RE: [suse-sparc] Question: Fibre Optic Interface and Storage Array

From: Lou Picciano (LouPicciano@comcast.net)
Date: Fri Feb 15 2002 - 03:14:14 PST

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    Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2002 06:14:14 -0500
    From: Lou Picciano <LouPicciano@comcast.net>
    Message-id: <B89257B6.3383%LouPicciano@comcast.net>
    Subject: RE: [suse-sparc] Question: Fibre Optic Interface and Storage Array
    

    Wow! Below message is 'special thanks' to Matthias Schulz, who clearly went
    to a lot of trouble to provide this information I - and perhaps others -
    need in setting up a Fibre Optic Storage Array.

    He's asked me to post it here.

    MANY THANKS MATTHIAS!

    ------ Forwarded Message
    From: Matthias Schulz <schulz@sms-softwaretechnik.de>
    Organization: SMS SoftwareTechnik
    Reply-To: schulz@sms-softwaretechnik.de
    Date: Thu, 14 Feb 2002 11:42:10 +0100
    To: Lou Picciano <LouPicciano@comcast.net>
    Subject: Re: [suse-sparc] Question: Fibre Optic Interface and Storage Array

    Hi Lou,

    sorry, I can't post to the newsgroup for whatever reason. You might
    wanna put this article in the group for me so that others with the
    same problems can get a probable solution.

    I got hold of such a box a couple of weeks ago and the good news
    is, it works with SuSE 7.3.

    I installed a minimal system and the drivers are delivered with
    SuSE 7.3.

    There are some prerequisites though :

    The storage firmware should be current (3.12). Don't know, if this
    is a MUST since the software on the box I've got hold of, was at
    3.12.

    A MUST ist that the firmware on the opical controller (I'm talking
    about soc, NOT socal here) is at 1.52, the most current level SUN
    developed (afaik).

    It took me quite a few days to find out how to upgrade the firmware
    on either the box or the fc-controller (SBus, 501-2069, soc).

    You can upgrade the firmware with Solaris tools. Look for the
    Solaris-packages SUNWssa / SUNWssaxx (where 'xx' are different
    letters, i.e. op) which contain the firmware for the fc-controller
    in the machine and the firmware in the ssa-box. I found mine on
    Solaris 2.6. HW 5/98.

    The firmware for the fc-controller is usuallly called soc.img.1.52
    and the firmware for the ssa-box is called ssafirmware. I found it
    in the (uninstalled) package : SUNWssaop/reloc/usr/lib/firmware/ssa.
    (unpacked from patch 104708-21).

    To find out, what firmware is installed, go to the <ok>-prompt and
    type :

    <ok> show-devs
    ... which goves you a list of installed devices on the machine.
    Look for something like SUNW,soc@3,0 which ist the fc-controller in
    your machine.

    Write down the complete
    path(/io-unit@f,e2200000/sbi@0,0/SUNW,soc@3,0 - for a S1000E
    machine, i.e.) and then do a

    <ok>cd /io-unit@f,e2200000/sbi@0,0/SUNW,soc@3,0
    <ok> sccsid type
    ..... which gives in my case :
    1.52 96/04/09 ... which ist the current firmware for the
    fc-controller (version 1.52).

    Now, to get the sccsid (firmware-level) of the ssa-box, this is,
    what I have done :

    in Solaris 2.5.1 : ssaadm display c1 (c1 = first controller)

    ...... which gives in my case :
                       SPARCstorage Array 100 Configuration
                         (ssaadm version: 1.15 96/03/17)
    Controller path:/devices/io-unit@..................

    --------- snip -----------

    Vendor: SUN
    Product ID: SSA100
    Product Rev: 1.0
    Firmware Rev: 3.12 (current)
    Serial Num: 000000nnnnnnnn
    Accumulate Performance Statistics: Enabled

    You might want to chek for the following untilities on solaris :
    ssaadm, fc_update luxadm

    O.k. once you have the firmware at the most current level, you can
    fire up SuSE 7.3 and type :

    modprobe fc4 (from /lib/modules/your-kernel/fc4)
    modprobe soc (same as above)
    modprobe pluto (/lib/modules/your-kernel/kernel/drivers/scsi)

    After that you can then talk to each device on the ssa-box.

    This is the point where I am. What I want to do now is to something
    like lvm (logical-volume-manager) to control (stripe, raid,
    whatever) the disks in the box.

    Btw. I tried out different disk sizes (mine are all 1 gb).

    Any disk I put in (up to 18 gb) was known to Solaris though to mkfs
    you need to have a solaris label on the disk.
    BUT : my 18gb disk was only known with 16 gb (which seems to be a
    frimware limit according to the newsgroups). The (not) finny thong
    is : whenever I put this disk on a SCSI - controller now, solaris /
    linux claim that the number of sectors in the disk label differs
    from waht the disk sais itself -> wrong geometry and I cannot use
    the disk with it's maximum size any more. The size reported by the
    disk is smaller than the size reported by the label. I haven't got
    a solution for this yet, i.e. re-writing what the disk reports (any
    ideas here ?).

    Hope this helps.

    If you get any further than I did or if you have any questions feel
    welcome to ask.

    Matthias

    Am Mittwoch 13 Februar 2002 14:59 schrieben Sie:
    > Does anyone have any experience in using SuSE with SunStorage
    > Arrays - specifically, either the old SUNStorage FiberOptic 1010s
    > and the corresponding SUN Fibre Interface card (Model 501-2553)?
    >
    > Does SuSE have drivers to support this interface and its RAID
    > functions? Or am I wasting my time?
    >
    > Are there any major Œgotchas¹?? Has anyone got any war stories
    > (or is it all so easy it isn't even worth talking about!)
    >
    > Many thanks.
    >
    > Lou

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    70794 Filderstadt
    Tel: 07000 - 17 17 17 17
    

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