VMkernel log & SCSI Sense Codes

[Najtsob]

Hi,

Should be there errors and scsi sense codes if your VM data gets corrupted, or is it possible that content of the block itself is corrupted (e.g. bitflip) in such way that on scsi level looks OK, but the data itself is not valid ?

It is happening from time to time that random VM just dies or starts reporting various FS errors, like would you have bad hdd on physical server. This happens only with VMs on FC array while those on iscsi one don't have a problem. Array and san fabric is supposedly OK, so I am looking on server and vmware side if there is anything that would indicate what is going on.

best regards

[Finikiez]

1.1.29.0 is old version.

Update it to the latest recommended version 1.1.77.0

http://vibsdepot.hpe.com/hpq/recipes/Nov2017VMwareRecipeSPP201704_22.5.1.pdf

[daphnissov · Accepted solution]

I did some digging, and a couple of things you have to fix first.

1. The firmware on that array (it looks like a P6300) is old and not supported on that version of ESXi. This alone can cause issues, even when just changing protocols. You must get to at least 11200000 as shown in the HCL.

  2. As also posted, your version of the qlnativefc driver is *extremely* old. I've had bad experiences with this driver and instability issues that have arisen from outdated and buggy versions. The latest is qlnativefc 1.1.77.1-1 and if you check the release notes that shows a change log of fixes between your version and the target version, it is a huge list.

You may also want to boot the latest SPP that has firmware for G7s to see if it has a later version of the HBA firmware.

But these top two things you must fix before trying to troubleshoot further. It's always dangerous to make assumptions about what *should* work when you deviate from the supported compatibility list, so true up first then continue. It's likely that with these couple of fixes your problem may disappear. You'd be surprised how many times I've found that to be the case over the years.

[daphnissov]

And lastly, as I said earlier, you need to get off U2 and onto the latest patch rev. Using the version of Ubuntu you're using, being that it's not supported, is also not recommended. Again, don't make assumptions that because it appears to work fine over iSCSI that it should also work fine over FC. If it's an unsupported OS don't do it in production. If you can prove the same issues with an earlier version of the OS, that's a different story.

[Najtsob]

Thank you for extensive answer I'll check everything and report back how it goes.

I really appreciate your effort.

Regarding Ubuntu 14.04 it is supported on 5.5U2, except if am am looking something wrong.

[daphnissov]

You're right, and my apologies. Ubuntu 14.04 32- and 64-bit architectures are in fact supported on 5.5 U2.

[Najtsob]

Thank you for your help, I will let you know how it turns out, once the things will move.

[Najtsob]

It seems to be working after everything was upgraded.