ALUA/TPGS Multipathing with VMware

The following procedures describe how to add ALUA/TPGS multipathing with VMware support to any array. Starting with firmware 07.84.44.10, multipathing to ALUA/TPGS enabled arrays is provided by the VMW_SATP_ALUA plug-in. Arrays with firmware previous to 07.84.44.10 use the VMW_SATP_LSI plug-in.

Prerequisite:

• Array controller has firmware version previous to 07.84.44.10

• Array currently uses the standard VMW_SATP_LSI plug-in

• CAM management host is available

• All I/O to the array is stopped

For more information, refer to one of the following guides:VMware Compatibility Guide for 6580 arrays:

VMware Compatibility Guide for 6780 arrays:

Procedure for ESX4.1U2 and ESXi5.0

VMware versions ESX4.1u1/u2 and ESXi5.0 (and earlier) do not automatically enable ALUA/TPGS multipathing for arrays that offer this feature. You must manually enable multipathing as described below.

VID/PID values:

• 2540-M2 array—SUN/LCSM100_F

• 2530-M2 array—SUN/LCSM100_S

1. Install CAM software with firmware version 07.84.44.10 (minimum) on the management host.

2. To enable ALUA/TPGS multipathing support for ESX 4.1Ux or ESX 5.0:

   • For ESX 4,1, open a terminal to the ESX host and run the commands:

     # esxcli nmp satp deleterule -s VMW_SATP_LSI -V SUN -M LCSM100_F

     # esxcli nmp satp addrule -s VMW_SATP_LSI -V SUN -M LCSM100_F -c tpgs_off

     Reboot the ESX host.

   • For ESXi 5.0, open a terminal to the ESX host and run the following command:

     # esxcli storage nmp satp rule add -s VMW_SATP_ALUA -V SUN -M LCSM100_F -c tpgs_on

     Reboot the ESX host.

3. Verify the claim rule is added in ESX.

   For ESX 4.1:

   1. Show a list of all the claim rules:

      # esxcli nmp satp listrules

   2. List only the claim rules for the VMW_SATP_LSI:

      # esxcli nmp satp listrules -s VMW_SATP_LSI

   3. Verify the VID/PID is SUN/LCSM100_F for 2540-M2 (or SUN/LCSM100_S for 2530-M2) and the Claim Options flag tpgs_off is set.

   For ESXi 5.0:

   1. Show a list of all the claim rules:

      # esxcli storage nmp satp rule list

   2. List only the claim rules for the VMW_SATP_ALUA:

      # esxcli storage nmp satp rule list -s VMW_SATP_ALUA

   3. Verify the VID/PID for VMW_SATP_ALUA is SUN/LCSM100_F for 2540-M2 (or SUN/LCSM100_S for 2530-M2) and the Claim Options flag tpgs_on is set.

4. Upgrade the controller firmware to 07.84.44.10 (minimum) and its corresponding NVSRAM version via the management host. The controller firmware and NVSRAM are part of the CAM baseline.

5. Using CAM, verify the VM host initiator host type is set to VMWARE. Starting with firmware 07.84.44.10, the VMWARE host type defaults to ALUA/TPGS multipathing.

6. On the ESX host, perform a manual re-scan.

7. Verify the 7.84 ALUA-enabled arrays have the VMW_SATP_ALUA plug-in, as follows.

   • For ESX 4,1, run the command:

     # esxcli nmp device list

   • For ESXi 5.0, run the command:

     # esxcli storage nmp device list

   For LUNs from arrays with firmware version 07.84.44.10 (and later), the value is VMW_SATP_ALUA. For LUNs from arrays with firmware version previous to 07.84.44.10, the value is VMW_SATP_LSI.

Procedure for ESX4.1U3 and ESXi5.0U1

Starting with ESX4.1U3 and ESXi5.0 U1, VMware automatically enables the VMW_SATP_ALUA plug-in for arrays that offer ALUA/TPGS multipathing.

1. Install CAM software with firmware version 07.84.44.10 (minimum) on the management host.

2. Upgrade the controller firmware to 07.84.44.10 (minimum) and its corresponding NVSRAM version via the management host. The controller firmware and NVSRAM are part of the CAM baseline.

3. Using CAM, verify the VM host initiator host type is set to VMWARE. Starting with firmware 07.84.44.10, the VMWARE host type defaults to ALUA/TPGS multipathing.

4. On the ESX host, perform a manual re-scan.

5. Verify the VMW_SATP_ALUA plug-in is enabled.

   • For ESX 4.1, run the command:

     # esxcli nmp device list

   • For ESXi 5.0, run the command:

     # esxcli storage nmp device list

   For LUNs from arrays with firmware version 07.84.44.10 (and later), the value is VMW_SATP_ALUA. For LUNs from arrays with firmware version previous to 07.84.44.10, the value is VMW_SATP_LSI.