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Element Software

RTFI deployment and installation options

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The Return To Factory Image (RTFI) process uses a bootable, installable media with a completely self-contained, minimalistic Linux OS to deploy Element software on a node. You can download the RTFI ISO image specific to your Element software version from the NetApp support site.

After you download the RTFI ISO image, you can deploy it according to one of the following commonly used methods:

  • Physical USB key: You can write a bootable Element software ISO to a USB key. For instructions, see the Knowledge Base article How to create an RTFI key to re-image a SolidFire storage node. Insert the USB key with the ISO into the node and boot from the USB key.

  • Virtual media using the baseboard management controller (BMC) management port: You can use the BMC to dynamically attach to the ISO located on your client system. The ISO is made available to the host OS as a virtual drive (CD or DVD). For more information, see the Knowledge Base article How to RTFI a node via BMC.

  • Network boot using a Preboot Execution Environment (PXE), Trivial File Transfer Protocol (TFTP), or FTP: Instead of manually unpacking an ISO image, you can use autofs to automatically extract an image when the RTFI process requests it. This deployment mechanism requires more initial setup but allows for correct automation and scalability of installation.

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