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Knowledge Base

Some reasons why ESX hosts may have problems accessing SAN storage when using Emulex HBAs (1004157)

Last Updated: 8/15/2013Categories: Total Views: 9414Language:
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Symptoms

These messages appear on the ESX Server host console at boot time. The ESX Server host is booting from local storage and it is attached to a SAN using Emulex HBAs.

blk: queue cf3f2014, I/O limit 4294967295MB (mask 0xffffffffffffffff)
scsi::resize_dma_pool: WARNING, dma_sectors=6864, wanted=42480, scaling
scsi::resize_dma_pool: WARNING, dma_sectors=6864, wanted=31872, scaling
:
scsi::resize_dma_pool: WARNING, dma_sectors=6864, wanted=7584, scaling
Warning, no enough memory, pool not expanded
lpfc1:0754:FPe:SCSI timeout Date: xc0fea5fc x9c x15d

Note: The same messages also appear when you reload the Emulex driver manually.

At runtime, you see these messages in the file /var/log/vmkernel:

Dec 12 04:01:05 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:56:42.006 cpu1:1077)<4>lpfc1:0754:FPe:SCSI timeout Data: x3e8518c4 x9a x14 x778
Dec 12 04:01:20 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:56:57.128 cpu2:1085)WARNING: SCSI: 5432: READ of handleID 0x1c2eb5
Dec 12 04:01:20 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:56:57.144 cpu2:1034)SCSI: 8031: vmhba1:0:0:0 status = 0/3 0x0 0x0 0x0
Dec 12 04:01:20 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:56:57.144 cpu2:1034)SCSI: 8119: vmhba1:0:0:0 Retry (abort after timeout)
Dec 12 04:01:20 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:56:57.144 cpu2:1034)SCSI: 3174: vmhba1:0:0:0 Abort cmd due to timeout, s/n=4, attempt 1
Dec 12 04:01:20 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:56:57.144 cpu2:1034)LinSCSI: 3636: Aborting cmds with world 1024, originHandle 0x5206608, originSN 4 from vmhba1:1:0
Dec 12 04:01:20 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:56:57.144 cpu2:1034)<4>lpfc1:0712:FPe:SCSI layer issued abort device Data: x0 x0
Dec 12 04:01:25 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:57:02.006 cpu1:1078)<4>lpfc1:0754:FPe:SCSI timeout Data: x3e8518c4 x9a x14 xd2c
Dec 12 04:01:25 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:57:02.286 cpu2:1034)<4>lpfc1:0749:FPe:Completed Abort Task Set Data: x0 x0 x512
Dec 12 04:01:25 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:57:02.286 cpu2:1034)LinSCSI: 2604: Forcing host status from 7 to SCSI_HOST_OK
Dec 12 04:01:25 kirk vmkernel: 10:02:57:02.286 cpu2:1034)LinSCSI: 2606: Forcing device status from SDSTAT_GOOD to SDSTAT_BUSY

You may also see messages in the vmkernel or messages log similar to:

vmkernel: 0:23:53:10.449 cpu2:4165)WARNING: SCSILinuxAbortCommands Failed, Driver lpfc820, for vmhba2
vmkernel: 0:00:00:23.386 cpu6:4110)WARNING: vmklinux26: __request_region: This message has repeated 1 times: Region conflict @ 0x0 => 0x3

Purpose

This articles assist with the troubleshooting communication issues to the storage array when using Emulex Host Bus Adapters (HBA).

Resolution

This issue can have a few possible causes. Check for all the following and take appropriate actions to fix them.

Exceeding ESX LUN and/or Path Maximum Limits.

Presenting more than the maximum number of LUNs allowable per server (256) (or 128 at installation time)

Exceeding maximum number of paths per server (1024)

See Limiting the Number of LUNs Visible to a Server (1467).

Note: This article also applies to ESX 3.x hosts.

See the VMware Infrastructure 3 Configuration Maximums.

Update the HBA Emulex HBA firmware.

Consider reseating the HBAs on the server and trying different PCI slots. Some PCI-X slots operate at different bus speeds (for example, 100Mhz vs. 133MHz). It is possible that the HBA is not able to issue commands through the PCI bridge to the device. As a result, I/O commands are aborted then retried.

On SUN's X4200 servers that use re-branded Emulex HBAs and running ESX server 3.01/3.02, install patches ESX-1003355 (ESX 3.01) and patch ESX-1003177 (ESX 3.02).

If this is seen on multiple ESX servers, it is likely that there is a problem at the FC fabric level or at the storage array level. Looking at the switch logs and/or the array logs, you may find some additional clues. For example, in one instance, the log messages above were seen at the same time that the switch logs were showing port link failures:

2006 Dec 8 08:40:47 mlvt1c13as0 %PORT-5-IF_DOWN_LINK_FAILURE: %$VSAN 150%$ Interface fc7/15 is down (Link failure)
2006 Dec 8 08:40:47 mlvt1c13as0 %PORT-5-IF_DOWN_LINK_FAILURE: %$VSAN 150%$ Interface fc7/15 is down (Link failure)
2006 Dec 8 08:42:18 mlvt1c13as0 %PORT-5-IF_UP: %$VSAN 150%$ Interface fc7/15 is up in mode F
2006 Dec 20 13:08:25 mlvt1c13as0 %PORT-5-IF_DOWN_LINK_FAILURE: %$VSAN 150%$ Interface fc7/15 is down (Link failure)
2006 Dec 20 13:08:25 mlvt1c13as0 %PORT-5-IF_DOWN_LINK_FAILURE: %$VSAN 150%$ Interface fc7/15 is down (Link failure)

These link failures are normally expected to trigger "NO_CONNECT" SCSI sense information from the HBA driver to the vmkernel which would then trigger subsequent failover atteempts. But in some instances, we do not see these sense codes in the logs. If you see link failures on multiple ports on the FC switch, consider replacing the GBIC modules on the fabric switch or try using a different switch altogther. The link failures above are a clear indication of a hardware link problem.

If the switch logs do not show anything substantial then we can test hosts-fabric connectivity on per-host basis. For example, assume that you have two separate fabrics using one FC switch each (Fab-A) and (Fab-B) and assume that each ESX server has at least one connection to each fabric. One way to determine which FC switch may be problematic is by disconnecting the HBAs from Fab-A and monitoring the logs while the ESX server is accessing the array through the other remaining fabric (Fab-B). This test can also be accomplished by disabling specific paths on the ESX server but it is more labor intensive since you need to disable specific paths for each LUN. The next step is to disconnect the host from Fab-B and reconnect it to Fab-A. Then monitor the logs again.

Detectable by VMware SkylineTM

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