Initial Rack Setup

Prerequisites

Before beginning the initial rack setup, confirm the following are ready:

  • Jumpbox or laptop connected to at least one tech port per switch

  • IPv6 SLAAC enabled on all connected interfaces

  • SSH connectivity to wicket verified (ssh wicket@<tech_port_address>)

  • Recovery password chosen and vault ready

  • TLS certificate PEM file (full chain) and private key PEM file available on jumpbox

  • rack.toml values prepared (DNS servers, NTP, domain, IP ranges, switch ports, routing)

  • BGP authentication key ready (if applicable)

  • Network engineer available on standby for connectivity troubleshooting

If any of these items are not ready, return to the Phase 1 Summary Checklist to complete preparation.

Getting Started

Since the rack does not have network access at this point, the initial setup is performed by connecting to the technician ports ('techport' in short) on the rack switches via a laptop or jumpbox set up with instructions from Oxide.

The software used for rack component visualization, update, and configuration is known as Wicket. This software runs inside the switch zones on the sleds adjacent to the switches, specifically sleds 14 and 16. Wicket provides a TUI and CLI that allow you to:

  • Validate component end-to-end connectivity

  • Update rack software to the latest versions, if necessary

  • Set up recovery account credentials

  • Upload a TLS certificate for the recovery silo

  • Configure basic networking such as upstream DNS, NTP, VLAN and routing information

To access a wicket captive shell,

  1. Identify the techport addresses (see Verify IPv6 Connectivity for expected output):

    ip neighbor show | grep fdb1
  2. Select any of the techport addresses and ssh in as the wicket user

    ssh wicket@${TP_ADDRESS}

    for example,

    ssh wicket@fdb1:a840:2504:195::1

This should give you an Oxide splash screen and land you in wicket showing a graphical display of the rack.

Overview
Wicket UI Navigation Reference
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ WICKET                                                          │
├──────────────┬──────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│              │                                                  │
│  OVERVIEW    │  [Main Content Area]                             │
│              │                                                  │
│  > UPDATE    │  Press Tab to focus here →                       │
│              │                                                  │
│  RACK SETUP  │  Component details, status, and configuration    │
│              │  displayed in this area                          │
│              │                                                  │
│              │  Use h/l or ←/→ to navigate within details       │
│              │                                                  │
└──────────────┴──────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

Navigation shortcuts:
  ↑/↓ or j/k    Move between menu items on left
  Tab           Move focus into main content area
  Enter         View details of selected item
  h/l or ←/→    Navigate within detail views
  Ctrl-C        Exit wicket

Key sections:
  OVERVIEW      View rack layout and component status
  UPDATE        Software update management
  RACK SETUP    Initial configuration and setup tasks

Validate component connectivity

Wicket communicates with the Management Gateway Service (MGS) to retrieve information about sled position and identity from the Service Processors (SP) in each Sled, Switch, and Power Shelf Controller (PSC).

To view the sled and switch information:

  1. On the left pane of the Wicket TUI, you can use the up and down arrows (or j/k for fans of Vim motions) to select a screen.

  2. Select OVERVIEW and press Tab to move focus into the rack. For every sled displayed, you can press Enter to see its details.

  3. On the sled detail screen, you can use left and right arrows (or h/l) to move left and right.

Sled Details

Confirm that the number of sleds with Ignition information matches the expected count (e.g., 16, 24, or 32), and that the two switches and PSC(s) are all powered on.

Verify uplink location and signal quality

While still in the Wicket OVERVIEW section, review the transceiver status for both Switch 0 and Switch 1 (the information can be found towards the bottom of the switch details page):

Transceiver Status

Check QSFP port assignments

Verify that the physical fiber connections match the QSFP port numbers you’ll configure in rack.toml.

How to verify:

  1. Note which physical QSFP ports have transceivers installed (wicket displays them as qsfp0, qsfp1, etc. with power readings).

  2. Cross-reference those values with your fiber patch panel documentation or installation notes.

  3. Confirm that the port numbers match what you plan to configure in rack.toml under .

Common issue: The physical port labels on the fiber patch panel may not directly correspond to QSFP numbers. For example, physical "Port 5" on the patch panel might have the identity qsfp5, but some patch panels use different numbering schemes.

Tip
If you discover a port mismatch, it’s easier to update your rack.toml configuration to match the actual physical ports than to rewire the fibers. Just ensure the correct QSFP port numbers are documented in your rack configuration notes.

Check power levels

  • Verify that detected power levels are within expected ranges:

    • Rx power values should be between 0.7 - 1.5mW for active channels. (Note: For FR1 or SR1, only channel 1 is applicable; channels 2-4 will show 0.000.)

    • Tx power values are zero at this point, because the uplinks are not set up yet.

    • Power at module should be labeled as "high".

    • Any values highlighted in yellow indicate an abnormal condition, with the exception of the Tx power as noted above. If Rx power values are 0.000 but some Tx power values are non-zero, this may indicate swapped rx/tx cables.

Transceiver Signal Quick Reference
ReadingExpected ValueRemediation Steps

Rx power

0.7–1.5 mW per active channel

Clean fiber, reseat transceiver, check for damaged ferrule.

Tx power

0.000 (pre-configuration)

Expected to be zero until uplinks are configured — not a fault.

Rx power = 0, Tx power > 0

Swapped Rx/Tx cables — reverse the fiber pair.

Power at module

"high"

If not "high", transceiver may not be fully seated. Reseat the transceiver before proceeding.

Temperature

Green

Do not proceed if values are in yellow, as that indicates overheating. Check airflow and ambient temperature before proceeding.

Voltage

Yellow

Do not proceed if values are in yellow, as that indicates a power issue. Check power supply status before proceeding.

For FR1 or SR1 transceivers, only channel 1 is applicable — channels 2–4 will show 0.000 and this is normal.

Check for temperature/voltage anomalies

  • Wicket provides environmental readings that may indicate potential issues.

  • If Temperature or Voltage appears in yellow, do not proceed with rack setup, even when the transceivers detect light and power levels appear normal.

After completing the checks, exit wicket by pressing Ctrl-C.

Update rack software

Software updates may be required if newer releases are available post-shipment.

Software updates can be performed by Oxide Support, either onsite or remotely via your secure jumpbox. Self-service updates can also be performed by the operator with coordination from Oxide Support.

The update process is performed in two passes (one per switch and its associated sleds). Each pass takes approximately 30 minutes, with multiple components updating concurrently within each pass. Plan for approximately 1 hour total. During the update, sleds will reboot automatically—this is expected behavior.

Update process overview

The steps below describe how Oxide Support Engineers perform software updates. You do not need to perform these steps, but they are documented here for transparency and to help you understand what the technician will do during your deployment.

The switches and their adjacent sleds are updated one set at a time so that there is always a live wicket to drive the process:

  1. Use the Sled 16 wicket to update Switch 0 and its adjacent Sled 14.

  2. Use the Sled 14 wicket to update Switch 1, PSC(s), and remaining sleds.

Each step takes about 30 minutes in which multiple system components are updated concurrently. For each of the steps:

First, upload the software image zip file to the target wicket with the following command:

ssh wicket@${TP_ADDRESS} upload-repo < tuf-mupdate.zip

Then, SSH into Wicket:

ssh wicket@${TP_ADDRESS}

Then, initiate the update from the Wicket TUI:

  1. On the left pane of the wicket UI, select UPDATE and press Tab to move focus into the rack.

    Update Status
  2. Arrow down to the target sled. You can press the right/left arrows to expand or collapse the short list of versions (there should be only one version available during the first rack install).

  3. Press Enter and this should take you to another pane with the versions listed at the top, and the bottom should say "Update ready: press Ctrl-U to start".

  4. Press Ctrl-U, then press Y on the popup to confirm you want to start the update. The bottom pane will be replaced by a list of steps that will be performed.

Update Status Details

At any time, you can move up and down the list (via up/down/j/k) and press enter to see details about the step. The sleds will be rebooted automatically after update. Here is an example of the update step details:

Update Steps

Once all the components have completely booted up, the rack is ready for network configuration.

Configure Rack Settings

Launch Wicket TUI via any of the available techport interfaces

ssh wicket@${TP_ADDRESS}

On the left pane, select RACK SETUP. The current rack status displayed on the right pane will be "Uninitialized" at this point.

While keeping the TUI open, start another terminal session and SSH into the setup CLI:

ssh wicket@${TP_ADDRESS} setup

This should bring up the list of available subcommands:

Usage: wicket setup [OPTIONS] 

Commands:
  get-config        Get the current rack configuration as a TOML template
  set-config        Set the current rack configuration from a filled-in TOML template
  reset-config      Reset the configuration to its original (empty) state
  set-password      Set the password for the recovery user of the recovery silo
  set-bgp-auth-key  Set one or more BGP authentication keys
  upload-cert       Upload a certificate chain
  upload-key        Upload the private key of a certificate chain
  help              Print this message or the help of the given subcommand(s)

In this second terminal window, you will make use of the commands above to enter or upload the necessary rack configurations.

Set Recovery User Password

A built-in recovery silo (with a system user also named recovery) will be created by the rack initialization process for setup and recovery purposes. This is an ordinary silo backed by a local identity provider. The recovery user has the privileges to create other silos and modify mutable pieces of their identity provider configuration.

Execute the following subcommand to enter the password for this system user:

ssh -t wicket@${TP_ADDRESS} setup set-password

Upload TLS Certificate

The Oxide Console and API will be hosted under the domain name controlled by your organization. In this step, you will upload a TLS certificate and private key that corresponds to the subdomain delegated to the Oxide Rack. This TLS certificate is used for the recovery silo but generally a TLS certificate with a wildcard DNS SAN is generated so it can be used for user-created silos as well.

For example, given a delegated DNS name of cloud.acme.com one can generate a TLS certificate with a DNS SAN of *.sys.cloud.acme.com to use it for both the recovery silo (i.e., recovery.sys.cloud.acme.com) and user-created silos (i.e., silo01.sys.cloud.acme.com). Alternatively, one could generate a TLS certificate with a DNS SAN specific to each silo but that would have to be done each time a new silo is created.

With a TLS certificate in hand, execute the upload-cert subcommand to import the TLS certificate chain file:

ssh wicket@${TP_ADDRESS} setup upload-cert < ${CERT-CHAIN}.pem

and then upload-key to import the key file:

ssh wicket@${TP_ADDRESS} setup upload-key < ${CERT-KEY}.pem

Validation: The system will validate that:

  • The certificate chain is complete (leaf + intermediate + root CAs).

  • The certificate is not expired.

  • The private key matches the certificate’s public key.

Common errors and solutions:

Error MessageSolution

"Certificate chain incomplete"

Ensure your PEM file includes all certificates in the chain. Concatenate them in order: leaf certificate first, followed by intermediate CAs, then root CA.

"Certificate and private key do not match"

Verify you’re uploading the correct key file that corresponds to this certificate. Use openssl x509 -noout -modulus -in cert.pem | openssl md5 and compare with openssl rsa -noout -modulus -in key.pem | openssl md5 to verify that they match.

"Certificate expired"

Generate a new certificate with a valid expiration date. Check certificate validity with openssl x509 -in cert.pem -noout -dates.

"Invalid PEM format"

Ensure files are in PEM format (Base64-encoded with -----BEGIN CERTIFICATE----- headers). Convert from DER if necessary: openssl x509 -inform der -in cert.der -out cert.pem.

Note
If you need to replace a certificate (e.g., you uploaded the wrong one), simply run the upload commands again with the correct files. The new certificate will replace the previous one.

Validation: After uploading, the Wicket TUI should show the certificate details under the RACK SETUP section. Verify:

  • Certificate Subject/CN matches your domain.

  • Expiration date is in the future.

  • No error messages appear in the wicket status.

If the certificate fails validation, wicket will display an error message. Common issues and fixes are listed in the table above.

Configure basic networking

In this step, you will configure the endpoints of boundary services that integrate with the Oxide Rack. You will supply the information in the form of a text file in toml format.

To begin the configuration, retrieve the toml template via

ssh wicket@${TP_ADDRESS} setup get-config > rack.toml
Mapping Planning Values to rack.toml Configuration
Planning Sheet Value                    rack.toml Field
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────
Delegated domain:                  →    external_dns_zone_name =
  cloud.acme.com                          "cloud.acme.com"

External DNS IPs:                  →    external_dns_ips =
  203.0.113.10, 203.0.113.11              ["203.0.113.10", "203.0.113.11"]

Uplink gateway:                    →    nexthop =
  198.51.100.1                            "198.51.100.1"

Infrastructure IP range:           →    infra_ip_first = "198.51.100.64"
  198.51.100.64/26 (64 IPs)               infra_ip_last = "198.51.100.127"

Uplink ports:                      →    port = "qsfp5"
  Switch 0 qsfp5, Switch 1 qsfp5          (in both switch configs)

Transceiver type:                  →    uplink_port_speed = "speed100_g"
  100GBASE-FR1                            uplink_port_fec = "none"

Upstream switch ASN:               →    asn = 65001
  65001                                   (in BGP peer config)
─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

TIP: Use this mapping to translate values from your pre-installation
checklist into the correct rack.toml configuration fields. Double-check
that port numbers, IP addresses, and ASN values match exactly.

The content of the file should look like this:

# Delegated external DNS zone name
#
# The rack provides separate external API and console endpoints for each Silo.
# These are named `$silo_name.sys.$external_dns_zone_name`.  For a Silo called
# "eng" with delegated domain "oxide.example", the API would be accessible at
# "eng.sys.oxide.example".  The rack runs external DNS servers that serve A/AAAA
# records for these DNS names.
external_dns_zone_name = ""

# IP addresses for authoritative external DNS servers operated by the rack for
# the DNS domain delegated to the rack by the customer. Each of these addresses
# must be contained in one of the "internal services" IP Pool ranges listed
# below.
external_dns_ips = [
]

# External NTP servers; e.g., "ntp.eng.oxide.computer".
ntp_servers = [
]

# External DNS server IP Addresses; e.g., "1.1.1.1", "9.9.9.9".
dns_servers = [
]

# Ranges of the service IP pool which may be used for internal services.
#
# Elements of this list should be of the form:
#
#    { first = "first_ip", last = "last_ip" }
#
# where `last_ip` is equal to or higher than `first_ip`; e.g.,
#
#    { first = "172.20.26.1", last = "172.20.26.10" }
internal_services_ip_pool_ranges = [
]

# List of sleds to initialize.
#
# Confirm this list contains all expected sleds before continuing!
bootstrap_sleds = [
   (list of sleds auto-discovered from the rack will be displayed here)
]

# Allowlist of source IPs that can make requests to user-facing services.
#
# Use the key:
#
# allow = "any"
#
# to indicate any external IPs are allowed to make requests. This is the default.
#
# Use the below two lines to only allow requests from the specified IP subnets.
# Requests from any other source IPs are refused. Note that individual addresses
# must include the netmask, e.g., "1.2.3.4/32".
#
# allow = "list"
# ips = [ "1.2.3.4/5", "5.6.7.8/10" ]
[allowed_source_ips]
allow = "any"

# network config
[rack_network_config]
infra_ip_first = ""
infra_ip_last = ""

# A table of ports to initialize on the rack. The keys are the switch (switch0,
# switch1) and the port name (qsfp0, qsfp1, etc). Copy and paste this section
# for each port.

[rack_network_config.switch0.qsfp0]

    # Routes associated with this port.
    # { nexthop = "1.2.3.4", destination = "0.0.0.0/0" }
    routes = []

    # Addresses associated with this port.
    # "1.2.3.4/24"
    addresses = []

    # `speed40_g`, `speed100_g`, ...
    uplink_port_speed = ""

    # `none`, `firecode`, or `rs`
    uplink_port_fec = ""

    # Whether or not to set autonegotiation: `true` or `false`
    autoneg = false

    # A list of BGP peers for this port. Copy this section, changing the port name
    # as desired. Remove if not needed.
    [[rack_network_config.switch0.qsfp0.bgp_peers]]

        # The autonomous system number (required). This must match one of the `asn`
        # values in the `[[rack_network_config.bgp]]` section.
        asn = 0

        # The switch port the peer is reachable on (required).
        port = ""

        # The IPv4 address of the peer (required): e.g. 1.2.3.4.
        addr = ""

        # How long to keep a session alive without a keepalive, in seconds.
        hold_time = 6

        # How long to keep a peer in idle after a state machine reset, in seconds.
        idle_hold_time = 3

        # How long to delay sending open messages to a peer, in seconds.
        delay_open = 0

        # The interval in seconds between peer connection retry attempts.
        connect_retry = 3

        # The interval to send keepalive messages at, in seconds.
        keepalive = 2

        # Require that a peer has a specified ASN (optional).
        # remote_asn = 0

        # Require messages from a peer have a minimum IP time to live field (optional).
        # min_ttl = 0

        # If BGP authentication is desired, a key identifier. Multiple peers
        # can share the same key ID, if desired.
        #
        # The actual keys are provided via `wicket setup set-bgp-auth-key`.
        # Currently, only TCP-MD5 authentication is supported.
        # auth_key_id = "key1"

        # Apply the provided multi-exit discriminator (MED) for updates sent to the
        # peer (optional).
        # multi_exit_discriminator = 0

        # Include the provided communities in updates sent to the peer (optional).
        # communities = [28, 47]

        # Apply a local preference to routes sent to the peer (optional).
        # local_pref = 0

        # Enforce that the first AS in paths received from the peer is the
        # peer's AS.
        enforce_first_as = false

        # Apply import policy to this peer with an allowlist of prefixes
        # (optional). Defaults to allowing all prefixes. Use an empty list to
        # indicate that no prefixes are allowed.
        # allowed_import = ["224.0.0.0/8"]

        # Apply export policy to this peer with an allowlist of prefixes
        # (optional). Defaults to allowing all prefixes. Use an empty list to
        # indicate that no prefixes are allowed.
        # allowed_export = []

        # Associate a VLAN ID with this BGP session (optional).
        # vlan_id = 0

[rack_network_config.switch1]

# Optional BGP configuration, as a list of entries. Duplicate or remove this
# section as needed.
[[rack_network_config.bgp]]

# The autonomous system number.
asn = 0

# Prefixes to originate e.g., ["10.0.0.0/16"].
originate = []

Annotated Configuration Example

The following is a complete, worked example for a rack with:

  • Delegated domain: cloud.acme.com.

  • Two DNS servers at Cloudflare and Quad9.

  • Corporate NTP server.

  • 20-address services pool (172.20.26.1–20).

  • Static routing with one uplink per switch.

# ─── Upstream Services ───
# These DNS servers must be recursive resolvers (IP addresses only, no hostnames).
# They are used by rack infrastructure AND provided to guest VMs via DHCP.
dns_servers = [
"1.1.1.1",
"9.9.9.9",
]

# NTP servers can be IP addresses or DNS names.
ntp_servers = [
"ntp.acme.com",
]

# ─── Names and Numbers ───
# The domain delegated to the Oxide rack. Silos will be at $silo.sys.cloud.acme.com
external_dns_zone_name = "cloud.acme.com"

# IPs for the Oxide-hosted DNS servers. These must fall within the services pool below.
# You will configure your upstream DNS to delegate cloud.acme.com to these addresses.
external_dns_ips = [
"172.20.26.1",
"172.20.26.2",
]

# Services pool — used by DNS, API, NTP, and other rack services.
# Minimum: 13 addresses. Recommended: 20.
# The external_dns_ips above must be within this range.
internal_services_ip_pool_ranges = [
{ first = "172.20.26.1", last = "172.20.26.20" }
]

# ─── Sled Discovery ───
# Auto-populated list of sleds detected during boot. Verify the count matches
# your expected configuration (16 for half-rack, 32 for full rack).
bootstrap_sleds = [
# (auto-discovered sled list will appear here)
]

# ─── Source IP Allowlist ───
# "any" allows all external IPs to access the rack API and console.
# Change to "list" with specific subnets to restrict access.
[allowed_source_ips]
allow = "any"

# ─── Switch Uplink Configuration ───
# Infrastructure IPs are assigned to switch uplink ports. You need one IP per uplink.
# These must be on the same subnet as the upstream gateway.
[rack_network_config]
infra_ip_first = "172.20.15.21"
infra_ip_last = "172.20.15.22"

# Switch 0, port qsfp0 — VERIFY this matches the physical port you plugged fiber into!
[rack_network_config.switch0.qsfp0]
routes = [{ nexthop = "172.20.15.17", destination = "0.0.0.0/0" }]
addresses = ["172.20.15.21/29"]
uplink_port_speed = "speed100_g" # Must match your transceiver (speed40_g, speed100_g, speed200_g)
uplink_port_fec = "rs" # "rs" (Reed-Solomon) or "none"
autoneg = false

# Switch 1, port qsfp0
[rack_network_config.switch1.qsfp0]
routes = [{ nexthop = "172.20.15.17", destination = "0.0.0.0/0" }]
addresses = ["172.20.15.22/29"]
uplink_port_speed = "speed100_g"
uplink_port_fec = "rs"
autoneg = false

Key points:

  • The qsfp0 in [rack_network_config.switch0.qsfp0] must match the physical port number where the transceiver is inserted. If your fiber is in port 31, use qsfp31.

  • uplink_port_speed values are speed40_g, speed100_g, or speed200_g — note the underscore format.

  • Each addresses entry must use an IP from the infra_ip_first/infra_ip_last range.

  • An address can only be assigned to one switch port. Using the same address on multiple ports will cause an error.

Important
The internal_services_ip_pool_ranges are used for Control Plane DNS and API services. The pool range(s) must cover 16 or more IP addresses.
Important
Replace qsfp0 with the actual qsfp port in use for uplink connection.

Use a text editor such as vim to edit the toml file. Upon completing the configuration data entry, you can upload the file via

ssh wicket@${TP_ADDRESS} setup set-config < rack.toml

The configurations should be refreshed automatically in the wicket UI with the uploaded data.

Validation: After uploading, verify in the wicket RACK SETUP screen that:

  • All DNS servers are displayed correctly

  • NTP servers are listed

  • External DNS zone name matches your delegated domain

  • External DNS IPs are within your services IP pool range

  • Services IP pool shows the correct ranges

  • Both switches show uplink port configurations

  • Uplink port numbers (qsfp__) match physical fiber connections

  • Uplink speeds match your transceiver type (40G, 100G, or 200G)

  • BGP configurations appear (if using BGP)

  • No error messages appear at the bottom of the wicket UI

If you see errors or the configuration looks incorrect, edit with reset-config, get-config, and set-config, then re-upload.

Common Configuration Mistakes

The following mistakes are frequently encountered during initial rack setup. Check for these before kicking off initialization:

IssueSymptomSolution

QSFP port mismatchrack.toml says qsfp0 but fiber is in qsfp5.

Rack initialization succeeds but no external connectivity.

Verify that the physical port label matches the config, make corrections in rack.toml, then re-upload.

Services pool too small — fewer than 13 addresses.

Rack initialization fails or control plane is unstable.

Allocate at least 16 addresses (13 minimum, 20 recommended).

DNS servers not recursive — authoritative-only DNS IPs provided.

Rack services cannot resolve external names; NTP sync fails.

Use recursive resolvers (e.g., 1.1.1.1, 8.8.8.8, or your corporate recursive DNS).

Certificate SAN mismatch — cert is for .cloud.acme.com instead of .sys.cloud.acme.com.

Browser shows TLS errors when accessing the Oxide Console.

Regenerate cert with SAN *.sys.$domain.

Certificate missing chain — only leaf cert uploaded, no intermediates.

Some clients cannot validate the TLS cert.

Include the full chain (leaf + intermediates + root) in the PEM file.

Wrong FEC settinguplink_port_fec doesn’t match upstream.

The link comes up, but either drops packets or shows errors.

Match the FEC setting with your upstream port config (typically rs for 100G).

Infra IP not on same subnet as gateway — CIDR mismatch.

No connectivity from the rack to routers upstream.

Ensure that the uplink address and gateway are on the same subnet.

Duplicate infra IPs — same address on multiple switch ports.

set-config command returns an error.

Each address can only be assigned to one switch port.

Forgot DNS delegation — no NS records pointing to rack DNS IPs.

recovery.sys.$domain doesn’t resolve after initialization.

Configure NS records in your upstream DNS to delegate to the external_dns_ips.

Firewall blocking services — rack can’t reach DNS/NTP.

Time sync and/or DNS resolution fail; causing initialization to hang.

Ensure firewall allows UDP 53 (DNS) and UDP 123 (NTP) outbound from the services IP pool.

Diagnosing Common Configuration Issues
What's the symptom?
│
├─→ Rack won't initialize
│   ├─ Check: Services pool size ≥ 13 addresses?
│   │  Fix: Add more IPs to services_ip_pool_ranges
│   ├─ Check: DNS servers are recursive resolvers?
│   │  Fix: Use 8.8.8.8 or your corporate recursive DNS (not authoritative)
│   └─ Check: Firewall allows UDP 53/123 outbound?
│      Fix: Allow services IP pool → DNS/NTP servers
│
├─→ No external connectivity after initialization
│   ├─ Check: QSFP port number matches physical port?
│   │  Fix: Verify qsfp port in rack.toml matches patch panel connection
│   ├─ Check: FEC setting matches upstream switch?
│   │  Fix: Align uplink_port_fec with upstream (none/RS/BASE-R)
│   └─ Check: Infra IP subnet matches gateway subnet?
│      Fix: Ensure infra_ip_first/last are in same subnet as nexthop
│
├─→ Can't reach rack console (https://)
│   ├─ Check: DNS delegation configured?
│   │  Fix: Add NS records pointing to external_dns_ips
│   ├─ Check: Certificate SAN covers *.sys.?
│   │  Fix: Regenerate cert with correct wildcard SAN
│   └─ Check: Full certificate chain uploaded?
│      Fix: Include leaf + intermediate + root CA in PEM
│
└─→ Time sync or DNS resolution failures
    ├─ Check: DNS servers are recursive (not authoritative)?
    │  Fix: Replace with recursive resolvers like 8.8.8.8
    └─ Check: Firewall allows UDP 53/123 from services pool?
       Fix: Add firewall rules for DNS/NTP from services IPs
Tip
Start from your symptom and work through the relevant diagnostic checks. Most configuration errors fall into one of these categories.

Specify VLAN tag

If you use VLAN tagging for the control plane or data plane, you will need to configure the VLAN tag in the switch port settings. Here is an example:

[rack_network_config.switch.qsfp31]
uplink_port_speed = "100G"
uplink_port_fec="none"
autoneg = false
# for tagged control plane traffic
addresses = [{address = "198.51.103.10/30", vlan_id = 100}]
# for tagged data plane traffic
bgp_peers = [
    {asn = 47, addr = "198.51.103.9", port = "qsfp31", vlan_id = 100},
]
routes = []

Enter BGP auth key values

If your network configurations do not involve BGP authentication, you can skip to the next step to start rack initialization.

You will reference the auth_key_id entered in the toml file uploaded in set-config to specify the keys associated with each of the key ids.

For example, for the following BGP peer:

[[rack_network_config.switch0.qsfp31.bgp_peers]]
  asn = 47
  addr = "198.51.103.9"
  port = "qsfp31"
  local_pref = 20
  auth_key_id = "bgpkey"

you can set the password associated with that key as follows:

$ ssh -t wicket@${TP_ADDRESS} setup set-bgp-auth-key 'bgpkey'
current BGP authentication keys (0/1 set):
  • bgpkey: unset

You will then be prompted for a password. Upon filling in the password you’ll see something like this (with a different SHA-256).

setting 1 key to use TCP-MD5 authentication
  • (1/1) add bgpkey:
          ✓ key added: TCP-MD5 (SHA-256: 650e9595236154547665929c8ff6c06a4e1f89bb63797649b3cfc5337d075be8)
✓ 1/1 key set
Connection to fdb1:a840:2504:2d7::1 closed.

The auth key pairs entered will also be reflected in the rack configurations displayed in the wicket UI.

Kick off rack initialization

Review the rack configurations in the wicket UI. If everything looks correct, you can kick off the rack setup by pressing Ctrl-K. The process takes about 15-20 minutes. Once the initialization has completed, the Current rack status will become Initialized. Here is an example of the final state:

Rack Setup Status

Success Criteria and Troubleshooting

How to know initialization succeeded:

  • The Current rack status changes from "Initializing" to "Initialized"

  • No error messages appear in the wicket status panel

  • The progress indicator reaches 100% and stops

  • All services listed show "Running" status

If initialization stalls or fails:

IssueSolution

Progress stalls at specific percentage for >10 minutes

Check network connectivity to DNS and NTP servers; verify firewall allows UDP 53 and UDP 123

Error: "Cannot reach external DNS"

Verify the DNS server IPs in rack.toml are recursive resolvers and reachable from the services IP pool

Error: "Time synchronization failed"

Verify NTP servers are reachable; check firewall rules for UDP 123

Error: "Insufficient IP addresses in services pool"

Reset rack (Ctrl-R Ctrl-R), increase services pool range to at least 16 addresses, re-initialize

Any other error or timeout after 30 minutes

Contact Oxide Support with the error message and wicket status screenshot

When to contact Oxide Support:

  • Initialization fails with an error you cannot resolve from the table above

  • Initialization completes but DNS resolution for recovery.sys.<domain> fails

  • Any component shows "Failed" status after initialization

  • Initialization hangs for more than 30 minutes with no progress

Note
As part of the rack initialization, the Rack Setup Service (RSS) instructs sled-agents to generate the rack secret, split it into shares, and distribute the encrypted shares to different sleds on the bootstrap network over tcp links. The rack secret is used for the storage encryption scheme. Subsequent to rack initialization, whenever a sled boots, it must recover a certain number of shares of rack secret - the "trust quorum" threshold - to reconstruct the rack secret and unlock its local storage. Upon completion of the unlock process, the rack secret will be securely erased from memory.

Resetting a Misconfigured Rack

Caution
If rack initialization completes but you discover a misconfiguration (wrong IP ranges, incorrect DNS domain, etc.), you can reset the rack and start over.

To reset, press Ctrl-R Ctrl-R in the wicket RACK SETUP screen.

What a reset does:

  • Removes the control plane and all VM instances

  • Returns the rack to the "Uninitialized" state

  • Preserves the software version (no need to re-update)

What a reset does NOT do:

  • Does not affect sled firmware or software versions

  • Does not require re-uploading the software image

After resetting, you can edit the configuration with reset-config, get-config, and set-config, then re-initialize with Ctrl-K.

When to reset vs. reconfigure after initialization:

  • Reset if: DNS zone name, external DNS IPs, or services pool ranges are wrong (these are immutable after initialization)

  • Reconfigure via API if: BGP peers, additional uplink ports, or IP pools need changes (these can be modified through the Oxide API after the rack is running)


What’s Next

The rack control plane is now running. Proceed to the final configuration phase:

  • Phase 4: Rack Configuration — Create silos, integrate identity providers, configure IP pools, and deploy a test VM (1-2 hours with identity and operations teams)

You’ll access the rack via the web console at https://recovery.sys.<your_domain> using the recovery password you set during this phase.