Date: October 4, 2011

VNX Issues and Recommended Actions

The following table (which can also be found in EMC Knowledgebase article emc271233) is a list of
known VNX issues or topics and workarounds as well as recommended solutions, as applicable.
Important: This list was accurate at publication time but may have since been updated. Always check
EMC Knowledgebase article emc271233 and its referenced Knowledgebase articles for the latest
information.
Note: The EMC Knowledgebase articles in the Solution column of this table provide detailed information
about the Issue and its solution. To read an article, go to the EMC Online support web page, click the
Search Support tab, and then enter the Knowledgebase article number. Next, select Solutions from the
drop-down menu, and then click Search.
Issue

Description

Workaround

Solution

Fix

VIA hangs or
stalls during
setup

VNX Installation Assistant (VIA)

hangs during Pre-Configuration
apply stage

Wait 15 minutes to restart the

VIA application, then try to verify
the status of the system using
the referenced knowledgebase
solution.

emc261729

Corrected in
File OE
7.0.35.3.

VIA
initialization
fails due to
Cache Dirty
Control LUNs

Cache Dirty LUNs can occur during

system shutdown due to issue with
VNX OE for Block 05.31.000.5.006

If the VIA initialization fails,

output the log from SP A, and
search for Cache Dirty entries.
If "Cache Dirty" entries are
noted, escalate this issue to your
Service Provider.

ETA emc267297.
Escalate all
Cache Dirty LUN
issues to your
Service Provider
for corrective
action.

Contact your
Service Provider
for assistance.

ETA
emc265311

Corrected
in VNX for Block
OE 05.31.000.5
.007 and later,
CDES firmware
1.16.

On the control station:

Escalate any
unresolved VIA
or Unisphere
login issues to
your Service
Provider.

Corrected in VNX
for Block OE
05.31.000.5.007
and later.

# /nasmcd/sbin/navicli h
<spa_ip> getlog > spa.log
# cat spa.log |grep Cache Dirty
CDES DAE
enclosure
firmware

Common Disk Enclosure Software

(CDES) issue after 42.7 days-will not
recognize new disk, LCC may reset
or possibly hang, causing a DU
situation.

Upgrade to VNX OE for Block

05.31.000.5.007 or later.

Issue

Description

Workaround

Solution

Fix

USM Dual
Control Station
Issue

USM > Software Install > Install

VNX OE fails with Dual Control
Station configuration is not
supported message on systems with
Dual Control Stations.

Dual Control Station upgrades are

not supported using USM, except
for the Install VNX for Block
wizard, which allows the User to
upgrade Block OE and add
Enablers/Firmware to the array.

emc266770

Dual Control
Stations for all
USM Install
Software wizards
will be supported
in a future
version of VNX
OE.

MirrorView
Support

MirrorView (both MV/S and MV/A)

between VNX and CX4, CX3, AX4-5 is
supported, but naviseccli must be
used to establish the connections.
No GUI support.

Must use CLI commands to setup

MirrorView.

emc262013

Corrected in VNX
for Block
OE 05.31.000.5.0
02.

Single VNX
Domains, no
Legacy
management

The first release of the VNX product,

and Unisphere version 1.1, does not
support legacy domains or adding
other VNX systems to a VNX domain.

The VNX Unisphere multi-domain

capability, and legacy domain
management, will be provided in
the next scheduled maintenance
release.

emc266655

Corrected in the
VNX for File OE
7.0.35.3, VNX for
Block OE
05.31.000.5.502,
and Unisphere
1.1.25.1.0129.

Invalid Time
Zone issue in
VIA

Certain time zone settings in VIA do

not work during the initialization
process.

Click Back in VIA until you reach

the time zone settings screen,
and then change the setting to a
Region/City time zone that
matches your location.

emc261627

Corrected in the
VNX for File OE
7.0.35.3.

Initialization
utility fails to
discover VNX
Block system

Unisphere Initialization Utility for

Block fails to discover Block systems
during installation.

If running Cisco Security: the

Cisco Security Agent may be
blocking the wizard. Set CSA
service to disabled, reboot
system, and retry Initialization
Utility.

emc265863

N/A

If running another Firewall

product, check if it is blocking
the Initialization Utility
application, disable and retry.
Time issue
between SP
and Client

Time difference between client and

SPs creates certificate date problem,
preventing access to Unisphere

Follow the workaround outlined in

the Knowledgebase solution.

emc247504

Will be corrected
in the next VNX
OE for Block
maintenance
release.

Invalid Time
issue on Client

Unisphere login from Client system

fails with the "Certificate has invalid
date"

Set the Windows workstation PC

Clock ahead to a time slightly
before the "Valid From" date in
the details of the Certificate
(generally about 6 hours ahead)

emc265473

Environmental

Issue

Description

Workaround

Solution

Fix

Dual Control
Station (CS)
operation with
VNX domains
and Unisphere.

Unisphere login works with either

CS0 or CS1 running as the Primary
Control Station, however, there is a
domain IP update process that
takes approximately 15 minutes to
complete after every Failover or
Failback operation, during which
Unisphere will be unable to log into
the VNX system.

Expected operation of dual Control

Stations with Unisphere.

emc260055

No fix, just an
explanation of
how Control
Station failover
and failback
works within the
Unisphere
domain.

Changing
Control Station
and/or SP IP
addresses.

Changing the Control Station and/or

SP IP Addresses after the system has
been initialized.

Contact your Service Provider for

guidance and assistance when
changing Control Station and/or
SP IP addresses. Also, note that
the Control Station and SP IP
addresses must exist on the same
network.

emc269625

None at this
time

VIA IPMI cable

check failure

VIA initialization with dual Control

Stations may fail with Secondary
Control Station is unreachable on
IPMI network.

The solution explains possible

workaround steps to get past the
issue.

emc269717

Corrected in VNX
for File OE
7.0.35.3.

Non-disruptive
Blade enclosure
fault LED and
alert.

Under certain conditions a fault LED

will be illuminated on the Blade
Enclosure and a CB x Csum Error
will appear in a System Alert.

Although the issue has no impact

to the system, to correct the
resume prom checksum issue,
contact your Service Provider.
The issue can be resolved without
disrupting user access.

emc267489

Corrected in VNX
for File OE
7.0.35.3.

Recommended
cache values
for VNX arrays
on initial
system
installation.

Recommended cache settings on

VNX Block and Unified arrays.

Block systems ship without cache

enabled, and Unified systems set
cache defaults contrary to best
practices. Use the guidance
outlined in the knowledgebase
solution to set the basic Read and
Write cache values for the VNX
array.

emc267304

Installation
documentation
for Block-only
systems, and in
File OE 7.0.35.3
for Unified/File
systems.

Root user
workaround
for Unisphere
access to the
Control
Station.

A workaround is required that

provides Control Station root privilege
to a Storage domain administrator
account in order to manage Control
Station settings, ConnectHome, etc.

Set up a domain account and

assign root UID=0 privileges on
the Control Station for the
selected Storage administrator
user account.

emc258105

Corrected in VNX
for File OE
7.0.35.3. Root
User workaround
no longer
required. Login
as Root Scope
Local to manage
Control Station
properties.

Unisphere
connection
error or login
error

Unisphere connection or login error

after using nas_config -ssl to
generate an SSL certificate

Regenerate the SSL certificate

using
/nas/sbin/nas_ca_certificate generate.

emc266560

Corrected in
VNX for File OE
7.0.13.1,
7.0.14.0, and
7.0.35.3.

Issue

Description

Workaround

Solution

Fix

Password
change to
VNX
administrator
account
causes
communicati
on failure
between File
and Block
components.

After a Global administrator

password change, the File Control
Station can no longer communicate
with the Block backend.

Run nas_storage -m id=1 -s

to synchronize the administrator
password credentials to the
Control Station.

emc261195

Corrected in VNX
for File OE
7.0.35.3.

The Linux
Control
Station IP
alias feature
is disabled in
the first
release of the
VNX File OE.

The Control Station IP Alias feature

is not supported in the 7.0.12.0
release.

The IP alias feature is disabled on

the Linux Control Station. Cannot
use an IP alias for dual Control
Station environments at this time.

emc259516

VNX for File OE

7.0.35.3 reenables IPalias
feature for
Control Station.

Unisphere 1.1
cannot be
used to
manage legacy
Celerra or
CLARiiON

The Unisphere 1.1 release cannot be

used to manage any Celerra or
CLARiiON legacy systems.

Use a Unisphere Client version

appropriate for the legacy system,
or use a web browser connection
to manage the system.

emc261017

Corrected in VNX
for File OE
7.0.35.3.

VNX for File

OE version vs.
VNX for Block
OE version
compatibility
table.

Table that displays compatible File

OE to Block OE versions.

Refer to this knowledgebase

solution when determining which
VNX OE versions are compatible
between File and Block
components.

emc261310

N/A

Restarting the
VIA program.

Outlines the steps required to

re-enter the VIA initialization process
if the process was interrupted prior
to completing all initialization steps.

Refer to the solution for the

necessary steps to restart the VIA
when initializing the VNX
Unified/File system.

emc270909

N/A

Control Station
558 Callhome
events when
Blades cabled
to SPS units

Blade enclosure power cables are

incorrectly plugged into SPS power
outlets on VNX5300/5500 Unified
systems, and weekly SP battery test
results in CRITICAL 558 Callhome
events.

Fix is to re-cable the Blade

Enclosure power cables correctly,
and remove from SPS power outlet
and plug into the rack power
distribution units (PDUs).

emc273879

Installation misconfiguration
issue.

Blade panics
from Mac OS X
Lion (10.7)
client access

Mac OS X Lion (10.7) CIFS clients

can panic the VNX Blades (Data
Movers) due to unexpected null
values, resulting
in Rolling Panics.

Stop access from all Mac OS X Lion

(10.7) clients, apply patch to stop
rolling panics.

emc263721

Apply patch to
stabilize, upgrade
to 7.0.13.1 or
later.

Issue

Description

Workaround

Solution

Fix

Recommended
Cache Page
and
Watermark
settings

Default Cache Page and Watermark

settings may not be set out of the
factory in accordance with best
practice values.

See emc274779 for the

recommended Cache Page and
Watermark settings on the VNX
arrays. See emc267304 for Best
Practice settings for Read and
Write Cache.

emc274779

N/A

Configuring
domain
system
account on
VNX.

Upgrades to
[7.0.35.3/05.31.000.5.502] do not
automatically assign the System
Account attribute, and requires
manual intervention.

7.0.35.3 factory installs create

sysadmin by default as the
System Account for the VNX
Unified/File, but upgrades to
7.0.35.3 does not. See emc270977
for the procedure to configure the
System Account.

emc270977

N/A

Setup of SP IP
addresses
may fail
during VIA
initialization.

During the VIA initialization process,

occasionally the SP IP setup fails
with: Backend IP and Name
Setup | Could not change IP
address of the SP.

Follow the guidance found in

emc275841 to resolve the failure
and complete the VIA setup.

emc275841

Corrected in VNX
for File OE
7.0.35.3.

CRITICAL
alerts and
Callhomes for
mismatched
OE versions

When upgrading from 7.0.12.07.0.14.0 and 05.31.000.5.006-012 OE

versions, to the OE versions
[7.0.35.3/05.31.000.5.502], the
system will Callhome if both the File
and Block are not updated to OE
7.0.35.3/05.31.000.5.502 within 4
hours.

See emc276260 for more details.

Essentially the system will
Callhome after the File/Block OE
versions become mismatched after
4 hours, then every 48 hours
thereafter until corrected.

emc276260

N/A

SAS Driver
issue leads to
Drive Errors &
SP Panics

Multiple SP Bug check issues with the

SAS driver interaction and the disk
drives can lead to drive errors,
timeouts, and eventual SP panics.

No workaround.

emc271461

Fixed in Block
OE patch
05.31.000.5.011.

Disabling the
Unisphere
workaround
for root access
to Control
Station
functions

With the release of VNX OE

7.0.35.3/05.31.000.5.502, the root
user workaround for Unisphere
management of the Control Station is
no longer required.

See emc270273 to disable the

workaround that was published
with emc258105.

emc270273

Corrected in VNX
for File OE
7.0.35.3.

Configuring an
IPalias for dual
VNX Control
Stations

With the release of VNX OE

7.0.35.3/05.31.000.5.502, the
Control Station IPalias feature has
been restored.

See emc277437 for an example of

how to configure an IPalias using
dual VNX Control Stations,
including Control Station failover
and failback.

emc277437

Corrected in VNX
for File OE
7.0.35.3.

Domain may
become unfused and
broken

The VNX domain may break after

changing the Control Stations IP
address, or conducting Control
Station failover operations.

See emc277605 for more

information on this issue, which
points to the appropriate
knowledgebase solution to re-fuse
the domain.

emc277605

Future service
pack

Issue

Description

Workaround

Solution

Fix

SP POST
health check
upgrade
failure
message

Both File OE and Block OE upgrade

checks will flag SP POST versions
36.80 or below, and block the
upgrade process.

See emc277473 for more

information related to the FCO
F041211FC, and bad POST
versions on the SPs.

emc277473

FCO F041211FC

NDU of Block
Enablers can
disable READ
cache and
reduce Write
cache values

Certain array enablers require

dedicated memory resources. An
NDU of certain enablers will forcibly
reduce Read and Write cache values,
and disable READ cache.

See emc277689 for an example of

an Enabler NDU that changes
cache values and disables READ
cache.

emc277689

N/A

VNX
Unified/File
systems do
not call home
for all Block
events.

The Unified/File Control Station

template file is outdated and does
not properly flag and dispatch all
VNX Block CallHome events for
callhome.

See ETA emc277773 for more

information and a workaround for
the issue.

emc277773

To be fixed in a
Service Pack.

Adding or
Removing VNX
systems to
local domains

This knowledgebase shows how to

add or remove a VNX system from a
Local domain with VNX OE
7.0.35.3/05.31.000.5.502.

See emc278385 for Unisphere

examples of adding or removing a
system from the Local domain, as
well as what happens to domain
accounts in the system being
added or removed.

emc278385

N/A

Replication
checkpoints
can become
corrupt and
lead to Data
Mover panics

There is a regression issue with

7.0.35.3, where a file systems
replication checkpoints can become
corrupt if F-RDE deduplication is
enabled, causing the Blade to panic.

Please contact your Service

Provider for assistance regarding
this issue.

ETA emc277607

File OE patch
7.0.35.301 will
prevent server
panic.

Copyright 2011 EMC Corporation. All rights reserved.

Published October - 2011
EMC believes the information in this publication is accurate as of its publication date. The information is subject to change
without notice.
THE INFORMATION IN THIS PUBLICATION IS PROVIDED AS IS. EMC CORPORATION MAKES NO REPRESENTATIONS OR
WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND WITH RESPECT TO THE INFORMATION IN THIS PUBLICATION, AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIMS
IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
Use, copying, and distribution of any EMC software described in this publication requires an applicable software license.
For the most up-to-date regulatory document for your product line, go to the Technical Documentation and Advisories
section on EMC Powerlink.