AppA_cli_appendix

Appliance Command-Line Tools

Most of the configuration management tasks that you need to perform—backing up and restoring your appliance configuration, applying upgrades, and so on—can be done using the Web-based Aventail Management Console (AMC), on the Maintenance page. This section describes tools on the appliance that perform these same tasks and some others, for administrators who prefer to work on the command line.

Tool	Purpose
Setup Tool (setup_tool)	Configure the appliance by running Setup Tool from a serial connection using a laptop computer or terminal. • See Configuring a New Appliance Using Setup Tool on page 688. Note:: Starting in 10.7.0, setup_tool and cluster_tool are integrated into config_reset.
Backup Tool (config_backup)	Save the current configuration file. • See Saving Configuration Data on page 690.
Config Reset (config_reset)	To restore the factory default configuration settings. • See Restoring Factory Default Configuration Settings on page 691.
Update Tool (upgrade_<version>.bin)	Install a software update. • See Installing System Upgrades (Command Line Tool) on page 692.
Rollback Tool (rollback_tool)	Roll the system software back to its most recent state prior to an upgrade. • See Reverting to a Previous Version on page 693.
Factory Reset Tool (factory_reset_tool)	Restore the appliance to its original state when received from the vendor. Use this tool as a last resort; there is no AMC equivalent for this feature. • See Performing a Factory Reset on page 693.
Cluster Tool (cluster_tool)	Upgrade a single node to be part of a cluster; there is no AMC equivalent for this functionality. • See Troubleshooting a Cluster on page 544 Note:: Starting in 10.7.0, setup_tool and cluster_tool are integrated into config_reset.
Host Validation Tool (checkhosts)	Show a list of the hosts referred to in your appliance resources, and find out if they are accessible and can be resolved in DNS. • See Validating Hosts on page 694

See Managing Configuration Data on page 309 and Upgrading, Rolling Back, or Resetting the System on page 322 for a description of configuration data files and how to manage them in AMC.

: •: Configuring a New Appliance Using Setup Tool

: •: Saving and Restoring Configuration Data

: •: Upgrading or Rolling Back System Software on page 692

: •: Validating Hosts on page 694

Configuring a New Appliance Using Setup Tool

The recommended way to set up a new appliance is to use the LCD controls on the front of the appliance to enter information that will enable a Web browser to connect to your appliance so that you can connect to the Aventail Management Console and run Setup Wizard, as described in Powering Up and Configuring Basic Network Settings on page 49.

If you prefer using a command-line utility you can configure the appliance by running Setup Tool from a serial connection using a laptop computer or terminal.

: •: Tips for Working with Setup Tool on page 688

: •: Using Setup Tool on page 688

Tips for Working with Setup Tool

Here are some tips for working with Setup Tool:

: •: Yes or no questions include a [y] or [n] at the end of the prompt; type the appropriate letter and then press Enter to display the next question.

: •: To delete a character, press Backspace. (On a Windows-based PC, you can also press Delete to remove a character.)

: •: When typing an IP address or netmask, use the standard IP address format of four octets (w.x.y.z). Setup Tool provides basic error checking (for example, validating that the gateway you type is on the same subnet as the appliance).

: •: Type q to quit Setup Tool and discard your changes.

Using Setup Tool

When you run Setup Tool from the command line, it prompts you to accept the E-Class SRA End User License Agreement (EULA), create a root password, and provide an IP address, subnet mask, and internal default gateway.

If you are installing a high-availability cluster (a pair of appliances), refer to Installing and Configuring a Cluster on page 538; if you are installing a larger group of appliances, see Configuring a High-Capacity Cluster on page 749 for installation instructions.

To run Setup Tool

1. Make a serial connection to the appliance (see Powering Up and Configuring Basic Network Settings on page 49), and then turn on the appliance using the power button.

2. If the appliance has not yet been configured, or if you have just reset it using either Factory Reset Tool or Config Reset, Setup Tool will run automatically.

3. When you’re prompted to log in, type root for the username; press Enter to move to the next screen.

4. You’re prompted to type an IP address, subnet mask, and (optionally) a gateway for the internal interface. You use this interface to connect to the appliance from a Web browser and continue setup using AMC.

IP address:

: –: Type an IP address for the internal interface connected to your internal (or private) network and then press Enter.

Subnet mask:

: –: Type a netmask for the internal network interface and then press Enter.

Gateway:

: –: If the computer from which you’ll access AMC is on a different network than the appliance, you must specify a gateway. Type the IP address of the gateway used to route traffic to the appliance and then press Enter.

If you’re accessing AMC from the same network on which the appliance is located, simply press Enter.

5. Next, you’re prompted to review the information you provided. Press Enter to accept the current value, or type a new value and then press Enter.

6. You are then asked if this node will be part of a cluster.

: –: Because this is a single-node installation, you should accept the default by pressing Enter. For details on installing a cluster, see Installing and Configuring a Cluster on page 538 and Configuring a High-Capacity Cluster on page 749.

7. Finally, you’re prompted to save and apply your changes.

: –: Press Enter to save your changes.

At this point, Setup Tool saves your changes and restarts the necessary services. It also generates SSL keys using the information you provided (SSH requires security keys that it exchanges with remote SSH clients and servers). Once SSH is configured using Setup Tool, it will display a message saying that it is generating these keys.

During this time, you will receive minimal feedback; be patient and do not assume that Setup Tool is not responding. When Setup Tool is finished, a message appears indicating that the initial setup is complete. This message also includes the URL for accessing AMC.

Saving and Restoring Configuration Data

Included on the appliance are a number of command-line administrative tools for saving and restoring configuration data:

: •: Config Backup Tool—Saves the current configuration file

: •: Config Restore Tool—Restores a saved configuration file

The AMC method for saving and restoring configuration data is more convenient, but it imports and exports a subset of the data that can be saved and restored using the command-line tools. The following table compares the two methods:

Configuration item	AMC	Command-line tools
Access policy	x	x
Certificates	x	x
Aventail WorkPlace customizations	x	x
Node-specific network settings	x	x

: •: Saving Configuration Data on page 690

: •: Restoring Configuration Data on page 690

Saving Configuration Data

Backup files are saved to a compressed tar file (by default, /var/backups/cfgback.tgz). It is a good practice to back up your system regularly, especially when making many system customizations.

To back up your configuration using Backup Tool

1. Connect to the appliance using SSH or a serial connection, and log in as “root”.

2. Type config_backup, specifying any of the following optional parameters:

config_backup [-t <tarfile>] [-q] [-d <debuglevel>] [-h]

Parameter	Description
-t <tarfile>	Backs up your configuration to the specified file. This parameter is required only if you want to back up to a different backup file than the default file: /var/backups/cfgback.aea Setting this parameter is not recommended, because the restore program normally looks for the default file when restoring.
-q	Turns off the confirmation prompts (making the backup “quiet”). Normally, you are prompted when you might overwrite an existing backup file.
-d <debuglevel>	Specifies how much information to display about the backup operation. Set <debuglevel> to an integer between 0 (no information) and 10 (complete information). The default is 1 (normal information).
-h	Shows help listing available parameters.

When you run Config Backup Tool, it saves your system configuration files to a backup file with the name and location specified above. If a backup file already exists at that location, you are prompted to confirm that you want to overwrite it (unless you use the -q parameter).

Note: Your configuration is automatically backed up if you install a new system update using Update Tool. This will not overwrite manual backups created by an administrator.

For additional protection, use a program like SCP to copy the .tgz file from the appliance to a separate location, such as a drive on your network or removable media.

You can automate backups by adding Backup Tool to a script. In this case, use the -q parameter to suppress confirmation prompts.

Restoring Configuration Data

Dell SonicWALL recommends you save and restore configuration data with the Import/Export function on the AMC Maintenance page. However, if you save data manually, you can restore configuration data from the .aea file. The default file name is /var/backups/cfgback.aea.