Upgrading PowerEdge VRTX to Support Shared Storage Expansion Dell Engineering December 2015 A Dell Technical White Paper
Revisions Date Description December 2015 Initial release Copyright © 2015 Dell Inc. All rights reserved. Dell and the Dell logo are trademarks of Dell Inc. in the United States and/or other jurisdictions. All other marks and names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective companies.
Table of contents Revisions .................................................................................................................................................................................................. 2 1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................................................................... 4 2 Overview of PowerEdge VRTX shared storage expansion configurations .................
1 Introduction This document provides instructions on upgrading VRTX chassis to support shared storage expansion. Shared storage expansion is a new feature of PowerEdge VRTX that allows customers to add additional shared storage infrastructure to the chassis. This feature has one or two Shared PowerEdge RAID Controller (PERC) 8 External cards installed in the VRTX chassis, connecting to Dell PowerVault MD1200 or MD1220 direct attached storage enclosures.
2 Overview of PowerEdge VRTX shared storage expansion configurations The Dell PowerEdge VRTX system supports the following three storage expansion configurations: 1. Single Shared PowerEdge RAID Controller (PERC) 8 External card configuration - This configuration consists of single Shared PERC External card in the VRTX chassis connecting to one of two MD1200 or MD1220 storage enclosures. It does not provide fault tolerance to SAS domain.
3 Prerequisites for upgrading PowerEdge VRTX to support shared storage The following requirements must be met before upgrading PowerEdge VRTX to support shared storage expansion: Hardware requirements 1. Ensure that you have met the following hardware requirements before upgrading PowerEdge VRTX to support shared storage expansion: a. Shared PowerEdge RAID Controller (PERC) 8 External cards – Supports up to two controllers per chassis Figure 1 Shared PERC External card 1. External cable connectors 2.
The following table describes the cables supported on PowerVault MD1200 or MD1220 storage enclosures: Table 1 Cables supported on PowerVault MD1200 or MD1220 Length Dell Part Number Usage 0.6 meter W508F Daisy Chain only to another MD1200 or MD1220 1.0 meter 171C5 Connect to Shared PERC 8 External card or Daisy Chain to another MD1200 or MD1220 2.0 meters W390D Connect to Shared PERC 8 External card or Daisy Chain to another MD1200 or MD1220 4.
SAS expander firmware 2.0 Shared PERC 8 firmware 23.13.16-0013 Shared PERC driver - Linux 6.903.05.00 Shared PERC driver - Windows 6.805.01.00 Shared PERC driver - VMware 6.805.56.00 MD1200 or MD1220 firmware 1.06 2. Download the latest firmware and driver version from Dell.com/support/home. 3.1 Upgrading PowerEdge VRTX to support shared storage expansion Follow the steps in this section to upgrade PowerEdge VRTX to support storage expansion.
Note: PERC H310/H710/H710P/H810 controllers use the same driver as Shared PERC 8 and do not require separate driver installations. 4. Turn off all the server modules. 5. To update the CMC firmware to the required minimum baseline by using the CMC web interface, perform the following steps: Note: If you have redundant CMCs installed in the chassis, it is recommended to update both the CMCs to the same firmware version simultaneously with a single operation.
c. On the Firmware Update field, click Browse and then select the appropriate Chassis Infrastructure Firmware. d. Click Begin Firmware Update, and then click Yes. The Firmware Update Progress section provides firmware update status information. A status indicator is displayed on the page while the image file is uploaded. File transfer time varies based on the connection speed. When the internal update process begins, the page automatically refreshes and the Firmware update timer is displayed.
b. c. d. e. Log in to VRTX CMC. Ensure that you turn off all the server blades. In the left pane, click Chassis Overview → Storage → Update. On the Storage Component Update page, click Choose File. The Choose to Upload file dialog box is displayed. f. Browse to the location where you downloaded the Shared PERC 8 firmware file. g. Select the file, and click Open. The DUP file name and path are displayed in the Browse field. h. Click Upload. i. The DUP is uploaded to CMC.
d. Hold the card by its edges, and align the card edge connector with the card connector on the system board. e. Insert the card edge connector into the card connector until the card is fully seated. f. Close the expansion card latch. g. Close the system cover. For additional information about installing or removing the PCIe adapter card in VRTX chassis, see Dell PowerEdge VRTX Enclosure Owner's Manual at Dell.com/poweredgemanuals. Figure 3 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.
11. Turn on the PowerEdge VRTX chassis by performing the following steps: a. Reconnect the chassis power supply units (PSUs) to the electrical outlets. Note: Note that CMC will automatically turn on. b. When CMC is ready, log in to the CMC GUI and turn on the chassis. Note: Do not power on the blade servers in the chassis. 12.
- To disable Shared PERC 8 External cards, click Chassis Overview → Storage → Controllers → Troubleshooting → Actions → Disable RAID Controller. To enable Shared PERC 8 External cards, click Chassis Overview → Storage → Controllers → Troubleshooting → Actions → Enable RAID Controller. 14. Turn off the PowerEdge VRTX chassis by performing the following steps: a. Turn off the chassis by using the CMC GUI. b. Disconnect the chassis from the electrical outlets. 15.
a. Figure 4 15 Connecting Single Shared PERC 8 External card configuration (non-fault tolerant) to one enclosure.
b. Connecting Single Shared PERC 8 External card configuration (non-fault tolerant) to two enclosures.
c. Connecting non-fault tolerant dual Shared PERC External configuration to enclosures Figure 6 Dual Shared PERC 8 External non-fault tolerance mode Note: In dual Shared PERC 8 External non-fault tolerance mode, the two Shared PERC 8 External controllers are independent and cannot communicate with each other.
d. Connecting fault tolerant dual Shared PERC External card configuration to one enclosure.
e. Connecting fault tolerant dual Shared PERC External card configuration to two enclosures.
17. Turn on the PowerVault MD1200 or MD1220 storage enclosures by performing the following steps: a. Connect the PSUs to the power source. Note: Before connecting the PSUs, ensure that the power switch on both PSUs is in the OFF position. b. Turn on the power switches on all PSUs and cooling fan modules. Before tuning on PowerVault MD1200 and MD1220 storage enclosures, Dell recommends that you turn on the VRTX chassis.
Go to Chassis Overview. The Chassis Health page is displayed. b. The Storage capacity details, the Fault Tolerant Mode (Active/Passive), and Fault Tolerant Status (Enabled) information is displayed on the right pane. This fault-tolerance information is displayed only if the fault tolerant feature is enabled for the storage components. c. The lower section of chassis graphics provides the left view of the chassis. Point to the storage component sub-graphic.
. View the storage Topology by performing the following steps: a. In the left pane, click Chassis Overview → Storage → Properties → Topology. b. On the Topology page, click to view the respective pages. Note: You can view the name of the controller that is active in controlling the storage devices associated with this CMC and also the passive controller acting as a stand-by. c.
> > > > - Correct Firmware on Shared PERCs Correct Firmware on Expanders Correct Firmware on Chassis Infrastructure Shared PERCs have the same settings: Indicates whether or not Shared PERCs have the same settings View the following attributes when the Internal controller is not in fault-tolerant mode: - > One Shared PERC detected > One expander detected > Shared PERC and expanders correctly cabled View the following attributes when the External controller is in fault tolerant mode: - > Two Shared PERC
Disk storage within the PowerVault MD1200 and MD1220 storage enclosures can be configured and managed by CMC. Note: Ensure that the physical disks are installed. a. In the left pane, click Chassis Overview → Storage → Virtual Disks → Create. b. On the Create Virtual Disk page, under the Settings section, type appropriate data, and from the Select Physical Disks section, select the appropriate Shared PERC 8 External card from the drop-down menu. c.
4 Troubleshooting 4.1 Shared PERC 8 External cards fail to function Issue: Shared PERC 8 External cards fail to function in systems with the Fault Tolerant Shared PERC 8 external card configuration. Corrective Action: This issue may occur if the Shared PERC 8 external card property settings between the two Shared PERC 8 external cards are not compatible. Ensure that the firmware packages are identical for both the Shared PERC 8 external cards. 4.
2. Ensure that all the disks are present in the enclosure. 3. Turn on the system, and log in to Chassis Management Controller. 4. Use the CMC to import or clear the foreign configuration that is detected. Note: For information about importing or clearing foreign configuration, see the Dell Chassis Management Controller for Dell PowerEdge VRTX User’s Guide at Dell.com/poweredgemanuals.
mode due to critical errors • Controllers with a Fault Tolerant cable RAID Controller in Chassis configuration but both Slot X has entered safe cards are not set to mode with limited Fault Tolerant mode. functionality due to • The controller is cabled Critical Error during boot incorrectly and - All drives will be hidden discovery detects a loop or duplicate SAS address. 2. Pinned Cache Allow cache to flush, this may include reinserting removed disks or replacing cables. 3.
4.7 Troubleshooting Enclosure Management Modules (EMM) Caution: Dell recommends that you turn off the host server before turning off the enclosure to prevent loss of data. 1. If the EMM status LED is solid or blinking amber (two or four times per sequence), perform the following troubleshooting steps: a. Turn off the server. b. Remove the EMM and verify that the pins on backplane and EMM are not bent.
5 Getting Help 5.1 Contacting Dell Dell provides several online and telephone-based support and service options. If you do not have an active internet connection, you can find contact information on your purchase invoice, packing slip, bill, or Dell product catalog. Availability varies by country and product, and some services may not be available in your area. To contact Dell for sales, technical assistance, or customer-service issues: 1. Go to Dell.com/support. 2.
A Additional resources For more information about the PowerEdge VRTX system components, see the following documents on Dell Support site: • • • • • • • 30 Chassis Management Controller Version 2.1 for Dell PowerEdge VRTX User’s Guide Dell Shared PowerEdge RAID Controller (PERC) 8 for VRTX User’s Guide.
