RSA NetWitness Platform appliance iDRAC initialization error

[#1]

Article Number

000001778

Applies To

RSA Product Set: NetWitness Logs & Network
RSA Version/Condition: 10.6.x, 11.x
Platform: iDRAC
Platform (Other): Dell appliance

Issue

During the RSA NetWitness Dell appliance boot, it halts with the message:

WARNING! iDRAC initialization error.

Image description

SWC0700: iDRAC is not ready

Image description

Cause

The iDRAC card in the Dell appliance has its own operating system that can hang, so a hard reset of the card is required.

Resolution

The following methods can be used to force a reset of the iDRAC card in a Dell appliance.

1. Shutdown the appliance and drain any trickle charge.

   Power off the appliance, disconnect all power cables and press in the power button for 30 seconds on the front of the appliance.
   Then plug in all power, wait 5 minutes for the iDRAC card to start, and then power on the appliance.
   
   Dell Reference: iDRAC - Multiple Reboots Can Cause IPMI Command Errors, Lifecycle Recovery Mode, and "SWC0700: iDRAC is not ready"

2. Soft-reset the iDRAC card by pressing the 'i' button.

   On the front of the Dell appliance press the 'i' button for 30 seconds.
   Wait 5 minutes for the iDRAC reset to complete.
   Reboot the appliance.
   
   Dell Reference: How to reset the internal Dell Remote Access Controller (iDRAC) on a PowerEdge server?
    

Notes

Once the iDRAC is working again, consider upgrading the iDRAC firmware to the latest approved version so the iDRAC software is on the most stable version available.

Reference: RSA NetWitness Availability of BIOS & iDRAC Firmware Updates