This guide explains the Fibre Channel administrative software, including the command-line interfaces (CLIs) and the Fibre Channel RAID (Redundant Array of Independent Disks) graphical user interface (GUI). These interfaces to the Silicon Graphics Fibre Channel storage systems enable you to administer, monitor, and adjust FibreVault (non-RAID) and Fibre Channel RAID disk arrays.
The Fibre Channel storage systems interface with Silicon Graphics Origin2000, Origin200, Onyx2, and OCTANE systems. The software described in this guide runs on a console or terminal attached to one of these workstations, which is running IRIX level 6.4 or later.
This guide is for the system administrator responsible for configuring and administering Silicon Graphics fibre channel options. This person should have an understanding of the Silicon Graphics Fibre Channel RAID and non-RAID (also known as JBOD, or “just a bunch of disks”) storage-system hardware and its administration, RAID types, and the hardware and software components of all array configurations that the software is to administer.
For information on RAID levels supported for IRIS FailSafe, ask your Silicon Graphics Sales Engineer.
This guide is organized as follows:
Chapter 1, “Fibre Channel RAID Graphical User Interface Features,” introduces the RAID GUI and the agent ssmagent, and explains RAID features and types (levels).
Chapter 2, “Using the RAID GUI to Configure Arrays,” explains how to configure an array with the RAID GUI.
Chapter 3, “Reconfiguring and Fine-Tuning,” explains how to reconfigure a LUN by changing its parameters or storage-processor (SP) ownership and how to change caching parameters.
Chapter 4, “Monitoring Arrays and Displaying System Statistics,” explains how to display status and statistics information for arrays and their SPs, LUNs, disk modules, and caching. It also explains the roles of polling and statistics logging.
Chapter 5, “Identifying and Correcting Failures,” describes how the RAID GUI displays information about array health, and outlines procedures you can use to detect and correct problems.
Chapter 6, “The Fibre Channel RAID Command-Line Interface,” explains how to use the ssmcli command for communicating with RAID fibre channel storage.
Chapter 7, “The Fibre Channel Non-RAID Command-Line Interface,” explains how to use the fccli command for communicating with non-RAID (JBOD) fibre channel storage.
Appendix A, “Error Recovery,” gives instructions on restarting the agent, re-establishing communication with an array, and recovering from an incorrect bind, and explains the error codes that appear in the SP event log.
Appendix B, “Server Serial Connector Pinouts,” lists pinouts for Silicon Graphics platforms that can be used with Fibre Channel RAID disk arrays.
An index completes this guide.
Besides this manual, have handy these owner's guides:
Origin FibreVault and Fibre Channel RAID Owner's Guide
owner's guide(s) for the server(s) in your configuration
If you don't have these guides handy, the information is also online in the following locations:
IRIS InSight Library: from the Toolchest, choose Help > Online Books > SGI EndUser or SGI Admin, and select the applicable owner's or hardware guide.
Technical Publications Library: if you have access to the Internet, enter the following URL in your Web browser location window:
http://techpubs.sgi.com/library/
In command syntax descriptions and examples, square brackets ( [ ] ) or angle brackets ( < > ) surrounding an argument indicate an optional argument. Variable parameters are in italics. Replace these variables with the appropriate string or value.
Command-line flags and switches are in boldface regular type; these are preceded with dashes or with a plus or minus, for example, -e.
Commands, IRIX filenames, and document titles are in italics.
Messages and prompts that appear onscreen are shown in fixed-width type. Entries that are to be typed exactly as shown are in boldface fixed-width type.
Names of buttons in the RAID GUI are shown in italics. Menu selections are indicated with this convention: Array > Write Cache State > Disable means choose Write Cache State in the Array menu, and then choose Disable in the popup menu that appears.