Thomas-Krenn & Veeam Hardened Repository Hardware Setup

This article describes how to set up and update the RA1212-AIEPN+ server (Gigabyte MZ33-AR1). It guides you through setting up the hardware RAID in the BIOS and updating the BMC firmware and the BIOS, using the available methods for each.

Creating the hardware RAID in the BIOS

• 
  Start the server and click [Del] or [F2] depending on the server to enter the BIOS.
• 
  In the BIOS, switch to the tab "Advanced".
• 
  In the tab "Advanced", select the desired RAID controller by pressing Enter.
• 
  Under the “ACTIONS” tab, select “Configure” and press Enter.
• 
  In the configuration menu, select „Create Virtual Drive“.
• 
  Select „Select RAID Level“ and open it with Enter.
• 
  Select the desired RAID level.
• 
  Open „Select Drives“ with Enter.
• 
  All drives are initially set to "Disabled".
• 
  Select „Check All“, to select all connected drives.
• 
  Confirm the configuration with Apply Changes and Enter.
• 
  Confirm „OK“ with Enter.
• 
  Under „Virtual Drive Name“, you can optionally enter a name. After this, select Save Configuration.
• 
  The BIOS indicates that all data on the selected drives will be permanently deleted.
• 
  In the selection list, select „Enabled“ and confirm with Enter.
• 
  Select „Yes“ and confirm with Enter.
• 
  The RAID is now fully configured.
• 
  With [ESC], exit the configurator to return to the BIOS “Advanced” screen
• 
  Next, switch to the tab "Save & Exit".
• 
  Select „Save Changes and Reset“.

Update BMC firmware

Instructions for updating the firmware of the RA1212-AIEPN+ server (Gigabyte MZ33-AR1).

Updating BMC firmware on Linux

1. Obtain root rights on Linux.
2. Navigate to the root directory of the upgrade package
3. Select one of the following options for flashing:
   • Execute "ami_bmc_fw_update_linux.sh" to program the AMI firmware.
   • Execute "insyde_bmc_fw_update_linux.sh" to program Insyde firmware.
4. Enter "Y/y" to maintain the configuration or "N/n" to reflash the whole BMC firmware.

User commands

Script names

• ami_bmc_fw_update_linux.sh – Update script
• insyde_bmc_fw_update_linux.sh – Update script

Script

• ami_ami_bmc_fw_update_linux.sh [OPTION]
• insyde_bmc_fw_update_linux.sh [OPTION]

Description of options

This is the script for updating the BMC flash storage. In the following, the options are listed:

1. cs
   • Select this option to update the firmware of the active backup/BMC. (CS=1 is only supported on the GBT Dual platform).
     • 0: Active
     • 1: Backup
     • Default value is 0.
2. flashall
   • Flash the whole BMC without warning message.
   • Default: The user is asked if the configuration should be maintained or not.
3. preserve
   • Flash the BMC and maintain the configuration without warning message.
   • Default: The user is asked if the configuration should be maintained or not.
4. Architecture
   • x32
     • Set the update tool to 32-bit mode.
     • Default: x86-64-bit mode
   • arm
     • Sets the update tool to ARM mode (ARM-Linux only supports 64-bit).
     • Default: x86-64-bit mode

Example of flashing the entire BMC and selecting the BMC address at address 0:

ami_bmc_fw_update_linux.sh cs 0 flashall
insyde_bmc_fw_update_linux.sh cs 0 flashall

Update BMC firmware on Windows

1. Open the command prompt with Windows administrator privileges.
2. Switch to the root directory of the upgrade package.
3. Execute "ami_bmc_fw_update_win.bat" to program the AMI firmware.
   • Execute "insyde_bmc_fw_update_win.bat" to program the Insyde firmware.
4. Enter „Y/y“ to maintain the configuration or enter "N/n" to reflash the whole BMC firmware.

User commands

Script names

• ami_bmc_fw_update_win.bat – Update script
• insyde_fw_update_win.bat – Update script

Script

• ami_bmc_fw_update_win.bat [OPTION]
• insyde_fw_update_win.bat [OPTION]

Description of options

Script for flashing the BMC. In the following, the options are listed:

1. cs
   • Select this option to update the firmware of the active/backup BMC. (CS=1 is only supported on the GBT dual platform).
     • 0: Active
     • 1: Backup
     • Default value is 0.
2. flashall
   • Flash the whole BMC without warning message.
   • Default: The user is asked if the configuration should be maintained or not.
3. preserve
   • Flash the BMC and the configuration without maintaining the configuration.
   • Default: The user is asked if the configuration should be maintained.
4. Architecture
   • x32
     • Sets the update tool to the 32-bit mode.
     • Default: x86-64-bit mode

Example of flashing the entire BMC and selecting the BMC address at address 0:

ami_bmc_fw_update_win.bat cs 0 flashall
insyde_bmc_fw_update_win.bat cs 0 flashall

Update BMC firmware in UEFI

1. Switch to the root directory of the upgrade package.
2. Select one of the following options for flashing:
   • Execute "ami_bmc_fw_update_uefi.nsh" to program AMI-firmware.
   • Execute "insyde_bmc_fw_update_uefi.nsh" to program the Insyde firmware.
3. Enter "Y/y" to maintain the configuration or enter "N/n" to flash the whole BMC.
4. The function for maintaining the configuration in the ARM_UEFI environment is not supported for the Insyde firmware.

User commands

Script names

• ami_bmc_fw_update_uefi.nsh – Update script
• insyde_bmc_fw_update_uefi.nsh – Update script

Script

• ami_bmc_fw_update_uefi.nsh [OPTION]
• insyde_bmc_fw_update_uefi.nsh [OPTION]

Description of options

Script for updating the BMC flash storage. In the following, the options are listed:

1. cs
   • Select this option to update the firmware of the active BMC or of the backup BMC. (CS=1 is only supported on the GBT Dual platform).
     • 0: Active
     • 1: Backup
     • The default value is 0.
2. flashall
   • Flashing the whole BMC without warning message.
   • Default: The user is asked if the configuration should be maintained or not.
3. preserve
   • Flash the BMC and the configuration without warning message.
   • Default: The user is asked if the configuration should be maintained or not.
4. arm
   • Sets the update tool to arm mode.
   • Default: x86-64 mode

Example of flashing the entire BMC and selecting BMC address 0 on x86:

ami_bmc_fw_update_uefi.nsh cs 0 flashall
insyde_bmc_fw_update_uefi.nsh cs 0 flashall

Example of flashing the entire BMC and selecting the BMC address at address 0 in UEFI-ARM mode:

ami_bmc_fw_update_uefi.nsh cs 0 flashall arm
insyde_bmc_fw_update_uefi.nsh cs 0 flashall arm

Update BMC firmware via IPMI

• 
  Log in to the IPMI and click on Maintenance.
• 
  Select Firmware Update
• 
  Click on Dump BIOS and then on the folder symbol to select the correct firmware update file (Important: Then click the folder icon and select the correct firmware update file (IMPORTANT: The file extension must be .ima_enc)
• 
  Verify if the .ima_enc file is selected and click on Start firmware update.
• 
  To preserve all configurations, check the box next to “Preserve all configurations.”
• 
  You can then click Proceed to Flash. A window labeled Update Firmware should appear, and the update should begin.
• 
  As soon as the update is completed, click on OK (Attention: As soon as you click on OK, the server restarts)
• 
  After restarting the server, you can log in to IPMI again and then check the firmware version.

BIOS update

Instructions for updating the BIOS of the RA1212-AIEPN+ server (Gigabyte MZ33-AR1).

Before updating

1: Extract the file "MZ33-AR1_R23_F16.zip" to a bootable USB drive formatted with FAT/FAT32.

Instructions for updating the BIOS for the EFI shell

1. Insert the USB flash drive into the system to perform the BIOS upgrade.
2. Turn on the system and boot into the built-in shell.
3. Enter your USB file system, such as "fs0:" or "fsx:", where "x" is the number of your USB file system.
4. Flash script for the BIOS-update:
   • Execute "f_GtoT.nsh" for CPUs of the AMD EPYC 9004 series.
   • Execute "f.nsh" for CPUs of the AMD EPYC 9005 series.
5. Once the BIOS flash process is complete, the system must be shut down for the changes to take effect.

Instructions for updating the BIOS for Windows

1. Insert the USB flash drive containing the BIOS update.
2. Use the command line.
   • Enter \Tool\WIN\afuwin32 and execute f_GtoT.bat for Windows 32-bit.
   • Enter \Tool\WIN\afuwin64 and execute f_GtoT.bat for Windows 64-bit.
3. For CPUs of the AMD EPYC 9005-series:
   • Enter \Tool\WIN\afuwin32 and execute f.bat for Windows 32-bit.
   • Enter \Tool\WIN\afuwin64 and execute .bat for Windows 64-bit.
4. Once the BIOS flash is complete, the system must be shut down for the changes to take effect.

Instructions for updating the BIOS via IPMI

• 
  Log in to the IPMI and click on Maintenance.
• 
  Select Firmware Update.
• 
  Click on Dump BIOS. After this, click on the folder symbol to select the correct BIOS update file. (IMPORTANT: File extension must be .RBU)
• 
  Verify if the .RBU file is selected and click on Start firmware update.
• 
  To maintain all configurations, select the checkbox next to Preserve all Configuration.
• 
  You can then click Proceed to Flash. A window labeled Update Firmware should appear, and the update should begin.
• 
  As soon as the update is completed, click on OK (ATTENTION: As soon as you click on OK, the server restarts).
• 
  After restarting the server, you can log in to IPMI again and then check the BIOS version.

Author: Paul Streifinger Paul Streifinger works as an apprentice in the Product Management Team at Thomas-Krenn. He earned his secondary school diploma at Freyung Secondary School and is completing his apprenticeship as an IT specialist for system integration at Thomas-Krenn AG. During his apprenticeship, he works with Proxmox VE (including Ceph and backup) and VMware.

Translator: Alina Ranzinger Alina has been working at Thomas-Krenn.AG since 2024. After her training as multilingual business assistant, she got her job as assistant of the Product Management and is responsible for the translation of texts and for the organisation of the department.