The Remote LAN Module

The Remote LAN Module (RLM) is a remote management card that provides remote platform management capabilities, including remote access, monitoring, troubleshooting, logging, and alerting features.

The RLM stays operational regardless of the operating state of the storage system. It is powered by a standby voltage, which is available as long as the storage system has input power to at least one of the storage system’s power supplies.

The RLM has a single temperature sensor to detect ambient temperature around the RLM board. Data generated by this sensor is not used for any system or RLM environmental policies. It is only used as a reference point that might help you troubleshoot storage system issues. For example, it might help a remote system administrator determine if a system was shut down due to an extreme temperature change in the system.

The FAS30xx series and FAS6000 series storage systems provide an Ethernet interface for connecting to the RLM. If the RLM is not pre-installed in your FAS30xx series storage system, see the Installing or Replacing a Remote LAN Module flyer for instructions on how to cable your storage system to the RLM. The flyer is shipped with the RLM and is also available on the NOW site .

The following diagram illustrates how you can access the storage system and the RLM.

Figure 1. Accessing the storage system and the RLM

• Without the RLM, you can locally access the storage system through the serial console or from an Ethernet connection using any supported network interface. You use the Data ONTAP CLI to administer the storage system.
• With the RLM, you can remotely access the storage system through the serial console. The RLM is directly connected to the storage system through the serial console. You use the Data ONTAP CLI to administer the storage system and the RLM.
• With the RLM, you can also access the storage system through an Ethernet connection using a secure shell client application. You use the RLM CLI to monitor and troubleshoot the storage system.

If you have a data center configuration where management traffic and data traffic are on separate networks, you can configure the RLM on the management network.

The RLM is supported by the Operations Manager. See the Operations Manager Online Help for details.

• What the RLM does
  The RLM command line interface (CLI) commands enable you to remotely access and administer the storage system and diagnose error conditions. Also, the RLM extends AutoSupport capabilities by sending alerts and notifications through an AutoSupport message.
• Ways to configure the RLM
  Before using the RLM, you must configure it for your storage system and network. You can configure the RLM when setting up a new storage system with RLM already installed, after setting up a new storage system with RLM already installed, or when adding an RLM to an existing storage system.
• How to manage the RLM with Data ONTAP
  You can manage the RLM from the storage system by using the Data ONTAP rlm commands and by changing the AutoSupport settings that are used by the RLM.
• How to log in to the RLM
  Only Data ONTAP users identified as root and users belonging to the Administrators group can log in to the RLM. These users have access to all commands available on the RLM.
• How to manage the storage system with the RLM
  The RLM enables you to manage the storage system by using the RLM CLI. The RLM CLI has the same features available in the Data ONTAP CLI.
• How to display information about the storage system and the RLM
  The RLM provides several ways to display information about the storage system and the RLM itself. You can display real-time information using the commands in admin or advanced mode, or you can display information stored in the RLM's System Event Log (SEL) or Console Log.
• Comparison of Data ONTAP and RLM commands
  Whether you use a Data ONTAP command or an RLM command to manage the RLM depends on the task you want to perform.
• How to troubleshoot the storage system with the RLM
  When you encounter a problem with the storage system, you can use the RLM to display information about the problem, dump a system core, and reboot the storage system, even if the storage system's firmware is corrupted.
• How to update the RLM firmware
  You can download and update the RLM firmware from the Data ONTAP CLI or the RLM CLI.
• How to troubleshoot RLM problems
  RLM problems might result from communication problems, configuration problems, connection problems, RLM hardware failures, or RLM firmware update problems.