[Problem] MSA2052 Firmwareupdate / Controller and Storage

[WG009]

Hello everyone,
I hope you can help me. I’ve tried to perform a firmware update on my MSA2052 for both the controllers and the storage devices.
According to the MSAHealthCheck report, and the complete lack of maintenance by my predecessor...

Unfortunately, it’s not working as expected. According to the log and process overview in the installer, there seem to be issues when connecting via SFTP/FTP.
I’ve already tried the following:

• Restarted the MSA2052
• Created a new user with full permissions
- WebUI access works without issues
• Checked the MSA system settings and manually enabled FTP

Unfortunately, without success. Does anyone have any idea what might be causing this?

Current situation:

MSA2050/2052
# FW: VL270P003-01 (A&B)
# Want to update to 004, 005, 007, and 008

Also, all drives have very old firmware

Source
#for MSA2052
https://support.hpe.com/connect/s/softwaredetails?language=en_US&collectionId=MTX-67637109d7e741d3

#for drives
https://support.hpe.com/connect/s/softwaredetails?language=en_US&collectionId=MTX-ec443c520b324291&tab=releaseNotes

Thanks in advance for any help or tips based on your experience!

[controles]

Based on your description, this looks like a firmware upgrade path and compatibility issue on the HPE MSA 2052 rather than an access or FTP problem.

A few key points to consider:

1. Firmware upgrade path
   MSA systems usually require a sequential upgrade path. Jumping directly from very old firmware (like WL270P003) to newer versions (004/005/007/008) may fail.
   It is recommended to follow the official step-by-step upgrade sequence.

2. Controller vs disk firmware
   Since you mentioned that all drives have very old firmware, this could also block or impact the upgrade process.
   Best practice is:

   • Upgrade controller firmware first (in the correct order)

   • Then update disk firmware

3. System health
   Before upgrading, ensure:

   • Both controllers are healthy

   • No degraded pools or disks

   • No active alerts

4. Method of upgrade
   Even if FTP is enabled, I would recommend using:

   • SMU (Web UI) or

   • CLI with a validated package
     instead of relying only on manual transfer

5. Compatibility check
   Verify the firmware bundle compatibility from Hewlett Packard Enterprise to ensure:

   • Your current version supports the target upgrade

   • Disk firmware is aligned with the controller version

If possible, I would strongly recommend following the official HPE upgrade guide or opening a support case, especially when upgrading from such an old firmware baseline.

Let us know if you can share the exact error message during the upgrade process.

[ArunKKR]

Hi @WG009,

MSA controller firmware could be directly upgraded to the latest version VL270P008 from current version VL270P003.
There are multiple methods to upgrade controller firmware.
The recommended method is to use the firmware upgrade exe file from a computer in the same network as management port IP.

Summary of controller firmware upgrade exe file method:

" Execute the firmware upgrade exe file from a windows computer in the same network as MSA management controller.
   You will get 2 options - Install and extract.
   Select the option Install and you will get a new pop up window where you need to enter MC A OR MC B IP  address and log in credentials.
   Click on continue.
   The firmware will get updated on both the controllers one by one.
   This activity might take around 1 to 1.5 hours."
   
   If you are getting an ftp/sftp alert preventing firmware upgrade, possible causes are computer firewall software/network firewall blocking ftp/sftp in your environment.
   You could connect a laptop directly to the management ethernet port of controller , configure laptop in the same IP address range and perform firmware upgrade to over come network firewall restrictions.
   
   Alternate option if exe upgrade method fails.
   
   "" Execute the firmware upgrade exe file from a computer in the same network as MSA management controller.
   You will get 2 options - Install and extract.
   Select the option extract.
   Extract the contents to a folder on the desktop.
   It will contain the file VL270P008-HPE.enc.
   Disable PFU using below command:
   set advanced-settings partner-firmware-upgrade off
   Select the firmware upgrade option through SMU of Controller A IP and browse to the location where the file is saved.
   Wait for the controller fw upgrade to get completed and repeat the same process on controller B IP.
   Enable PFU using below command:
   set advanced-settings partner-firmware-upgrade on "
   
   Disk drive fw upgrade has even more stringent ftp/sftp access requirements.
   We dont have any options to upgrade disk drive fw through SMU.
   Connect a laptop directly to the management ethernet port of controller , configure laptop in the same IP address range and perform firmware upgrade to over come network firewall restrictions.
   
   Summary of hard drive  firmware upgrade exe file method: 
   " Execute the firmware upgrade exe file from a computer in the same network as MSA management controller.
   You will get 2 options - Install and extract.
   Select the option Install and you will get a new pop up window where you need to enter MC A OR MC B IP  address and log in credentials.
   Click on continue.
   The next window will list all hard drives and their current fw version and available fw version.
   Click on continue.
   The firmware will get updated on all the disks one by one.
   This activity might take around 2-3 minutes per drive"
   
   Hard drive firmware upgrade is an offline activity and requires a complete maintenance window with no IOs to MSA volumes.

[controles]

Thanks for the detailed explanation.

Just to confirm, in your experience with HPE MSA 2052:

• Is it fully supported to upgrade directly from VL270P003 to VL270P008 without intermediate steps?

• Have you seen cases where very old disk firmware blocks or impacts the controller upgrade process?

Also, regarding the FTP/firewall constraint, we suspect this could be part of the issue in our environment, so we will try the direct connection method to the controller management port.

Appreciate your guidance.

[ArunKKR]

Hi @controles ,

Please find answers in line:

Is it fully supported to upgrade directly from VL270P003 to VL270P008 without intermediate steps?  Yes. 

Have you seen cases where very old disk firmware blocks or impacts the controller upgrade process?  No. 

Direct connection should help with the upgrade process.

[controles]

Hi @ArunKKR,

Thank you for the confirmation.

This answers our concerns clearly. We now confirm that upgrading directly from VL270P003 to VL270P008 is fully supported and that old disk firmware does not impact or block the controller firmware upgrade process.

Based on your recommendation, we will proceed with a direct connection to the MSA management port to ensure a smooth upgrade process.

Thank you for your support and clarification.

Best regards,

Carlos

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[WG009]

Thanks for the solutions,

I'll run the update without any I/O load, either Wednesday evening around 5:00 p.m. UTC or Saturday morning at 7:00 a.m. UTC. I'll post the results here

[controles]

hank you for the update.

That sounds good. Running the upgrade without any I O load is a best practice and will help ensure a smooth firmware update process.

Please feel free to share the results once the upgrade is completed. I will be happy to review them.

Best regards,
Carlos Parra Solano
Infrastructure Consultant