Solved: converting a MSA Switch 2/8 into a set of FC HBA

nuno.reis · ‎02-18-2008

Im a FC newbie with lots of doubts. I need to connect a blade server enclosure with a HP MSA1000. However, the MSA1000 has a MSA SAN switch 2/8, a brocade module switch customized for hp MSA, which does not support NPIV, required feature for the upcoming blade servers. Im proposing a MDS9124 to interconnect the enclosure and the MSA, but the only FC ports I have on the MSA, are the 2/8 switch. So, my question is: is there any way to convert the eight port switch into a set of HBA, letting the dirty work for my brand new MDS?

dmcloon · ‎02-18-2008

You should be able to do it. You will need two MDS. For the HP Blade Centre enclosure add an MDS 9124 Blade Switch and configure it to run in NPV mode. Cable it to a core MDS (eg MDS 9124 or 92xx) with NPIV enabled. Then cable the core MDS to your Brocade in the MSA cabinet. All the MDS ports should be in the same VSAN and ensure that VSAN is configured for Interop mode 1. For NPIV support on 9124 (core) you will need at least SAN-OS 3.2(2). You will also need to check Brocade for which Fabric OS version they support with MDS on 3.2(2) and later.

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dmcloon · ‎02-18-2008

You should be able to do it. You will need two MDS. For the HP Blade Centre enclosure add an MDS 9124 Blade Switch and configure it to run in NPV mode. Cable it to a core MDS (eg MDS 9124 or 92xx) with NPIV enabled. Then cable the core MDS to your Brocade in the MSA cabinet. All the MDS ports should be in the same VSAN and ensure that VSAN is configured for Interop mode 1. For NPIV support on 9124 (core) you will need at least SAN-OS 3.2(2). You will also need to check Brocade for which Fabric OS version they support with MDS on 3.2(2) and later.

nuno.reis · ‎02-23-2008

Hi,

Thanks for your reply. It actually worked. However with a fewer changes. The Enclosure already has a blade called "HP virtual connect", and it seems works like a mds blade switch. I upgraded de san os to the latest version to support npiv and enabled it. The bigger problem was the msa brocade switch, because it didnt had isl license, and it seems that it more expensive than the 9124 itself. So, I removed the msa switch and replaced by single port HBA blade. Now its working.

Thanks for you help