Procedures for Upgrading MSA1000 and Components

One of my Exchange 2003 customers was running low of space on his Exchange server data store (1 Store only – with 300GB EDB) for about 1000 users.  So, I convinced him to use the Modular SAN that he has in place and I persuaded him to Update the firmware before we attach the new LUNs to Exchange. So, I thought it would be nice to share these links for the process of updating and upgrading the MSA1000.  After the Update, I connected two LUN to the Exchange server and created 2 additional storage Groups and the folders and mount points for 12 databases.  Then, created the appropriate Storage Groups and Data Stores on Exchange System Manager and used the Exchange Tasks to Move most of the mailboxes from a Single Store to 12 distributed and well balanced newly mounted stores with the transaction logs in their own spindle. Finally, I performed and offline defragmentation of the old store to reclaim all the white space.  Now, the customer has 300 GB distributed in 12 databases with faster DISK I/O operations and a more relaxed Backup and Restore window.

For this process, you will use the MSA flash utility …this is an excerpt from the document linked below:

Flashing the MSA1000 Controller Firmware – Offline Flash Utility

The first step involved in flashing the MSA1000 firmware is to power down all servers that are connected to the MSA1000. Please follow appropriate methods to bring down applications, servers, clusters, etc.

Place the MSA1000 Firmware Upgrade CD in a server’s CD ROM drive (that is connected to the MSA1000), and power up the server. The server will boot to the MSA1000 Firmware Upgrade CD. When the utility is fully booted, the MSA1000 utility screen will appear with the options to flash the MSA1000 firmware, the Environmental Monitoring Unit, or the Fabric Switch6 (if installed).  

Go to: http://www.hp.com/go/msa1000 to check for updates that may affect your environment.

Go to the Technical Documentation page of the MSA1000 website at http://www.hp.com/go/msa1000 and use the instructions provided in the "Upgrading the MSA1000 for Enhanced Features" document. Do not use the instructions provided with the MSA1000 Support Software CD or included in the HP StorageWorks MSA1000 Installation Guide.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Alessandro Squeo