HP OpenVMS Systems Documentation

HP OpenVMS Version 8.3--1H1
for Integrity Servers
New Features and Release Notes

Contents

Chapter 4
MSA Utility

This chapter contains information about the MSA utility.

4.1 MSA Utility Usage Summary

The MSA utility is an OpenVMS system management tool for configuring and managing the following controllers:

HP StorageWorks Smart Array Family of Storage Host Bus Adapters (5300 series, 6400 series, and P400)
HP StorageWorks Modular Smart Array Family of Storage Controllers (MSA1000 and MSA1500)

These controllers connect to HP StorageWorks Modular Smart Array storage array systems, and to Integrity Server internal SCSI or SAS drives.

4.1.1 Required Privileges

You must have the following privileges to run the MSA utility:

NETMBX, TMPMBX, SYSPRV, DIAGNOSE, PHY_IO.

To start the MSA utility, enter the following command at the DCL command prompt ($):

$ RUN SYS$SYSTEM:MSA$UTIL

The MSA utility returns the following prompt:

MSA>

At the MSA prompt, you can enter any MSA utility command described in the following sections.

4.1.2 Restrictions

The MSA Utility has the following restrictions:

The MSA_UTIL command SHOW CONNECTIONS is not applicable to or supported on the HP StorageWorks Smart Array Controller.
EXTEND, MIGRATE, and EXPAND commands on Smart Array systems will fail if the controller cache is bad or the cache battery is less than 75%. These commands work on controllers that are designed to support volume expansion by using disk drives for backing up expand data stripe. This is in the absence of battery-backed memory on the controller.
RAID units that have spare disks (RAID 1, RAID 5, and so on) cannot be migrated to RAID 0 or JBOD units.
Multiple-capacity disks can be used by specifying the /SIZE qualifier. The maximum value of size specified with the /SIZE qualifier should be the size available on the disk with the lowest capacity.

4.2 MSA Utility Commands

The following sections describe MSA utility commands and provide examples of their use. Note that some qualifiers are shown as abbreviated in the examples.

ACCEPT UNIT

Changes the state of the unit back to VOLUME_OK when all drives of a previously failed unit are in working order.
This command accepts media exchange on a unit marked as failed.

Note
The ACCEPT UNITS command resets the status of all failed units to VOLUME_OK.

Format

ACCEPT UNIT <#>
where # represents the unit number.

Example


MSA> ACCEPT UNIT 2

ADD UNIT

Creates units (logical storage units that comprise one or more hard drives).

Format

ADD UNIT <unit_n> / <qualifiers>

Parameters

unit_n
The unit number can range from 0-31.

Note

Any two or a combination of all the following qualifiers cannot be used in conjunction with each other.

Qualifiers

/ADG
Specifies the RAID type for the unit as Advanced Data Guard (ADG).
/DISK
Specifies the disk numbers to be used to form the unit. Enclose multiple disks in parentheses. Use the following format:
/DISK=(disk-numbers[,...])
/IDENTIFIER
User-defined identifier for the unit. This identifier is used by OpenVMS to name the device. The value of the identifier n is between 1 and 9999. Use the following format:
/IDENTIFIER= n
Note
The /IDENTIFIER qualifier is not required for Smart Array controllers.

/JBOD
Specifies the RAID type as JBOD. Synonymous with RAID 0.
/PARTITION
Specifies the partition number to be used for a given unit. The first unit that is created on a disk/disk group is automatically assigned the partition number 0. Units that are subsequently created on this disk/disk group must be created with sequential partition numbers. Use the following format:
/PARTITION=(partition_number)
/RAID_LEVEL
Specifies the RAID type of the unit. Supported values for this qualifier are 0 (data striping), 1 (data mirroring), and 5 (data stripping with striped parity).
Use the following format:
/RAID=[(0 | 1 | 5)]
/SIZE
Specifies the size of the unit. If the size qualifier is not specified, the size defaults to the maximum capacity of the disks depending on the RAID level, as shown in the following example:
/SIZE=#(GB | MB | KB | %)
/SPARE
Specifies the disk numbers to be used as spare disks. Enclose multiple disks in parentheses. Assigning a spare disk to an unit in a drive group assigns the spare disk to all the configured units in the drive group.
If a unit is created on a disk group to which a spare disk is assigned, then the spare disk is configured to the new unit (if it is not a RAID 0 unit). One spare disk can be assigned to multiple drive groups.
Ensure that the size of the spare disk is equal at least to the size of the smallest drive in the drive group. Use the following format:
/SPARE=(disk_number[,...])
/STRIPE_SIZE
Specifies the stripe size for a given RAID volume. Stripe size must be one of the following values: 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, or 256. Raid 5 and ADG are limited to a maximum 64 KB stripes. RAID 0 and 1 default to 128 KB stripes, and RAID 5 and ADG default to 16 KB stripes. Use the following format:
/STRIPE_SIZE=(stripe_size)
/VERBOSE
Provides logging that can be interpreted by engineering.

Examples

#1
MSA> ADD UNIT 2

This command creates unit 2.

#2
MSA> ADD UNIT 3/ID=1003/DISK=103/JBOD/PARTITION=0/SIZE=8GB MSA> ADD UNIT 4/ID=1004/DISK=103/JBOD/PARTITION=1/SIZE=10GB MSA> ADD UNIT 5/ID=1005/DISK=103/JBOD/PARTITION=2/SIZE=8GB

These commands create three units on disk 103. Notice that the partition numbers are provided in sequential order on the same disk/disk group.

#3
MSA> ADD UNIT 3/ID=1003/DISK=103/JBOD/PARTITION=0/SIZE=8GB MSA> ADD UNIT 4/ID=1004/DISK=103/JBOD/PARTITION=2/SIZE=10GB

In this command sequence, assume that there is no unit with partition number 1 on this disk, the creation of unit 4 will fail because the unit is assigned the partition number 2 and the assignment is not in sequential order.

DELETE UNIT

Delete units from the drive. Regardless, whether the disk is mounted on OpenVMS, you are prompted for confirmation before proceeding to delete the selected unit.
For example, if the disk is mounted on an OpenVMS node, in addition to the prompting for confirmation, you are informed that the disk is mounted.

Note
After a unit is deleted, its unit number remains unused until manually assigned to a new unit.

Unit numbers are not automatically reassigned when a unit is deleted.

If more than one unit has been created on a disk/disk group, only the last created unit can be deleted.

Be sure to maintain a record of the unit numbers and the order in which they are created on a disk/disk group.

Format

DELETE UNIT <unit_n> / <qualifiers>

Parameters

unit_n
The unit number can range from 0-31.

Qualifiers

/VERBOSE
Provides logging that can be interpreted by engineering.

Example


MSA> DELETE UNIT 4

In this example, unit 4 is the unit to be deleted. This is the same number that was given to the unit when it was created using the ADD UNIT command.

EXIT

Exits the MSA$UTIL program.

FLASH FIRMWARE

Updates the firmware of a given controller. Specify the firmware file name to be used.

Format

FLASH FIRMWARE <firmware-file-name> / <qualifiers>

Parameters

firmware-file-name

Qualifiers

/VERBOSE
Provides logging that can be interpreted by engineering.

HELP

Describes all currently supported MSA$UTIL commands, their parameters, and their qualifiers. Use the following format, where verb is the specific description.

Format

HELP <verb>

Parameters

verb

Example


MSA> Help ADD ADD UNIT ADD UNIT is used to create UNITs (logical storage units comprising one or more hard drives). Format: ADD UNIT <unit_n> <qualifiers> Parameters Qualifiers Examples

This command describes the ADD command and its parameters.

LOCATE

Causes the LEDs of the requested drives to blink. These LEDs are visible from the front of the attached storage enclosures.

Note
If a time limit is not included with the LOCATE command, the LEDs blink for 30 seconds.

Format

LOCATE/TIME=xxx <parameters> / <qualifiers>

Parameters

ALL

Causes all drives connected to the MSA storage subsystem to flash.
BUS bus-number

Causes the disks connected to the specified bus to flash.
CANCEL

Cancels the current locate operation.
DISK disk-number

Causes the specified drive to flash. Disks are identified by their bay number.
UNIT unit-number

Causes the disks configured on the specified unit to flash.

Qualifiers

/TIME=time
Specifies the number of seconds the disk's LED should flash. This is an optional qualifier whose default is 30 seconds.
/VERBOSE
Provides logging that can be interpreted by engineering.

Examples

#1
MSA> LOCATE ALL

This command locates all drives attached to the storage enclosure.

#2
MSA> LOCATE BUS 1

This command locates all drives SCSI bus 1.

#3
MSA> LOCATE UNIT 1

This command locates all drives in unit 1.

#4
MSA> LOCATE DISK 102

This command locates drive 102.

READ FIRMWARE

Reads the firmware image on the controller.

Note
Supported only for Smart Array 5300 and Smart Array 6400 series controllers.

Format

READ FIRMWARE <firmware file-name> / <qualifiers>

Parameters

firmware file name
Specifies the file name of the firmware image.

Qualifiers

/VERBOSE
Provides logging that can be interpreted by engineering.

RESET THIS_CONTROLLER

Issues a controller reset to the specified controller.

Format

RESET THIS_CONTROLLER <parameters> / <qualifiers>

Parameters

CONTROLLER_TYPE
Issues a controller reset to the specified controller.

Note
Applicable only for MSA1000/1500 controllers.

Qualifiers

/VERBOSE
Provides logging that can be interpreted by engineering.

Example


MSA> RESET THIS_CONTROLLER

RESET OTHER_CONTROLLER

Issues a reset to the controller. The state of this controller can be either ACTIVE or STANDBY.

Format

RESET OTHER_CONTROLLER / <qualifiers>

Parameters

CONTROLLER_TYPE

Issues a controller reset to the specified controller.

Note
Applicable only for MSA1000/1500 controllers.

Qualifiers

/VERBOSE
Provides logging that can be interpreted by engineering.

Example


MSA> RESET OTHER_CONTROLLER

SCAN ALL

Sends a scan message to the Smart Array controller instructing it to scan SCSI buses and discover new or replaced disks. After the scan is complete, the rebuild operation for the logical volumes is initiated for all the units configured in the disk group.
This command is applicable only for the internal disk enclosure connected to the Smart Array on I64 platforms.

Note
For additional information on rebuild of volumes, see the START RECOVER command.

Format

SCAN ALL

Parameters

None

Qualifiers

None

Example


MSA> SCAN ALL

SET CONTROLLER

Selects the controller device-name as the default controller. The device name has the format ddcu:, where:
dd is the device code.
c is the controller designation (A through Z).
u is the unit number (0 through 9999).
This command is required before entering all SAS utility commands except SHOW CONTROLLER and SHOW VERSION.

Note
SET CONTROLLER command is synonymous with the SET ADAPTER command.

Format

SET CONTROLLER [ddcu:] / <qualifiers>

Parameters

None

Qualifiers

/DEFAULT
Specifies the default controller.
/VERBOSE
Provides logging that can be interpreted by engineering.

Example


MSA> SET CONTROLLER $1$GGA105:

This command sets controller $1$GGA105 as the default controller.

SET GLOBALS

Set the expand priority, the read/write ratio, and the system name.

Format

SET GLOBALS / <qualifiers>

Parameters

None

Qualifiers

/EXPAND_PRIORITY=(LOW | MEDIUM | HIGH)
Sets the default controller.
Specifies the expand priority. Use when expanding an array to set the priority of array expansions in relation to input/output (I/O) operations. Use in the following format:
/EXPAND_PRIORITY=(LOW | MEDIUM | HIGH)
/READ_CACHE=value
Specifies the percentage of cache to be used with the READ command.
This value must be between 0 and 100. Use the following format:
/READ_CACHE=(AUTOMATIC | percent)
Note
Combined, the values of the /READ_CACHE and the /WRITE_CACHE qualifiers must equal 100.

/REBUILD_PRIORITY=(LOW | MEDIUM | HIGH)
Specifies the rebuild priority of the RAID volume.
Use when rebuilding an array to set the priority of an array rebuild in relation to input/output (I/O) operations. Low expansion or rebuild applies only when the array controller is not busy handling normal I/O requests. This setting has minimal effect on normal I/O operations. However, there is an increased risk that data will be lost if another physical drive fails while the rebuild is in progress. Use the following format:
/REBUILD_PRIORITY=(LOW | MEDIUM | HIGH)
/WRITE_CACHE=value
Specifies the percentage of cache to be used with the WRITE command.
The value must be between 0 and 100.

Note
Combined, the values of the /READ_CACHE and the /WRITE_CACHE qualifiers must equal 100.

/SYSTEM_NAME=name
Specifies the name to be assigned to the controller.
The name represents any-user defined phrase, up to 20 alphanumeric characters long.

Note
The /SYSTEM_NAME qualifier is not supported for Smart Array controllers.

/VERBOSE
Provides logging that can be interpreted by engineering.

Example

MSA> SET GLOBALS/EXPAND_PRIORITY=HIGH/REBUILD_
                     PRIORITY=HIGH/SYSTEM_NAME="XXX"/READ_CACHE=50/
                     WRITE_CACHE=50

                     Example MSA$UTIL response for SHOW GLOBALS:

                         Controller: _$1$GGA1002: (DEFAULT)
                         Global Parameters:
                         System Name: ITA8.2-1
                         Rebuild Priority: high
                         Expand Priority: low
                         Total Cache: 256MB
                         25% Read Cache: 64MB
                         75% Write Cache: 192MB

Contents

HP OpenVMS Systems Documentation

HP OpenVMS Version 8.3--1H1 for Integrity Servers New Features and Release Notes

Chapter 4MSA Utility

4.1 MSA Utility Usage Summary

4.1.1 Required Privileges

4.1.2 Restrictions

4.2 MSA Utility Commands

ACCEPT UNIT

Format

Example

ADD UNIT

Format

Parameters

unit_n

Qualifiers

/ADG

/DISK

/IDENTIFIER

/JBOD

/PARTITION

/RAID_LEVEL

/SIZE

/SPARE

/STRIPE_SIZE

/VERBOSE

Examples

DELETE UNIT

Format

Parameters

unit_n

Qualifiers

/VERBOSE

Example

EXIT

FLASH FIRMWARE

Format

Parameters

firmware-file-name

Qualifiers

/VERBOSE

HELP

Format

Parameters

verb

Example

LOCATE

Format

Parameters

ALL

BUS bus-number

CANCEL

DISK disk-number

UNIT unit-number

Qualifiers

/TIME=time

/VERBOSE

Examples

READ FIRMWARE

Format

Parameters

firmware file name

Qualifiers

/VERBOSE

RESET THIS_CONTROLLER

Format

Parameters

CONTROLLER_TYPE

Qualifiers

/VERBOSE

Example

RESET OTHER_CONTROLLER

Format

Parameters

CONTROLLER_TYPE

Qualifiers

/VERBOSE

Example

SCAN ALL

Format

Parameters

HP OpenVMS Version 8.3--1H1
for Integrity Servers
New Features and Release Notes

Chapter 4
MSA Utility