DMX-2 - Device Masking Using SYMCli

Device Masking - VCMDB
Management Interface: Solutions Enabler SYMCLI

Symmetrix Model: Symmetrix DMX1000, DMX2000, DMX30 00
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Page 1
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TABLE OF CONTENTS:
To link immediately to a specific page within this procedure, position the cursor over the page
number on the right and click.
Denotes a checkpoint
• Initialize the VCMDB...........................................................................................................3

• Backup the VCMDB............................................................................................................5
• Refresh Directors with VCMDB data ................................................................................... 7
• Restore the VCMDB ...........................................................................................................9
• Masking Devices .............................................................................................................. 12
• Unmasking Devices.......................................................................................................... 16
• Updating Masking Records When Replacing HBAs........................................................... 21
VCMDB_Initialize_sym00 2
• Initialize the VCMDB
Overview P Done
This procedure is usually performed during the initial Device Masking setup. A Symmetrix
device is reserved as “VCM state enabled” in the Symmetrix array and is initialized and
formatted as the Device Masking VCMDB. The initialization clears the disk device of any
current data in the process of formatting the database. Use caution before proceeding.
This procedure is based on contents from the following EMC manual:

• EMC Solutions Enabler Symmetrix Array Controls CLI Product Guide
This document can be obtained from the EMC Powerlink website at:
http://Powerlink.EMC.com
1. Check for an existing VCMDB

The symmaskdb list database command is used to determine whether a Device Masking £
VCMDB currently exists. The syntax for this command is:
symmaskdb -sid SymmID list database
where:
SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmaskdb command is to be executed

against.
For example, to determine whether a Device Masking VCMDB exists for a Symmetrix with an
ID of 000000012345, execute the following command:
symmaskdb –sid 12345 list database
If this command is executed and a Device Masking VCMDB does not exist, you should see a
message that looks like this:
The Symmetrix device masking database has not been initialized
If the Device Masking VCMDB was initialized earlier, you might see a message that looks like
this instead:
The device masking database is empty

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2. Initialize the VCMDB
£
! Warning: Be sure you want to zero out the Device Masking VCMDB before proceeding.
If the Device Masking VCMDB contains valid information, that information will be
overwritten during the initialization process !
The symmaskdb init command is used to clear and initialize the Device Masking VCMDB.
The syntax for this command is:
symmaskdb -sid SymmID init –file BkupFileName [-vcmdb_type <3 | 4| 5 | 6>]
where:

against.
BkupFileName = The name of the file to be used to store a backup copy of the Device
Masking VCMDB. (You must specify a backup file name. As a safeguard, this command
will attempt to write the data in an existing Device Masking VCMDB to a backup file on the
host before it erases its contents.) If a Device Masking VCMDB does not yet exist, no
backup copy will be made. If a Device Masking VCMDB does exist, the backup copy will be
stored in the file specified and that file will be written to the current directory (i.e., the
directory that this command is executed from).
If you do not include the –vcmdb_type option, the default database type used is dependant
upon the size of the VCMDB device. For instance:
• If the VCMDB device is equal to or greater than 24 cylinders, but less than 48
cylinders, type 3 (available beginning with Enginuity 5670) is used.
• If the VCMDB device is equal to or greater than 48 cylinders, but less than 96
cylinders, type 4 (available beginning with Enginuity 5670) is used.
• If the VCMDB device is equal to or greater than 96 cylinders, type 5 (beginning with
Enginuity Version 5671) is used.
• If the Symmetrix array is running an Enginuity level greater than version 5770, type 6
is used by default.
For example, to initialize an existing Device Masking VCMDB for a Symmetrix with an ID of
000000012345 (and store a backup copy in a file named BackupDevMaskDB), execute the
following command:
symmaskdb –sid 12345 init –file BackupDevMaskDB
When this command is executed, you should see a message that looks something like this
(when prompted, you will have to confirm that you want to perform the initialization process):
The Symmetrix device masking database has not been initialized
The attempt to backup the database on Symmetrix 000000012345 failed beca use
the database has not been initialized.
Initialize Symmetrix SymMask database on Symmetrix 000000012345 (y/[n])? y
Symmetrix SymMask database on Symmetrix 000000012345 initialized

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If the Device Masking VCMDB was initialized earlier, you should see a message that looks like
this instead (again, when prompted, you will have to confirm that you want to perform the
initialization process):
The database on Symmetrix 000000012345 is a valid database and a backup file
was created. Completing this action wil l wipe out all records in the
database.
WARNING: All hosts will lose access to their devices on Symmetrix

000000012345.
Initialize Symmetrix SymMask database on Symmetrix 000000012345 (y/[n])? y
Symmetrix SymMask database on Symmetrix 000000012345 initi alized
Note: If the file name specified (in this case BackupDevMaskDB) corresponds to a file that
already exists in the current directory, you will see a message that looks like this instead:
Unable to create backup file, file with name already exists
The attempt to backup the database on Symmetrix 000000012345 failed so the

database can not be initialized. All data would be lost with no way to
recover.
If this is the case, either delete the existing file or specify a different file name and execute the
command again.
VCMDBBackup_sym002
• Backup the VCMDB
Overview P Done
You can create a backup file containing the current contents of the device masking
VCMDB. Often, just backing up the database on a regular basis ensures that you can
recover your established masked environment in the event of improper changes or
failure.

• EMC Solutions Enabler Symmetrix Array Controls Product Guide
3. Back up an existing VCMDB
The symmaskdb backup command is used to create a backup copy of the Device £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
Masking VCMDB. The syntax for this command is:
symmaskdb -sid SymmID backup –file BkupFile Name -noprompt
where:

against.
BkupFileName = The name of the file to be used to store the backup copy of the
Device Masking VCMDB created. (You cannot reuse backup file names; a new file
name must be provided each time this command is executed.) The backup copy will
be stored in the file specified and that file will be written to the current directory (i.e.,
the directory that this command is executed from).

Page 5
For example, to store a backup copy of an existing Device Masking VCMDB for a
Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345 in a file named BackupDevMaskDB_1, execute
the following command:
symmaskdb –sid 12345 backup –file BackupDevMaskDB_1 –noprompt
When this command is executed, you should see a message that looks something like
this:
Symmetrix SymMask database backed up to file BackupDevMaskDB_1
from Symmetrix 000000012345
Backup copies of the Device Masking VCMDB should be created periodically to ensure
that a current copy is available should recovery be required. VCMDB backup files can
vary in length, depending on how much information is in the VCMDB at the time the
backup is made.
4. Examine the Device Masking VCMDB backup file produced

The symmaskdb list database command can be used to examine the contents of a £
Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
Device Masking VCMDB backup file. The syntax for this command is:
symmaskdb list database –file BkupFileName
where:
BkupFileName = The name of a file that contains a backup copy of the Device
Masking VCMDB.
For example, to examine the contents of a Device Masking VCMDB backup file named
BackupDevMaskDB_1, execute the following command:
symmaskdb list database -file BackupDevMask DB_1
When this command is executed, you should see output that looks something like this:
File Name : BackupDevMaskDB_1
Backup from Symmetrix ID: 000000012345
Database Type : Type6

Last updated at : 03:55:26 PM on Tue Mar 31,2009
Director Identification : FA -16C

Director Port : 0
User -generated
Identifier Type Node Name Port Name Devices
---------------- ----- --------------------------------- ---------
10000000c9 6cc812 Fibre 10000000c9 6cc812 10000000c9 6cc812 000C:000D
RefreshDirfromVCMDB_sym00 2

Page 6
• Refresh Directors with VCMDB data
Overview P Done
After you have made a collective number of changes to the Device Masking VCMDB, it is
recommended that you refresh the WWN-related profile tables in director cache with the
revised VCMDB data. This procedure activates all configuration data from the VCMDB.

• EMC Product Guide
5. Back up the VCMDB

The symmaskdb backup command is used to create a backup copy of the Device Masking £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
VCMDB. The syntax for this command is:

where:

against.
BkupFileName = The name of the file to be used to store the backup copy of the Device
Masking VCMDB created. (You cannot reuse backup file names; a new file name must be
provided each time this command is executed.) The backup copy will be stored in the file
specified and that file will be written to the current directory (i.e., the directory that this
command is executed from).
For example, to store a backup copy of an existing Device Masking VCMDB for a Symmetrix
with an ID of 000000012345 in a file named BackupDevMaskDB_1, execute the following
command:
When this command is executed, you should see a message that looks something like this:
6. Refresh the Symmetrix director with VCMDB data

Update the Symmetrix array with the configuration changes by performing a director refresh £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
operation. This causes the Symmetrix director to refresh its WWN/iSCSI-related profile tables
in cache with the content data from the device masking VCMDB.
The symmaskdb refresh command is used to force a Symmetrix director to refresh its profile
tables with the contents of the Device Masking VCMDB. The syntax for this command is:
symmask -sid SymmID refresh -noprompt
where:

against.

Page 7
For example, to force a Symmetrix director to refresh its profile tables with the contents of the
Device Masking VCMDB for a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345, execute the following
command:
symmask –sid 12345 refresh –noprompt
Symmetrix FA directors updated with contents of SymMask Database
000000012345
! Caution: Before executing this command, make sure no HBAs are accessing devices
in the masked channel (in other words, make sure that no application or user activity is
taking place on the HBAs that are about to be refreshed) !
7. Run the appropriate configuration method on all affected hosts or reboot all affected hosts
Many host operating systems provide a utility that can be used to automatically configure £
devices that have been made available to a system. For example, in Windows you can use
the Device Manager to scan for hardware changes; with AIX you can execute the cfgmgr
command. Before masked devices will be made visible to a host, this utility must be run on all
hosts that have had devices added or removed (via masking changes). If no such utility exists,
the affected hosts should be rebooted.
Refer to the online help available with each host operating system for information on how to
perform online configuration changes or a reboot operation.
8. Rebuild the Symmetrix configuration database on all appropriate hosts/management servers

Any time you reconfigure a Symmetrix array by adding or removing device masking £
information, the SYMAPI configuration database should be updated on all affected

hosts/management servers that are running Solutions Enabler. This is done by executing the
following command:
symcfg discover
When executed, this command interrogates all SCSI devices available; therefore, it can take a
significant amount of time to complete.
9. Verify that the expected Symmetrix devices can be seen by the host
When all director refreshes have been performed and the SYMAPI database configuration £
update is complete, verify that all appropriately masked Symmetrix devices can be seen by
the host by executing the sympd command. The syntax for this command is:
sympd -sid SymmID list
where:
SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the sympd command is to be executed against.
For example, to obtain a list of Symmetrix devices found on a Symmetrix with an ID of

000000012345 that can be seen by a particular host, log on to that host and execute the
following command:
sympd -sid 12345 list

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Symmetrix ID: 000000012345
Device Name Directors Device

-------------------------- ------------- -----------------------------------
--
Cap
Physical Sym SA :P DA :IT Config Attribute Sts
(MB)
-------------------------- ------------- -----------------------------------
--
\\.\PHYSICALDRIVE 1 0020 08A:0 16A:D6 2 -Way Mir N/Grp'd (M) RW

4491
\\.\PHYSICALDRIVE2 0024 08A:0 16A:D4 2 -Way Mir N/Grp'd RW
898
\\.\PHYSICALDRIVE3 0025 08A:0 16B:C4 2 -Way Mir N/Grp'd RW
898
\\.\PHYSICALDRIVE4 0027 08A:0 16 B:D5 2-Way Mir N/Grp'd RW
898
\\.\PHYSICALDRIVE5 0028 08A:0 01A:D5 2 -Way Mir N/Grp'd RW
898
\\.\PHYSICALDRIVE6 0029 08A:0 01B:C5 2 -Way Mir N/Grp'd RW
898
As you can see, the output produced by the sympd command shows physical device names,
corresponding Symmetrix device names, director information, and device-specific information
for all devices that are visible to the host.
VCMDBRestore_sym00 2
• Restore the VCMDB
Overview P Done
This procedure explains how to restore a VCMDB from a backup file.
10. Examine the Device Masking VCMDB backup file

The symmaskdb list database command can be used to examine the contents of a £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
Device Masking VCMDB backup file. The syntax for this command is:
symmaskdb list database –file BkupFileName
where:
Masking VCMDB.
For example, to examine the contents of a Device Masking VCMDB backup file named
BackupDevMaskDB_1, execute the following command:

Page 9
symmaskdb list database -file BackupDevMask DB_1
File Name : BackupDevMaskDB_1
Backup from Symmetrix ID: 000000012345


Director Port : 0
User -generated
---------------- ----- --------------------------------- ---------
10000000c940a8a3 Fibre 10000000c940a8a3 10000000c940a8a3 000C:000D
11. Restore the VCMDB

£
! Warning: Restoring the Device Masking VCMDB from a backup file that is not up-
to-date can result in the loss of device masking information. If device masking
information is lost, devices will no longer be available to a host. !
The symmaskdb restore command is used to restore the Device Masking VCMDB from
a backup file stored on a host. The syntax for this command is:
symmaskdb -sid SymmID restore –file BkupFileName [-

skip_authentication]
where:

against.
Masking VCMDB.
If the -skip_authentication option is specified, authentication information in a

Device Masking VCMDB backup file is not restored.
Note: This command must be executed from the directory where the file containing a
backup copy of the Device Masking VCMDB resides.
For example, to restore the Device Masking VCMDB for a Symmetrix with an ID of
000000012345 from a backup file named BackupDevMaskDB_1, execute the following
command:
symmaskdb -sid 12345 restore -file BackupDevMaskDB_1
To restore the Device Masking VCMDB for a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345

from a backup file named BackupDevMaskDB_1, but not restore the authentication
information, execute the following command instead:
symmaskdb -sid 12345 restore -file BackupDevMaskDB_1
-skip_authentication

Page 10
It is important to note that the Device Masking VCMDB is restored “as is”: Type 3 is
restored to type 3; type 4 is restored to type 4; type 5 is restored to type 5; and type 6 is
restored to type 6.
12. Examine the Device Masking VCMDB after the restore operation Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
To examine the Device Masking VCMDB after a restore operation, execute the following
command:
symmaskdb –sid SymmID list database
where:

against.
For example, to examine the Device Masking VCMDB on a Symmetrix with an ID of

000000012345, execute the following command:
symmaskdb -sid 12345 list database
Symmetrix ID : 000000012345


Director Port : 0
User -generated
---------------- ----- --------------------------------- ---------
10000000c940a8a3 Fibre 10000000c940a8a3 10000000c940a8a3 00 0C:000D
MaskingDevices_sym00 2

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• Masking Devices
Overview P Done
Masking is an operation that is used to present devices to a specific host bus adapter (HBA)
and is typically utilized when control is needed over which devices are made available to
hosts. In a Symmetrix environment, masking defines a relationship between one or more
Symmetrix devices, front-end director ports, and HBAs that reside at a host.
To perform masking, you will need access to a host that has the Solutions Enabler base
installed along with the device masking portion licensed. This host will need to have a fiber
path to the Symmetrix and be able to see the VCM device and a gatekeeper.

13. Verify that the device(s) to be masked have been mapped
To verify that the device(s) to be masked have been mapped to a front-end director, port, and £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
LUN, execute the following command:

symdev –sid SymmID show SymDevName
where:
SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symdev command is to be executed against.
SymDevName = The specific Symmetrix device that detailed information is to be displayed

for.
For example, to display detailed information about Symmetrix device 000C on a Symmetrix
with an ID of 000000012345, execute the following command:
symdev –sid 12345 show 000C
Scan the output produced and examine the section titled “Front Director Paths”. If the
Symmetrix device has been mapped, you should see something that looks like this:
Front Director Paths (1):

{
----------------------------------------------------------------------
POWERPATH DIRECTOR POR T LUN
--------- ---------- ---- -------- ---------
PdevName Type Type Num Sts VBUS TID SYMM Host
----------------------------------------------------------------------
\\.\PHYSICALDRIVE7 N/A FA 16C:0 RW 000 00 016 000
}
Repeat this step for every device to be masked. If a device to be masked has not been
mapped, you must map it to a front-end director, port, and LUN before continuing with this
procedure.
14. Get the World Wide Name (WWN) for the Host Bus Adapter (HBA) the device(s) are to be masked to
There are several tools that can be used to obtain the WWN of installed HBAs. For example, £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
Emulex provides a utility called HBAnywhere that can be used to obtain this information. If
Solutions Enabler has been installed on a host, the syminq hba command can be used as
well.

Page 12
Using either the appropriate tools on the host or the configuration documentation where this
information was recorded earlier, obtain the WWN for the HBA that one or more devices are
to be masked to.
15. Mask the appropriate devices in the Symmetrix array

The symmask command is used to mask one or more devices to a specified HBA/director-port £
channel. The syntax for this command is:
symmask -sid SymmID -wwn wwn|-awwn awwn|-iscsi iscsi |-aiscsi aiscsi

add devs StartSymDev :EndSymDev|SymDevName |SymDevName ,,,...
-dir DirNumber -p PortNumber [-noprompt]
where:
SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmask command is to be executed against.
wwn = A valid World Wide Name (WWN).
awwn = A user-given name in an ASCII WWN format.
iscsi = A valid iSCSI name.
aiscsi = A user-given name or an alias iSCSI name.
StartSymDev = The first Symmetrix device name in a range.
EndSymDev = The last Symmetrix device name in a range.
SymDevName = One or more specific Symmetrix device names.
DirNumber = A specific director number designation.
PortNumber = A specific port number designation.
Note: When masking metadevices, only the Symmetrix device name that is designated as the
metadevice head should be specified (via the SymDevName parameter).
For example, to mask Symmetrix devices 000C and 000D, (which have already been mapped
to port 0 of front-end adapter 16C on a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345), so that they
can only be accessed by an HBA that has the World Wide Name 10:00:00:00:c9:6c:c8:12,
execute the following command:
symmask –sid 12345 –wwn 10000000c9 6cc812 add devs 00 0C:000D -dir 16C -p 0
If Symmetrix devices 000C and 000D were masked to a different HBA earlier, the following
message will be displayed when this command is executed:
The following devices are already assigned in at least one entry:
000C 000D
Would you like to continue (y/[n])?
If you indicate that the mask operation is to continue, the devices will be masked for multiple

Page 13
HBAs. (If the -noprompt option is specified, the masking operation will execute automatically
without requiring user intervention.)
16. Verify that the device masking was successful

To verify that the device(s) specified were successfully masked, execute the following £
command:
symmaskdb –sid SymmID list database –dir DirNumber –p PortNumber
where:
SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmask command is to be executed against.
DirNumber = The specific director number the Symmetrix device was masked for.
PortNumber = The specific port number the Symmetrix device was masked for.
For example, to display a list of devices that have been masked for port 0 of front-end adapter
16C on a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345, execute the following command:
symmaskdb -sid 12345 list database –dir 16C –p 0


Director Port : 0
User -generated
---------------- ----- --------------------------------- ---------
10000000c96cc812 Fibre 10000000c96cc812 10000000c96cc812 000C:000D

The symmaskdb backup command is used to create a backup copy of the Device Masking £
where:

against.
BkupFileName = The name of the file to be used to store the backup copy of the Device
Masking VCMDB created. (You cannot reuse backup file names; a new file name must be
provided each time this command is executed.) The backup copy will be stored in the file
specified and that file will be written to the current directory (i.e., the directory that this
command is executed from).
For example, to store a backup copy of an existing Device Masking VCMDB for a Symmetrix
with an ID of 000000012345 in a file named BackupDevMaskDB_1, execute the following

Page 14
command:


Update the Symmetrix array with the configuration changes by performing a director refresh £
operation. This causes the Symmetrix director to refresh its WWN/iSCSI-related profile tables
in cache with the content data from the device masking VCMDB.
The symmaskdb refresh command is used to force a Symmetrix director to refresh its profile
tables with the contents of the Device Masking VCMDB. The syntax for this command is:
where:

against.
For example, to force a Symmetrix director to refresh its profile tables with the contents of the
Device Masking VCMDB for a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345, execute the following
command:

000000012345
! Caution: Before executing this command, make sure no HBAs are accessing devices
in the masked channel (in other words, make sure that no application or user activity is
taking place on the HBAs that are about to be refreshed). !
devices that have been made available to a system. For example, in Windows you can use
the Device Manager to scan for hardware changes; with AIX you can execute the cfgmgr
command. Before masked devices will be made visible to a host, this utility must be run on all
hosts that have had devices added or removed (via masking changes). If no such utility exists,
the affected hosts should be rebooted.
Refer to the online help available with each host operating system for information on how to
perform online configuration changes or a reboot operation.

hosts/management servers that are running Solutions Enabler. This is done by executing the
following command:
symcfg discover

Page 15
When executed, this command interrogates all SCSI devices available; therefore, it can take a
significant amount of time to complete.
UnmaskDevices_sym00 2
• Unmasking Devices
Overview P Done
This procedure provides the syntax and examples for unmasking devices.
21. Get the World Wide Name (WWN) for the Host Bus Adapter (HBA) the device(s) are to be unmasked
from £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
There are several tools that can be used to obtain the WWN of installed HBAs. For
example, Emulex provides a utility called HBAnywhere that can be used to obtain this
information. If Solutions Enabler has been installed on a host, the syminq hba
command can be used as well.
Using either the appropriate tools on the host or the configuration documentation where
this information was recorded earlier, obtain the WWN for the HBA that one or more
devices are to be unmasked from.
22. Unmask the appropriate devices

The symmask command is used to remove one or more devices from a masked £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
HBA/director-port channel. The syntax for this command is:

remove devs StartSymDev :EndSymDev |SymDevName |SymDevName ,,,...
-dir DirNumber -p PortNumber [-force]
or
delete -dir DirNumber -p PortNumber | -dir all –p all [-login]
where:
SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmask command is to be executed

against.
wwn = A valid World Wide Name (WWN).
awwn = A user-given name in an ASCII WWN format.
iscsi = A valid iSCSI name.
aiscsi = A user-given name or an alias iSCSI name.
StartSymDev = The first Symmetrix device name in a range.
EndSymDev = The last Symmetrix device name in a range.

Page 16
SymDevName = One or more specific Symmetrix device names.
You can remove some devices associated with an HBA entry, or you can remove the
entire set of devices associated with an HBA entry. The force (-force ) option can be
useful when you want to quickly remove a range of specified device names that might not
be contiguously masked to a HBA/director-port channel. This option may also be needed
when unmasking metadevices.
Note: When unmasking metadevices, only the Symmetrix device name that is designated
as the metadevice head should be specified (via the SymDevName parameter).
The following examples show four different approaches that can be used to unmask
devices:
Example 1: To unmask Symmetrix devices 000C and 000D, which are mapped to port 0
of front-end adapter 16C on a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345, and are masked to
an HBA that has the World Wide Name 10:00:00:00:c9:6c:c8:12, execute the following
command:
symmask –sid 12345 –wwn 10000000c9 6cc812 remove devs 00 0C:000D –dir
16C
–p 0
Example 2: To unmask just Symmetrix devices 000C and 000E from the 000C-to-000E
masked device range, execute the following command:
symmask –sid 12345 –wwn 10000000c9 6cc812 remove devs 00 0C,000E –dir
16C
–p 0
To remove the remaining device in the 000C-to-000E device range, you can either specify
the one remaining individual device, or you can specify the whole range, using the -force
option. In this case, either of the following commands are valid:
symmask –sid 12345 –wwn 10000000c9 6cc812 remove devs 000 D –dir 16C –p
0
or
symmask –sid 12345 –wwn 10000000c9 6cc812 remove devs 000 C:000E –dir
16C –p 0 -force
Example 3: To unmask the entire set of devices that a particular HBA has been given
access to, execute the following command:
symmask –sid 12345 delete –wwn 10000000c9 6cc812
The delete action removes the HBA entry completely, including any attributes that were
previously set.
Example 4: To remove a particular HBA from the login history table, execute the following
command:

Page 17
symmask –sid 12345 delete –wwn 10000000c9 6cc812 –login
This will free up slots in the VCMDB.
! CAUTION: This command should only be used if the HBA specified is no longer
being used. !
For example, to unmask Symmetrix devices 000C and 000D, which are mapped to port 0
of front-end adapter 16C on a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345, and are masked to
an HBA that has the World Wide Name 10:00:00:00:c9:6c:c8:12, execute the following
command:
symmask –sid 12345 –wwn 1000000 0c96cc812 remove devs 00 0C:000D –dir 16C
–p 0

Update the Symmetrix array with the configuration changes by performing a director £
refresh operation. This causes the Symmetrix director to refresh its WWN/iSCSI-related
profile tables in cache with the content data from the device masking VCMDB.
The symmaskdb refresh command is used to force a Symmetrix director to refresh its
profile tables with the contents of the Device Masking VCMDB. The syntax for this
command is:
where:

against.
For example, to force a Symmetrix director to refresh its profile tables with the contents of
the Device Masking VCMDB for a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345, execute the
following command:
this:
Symmetrix FA directors updated with cont ents of SymMask Database
000000012345
! Caution: Before executing this command, make sure no HBAs are accessing
devices in the masked channel (in other words, make sure that no application or
user activity is taking place on the HBAs that are about to be refreshed). !

Page 18
24. Backup the VCMDB
The symmaskdb backup command is used to create a backup copy of the Device Masking £
symmaskdb -sid SymmID backup –file BkupFileName
where:

against.
BkupFileName = The name of the file to be used to store the backup copy of the
name must be provided each time this command is executed.) The backup copy will be
stored in the file specified and that file will be written to the current directory (i.e., the
directory that this command is executed from).
this:
devices that have been made available to a system. For example, in Windows you can
use the Device Manager to scan for hardware changes; with AIX you can execute the
cfgmgr command. Before masked devices will be made visible to a host, this utility must
be run on all hosts that have had devices added or removed (via masking changes). If no
such utility exists, the affected hosts should be rebooted.
Refer to the online help available with each host operating system for information on how
to perform online configuration changes or a reboot operation.

hosts/management servers that are running Solutions Enabler. This is done by executing
symcfg discover
When executed, this command interrogates all SCSI devices available; therefore, it can
take a significant amount of time to complete.

Page 19
27. Verify that the device unmasking was successful
To verify that the device(s) specified were successfully unmasked, execute the following £
command:
symmaskdb –sid SymmID list data base –dir DirNumber –p PortNumber
where:

against.
DirNumber = The specific director number the Symmetrix device was unmasked from.
PortNumber = The specific port number the Symmetrix device was unmasked from.
For example, to verify that one or more devices that have been unmasked from port 0 of
front-end adapter 16C on a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345, execute the following
command:
If a symmask remove devs command was used to unmask the devices, when this
command is executed, you should see output that looks something like this:


Director Port : 0
User -generated
---------------- ----- ------------- -------------------- ---------
10000000c9 6cc812 Fibre 10000000c9 6cc812 10000000c940a8a3 None
If however, a symmask delete command was used to unmask the devices, you may see
a message that looks like this instead:
No device masking database records c ould be found for the specified input
parameters
ReplaceHBAMasking _sym002

Page 20
• Updating Masking Records When Replacing HBAs
Overview P Done
Masking is an operation that is used to present devices to a specific host bus adapter
(HBA) and is required when more than one host shares access to a front-end director
port. Masking defines the relationship between one or more Symmetrix devices, front-
end director ports, and HBAs that reside in a host. In the event an HBA fails or needs
replacement, you can assign its associated devices to a new adapter by using the device
masking replace action outlined in this procedure.

28. Get the World Wide Name (WWN) for the failed HBA
There are several tools that can be used to obtain the WWN of installed HBAs. For £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
example, Emulex provides a utility called HBAnywhere that can be used to obtain this
information. If Solutions Enabler has been installed on a host, the syminq hba
command can be used as well.
Using either the appropriate tools on the host or the configuration documentation where
this information was recorded earlier, obtain the WWN for the HBA that has failed.
Note: Once an HBA has failed, it may not be possible to obtain its WWN using a utility.
That is why it is important to document server configuration information on a regular
basis.
29. Replace the failed HBA with a new one

Remove the old or failed HBA and replace it with a new one. £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
30. Get the World Wide Name (WWN) for the new HBA
Using the appropriate tools on the host, obtain the WWN for the new HBA. £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
31. Adjust the fabric zoning to reflect the change in HBA WWNs
Replace the WWN for the failed HBA with the WWN of the new HBA in the fabric zoning. £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
32. Verify that the new HBA has logged in to the Symmetrix
At this point, the new HBA should have performed a login to the front-end director port £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
the original HBA was using to access Symmetrix volumes. You can verify that this has
been done by examining the contents of the login history table.
The symmask list logins command is used to display entries in the login history table.
The syntax for this command is:
symmask –sid SymmID list logins -dir DirNumber -p PortNumber
where:

against.

Page 21
For example, to obtain information about HBAs that have logged in to port 0 of front-end
adapter 16C on a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345, execute the following
command:
symmask -sid 12345 list logins -dir 16C -p 0

Director Port : 0
User -generated Logged

On
Identifier Type Node Name Port Name FCID In
Fabric
---------------- ----- --------------------------------- ------ ------ -
--
10000000c9 3da44a Fibre DBServer_01 HB A_0 010f00 Yes
Yes
10000000c96cc812 Fibre DBServer_01 HBA_0 fffc01 No
Yes
In this example, you can see that the original HBA, which had the WWN
10:00:00:00:c9:6c:c8:12, is no longer logged in to port 0 of front-end adapter 16C. The
new HBA, which has the WWN 10:00:00:00:c9:3d:a4:4a, is logged in instead.
33. Update the masking information in the VCMDB to reflect the HBA change
If the masking information stored in the VCMDB contains references to the WWN of the £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
original HBA, devices that were masked to that HBA will not be visible to the new HBA
until all occurrences of the WWN for the original HBA in the VCMDB have been replaced
with the WWN of the new HBA.
The symmask replace command is used to substitute a new WWN for all occurrences of
another WWN in the VCMDB. The syntax for this command is:
symmask –sid SymmID –wwn OldWWN replace NewWWN
where:

against.
OldWWN = The World Wide Name (WWN) for the original HBA.
NewWWN = The World Wide Name (WWN) for the new HBA.
For example, to replace all occurrences of the WWN 10:00:00:00:c9:6c:c8:12 with the
WWN 10:00:00:00:c9:3d:a4:4a in the VCMDB for a Symmetrix with an ID of
000000012345, execute the following command:
symmask –sid 12345 –wwn 10000000c96cc812 replace 10000000c9 3da44a

Page 22
34. Verify that the masking information in the VCMDB has been updated
To verify that the WWNs for the HBAs were successfully changed in the VCMDB, £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering

symmaskdb –sid SymmID list database –dir DirNumber –p PortNumber
where:

against.
DirNumber = The specific director number the original HBA was associated with.
PortNumber = The specific port number the original HBA was associated with.
For example, to display HBA information for devices that have been masked for port 0 of
front-end adapter 16C on a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345, execute the
following command:

Last updated at : 03:55:26 PM o n Tue Mar 31,2009

Director Port : 0
User -generated
---------------- ----- --------------------------------- ---------
10000000c93da44a Fibre DBServer_01 HBA_0 000C:000D
The WWN that is displayed in the Identifier column of this list should match the WWN
that was specified as the new WWN (NewWWN ) in the previous step.
35. Refresh the Symmetrix director with the new VCMDB data
Update the Symmetrix array with the configuration changes by performing a director £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
refresh operation. This causes the Symmetrix director to refresh its WWN/iSCSI-related
profile tables in cache with the content data from the device masking VCMDB.
The symmask refresh command is used to force a Symmetrix director to refresh its
profile tables with the contents of the Device Masking VCMDB. The syntax for this
command is:
where:

against.
For example, to force a Symmetrix director to refresh its profile tables with the contents
of the Device Masking VCMDB for a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345, execute

Page 23
this:
000000012345
! Caution: Before executing this command, make sure no HBAs are accessing
devices in the masked channel (in other words, make sure that no application or
user activity is taking place on the HBAs that are about to be refreshed). !
The symmaskdb backup command is used to create a backup copy of the Device £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
Masking VCMDB. The syntax for this command is:
symmaskdb -sid SymmID backup –file BkupFileName -noprompt
where:

against.
BkupFile Name = The name of the file to be used to store the backup copy of the
name must be provided each time this command is executed.) The backup copy will
be stored in the file specified and that file will be written to the current directory (i.e.,
the directory that this command is executed from).
this:
Symmetrix SymMask database backed up to file BackupDevMask DB_1

37. Delete records for the original HBA from the login history table
The symmask delete command can be used to remove login records associated with a £ Formatted: Bullets and Numbering
particular WWN from the login history table. The syntax for this command is:
symmask –sid SymmID delete –wwn OldWWN -login
where:

against.
OldWWN = The World Wide Name (WWN) for which login records are to be deleted.
For example, to delete records from the login history table for a Symmetrix with an ID of
000000012345 that are associated with an HBA with the WWN 10:00:00:00:c9:6c:c8:12,
symmask –sid 12345 –wwn 10000000c96cc812 delete –login

Page 24
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DMX-2 - Device Masking Using SYMCli

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Device Masking - VCMDB

Management Interface: Solutions Enabler SYMCLI

Symmetrix Customer Procedure Generator Version 3.1.1

Copyright © 2007, 2008, 2009 EMC Corporation. All rights reserved.

THE INFORMATION IN THIS PUBLICATION IS PROVIDED "AS IS." EMC CORPORATION

Symmetrix Customer Procedure Generator Version 3.1.1

• Initialize the VCMDB...........................................................................................................3

This procedure is based on contents from the following EMC manual:

1. Check for an existing VCMDB

SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmaskdb command is to be executed

The device masking database is empty

Symmetrix Customer Procedure Generator Version 3.1.1

SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmaskdb command is to be executed

Initialize Symmetrix SymMask database on Symmetrix 000000012345 (y/[n])? y

Symmetrix SymMask database on Symmetrix 000000012345 initialized

Symmetrix Customer Procedure Generator Version 3.1.1

WARNING: All hosts will lose access to their devices on Symmetrix

Initialize Symmetrix SymMask database on Symmetrix 000000012345 (y/[n])? y

Symmetrix SymMask database on Symmetrix 000000012345 initi alized

The attempt to backup the database on Symmetrix 000000012345 failed so the

This procedure is based on contents from the following EMC manual:

Masking VCMDB. The syntax for this command is:

symmaskdb -sid SymmID backup –file BkupFile Name -noprompt

SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmaskdb command is to be executed

Symmetrix Customer Procedure Generator Version 3.1.1

4. Examine the Device Masking VCMDB backup file produced

symmaskdb list database –file BkupFileName

symmaskdb list database -file BackupDevMask DB_1

Database Type : Type6

Director Identification : FA -16C

Symmetrix Customer Procedure Generator Version 3.1.1

This procedure is based on contents from the following EMC manual:

5. Back up the VCMDB

VCMDB. The syntax for this command is:

SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmaskdb command is to be executed

6. Refresh the Symmetrix director with VCMDB data

SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmaskdb command is to be executed

Symmetrix Customer Procedure Generator Version 3.1.1

8. Rebuild the Symmetrix configuration database on all appropriate hosts/management servers

information, the SYMAPI configuration database should be updated on all affected

SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the sympd command is to be executed against.

For example, to obtain a list of Symmetrix devices found on a Symmetrix with an ID of

Symmetrix Customer Procedure Generator Version 3.1.1

Device Name Directors Device

\\.\PHYSICALDRIVE 1 0020 08A:0 16A:D6 2 -Way Mir N/Grp'd (M) RW

10. Examine the Device Masking VCMDB backup file

symmaskdb list database –file BkupFileName

Symmetrix Customer Procedure Generator Version 3.1.1

Database Type : Type6

Director Identification : FA -16C

11. Restore the VCMDB

symmaskdb -sid SymmID restore –file BkupFileName [-

SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmaskdb command is to be executed

If the -skip_authentication option is specified, authentication information in a

symmaskdb -sid 12345 restore -file BackupDevMaskDB_1

To restore the Device Masking VCMDB for a Symmetrix with an ID of 000000012345

Symmetrix Customer Procedure Generator Version 3.1.1

symmaskdb –sid SymmID list database

SymmID = The ID of a specific Symmetrix the symmaskdb command is to be executed

For example, to examine the Device Masking VCMDB on a Symmetrix with an ID of

symmaskdb -sid 12345 list database

Database Type : Type6

Director Identification : FA -16C