Verify Correct Configuration of ZPM Distribution Point Server

  • Document ID:3526214
  • Creation Date:11-Oct-2006
  • Modified Date:30-Apr-2012
    • Micro Focus Products:
      ZENworks Patch Management

Environment

Novell ZENworks Patch Management 6.2 - ZPM6.2 PatchLink Distribution Point - PDP

Situation

This TID details the steps required to verify that the PatchLink Distribution Point (PDP) Server setup was performed correctly.

Applies To: PatchLink Distribution Point 2.00.00.00

After installing PatchLink Distribution Point on a Windows 2000 or above computer, perform the following steps to verify that the PDP server is able to:
Connect to the Internet
Resolve PLUS DNS
Cache packages

If PDP is installed on Windows XP with Service Pack 2, ensure that the SP2 firewall does not block traffic on the PDP port, which by default is 25253.

Resolution

Perform each test below in the specified order. Each test must be successful before the subsequent test is performed.

STEP 1 - TEST THE INTERNET CONNECTION

The PDP server's internet connection may be tested through Internet Explorer or via command line. Instructions for both methods are provided below.

Using Internet Explorer

1. On the PDP Server, configure the browser with the PDP Server loopback address (127.0.0.1) and port number as follows:

a. Launch Internet Explorer.

b. From the Tools menu, select Internet Options.

c. On the Connections tab, click LAN Settings.

d. In the Proxy server section, select the Use a proxy server for your LAN option.

f. Enter the PDP port number (default is 25253) in the Port field.


g. Click OK.

2. Browse tohttp://www.Novell.com.

3. Verify that the page loads successfully. If the connection is unsuccessful, troubleshoot your internet connection.


Using the Command Line

1.On the PDP server, open a command prompt.

2. Type cd"C:\Program Files\Patchlink\Distribution Point\bin".

3. Hit ENTER.

4. Type squidclient -p https://www.novell.com, replacing with the appropriate port number. For example, squidclient -p 25253https://www.novell.com.

5. Hit ENTER.

6. Verify that the source code for the PatchLink Web site is written to the command window. If the code is not returned, troubleshoot your internet connection.


STEP 2 - TEST PLUS DNS NAME RESOLUTION

The ability of PDP to resolve the PLUS DNS name may be tested through Internet Explorer or via command line. Instructions for both methods are provided below.

Using Internet Explorer

1. On the PDP server still configured to use the PDP port, launch Internet Explorer.

2. Browse to the PLUS using the DNS name, e.g.http://plus01.

3. Verify that the PLUS login prompt appears. If the following error is returned instead, try browsing to the PLUS IP address, e.g.http://192.168.1.1.

The requested URL could not be retrieved
While trying to retrieve the URL:http://plus01
The following error was encountered:
Unable to determine IP address from host name for plus01
The dnsserver returned:
Server Failure: The name server was unable to process this query.
This means that:
The cache was not able to resolve the hostname presented in the URL.
Check if the address is correct.
If you can successfully connect using the IP address, refer toarticle 36for instructions on setting up the PDP server to properly resolve the PLUS DNS.

4. If you cannot connect using the IP address, verify that you are using the correct IP address for the PLUS.

Using the Command Line

1. On the PDP server, open a command prompt.

2. Type cd"C:\Program Files\Patchlink\Distribution Point\bin".

3. Hit ENTER.

4. Type squidclient -h -p http://DNS name>, replacing , , and with the appropriate information. For example, squidclient -h PDP01 -p 25253http://plus01.

5. Hit ENTER.

6. Verify that the source code for the login prompt is written to the command window. If the source code for the following error is returned instead, try the connection using the PLUS IP address, e.g. squidclient -h PDP01 -p 25253http://192.168.1.1.

The requested URL could not be retrieved
While trying to retrieve the URL:http://plus01
The following error was encountered:
Unable to determine IP address from host name for plus01
The dnsserver returned:
Server Failure: The name server was unable to process this query.
This means that:
The cache was not able to resolve the hostname presented in the URL.
Check if the address is correct.

If you can successfully connect using the IP address, refer toarticle 36for instructions on setting up the PDP server to properly resolve the PLUS DNS.


STEP 3 - TEST PACKAGE CACHING

This test simulates a package request from a PatchLink Update Agent set up to use the PDP proxy server. Package caching to the PDP server is verified using the PDP server's access.log file.

1. On the PatchLink Update Server (PLUS), enable Directory Browsing on the UpdateStorage virtual directory as follows:
a. Go to Start > Programs > Administrative Tools > Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager.
b. Expand the PLUS Web site.
c. Right-click on the UpdateStorage virtual directory and select Properties.



d. On the Virtual Directory tab, select the Directory Browsing option.



e. Click OK.

2. On the PDP server, launch Internet Explorer.

3. Browse tohttp://DNS name>/updatestorage/. For example,http://plus01/updatestorage/.

This displays the contents of the storage directory.



4. Click on the 00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000 directory.

5. Click on any directory to drill down to the package level then click on a package hyperlink to request the package.

6. In the File Download dialog that appears, click Save.

7. Select any location to save the file to.

8. Open the access.log file in C:\Program Files\PatchLink\Distribution Point\var\logs\.

If the log file contains a TCP_MISS entry for the selected package, this indicates that the PDP server has not yet cached the package and the package was requested from PLUS directly:
If the log file contains a TCP_MEM_HIT entry, the package was already cached on the PDP server:

1134512450.640 0 127.0.0.1 TCP_MEM_HIT/200 485 GET http://localhost/updatestorage/00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000/02AC5B8E-C1FB-4F78-AED1-A0E52F87191B/01234B87-41EE-4475-A6D1-306ADB29EB73- NONE/- application/octet-stream

9. If you received a TCP_MISS entry in the previous step, perform steps 5 to 8 for the same package.

10. Verify that the access.log file now contains a TCP_MEM_HIT entry for the requested package, indicating that the PDP is caching packages.


STEP 4 - REVERT TO ORIGINAL INTERNET CONNECTION SETTINGS

With the testing complete, you can deselect the LAN Settings changes made in Step 1 if you chose the Internet Explorer test procedure.