmod -f /lib/modules/2.4.5-IBM/kernel/net/wlan/p80211.o insmod -f /lib/modules/2.4.5-IBM/kernel/net/wlan/prism2_pci.o wlanctl-ng wlan0 lnxreq_autojoin ssid=<AP's SSID> authtype=opensystem ifconfig wlan0 <IP> netmask <netmask> broadcast <broadcast> route add default gw <gateway> 3. Verify the /configs/rc.local and /configs/wlan.conf files have execute permission, and restart the N70.insmod -f /lib/modules/2.4.5-IBM/kernel/net/wlan/p80211.o insmod -f /lib/modules/2.4.5-IBM/kernel/net/wlan/prism2_pci.o wlanctl-ng wlan0 lnxreq_autojoin ssid=<AP's SSID> authtype=opensystem dhclient wlan0 /etc/rc.d/rc.IBM_NS.env /etc/rc.d/rc.IBM_NS.netconfig
Be aware that Windows NTFS file naming is case insensitive whereas Linux file naming is case sensitive. Therefore from a thin client point of view, the creation of the files ProjectExpansion and Projectexpansion are two different files if they reside on a Linux server, whereas they are the same file if they reside on a Windows server.
The following web site has helpful print support information: http://www.linuxprinting.org/
Following
these two commands, you can successfully install an RPM from the N70 thin
client.
To set the audio quality for ICA, start the ICA Remote Application Manager (we recommend making the change to the Desktop Settings Profile Component).