Phase 01: Hardware Provisioning and BIOS/iDRAC Configuration
DOCUMENT CATEGORY: Runbook
SCOPE: Azure Local cluster hardware provisioning
PURPOSE: Discover all cluster node hardware, configure DHCP reservations, validate BIOS/iDRAC settings against Dell Azure Local validated baselines, and remediate any configuration gaps before OS installation
MASTER REFERENCE: Microsoft Learn - Azure Local Hardware Requirements
Status: Active
Phase 01 — Table of Contents
| Task | Description | Duration | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Create DHCP Reservations for iDRAC Interfaces | 15 min | Task 1 |
| 2 | Hardware Discovery via Dell Redfish API | 30 min | Task 2 |
| 3 | Create DHCP Reservations for Management NICs (Optional) | 15 min | Task 3 |
| 4 | BIOS and iDRAC Settings Validation | 30 min | Task 4 |
| 5 | BIOS and iDRAC Settings Remediation | 30 min | Task 5 |
Prerequisites
- Phase 03 Network Infrastructure complete (iDRAC network operational, iDRAC IPs accessible)
- iDRAC accessible via OpenGear console server or direct network access
- iDRAC credentials available (default:
root/ configured password) - PowerShell 7+ with
Invoke-RestMethodcmdlet - DHCP server access for creating reservations
- Dell Azure Local Validated Node Configuration Guide available
- Firmware updates are NOT performed in this phase — Firmware management is handled automatically by the Azure Local Solution Builder Extension (SBE) during cluster deployment in Phase 05
- This phase focuses on hardware discovery, DHCP configuration, and BIOS/iDRAC settings validation/remediation only
Validation Checklist
- Hardware inventory JSON files created for all nodes
- Service tags collected for all nodes
- iDRAC MAC addresses collected for all nodes
- System NIC MAC addresses collected (management interfaces)
- DHCP reservations created for all iDRAC interfaces
- (Optional) DHCP reservations created for all management NICs
- BIOS settings validated against Dell Azure Local baseline (100% compliance)
- iDRAC settings validated against enterprise operational standards (100% compliance)
- All non-compliant settings remediated and re-validated
- Hardware inventory documented and stored in site configuration folder
Outcome
Complete hardware inventory documented, DHCP reservations configured, BIOS and iDRAC settings validated and compliant with Dell Azure Local baselines, ready for Phase 02 (OS Installation).
Hardware Requirements
Supported Dell Platforms
All Dell AX nodes for Azure Local are Premier Solutions — validated through deep collaboration between Dell Technologies and Microsoft.
| Model | Chassis | CPU | Nodes | Tier |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AX-760 | 2U rack | Intel 5th Gen Xeon Scalable | 1–16 | Premier Solution |
| AX-660 | 1U rack | Intel 5th Gen Xeon Scalable | 1–16 | Premier Solution |
| AX-4510c / AX-4520c | AX-4000r/z (4U) | Intel Xeon D 27xx | 1–16 | Premier Solution |
Network Infrastructure
Required VLANs
Network VLAN assignments are site-specific and defined in variables.yml.
| Network | Variable Path | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| iDRAC/BMC | vlans.oob.vlan_id | Out-of-band management |
| Management | vlans.management.vlan_id | Cluster management |
| Storage | vlans.storage.vlan_id | Storage Spaces Direct |
| Compute | vlans.compute.vlan_id | VM traffic |
Workflow Diagram
graph TD
A[Receive Hardware] --> B[Physical Installation]
B --> C[Connect iDRAC Network]
C --> D[Task 1: iDRAC DHCP Reservations]
D --> E[Task 2: Redfish Discovery]
E --> F[Task 3: Management NIC Reservations]
F --> G[Task 4: Validate BIOS/iDRAC]
G --> H{Settings Correct?}
H -->|No| I[Task 5: Remediate Settings]
H -->|Yes| J[Phase 02: OS Installation]
I --> G
Quick Start
Test iDRAC connectivity for all nodes before starting. iDRAC IPs are defined in variables.yml under nodes.<name>.idrac_ip.
# Load iDRAC IPs from variables.yml
Import-Module powershell-yaml
$config = Get-Content ".\config\variables.yml" -Raw | ConvertFrom-Yaml
$iDRACIPs = $config.nodes.Values | ForEach-Object { $_.idrac_ip }
foreach ($ip in $iDRACIPs) {
$result = Test-NetConnection -ComputerName $ip -Port 443 -WarningAction SilentlyContinue
$status = if ($result.TcpTestSucceeded) { "Reachable" } else { "Not Reachable" }
Write-Host "iDRAC $ip : $status"
}
Next Steps
After completing hardware provisioning, proceed to Phase 02: OS Installation.
References:
| Version | Date | Author | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | 2026-01-01 | Azure Local Cloud | Initial release |
| 1.1 | 2026-03-03 | Azure Local Cloud | Fix task ordering, stage references, standards alignment |