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Asset ID: 1-73-1000227.1
Update Date:2011-02-22
Keywords:

Solution Type  FAB (standard) Sure

Solution  1000227.1 :   StorADE versions earlier than 2.4.39.005 may misrepresent errors for array components, possibly causing unnecessary replacement of hardware.  


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Related Categories
  • GCS>Sun Microsystems>Sun FAB>Standard>Reactive
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PreviouslyPublishedAs
200302


Impact

Early versions of StorADE health monitoring software may misrepresent errors for array components, possibly resulting in unnecessary hardware replacement or investigation of problems that are not as severe as reported.  Customers using versions below 2.4.39.005 of the Storage Automated Diagnostic Environment (StorADE) may be falsely prompted to disrupt their normal data processing to replace hardware.  


Contributing Factors

This affects the following configuration:

  • Systems/arrays being monitored by StorADE versions earlier than 2.4.39.005 

This includes, but is not limited to, these StorADE versions: 2.0.06.010, 2.1.05.003, 2.2.00.003, 2.3.10.006, 2.4.12.009, 2.4.30.018.

To determine the installed version of StorADE, run this command.

   # pkginfo -l SUNWstade

Symptoms

Customers and support personnel may experience these types of issues with the affected versions of StorADE.

  • Unnecessary replacement of SE6130 midplane, SE6120 batteries and SE3500 components.
  • Some events and service procedures are not precise thereby requiring additional analysis by support personnel.

Root Cause

Several factors contribute to this issue, such as heavy I/O delaying health inquiries, policy errors in Storade which deal with fault indicators and system events, as well as incomplete service advisor procedures.

The issue is addressed in StorADE version 2.4.39.005 which provides the following fixes:

1. The GUI Alarm page indicating ERRORs for recoverable soft errors on disk drives.

   ("Look for SCSI Sense Key messages starting with 0x1, 0x3, etc.")

2. StorADE no longer recommends replacing HW components for LogEvents.

3. Battery recharge cycles initiated by old T3 firmware no longer cause StorADE to recommend HW replacement.

4. StorADE's new local email notification default is to inform customers of critical alarms and above only. This has been maintained as tuneable, but it is not recommended to change it.

5. 3xx0 (Minnow) arrays require minimal firmware level 4.11 to be monitored by StorADE and to generate reliable notifications.

6. StorADE has instituted fault signature enhancements that were not available in earlier releases where it can now aggregate events resulting in fewer notification messages.

7. SE6130 instrumentation handling has been enhanced to eliminate false positive alarms about parts replacements and loss of communication.

8. Event Filters are available in 2.4.39.005 that aid the user in changing the severity of an alarm.  

9. Some events, such as the following, were reclassified for accuracy.

  • Lost communication events during heavy I/O activity.
  • Battery refresh cycles.
  • User configuration changes (volume additions/deletions).
  • Symptomatic events have been downgraded due to inclusion through aggregation with more specific fault indications.

 

NOTE:  The latest version of StorADE has included a feature where Alarms can be acknowledged by the user to indicate recognition of a problem.  This will also tell StorADE that no future notification for the specific alarm is required.


Resolution

NOTE: This procedure applies to data hosts and management hosts only.  Do NOT attempt this procedure on a Service Processor.

1. Schedule time with customer to upgrade, or request that the customer perform the upgrade, to StorADE version 2.4.39.005 or later.

2. Obtain the current software package from the Sun Download Center.

   http://www.sun.com/download/products.xml?id=41c884fa

3. Obtain the current (latest) software patches from

   https://support.oracle.com/CSP/ui/flash.html#tab=PatchHomePage(page=PatchHomePage&id=gg3w68g0()).

   117650-xx (SUNWstade)

   117654-xx (SUNWstadm)

4. To apply the patches, follow the instructions contained in the patch README files.



Comments

Please keep in mind that with every new release there are fixes to known issues and these fixes are making the product better.

Be proactive and make it your mission to ensure all your customers storage products are running with the best possible chance of working at peak performance.

Always be sure to research the current released version and obtain it for the upgrade. Refer to the README docs to ensure success.

Related Information
  • URL: http://www.sun.com/download/products.xml?id=41c884fa

Previously Published As
101791
Internal Eng Business Unit Group
KE Authors

Internal Eng Responsible Engineer
Anthony.Mullen@sun.com

Internal Resolution Patches
117650-xx, 117654-xx

Internal Kasp FAB Legacy ID
101791

Internal Sun Alert & FAB Admin Info
Critical Category:
Significant Change Date:
Avoidance: Upgrade
Responsible Manager: null
Original Admin Info: null

Product_uuid
04ccc2c2-16a1-11d7-9f9a-f83fdd2e2f1b|Sun StorageTek 3900 Series
09a6d778-16f2-11d7-8802-94885c013b6c|Sun StorageTek 6900 Series
29b720d2-0a18-11d6-9865-e60ab6457390|Sun Enterprise 3500 Server
2a6d7d50-0a18-11d6-8e0b-f0bd33b24928|Sun StorageTek T3 Array
2a714b10-0a18-11d6-86e2-d56b387d4fbf|Sun StorageTek T3+ Array
2a83ce34-0a18-11d6-8498-8ec5d44f476b|Sun StorageTek A5000 Array
2a8acc34-0a18-11d6-87ef-bd9528a0b933|Sun StorageTek A5200 Array
2a918ae2-0a18-11d6-834a-c679537eebe7|Sun StorageTek 9910
2a94fb3c-0a18-11d6-90a8-c9c08656284f|Sun StorageTek 9960 System
2cd2e7d2-2980-11d7-9c3f-c506fe37b7ef|Sun StorageTek 6120 Array
331852aa-146b-11d7-88af-9cb4cd4acaa0|Sun StorageTek 9840B Tape Drive
3db30178-43d7-4d85-8bbe-551c33040f0d|Sun StorageTek 3310 SCSI Array
4de60cc2-a08e-4610-b8bf-6a1881cb59c6|Sun StorageTek 6320 System
5475c17c-c204-11d7-9de1-080020a9ed93|Sun StorageTek 6020 Array
58553d0e-11f4-11d7-9b05-ad24fcfd42fa|Sun StorageTek 3510 FC Array
63654ce5-f88d-11d8-ab63-080020a9ed93|Sun StorageTek 5310 NAS Appliance
8252cb91-d771-11d8-ab52-080020a9ed93|Sun StorageTek 6130 Array
9fdbb196-73a6-11d8-9e3a-080020a9ed93|Sun StorageTek 3511 SATA Array
b216445d-b1a6-4b97-8860-8f6019982dfa|Sun StorageTek D2 Array
b648cdf0-efb8-4d4f-93d4-b17c1baf1935|Sun StorageTek A3500 FC Array
c2428fbe-8ab7-41d0-8b6e-ab489823c9d4|Sun StorageTek 9980 System
d4e4fc3d-7c3f-11d8-9e3a-080020a9ed93|Sun StorageTek 5210 NAS Appliance

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