| Sun Blade 6048 Modular System Overview |     |
| C H A P T E R 5 |
|
Server Model Firmware Issues |
This section addresses issues related to the firmware in the chassis and the server modules. It includes information about updating firmware and about keeping the firmware in the chassis elements compatible with other chassis elements.
All software and firmware for the Sun Blade 6048 and associated server modules can be downloaded from:
http://www.sun.com/servers/blades/downloads.jsp#6048
The download page for each product provides a list of major changes from one release to the next.
A more detailed list of problems fixed by the download is available in the corresponding product notes and web download page.
The most recently available blade server software release is preferred for use with the Sun Blade 6048 CMM software 3.0, 3.1, and 3.1.2. This support matrix is available from the Sun Blade 6000 Chassis SW 3.1.2 for Firmware page. To acces this page:
1. Navigate to: http://www.sun.com/servers/blades/downloads.jsp#6048
2. Press the Download button under Sun Blade 6000 Modular System - Downloads.
The Sun Blade 6048 Chassis SW 3.1.2 page opens. From this page you set up an account:
3. Click on the checkbox to select the I agree to the SunBlade X6048 3.1.2 License Agreement .
4. Enter a User Name and Password.
As soon as your account is active you can access the Blade Server Support Matrix, located under Optional Files.
The firmware is incorporated into new chassis and blade products at the factory. However, it is updated periodically in packages called either “software updates” or “firmware updates.”
All of these updates are released for either a single server module (for example the Sun Blade X6450 server module), or for the Sun Blade 6048 chassis.
| Note - For server modules, software updates can include software and firmware. However, the chassis has no software, so the chassis software updates contain only firmware. |
The chassis and server modules each have a corresponding product notes document that lists known issues with the hardware, software (server modules only), firmware, service processor, and documentation. These documents describe the issues and provide workarounds where possible.
The product notes document is updated with each major software release and often for minor releases as well.
| Note - A major release is where the first number changes, for example, from 2.0 to 3.0. A minor release is where the second number changes, for example from 2.0. to 2.1.
Changes from software release to release are usually included as part of the software release web download, available at: http://www.sun.com/servers/blades/downloads.jsp#6000 Minor releases might not include updates to the Product Notes. |
The chassis product notes also include a list of bugs fixed in each release.
| Note - The last two numbers of the Product Notes will vary, according to the release. |
Product notes for the server modules and storage blades can be found at
http://docs.sun.com/app/docs/prod/blade.srvr
Follow the links on this page to the corresponding server module for the complete set of documentation associated with that server module.
If a NEM firmware update is required, Sun recommends that it is installed before other firmware.
See the following section for firmware update procedures. See the corresponding product notes for information about known issues and service dependencies.
Normally, you can install a server module with newer firmware than existing server modules in the chassis without adversely impacting the other components in the chassis.
However, to ensure that this is the case, Sun recommend that all components use the latest version of the firmware or the prior release of the firmware.
The Sun Blade 6048 chassis uses ILOM firmware. See the ILOM documentation collection for the corresponding product for details.
To update firmware for a server module or for the chassis, you must know the name of the firmware update file. The firmware update file name is documented in the platform ILOM Supplement and the Tools and Drivers CD or CD image.
ILOM is Sun's common service processor firmware. It is the standard for rackmount servers and server modules, regardless of the CPU architecture. All newer Sun server modules, including SPARC, Intel, and AMD, run ILOM.
| Note - The T6300 server module is an exception; it uses ALOM. See the T6300 documentation for details. |
The firmware update procedures are located in the corresponding ILOM documentation.
Some server modules were originally shipped with the ELOM (Embedded Lights Out Manager) service processor firmware, such as the Sun Blade X6250 and Sun Blade X6450 server modules. These can all be updated to ILOM.
Sun recommends that all server modules running ELOM be updated to run ILOM.
This procedure is documented in the ELOM-to-ILOM Migration Guide, which is included in the corresponding server module documentation collections. It is also available here:
http://docs.sun.com/app/docs/prod/blade.srvr
The procedure for updating all server modules that run ELOM is in the Sun Blade X6250 Server Module Embedded Lights Out Manager Administration Guide, which is available in the documentation collections for all server modules that run ELOM. It is also available here:
http://docs.sun.com/app/docs/prod/blade.srvr
| Sun Blade 6048 Modular System Overview | 820-7680-11 | |
Copyright © 2009 Sun Microsystems, Inc. All rights reserved.
