Chapter 6
SilkWorm 1000-Family FC Switch

The September 1999 release of firmware for the SilkWorm 1000-family of FC Switches (Silkworm and Silkworm Express) is named V1.6c3.

This chapter contains the following sections:


ATTENTION

On DYNIX/ptx V4.6.x, all FC switches must have a license key enabled. Otherwise, EES events, which are captured by in-band communication with the FC switch, will not be logged.



6.1 Compatibility Information

When running on a SilkWorm 1000-family FC Switch, version 1.6c3 of this OEM firmware is compatible with the following:


6.2 FC Switch Naming Conventions

Starting with FC Switch firmware version V1.4b, the naming conventions for FC Switches have changed.


ATTENTION

Previous versions of switch firmware allowed several special characters in the switch name that are no longer supported, for example, the colon (:) and space ( ). Any existing switches that contain invalid characters must be renamed as soon as possible. Otherwise, during a firmware upgrade the switch will not boot to the new firmware and will have to be returned to the factory resulting in unplanned downtime. To display or set the switch's name, telnet to the switch and use the switchName command.


Specifically, the name of the switch:

Additionally, it is suggested that switch names be unique in a cascaded environment.


6.3 Changes Since the V1.4b Release

Version 1.6c3 has the same capabilities as V1.4b, plus the following improvements and new features:


ATTENTION

See the SilkWorm 1000 FC Switch Administration Guide for explanations of all the menu items and telnet commands listed in these release notes.



6.4 Unused V1.6c3 Commands and Features

IBM NUMA-Q servers do not support the following list of specific commands and switch management features available in the V1.6c3 firmware:


6.5 V1.6c3 Firmware Problem Reports

The following critical or serious problems have been reported against the FC Switch V1.6c3 firmware. See "FC I/O Subsystem-Level Problem Reports," Chapter 2 for possible I/O subsystem-level problems involving FC Switches.

The command portLogClear does not reenable a Previously Halted Port Log (249635)

When preparing to investigate problems with a specific port, a common practice has been to clear the current port log to give a handy visual checkpoint for viewing diagnostic data sets during manual troubleshooting exercises. However, if the port log was previously halted, the command portLogClear will clear the port log, but it cannot reenable it.

Workaround: Before issuing portLogClear, determine if the port log is halted. Do so by examining the last line of the port log, which should give some indication of the error condition if the port log is halted. Furthermore, the timestamp of that last line will not change. If the port log is not halted, you can use the portLogClear command to clear the port log and continue to log new events. If the port log is halted, you must reboot the switch to reenable the port log.


6.6 Install V1.6c3 FC Switch Software for SilkWorm and SilkWorm Express Switches

Use the distribution CD-ROM labeled "DYNIX/ptx V4.6.1 OS and Layered Products Software, Vol. 1, March 2001, Revision A."

  1. Insert the distribution CD-ROM into the CD-ROM drive in the Bootbay connected to Quad 0 of a system.

  2. Log in to the host as root.

  3. Use the ptx/ADMIN menu system and the ptx/INSTALL utility to load the V1.6c3 file for a SilkWorm-1000 family FC Switch.


    ATTENTION

    There are two versions of FC Switch firmware listed during the installation process, one for the SilkWorm 1000 family and another for the SilkWorm 2000 family. Be sure to read the descriptions and load only the switch software package labeled "V1.6.3" in the installation menus.


  4. Remove the distribution CD-ROM.

  5. Upgrade all SilkWorm 1000 FC Switches in the system with the downloading procedure described in Section 6.7.


6.7 Download to SilkWorm and SilkWorm Express Firmware


ATTENTION

The following procedures will require the system to be at the single-user level during the firmware upgrade.



6.7.1 Required System Information

The following information is required before beginning the downloading procedure:

host_IP_address
The IP address of the host system holding the new distribution software file.
hostname
The name of the host system holding the new distribution software file.
username
A valid, password-protected, user login account on the host system that contains the file to be downloaded.
filename
The path to the FC-Switch software file on the host system.
Switch Address
The IP address of each switch to be upgraded
Fabric Domain ID
For each switch of a fabric, its unique ID. Reassign this ID after the firmware has been downloaded.
Switch Password
The switch-login password for admin, the level required to execute the downloading command. (The factory-set default is password. The password for admin could be different after initial installation, depending on the installer's or customer's preference.)
Site-specific Configuration Variables
Such as:

Collect this list before beginning the upgrade.


6.7.2 Check the Host System Configuration

Software downloading is by TCP connection between the switch and the host system containing the source file. Before attempting to download software to a switch, use the following checklist to make sure that the host system was properly configured when the system or switch was initially installed. If these host-system files are not configured as described, you may get Permission denied and the rcmd fails error messages. The configuration procedures are described in the FC Subsystem Installation. Here is the checklist

[  ]

On the host system containing the new distribution software file, the /etc/hosts file must contain a name and IP address for each switch to be upgraded.

[  ]

On the host system, there must be a user account set up, with a password and a basic login shell, for administering FC Switches.

[  ]

On the host system, the .rhosts file in that user's account must contain IP address entries for each switch to be upgraded.

[  ]

On the host system, permissions for all to read and execute must be set for all the directories and the binary file in the path /usr/ssw/fw/fc_switch/brocade1000/fc_sw1k.bin.

For instance:

$cd /usr/ssw
chmod a+rx fw
cd fw
chmod a+rx fc_switch
cd fc_switch
chmod a+rx brocade1000
cd brocade16
chmod a+r fc_sw1k.bin

[  ]

On the host system, test the reshd daemon from the user account set up to administer switches:

username$ resh localhost ls -a

If the resh command fails, and the OS is V4.4.2 or later, check the shell entry in the /etc/inetd.conf file and make sure that it is set up to be a stream socket and not a tli socket.

If the /etc/inetd.conf file must be modified, kill and restart the inetd daemon.

[  ]

On each switch, the switch name and Ethernet IP address must match the name and IP address entered for it in the host system's /etc/hosts file.


6.7.3 Check the Network Connectivity

From the host system, verify that it can communicate with each switch to be upgraded. Issue the following command:

username$ /etc/ping switch_IP_address


6.7.4 Download the New Firmware

Do the upgrade procedures with the host system at the single-user level.

The following procedure is performed from the VCS PTX Console window via a remote login (telnet) over the Ethernet LAN connected to the FC Switch to be upgraded.

  1. Warn all users and then use the shutdown command to bring the host system down to the single-user level .

  2. Enable basic networking and the inetd daemon from the single-user level with the following commands:

    # /etc/ifconfigall 2
    # /etc/inetd

  3. Verify network operation. For example:

    # netstat -in
    Name Mtu Network Address Ipkts Opkts Odrop
    loop 0 <Link> 0 0 0
    loop 0 127/8 127.0.0.1 0 0 0
    pe0 1502 <Link>00.00.bc.0f.04.ee 57 12 0
    pe0 1502 138.95.103./24 138.95.103.77 57 12 0

    If the switch is not on the same side of a network router as the host, use the route command on the host system. For example:

    # route fill
    add net default: gateway 138.95.103.215

  4. Initiate a telnet login session with the first switch to be upgraded and log in as admin. For example:

    (Host_prompt): telnet switch_IP_address
    (Switch_name) login: admin
    Password: admin_password
    Switch_name:admin>

  5. If this switch is one of a cascaded pair making up a fabric, determine its current domain ID at this time. The domain ID is the first item in the field named "Switch ID" in the following display:

    sw3:admin> fabricShow
    Switch ID Worldwide Name Enet IP Addr FC IP Addr Name
    ------------------------------------------------------------------
    0: fffc41 10:00:00:60:69:00:0a:12 192.168.1.2 0.0.0 >"sw2"
    1: fffc42 10:00:00:60:69:00:01:b4 192.168.1.3 0.0.0 "sw3"

    After the firmware has been upgraded, the ID must be restored to this value before returning the switch to service.


    ATTENTION

    The ">" in the display indicates the Principal switch in the fabric.


  6. Put the switch into its offline state with the following command:

    Switch_name:admin>switchDisable

    Observe that the yellow LEDs of all the ports flash steadily, indicating all ports unavailable.

  7. Download the new software into the switch's flash memory with the flashDownload command.


    ATTENTION

    The username in the following command is the user account set up on the host system for administering switches. The syntax of double quotes and commas to separate each argument is important. Do not enter the angle brackets.


    For example:

    Switch_name:admin>flashDownload <"host_IP_address">, <"username">, 
    "/usr/ssw/fw/fc_switch/brocade1000/fc_sw1k.bin"

    1159644+195092+876080
    writing flash 0 ................
    writing flash 1 ................
    download complete
    value 0 = 0x0
    =>

  8. Make the new firmware effective at this time by rebooting the switch.

    =>reboot

    Observe that the green LEDs of all the cabled ports glow steadily, indicating ports available.


    ATTENTION

    During the reboot, the telnet session will time out and be closed by the remote host.


  9. Start a new telnet session with the switch and log in as admin.

  10. Verify the currently-executing firmware version with the following command:

    Switch_name:admin>version
    VxWorks version: 5.3
    Firmware version: v1.6c3
    Made on: Fri Jun 18 08:42:05 PDT 1999

    where:

    VxWorks version:
    The current version of the switch's internal operating system. IBM NUMA-Q does not use this information.
    Firmware version:
    The OEM's version ID for the firmware currently executing on the switch.
    Made on:
    The date and time that the OEM firmware was compiled into a release.
  11. Since the reboot cycle enables the switch, you must disable it again before issuing a configuration command:

    sw3:admin> switchDisable
    value = 0 = 0x0
  12. Issue the flashDefault command to ensure that all configuration values are operational.

    sw3:admin> flashDefault
    value = 0 = 0x0

  13. If this switch comprises the fabric itself, set the Domain ID to zero. If this switch is one of a cascaded pair, make sure that the domain ID is the same as before the upgrade. The new V1.6c3 default domain ID is 1. Use the following command to change the ID to 0, if needed. A Ctrl-C command will write the new value and exit the command:

    sw3:admin> flashSet
    changing flash configuration...
    domain_id [1]: 0
    b_to_b credit [16]: Ctrl-C
    Updating flash ...
    done
    sw3:admin>

  14. Check the switchDomain: value with the following command to verify that the new domain ID is correct:

    sw3:admin> switchShow

  15. Other switch configuration values such as site-specific passwords and usernames, for instance, can be restored at this time.

  16. Power cycle the switch at this point to enable it and to put the restored values into effect:


    ATTENTION

    Since switches do not get power cycled very often in a customer production environment, it is a good idea to take advantage of the upgrade opportunity to make a switch go through its entire POST sequence.


  17. Repeat this process for each switch in the system.

  18. When all switches in a system have been upgraded, boot the system back up to the multiuser level with the following command:

    # init 6

  19. Verify that all cabled port LEDs on the upgraded switches show a steady green, indicating that the upgraded switch has re-established FC links to the system's host adapters and to FC Bridges and EMC Symmetrix FC-ported storage susbsystems connected to the switch.