HP IO Accelerator Version 3.2.3 VMware ESX and ESXi User Guide

Introduction 9
higher and VSL 3.x.x or higher is NOT data destructive. However, HP recommends that you back up any
data on the device prior to performing the upgrade. For more information on the latest supported version of
the firmware and VSL, see the HP website (http://www.hp.com).
VMware ESX version IO Accelerator
software
IO Accelerator firmware Comments
VMware ESX 4.0
2.2.3 or 2.3.1 101583_6 or 101971_6
(2.3.1)
Update 1; 101583 is
compatible with both software
versions.
VMware ESXi 4.0
Not supported Not supported ESXi 4.0 is not supported.
VMware ESX 4.1
2.2.3 or 2.3.1 101583_6 or 101971_6
(2.3.1)
Version 101583 is
compatible with both software
versions.
VMware ESXi 4.1
2.3.1 101583_6 or 101971_6
(2.3.1)
HP recommends 101971_6
firmware.
VMware ESXi 4.x
3.2.3 ioaccelerator_3.2.3-201301
22.fff
—
VMware ESXi 5.1
3.2.3 ioaccelerator_3.2.3-201301
22.fff
—
NOTE:
HP StorageWorks IO Accelerators require firmware version 101971_6 or 101583. HP
PCIe IO Accelerators also support firmware version 101971_4.
Supported hardware
HP IO Accelerator for BladeSystem c-Class
BladeSystem c-Class IO Accelerators have two distinct designs for the respective server product lines. The G1
through G7 IO Accelerator adapter is provided in a c-Class Type 1 Mezzanine card form factor. It can be
installed in both Type 1 and Type 2 mezzanine slots within the c-Class blade G1 through G7 servers,
enabling a total of two cards in a half-height server blade, and three cards in a full-height server blade and
up to 6 in a double-high, double-wide server (BL680c).
The Gen8 adapter is provided in a c-Class Type B Mezzanine card form factor. It can only be installed in
Type B mezzanine slots within the Gen 8 or later servers, enabling one IO Accelerator in a half-height Gen8
server.
The Type I mezz card and the Type B mezz card are distinguished by the mezzanine connector. The type B
card is slightly larger than a Type I mezz card.
The amount of free RAM required by the driver depends on the size of the blocks used when writing to the
drive. The smaller the blocks, the more RAM is required. The table below lists the guidelines for each 80GB
of storage. For the latest information, see the QuickSpecs sheet to the HP IO Accelerator for HP BladeSystem
c-Class at HP Customer Support (http://www.hp.com/support).
The Remote Power Cut Module for the c-Class blade mezzanine card provides a higher level of protection in
the event of a catastrophic power loss (for example, a user accidentally pulls the wrong server blade out of
the slot). The Remote Power Cut Module ensures in-flight writes are completed to NAND flash in these
catastrophic scenarios. Without the Remote Power Cut Module, write performance is slower. Writes are not
acknowledged until the data is written to the NAND module, thereby slowing performance. When the
Remote Power Cut Module is installed, writes are acknowledged by the IO Accelerator controller to the
driver. The IO Accelerator controller then completes the write to the NAND module.