Use any USB flash drive that is formatted with a FAT32 file system on its first partition.
When a USB flash drive is plugged into a node canister, the node canister code searches for a text file named satask.txt in the root directory. If the code finds the file, it attempts to run a command that is specified in the file. When the command completes, a file called satask_result.html is written to the root directory of the USB flash drive. If this file does not exist, it is created. If it exists, the data is inserted at the start of the file. The file contains the details and results of the command that was run and the status and the configuration information from the node canister. The status and configuration information matches the detail that is shown on the service assistant home page panels.
The satask.txt file can be created on any workstation by using a text editor. If a MicrosoftWindows workstation is being used, the initialization tool can be used to create the commands that are most often used.
The fault light-emitting diode (LED) on the node canister flashes when the USB service action is being performed. When the fault LED stops flashing, it is safe to remove the USB flash drive.
The USB flash drive can then be plugged into a workstation and the satask_result.html file viewed in a web browser.
To protect from accidentally running the same command again, the satask.txt file is deleted after it has been read.
If no satask.txt file is found on the USB flash drive, the result file is still created, if necessary, and the status and configuration data is written to it.