Install Class A with make recovery of Class K

[ALe_3]

Dear Gurus,

We had to substitute a Class K server with another server. We asked HP to sell us a server compatible so that we could install it with the make_recovery of the K class server.
HP sold us an A class (rp 2430) but as we tried to boot from the tape and there was the "kernel deflate", then the boot process failed. The HP technician told me that it was an incompatibility issue.

Is there a trick to bypass the issue (maybe working with the IPL/ISL)?

Thanks a lot
ALe

[Matti_Kurkela]

What's the exact model number of your K-class? Is it still working, i.e. can you make some configuration changes and then prepare a new recovery tape?

If your K-class is/was running a 32-bit kernel, you have a problem: rp2430 requires a 64-bit kernel (run "getconf KERNEL_BITS" on the K-class, if it's still available).

If this is the case, you'll probably have to cold-install the OS to the new server, then extract the contents of the recovery tape to some temporary location, go through the extracted files and place them to the correct locations if applicable.

See this thread for an example on how to extract file(s) from the recovery tape:
http://forums.itrc.hp.com/service/forums/questionanswer.do?threadId=1059161

MK

[ALe_3]

Hi MK,

The K server model is the following :
9000/889/K460

and the result of getconf is: 64.

The K server is still up and running, so it would be great if you could tell me how to configure it to prepare the recovery tape used to install the A Class....

Thanks
ALe

[Alastair Donaldson]

Are you really using make_recovery on the K Class and not make_tape_recovery or is that just a typo.
If you are using make_recovery it will put an INSTALL kernel (32Bit) in the boot area of the tape regardelss of what your K Class is running. The N Class needs the WINSTALL (64 bit kernel).
The make_tape_recovery will put the INSTALL and the WINSTALL kernel into the boot area if the system is running 64Bit and is 32bit and 64bit capable. (Most K Class are).
If you are really using the make_tape_recovery command you can pretty much ignore what I just said.

Assuming that you can get a copy of make_tape_recovery to ignite on your N Class you will have to install drivers for all your new adapters. The K Class uses HSC and HP-PB while the N Class use PCI.

[Bill Hassell]

The A-class and K-class are very, very different machines with little in common, especially I/O. The Ignite program (make_tape_recovery) works very well on the same class of machine but you are missing drivers for the rp2430 that would have to be first installed on the K-class and then see what else is missing -- might take several days or weeks to get it right. You will need to install HP-UX on the rp2430, then install the needed applications and data files from the old server.

[Michael Steele_2]

This won't work. An example of similar type of PA Risc machines would be a N and L class. Both supporting PA 8700 processors.

When comparing pa-risc servers note the CPU type. If identical or close then chances are that they'll port ignite tapes between themselves.

Also note back to Bill's reply which is also right on the nail.

[ALe_3]

Hi Alastair,

I confirm you that the tape has been created with the make_recovery and not with the make_tape_recovery. The server is installed with HP-UX 11.00 and the ignite version is:

Ignite-UX-11-00 B.2.1.26 HP-UX Installation Utilities for Installing 11.00 Systems.

And there isn't the make_tape_recovery utility.

If you tell me that with a make_tape_recovery I could make a "base installation" on the new server (I will ask HP a newer version of ignite on HP-UX 11.00 with make_tape_recovery --> if existent) and then install the drivers manually. Is the drivers installation the usual procedure with the kernel enabling or should I use HP-UX installation CD? If the second case which depot/s should I install?

Hi Bill and Michael,

you are right, probably it would be better to install the server from scratch and then try to customize it. However I must report to my supervisor all the different options regarding this issue.
Actually the problems are two:
1) HP sold us the server without CDROM so we have only the tape installation mode
2)Assuming that I will find a way to install HP-UX 11.00 --> On the server there is Oracle 7 (yes I confirm it is Oracle 7) installed and if I can clone manually the server from the OS point of view (Install HP-UX 11.00 and all the software/patches related) then there is the problem to recreate the Oracle environment (I don't think that it is so simple to find and Oracle 7 installation CD...). If I can make a directory restore (as Matti suggested), could you please tell me which directories/files I should overwrite?

Thanks
ALe

[Bill Hassell · Accepted solution]

> tape has been created with the make_recovery...
> Ignite-UX-11-00 B.2.1.26

Your Ignite product is very badly out of date and obsolete! My guess is that make_recovery was obsolete before the rp2430 was even sold. It sounds like the K-class has not been patched or updated for many years.

> there isn't the make_tape_recovery utility.

On 11.00, MTR was standard unless your version of 11.00 is extremely old (10 years?). In this case, you probably cannot use your original version of 11.00 because it is too old for the rp2430. The rp2430 is a 64bit computer so unless your K-class is running a 64bit version of HP-UX, no version of Ignite will create an image that will run on the rp2430.

> install the drivers manually...

It is unlikely that there are any drivers on your K-class for the rp2430 disks so it is impossible for the rp2430 to even bootup. You can't install any drivers if the restored image can't talk to the disks. I would not even try to make the K-class restore work. Days, maybe weeks of time, just to restore an obsolete version of HP-UX. Not something I would ever put into production.

> HP sold us the server without CDROM...

No problem. Just order an external DVD (*not* a CDROM). New software will come on DVDs rather than CDs. NOTE: You cannot order HP-UX on tape. It has not been supplied on tape for more than 8 years. And as I mentioned, your original 11.00 tape is far too old to support the rp2430. So without a newer version of 11.00, the rp2430 isn't going to work.

> ...Oracle 7...

That is apparently the real problem. I do not think that Oracle 7 is supported on a 64bit operating system. It might run but I would not trust it to work reliably in a production environment. Oracle is not something you just copy a couple files from server to server. It will have to be installed.

So I would go back to the original reason to replace the K-class. You can a buy a used K-class system such as a 4-processor K580 with 8GB of RAM for very little money (shipping may be more than the server cost). Any newer hardware (such as the rp-series) will require two upgrades: HP-UX must be at least 11.11 and Oracle will have to be version 9-something or better in order to run on newer 64bit (only) systems.

[ALe_3]

Thank you all for the support and hints given (and also for the Hardware/OS lessons..),

I was lucky and found a make_recovery of an A-Class server installed with HPUX 11.00. I used it to install the new A-Class server, removed the software that wasn't installed on the K and installed the software/patches that were installed on the K (I run a swlist on both servers and made a comparison..).

So from an OS point of view the A server is a clone of the K server.

The Oracle issue... I spoke with the DBA and we decided to copy all the directories/files Oracle related.

We will restore he DB and then will try to start Oracle and...let's cross the finger.

I think this is the maximum we can do

Thanks again

ALe