Ipmitool

ipmitool is a Linux command line utility for sending commands to remote ipmi interfaces.

Installing ipmitool

Currently ipmitool is installed on [Einstein], [Pumpkin], [Taro], and [Benfranklin].

Use this command if you want to install ipmitool on a Redhat or Fedora machine:

$ sudo yum install OpenIPMI-tools

Using ipmitool

The basic syntax for ipmitool is:

ipmitool [option] <command>

For a full list of commands and options see the ipmitool ipmitool Man page.

Usage

ipmitool Options

-a

Prompts for a password.

-H <address>

Address of the remote server. This can be either a hostname or IP address, but because the IPMI cards are on the farm network and don't have hostnames attached to them you will need to use the appropriate IP address.

-U <username>

IPMI username. Currently the ADMIN account is configured and will allow access to all IPMI commands.

IPMI Commands

Chassis

poh

Returns the power-on hours counter.

restart_cause

Queries for the cause of the last system restart.

policy

Sets the system's policy regarding power failures. Options are as follows:

list: Returns a list of supported policies.

always-on: Turns system on when power is restored.

previous: Returns to the previous state when power is restored.

always-off: Stays off when power is restored.

power

Allows the user to view and change the current power state.

status: Returns the current power state.

on: Power on.

off: Powers off. WARNING: Does not cleanly shutdown the system.

cycle: Cycles the power state off for one second.

reset: Performs a hard reset.

soft: Soft shutdown of the OS via ACPI

Sample Commands

The following commands can be used from the command line to control IPMI enabled machines. Make sure to replace <ip address> with the IPMI address of the machine you want to access.

To check the power status of an IPMI enabled machine you would use this command, which will prompt for a password:

ipmitool -U ADMIN -H <ip address> -a chassis power status

To remotely power on an IPMI enabled machine:

 ipmitool -U ADMIN -H <ip address> -a chassis power on

To remotely perform a hard reset of an IPMI enabled machine:

 ipmitool -U ADMIN -H <ip address> -a chassis power reset

To query the current Power-On Hours Counter for an IPMI enabled machine:

 ipmitool -U ADMIN -H <ip address> -a chassis poh

To instruct an IPMI enabled machine to stay off in the event of a power outage:

ipmitool -U ADMIN -H <ip addresss> -a chassis policy always-off