3. Booting — FreeNAS®11.0-RC3 User Guide Table of Contents

# 3. Booting

The Console Setup menu, shown in Figure 3.1, appears at the end of the boot process. If the FreeNAS® system has a keyboard and monitor, this Console Setup menu can be used to administer the system.

Note

When connecting to the FreeNAS® system with SSH or the web Shell, the Console Setup menu is not shown by default. It can be started by the root user or another user with root permissions by typing `/etc/netcli`.

The Console Setup menu can be disabled by unchecking Enable Console Menu in `System → Settings → Advanced`.

Fig. 3.1 Console Setup Menu

The menu provides these options:

1) Configure Network Interfaces provides a configuration wizard to set up the system’s network interfaces.

2) Configure Link Aggregation is for creating or deleting link aggregations.

3) Configure VLAN Interface is used to create or delete VLAN interfaces.

4) Configure Default Route is used to set the IPv4 or IPv6 default gateway. When prompted, enter the IP address of the default gateway.

5) Configure Static Routes prompts for the destination network and gateway IP address. Re-enter this option for each static route needed.

6) Configure DNS prompts for the name of the DNS domain and the IP address of the first DNS server. When adding multiple DNS servers, press `Enter` to enter the next one. Press `Enter` twice to leave this option.

7) Reset Root Password is used to reset a lost or forgotten root password. Select this option and follow the prompts to set the password.

8) Reset to Factory Defaults Caution! This option deletes all of the configuration settings made in the administrative GUI and is used to reset a FreeNAS® system back to defaults. Before selecting this option, make a full backup of all data and make sure all encryption keys and passphrases are known! After this option is selected, the configuration is cleared and the system reboots. `Storage → Volumes → Import Volume` can be used to re-import volumes.

9) Shell starts a shell for running FreeBSD commands. To leave the shell, type exit.

10) System Update checks for system updates. If any new updates are available, they are automatically downloaded and applied. This is a simplified version of the Update option available in the web interface. Updates are applied immediately for the currently selected train and access to the GUI is not required. For more advanced update options like switching trains, use Update.

11) Reboot reboots the system.

12) Shut Down halts the system.

## 3.1. Obtaining an IP Address

During boot, FreeNAS® automatically attempts to connect to a DHCP server from all live network interfaces. If it successfully receives an IP address, the address is displayed so it can be used to access the graphical user interface. The example in Figure 3.1 shows a FreeNAS® system that is accessible at http://192.168.1.119.

Some FreeNAS® systems are set up without a monitor, making it challenging to determine which IP address has been assigned. On networks that support Multicast DNS (mDNS), the hostname and domain can be entered into the address bar of a browser. By default, this value is freenas.local.

If the FreeNAS® server is not connected to a network with a DHCP server, use the console network configuration menu to manually configure the interface as seen in Example: Manually Setting an IP Address from the Console Menu. In this example, the FreeNAS® system has one network interface, em0.

Manually Setting an IP Address from the Console Menu

    Enter an option from 1-14: 1
    1) em0
    Select an interface (q to quit): 1
    Reset network configuration (y/n) n
    Configure interface for DHCP? (y/n) n
    Configure IPv4? (y/n) y
    Interface name: (press enter as can be blank)
    Several input formats are supported
    Example 1 CIDR Notation: 192.168.1.1/24
    Example 2 IP and Netmask separate:
    IP: 192.168.1.1
    Netmask: 255.255.255.0, or /24 or 24
    IPv4 Address: 192.168.1.108/24
    Saving interface configuration: Ok
    Configure IPv6? (y/n) n
    Restarting network: ok
    You may try the following URLs to access the web user interface:
    http://192.168.1.108

After the system has an IP address, enter that address into a graphical web browser from a computer connected to the same network as the FreeNAS® system.

## 3.2. Logging In

The password for the root user is requested as shown in Figure 3.2.1.

Fig. 3.2.1 Enter the Root Password

Enter the password chosen during the installation. The administrative GUI is displayed as shown in Figure 3.2.2.

Fig. 3.2.2 FreeNAS® Graphical Configuration Menu

If the FreeNAS® system does not respond to the IP address or mDNS name entered in a browser:

- If proxy settings are enabled in the browser configuration, disable them and try connecting again.
- If the page does not load, check whether the FreeNAS® system’s IP address responds to a ping from another computer on the same network. If the FreeNAS® IP address is in a private IP address range, it can only be accessed from within that private network.
- If the user interface loads but is unresponsive or seems to be missing menu items, try a different web browser. IE9 has known issues and does not display the graphical administrative interface correctly if compatibility mode is turned on. Firefox is recommended.
- If An error occurred! messages are shown when attempting to configure an item in the GUI, make sure that the browser is set to allow cookies from the FreeNAS® system.

This blog post describes some applications which can be used to access the FreeNAS® system from an iPad or iPhone.

## 3.3. Initial Configuration

The first time the FreeNAS® GUI is accessed, the Wizard starts automatically to help configure the FreeNAS® device quickly and easily.