Technical data

Fabric OS Administrator’s Guide A-3
Publication Number: 53-0000518-09
Impact of Changing the Fabric PID Format
A
With the introduction of the SilkWorm 200E, 3016, 3250, 3850, 3900, 4012, and 4100 switches and the
SilkWorm 12000, 24000, and 48000 directors, the Native PID format used in earlier switches was
supplemented with the Core PID format, which is capable of addressing higher port counts. Changing
from Native PID format to Core PID format changes the PID, which requires hosts that use port binding
to be rebooted.
Static PID Mapping Errors
If you can avoid using drivers that employ static PID binding, you should do so.
With the WWN or dynamic PID binding most typically used with drivers, changing the device’s PID
does not affect the PID mapping. However, before updating the PID format, it is necessary to determine
whether any devices in the SAN use static PID binding.
For those few drivers that do use static PID binding, changing the PID format breaks the mapping,
which must be fixed either by rebooting the host or by using a manual update procedure on the host.
To correct mapping errors caused by static PID binding, refer to the following sections:
• See “Evaluating the Fabric” on page A-5 for details on finding devices that use static PID binding.
Then refer to “Online Update” on page A-8 or “Offline Update” on page A-8 for recommendations.
• Refer to “Converting Port Number to Area ID” on page A-12 for instructions.
Changes to Configuration Data
Table A-1 lists various combinations of before-and-after PID formats, and indicates whether the
configuration is affected.
C
aution
After changing the fabric PID format, if the change invalidates the configuration data (see Table A-1 to
determine this), do not download old (pre-PID format change) configuration files to any switch on
the fabric.
Table A-1 Effects of PID Format Changes on Configurations
PID Format
Before Change
PID Format After
Change
Configuration Effect?
Native Extended Edge No impact
Extended Edge Native No impact