This chapter describes the configuration program's navigation features, explains how to use the configuration program, and helps you to diagnose problems It consists of the following sections:
Before using the configuration program to create configurations for your router please read the README file that is contained in the directory in which the configuration program is installed or on the CD-ROM. The README file contains the most current directions for using the configuration program.
| Important: | The configuration program that you use must match the software that resides on the Nways device that you are configuring. Ensure that you have the latest software level by comparing the software you received with the files available at the web sites named in Obtaining the Configuration Program Electronically. |
When you first start the configuration program, it displays three windows:
Select OK in the copyright notice window to close the window. The program displays two windows similar to those shown in Figure 2 and Figure 4.
The window on the left is the Navigation Window and the window on the right is the Configuration Window.
Configure the router by selecting items in the Navigation Window and then providing the details for each selected item in the related Configuration Window. When you have finished entering the details for an item, select a new item to configure from the Navigation Window. Setting Up the Router shows the typical steps to configure a new router or to change an existing configuration. Setting Up the Configuration Program shows the typical steps for setting up the configuration program to communicate with a router.
The Navigation Window is shown in Figure 2. It contains:
Figure 2. The Initial Navigation Window
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If you select any item in the Navigation Window and Guided Configuration is active (the default setting), the program displays appropriate configuration assistance information as you select new items. See Using Guided Configuration for further information.
If an error occurs or you have not supplied required information in the current configuration, a question mark (?) appears next to the related item. If the configuration information is correct, a check mark (&check.) appears next to the item. For an example of these indicators, see Figure 3.
The Navigation Window's menu bar contains the following options:
The area below the menu bar is the configuration description area. It displays the following information:
In the Navigation Window, you may display a folder's contents either by clicking the plus (+) icon next to the folder or by double-clicking the folder itself. You may also choose an action to perform by selecting a folder and then pressing mouse button 2 (middle mouse button, right mouse button on a 2-button mouse) on the folder. This displays a pop-up menu that allows you to:
If you correct an error or fill in a required field and then leave the panel that contained the error, the program removes the question mark.
Use the Options menu to change:
Notes:
The configuration program contains a guided configuration facility to help you configure a device's features and protocols. Guided configuration consists of elementary procedures that step you through the configuration activity for a feature or protocol. Continuous guided configuration assistance is active by default. To toggle it off or on, display the Navigation window and select Guided configuration from the Options menu. If it is turned off and you want to view guided configuration text in a help window without making it active continuously, press F1.
Notes:
To display the Configuration Window, select an item in the Navigation Window (shown in Figure 3).
Figure 3. Typical Navigation Window
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The program displays related configuration information in the Configuration Window (shown in Figure 4) with the name of the selected item on its title bar. It can have the appearance of a single page of configurable items or of a notebook with several pages of configurable items. The contents and format of the Configuration Window depend upon the item selected in the Navigation Window.
Figure 4. The Configuration Window
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To validate information that you have entered on a notebook page, right-click the page. The program examines the fields and if it detects an error, it issues an error message. If, at any time, the program detects a problem with a required field, it highlights that page's tab in color (as indicated by the Client Addr tab in Figure 4). Additionally, you can validate a configuration at any time by right-clicking in the Navigation Window and then selecting the Validate option from the pop-up menu. The program displays a list of any errors that exist, which you can correct through the normal process of selecting items in the Navigation Window and entering new information in the Configuration Window.
The configuration program features a point-and-click interface. You select items from the Navigation Window and then fill in fields in the related pages in the Configuration Window. The items in the Navigation Window are arranged generally in logical top-to-bottom order so that you move down the list as you progress through the configuration tasks, and in left-to-right order as you specify detailed information. The configuration program provides key combinations to minimize the number of keystrokes needed to do tasks. To display field-specific help information for panels in the Configuration Window, select the field and then press F1.
The mouse is the primary means for moving through the various windows in the configuration program.
The configuration program supports the following buttons on a 3-button mouse. (The left and middle buttons on a 3-button mouse are mapped to the left and right mouse buttons on a 2-button mouse.)
| Note: | Some lists do not allow you to reorder items in them. |
Some keys and key-combinations have specific functions. Table 5 shows the key assignments.
| Keys | Function | How to Use | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| F1 (Help) | Request help (see note). | To obtain help for configuring a feature or protocol:
To get help on a panel:
To get help for a parameter, a button, or a drop-down list:
In the help text, additional information is hypertext-linked to the information on a particular panel. By default, this link is highlighted in blue. If you press F1 on a panel or a parameter without closing a previously opened help window, the new help text overlays the currently displayed text. | ||
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| Up/Down Arrow Keys | Move vertically. | Use these keys to move through lists on any panel, including the Navigation Window or items in any of its menu bar selection menus. To select an item, press the Space bar. | ||
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| Left/Right Arrow Keys | Move Horizontally | Use these keys to move through both menu items (after you have selected one) and their drop-down lists in the Navigation Window. Also use them to move through parameter fields in the Configuration Window without affecting the existing values. To select an item, press the Space bar. | ||
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| Tab and Back-tab | Next or previous entry field. | These keys work only in the Configuration Window. The keys move you to the various entry items in the Configuration Windows. If there are items in a scrollable list, such as in the Device Interfaces panel, you will move to items that are below the scrolling window. | ||
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| Alt+C | Configure menu |
Displays the Configure menu so you can select items from
it.
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| Alt+P | Options menu |
Displays the Options menu so you can select items from
it.
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| Alt+H | Help menu |
Displays the Help menu so you can select items from it.
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| Esc | Escape |
Clears the menus.
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If the configuration program displays a selection list, you can pick multiple items from those lists. The method for selecting items depends on whether you want to start at one point and end at another point or just choose items at random from the list.
The Navigation Window's Configure menu enables you to access the configuration program's features. The following list describes the menu choices and their usage. The underscored character and the text in parentheses indicate the key combination (shortcut) for the choice.
| Note: | This menu item is supported only for Multiprotocol Routing Services. |
| Note: | If you change to the Release 2 High Performance System card, you must select the change to high performance card option from the Configure menu and save the resulting configuration or your configuration will be unusable. |
| Note: | Before using the communication features, you must establish communications between the configuration program and the router. See Establishing Communications Between the Configuration Program and a Router for details. |
You can also read in an existing ASCII configuration file to load into a device.
You must set up both the configuration program and the router before they can communicate with one another.
If you already have a configuration loaded into the router, you need perform only the steps described in Setting Up the Configuration Program; otherwise you must perform the steps in both Setting Up the Router and Setting Up the Configuration Program.
This procedure describes how to set up the router to communicate with the configuration program. Any of the following conditions may result in the router not having a configuration loaded:
If any of these conditions exist, you must do the following steps to set up the router and then do the steps at Setting Up the Configuration Program before you can send an existing configuration to it.
| Note: | Steps 3a and 3b apply only to the 2210. |
Enter the SNMP community name that will have Read_Write_Trap access.
When the router completes the restart sequence, it will be able to communicate with the configuration program.
| Note: | This procedure assumes that you have already configured the IP address and the SNMP community and loaded them in the router, according to the steps at Setting Up the Router. If that is true, you can use the retrieve function under Communications, Single, to retrieve the information from the router. |
This procedure describes how to set up the configuration program to communicate with the router. To do that:
| Note: | These addresses must match the addresses that are configured on the router's interface. |
| Note: | The name and the access type must match the name and access type that is configured on the router with which the configuration program will communicate. |
The configuration program can now communicate with the router and perform functions such as Send configuration, Retrieve configuration, or Query router information.
| Note: | Unless the version of the configuration program and the software loaded on the router are the same, the retrieve function may fail. Use the procedure described in "Upgrading/Migrating Previous-Level Configuration Files" to migrate the configuration from the previous version. |
To configure a router using the configuration program:
Notes:
In the AIS, MAS, MRS, MSS, and MSSC versions, the virtual ports can be intermingled with the physical ports.
| Note: | While using the configuration program to change an existing configuration, make sure that no one is updating the configuration with the router command line interface. Any configuration data entered from the command line is lost if you send the configuration to the router from the configuration program. |
To change an existing configuration:
The Command Line facility enables you to automate configuration program operations. You can use the config command to enter a complete set of commands into an argument file named cfgargs, which the configuration program uses to direct its operation, or you can use it to enter commands on the command line. (See Figure 5 for an example of a cfgargs file.) To use only the config command, without displaying the GUI interface, the last command in the file or on the command line must be -exit. If you do not meet this requirement, the program displays the GUI interface's Navigation and Configuration windows. In AIX you can use the headless command, which processes commands without invoking the GUI tool. This enables you to use the command line facility on machines without a graphical display.
| Note: | You can use the config command only in a windowed operating system. You can use the headless command in an AIX environment with or without a windowed operating system |
If you enter the config command, the program looks for a file named cfgargs. Figure 5 shows the contents of a cfgargs file that:
Figure 5. Example of CFGARGS File Contents
-displayMessages off (1) -storeMessages on cfgMessages.log (2) -asciiRead routerOne.acf withoutLogging (3) --send 1.1.1.1 private (4) --reboot 1.1.1.1 private (5) --save * routerTwo (6) -exit |
You may enter the config or the headless (AIX only) command with or without additional commands and their arguments.
| Note: | To facilitate making future configuration changes, you may want to prevent automatic deletion of the cfgargs file. You can do this by using a text editor to open the cfgargs file and keeping it open while the configuration program processes the commands in it. As an alternative, you may want to save a copy of the file under a different name. |
If an argument, args, contains embedded blanks, you must enclose the argument in double quotes (" ").
| Note: | If you plan to enter commands on the command line, you must ensure that a cfgargs file does not already exist in the configuration program directory. This is necessary because if one does exist, the program processes only the commands in it and ignores the commands you enter on the command line. |
The following list describes the config and headless command-related commands and arguments.
Notes:
Notes:
| Note: | The ASCII file comments written by this command are provided for information only and are ignored if they are present in an ASCII file specified by an -asciiRead command. |
Notes:
| Note: | In AIX you can only specify an * instead of a name if you provide the -save command in a cfgargs or -commandsFrom file. It is not supported on the command line. |
| Note: | If this command is issued before a valid configuration is read using either the -asciiRead or -open commands then the default configuration will be sent to the router. This default configuration will not contain an IP address for the router so if this configuration is activated then you will no longer be able to communicate with the router using IP. |
Notes:
Notes:
By default, the configuration program saves configuration files in binary format. You can use the configuration program to create and read configuration files in ASCII format. You can also convert configuration files from one format to the other.
An ASCII configuration file may be useful if you need to alter many configurations at one time without having to load configurations into the graphical user interface.
| Note: | The ASCII configuration facility is not intended to be used to create new configurations or to make major modifications to existing configurations. |
For example, if you need to update many IP addresses throughout a network, it may be faster to save the affected configuration files in ASCII format and then manually (or automatically with a program) update the addresses. A configuration file saved in ASCII format is also useful when you want to scan the configuration online or print the configuration for review.
After updating an ASCII configuration, you can read it into the configuration program and save the configuration in binary. You can load a configuration into a multiprotocol device only in the binary format.
The ASCII functions are contained in the Configure menu under the ASCII file item. If you select ASCII file you see the following menu items:
If you select Create single file..., the program displays a dialog in which you specify the path and file name to which the program writes an ASCII file. You can also print comments in the ASCII File from this dialog, if desired.
If you select Read single file..., the program displays a dialog in which you specify the path and file name from which the program reads an ASCII file. You can also prevent the configuration program from writing validation errors to a validation file in this dialog. By default, the validation file has a .vlg file extension.
| Note: | For the Read single file... function to read an ASCII file
successfully, you must either:
|
The configuration program uses the current configuration to create an ASCII file. Therefore, if you want to create an ASCII file for a particular device:
The configuration program uses the current configuration in memory to CREATE the ASCII file. This file will contain the configuration parameters and their current values.
Creating an ASCII file is effectively the same as converting a configuration from its binary form to ASCII. Interpreting an ASCII File explains the contents of a sample of an ASCII file.
You can add comments to an ASCII file. These comments will help you to use the ASCII file as a template for other configurations. The comments include:
The comments are a guide to help you update the ASCII configuration file. Using an ASCII File as a Configuration Template explains using ASCII files as configuration templates.
| Important |
|---|
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Because configuration parameters change between releases and between PTFs, the configuration program will read only ASCII files created by the same level configuration program. Altering the version number of an older ASCII file or changing the version number in a valid configuration file will cause the read function to fail. See Understanding How the Configuration Program Validates ASCII Files for an explanation of how the configuration program validates an ASCII configuration. You cannot upgrade an ASCII file from one version of the configuration program to another version. You can only migrate binary configuration files (.csf) between releases. For the procedure to migrate older configuration files, see Upgrading/Migrating Previous-Level Configuration Files. |
When you read an ASCII file, the configuration program reads the file into memory and replaces the current configuration. If you need the configuration currently in memory, use the Save configuration or Save configuration as functions before reading in the ASCII file. See Understanding the ASCII Functions for read function restrictions.
See Interpreting an ASCII File for a description of the ASCII file that can help you create your own ASCII file.
To read an ASCII file:
| Note: | If you make changes in the configuration program, you can use Create single file... to replace the erroneous ASCII file. |
By default, the validation file has a file extension of .vlg.
After reading in the configuration, you can:
Multiprotocol devices require that the configurations be in binary. Using the configuration program, you can convert an ASCII file to binary by:
If you have a binary configuration file, you can convert it by:
Figure 6 contains a sample of a portion of an ASCII file with comments. When interpreting the ASCII file, note that:
Figure 6. Sample ASCII Configuration with Comments
2210 Configuration
November 18, 1996 at 3:08:56 pm
! 'Configuration:' = 'config'
! 'Model:' = 'model 121/T'
! 'Adapter:' = 'emptySlot'
! 'Version:' = '13011'
#'appletalk' = {
* at2General = {
* at2Enable : Enable Appletalk 2
* value : enable or disable
* at2Checksum : Checksum
* value : enable or disable
* at2Translation : Translate
* value : enable or disable
* at2FastPath : Fast path cash size
* value : range from 100 to 10000 }
#'at2General' = {
#'at2Enable' = 'disable'
#'at2Checksum' = 'disable'
#'at2Translation' = 'disable'
#'at2FastPath' = '500'
}
* at2Interfaces = { list of at2Interface }
* at2Interface = {
* at2InterfaceGeneral = {
* at2FirstNetworkRange : Lowest number of network range
* value : range from 1 to 65279
* at2LastNetworkRange : Highest number of network range
* value : range from 1 to 65279
* at2NodeNumber : Node number
* value : range from 0 to 254
* at2DefaultZoneName : Default zone name
* value : a string no more than 34 character(s) in length
* with any ASCII character
* at2InNFilter : Input NFilter
* value : 1 of the following strings: None Inclusive Exclusive
* at2OutNFilter : Output NFilter
* value : 1 of the following strings: None Inclusive Exclusive
* at2InZFilter : Input ZFilter
* value : 1 of the following strings: None Inclusive Exclusive
* at2OutZFilter : Output ZFilter
* value : 1 of the following strings: None Inclusive Exclusive
* at2EnableInterface : Enable interface
* value : enable or disable
* at2InputNetworkFilter : Input NFilter
* value : 1 of the following strings: None Inclusive Exclusive
* at2OutputNetworkFilter : Output NFilter
* value : 1 of the following strings: None Inclusive Exclusive
* at2InputZoneFilter : Input ZFilter
* value : 1 of the following strings: None Inclusive Exclusive
* at2OutputZoneFilter : Output ZFilter
* value : 1 of the following strings: None Inclusive Exclusive
* at2SplitHorizon : Split horizon
* value : enable or disable }
* at2ZoneNames = { list of at2ZoneName }
* at2ZoneName = {
* at2ZName : Zone name
* value : a string
* no less than 1 character(s) in length
* and no more than 32 character(s) in length
* with any ASCII character }* at2NFilters = { list of at2NFilter }
* at2NFilter = {
* at2FirstFilterNetworkRange : First network range number
* value : range from 1 to 65279
* at2LastFilterNetworkRange : Last network range number
* value : range from 1 to 65279
* at2NetworkFilterType : Filter type
* value : 1 of the following strings: In Out }
* at2ZFilters = { list of at2ZFilter }
* at2ZFilter = {
* at2FilterZoneName : Zone name
* value : a string
* no less than 1 character(s) in length
* and no more than 30 character(s) in length
* with any ASCII character
* at2ZoneFilterType : Filter type
* value : 1 of the following strings: In Out } }
#'at2Interfaces' = {
#'at2Interface' = {
#'at2InterfaceGeneral' = {
#'at2FirstNetworkRange' = nil
#'at2LastNetworkRange' = nil
#'at2NodeNumber' = '0'
#'at2DefaultZoneName' = nil
#'at2InNFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutNFilter' = 'None'
#'at2InZFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutZFilter' = 'None'
#'at2EnableInterface' = 'disable'
#'at2InputNetworkFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutputNetworkFilter' = 'None'
#'at2InputZoneFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutputZoneFilter' = 'None'
#'at2SplitHorizon' = 'enable'
}
#'at2ZoneNames' = { }
#'at2NFilters' = { }
#'at2ZFilters' = { }
}
#'at2Interface' = {
#'at2InterfaceGeneral' = {
#'at2FirstNetworkRange' = nil
#'at2LastNetworkRange' = nil
#'at2NodeNumber' = '0'
#'at2DefaultZoneName' = nil
#'at2InNFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutNFilter' = 'None'
#'at2InZFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutZFilter' = 'None'
#'at2EnableInterface' = 'disable'
#'at2InputNetworkFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutputNetworkFilter' = 'None'
#'at2InputZoneFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutputZoneFilter' = 'None' #'at2SplitHorizon' = 'enable'
}
#'at2ZoneNames' = { }
#'at2NFilters' = { }
#'at2ZFilters' = { }
#'at2Interface' = {
#'at2InterfaceGeneral' = {
#'at2FirstNetworkRange' = nil
#'at2LastNetworkRange' = nil
#'at2NodeNumber' = '0'
#'at2DefaultZoneName' = nil
#'at2InNFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutNFilter' = 'None'
#'at2InZFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutZFilter' = 'None'
#'at2EnableInterface' = 'disable'
#'at2InputNetworkFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutputNetworkFilter' = 'None'
#'at2InputZoneFilter' = 'None'
#'at2OutputZoneFilter' = 'None'
#'at2SplitHorizon' = 'enable'
}
#'at2ZoneNames' = { }
#'at2NFilters' = { }
#'at2ZFilters' = { }
}
}
}
·
Besides the functions described in Understanding the ASCII Functions, the configuration program command line facility also supports the following functions:
The following sections describe using the configuration program command line facility to process ASCII files. Examples are included to help you build cfgargs files so you can run certain processes in batch mode.
Use the asciiWrite command to create an ASCII file. If you want to create an ASCII file for a specific device, retrieve the configuration from the device before the write command in the cfgargs file. The following example creates an ASCII file of the configuration for device CON656A with comments and then exits the configuration program:
-displayMessages off -storeMessages on cfgCmds.log -retrieve CON656A myread -asciiWrite d:\asccfgs\con656a.acf withComments -exit
Use the asciiRead command to read an ASCII file into the configuration program's memory. The following example reads the ASCII file named rtr656b.acf in directory asccfgs:
-displayMessages off -storeMessages on cfgCmds.log -asciiRead d:\asccfgs\rtr656b.acf -exit
| Note: | Validation errors are logged to file rtr656b.vlg. |
Use the createConfiguration command to convert an ASCII file to a binary file that you can use as backup for a device's configuration. The following example reads in an ASCII file, transmits it to a device, and then creates a binary configuration file for backup.
-displayMessages off -storeMessages on cfgCmds.log -asciiRead d:\asccfgs\mss656c.acf -send mss656c mywrite -createConfiguration d:\bincfgs\mss656c.cfg -exit
There may be times when you need to review the current configuration, for example, debugging or planning for an upgrade. The next example retrieves the configuration from device RTR656D and converts the configuration to ASCII for later use.
-displayMessages off -storeMessages on cfgCmds.log -retrieve rtr656d readit -asciiWrite d:\asccfgs\rtr656d.acf -exit
There may be times when you need to either create ASCII versions of configurations from multiple routers or convert multiple ASCII files to binary to transmit to various devices. The following sections outline a method to achieve those goals using the command line facility.
This following example assumes that you have just received five devices that were pre-configured. It illustrates a way to create documentation of the configuration for those devices.
-displayMessages off -storeMessages on cfgCmds.log -retrieve rtr656a reada -asciiWrite d:\asccfgs\rtr656a.acf -retrieve rtr656b readb -asciiWrite d:\asccfgs\rtr656b.acf -retrieve rtr656c readc -asciiWrite d:\asccfgs\rtr656c.acf -retrieve rtr656d readit -asciiWrite d:\asccfgs\rtr656d.acf -retrieve rtr656e readit -asciiWrite d:\asccfgs\rtr656e.acf -exit
The following example assumes that you need to reload five devices with configurations and you have valid ASCII files. You have already set up the devices to communicate with the configuration program on each of the devices. Each device has a unique configuration and you do not need the binary configuration saved.
-displayMessages off -storeMessages on cfgCmds.log -asciiRead d:\asccfgs\rtr656f.acf -send mss656f mywritef -asciiRead d:\asccfgs\rtr656g.acf -send mss656g mywriteg -asciiRead d:\asccfgs\rtr656h.acf -send mss656h mywriteh -asciiRead d:\asccfgs\rtr656i.acf -send mss656i mywritei -asciiRead d:\asccfgs\rtr656j.acf -send mss656j mywritej -exit
The ability to create and read ASCII files can assist you in automating the process of creating or updating a large number of device configurations. The following procedure outlines a method that you can use to perform a mass update.
After you create the new configurations, you can use the configuration program to read the resulting ASCII files, save them as binary files, if needed, and then send the files to the appropriate devices. Reading Multiple ASCII Files contains more information about how the command line facility can help you automate this task.
The configuration program performs the following actions while reading the ASCII files:
If there are too many interfaces defined, the program discontinues reading the configuration because it cannot determine which definitions are correct and logs an error.
If there are too few interfaces, the program fills in defaults for the undefined interfaces. For example, if the device has two WAN ports and you supply values for one, the program uses defaults for the missing interface after the configured interface.
| Note: | Undefined interfaces must be the last interfaces in the interface list. For example, if you define interfaces 0, 2, and 3, the configuration program will not use defaults for the missing interface. In this case, you must define the consecutive interfaces 0, 1, 2, and 3 for the program to provide defaults for the missing interface. For interface 1, you must provide a default interface. |
If there are fewer elements in the interface protocol list than the number of device interfaces, the program fills the list with default protocols for the remaining interfaces.
If there are more elements in the interface protocol list, than the number of device interfaces, the program discontinues reading the configuration and logs an error.
If you experience problems with the configuration program, locate the
symptom in Table 6 that most closely describes the problem and perform the
actions described in the Recommended Actions column.
| Symptom | Recommended Actions |
|---|---|
| Exit with error 34 message when attempting to start the configuration program in AIX | This message indicates that there is not enough space in the /tmp directory for the program to start. To avoid this problem, either delete unnecessary files in the directory or use SMIT to allocate more space to it. |
| Cannot read or make selections from a panel | Revert to the original initialization files by reinstalling the program. |
| The configuration program is running slowly or is hung | Stop other applications to see if that enables the program to operate normally. If it does not, revert to the original initialization files by reinstalling the program. |
| Internal Execution Error or Run Time Error (indicated by an error message in a pop-up window) | Do the following:
|
Before removing the configuration program, you must save all of the configuration files with a .csf extension into the configuration program's directory, if the configurations are still required for your network. Use either the Save configuration or Save configuration as choices from the Configuration menu (described in "Using the Configure Menu").
To remove the configuration program: