HP IO Accelerator Driver and Management Software Version 3.2.3 Release Notes

Upgrade notes 12
you must follow. Upgrade the HP IO Accelerator VSL software on the system, and upgrade the firmware to
the compatible version in the following order:
1.2.4 > 1.2.7 > 2.2.3 > 3.2.x
For example, if your device is using the firmware for IO Accelerator VSL version 1.2.7, upgrade to 2.2.3
(both IO Accelerator VSL and compatible firmware) and then continue on the path. For VSL upgrade
information for the HP IO Accelerator, see the HP IO Accelerator Release Notes on the HP website
(http://www8.hp.com/us/en/support-drivers.html) for each version. General upgrade instructions,
including the firmware update instructions, are available in the HP IO Accelerator User Guide for each
operating system.
Overformatting not supported
The –o overformat option is not supported in the 3.x.x VSL software. All upgraded HP IO Accelerator
devices are formatted to the maximum advertised capacity, regardless of whether the device was
overformatted prior to the upgrade.
Upgrading from IO Accelerator VSL 2.x
CAUTION: Upgrading devices previously configured for IO Accelerator VSL 2.x or earlier to
work with VSL 3.2.3 requires a firmware upgrade and a low-level media format of the device.
User data is destroyed during the format process. Be sure to back up all data as instructed.
As shown in the Upgrade Path section, you can upgrade your IO Accelerator device to the current firmware
version from any firmware version that is released with IO Accelerator VSL software version 2.3.1 or later.
If the firmware version you are upgrading from has a different major version number than the current
firmware for this release, then you will see a warning that the upgrade might require a format. If your device
is configured with the following firmware versions, then it will require a low-level format (which erases the
user data on the device) after you upgrade the firmware:
• IO Accelerator VSL version 2.3.1: Firmware version 5.0.7.101971
• IO Accelerator VSL version 2.3.10: Firmware version 5.0.7.107053
In the firmware versions shown above, the major version number is 5 (the first number). The firmware major
version number for this 3.2.3 IO Accelerator VSL release is 7.
It can take an extended period of time to format each device, depending on the wear on the device. If 2.x
versions of the IO Accelerator VSL software were supported on your operating system, then you can consult
the appendix of the IO Accelerator user guide for that platform for more information on upgrading the
previously configured devices.
Do not downgrade device firmware
New IO Accelerator devices are shipped with recent firmware versions, often the minimum version required
for the device.
CAUTION: Do not downgrade the IO Accelerator device to an earlier version of the firmware.
Earlier versions of the firmware might not be compatible with the device, and downgrading the
firmware might result in data loss. If you must downgrade your firmware, contact HP Customer
Support (http://www.hp.com/support) for compatibility information and to discuss your use
case.