Replacing an HBA - A Simple Configuration Question

[JonU]

Hello All!

I have very little SAN experience and I was wondering if somebody could provide me with the correct procedure for replacing an HBA on a Windows Server 2003 box that is connected to an MSA 1000 via and HP SAN switch installed in the MSA.

Here are the details of my current, quite simple environment:

- 2 DL360 G4 Servers running Windows Server 2003 and MSCS Clustering (2-node cluster)
- 2 single-port HP Fibre Channel Adapters (1 installed in each cluster node)
- 1 MSA 1000 containing the shared disks
- 1 HP SAN Switch 2/8 (installed in the MSA 1000)

What I need to do is replace the 2 single-port HBAs with FCA2214DC dual-channel HBAs.

How do I go about changing the SAN configuration to accomodate the new HBAs with new WWNs?

Please forgive my ignorance!

Thanks in advance,

Jon

[JonU]

Oops!

Please note that I meant to say 2 DL380s in the post above- not DL360s.

Thanks,

Jon

[Vic Pratt]

Our environment is EVA not MSA, but I suspect it's the same. If you're zoning by port on the FC switches no change is required. If you're zoning by WWN, you will have to replace the old zone with new zones having the new WWN for the new HBAs

[JonU]

So it is most likely a zoning issue. I expect that this is the case since when I replaced the HBA in one of the nodes and booted up and then failed the shared disks over to it in MSCS, the MSA disks' LEDs began flashing RED as if there was sime kind of error.

I am going to investigate any zoning set up on the switch and see if this is the case.

Thanks,

Jon

[Stephen Kebbell]

Hi,

in such a small setup, I would doubt that any zoning is active. Are you switching to the Dual-Port adapters for extra redundancy? If so, you need to add redundant components to your MSA as well (a 2nd MSA controller and a 2nd SAN Switch). Then you need MPIO software on each cluster node to manage multipathing. With the MSA, only single-everything or dual-everything is supported (HBA, SAN-Switch, Controller). Anything in between is not supported (e.g. if you connect both port of the HBA to the same SAN switch.

There might also be the issue of Selective Storage Presentation (SSP) on the MSA1000. Normally this is diabled by default, but you should check in array configuration utility. SSP uses the WWN of each HBA to control which HBAs access which Logical disk. If it is enabled, and you replace the HBA, then the node will not be able to see the disks until you grant access for the new WWN.

Regards,
Stephen

[JonU]

Thanks for the advice Stephen.

Actually, I am installing the dual HBA's so that I can connect each cluster node to a second, unrelated fabric (hosted by a third party). Is this something that is possible with the MSA?

Also, I verified that the SSP is disabled in the ACU on the controller.

I just want to clarify that I was able to access the disks from the new HBA when I installed it, but I went into a panic when I noticed all of the disks flashing red along with the MSA's warning LED. Is this behaviour one would expect when swapping HBAs?

Thanks,

-Jon

[Stephen Kebbell]

Hi Jon,

no, normally the disks should not all flash like that. The only time they do that is when you are in ACU, and you select something. The disks belonging to that "something" (Phyiscal Array, Physical Disk, MSA Enclosure) will start blinking.

I'm not sure if it's supported using the 2nd HBA port to access another fabric. Although I can't see a reason for it not to work (if anyone else out there thinks otherwise, please feel free to correct me!). I can't see a reason for the MSA to complain.

Regards,
Stephen