EXata CPS Installation on Host / Windows Workstation

Step 1. Installation

The installer exata-cps-gui-X.X.X.X-windows-installer.exe is provided in the Customer CD or USB key upon delivery of a new system. Otherwise, please contact the Support team to obtain the installer.

1. Double click on the installer file to start the setup wizard and install EXata CPS. It is recommended to keep the default settings.

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2. Once the installation is completed, continue with installing the license to be able to open the software.

Step 2. Install Host License

Licenses for the EXata CPS software are separate from the licenses for HYPERSIM or RT-LAB. There are two licenses required for EXata CPS:

• Host (Windows) license (.lic file)

• Simulator license (.lic file): see section Simulator License.

A Software Entitlement Certificate is required to obtain the host (Windows) license(s). Download it from the Customer CD or USB key upon delivery of a new system. If you do not have your Certificate, please contact the Support team to obtain it.

The latest instructions to redeem your license are also described at the end of the Certificate.

1. Log (or register) into Keysight Licensing website to redeem your license. You will need the following information:

   1. (1) Keysight Order Number and (2) Keysight Certificate Number found in the Software Entitlement Certificate.

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   2. Your PC’s Host ID (instructions are provided during the redemption process in Keysight licensing webpage).

      • The Host ID is the MAC Address of one of the physical Ethernet ports of the Windows computer. Ensure it is a physical port, not Wi-Fi nor a USB-to-Ethernet Dongle

2. Once you have redeemed the license, you will be able to download the license file .lic.

3. For node-locked licenses, the .lic file needs to be copied to the directory C:\Program Files\Scalable\exata-cps\<version>\license_dir.

EXata CPS Installation on Target / OPAL-RT Simulator

Step 0. Requirements

This procedure requires:

• RT-LAB 2019.2 or later (RT-LAB 2023.1 or later is recommended)

• Installation file: exata-cps-sim-X.X.X.X-linux-installer-rhel8

  • The file can be found in the Customer CD or USB key. Otherwise, please contact the Support team to obtain it.

• The simulator's login credentials

  • Can be found in the System Description document provided with the simulator

• An SSH client tool with secure file transfer capability such as MobaXterm

Step 1. Installation

1. Start the SSH client and connect to the simulator using the simulator's IP address and credentials.|
   Follow this Knowledge Base article for more details: How To Install and Connect with MobaXterm.

2. Upload the exata-cps-sim-X.X.X.X-linux-installer-rhel8 installer to the simulator:
   

3. Run the following command to set the installer in an executable mode:

   chmod +x exata-cps-sim-X.X.X.X-linux-installer-rhel8

4. Run the following command to start the installation process:

   ./exata-cps-sim-X.X.X.X-linux-installer-rhel8

5. Follow the instructions displayed in the terminal. There will be several license agreement prompts. Click Enter to agree and continue.

6. Proceed to the next section to obtain and/or install a license.

Step 2. Simulator License

New Systems

The simulator's EXata CPS license is already installed and tested by OPAL-RT before delivery. No action is needed, continue to the next section.

Existing Systems

If EXata CPS is an upgrade or an add-on to an existing system, follow the steps below:

A Software Entitlement Certificate is required to obtain the simulator license, it is the same certificate used for the host (Windows) license. If you do not have your Certificate, please contact the Support team to obtain it.

The latest instructions to redeem the license are also described at the end of the Certificate.

1. Log (or register) into Keysight Licensing website to redeem your license. You will need the following information:

   1. (1) Keysight Order Number and (2) Keysight Certificate Number found in the Software Entitlement Certificate.

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   2. Your simulator Host ID.

      • The Host ID is the MAC Address of a secondary Ethernet port in the simulator.

      • The secondary Ethernet port is eno2 in most simulator models, but can vary in name. This information is shown in your System Description Document.

      • You can verify the Ethernet port and its MAC address by running the following command while SSH’d into the simulator:

        ip link show

2. After redeeming the license, upload it on the simulator in the directory: /opt/Scalable/exata-cps/<version>/license_dir/.
   Example: /opt/Scalable/exata-cps/8.1.3.0/license_dir/

Host to Target Connection Configuration

Step 1. Installation of Cygwin64 with OpenSSH Package

1. Go to Cygwin's website and click on setup-x86_64.exe to download the executable:

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2. In the installation wizard, choose the option 'Install from Internet', keep the default settings and select any download website:

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3. Select to view Category, and then search for openssh:

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4. Complete the installation of Cygwin64.

Step 2. Set Remote Permissions

Follow the steps in this section to allow EXata CPS to remotely connect to the OPAL-RT simulator without asking for the credentials every time.

1. Open "Cygwin" terminal with administrator rights.

2. Type the following command to move to the desired directory:

   cd "C:\Program Files\Scalable\exata-cps\<version>\bin"

   Example: cd "C:\Program Files\Scalable\exata-cps\8.1.3.0\bin"

3. Enable execution permission on exata.remote.sh file:

   chmod +x exata.remote.sh

4. Enable execution permission on setupRemoteExec.sh:

   chmod +x setupRemoteExec.sh

5. Run setupRemoteExec.sh using the simulator’s IP address:

   ./setupRemoteExec.sh root@<simulator IP address>

   Example: ./setupRemoteExec.sh root@192.168.5.36

6. The script will connect to the simulator and ask for the password. The password can be found in the System Description document.

7. To verify that the previous step has been accomplished successfully, try logging into the simulator on the Cygwin64 terminal like so:

   ssh root@<simulator IP address>

   Example: ssh root@192.168.5.36

   The expected result is that it should connect to the simulator automatically without asking for the root password.

Step 3. Setup Link in EXata CPS

2. Open the EXata CPS GUI and click on Run Settings:

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2. In Remote Execution, confirm that Login@Host corresponds to root@<IP address of the simulator> and that Remote EXATA_HOME is /opt/Scalable/exata-cps/<version>/, as shown below:

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3. Leave the Number of Partitions at the default value of 1.
   EXata CPS automatically reserves as many cores as required.

4. Click OK.

5. You are now ready to run simulations with EXata CPS and the OPAL-RT simulator.

Frequently Asked Questions

Licenses

Q1: How can I check the host (Windows) license installed on my setup?

Q1. How can I check the host (Windows) license installed on my setup?

1. Open the EXata CPS GUI and go to Help > License and Libraries...

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Here is an example of a valid license:

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Q2. What is the difference between Node Limit and Connection Limit in the host (Windows) license?

Q2. What is the difference between Node Limit and Connection Limit in the host (Windows) license?

Node limit: Maximum number of nodes in the EXata model. Refer to Q3 for a node definition.

Connection limit: Maximum number of connections between the EXata model and the HYPERSIM or RT-LAB model.

The connections are usually made in the Mapping window:

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Q3. What is considered as a node in EXata CPS?

Q3. What is considered as a node in EXata CPS?

In telecommunications networks, a node is either a redistribution point or a communication endpoint. A physical network node is an electronic device that is attached to a network, and is capable of creating, receiving, or transmitting information over a communications channel.

Examples of nodes include bridges, switches, hubs, and modems to other computers, printers, and servers, mobile devices. Really anything that is communicating on the customer’s network.

For example, the example below has a total of 5 nodes.

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Q4. How can I check the license on the simulator?

Q4. How can I check the license installed on the simulator?

1. Connect to the simulator using an SSH client tool such as MobaXterm.

2. Go to the directory /opt/Scalable/exata-cps/<version>/license_dir/ by typing (example for version 8.1.3.0):

   cd /opt/Scalable/exata-cps/8.1.3.0/license_dir/

3. Check that the license is present by listing the content of that directory by typing:

   ls -l

    

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4. To check the libraries included in the .lic file, type the following commands:

   cd /opt/Scalable/exata-cps/1.1/bin/ ./exata -print_libraries

5. Here is an example of the output of a valid command:

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If the command throws an error, simply reboot the simulator and try again (do not run EXata CPS before running those commands).