AUTO file missing on mirrored disk

[Anna Ryden]

I set up a new system on an L3000 some months go and so far everything works fine, but I'm afraid I forgot an important step: mkboot -a ... and I think I wouldn't be able to boot from the mirrored disk.

Outputs from lifls, lifcp and setboot:

#lifls /dev/rdsk/c1t2d0
ODE MAPFILE SYSLIB CONFIGDATA SLMOD2
SLDEV2 SLDRV2 SLSCSI2 MAPPER2 IOTEST2
PERFVER2 PVCU SSINFO HPUX ISL
AUTO LABEL

#lifls /dev/rdsk/c2t2d0
LABEL

#setboot
Primary bootpath : 0/0/1/1.2.0
Alternate bootpath : 0/0/2/0.2.0

Autoboot is ON (enabled)
Autosearch is ON (enabled)

#lifcp /dev/dsk/c1t2d0:AUTO -
hpux
#lifcp /dev/dsk/c2t2d0:AUTO -
lifcp: AUTO does not exist.


####
What happens if I make mkboot -a "hpux -lq (;0)/stand/vmunix" /dev/rdsk/c2t2d0
on a running system? (I can't take it down).
Is this the correct thing to do?

regards
Anna

[Bill McNAMARA_1]

You will still be able to boot from the mirror disk w/o the auto file. the only thing you'll have to do is give the kernel loader command
hpux -lq when you end up at the ISL prompt.
The AUTO file just says what ISL command to issue automatically.

I'm 99.999% sure you don't have to reboot.
I never did it though.

Later,
Bill

[Marcin Wicinski]

Hi,

If you have AUTO on the second disk (mirror), I would suggest to copy AUTO to the firs disk using:

mkboot -b /usr/sbin/diag/lif/updatediaglif2 -p -p... /dev/rdsk/disk_without_AUTO


area_to_preserve - ale the other LIF areas you want to remain unchanged (ODE, HPUX .....)


Later,

[Michael Tully]

Hi Anna,

The correct way to mirror a disk is as follows:

# pvcreate -f -B /dev/rdsk/cXtXdX
# vgextend /dev/vg00 /dev/rdsk/cXtXdX
# mkboot /dev/rdsk/cXtXdX
# mkboot -a "hpux -lq(;0)/stand/vmunix" /dev/rdsk/cXtXdX
# lvlnboot -R
# for LVOL in /dev/vg00/lv*
> do
> echo $LVOL
> lvextend -m 1 $LVOL
> done
#

HTH
-Michael

[Insu Kim]

Can not be a problem.
You can do it on a running system if you missed only steps starting with "mkboot".

# mkboot /dev/rdsk/...
# mkboot "hpux -lq" /dev/rdsk/...
# mkboot -b updatediaglif -p ISL -p AUTO -p HPUX -p LABEL /dev/rdsk/...

After doing this, you can check out the state by running "lifls".

Hope this helps,

[Duncan Edmonstone]

Hmmm, if LABEL is the only LIF file in LIF area of the second disk, then no you won't be able to boot from it, as there will be no Initial System Loader (ISL) or hpux bootstrap Secondary System Loader (HPUX). Without these files the system can't get as far as booting your mirrored kernel in /stand/vmunix. You are going to have to fix this using the mkboot command, but there's one piece of the jigsaw still missing before you proceed...

What is the output of 'lvlnboot -v'

[Anna Ryden]

Thanks for your answers!


Output from lvlnboot
# lvlnboot -v
Boot Definitions for Volume Group /dev/vg00:
Physical Volumes belonging in Root Volume Group:
/dev/dsk/c1t2d0 (0/0/1/1.2.0) -- Boot Disk
/dev/dsk/c2t2d0 (0/0/2/0.2.0)
Boot: lvol1 on: /dev/dsk/c1t2d0
/dev/dsk/c2t2d0
Root: lvol3 on: /dev/dsk/c1t2d0
/dev/dsk/c2t2d0
Swap: lvol2 on: /dev/dsk/c1t2d0
/dev/dsk/c2t2d0
Dump: lvol2 on: /dev/dsk/c1t2d0, 0

Current path "/dev/dsk/c6t9d0" is an alternate link, skip.
Current path "/dev/dsk/c4t9d1" is an alternate link, skip.
Current path "/dev/dsk/c6t9d2" is an alternate link, skip.

###

I also now tried the following 2 commands:
# mkboot -i AUTO -p LABEL /dev/rdsk/c2t2d0
# mkboot -b /usr/sbin/diag/lif/updatediaglif -p LABEL /dev/rdsk/c2t2d0

.. but got the same answer to both:
There appear to be non-boot logical volumes on this device.
Overwriting them could destroy all the data on this device
Should the logical volumes be overwritten [y/n]? n

Is this referring to the 8 vxfs logical volumes in vg00, or only the hfs (lvol1) ? What is it going to destroy?

regards,
Anna

[Duncan Edmonstone · Accepted solution]

I could be wrong, but I think what this is saying is that the disk was pvcreate'd without the -B option. That means there's not enough space reserved on the disk to hold all the boot time utilities. There may be a quicker way to fix this, but here's what I would do...

1. If you have Ignite/UX installed make a recovery tape RIGHT NOW.
2. Un-mirror all the logical volumes off the second boot disk:

for lvol in /dev/vg00/lv*
do
lvreduce -m 0 ${lvol) /dev/dsk/c2t2d0
done

3. vgreduce the second boot disk out of the volume group:

vgreduce vg00 /dev/dsk/c2t2d0

4. Follow Michaels notes above for mirroring the disk.


You should be able to do thsi without any down-time, but I'd do it at a quiet time if you can.

Hope this helps,

Duncan