13.2 Operation

The following sections describe frequently encountered difficulties with system operation.

13.2.1 Image Distribution

The possyncimages.pl tool distributes the boot and client images from the Administration Server to the Branch Server. It uses the RSYNC service to let the Branch Servers download only the files that need to be updated.

Enough space should be configured to keep at least two generations of image files. This redundancy ensures that there is a valid image available at all times.

NOTE:The SUSE® partitioning recommendation is described in Partitioning Screen in the Novell Linux Point of Service 9 Installation Guide.

RSYNC updates existing files, creates new files, and even deletes files that do not exist in the original download directory on the Administration Server.

Symptoms

The error message “rsync: error writing 4 unbuffered bytes -exiting: Broken Pipe” indicates that the Branch Server does not have enough disk space left to download all the images. Adequate space is required for both the staging area in /opt/SLES/POS/rsync and the service area in /tftpboot.

Hints

  • Make sure that posldap2crconfig.pl --dumpall is executed after new images have been distributed, especially after old images have been deleted.
  • Make sure that there is enough space for new images even before old images have been deleted, or delete old images before uploading new ones.

13.2.2 Point of Service Terminal Configuration

The process of registering new Point of Service terminals and updating the configuration information usually works without administrator intervention; however, it is a complex process. To facilitate this process, you must ensure the Administration Server has a valid image configuration at all times. In LDAP, the image versions must be entered and made active (see Section 6.5, Managing Image Objects for details), and the image files must be made available with the right filename (image_name-version) and with the right permissions (world-readable).

Further information about the dependencies between LDAP entries, the Branch Server tftpboot directory, and the client image names is shown in Section 1.2, Dependencies Between LDAP, Branch Server, and Point of Service Terminal.

Symptoms

The error message “No Imageversion is available” from posleases2ldap.pl or posldap2crconfig.pl means that no valid image file for the active version exists. Make sure that the image has been transferred to the Branch Server and that the version in LDAP has an active flag attached.

Hints

  • Keep at least two generations of image files available and active in LDAP at all times. The Point of Service downloads the latest client image version available on the Branch Server.
  • Ensure that the container with the scHardware object and cn=standards within LDAP always points to an existing scPosImage object. By default, this entry is set to use the Java client image during Administration Server configuration.

13.2.3 Loading CDBoot Images

If there are multiple CD drives in the Point of Service terminal, there is no way to designate which CD drive to use; the system chooses the first one it finds.

Symptoms

If the Point of Service terminal does not find the drive with the boot CD, it returns BIOS errors.

Solution

To correct the problem, insert the CD in the bootable CD drive.