{"id":81,"date":"2017-12-04T15:25:54","date_gmt":"2017-12-04T05:25:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.iblogit.net\/?p=81"},"modified":"2018-11-26T13:18:41","modified_gmt":"2018-11-26T03:18:41","slug":"repurposing-a-google-gsa-google-search-appliance-a-step-by-step-how-to-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/2017\/12\/04\/repurposing-a-google-gsa-google-search-appliance-a-step-by-step-how-to-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Repurposing a Google GSA"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Repurposing a Google GSA (Google Search Appliance) – A step-by-step how to guide<\/h3>\n

So, you have a GSA (Google Search Appliance) which has run out of license, and you are wondering if it is possible to re-purpose\/re-use\/crack the very well specified hardware? Yes, it absolutely is!<\/p>\n

By default, the GSA runs a custom BIOS on a Dell server (R700, R710, R720), is password protected, and runs a variant of CentOS. Prior to running these steps, the GSA will not allow you to access the BIOS, or install your chosen operating system. When you connect a monitor, keyboard and mouse, all you get to see is an ent1 login screen. This password is never known to anyone outside of Google, including customers and partners.<\/p>\n

\"gsa<\/p>\n

At a high-level, you’ll need to play with motherboard jumpers (BIOS protection and NVRAM clear), format the volume and apply a regular Dell server BIOS.<\/p>\n

The following steps have been tested on T2, T3 and T4 variants on the GSA.<\/p>\n

WARNING: YOU ARE PERFORMING THE FOLLOWING STEPS AT YOUR OWN RISK. THESE STEPS WILL REMOVE THE DEFAULT GSA OS AND SOFTWARE<\/h3>\n

Pre-requisites<\/h3>\n

You will need a bootable memory stick. I use a USB stick which boots into a Windows 10 installation. This is a perfectly workable solution, as you can press SHIFT – F10 to open a command prompt, and use a Wintel version of the downloaded Dell BIOS installer complete with GUI.<\/p>\n

Identify the type of GSA you are re-purposing, and download the appropriate Dell BIOS file.<\/p>\n

T2 or T3- Download the following file or newer from the Dell website R710_BIOS_4HKX2_WN64_6.4.0<\/p>\n

T4 – Download the following file or newer from the Dell website\u00a0BIOS_CR1RR_WN64_2.5.4<\/p>\n

Copy the downloaded Dell bios file onto your bootable USB stick, into a folder called “BIOS”.<\/p>\n

You will require a monitor, keyboard and mouse.<\/p>\n

I have published 2 sets of instructions; ‘text based’ and ‘with pictures’. Please scroll down the page to view the ‘with pictures’ version of the instructions.<\/p>\n

The re-purposing process (text based)<\/h3>\n
    \n
  1. Do not connect any power to your GSA just yet. Open the top lid of the GSA, and change the ‘clear nvram pin’ to yes, and the ‘bios password pin’ to no. The location of the nvram and bios password motherboard pins will be shown clearly on the inside of the top lid.<\/li>\n
  2. Pop the server HDD disks out, and leave them hanging from the front of the server.<\/li>\n
  3. Plug in your bootable USB stick. I usually plug the USB stick into the USB port on top of the motherboard.<\/li>\n
  4. Re-install the top lid of the GSA.<\/li>\n
  5. Connect your monitor, keyboard and mouse, and plug in the GSA power.<\/li>\n
  6. Power on the GSA.<\/li>\n
  7. Press CTRL – R when prompted by the BIOS, and enter the RAID configuration screen. Clear all of the configuration, including all volumes.<\/li>\n
  8. Reboot the GSA.<\/li>\n
  9. Allow the GSA to boot into your USB stick (Windows 10 in my case). Press SHIFT – F10 when at the installation prompt to launch a command prompt.<\/li>\n
  10. Navigate to c:\\BIOS<\/li>\n
  11. Run your Dell supplied BIOS file (the one relevant to your GSA model: T2. T3. T4)<\/li>\n
  12. Reboot when prompted.<\/li>\n
  13. Allow the GSA to continue booting, as the BIOS will have a second part to check and install. Reboot when prompted.<\/li>\n
  14. Allow the GSA to boot a final time, and shutdown the server once your bootable stick is back at the Windows 10 install prompt. Remove power.<\/li>\n
  15. Open the top lid of the GSA, change the ‘clear nvram pin’ to no, and leave the ‘bios password pin’ at no.<\/li>\n
  16. Remove your bootable USB stick.<\/li>\n
  17. Re-install the top lid of the GSA.<\/li>\n
  18. Pop in the server HDD disks.<\/li>\n
  19. Plug in the GSA power.<\/li>\n
  20. Power on the GSA.<\/li>\n
  21. Press DEL when prompted and check full access to the BIOS.<\/li>\n
  22. Done. The server is now ready to have your chosen OS loaded.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The re-purposing process (with pictures)<\/h3>\n
      \n
    1. Do not connect any power to your GSA just yet. Open the top lid of the GSA (image below – use a screwdriver to move the latch to the ‘unlocked’ position), and change the ‘clear nvram pin’ to yes, and the ‘bios password pin’ to no (image below – pull pins upwards to remove). The location of the nvram and bios password motherboard pins will be shown clearly on the inside of the top lid (image below).
      \n\"google
      \n\"google
      \n\"google<\/li>\n
    2. Pop the server HDD disks out, and leave them hanging from the front of the server. (image below – the front bezel needs to be removed first)
      \n\"google<\/li>\n
    3. Plug in your bootable USB stick. I usually plug the USB stick into the USB port on top of the motherboard. (image below)
      \n\"gsa<\/li>\n
    4. Re-install the top lid of the GSA.<\/li>\n
    5. Connect your monitor, keyboard and mouse, and plug in the GSA power.<\/li>\n
    6. Power on the GSA. Press F1 to continue when prompted. (image below)
      \n\"gsa<\/li>\n
    7. Press CTRL – R when prompted by the BIOS, and enter the RAID configuration screen. Clear all of the configuration, including all volumes. (images below)
      \n\"press
      \n\"gsa
      \n\"gsa
      \n\"gsa<\/li>\n
    8. Reboot the GSA.<\/li>\n
    9. Allow the GSA to boot into your USB stick (Windows 10 in my case). Press SHIFT – F10 when at the installation prompt to launch a command prompt. (image below)
      \n\"gsa<\/li>\n
    10. Navigate to c:\\BIOS<\/li>\n
    11. Run your Dell supplied BIOS file (the one relevant to your GSA model: T2. T3. T4)
      \n\"gsa
      \n\"gsa
      \n\"gsa<\/li>\n
    12. Reboot when prompted. (image below)
      \n\"gsa<\/li>\n
    13. Allow the GSA to continue booting, as the BIOS will have a second part to check and install. Reboot when prompted.\u00a0\"bios<\/li>\n
    14. Allow the GSA to boot a final time, and shutdown the server once your bootable stick is back at the Windows 10 install prompt. Remove power.<\/li>\n
    15. Open the top lid of the GSA, change the ‘clear nvram pin’ to no, and leave the ‘bios password pin’ at no.
      \n\"gsa<\/li>\n
    16. Remove your bootable USB stick.<\/li>\n
    17. Re-install the top lid of the GSA.<\/li>\n
    18. Pop in the server HDD disks.
      \n\"replace<\/li>\n
    19. Plug in the GSA power.<\/li>\n
    20. Power on the GSA.<\/li>\n
    21. Press DEL when prompted and check full access to the BIOS.\u00a0\"gsa<\/li>\n
    22. Done. The server is now ready to have your chosen OS loaded.\u00a0\"unlocked<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Good luck. If you have anything to add to this process, please reach out and let me know! \ud83d\ude42<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Repurposing a Google GSA (Google Search Appliance) – A step-by-step how to guide So, you have a GSA (Google Search Appliance) which has run out of license, and you are wondering if it is possible to re-purpose\/re-use\/crack the very well specified hardware? Yes, it absolutely is! By default, the GSA runs a custom BIOS on<\/p>\n

      <\/span>Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":82,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[16],"tags":[25,22,23,24,17,18,19,20,21],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":813,"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/81\/revisions\/813"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=81"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/iblogit.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}