Hardware Installation

This unit should be mounted at the bottom of the rack if it is the only unit in the rack.
When mounting this unit in a partially filled rack, load the rack from the bottom to the top with the heaviest component at the bottom of the rack.
If the rack is provided with stabilizing devices, install the stabilizers before mounting or servicing the unit in the rack.

Ensuring Proper Airflow

Follow these guidelines to ensure proper airflow:

Install the system in an open rack whenever possible. If installation in an enclosed rack is unavoidable, ensure that the rack has adequate ventilation.
Maintain ambient airflow to ensure normal operation. If the airflow is blocked or restricted, or if the intake air is too warm, an overtemperature condition can occur.
Allow at least 6 inches (15.24 cm) of clearance around the ventilation openings of the chassis.
Avoid placing the system in an overly congested rack or directly next to another equipment rack. Heat exhaust from other equipment can enter the inlet air vents and cause an overtemperature condition.
Equipment near the bottom of a rack might generate excessive heat that is drawn upward and into the intake ports of the equipment above. The warm air can cause an overtemperature condition in the equipment above.
Ensure that cables from other equipment do not obstruct the airflow through the chassis or impair access to the power supplies or cards. Route cables away from field-replaceable components to avoid disconnecting cables unnecessarily for equipment maintenance or upgrades.

Stabilizing the System

Follow these guidelines to stabilize the equipment rack:

Install any stabilizers that came with your equipment rack before mounting or servicing the system in the rack.
Load the rack from the bottom to the top, with the heaviest system at the bottom.
Do not stack the system on top of any other equipment. If the system falls, it can cause severe bodily injury and damage the equipment.
If you are using an equipment shelf, ensure that the shelf is constructed to support the weight and dimensions of the chassis.
If you are using a telco rack, ensure that the weight of the chassis does not make the rack unstable. Secure the telco rack with ceiling brackets if the rack is populated with heavy equipment.
Bolt the rack to the floor for stability.

Lifting the System

Follow these guidelines when lifting the system:

Disconnect all power and external cables before lifting the system.
Ensure that your footing is solid and the weight of the system is evenly distributed between your feet.
Lift the system slowly, keeping your back straight. Lift with your legs, not with your back. Bend at the knees, not at the waist.

Rack Mounting Instructions

Review the documentation that comes with your rack cabinet for safety and cabling information. When installing your system in a rack, consider the following:

Ensure the room air temperature is below 35°C (95°F).
Do not block any air vents, usually 15 cm (6 in.) of air space provides proper airflow.
Install your system in a rack with perforated doors.
Plan the device installation starting from the bottom of the rack.
Install the heaviest device in the bottom of the rack.
Remove the rack doors and side panels to provide easier access during installation.
Connect all power cords to properly wired and grounded electrical outlets.
Take precautions to prevent overloading the power outlets when you install multiple devices in a rack.

Warning Do not place any object weighing more than 50 kg (110 lbs) on top of rack-mounted devices. >50 kg (110 lbs)

You will need the following items to complete the system installation:

Flat-blade screwdriver
Phillips screwdriver
Mounting brackets and hardware
Cage nuts or clip nuts

To install the mounting rails, complete the following steps:

Step 1 Adjust each rear mounting bracket (by loosening the screws) so that the inside distance between the two ends is equal to the outside dimension of the rack rails (see Figure 2-1).

Figure 2-1: Rear Mounting Bracket

Step 2 Select a one-U location in the rack, then install a cage nut or clip nut (see Figure 2-2) in the top and bottom position of the one-U location you selected (both sides, front and rear of the rack).

Figure 2-2: Cage or Clip Nuts

Step 3 Insert the bracket tab through the center hole between the two clip nuts on the rear rail (see Figure 2-3). (The right and left rails are labeled.)

Figure 2-3: Bracket Tab

Step 4 Loosely install two mounting screws through the back end of the bracket (see Figure 2-4).

a. Position the mounting bracket so that it lines up with the clip nuts.

b. Install the remaining mounting screws, then tighten all the screws with a screwdriver.

c. Repeat these steps for each mounting bracket.

Figure 2-4: Mounting Screws

Step 5 Place the system on the mounting brackets and slide it in as far as it will go (see Figure 2-5).

Figure 2-5: System and Mounting Brackets

Step 6 Tighten the thumb screws on the front of the system to secure it to the rack (see Figure 2-6).

Figure 2-6: Thumb Screws

Step 7 If you want to ship your rack with the system installed, you must install the shipping brackets on each side of the system.

This is done by inserting the shipping bracket tab into the slot on the back of the system. Then use the blue thumb screw to secure the back of the system and the shipping bracket to the mounting bracket (see Figure 2-7).

Figure 2-7: Shipping Bracket

Step 8 Repeat these steps for each system to be installed in the rack.

For information about I/O ports and connecting your system, see "Connecting Cables" section.

Connecting Cables

Warning Do not work on the system or connect or disconnect cables during periods of lightning activity.

Your system has two different cabling options, the Advanced System Management (ASM) bus and the Cable Chain Technology (C2T). The following sections discuss each of these options. While reading about these options, keep in mind that they are independent of each other.

To connect the ASM bus, complete the following steps:

Step 1 Refer to Figure 2-8 to locate the connectors on the back of your system.

Figure 2-8: Connectors

The ASM ports on the back of the system are referred to in this book as RS-485 (A) and RS-485 (B).

Step 2 Connect the power cords and all external cables to the system; then, plug the power cords into properly grounded electrical outlets.

Step 3 Continue with "Cabling the RS-485 Ports" and "Connecting the Systems with a C2T Chain" section.

Cabling the RS-485 Ports

You can use the RS-485 connectors to create an ASM bus between several IE2100 Series systems.

Before you begin, review the following:

The ASM bus is designed to connect up to twelve units or systems. When using the Remote Supervisor adapter, you can connect a total of eleven units or systems.
You can hot-swap the cables in the ASM bus.
Use standard unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cables with RJ-45 connectors.

For more information about the Remote Supervisor adapter, see the documentation that comes with the adapter.

Connecting the ASM Bus

The systems in the ASM bus are referred to by their assigned addresses and not their position in the rack.

After you install the system in the rack, complete the following steps to connect the ASM bus:

Step 1 Turn off the systems.

Step 2 Locate the RS-485 connectors on the rear of the systems and several unshielded twisted pair (UTP) cables with RJ-45 connectors.

Step 3 Starting at the topmost system to be included in the ASM bus, plug one end of the cable into the RS-485 (B) connector and the other end of the cable into the RS-485 (A) connector of the next system.

Step 4 Continue connecting the systems together in this manner until you reach the second-to-last system in the ASM bus.

Step 5 Connect a cable from the RS-485 (B) connector of the second-to-last system to the RS-485 (B) connector of the last system. Refer to Figure 2-9 to see how to connect the ASM bus.

Figure 2-9: ASM Bus

Step 6 Turn on the systems. See "Turning on the System" section.

Connecting the Systems with a C2T Chain

To share the same monitor, keyboard, and pointing device with several systems, you must connect the systems together with Cable Chain Technology (C2T) chaining cables through the C2T (In) and C2T (Out) connectors.

Before you begin, review the following:

You can connect a maximum of 42 systems with the C2T chaining cables.
When connecting systems in two separate racks, you must use a C2T chaining cable that is 2 m
(6.5 ft.) long, which is available in the C2T option cable kit.
The C2T chaining cables can be hot-swapped.

: Attention: For best results, shut down the systems above and below the system being removed from or added to the chain.

Systems are numbered by their position in the chain (1 through n). If one system is removed from the chain, all successive systems are renumbered. For example, if the twelfth system is removed from a chain of 15 systems, then systems 13 through 15 will be renumbered to 12 through 14.
The C2T numbering is independent of any other system reference. Changing the system position in the C2T chain does not affect its IP address.

Operational notes:

System 1 (usually the system at the bottom of the rack) is the system to which you connect the C2T breakout cable.

System 1 must not be turned off (powered down) for the chain to work properly.

If system 1 is turned off (powered down), it must be removed from the chain and replaced by the next system in the chain.

For the chain to operate properly, no more than two adjacent systems can be unplugged from the electrical outlet at the same time.

If you are using a flat-panel monitor, you might need to adjust the image lock on your monitor when multiple systems are connected using C2T chaining cables. To adjust this image, select one of the middle systems in the chain by pressing the Select button on the front of the system; then, adjust the image lock accordingly. For more information on how to adjust the image lock, see the documentation that comes with your flat-panel monitor.

When removing or replacing systems, or changing cables in the chain, it is possible for more than one Select LED to be illuminated on the systems in the chain. To clear all but the selected system LED, press the Select button on any one of the systems in the chain.

If you turn off a selected system, you must select another system that is powered up. For the location of the Select button, see "Front view" section.

Complete the following steps to connect the systems:

Step 1 Gather several of the C2T chaining cables.

Your system comes with a short C2T chaining cable that can span approximately 3 U, if needed. A longer C2T cable is available in the C2T cable kit.

Step 2 Connect the systems together:

a. Connect one end of the C2T chaining cable to the C2T (Out) connector of the top system.

b. Connect the opposite end of the C2T chaining cable to the C2T (In) connector of the system below it.

c. Repeat these steps until all of the systems are connected together.

d. Connect the C2T breakout cable to the system 1 C2T (Out) connector (see Figure 2-10).

Figure 2-10: C2T Cable Chain

System 1 (usually the system at the bottom of the rack) is the system to which you connect the C2T break out cable.

Step 3 Turn the systems on and check the operation of the monitor, pointing device, and keyboard with each system. See "Turning on the System" section for instructions to turn on the system. See "Testing the C2T Chain" for testing instructions.

TimeSaver Write-on adhesive labels have been provided so that you can label the system position in the rack.

Testing the C2T Chain

After connecting the C2T chain, you will need to test the monitor, keyboard, and pointing device to be sure that they work with each of the systems.

Follow these steps to test the C2T cabling:

Step 1 With the systems powered up and the monitor on, press the Select button on system 1 in the C2T chain.

Step 2 Check the monitor to see if it is working.

Step 3 Use the mouse or pointing device to open an application.

Step 4 Test your keyboard by typing a few words within an application.

Step 5 Repeat steps 1 through 4 for each of the systems in the chain.

Note If you cannot use the devices, check your cable connections and retry the test. If the problem persists, turn off the systems and connect the C2T breakout cable directly to the C2T (Out) connector of the system. Turn on (power up) the system and retry the devices. If the devices work, you probably have a bad C2T chaining cable. Replace the cable and retry the devices in the C2T chain configuration.

Cable Management

Use the cable ties and hook-and-loop straps that are supplied with your system to secure the cables.

Note Do not secure cables too tightly. Over tightening can cause internal damage to cables.

Connecting to Power Source

Connect the AC power receptacle to the AC power source with the provided power cable.

Warning Never defeat the ground conductor or operate the equipment in the absence of a suitably installed ground conductor. Contact the appropriate electrical inspection authority or an electrician if you are uncertain that suitable grounding is available.

Warning Before working on equipment that is connected to power lines, remove jewelry (including rings, necklaces, and watches). Metal objects will heat up when connected to power and ground and can cause serious burns or weld the metal object to the terminals.

Table of Contents

Hardware Installation