Hardware Issues

This section describes issues related to SPARC T3-1 server components.

SAS Command Might Fail to Complete When Certain SAS Devices Are Put Under Heavy Load (CR 7088469)

When certain SAS devices are placed under heavy load, a SCSI Bus Reset might occur. The SCSI bus reset will result in one or more WARNING messages being written to the system log file, /var/adm/messages. The following is an example of the WARNING message you might see:

scsi: [ID 243001 kern.info] /pci@400/pci@2/pci@0/pci@4/scsi@0 (mpt_sas1):
mptsas_handle_event_sync: IOCLogInfo=0x31120303
scsi: [ID 243001 kern.info] /pci@400/pci@2/pci@0/pci@4/scsi@0 (mpt_sas1):
mptsas_handle_event: IOCLogInfo=0x31120303
scsi: [ID 243001 kern.info] /pci@400/pci@2/pci@0/pci@4/scsi@0 (mpt_sas1):
mptsas_check_scsi_io: IOCStatus=0x4b IOCLogInfo=0x31120303
scsi: [ID 243001 kern.info] /scsi_vhci (scsi_vhci0):
/scsi_vhci/disk@g5000c5003bee5ae3 (sd6):
Command failed to complete (4) on path mpt_sas3/disk@w5000c5003bee5ae1,0
scsi: [ID 107833 kern.warning] WARNING: /scsi_vhci/disk@g5000c5003bee5ae3 (sd6):
SCSI transport failed: reason 'reset': retrying command

Workaround: No workaround needed. The system will retry the failed command automatically.

Contact your authorized Oracle service provider if the following message is seen:

SCSI transport failed: reason 'reset': giving up

SPARC T3 and T4 Platforms Might See Dropped or Double Character Input From USB Keyboards (CR 7067025)

On Oracle's SPARC T3 and T4 servers, all USB ports/connectors available to users are connected to an internal USB 2.0 (ehci) controller through an onboard USB 2.0 hub.

When a full/low speed USB 1.0/1.1 keyboard and mouse are connected to a USB port through this USB 2.0 hub, keyboard input might drop characters or might display double characters.

Workaround: Currently, a workaround has been implemented for this issue where an internal USB hub is manually bound to the ohci (USB 1.0/1.1) driver. This binding causes a variable named ehci_forced_port_to_companion to instruct the ehci (USB 2.0) driver to transfer ownership of a specific port on the USB controller to the ohci (1.0/1.1) driver. Once the ohci driver is bound to a particular port on the USB controller, the ohci driver will also be used by the internal USB hub connected to that port and all USB connectors on that hub.

This workaround is available in the following forms:

• Oracle Solaris 11 OS -- Oracle Solaris 11 Support Repository Update 3 (SRU3)

• Oracle Solaris 10 8/11 -- Patch 147004-03

For earlier supported versions of Oracle Solaris 10, apply the Solaris 10 8/11 SPARC Bundle, followed by patch 147004-03.

Supplementary Notes for CR 7067025

On T3-1, T4-1, T3-2, and T4-2, the rear USB connectors as well as the virtual keyboard, virtual mouse, virtual CD-ROM, and virtual USB ethernet connection to the service processor (a.k.a RKVMS) are all beneath a hub connected to port 2 on the USB controller.

The front USB connectors are connected through a hub to port 4 of the USB controller.

Likewise, on the T3-4 and T4-4 platforms, the rear USB connector is beneath a hub that is connected to port 3 of the USB controller and the front USB connector and the virtual mouse, keyboard, CD-ROM and virtual USB ethernet connection to the service processor are beneath a hub that is connected to port 2 of the USB controller.

To use a physical keyboard and mouse with this workaround, apply the fix (either patch 147004-03 or SRU3) and then perform the following recommended steps:

• On SPARC T3-1, T4-1, T3-2, and T4-2 systems:

  1. Connect the input devices to a front USB connector.

  2. Add the following line to /kernel/drv/ehci.conf:

  ehci-port-forced-to-companion = 4

  3. Reboot.

• On SPARC T3-4 and T4-4 systems:

  1. Connect the input devices to a rear USB connector.

  2. Add the following line to /kernel/drv/ehci.conf:

  ehci-port-forced-to-companion = 3

  3. Reboot.

To use a physical keyboard and mouse with this workaround, first apply the fix (either patch 147004-03 for Oracle Solaris 10 or SRU3 for Oracle Solaris 11) and then add the following line to /kernel/drv/ehci.conf and reboot:

ehci-port-forced-to-companion = 2

All other devices connected to the hub that services the virtual keyboard and mouse will be forced to operate at the lower USB 1.0/1.1 speed. These include:

• The virtual USB ethernet connection to the service processor.

• The physical USB connectors:

  • Rear connectors on the T3-1, T4-1, T3-2, and T4-2 servers.

  • Front connectors on the T3-4 and T4-4 servers.

When these devices do not come up, messages similar to the following will be displayed on the console and written to system logs:

WARNING: /pci@400/pci@2/pci@0/pci@f/pci@0/usb@0,1/hub@1/hub@3 (hubd4): 
Connecting device on port 2 failed

WARNING: /pci@400/pci@2/pci@0/pci@f/pci@0/usb@0,1/hub@1/hub@3 (hubd4):
Connecting device on port 3 failed

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Caution - At this time, there is no fix or workaround for the failure of these devices to come up when the missing micro-frame workaround is configured to support a virtual keyboard and mouse.

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For this reason, you should limit use of following USB ports when using virtual keyboard and mouse functionality:

• Rear USB connectors on the T3-1, T4-1, T3-2, and T4-2.

• Front USB connectors on the T3-4 and T4-4.

All other virtual devices (such as virtual keyboard and virtual mouse) will continue to function, but will be limited to operating at the lower speed.

When Running Older Versions of the Oracle Solaris OS With Multiple PCIe Cards of Certain Types Installed, Some PCIe Ports Might Not Come Up

When running either Oracle Solaris 10 9/10 or Oracle Solaris 10/09 with multiple PCIe cards of the following types installed, some ports on these cards might not come up:

• Sun Dual Port 10 GbE SFP+ PCIe 2.0 LP (with Intel 82599 10GbE controller, X1109A-Z)

• Sun Quad GbE x8 PCIe Low Profile Adapter (X4447A-z)

• Sun Storage 10GbE PCIe Converged Network Adapter (SG-XPCIEFCOE2-Q-TA/SG-XPCIECOE2-Q-SR)

Workaround: To enable all ports to come up properly in this situation, install the following patches (plus dependent patches):

• 147440-03 or later

• 145648-03 or later

• 147157-01 or later

Sun Type 6 Keyboards Are Not Supported By SPARC T3 Series Servers

Sun Type 6 keyboards cannot be used with SPARC T3 series servers.

Caution Needed When Removing a SATA Data Cable From a Backplane Connector

When disconnecting the SATA data cable from the disk backplane, pull the cable straight back, in a perpendicular direction away from the backplane.

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Caution - Do not rock or twist the cable in any other direction. Doing so could damage the integrity of the data cable connection.

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Caution Needed When Handling the Connector Board

Use caution when handling the connector board to avoid pressing your hand against the pointed end of the guide pin that's located below the mounting bracket. The guide pin is indicated by an arrow in the following figure.

4 Ports Sun Dual 10 GbE SFP+ PCIe TCP RX Performance Lags PCI-E Quad Port GigE (copper) x8 Lane Card On SPARC T3-1 (CR 6943558)

Excessive packet loss may occur when three or more ports are used across multiple Sun Dual 10GbE SFP+ PCIe cards on a SPARC T3-1 server. This is likely to significantly degrade transmit and receive performance. When only two ports are used, packet loss is minimal and transmit/receive performance is as expected.

Workaround: Use one of the following procedures to enable flow control for the interfaces. This will greatly reduce packet loss and improve performance.

Enable Flow Control (Include System Reboot)

1. Add the following lines in /kernel/drv/ixgbe.conf

       fm_capable = 0;
       flow_control = 3;
       tx_queue_number = 2;
       rx_queue_number = 6;
       intr_throttling = 1000;

2. Reboot the system to have these changes take effect.

Enable Flow Control (Without System Reboot)

1. Add the following lines in /kernel/drv/ixgbe.conf

       fm_capable = 0;
       flow_control = 3;
       tx_queue_number = 2;
       rx_queue_number = 6;
       intr_throttling = 1000;

2. Unplumb all the ixgbe interfaces.
3. Issue the update_drv ixgbe command.
4. Plumb all the ixgbe interfaces again.

Server Panics When Booting From a USB Thumbdrive Attached to the Front USB Ports (CR 6983185)

When attempting to boot a USB thumbdrive inserted in either front USB port (USB2 or USB3), the server may panic.

Workaround: Use the server's rear USB ports (USB0 or USB1) whenever booting from an external USB device.