Dynamic Reconfiguration on Sun Enterprise Midrange Systems

This section contains the latest information about dynamic reconfiguration (DR) functionality for the following midrange servers that are running the Solaris 10 software:

• Sun Enterprise 6x00

• Sun Enterprise 5x00

• Sun Enterprise 4x00

• Sun Enterprise 3x00

For more information about Sun Enterprise Server Dynamic Reconfiguration, refer to the Dynamic Reconfiguration User's Guide for Sun Enterprise 3x00/4x00/5x00/6x00 Systems. The Solaris 10 release includes support for all CPU/memory boards and most I/O boards in the systems that are mentioned in the preceding list.

Supported Hardware

Before proceeding, make sure that the system supports dynamic reconfiguration. If your system is of an older design, the following message appears on your console or in your console logs. Such a system is not suitable for dynamic reconfiguration.

Hot Plug not supported in this system

The following I/O boards are not currently supported:

• Type 2 (graphics)

• Type 3 (PCI)

• Type 5 (graphics and SOC+)

Software Notes

This section provides general software information about DR.

Enabling Dynamic Reconfiguration

To enable dynamic reconfiguration, you must set two variables in the /etc/system file. You must also set an additional variable to enable the removal of CPU/memory boards. Perform the following steps:

1. Log in as superuser.

2. Edit the /etc/system file by adding the following lines:

   set pln:pln_enable_detach_suspend=1 set soc:soc_enable_detach_suspend=1

3. To enable the removal of a CPU/memory board, add this line to the file:

   set kernel_cage_enable=1

   Setting this variable enables the memory unconfiguration operation.

4. Reboot the system to apply the changes.

Quiesce Test

You start the quiesce test with the following command:

 # cfgadm -x quiesce-test sysctr10:slot number

On a large system, the quiesce test might run for up to a minute. During this time no messages are displayed if cfgadm does not find incompatible drivers.

Disabled Board List

Attempting to connect a board that is on the disabled board list might produce an error message:

# cfgadm -c connect sysctrl0:slotnumber







cfgadm: Hardware specific failure: connect failed:
board is disabled: must override with [-f][-o enable-at-boot]

To override the disabled condition, two options are available:

• Using the force flag (-f)

  # cfgadm -f -c connect sysctrl0:slot number

• Using the enable option (-o enable-at-boot)

  # cfgadm -o enable-at-boot -c connect sysctrl0:slot number

To remove all boards from the disabled board list, choose one of two options depending on the prompt from which you issue the command:

• From the superuser prompt, type:

  # eeprom disabled-board-list=

• From the OpenBoot PROM prompt, type:

  OK set-default disabled-board-list

For further information about the disabled-board-list setting, refer to the “Specific NVRAM Variables” section in the Platform Notes: Sun Enterprise 3x00, 4x00, 5x00, and 6x00 Systems manual. This manual is part of the documentation set in this release.

Disabled Memory List

Information about the OpenBoot PROM disabled-memory-list setting is published in this release. See “Specific NVRAM Variables” in the Platform Notes: Sun Enterprise 3x00, 4x00, 5x00, and 6x00 Systems in the Solaris on Sun Hardware documentation.

Unloading Detach-Unsafe Drivers

If you need to unload detach-unsafe drivers, use the modinfo line command to find the module IDs of the drivers. You can then use the module IDs in the modunload command to unload detach-unsafe drivers.

Self-Test Failure During a Connect Sequence

Remove the board from the system as soon as possible if the following error message is displayed during a DR connect sequence:

cfgadm: Hardware specific failure: connect failed: firmware operation error

The board has failed self-test, and removing the board avoids possible reconfiguration errors that can occur during the next reboot.

The failed self-test status does not allow further operations. Therefore, if you want to retry the failed operation immediately, you must first remove and then reinsert the board.

Known Bugs

The following list is subject to change at any time.

Network Device Removal Fails When a Program Is Holding the Device Open (5054195)

If a process is holding open a network device, any DR operation that would involve that device fails. Daemons and processes that hold reference counts stop DR operations from completing.

Workaround: As superuser, perform the following steps:

1. Remove or rename the /rplboot directory.

2. Shut down NFS services.

   # sh /etc/init.d/nfs.server stop

3. Shut down Boot Server services.

   # sh /etc/init.d/boot.server stop

4. Perform the DR detach operation.

5. Restart NFS services.

   # sh /etc/init.d/nfs.server start

6. Restart Boot Server services.

   # sh /etc/init.d/boot.server start