Virtual FibreChannel HBAs

Certain FibreChannel HBAs that support N Port ID virtualization (NPIV) can be carved into multiple virtual HBAs, in a manner similar to VNICs. Each virtual HBA has a unique identity, or WWN, on the SAN, which can be used for LUN masking or zoning. Block devices present on these virtual HBAs can be automatically mounted to specific OpenSolaris xVM guest operating systems. When these guest operating systems migrate, the HBA's identity also migrates. NPIV is administered using the fcinfo(1M) and xm(1M) commands.

Virtual FibreChannel HBAs

Virtual block devices can be stored on FibreChannel disk subject to the following limitations:

• Back end block device names (for example, c0t0d0s2) must be the same for migration to succeed. If device names are different, migration will fail.

• For FibreChannel devices, it is likely that the cX number will be different if scsi_vhci, described in scsi_vhci(7D), is not used. If scsi_vhci is used, device names are likely to be identical. If scsi_vhci is enabled and has never been disabled, the controller should be at cX on x86/x64 machines.

NPIV and FibreChannel

NPIV is fully supported for xVM. The xm command can associate all block devices from one NPIV port to a guest domain. NPIV identity, specifically the port WWN and node WWN, will migrate between devices on the SAN. NPIV allows zoning and LUN masking to be used with Xen. Zoning and LUN masking are useful tools for access control on a SAN. Soft zoning rather than hard zoning (grouping by switch port) should be used on the switch. Soft zoning groups devices by the HBA's Port WWN. If there is more than one physical SAN, or if the system uses hard zoning, the administrator must ensure that the physical HBA is connected to the correct SAN. Switch administrative tools can be used for this purpose.

How to Configure NPIV for Hypervisor Use

This procedure uses the fcinfo command described in fcinfo(1M).

1. Identify the FibreChannel HBAs that will be used. If migration will be supported, the HBAs must be identified. The fcinfo command can be used to list the Port WWN.

2. Create NPIV ports in the Dom0 control domain.

3. View devices by usingfcinfo in dom0. Verify that they are visible in the respective guest domains.