MPIO with P2000G3 and HP 82Q HBA

[Marc_Ban]

Hi

I have a stock DL380G7 running Windows Server 2012 with a single 82Q  Fibre HBA that I am using to connect to a P2000G3.  SInce the Storeport has two ports, my plan was to use one port for each controller on the P2000. ( I'm aware that the 82Q remains a single point of failure but the redundancy across tghe controllers was what I was after.)

This setup worked well and I could see the logical volumes on the P2000 all duplicated on the server - one set online and the other offline just as you would expect.

Installing Microsoft MPIO detects the P2000 but on the mandatory reboot after the P2000 device was added, I end up in an continuous BAD POOL HEADER BSOD reboot cycle.  Disconecting one of the HBA ports stops the reboot cycle - but of course this defeats the purpose of having redundant controllers.

I note that HP Support document c03788662 (http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?lang=en&cc=us&taskId=110&prodSeriesId=4118559&prodTypeId=12169&objectID=c03788662) effectively says to remove the P2000 from MPIO which solves the reboot but - contrary to the article - I am not seeing the promised built-in MPIO.

Í'm coming to the conclusion that the two ports on the 82Q can't be used for multi-path but the BSOD wirth MPIO doesn't fill me with confidence.

Has anyone experienced this or able to offer some insight into how to resolve the issue?

Many thanks

[Greybeard · Accepted solution]

Hi, that advisory is to remedy a mistake in the syntax supplied, which caused disks attached to a smart array controller to be added to the MPIO as well as the MSA ones. That resolution is to remove the Smart Array volumes claimed. Not the P2000 volumes connected to another HBA so far as I can see.  If you are direct connecting to each MSA controller then you also need to present the same LUN to each HBA port WWN, then use the DSM.