Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Software

January, 2012
Cumulative Change Summary Consolidated Answer ID 1277, Switch Qualified List and Host HBA Qualified List into this single document. Updated Sections: AMD, Brocade, Emulex, Intel and Microsoft. Removed all references to End of Life SANsymphony and SANmelody versions that are no longer supported as of July 31 2011. Removed note in Brocade HBAs that only Qlogic HBAs can be a Front End port. Updated Disclaimer on page 2. Added note to Emulex HBAs to not use TPRLO. Moved all VMware Known issues previously in Technical Bulletin #5x into this document. Issues with Fusion IO ioDrive Boards added. Added note about setting Qlogic FC HBAs to Loop Only mode in certain cases of Host Ports shown as logged out. Added note about Qlogic QLE220 HBAs. Added note about HP NC375* (QLE3044), HP NC510* and HP NC512m Network Interface Cards. Added ESX 5.x. Added Emulex LP1250 HBA. Updated HP Insight Management WBEM. Added Allied Telesyn Gigabit Ethernet Media Converter MC1000 series. Added Trend Micro OfficeScan. Added APC Powerchute and general note for UPS Services in the Microsoft section. Date July 2011

October 2011

November 2011

December 2011 January 2012

Copyright 2011 by DataCore Software Corporation. All rights reserved. DataCore, the DataCore logo and SANsymphony are trademarks of DataCore Software Corporation. Other DataCore product or service names or logos referenced herein are trademarks of DataCore Software Corporation. All other products, services and company names mentioned herein may be trademarks of their respective owners. ALTHOUGH THE MATERIAL PRESENTED IN THIS DOCUMENT IS BELIEVED TO BE ACCURATE, IT IS PROVIDED AS IS AND USERS MUST TAKE ALL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE USE OR APPLICATION OF THE PRODUCTS DESCRIBED AND THE INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS DOCUMENT. NEITHER DATACORE NOR ITS SUPPLIERS MAKE ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED REPRESENTATION, WARRANTY OR ENDORSEMENT REGARDING, AND SHALL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR, THE USE OR APPLICATION OF ANY DATACORE OR THIRD PARTY PRODUCTS OR THE OTHER INFORMATION REFERRED TO IN THIS DOCUMENT. ALL SUCH WARRANTIES (INCLUDING ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, NONINFRINGEMENT, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND AGAINST HIDDEN DEFECTS) AND LIABILITY ARE HEREBY DISCLAIMED TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW. No part of this document may be copied, reproduced, translated or reduced to any electronic medium or machine-readable form without the prior written consent of DataCore Software Corporation.

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 1

Disclaimer
The following list is intended to make DataCore customers aware of certain issues known to DataCore with certain hardware and software products when used with SANs that have DataCore Software Storage Servers. This list is not an exhaustive list and, while we do our best to report any significant issues we find, it is not guaranteed to always be updated with the latest information. Many of the issues reported to DataCore Technical Support that result in information here were found either during product testing in DataCores labs or from other DataCore Customers where a specific problem had been identified. DataCore cannot be held responsible for incorrect information for third party products and no assumption should be made that DataCore has had direct communication with the third party vendor or that DataCore has the complete and accurate information specific to the problems listed below. We strongly recommend that you contact the third party vendor directly regarding known these known issues to see if there are any updates or fixes to these issues since they were reported. In general DataCore always recommends that the latest software drivers, firmware and/or BIOS are used on any SAN component (unless of course it is listed below). For Known Issues to do with DataCores own Software products please refer to the each software products release notes directly.

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 2

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

3Ware Escalade 8506-12 SATA RAID Controller Disk Controller 9500S-8MI SATA RAID Controller The included management GUI software will not function when SANsymphony or SANmelody is installed. The card will function, and any previous configuration will continue to work, but there is no way to reconfigure RAID sets or LUNs from the OS using the GUI. It can only be done at boot time in the HBA's BIOS. The beta GUI called 3dm2 is known to work properly. Please contact 3WARE regarding the updated GUI.

Allied TeleSyn Gigabit Media Converter MC1000 series Network Hardware Use Smart Missing Link (SML) Mode Status

AMD PowerNow Technology Server BIOS For DataCore Servers, set the high performance mode in the BIOS to Optimized or it could affect performance. May require a reboot. For DataCore Servers, C-states should be turned off or disabled (if applicable to the Servers BIOS). Refer to your Server Vendor if you are unsure.

Processor State

Server BIOS

APC (Schneider Electric) To allow SANsymphony-V to control cache and shutdown state when on battery power, Microsofts native UPS driver must be used and not PowerChutes own. PowerChute Server Software Also See: http://www.datacore.com/SSV-Webhelp/UPS_Support.htm

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 3

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

Broadcom Do not use this. When installed on the Storage server, the virtual adapter may change its MAC Address if there are interruptions within the TCP/IP network. This can disable/remove original iSCSI target devices and create new iSCSI devices which will affect all mappings and access to data. iSCSI NetXtreme II BCM57xxx iSCSI HBA initiator Disable this feature on DataCore Servers as it will interfere with Microsofts Initiator Driver required for mirroring.

Broadcom Advanced Server Program (BASP)

Brocade Do not use firmware version 5.2.1 or any 6.1.0x versions. When upgrading to firmware 6.3.0 through 6.3.1 the State Change Registration (SCR) value is not properly registered in the switchs name server table. Brocade defect number DEFECT000284472 this is fixed in firmware version v6.4.1a. Silkworm FC Switch Any 8Gb switch (including blade-switches) using firmware versions 6.4.0a, b, c and 6.4.1 may observe loss of connectivity on port or trunked Inter Switch Links (ISL) which can cause lost IO. Please see Brocade defect number DEFECT000324848. Registered State Change Notification (RSCN) must be set on all Switch Ports that are zoned in with the DataCore Servers (hosts, storage arrays and other partner DataCore Servers). Hosts connecting to a DataCore Server, Emulex Front End port, use a Frame Size of 2048 refer to Brocades own documentation on how to configure this. FC Adaptors Cannot take the DataCore FC Target Driver (required for Mirror and Front End connections). However, they can still be used but only with Native Drivers and only as Initiators to back-end storage devices

4GB and 8GB FC HBAs

(includes OEM Rebranded FC HBAs)

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 4

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

Brocade (continued)
Starting with switch firmware v6.2.0 and v6.2.0a/b/c, a new Fill Word value was added to the FOS. However, it was not until 6.2.0c that the user had the ability to change the Fill Word value per port - using the portcfgfillword command. Then in firmware version v6.3.1a two new Fill Word modes were added. Symptoms may include decode errors reported on the Host/Storage Server HBAs, including intermittent Log-outs. Failure on a Brocade switch may be indicated by er_enc_out and/or er_bad_os errors. Therefore, DataCores recommendations based on these Brocade issues are: Do not use Firmware versions before 6.2.0c. For Firmware versions between 6.2.0c and 6.3.1 the fill word on all HBA Ports connected to the switch should be set to mode 0 (zero) this is usually the default. For Firmware versions 6.3.1a and greater, the setting should be mode 3 for all ports with 8GB HBA FC Adaptors in them and mode 0 (zero) for all other 4 or 2GB HBAs

8GB Switches (General)

FC Switch

To check the Fill Word mode setting for a particular port use the portcfgshow command. Example:

IBM_2499_192:FID128:admin> portcfgshow 1/0 Area Number: 0 Speed Level: AUTO(HW) Fill Word: 3(A-A then SW I-A) AL_PA Offset 13: OFF
To change the Fill Word mode setting for a port use the portcfgfillword command:

portCfgFillWord PortNumber Mode

Important: Changing the Fill Word is disruptive as the port is disabled and enabled. There should be no need to stop the DataCore Software, but care should be taken to avoid potential double failures or loss of access to VDisks from Hosts when the connection is broken, albeit briefly. Always refer to Brocades documentation in case this information or the syntax/output of the commands listed here has changed.

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 5

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

Citrix If using Qlogic QLA405x/406x iSCSI HBAs, use Qlogics Firmware revision 3.01.49 or greater

XenServer (all)

iSCSI Adaptors

Cisco For Emulex or LSI HBAs see section "FC ID Allocation for HBAs" & "Default Company ID list" in the Cisco manual. Some HBA ports require a different area ID than for the storage ports when they are both connected to the same switch. Reference the section titled About Unique Area FC IDs for HBAs in the Cisco Nexus 5000 Series Switch CLI Software Configuration Guide for details.

MDS 9000 Series

FC Switch

Nexus 5000 Series

FCoE Switch

EMC Does not work with DataCores FC Initiator Driver storage is not discovered. Requires EMC approved drivers.

Clariion AX150

Storage Array

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 6

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

Emulex Corporation LP(e)1150 Is not supported with the DataCore FC Target Driver (required for Mirror and Front End connections). LPe111 LP1250 Do not use Firmware Version 2.70a5. LP(e)1100x FC Adaptor Do not enable Third Party Process Logout (TPRLO) on Emulex HBAs in the Host. LPe12004 FC Adaptor Do not enable Third Party Process Logout (TPRLO) on Emulex HBAs in the Host. FC Adaptor Can only be used as a Backed End connection in a DataCore Sever, but only with vendors own driver. Do not enable Third Party Process Logout (TPRLO) on Emulex HBAs in Hosts.

OEM Rebranded Emulex FC HBAs in DataCore Servers

The DataCore Installer may not recognize the OEM HBA (i.e. IBM, HP or Dell), in some cases, as its expected Vendors own equivalent HBA even if the chipsets are the same. Testing is strongly advised if the OEM HBA is not listed in the DataCore Server HBA Qualified list to make sure that the DataCore Driver will bind to it. FC Adaptor It may be possible to modify certain installation files should the DataCore Driver not bind and the HBA is a supported HBA as a Vendors own equivalent, but no guarantees should be made. Do not enable Third Party Process Logout (TPRLO) on Emulex HBAs in the Host.

Eurostor

ES-2100 iSCSI

Storage Array

iSCSI block size must be set to 512 bytes

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 7

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

FusionIO

ioDrive/Duo/Octal/Cache

Storage Array

Block size must be set to 512 bytes when installed in a DataCore Server.

Hewlett Packard

EVA 8000/8100/4000

Storage Array

Do not use Firmware Version 6.22 as this causes intermittent loss of LUNs presented to the DataCore Server

Automatic Server Recovery (ASR)

Server BIOS

This will force Server reboots for non-DataCore critical reasons and recommend that this feature be disabled in the BIOS. Proliant Support Pack for Windows 2008 R2 v9.30 (5 May 2011) or higher with driver version 8.70 are required.

Insight Management WBEM

Server Software

Earlier Support Packs will delay the startup - either manually or after a reboot - of SANsymphony-V R8s DCSX service for up to ten minutes. In this case utility needs to be disabled and the user manually start the WBEM utility after the DCSX service has already started. Storage Works comes with a driver that will cause a server crash if left on when the DataCore FC driver is installed on the storage channels. The HP driver is cpqfcac.sys and must be removed prior to installing any DataCore Storage Server software which will use the DataCore driver to communicate to the storage array. In a FC-AL configuration, the DataCore Server Target HBA must have a Fixed Loop ID. Some HPUX HBAs will show logged out unless they are sending IO, so manually add the Channel to the Host within the DataCore Server GUI

Storage Works with FC attached storage

Server Software

HPUX (any)

Host Software

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 8

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

Hewlett Packard (continued)

HP Rebranded FC HBAs In DataCore Servers

FC Adaptors

The DataCore Installer may not recognize the OEM HBA, in some cases, as its expected Vendors own equivalent HBA even if the chipsets are the same. Testing is strongly advised if the OEM HBA is not listed in the DataCore Server HBA Qualified list to make sure that the DataCore Driver will bind to it. It may be possible to modify certain installation files should the DataCore Drover not bind and the HBA is a supported HBA as a Vendors own equivalent, but no guarantees should be made.

NC375*

Network Interface Card

Do not use these in DataCore Servers. Users have reported significant latency issues for iSCSI connections and intermittent failures during configuration apply. These are also rebranded Qlogic QLE3044

NC510* 10 Gigabit Server Adapter NC512m Dual Port 10GbE Multifunction Adapter Network Interface Card

Not supported by HP on Windows 2008 Servers, therefore do not work on DataCore Servers See: http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/Document.jsp?lang=en&cc=us&objectID=c01507703

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 9

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

IBM

DS3400 Storage Array needs to have ADT/AVT enabled to be truly active/active. Storage Array Set host Type="Linux", or "Windows 2000/Server 2003 Non-Clustered (Supports DMP)". DS3500

DS4100

Storage Array

May not work with DataCores FC Initiator Driver storage is not discovered. Requires EMC approved drivers.

IPMI Watchdog Timer Server BIOS IBM Unified Extensible Firmware Interface (UEFI)

This will force Server reboots for non-DataCore critical reasons and recommend that this feature be disabled in the BIOS.

See: http://www-947.ibm.com/support/entry/portal/docdisplay?lndocid=MIGR-5084554

IBM Rebranded FC HBAs In DataCore Servers

FC Adaptors

The DataCore Installer may not recognize the OEM HBA, in some cases, as its expected Vendors own equivalent HBA even if the chipsets are the same. Testing is strongly advised if the OEM HBA is not listed in the DataCore Server HBA Qualified list to make sure that the DataCore Driver will bind to it. It may be possible to modify certain installation files should the DataCore Drover not bind and the HBA is a supported HBA as a Vendors own equivalent, but no guarantees should be made.

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 10

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

Intel Turbo Boost Server BIOS May cause performance degradation on Intel processor series: 34xx, 55xx, 56xx and 75xx. This feature should be disabled/turned off. May require a reboot. For DataCore Servers, C-states should be turned off or disabled (if applicable to the Servers BIOS). Refer to your Server Vendor if you are unsure.

Processor States

Server BIOS

Linux To discover new Virtual Disks you may need to un-mount existing Virtual Disks and unload/reload the driver module refer to your Linux Vendor if you need to do this.

General

Host Software

McData On the DataCore Server Software set all FC HBA Connection Mode to Point to Point only and the Data Rate to Auto. On the Switch, fix the data rate for all ports on the switch to match the HBA speed connected to it.

Sphereon

FC Switch

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 11

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

Microsoft Corporation For DataCore Servers with Windows 2008 (includes SP2 but not required for R2 installations) you must apply hotfix: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/968675

Stoport.sys

Server Software

Qlogic FC HBA Driver

FC Adaptor

Do not use versions 9.0.1.12 or 9.0.2.11 on the Host connected to DataCore Server Front End ports as they may cause unexpected disconnections. The "Win32_Service" WMI class leaks memory in Windows Server 2008 R2.

WMI (Win32_Service)

Server Software

May affect some third party management software that uses WMI to query services refer to your Vendor for clarification. Apply hotfix: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/981314 To allow SANsymphony-V to control cache and shutdown state when on battery power use Microsofts native UPS driver and not third party drivers (see the note for APC (Schneider Electric) in this document)

UPS Services

Server Software Also See: http://www.datacore.com/SSV-Webhelp/UPS_Support.htm

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 12

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

Qlogic QLE220 is not supported by Qlogic with a Target Driver and so will not allow the DataCore Driver to be installed on it and so cannot be used for DataCore Front End or Mirror connections. This HBA can only be used with native drivers as a Back End connection.

QLE220 HBA

FC Adaptor

OEM Rebranded Qlogic FC HBAs in DataCore Servers

FC Adaptors

The DataCore Installer may not recognize the OEM HBA (i.e. IBM, HP or Dell), in some cases, as its expected Vendors own equivalent HBA even if the chipsets are the same. Testing is strongly advised if the OEM HBA is not listed in the DataCore Server HBA Qualified list to make sure that the DataCore Driver will bind to it. It may be possible to modify certain installation files should the DataCore Drover not bind and the HBA is a supported HBA as a Vendors own equivalent, but no guarantees should be made. Do not use these in DataCore Servers. Users have reported significant latency issues for iSCSI connections and intermittent failures during configuration apply. Also known on HP Servers as NC375*.

QLE3044

Network Interface Cards

SANbox

FC Switch

Disable IO Stream Guard on all switch ports connected to DataCore Servers.

2 or 4GB HBAs 8GB HBAs

FC Adaptor FC Adaptor

Do not use versions 9.0.1.12 or 9.0.2.11 they may cause unexpected disconnections. Cannot be used with Hosts using DataCores Alternate Pathing software

All Qlogic HBAs (general)

FC Adaptor

Issues have been seen where HBAs may not log back into a DataCore Server Front End/Targets. Set the connection mode to loop only when this symptom has been observed. This phenomenon has been observed on VMware and XenServer Hosts but may affect other OSs as well.

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 13

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

StorCase Sector sizes larger than 512kb are unusable if LUNs greater than 2TB are presented to DataCore Server Software prior to SANsymphony 7.0 PSP3 and SANmelody 3.0 PSP3.

SATA 16R

Storage Array

SUN Microsystems Storage Array needs to have ADT/AVT enabled to be truly active/active. Set host Type="Linux", or "Windows 2000/Server 2003 Non-Clustered (Supports DMP)".

ST6xxx

Storage Array

Sun Fire with AMD

Server BIOS

The latest BIOS must be used on DataCore Servers with Windows 2008 installed. Performance will be affected otherwise.

Symantec Network Threat Protection (NTP) The NTP feature may have an impact on the performance of a Storage Server. If you experience slow IO or GUIs then please disable this feature.

Server Software

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 14

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

Transtec If using firmware releases 3.5 and 3.7: For lowest latency go into their Storage Management Software > Advanced Options > Performance Options and set Overload Management to Disabled.

Provigo

Storage Array

Trend Micro For SANsymphony 7.x and SANmelody 3.x Exclude the SANsymphony/SANmelody folders on the DataCore Servers as this can interfere with certain hidden DataCore files that may need to be updated.

OfficeScan

Anti-Virus Software

VMware ESX/ESXi 3.x and 4.x hosts do not support 2-terabyte LUNshttp://kb.vmware.com/kb/3371739 Effective BusLogic Qdepth is Limited to One on Windows 2000 SP3, 2003, or XP VMs Limited Disk Throughput with BusLogic Adapter Causes Performance Problems http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1890 and http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1614 Also see: VMware's own list of 'Known Issues' and also 'Configuration Maximums' http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vs_pubs.html http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vi3_35/esx_3/r35u2/vi3_35_25_u2_config_max.pdf

ESX 2.x and 3.x

Host Software

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 15

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

VMware (continued)

Multiple iSCSI sessions from the same Host IQN to a single DataCore Server iSCSI Target is not supported. vStorage APIs for Array Integration (VAAI) is not supported with DataCore Servers and must be disabled. http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1021976 Virtual machines stop responding when any LUN on the host is in an all-paths-down condition (APD): http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1016626 ESX/ESXi 3.x and 4.x hosts do not support 2-terabyte LUNs http://kb.vmware.com/kb/3371739 ESX(i) 4.x Host Software Effective BusLogic Qdepth is Limited to One on Windows 2000 SP3, 2003, or XP VMs Limited Disk Throughput with BusLogic Adapter Causes Performance Problems http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1890 and http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1614 Also see: VMware's own list of 'Known Issues' and also 'Configuration Maximums' http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vs_pubs.html http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vsphere4/r40/vsp_40_config_max.pdf

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 16

Vendor/Model

SAN Component

Detail

VMware (continued) Multiple iSCSI sessions from the same Host IQN to a single DataCore Server iSCSI Target is not supported. vStorage APIs for Array Integration (VAAI) is not currently supported and must be disabled. http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1021976 ESX(i) 4.1.x Host Software HBAs and other PCI devices may stop responding in ESX/ESXi 4.1 when using Interrupt Remapping: http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1030265 Also see: VMware's own list of 'Known Issues' and also 'Configuration Maximums' http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vs_pubs.html http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vsphere4/r41/vsp_41_config_max.pdf Multiple iSCSI sessions from the same Host IQN to a single DataCore Server iSCSI Target is not supported. vStorage APIs for Array Integration (VAAI) is not currently supported and must be disabled. http://kb.vmware.com/kb/1021976 ESXi 5.x Host Software Also see: VMware's own list of 'Known Issues' and also 'Configuration Maximums' http://www.vmware.com/support/pubs/vsphere-esxi-vcenter-server-pubs.html http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vsphere5/r50/vsphere-50-configuration-maximums.pdf

Xyratex For firmware releases 2.4 and 2.4.1 go into their StorView Software > Advanced Options > Performance Options and set Overload Management to Disabled for lowest latency.

General

Storage Array

Known Issues: Third Party Software/Hardware with DataCore Servers 17