HP Integrated Lights-Out
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The lead section of this article may need to be rewritten. (October 2012) |
Integrated Lights-Out, or iLO, is an embedded server management technology exclusive to Hewlett-Packard but similar in functionality to the Lights out management (LOM) technology of other vendors, for example Sun/Oracle's ILOM, Dell DRAC and the IBM Remote Supervisor Adapter.
iLO is useful as an out-of-band management technology. The physical connection is an Ethernet port that can be found on most Proliant servers of the 300 and above series. This port can be enabled using the set-up utility which can be accessed with the F8 key during POST. In this screen an IP can be assigned via DHCP or static. It is also important to create a user so this utility can be accessed. Once the configuration has been done it has to be saved and the iLO needs to be restarted. To access the utility, be sure that a cable is connected to the iLO port on the back of the server. The iLO IP can be entered in the address bar of any web browser and a login screen will be shown; enter the username and password that has just been created.
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Features [edit]
iLO makes it possible to perform activities on an HP server from a remote location. The iLO card has a separate network connection (and its own IP address) to which one can connect via HTTPS. Possible options are:
- Reset the server (in case the server doesn't respond anymore via the normal network card)
- Power-up the server (possible to do this from a remote location, even if the server is shut down)
- Remote console (in some cases however an 'Advanced license' may be required for some of the utilities to work)
- Mount remote physical CD/DVD drive or image
- Access the server's IML (Integrated Management Log)
- Can be manipulated remotely through XML-based Remote Insight Board Command Language (RIBCL)
- Full CLI support through RS-232 port (shared with system), though the inability to enter Function keys prevents certain operations
iLO provides some other utilities like virtual media (CD, floppy), virtual power and a remote console. iLO is either embedded on the system board, or available as a PCI card.
Availability [edit]
iLO is embedded or available on some HP ProLiant and Integrity servers
Prior to iLO, Compaq created several other Lights out management products. The original was the Remote Insight Board (RIB), which was available as an EISA or PCI expansion card. RIB was replaced with RILOE (Remote Insight Light-Out Edition), which was only available for PCI. The original RILOE was replaced with RILOE II. HP stopped manufacturing RILOE II in 2006. The final firmware version if for RILOE is 2.53(A) dated 9 Mar 2004 and for RILOE II is 1.21 dated 5 July 2006.
For some ProLiant 100 series servers there is a "Lights Out 100" option, which has more limited functionality. The LO100 is a traditional IPMI BMC, and does not share hardware or firmware with iLO.
iLO Versions [edit]
There have been multiple generations of iLO, each generation noted by a single digit number ("iLO 2"). Some generations of iLO are segmented into different editions, based on what features are licensed.[1] iLO includes updatable firmware, for which HP periodically releases new versions.
| Name | Servers | Latest Firmware | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| iLO | ProLiant G2, G3, and G4 servers | 1.94, released on 21 April 2009 | Firmware release 1.60 introduced the iLO Shared Network Port that allows remote system management to take place over the system NIC instead of the dedicated management port. |
| iLO 2 | ProLiant G5 and G6 servers, model numbers 300 and higher | 2.15, released 19 February 2013. | |
| iLO 3 | ProLiant G7 servers | 1.55, released 19 February 2013 | |
| iLO 4 | ProLiant Gen8 | 1.22, released 23 April 2013 | Scripted Media redirection allows .ISO image mounting via HTTP |
Programming Interfaces [edit]
Several APIs exist for interacting with HP iLO:
