Software upgrades

The Software Upgrade panel in the SAN Volume Controller Console displays information about upgrade status and the availability of upgrades.

Introduction

Depending on the action that is performed, different information is displayed on this panel about software upgrades. Software upgrades include cluster software versions and upgrades to solid state drives (SSDs) that are located on SAN Volume Controller 2145-CF8 nodes. If the cluster is performing a cluster software upgrade, you can check the status of the upgrade. The upgrade is applied to individual nodes in a controlled sequence. The upgrade is considered complete when the cluster software level of all the nodes matches the cluster software level of the cluster, and a Software Install completed event is logged in the cluster error log. If a problem is encountered during the upgrade, nodes can revert to the original software level, and a Software Install failed event is logged in the cluster error log.
Note: If a cluster consists of just one node or if any of the I/O groups have just one node, access to the application data is lost during a cluster software upgrade when the single node accepts the upgrade.

If the cluster is not performing a cluster software upgrade, the panel displays the level of software that is installed on the cluster. You are also given the option to copy a software upgrade file to the cluster. You can install a new software level after copying the upgrade file to the cluster. If you want to upgrade the cluster software, you can download the software upgrade files from the following Web site:

Support for SAN Volume Controller (2145) Web site.

To copy the upgrade file to the cluster a file to the that is running the SAN Volume Controller Console the upgrade file must be downloaded on the system that is running the Web browser.

Cluster software upgrade files that are available for installation on the cluster are displayed in a table. You can select one of these files and apply it to the cluster. When that new level is applied, it is automatically installed on all the nodes that are in the cluster. Cluster upgrades automatically get deleted after a successful upgrade.

Note: During the cluster software upgrade, a check is performed to verify that compatible hardware is installed. If hardware is not compatible with the version of the software that you are installing, the installation fails. Ensure that the hardware in the cluster is compatible with the version of the software that is being installed.

For firmware updates to SSDs, each SAN Volume Controller 2145-CF8 node can contain up to four solid-state drives (SSDs) which are presented to SAN Volume Controller Console as managed disks (MDisks). Each of these MDisks contains two programmable components that are stored on the drive itself which can be upgraded. The upgradeable components include the drive firmware and the Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), which is a programmable logic chip that is stored on the SSDs in the node. If you want to upgrade the SSD firmware, you can download the upgrade files from the following Web site: Support for SAN Volume Controller (2145) Web site.

Attributes

The following attributes are displayed:
Select
Allows you to select the upgrade file and select and action to complete from the task list.
File Name
Displays the name of the upgrade file. Cluster software upgrade files are automatically deleted when they have been successfully uploaded and applied to the all nodes within the cluster. SSD firmware upgrades remain listed on the panel since they can be applied to multiple drives within the cluster. When you have successfully upgraded the SSD drives in the cluster, you can delete these files.

Actions

You can select one of the following tasks from the task list:
  • Upload File
  • Apply Cluster Software
  • Apply MDisk Software
  • Delete
  • Delete All
Go
Click this button after selecting a task from the task list. Clicking Go launches the panel for the task that you selected.
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