162 Sun Fire 280R Server Owner’s Guide • January 2001
About Using Diagnostic Tools toMonitor, Diagnose, and Exercise theSystem
People often think of diagnostic tools as a way to identify a failed field-replaceable
unit (FRU), so that it can quickly be replaced. While this is a very important goal, it
is also important to be able to monitor an ostensibly “healthy” system, and to
exercise a system that is functioning in a questionable way.Sun provides tools that
help you do all three of these things. In addition, Sun Remote System Control (RSC)
enables you to monitor a server remotely,and even to diagnose problems when the
server is not running.

About Monitoring the System

When the system is up and running, RSC and Sun Management Center softwarecan
give you advance warning of difficulties and prevent futuredowntime.
These monitoring tools let you specify system criteria that bear watching. For
instance, you might want to set a thresholdfor system temperature and be notified if
that threshold is exceeded. Warningscan be reported by visual indicators in the
software’s interface. Additionally,you could set RSC to send an email or pager alert
whenever a problem occurs.

About Monitoring the System Using Sun Remote System

Control (RSC)

Sun Remote System Control (RSC) enables you to monitor and control your server
over modem lines and over a network. Takingadvantage of firmware built into the
RSC card, RSC software provides remotesystem administration for geographically
distributed or physically inaccessible machines.
Youcan access RSC either from a workstation running the Solaris, Windows 95,
Windows98, or Windows NT operating environment and Sun’s RSC Java
application, or from an ASCII terminal or device running ASCII terminal emulation
software.
The RSC card runs independently,and uses standby power from the server.
Therefore, RSC firmwareand software continue to be effective when the server
operatingsystem goes offline, and can send notification of hardware failures or other