Replacing Channels That Use Soft WWNs

The Soft WWN feature enables Fibre Channel ports to be identified using a substitute World Wide Name (WWN). This allows for the replacement of a Fibre Channel HBA without having to remap to the WWN of the new HBA.  In the event of an HBA failure or replacement, the Soft WWN of the port and node will be used for the new HBA. This feature makes channel replacement quick and simple and we highly recommend its use.

  1. Have a replacement channel available in the storage server.

  2. In SANmanager Channels tab, select the storage server in the left pane.

  3. In the list in the right pane, information is displayed for all channels for the storage server. The channel to be replaced appears with a red “X. Make a note of the channel alias and channel ID of the original channel.

  4. In the SANsymphony Console, open the Fibre-Channel Manager.

  5. Select the new replacement channel in the left pane, and choose Properties from the context menu.

  6.  In the Basic tab of the Properties dialog box, select the Use Soft World Wide Names checkbox, and enter the soft WWN for the Port Name and Node Name of the original channel. Click OK.

  7. A message appears confirming re-initialization of the channel. Click Yes.

  8. In SANmanager Menu bar, select View>Refresh Existing Configuration.

  9. In SANmanager Channels tab, select the storage server in the left pane.

  10. In the right pane, you should see the new replacement channel with the original channel information. If the original channel is still listed with a red “X,” select the channel and choose Delete from the context menu.

  11. Apply the configuration.

Notes:
  • If a card is being replaced, and the storage server is refreshed or restarted before the original card is removed, the original card will be rediscovered and given a new default name.

  • Mulit-port cards have at least two fibre channel ports. You must treat the replacement of such cards as if you were replacing distinct HBAs (2 or more). In other words, there will be two (or more)  WWNs to discover and SANmanager will display two (or more) server channels for this HBA.

Replacing Channels That Use Soft WWNs