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Troubleshoot BMM issues using the az networkcloud baremetalmachine run-read-command

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There might be situations where a user needs to investigate and resolve issues with an on-premises bare metal machine (BMM). Operator Nexus provides the az networkcloud baremetalmachine run-read-command so users can run a curated list of read only commands to get information from a BMM.

The command produces an output file containing the results of the run-read command execution. By default, the data is sent to the Cluster Manager storage account. There's also a preview method where users can configure the Cluster resource with a storage account and identity that has access to the storage account to receive the output.

Prerequisites

  1. Install the latest version of the appropriate CLI extensions
  2. Ensure that the target BMM must have its poweredState set to On and have its readyState set to True
  3. Get the Managed Resource group name (cluster_MRG) that you created for Cluster resource

Verify access to the Cluster Manager storage account

Note

The Cluster Manager storage account output method will be deprecated in the future once Cluster on-boarding to Trusted Services is complete and the user managed storage option is fully supported.

If using the Cluster Manager storage method, verify you have access to the Cluster Manager's storage account:

  1. From Azure portal, navigate to Cluster Manager's Storage account.
  2. In the Storage account details, select Storage browser from the navigation menu on the left side.
  3. In the Storage browser details, select on Blob containers.
  4. If you encounter a 403 This request is not authorized to perform this operation. while accessing the storage account, storage account’s firewall settings need to be updated to include the public IP address.
  5. Request access by creating a support ticket via Portal on the Cluster Manager resource. Provide the public IP address that requires access.

PREVIEW: Send command output to a user specified storage account

Important

Please note that this method of specifying a user storage account for command output is in preview. This method should only be used with user storage accounts that do not have firewall enabled. If your environment requires the storage account firewall be enabled, use the existing Cluster Manager output method.

Create and configure storage resources

  1. Create a storage account, or identify an existing storage account that you want to use. See Create an Azure storage account.
  2. Create a blob storage container in the storage account. See Create a container.
  3. Assign the "Storage Blob Data Contributor" role to users and managed identities which need access to the run-data-extract output.
    1. See Assign an Azure role for access to blob data. The role must also be assigned to either a user-assigned managed identity or the cluster's own system-assigned managed identity.
    2. For more information on managed identities, see Managed identities for Azure resources.
    3. If using the Cluster's system assigned identity, the system assigned identity needs to be added to the cluster before it can be granted access.
    4. When assigning a role to the cluster's system-assigned identity, make sure you select the resource with the type "Cluster (Operator Nexus)."

Configure the cluster to use a user-assigned managed identity for storage access

Use this command to create a cluster with a user managed storage account and user-assigned identity. Note this example is an abbreviated command that just highlights the fields pertinent for adding the user managed storage. It isn't the full cluster create command.

az networkcloud cluster create --name "<cluster-name>" \
  --resource-group "<cluster-resource-group>" \
  ...
  --mi-user-assigned "<user-assigned-identity-resource-id>" \
  --command-output-settings identity-type="UserAssignedIdentity" \
  identity-resource-id="<user-assigned-identity-resource-id>" \
  container-url="<container-url>" \
  ...
  --subscription "<subscription>"

Use this command to configure an existing cluster for a user provided storage account and user-assigned identity. The update command can also be used to change the storage account location and identity if needed.

az networkcloud cluster update --name "<cluster-name>" \
  --resource-group "<cluster-resource-group>" \
  --mi-user-assigned "<user-assigned-identity-resource-id>" \
  --command-output-settings identity-type="UserAssignedIdentity" \
  identity-resource-id="<user-assigned-identity-resource-id>" \
  container-url="<container-url>" \
  --subscription "<subscription>"

Configure the cluster to use a system-assigned managed identity for storage access

Use this command to create a cluster with a user managed storage account and system assigned identity. Note this example is an abbreviated command that just highlights the fields pertinent for adding the user managed storage. It isn't the full cluster create command.

az networkcloud cluster create --name "<cluster-name>" \
  --resource-group "<cluster-resource-group>" \
  ...
  --mi-system-assigned true \
  --command-output-settings identity-type="SystemAssignedIdentity" \
  container-url="<container-url>" \
  ...
  --subscription "<subscription>"

Use this command to configure an existing cluster for a user provided storage account and to use its own system-assigned identity. The update command can also be used to change the storage account location.

az networkcloud cluster update --name "<cluster-name>" \
  --resource-group "<cluster-resource-group>" \
  --mi-system-assigned true \
  --command-output-settings identity-type="SystemAssignedIdentity" \
  container-url="<container-url>" \
  --subscription "<subscription>"

To change the cluster from a user-assigned identity to a system-assigned identity, the CommandOutputSettings must first be cleared using the command in the next section, then set using this command.

Clear the cluster's CommandOutputSettings

The CommandOutputSettings can be cleared, directing run-data-extract output back to the cluster manager's storage. However, it isn't recommended since it's less secure, and the option will be removed in a future release.

However, the CommandOutputSettings do need to be cleared if switching from a user-assigned identity to a system-assigned identity.

Use this command to clear the CommandOutputSettings:

az rest --method patch \
  --url  "https://management.azure.com/subscriptions/<subscription>/resourceGroups/<cluster-resource-group>/providers/Microsoft.NetworkCloud/clusters/<cluster-name>?api-version=2024-08-01-preview" \
  --body '{"properties": {"commandOutputSettings":null}}'

View the principal ID for the managed identity

The identity resource ID can be found by selecting "JSON view" on the identity resource; the ID is at the top of the panel that appears. The container URL can be found on the Settings -> Properties tab of the container resource.

The CLI can also be used to view the identity and the associated principal ID data within the cluster.

Example:

az networkcloud cluster show --ids /subscriptions/<Subscription ID>/resourceGroups/<Cluster Resource Group Name>/providers/Microsoft.NetworkCloud/clusters/<Cluster Name>

System-assigned identity example:

    "identity": {
        "principalId": "2cb564c1-b4e5-4c71-bbc1-6ae259aa5f87",
        "tenantId": "72f988bf-86f1-41af-91ab-2d7cd011db47",
        "type": "SystemAssigned"
    },

User-assigned identity example:

    "identity": {
        "type": "UserAssigned",
        "userAssignedIdentities": {
            "/subscriptions/<subscriptionID>/resourcegroups/<resourceGroupName>/providers/Microsoft.ManagedIdentity/userAssignedIdentities/<userAssignedIdentityName>": {
                "clientId": "e67dd610-99cf-4853-9fa0-d236b214e984",
                "principalId": "8e6d23d6-bb6b-4cf3-a00f-4cd640ab1a24"
            }
        }
    },

Execute a run-read command

The run-read command lets you run a command on the BMM that doesn't change anything. Some commands have more than one word, or need an argument to work. These commands are made like this to separate them from the ones that can change things. For example, run-read-command can use kubectl get but not kubectl apply. When you use these commands, you have to put all the words in the "command" field. For example, {"command":"kubectl get","arguments":["nodes"]} is right; {"command":"kubectl","arguments":["get","nodes"]} is wrong.

Also note that some commands begin with nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread and must be entered as shown. nc-toolbox-runread is a special container image that includes more tools that aren't installed on the bare metal host, such as ipmitool and racadm.

Some of the run-read commands require specific arguments be supplied to enforce read-only capabilities of the commands. An example of run-read commands that require specific arguments is the allowed Mellanox command mstconfig, which requires the query argument be provided to enforce read-only.

Warning

Microsoft does not provide or support any Operator Nexus API calls that expect plaintext username and/or password to be supplied. Please note any values sent will be logged and are considered exposed secrets, which should be rotated and revoked. The Microsoft documented method for securely using secrets is to store them in an Azure Key Vault, if you have specific questions or concerns please submit a request via the Azure Portal.

This list shows the commands you can use. Commands in *italics* can't have arguments; the rest can.

  • arp
  • brctl show
  • dmidecode
  • fdisk -l
  • host
  • hostname
  • ifconfig -a
  • ifconfig -s
  • ip address show
  • ip link show
  • ip maddress show
  • ip route show
  • journalctl
  • kubectl api-resources
  • kubectl api-versions
  • kubectl describe
  • kubectl get
  • kubectl logs
  • mount
  • ping
  • ss
  • tcpdump
  • traceroute
  • uname
  • ulimit -a
  • uptime
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool channel authcap
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool channel info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool chassis status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool chassis power status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool chassis restart cause
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool chassis poh
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool dcmi power get_limit
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool dcmi sensors
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool dcmi asset_tag
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool dcmi get_mc_id_string
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool dcmi thermalpolicy get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool dcmi get_temp_reading
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool dcmi get_conf_param
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool delloem lcd info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool delloem lcd status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool delloem mac list
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool delloem mac get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool delloem lan get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool delloem powermonitor powerconsumption
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool delloem powermonitor powerconsumptionhistory
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool delloem powermonitor getpowerbudget
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool delloem vflash info card
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool echo
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool ekanalyzer print
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool ekanalyzer summary
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool fru print
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool fwum info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool fwum status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool fwum tracelog
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool gendev list
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool hpm rollbackstatus
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool hpm selftestresult
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool ime help
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool ime info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool isol info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool lan print
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool lan alert print
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool lan stats get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc bootparam get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc chassis poh
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc chassis policy list
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc chassis power status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc chassis status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc getenables
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc getsysinfo
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc guid
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc restart cause
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool mc watchdog get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc bootparam get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc chassis poh
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc chassis policy list
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc chassis power status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc chassis status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc getenables
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc getsysinfo
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc guid
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc restart cause
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool bmc watchdog get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool nm alert get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool nm capability
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool nm discover
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool nm policy get policy_id
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool nm policy limiting
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool nm statistics
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool nm suspend get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool nm threshold get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool pef
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool picmg addrinfo
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool picmg policy get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool power status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sdr elist
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sdr get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sdr info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sdr list
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sdr type
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sel elist
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sel get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sel info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sel list
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sel time get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sensor get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sensor list
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool session info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sol info
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool sol payload status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool user list
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread ipmitool user summary
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm arp
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm coredump
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm diagnostics
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm eventfilters get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm fcstatistics
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getconfig
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm gethostnetworkinterfaces
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getled
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getniccfg
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getraclog
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getractime
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getsel
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getsensorinfo
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getssninfo
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getsvctag
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getsysinfo
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm gettracelog
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getversion
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm hwinventory
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm ifconfig
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm inlettemphistory get
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm jobqueue view
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm lclog view
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm lclog viewconfigresult
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm license view
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm netstat
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm nicstatistics
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm ping
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm ping6
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm racdump
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm sslcertview
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm swinventory
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm systemconfig getbackupscheduler
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm systemperfstatistics (PeakReset argument NOT allowed)
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm techsupreport getupdatetime
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm traceroute
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm traceroute6
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm usercertview
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm vflashsd status
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm vflashpartition list
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm vflashpartition status -a
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread mstregdump
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread mstconfig (requires query arg)
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread mstflint (requires query arg)
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread mstlink (requires query arg)
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread mstfwmanager (requires query arg)
  • nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread mlx_temp

The command syntax is:

az networkcloud baremetalmachine run-read-command --name "<machine-name>"
    --limit-time-seconds "<timeout>" \
    --commands '[{"command":"<command1>"},{"command":"<command2>","arguments":["<arg1>","<arg2>"]}]' \
    --resource-group "<cluster_MRG>" \
    --subscription "<subscription>"

Multiple commands can be provided in json format to --commands option.

For a command with multiple arguments, provide as a list to arguments parameter. See Azure CLI Shorthand for instructions on constructing the --commands structure.

These commands can be long running so the recommendation is to set --limit-time-seconds to at least 600 seconds (10 minutes). Running multiple commands might take longer than 10 minutes.

This command runs synchronously. If you wish to skip waiting for the command to complete, specify the --no-wait --debug options. For more information, see how to track asynchronous operations.

When an optional argument --output-directory is provided, the output result is downloaded and extracted to the local directory.

Warning

Using the --output-directory argument will overwrite any files in the local directory that have the same name as the new files being created.

This example executes a 'kubectl get pods'

az networkcloud baremetalmachine run-read-command --name "<bareMetalMachineName>" \
   --limit-time-seconds 60 \
   --commands "[{command:'kubectl get',arguments:[pods,-n,nc-system]}]" \
   --resource-group "<cluster_MRG>" \
   --subscription "<subscription>"

This example executes the hostname command and a ping command

az networkcloud baremetalmachine run-read-command --name "<bareMetalMachineName>" \
    --limit-time-seconds 60 \
    --commands '[{"command":"hostname"},{"command":"ping","arguments":["198.51.102.1","-c","3"]}]' \
    --resource-group "<cluster_MRG>" \
    --subscription "<subscription>"

This example executes the racadm getsysinfo -c command

az networkcloud baremetalmachine run-read-command --name "<bareMetalMachineName>" \
    --limit-time-seconds 60 \
    --commands '[{"command":"nc-toolbox nc-toolbox-runread racadm getsysinfo","arguments":["-c"]}]' \
    --resource-group "<cluster_MRG>" \
    --subscription "<subscription>"

How to view the output of an az networkcloud baremetalmachine run-read-command in the Cluster Manager Storage account

This guide walks you through accessing the output file that is created in the Cluster Manager Storage account when an az networkcloud baremetalmachine run-read-command is executed on a server. The name of the file is identified in the az rest status output.

  1. Open the Cluster Manager Managed Resource Group for the Cluster where the server is housed and then select the Storage account.

  2. In the Storage account details, select Storage browser from the navigation menu on the left side.

  3. In the Storage browser details, select on Blob containers.

  4. Select the baremetal-run-command-output blob container.

  5. Storage Account could be locked resulting in 403 This request is not authorized to perform this operation. due to networking or firewall restrictions. Refer to the cluster manager storage or the customer-managed storage sections for procedures to verify access.

  6. Select the output file from the run-read command. The file name can be identified from the az rest --method get command. Additionally, the Last modified timestamp aligns with when the command was executed.

  7. You can manage & download the output file from the Overview pop-out.

PREVIEW: Check the command status and view the output in a user specified storage account

Sample output is shown. It prints the top 4,000 characters of the result to the screen for convenience and provides a short-lived link to the storage blob containing the command execution result. You can use the link to download the zipped output file (tar.gz).

  ====Action Command Output====
  + hostname
  rack1compute01
  + ping 198.51.102.1 -c 3
  PING 198.51.102.1 (198.51.102.1) 56(84) bytes of data.

  --- 198.51.102.1 ping statistics ---
  3 packets transmitted, 0 received, 100% packet loss, time 2049ms

  ================================
  Script execution result can be found in storage account:
  https://<storage_account_name>.blob.core.windows.net/bmm-run-command-output/a8e0a5fe-3279-46a8-b995-51f2f98a18dd-action-bmmrunreadcmd.tar.gz?se=2023-04-14T06%3A37%3A00Z&sig=XXX&sp=r&spr=https&sr=b&st=2023-04-14T02%3A37%3A00Z&sv=2019-12-12