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The Flash Memory
The Flash is a special portion of read-only memory (ROM). It differs from
conventional ROM in that its contents can be updated, but it still
preserves its information when system power is off. The following
components of your server contain their own portions of Flash memory:
♦
The motherboard - This Flash stores the BIOS information for the
motherboard.
♦
The System Management Controller - This Flash stores the BIOS
and firmware which control the SMC and the Front Panel.
♦
The System Management Interface Card (SMIC) - This is the main
Flash, also referred to as a Flash Disk. It contains bootable DOS, its
own BIOS and a Flash Disk Utility program which affects the other
portions of Flash memory. The Flash Disk Utility also runs the
System Configuration Utility (SCU).
Your access to the Flash is via a RAMdrive. This enables you to treat the
Flash almost as if it were a disk drive. The RAMdrive and the Flash Disk
each have a capacity of 2 Mbytes. Because the Flash Disk contains the
operating system files, the server can boot from it if the normal system
hard disk boot process fails. You can also copy files to the Flash Disk, e.g.
hardware component configuration (.CFG) files which the SCU uses.
The Flash Disk Utility
The reason that the RAMdrive is necessary is because the Flash Disk is
write-protected and, therefore, you cannot copy anything directly to it.
The purpose of the Flash Disk Utility is to enable updates to the
information held in any portion of Flash memory, such as new BIOS
versions or hardware information stored in the SCU.
To run the Flash Disk Utility locally, press F2 during the hardware boot
sequence but before the operating system loads. This instructs the server
to boot from the Flash Disk and load the utility. The screen then displays
a menu with the following options:
♦
Option 1, Receive File - This option copies a file from the server
to the workstation which is running the SMA. If you are not using
the SMA and are running the utility locally, the file is copied from
the Flash to a floppy disk. After you select 1 from the menu, select
the file you want to copy and press the ENTER key.
♦
Option 2, Transfer File - This option is the opposite of Receive
File, i.e. it copies a file from the SMA workstation to the server or, if
you are running the utility locally, from a floppy disk to the Flash.
♦
Option 3, Run Configuration Utility - Select this option to run
the SCU (see "Using the System Configuration Utility", earlier in
this chapter).
O p e r a t i n g Y o u r S y s t e m
OWNER'S HANDBOOK 2-17
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