Log dump

[usairwave]

I recently had a stalling issue on an AP. The cause of the problem is still uncertain but the Star-OS could not ping through the bridge to the upstream radio (cisco). As a result, I turned on the Watch Dog to reboot the Star-OS if this occured again. At the time of the failure, I did not review the kernal log so the cause of this problem is still unknown.

I know that I should run a Syslog server and have the Star-OS send the logs up so that I can review the logs if I notice this problem occurs again. But for now, I am not running a syslog. So, if the Star-OS reboots because of the watch dog, I do not know it occured and the logs are now gone so I still don't know what the problem for the reboot was.

Could something be added to Star-OS watchdog to email, dump the log to a file, something.... to capture the kernal log before a reboot occurs? How it stands right now, I will never be able to review the kernal log when this occurs unless I run a syslog server.

Thoughts? :?

[tony]

Here is a free syslog server for Windows that works quite well:
http://www.kiwisyslog.com/software_downloads.htm

There should be little to no setup involved to get it working with your StarOS boxes.

What brand of card are you using as an AP, and what firmware version does it have. (you may need to look in the dmesg log for this). Also, what brand / chipset is the pcmcia socket you are using?

Thanks!

[usairwave]

I posted this question to WISP Equipment. Here is the original post:

Soekris 4521
64MB flash
Orinoco Card in W1 (AP) (Avaya)
Bridge between Ether1 and W1. IP address but on the bridge
Private IP on Ether2 for management
STP turned off
No relay on
No SID broadcast on
22 queue pipes
44 in and out queues for the pipes
22 associations
gateway to ether1 (bridge)
Version 1.10.4
Running for 3 weeks

I could not ping the uplink radio.
Could not ping the bridge interface
Clients could not ping the AP or beyond
No other services (DHCP, etc running. This is just an AP)
Router version of the OS

All signs seem to point to the bridge down. I plugged into Ether2 and putty in the Star-OS through the private ip. Radio shows all of the assocations. Could not ping the gateway. Could not ping the bridge. Did not try to ping a client. I think (not sure), everything showed as up on the system reports. IP address was still on the ether1/bridge. Gateway route was still in the router. Cycled power on the unit and everything is fine.

I have made some changes to minor things, could any of these cause this to happen...

- Occasionally naming the associations. The last couple of times, I did not save and activate changes.
- Modified some of the queues. Activated script changes. Did not save and activate changes.

I am not sure what happened but it was not a good thing. A 30 minute drive to a tower to cycle power, right before a snow storm was not a good
thing...


Other Information:

Avaya Card. Version 01.01. Manfid: 0x0156, 0x0002

[tony]

One thing you may wish to try is an upgrade to our latest version (v1.06.6.1).

There is nothing you have added to the system that should cause problems. There ARE some known problems with the Soekris boards however which have known to cause problems similar to yours in the past but can be worked around most of the time. What is the power adaptor you are using to power your Soekris board? Not having enough power to the board directly affects the pcmcia support in the system.

For the pcmcia card's firmware version, where did you get v01.01?

I would like it if Lonnie or myself can log into your system later today to have a look around. (You can email either of us regarding this)

Thanks!

[usairwave]

1. The firmware is what came on the card(new) about 2 years ago. I never bothered to upgrade it. Can I upgrade it remotely or do I have to power down the unit and use a laptop?

2. The power supply is the one shipped from soekris. I believe it is a 14v, 1A.

3. I need to re-enter the queues this morning and will send you an email after I am done so that you can review the unit and make any recommendations.

Thanks

[tony]

Ok. There are two things here. If your Agere card has station f/w <= v6.xx, you will need to upgrade it before using it as an Access Point. Even though we use a special AP firmware v8.42, it still uses some small components from the station firmware. To upgrade this, you will need to put the card in a laptop. (or find a card with f/w 7.52 or newer on it)

The other thing you may wish to try is to put in a slightly larger power adapter (such as an 18v+). Some customers mention that this will solve 90% of the problems with the boards, especially if you have a long cat5 run.

I'll be awaiting your email.

Thanks!

[usairwave]

There is no CAT5 run and I will let you verify the firmware version when you review the system before I change anything. What email address should I send the info to?

[usairwave]

The config screen on the AP card says:
Agere (ORiNOCO) (f/w: variant 1, ver 8.42)

The v01.01 was from the system report....

[tony]

The config screen on the AP card says:
Agere (ORiNOCO) (f/w: variant 1, ver 8.42)

The v01.01 was from the system report....

This is the AP firmware version we load onto the card. Unfortunately the 'real' firmware version will be displayed in the dmesg log when the card is reset.

Thanks!