Defining an HTTP proxy server

As part of Call Home with cloud services configuration, you can choose to use your existing HTTP proxy server within a network to manage connections between the system and the support center. A HTTP or internal proxy server manages connections between your internal network and any entity outside of your network.

Call Home with cloud services or remote support assistance requires connections to the support center for quick and efficient problem resolution for your system. Instead of opening ports for these external connections through your firewall, you can specify an internal proxy server for better security. In addition to these features, an internal proxy server can be defined to connect to cloud-based services, such as an authentication service provider. To use an internal proxy server, a DNS server is also required to resolve hostnames to IP addresses. To create a DNS server, select Settings > Network > DNS. In the command-line interface, use the mkdnsserver command to define a DNS server.

Using the management GUI

You can specify a hostname and port to define the proxy configuration and optionally add security-related settings. You can also use the mkproxy command. To define an internal proxy server, complete these steps:
  1. In the management GUI, select Settings > Network > Internal Proxy Server.
  2. Select one of the following types of proxy configuration and complete the required fields:
    Open Proxy
    Select this option to define an internal proxy server with a URL and port only. This configuration does not have any security controls.
    Basic Authentication
    Select this option to require authentication with a username and password for outbound connections through the internal proxy server.
    Certificate
    Select this option to import the certificate for the internal proxy server, which allows the system to verify the authenticity of the internal proxy server.
  3. Click Save.

Using the CLI

Before you can define an internal proxy server, ensure that you have configured a DNS server for the system. To use an internal proxy server, you must configure a DNS server for the system with the mkdnsserver command. To define an internal proxy server, enter the one of the following sets commands:
To define a basic internal proxy server
mkproxy -url http://proxy.example.ibm.com -port 8080
where the -url is the URL of the internal proxy server and -port is the port for the internal proxy server. Port 8080 is the default.
To define a HTTP proxy server with authentication

mkproxy -url http://proxy.example.ibm.com -port 8080 -username myusername -password mypassword
To define a HTTP proxy server with an SSL certificate
mkproxy -url http://proxy.example.ibm.com -port 8080 -sslcert /upgrade/proxy-cert.pem
To define a HTTP proxy server with authentication and an SSL certificate
mkproxy -url http://proxy.example.ibm.com -port 8080 -username myusername -password mypassword -sslcert /upgrade/proxy-cert.pem