C H A P T E R 5 |
Data Hosts, HBAs, and Other Software |
This chapter describes how to install data host software, HBAs, and other software on different host platforms. It contains the following sections:
The data host software contains tools that manage the data path I/O connections between the data host and the array. This includes drivers and utilities that enable array management hosts to connect to, monitor, and transfer data in a storage area network (SAN).
Note - Some management hosts can also be used as data hosts. |
A Host Bus Adapter (HBA) is a network interface card that manages all data I/O on your data host. The specific HBAs you need depend on the data host server platform, operating system, and data transfer rates used in your storage area network. HBAs must be ordered separately, from Sun or their respective manufacturers.
The required versions of HBAdriversmust be installed on the data host before you can set up a data host. The Sun Storage 6180 Array Release Notes lists the data host requirements for HBAs and drivers.Refer to the specific vendor HBA documentation for instructions on installing HBA drivers.
Data host software controls the data path between the data host and the array. Since there can be more than one path between the host and the array for redundancy, this function is called multipathing.
You must install data host software (including multipathing) on each data host that communicates with the Sun Storage 6180 array. For Solaris OS 9 data hosts, the multipathing software is part of the Sun StorageTek SAN Foundation software. Solaris OS 10 includes the multipathing software.
For multipathing support on data host platforms running non-Solaris operating systems, see Installing Data Host Software for Operating Systems Other Than Solaris.
Caution - Because of the single point of failure, single path data connections are not recommended. |
In a single path data connection, a group of heterogeneous servers is connected to an array through a single connection. Although this connection is technically possible, there is no redundancy, and a connection failure will result in loss of access to the array.
You must install data host software (including multipathing) on each data host that communicates with the Sun Storage 6180 array. Multipathing is included in the Solaris 10 OS. For Solaris OS 9 data hosts, you need the Sun StorEdge SAN 4.4.x Foundation Kit software (which includes the multipathing software).
See the Sun Storage 6180 Array Release Notes for the latest supported operating system versions.
Note - To install data host software on systems that are not running the Solaris OS, see Installing Data Host Software for Operating Systems Other Than Solaris. |
To install data host software on Solaris OSs, see the following sections.
Obtain Sun Solaris OS 9 data host software as follows:
1. Go to the Sun Microsystems web page (sun.com).
The Sun home page is displayed.
2. Select Downloads from the home page navigation bar.
The Downloads page is displayed (it is not labeled).
3. On the View by Category tab, select System Administration>Storage Management.
The Storage Management page is displayed, showing a list of downloadable storage-related products.
4. Select the Sun StorEdge SAN 4.4 product.
The Sun StorEdge SAN 4.4.x login page is displayed.
5. Read the Software License Agreement and click I agree.
6. Login using your Sun account ID.
7. Download the Base Package (if you do not already have it installed).
See the Sun Storage 6180 Array Release Notes for the current data host software requirements for your operating system version.
a. Install_it Script SAN 4.4.x version as recommended in the release notes.
b. See the README file for the unpacking and installation instructions.
To install data host software for operating systems other than Solaris, refer to the following publications:
The data host software for Red Hat and Suse Linux is Sun Redundant Dual Array Controller (RDAC), and is available from the Sun Download Center (SDLC). Data host software for HP-UX and AIX platforms is Veritas Dynamic MultiPathing (DMP), which is part of the Veritas Volume Manager. Download the AIX ASL from http://support.veritas.com. The AIX ASL is available only from Veritas. Contact Veritas for HP-UX DMP. The Novell Netware OS requires Netware Multi-Processing Executive (MPE). Netware is available only from Novell.
See the Sun Storage 6180 Array Release Notes for a list of supported operating systems, patches, and HBAs.
Sun StorEdge SAN Foundation software includes the Sun StorEdge Traffic Manager multipathing software.
The procedure you use to enable multipathing software depends on the version of Solaris OS running on the host:
Note - A patch that will enable multipathing for Solaris 9 is currently being developed. Check the latest Release Notes for availability. |
To enable the multipathing software on hosts running Solaris OS 9:
1. Open the /kernel/drv/scsi_vhci.conf file with a text editor.
2. Set mpxio-disable=”no”; in the file.
3. Set load-balance=”round-robin”; in the file.
4. Set auto-failback=”enable”; in the file.
7. Use the cfgadm command to configure HBA paths.
To enable multipathing software for all Fibre Channel (FC) ports on hosts running Solaris OS 10:
1. Type the following command:
Note - See the stmsboot(1M) man page for complete details. |
You are prompted to confirm the command:
WARNING: This operation will require a reboot.
Do you want to continue? [y/n] (default: y)
2. Press Return to reboot the host.
Veritas Volume Manager provides support for the Sun Storage 6180 array in the form of the Array Support Library (ASL). If you are using the Veritas Volume Manager on your array (recommended), you will need the ASL. There are ASL software packages for the Solaris 9 and 10 OSs, and for the IBM AIX 5.1 and 5.2 OSs. The ASL must be installed on the same host system as the Volume Manager software to enable it to recognize the Sun Storage 6180 array trays.
1. Log in as superuser on the Sun server to be connected to the array.
2. Go to the Products Download page:
3. In the Search area, search for Veritas ASL, and click on the resulting link.
The Products Downloads > Veritas Volume Manager ASL page is displayed.
a. Type your user name and password in the left column, and click Login.
b. On the Terms of Use page, read the license agreement, click Yes to Accept, and click Continue.
6. Download the compressed zip file that contains the ASL package for the Sun Storage 6180 array and README file.
7. Use the unzip command to extract the files.
8. Refer to the README file for instructions on installing the Veritas Volume Manager ASL.
After you have installed and enabled multipathing on the data hosts, configure IP addressing on the array controllers as described in Chapter 6.
A readme file is provided as part of the installation package. To install the software, refer to the readme file for platform-specific instructions.
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