PWRSTR Upgrade

Dell EMC PowerStore
Software Upgrade Guide

Version 2.x
April 2022
Rev. A08
Notes, cautions, and warnings
NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of your product.
CAUTION: A CAUTION indicates either potential damage to hardware or loss of data and tells you how to avoid
the problem.
WARNING: A WARNING indicates a potential for property damage, personal injury, or death.
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Contents
Additional Resources.....................................................................................................................4
Chapter 1: PowerStore non-disruptive software upgrades.............................................................5

Download the PowerStore upgrade packages............................................................................................................. 5
Chapter 2: PowerStore T model clusters....................................................................................... 6

Upgrading PowerStore T model clusters.......................................................................................................................6
Upgrade readiness for PowerStore T model clusters................................................................................................. 7
Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the PowerStore T model cluster ........................................................7
Perform an Upgrade Extensions System Check on a PowerStore T model cluster (Upgrades from
PowerStore OS 2.1.x only)...................................................................................................................................... 8
Upgrade the software on the PowerStore T model cluster......................................................................................9
Chapter 3: PowerStore X model clusters......................................................................................10

Upgrading PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x).......................................................... 10
Upgrade readiness for PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)............................... 11
Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)..............................12
Install the preupgrade package on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)...........................................14
Install the node firmware update package on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)....................... 14
Update the internal ESXi hosts on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)...........................................15
Upgrade the PowerStore OS on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)...............................................17
Upgrading PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x).......................................................... 18
Upgrade readiness for PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x).............................. 19
Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x)............................. 20
Install the preupgrade package on the cluster (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x).......................................... 22
Update the internal ESXi hosts and node firmware (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x)................................. 23
Upgrade the PowerStore OS on the cluster (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x)..............................................25
Chapter 4: PowerStore drive firmware........................................................................................ 26

Update the drive firmware on the PowerStore cluster........................................................................................... 26
Contents 3
Preface
As part of an improvement effort, revisions of the software and hardware are periodically released. Some functions that are
described in this document are not supported by all versions of the software or hardware currently in use. The product release
notes provide the most up-to-date information about product features. Contact your service provider if a product does not
function properly or does not function as described in this document.
Where to get help

Support, product, and licensing information can be obtained as follows:
● Product information
For product and feature documentation or release notes, go to the PowerStore Documentation page at https://
www.dell.com/powerstoredocs.
● Troubleshooting
For information about products, software updates, licensing, and service, go to https://www.dell.com/support and locate
the appropriate product support page.
● Technical support
For technical support and service requests, go to https://www.dell.com/support and locate the Service Requests page.
To open a service request, you must have a valid support agreement. Contact your Sales Representative for details about
obtaining a valid support agreement or to answer any questions about your account.
4 Additional Resources
1
PowerStore non-disruptive software
upgrades
This document describes how to upgrade the software on your PowerStore cluster.
Performing a non-disruptive upgrade (NDU) on a PowerStore cluster does not stop I/O. The I/O requirements of the
PowerStore cluster can be met by a single node on each appliance in the cluster. The NDU process ensures that only one
node of the cluster is taken offline at any given time. Taking a node offline does not cause host I/O disruptions when the hosts
have redundant data access paths present and the best practices are configured for the host operating system.
NOTE: For host connectivity best practices, see the PowerStore Host Configuration Guide and Host Connectivity Guides in
section 7. Host Connectivity/Configuration Documentation on https://www.dell.com/powerstoredocs.
PowerStore NDU is supported with Solaris native MPxIO starting at Solaris 11.4 SRU 35. Contact your service provider for
PowerStore NDU support on earlier Solaris versions or Solaris updates.
NOTE: During the NDU, you cannot perform configuration changes or management operations on the PowerStore cluster.
Similarly, when the PowerStore OS is upgraded and the PowerStore VASA provider is offline, the I/O and availability of the
vVol-based VMs served from the PowerStore cluster are not impacted. However, management operations such as creating
VMs, rebooting VMs, migrating VMs to other ESXi hosts, and taking VM snapshots cannot be performed on vVol-based VMs
while the VASA provider is offline.
When the PowerStore OS upgrade is complete, wait five to ten minutes for the status of the PowerStore VASA provider to
change to Online in vCenter Server before creating storage containers or performing management operations on vVol-based
VMs.
NOTE: Within this document, PowerStore software is the software upgrade package for a PowerStore system and
PowerStore OS is the operating system that runs on the nodes of a PowerStore cluster.
Topics:
• Download the PowerStore upgrade packages
Download the PowerStore upgrade packages

The PowerStore upgrade packages are available for download from the Dell Support Site. However, the upgrade packages can
only be accessed when you are logged into the Dell Support Site using an account that is associated with the PowerStore
cluster.
Prerequisites
Download the latest PowerStore Release Notes from the Dell Support Site to identify the upgrade packages to download for the
PowerStore cluster.
Steps
1. To access the Dell Support Site, open a browser and go to https://www.dell.com/support.
2. If you are not logged into the Dell Support Site, click Sign In and log in using an account that is associated with the
PowerStore cluster.
3. Type PowerStore in the Search support text box and select the model number of the PowerStore cluster from the list
that is displayed.
4. Click Drivers & Downloads on the PowerStore support page.
5. To sort the downloads from newest to oldest, select Released: Newest from the Sort by drop-down menu.
6. Identify the PowerStore upgrade package to download and click Download.
PowerStore non-disruptive software upgrades 5

2
PowerStore T model clusters
Topics:
• Upgrading PowerStore T model clusters
• Upgrade readiness for PowerStore T model clusters
• Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the PowerStore T model cluster
• Upgrade the software on the PowerStore T model cluster
Upgrading PowerStore T model clusters

For the latest PowerStore features and improvements, upgrade the software on the PowerStore T model cluster to the latest
available version.
About this task

When upgrading a PowerStore T model cluster, use only Dell EMC qualified upgrade packages that are downloaded from
https://www.dell.com/support. The upgrade package contains the node firmware upgrades and PowerStore OS upgrade for the
PowerStore T model cluster.
Steps
1. Download the latest PowerStore T model upgrade package as described in the Installation and Upgrade Considerations
section of the PowerStore Release Notes.
For instructions on downloading upgrade packages from the Dell Support Site, see Download the PowerStore upgrade
packages on page 5.
2. Review the upgrade considerations in Upgrade readiness for PowerStore T model clusters on page 7.
3. Upload the software upgrade package to PowerStore Manager.
a. In PowerStore Manager, select the Settings icon, and then select Upgrades in the Cluster section.
b. Select Upload Package.
c. Select the PowerStore T model upgrade package to upload and select Open.
NOTE: Do not close or refresh the browser while the software upgrade package is uploaded to PowerStore
Manager.
When the PowerStore T model software upgrade package finishes uploading, it is displayed in the Software packages
table.
4. Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the PowerStore T model cluster at least seven days before performing the upgrade.
For instructions, see Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the PowerStore T model cluster on page 7.
NOTE: If you are upgrading from PowerStore OS 2.1.x to a later version of the PowerStore OS, ensure the Upgrade
Extensions Health Check has been run within one hour of performing the upgrade. For instructions, see Perform an
Upgrade Extensions System Check on a PowerStore T model cluster (Upgrades from PowerStore OS 2.1.x only) on page
8.
5. Perform the steps in Upgrade the software on the PowerStore T model cluster on page 9.
The PowerStore T model software upgrade takes approximately one hour to one and a half hours to complete per appliance.
Results
If the software upgrade process fails, check for and resolve all critical alerts on the cluster and retry the upgrade.
6 PowerStore T model clusters

Upgrade readiness for PowerStore T model clusters
Review the following considerations before upgrading a PowerStore T model cluster:
● Enabling external SSH access on the appliances in the cluster and enabling SupportAssist with Remote Support is highly
recommended to simplify and reduce the length of an upgrade failure analysis, in case the software upgrade process fails.
● Download the latest version of the PowerStore Release Notes to determine which software upgrade packages are required
to perform the PowerStore upgrade.
● You can upload up to ten software upgrade packages on your PowerStore cluster at one time. However, when a software
upgrade starts, it must be successfully completed across all appliances in the cluster before another upgrade can be
performed.
CAUTION: If you are upgrading from PowerStore OS 1.0.x, do not upload multiple upgrade packages to the
cluster and attempt to perform the upgrades consecutively. Instead, only upload one upgrade package and
complete the upgrade using that package before uploading the next upgrade package to the cluster. This
issue applies to PowerStore OS upgrade packages and PowerStore firmware upgrade packages.
● The node of the cluster that is running the management software is designated as the primary node of the primary appliance.
During the software upgrade process, you are disconnected from PowerStore Manager when the primary node on the
primary appliance fails over to the secondary node of the appliance. You can log back in to PowerStore Manager after the
node failover process is complete.
NOTE: For a PowerStore cluster with two appliances, you are disconnected from PowerStore Manager again when
the second appliance performs its failover process. However, a second disconnect from PowerStore Manager does not
occur during the failover process for PowerStore clusters with three or more appliances.
● If you change CHAP settings on a PowerStore T model cluster with NAS enabled, such as enabling or disabling CHAP,
changing mutual CHAP to single CHAP, or changing single CHAP to mutual CHAP, you must perform the following actions:
○ Reboot the cluster nodes one at a time as soon as possible after changing the CHAP settings.
○ Wait until all the cluster nodes have been rebooted before performing a software upgrade.
CAUTION: The software upgrade fails if the nodes on a PowerStore T model cluster with NAS enabled are
not rebooted after changes are made to CHAP settings. For instructions on rebooting PowerStore T model
nodes, see the PowerStore Power Down and Reboot Procedures Guide.
Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the

PowerStore T model cluster
Use PowerStore Manager to perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the PowerStore T model cluster that you are planning
to upgrade at least seven days before performing the upgrade. Performing a Pre-Upgrade Health Check seven days before
performing the upgrade provides enough time to address any issues found by the health check.
About this task

The Pre-Upgrade Health Check ensures that there are no underlying problems that may prevent a successful upgrade of the
PowerStore OS on the cluster. However, a Pre-Upgrade Health Check cannot verify that the required host configurations
for uninterrupted data access are present on the hosts accessing this cluster. For host connectivity best practices, see
the PowerStore Host Configuration Guide and Host Connectivity Guides in section 7. Host Connectivity/Configuration
Documentation on https://www.dell.com/powerstoredocs.
NOTE: All the appliances in a PowerStore T model cluster must pass the Pre-Upgrade Health Check to allow the upgrade to
be performed.
Steps
1. Select the Settings icon, and then select Upgrades in the Cluster section.
2. If the PowerStore T model software upgrade package has not been uploaded to PowerStore Manager:
a. Select Upload Package.
The Choose File to Upload dialog box is displayed.
b. Select the PowerStore T model software upgrade package, and select Open.
The PowerStore T model software upgrade package is uploaded and displayed in the Software packages table.
PowerStore T model clusters 7

Manager.
3. When you are ready to perform the Pre-Upgrade Health Check, select the software upgrade package in the Software
packages table, and select Health Check.
Monitor the health check process until it completes.
4. If the Pre-Upgrade Health Check fails:
a. Select the failed Pre-Upgrade Health Check entry under Recent activities to open the Job Details slide-out panel.
b. Select each row in the Job Details slide-out panel to review the failure or warning messages that were generated during
the Pre-Upgrade Health Check.
If you need help with understanding a message, contact your service provider for assistance.
c. Identify the cause of each failure or warning message and fix the issue that caused the problem.
Results
CAUTION: A green check mark does not indicate that the Pre-Upgrade Health Check completed without any
error or warning messages. A green check mark only indicates that a health check step completed successfully.
For more information, see KB article 000130130 (Health Check shows all green when there are warnings).
Perform an Upgrade Extensions System Check on a PowerStore T

model cluster (Upgrades from PowerStore OS 2.1.x only)
The Upgrade Extensions System Check is an additional health check that is required to upgrade a PowerStore cluster running
PowerStore OS 2.1.x to a later version of the PowerStore OS. The Upgrade Extensions System Check provides software
upgrade validations for issues or conditions that might be missing from the Pre-Upgrade Health Check.
Prerequisites
CAUTION: Follow these instructions only when upgrading from PowerStore OS 2.1.x to a later version of the
PowerStore OS.
The Upgrade button on the Settings > Cluster > Upgrades page is disabled unless an Upgrade Extensions System Check has
been run within the past 60 minutes.
About this task

Log in to the Dell Support Site to determine if a new Health Check package for the Upgrade Extensions System Check is
available for download.
● If a new Health Check package is available on the Dell Support Site, download the Health Check package, and install it on the
PowerStore cluster.
● If a new Health Check package is not available on the Dell Support Site, skip step 1.
Steps
1. Perform the following steps if a new Health Check package is available on the Dell Support Site:
a. Log in to the Dell Support Site and download the new Health Check package.
For instructions on downloading packages, see Download the PowerStore upgrade packages on page 5.
b. In PowerStore Manager, select Settings and then select Upgrades in the Cluster section.
c. Select Upload Package.
d. Select the new Health Check package and click Open.
NOTE: Do not close or refresh the browser while the Health Check package is uploaded to PowerStore Manager.
e. Select the uploaded Health Check package on the Upgrades page and select Upgrade to install the Health Check
updates.
2. Run the Upgrade Extensions System Check on the PowerStore cluster.
a. Under Monitoring, select System Checks.
b. Select Run Upgrade Extensions.
8 PowerStore T model clusters

The System Check detects if there are issues on the PowerStore cluster that might prevent the upgrade from
completing successfully. If the System Check finds issues on the cluster, resolve those issues before performing the
PowerStore software upgrade.
c. Run the Upgrade Extensions System Check again to ensure that all issues have been resolved.
Next steps
Ensure that a successful Upgrade Extensions System Check is the last health check that is run on the PowerStore cluster
before starting the software upgrade.
Upgrade the software on the PowerStore T model

cluster
Use PowerStore Manager to upgrade the node firmware and PowerStore OS on the PowerStore T model cluster.
Prerequisites
Ensure that a Pre-Upgrade Health Check has been performed at least seven days before upgrading the PowerStore OS on the
PowerStore T model cluster. For instructions, see Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the PowerStore T model cluster on
page 7.
NOTE: If you are upgrading from PowerStore OS 2.1.x to a later version of the PowerStore OS, ensure the Upgrade
Extensions Health Check has been run within one hour of performing the upgrade. For instructions, see Perform an Upgrade
Extensions System Check on a PowerStore T model cluster (Upgrades from PowerStore OS 2.1.x only) on page 8.
Steps
1. Open PowerStore Manager.
3. If the PowerStore T model software upgrade package has not been uploaded to PowerStore Manager:
b. Select the PowerStore T model software upgrade package, and select Open.
The PowerStore T model software upgrade package is uploaded to PowerStore Manager and displayed in the Software
packages table.
Manager.
4. Select the PowerStore T model software upgrade package in the Software packages table, and select Upgrade.
The PowerStore T model software upgrade takes approximately one hour to one and a half hours to complete per appliance.
The amount of time that the software upgrade depends on whether node firmware upgrades are applied during the upgrade.
NOTE: The PowerStore T model cluster temporarily stops recording performance metrics when the primary node of the
primary appliance reboots during the software upgrade.
Results
During the software upgrade process, the primary node of the primary appliance fails over to the secondary node of the
appliance and you are disconnected from PowerStore Manager. You can log back in to PowerStore Manager after the failover
process is complete.
When a new version of the PowerStore OS is installed, the column layout settings in PowerStore Manager tables reset to
their default layout. Changes to the column layout settings in PowerStore Manager do not persist when the PowerStore OS is
upgraded.
PowerStore T model clusters 9

3
PowerStore X model clusters
Topics:
• Upgrading PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)
• Upgrading PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x)
Upgrading PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore

OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)
A PowerStore X model cluster running PowerStore OS 1.0.x cannot be directly upgraded to PowerStore 2.1.x or later. You must
upgrade the cluster to PowerStore OS 2.0.x first, and then upgrade it to PowerStore OS 2.1.x.
Prerequisites
CAUTION: Use these instructions only when upgrading from PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x. For instructions on
upgrading from PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x, see Upgrading PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS
2.0.x to 2.1.x) on page 18.
About this task

When upgrading a PowerStore X model cluster, use only Dell EMC qualified software that is downloaded from https://
www.dell.com/support. Use the information in the PowerStore Release Notes to determine which update packages are available
or required for a PowerStore X model cluster. Ensure that the PowerStore X model cluster has enough free space to perform
the upgrade. The minimum amount of space required to perform the upgrade is 300 GB.
NOTE: Some versions of PowerStore OS support multiple ESXi versions on the internal ESXi nodes of the cluster. To view
a list of supported ESXi versions, see the VMware Licensing and Support for PowerStore X table in the PowerStore
Simple Support Matrix, which can be downloaded from https://www.dell.com/powerstoredocs.
Perform the following steps to upgrade a PowerStore X model cluster:
Steps
1. Download the latest PowerStore X model upgrade package .zip file as described in the Installation and Upgrade
Considerations section of the PowerStore Release Notes.
packages on page 5.
2. Extract the individual upgrade packages from the PowerStore X model upgrade package .zip file.
3. Review the upgrade considerations in Upgrade readiness for PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on
page 11.
4. Upload the software update packages to PowerStore Manager.
NOTE: Do not upload ESXi update package to PowerStore Manager.
c. Select the PowerStore X model software update package to upload and select Open.
NOTE: Do not close or refresh the browser while the software update package is uploaded to PowerStore Manager.
When the PowerStore X model software update package finishes uploading, it is displayed in the Software packages
table.
10 PowerStore X model clusters

d. Repeat the previous two steps to upload all the PowerStore X model software update packages to the PowerStore X
model cluster.
5. If an ESXi update is available or required, import the ESXi update package to vSphere Update Manager or vSphere Lifecycle
Manager.
a. In PowerStore Manager, select Compute > vCenter Server Connection and select Launch vSphere to start the
vSphere Client.
b. In the vSphere Client, log in to the vCenter Server.
c. Import the Dell-qualified ESXi .zip file into vSphere Update Manager or vSphere Lifecycle Manager. For more information
about importing ESXI updates, see the VMware vSphere documentation.
6. Perform a Health Check on the PowerStore X model cluster at least seven days before performing the upgrade.
For instructions, see Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 12.
7. Perform the PowerStore X model appliance upgrade steps in the following order:
If you have already performed one of software upgrade steps that are listed below, you can skip that step. You can also skip
an upgrade step if the associated software update package is not available.
a. Install preupgrade package - Installing the preupgrade package takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes to complete.
b. Install node firmware update - Installing the node firmware update package takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes to
complete.
c. Update internal ESXi hosts - Updating the internal ESXi hosts takes approximately one to two hours to complete per
node.
d. Upgrade PowerStore OS - Upgrading the PowerStore OS takes approximately one hour to complete.
Results
If the PowerStore OS upgrade process fails, check for and resolve all critical alerts on the cluster and retry the upgrade.
Upgrade readiness for PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore

OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)
Review the following considerations before upgrading a PowerStore X model cluster:
● SSH must always be enabled and running on the internal ESXi hosts of a PowerStore X model cluster. Ensure that the
Startup Policy of the SSH service is set to Start and stop with host so that SSH starts when an ESXI host reboots. For
more information, see KB article 000195713 (PowerStoreX - SSH disabled may lead to node failure).
● Enabling external SSH access on the appliances in the cluster and enabling SupportAssist with Remote Support is also
● If VMware NSX-T Data Center is deployed on the PowerStore X model cluster, see KB article 000195716 (PowerStoreX:
If NSX-T-managed Virtual Distributed Switches are migrated...) on https://www.dell.com/support before performing the
software upgrade.
to perform the PowerStore OS upgrade.
performed.
CAUTION: If you are upgrading from PowerStore OS 1.0.x, do not upload multiple upgrade packages to the
cluster and attempt to perform the upgrades consecutively. Instead, only upload one upgrade package and
complete the upgrade using that package before uploading the next upgrade package to the cluster. This
issue applies to PowerStore OS upgrade packages and PowerStore firmware upgrade packages.
PowerStore X model clusters 11

ESXi and VM considerations (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)
During the software upgrade process, vSphere Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS) attempts to migrate the VMs on one node
of a PowerStore X model cluster to the other node of the cluster.
However, manual intervention may be required when one of the following conditions exists:
● If VMs or VM disks are stored on the local VMFS datastores of the internal ESXi hosts, manually migrate the VMs or VM
disks to a PowerStore vVol datastore.
NOTE: The local VMFS datastores on the internal ESXI hosts are intended only for internal PowerStore system
components.
● If the total amount of memory or CPU usage across the VMs exceeds the amount available on a single node, migrate the
user VMs to other available ESXi hosts or power off the user VMs.
● If the VMs cannot be migrated automatically because of a different reason, power off the user VMs on the ESXi host.
NOTE: Any VMs that are migrated as a part of the software upgrade process are not automatically migrated back to their
original location after the upgrade is complete.
Minimizing internal ESXi host failover occurrences (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to

2.0.x)
Updating an ESXi host on the internal node of a PowerStore X model cluster requires placing the ESXI host into maintenance
mode. When the ESXi host that is running the PowerStore hardware enters maintenance mode, management services for the
cluster, including access to the PowerStore Manager and VASA provider services, are temporarily unavailable until the failover
process between the nodes is complete.
About this task

Perform the following steps to identify the IP addresses of the internal ESXi hosts on the primary and secondary nodes of the
primary appliance:
Steps
1. In PowerStore Manager, select the Settings icon, and then select Properties in the Cluster section.
2. Record the name of the appliance in the Primary Appliance field.
This appliance is the primary appliance of the cluster.
3. Record the name of the primary node in the Primary Node on Appliance field.
The secondary node of the appliance is the opposite of the primary node.
NOTE: For example, if Node A is displayed in the Primary Node on Appliance field, the secondary node is Node B.
4. Identify the IP addresses of the internal ESXi hosts on the nodes of the primary appliance.
a. Select Settings > Network IPs in PowerStore Manager.
b. Record the Host Node IP address, Appliance name, and Node letter of the nodes on the primary appliance.
The Host Node IP addresses are the IP addresses of the internal ESXi hosts on the primary and secondary nodes of the
primary appliance.
Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore

OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)
Use PowerStore Manager to perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the PowerStore X model cluster that you are planning
About this task

PowerStore OS on the cluster. However, a Pre-Upgrade Health Check cannot verify that the required host configurations
for uninterrupted data access are present on the hosts accessing this cluster. For host connectivity best practices, see

the PowerStore Host Configuration Guide and Host Connectivity Guides in section 7. Host Connectivity/Configuration
Documentation on https://www.dell.com/powerstoredocs.
NOTE: All the appliances in a PowerStore X model cluster must pass the Pre-Upgrade Health Check to allow the upgrade
to be performed.
Steps
2. If the PowerStore OS software upgrade package has not been uploaded to PowerStore Manager:
b. Select the PowerStore OS software upgrade package, and select Open.
Manager.
The uploaded PowerStore OS upgrade package is displayed as a Software Release package in the Software packages
table.
3. When you are ready to perform the Pre-Upgrade Health Check, select the PowerStore OS software upgrade package in the
Software packages table, and select Health Check.
NOTE: The Pre-Upgrade Health Check displays the following failures when it is run before the preupgrade and node
firmware update packages are installed and the internal ESXi hosts are updated:
Pre-Upgrade Health Check Failed:

Pre-upgrade health check failed on node A - ["XXXXXXXXXXXXXX"] node B -
["XXXXXXXXXXXXXX"]. Please review the health check steps for more details.
Health Check Node A

The component version is below the required version. Update FIRMWARE to version
XX.X.X. (incompatible_version)
This upgrade requires a minimum version of VMware ESXi be installed prior to the
upgrade. (incompatible_upgrade_esxi_version)
This upgrade requires the PowerStoreX ESXi VIBs be upgraded prior to the upgrade.
(incompatible_upgrade_esxi_vib_version)
These Pre-Upgrade Health Check failures are resolved when the steps in Install the preupgrade package on the cluster
(PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 14, Install the node firmware update package on the cluster (PowerStore OS
1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 14, and Update the internal ESXi hosts on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page
15 are performed.
Results
CAUTION: A green check mark does not indicate that a Pre-Upgrade Health Check completed without any error
or warning messages. A green check mark only indicates that a Pre-Upgrade Health Check step completed
successfully. For more information, see KB article 000130130 (Health Check shows all green when there are
warnings).

Install the preupgrade package on the cluster (PowerStore OS
1.0.x to 2.0.x)
Use PowerStore Manager to install the preupgrade package on the PowerStore X model cluster.
Prerequisites
● Ensure that the preupgrade package has been uploaded to PowerStore Manager.
● Ensure that a Pre-Upgrade Health Check has been performed at least seven days before installing the preupgrade
package on the PowerStore X model appliance. For instructions, see Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster
(PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 12.
About this task

Perform the following steps to install the preupgrade package on the PowerStore X model cluster:
Steps
2. Select the preupgrade package in the Software packages table, and select Upgrade.
NOTE: The preupgrade package is displayed as a Hotfix package in the Software packages table.
The installation of the preupgrade package takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes to complete.
Results
The preupgrade package is not applied to the PowerStore X model cluster until the nodes of the cluster are rebooted. However,
the nodes do not automatically reboot after a preupgrade package is installed. The nodes of the cluster are rebooted when ESXi
updates are installed on the internal ESXi hosts, as described in Update the internal ESXi hosts on the cluster (PowerStore OS
1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 15. If ESXi updates are not installed, you must reboot the nodes of the cluster during the PowerStore
OS upgrade, as described in Upgrade the PowerStore OS on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 17.
Next steps
If a PowerStore X model node firmware upgrade is available or required, go to Install the node firmware update package on the
cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 14.
If a PowerStore X model node firmware upgrade is not available, go to Update the internal ESXi hosts on the cluster
Install the node firmware update package on the cluster

(PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x)
Use PowerStore Manager to install the node firmware update package on the PowerStore X model cluster.
Prerequisites
● Ensure that the node firmware update package has been uploaded to PowerStore Manager.
● Ensure that a Pre-Upgrade Health Check has been performed at least seven days before installing the node firmware
package on the PowerStore X model cluster. For instructions, see Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster
About this task

Perform the following steps to install the node firmware update package on the PowerStore X model cluster:
Steps
2. Select the node firmware update package in the Software packages table, and select Upgrade.

NOTE: The node firmware update package is displayed as a Hotfix package in the Software packages table.
The installation of the node firmware update package takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes to complete.
Results
The node firmware updates are not applied to the PowerStore X model cluster until the nodes of the cluster are rebooted.
However, the nodes do not automatically reboot after a firmware update package is installed. The nodes of the cluster are
rebooted when ESXi updates are installed on the internal ESXi hosts, as described in Update the internal ESXi hosts on the
cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 15. If ESXi updates are not installed, you must reboot the ESXi hosts on
the nodes of the cluster during the PowerStore OS upgrade, as described in Upgrade the PowerStore OS on the cluster
Next steps
If ESXi updates are available or required, go to Update the internal ESXi hosts on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on
page 15.
If ESXi updates are not available, go to Upgrade the PowerStore OS on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 17.
Update the internal ESXi hosts on the cluster (PowerStore OS

1.0.x to 2.0.x)
Use the vSphere Client to update the ESXi hosts on the nodes of a PowerStore X model cluster. For more information about
updating ESXi hosts, see the VMware vSphere documentation.
Prerequisites
Ensure that the ESXi update package has been imported into vSphere Update Manager or vSphere Lifecycle Manager. For
instructions, see Upgrading PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 10.
CAUTION: The internal nodes of a PowerStore X model cluster can only use ESXi updates that are qualified by
Dell EMC. Do not use ESXi updates that are obtained from VMware or any other source.
About this task

Perform the following steps to update the ESXi hosts on the PowerStore X model cluster:
NOTE: Some management operations that involve vVols may be unavailable during the upgrade.
Steps
1. Identify the primary appliance and identify the IP addresses of the internal ESXi hosts on the primary and secondary nodes
of the appliance. For instructions, see Minimizing internal ESXi host failover occurrences (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on
page 12.
NOTE: The terms peer node and secondary node are used interchangeably in PowerStore documentation.
2. If there are multiple appliances in the cluster, perform the following steps to collect information about the other appliances:
b. Record the Host Node IP address, Appliance name, and Node letter of each node in the cluster.
c. For the other appliances in the cluster, select the Hardware > Appliances > appliance > Components card in
PowerStore Manager.
d. Select the Internal View tab.
The text (primary) is displayed next to the primary node of the selected appliance, and the secondary node is opposite
of the primary node. For example, if the text (primary) is displayed for Node A, the secondary node is Node B.
e. Use the collected information to identify the IP addresses of the internal ESXi hosts on the primary and secondary nodes
of the other appliances in the cluster.
3. In PowerStore Manager, select Compute > vCenter Server Connection and select Launch vSphere to start the vSphere
Client.
4. In the vSphere Client, log in to the vCenter Server and open vSphere Update Manager or vSphere Lifecycle Manager.
5. Create a baseline for the update using the Patch content type.

a. On the Select Patches Automatically page, clear the Automatically update this baseline with patches that match
the following criteria checkbox to prevent unqualified VIBs from being installed on the ESXi hosts.
b. On the Select Patches Manually page, select the filter icon in the ID column to display the filter field.
c. In the filter field, type the ESXi update package name (without the .zip extension) listed in the PowerStore Release
Notes, and select the ESXi package to add it to the baseline.
6. Stage the baseline to all the internal ESXi hosts in the PowerStore cluster.
7. Before placing the ESXi host on one node of an appliance into maintenance mode, ensure that system resources are available
on the other ESXI host to run the migrated user VMs. If the CPU and memory utilization on each ESXi host is greater than
75%, migrate the VMs to another ESXi host in vCenter Server using vMotion or power off the user VMs.
8. Place the ESXi host on the secondary node of the primary appliance into maintenance mode.
User VMs automatically migrate to the other node in the appliance. After all user VMs are migrated, the controller VM
automatically shuts down and the ESXi host enters maintenance mode.
NOTE: Some user VMs may not migrate due to local dependencies or lack of resources. User intervention may be
required to manually power off these user VMs to allow the ESXi host to enter maintenance mode. See ESXi and VM
considerations (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 12 for more information.
CAUTION: Do not manually power off the controller VMs, which are named PSTX-<service_tag>-
<node_letter>. The controller VMs are automatically powered off when an ESXi host is placed into
maintenance mode.
9. On the Updates tab, select the baseline that is attached to the ESXi host on the secondary node of the primary appliance
and select Remediate to update the ESXi host.
The ESXi update takes approximately 30 minutes to one hour to complete per node. The amount of time that an ESXi update
takes depends on whether preupgrade and node firmware packages are applied when the ESXi host reboots.
10. Ensure that the remediation process has completed for the ESXi host on the secondary node, and then exit maintenance
mode.
The controller VM automatically starts when the ESXi host exits maintenance mode.
11. Ensure that the ESXi host and controller VM are operating normally before continuing.
● Monitor the Protocol Endpoint (PE) paths in vCenter to identify when the paths to the ESXi host are Active before
continuing.
● Monitor the alerts in PowerStore Manager to identify when the node is up. Then, wait 15 minutes after the alert is
cleared before continuing.
12. Repeat steps 7 through 10 for the ESXi host on the primary node of the appliance.
NOTE: PowerStore Manager temporally stops displaying performance metrics when the primary node of the primary
appliance reboots during the ESXi update.
13. Migrate VMs back to the preferred node using vMotion.

14. Repeat steps 6 to 12 to perform ESXI updates on the nodes of the other appliances in the cluster.
Results
The ESXi hosts on the nodes of the cluster are now powered on and running the updated version of ESXi. The version of ESXi
that the ESXi hosts are running is visible on the Upgrades page in PowerStore Manager.
● If the ESXi versions on the nodes of an appliance do not match, an alert is generated.
● If the ESXi versions on the appliances in the cluster do not match, an alert is generated.
Next steps
Go to Upgrade the PowerStore OS on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 17.

Upgrade the PowerStore OS on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x
to 2.0.x)
Use PowerStore Manager to perform a PowerStore OS upgrade.
Prerequisites
Perform a final Pre-Upgrade Health Check before upgrading the PowerStore OS on the PowerStore X model cluster. For
instructions, see Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 12.
About this task

Perform the following steps to upgrade the PowerStore OS on the appliances of the cluster:
Steps
1. If you installed a preupgrade package or upgraded the node firmware, but you were not required to perform ESXi host
updates, you must reboot the internal nodes on the cluster to apply the preupgrade package and firmware upgrades.
Rebooting the nodes to apply the preupgrade package and firmware upgrade package takes approximately 35 to 60 minutes
per node. To reboot the nodes of the cluster:
a. Identify the primary and secondary nodes on the primary appliance of the cluster. See Minimizing internal ESXi host
failover occurrences (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 12 for more information.
b. In the vSphere Client, reboot the ESXi host on the secondary node. For instructions, see the PowerStore Power Down
and Reboot Procedures Guide.
c. If the ESXi host on the secondary node does not automatically exit maintenance mode after rebooting, manually exit
maintenance mode on the secondary node.
d. Repeat the previous steps for the ESXi host on the primary node.
e. Repeat the previous steps on the other appliances in the cluster.
3. Select the PowerStore OS upgrade package in the Software packages table, and select Upgrade.
NOTE: The PowerStore OS upgrade package is displayed as a Software Release package in the Software packages
table.
The PowerStore OS upgrade takes approximately one hour to complete.
Results
The PowerStore X model cluster temporarily stops recording performance metrics when the primary node on the primary
appliance reboots during the ESXi update. When the primary node on the primary appliance reboots, the primary node fails over
to the secondary node and you are disconnected from PowerStore Manager. You can log back in to PowerStore Manager after
the failover process is complete.
Next steps
Use the vSphere Client to manually rebalance the VMs in vCenter or allow VMware Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS) to
automatically rebalance the VMs .
upgraded.

Upgrading PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore
OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x)
A PowerStore X model cluster must be running PowerStore OS 2.0.x to be upgraded to PowerStore OS 2.1.x. To upgrade a
PowerStore X model cluster from PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.1.x, you must upgrade the cluster to PowerStore OS 2.0.x first, and
then upgrade it to PowerStore OS 2.1.x.
Prerequisites
CAUTION: Use these instructions only when upgrading from PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x. For instructions on
upgrading from PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x, see Upgrading PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS 1.0.x
to 2.0.x) on page 10
About this task

When upgrading a PowerStore X model cluster, use only Dell EMC qualified software that is downloaded from https://
www.dell.com/support. Use the information in the PowerStore Release Notes to determine which upgrade packages are
available or required for a PowerStore X model cluster. Ensure that the PowerStore X model cluster has enough free space to
perform the upgrade. The minimum amount of space required to perform the upgrade is 300 GB.
NOTE: Some versions of the PowerStore OS support multiple ESXi versions on the internal nodes of the cluster. To view
a list of supported ESXi versions, see the VMware Licensing and Support for PowerStore X table in the PowerStore
Simple Support Matrix, which can be downloaded from https://www.dell.com/powerstoredocs.
Perform the following steps to upgrade a PowerStore X model cluster:
Steps
1. Download the latest PowerStore X model upgrade package .zip file as described in the Installation and Upgrade
Considerations section of the PowerStore Release Notes.
packages on page 5.
2. Extract the PowerStore X model preupgrade package and PowerStore OS upgrade package from the PowerStore X model
upgrade package .zip file.
3. Review the upgrade considerations in Upgrade readiness for PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x) on
page 19.
4. Upload the PowerStore X model preupgrade package and PowerStore OS upgrade package to the cluster.
c. Select the preupgrade package and select Open.
NOTE: Do not close or refresh the browser while the preupgrade package is uploaded to PowerStore Manager.
The uploaded preupgrade package is displayed as a Hotfix package in the Software packages table.
d. Repeat the previous two steps to upload the PowerStore OS upgrade package to the cluster.
table.
5. Perform a Health Check on the PowerStore X model cluster at least seven days before performing the upgrade.
For instructions, see Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x) on page 20.
NOTE: If you are upgrading from PowerStore OS 2.1.x to a later version of the PowerStore OS, ensure that the Upgrade
Extensions Health Check has been run within one hour of performing the upgrade. For instructions, see Perform an
Upgrade Extensions System Check on the cluster (Upgrades from PowerStore OS 2.1.x only) on page 21.
6. Perform the PowerStore X model appliance upgrade steps in the following order:
If you have already performed one of upgrade steps that are listed below, you can skip that step.
a. Install preupgrade package - Installing the preupgrade package takes approximately twenty minutes to complete.
b. Update internal ESXi hosts - Resizing the private VMFS datastores can take over one hour to complete. Updating the
node firmware and internal ESXi hosts takes approximately 30 minutes to complete per node.
c. Upgrade the PowerStore OS - Upgrading the PowerStore OS takes approximately one hour to complete.

Results
If the PowerStore OS upgrade process fails, check for and resolve all critical alerts on the cluster and retry the upgrade.
Upgrade readiness for PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore

OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x)
Review the following considerations before upgrading a PowerStore X model cluster:
● SSH must always be enabled and running on the internal ESXi hosts of a PowerStore X model cluster. Ensure that the
Startup Policy of the SSH service is set to Start and stop with host so that SSH starts when an ESXI host reboots. For
more information, see KB article 000195713 (PowerStoreX - SSH disabled may lead to node failure).
● Enabling external SSH access on the appliances in the cluster and enabling SupportAssist with Remote Support is highly
● The vCenter Server that is connected to the PowerStore X model cluster must be running a supported version of vCenter
Server 7.0. To view a list of supported vCenter Server versions, see the VMware Licensing and Support for PowerStore
X table in the PowerStore Simple Support Matrix, which can be downloaded from https://www.dell.com/powerstoredocs.
● If VMware NSX-T Data Center is deployed on the PowerStore X model cluster, see KB article 000195716 (PowerStoreX:
If NSX-T-managed Virtual Distributed Switches are migrated...) on https://www.dell.com/support before performing the
software upgrade
to perform the PowerStore OS upgrade.
performed.
ESXi and VM considerations (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x)

During the software upgrade process, vSphere Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS) attempts to migrate the VMs on one node
of a PowerStore X model cluster to the other node of the cluster.
However, manual intervention may be required when one of the following conditions exists:
● If the local VMFS datastores on the internal ESXi hosts contain VMs other than the PowerStore controller VM, manually
migrate the VMs to a PowerStore vVol datastore. The local VMFS datastores on the ESXI hosts are intended only for
internal PowerStore system components.
NOTE: If vCLS VMs are stored on the local VMFS datastores, migrate the vCLS VMs to a PowerStore vVol datastore
using Storage vMotion.
● If the total amount of memory or CPU usage across the VMs exceeds the amount available on a single node, migrate the
user VMs to other available ESXi hosts or power off the user VMs.
● If the VMs cannot be migrated automatically because of a different reason, power off the user VMs on the ESXi host.
NOTE: Any VMs that are migrated as a part of the software upgrade process are not automatically migrated back to their
original location after the upgrade is complete.
Minimizing internal ESXi host failover occurrences (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to

2.1.x)
Updating an ESXi host on the internal node of a PowerStore X model cluster requires placing the ESXI host into maintenance
mode. When the ESXi host that is running the PowerStore hardware enters maintenance mode, management services for the
cluster, including access to the PowerStore Manager and VASA provider services, are temporarily unavailable until the failover
process between the nodes is complete.

About this task
Perform the following steps to identify the IP addresses of the internal ESXi hosts on the primary and secondary nodes of the
primary appliance:
Steps
1. In PowerStore Manager, select the Settings icon, and then select Properties in the Cluster section.
2. Record the name of the appliance in the Primary Appliance field.
This appliance is the primary appliance of the cluster.
3. Record the name of the primary node in the Primary Node on Appliance field.
The secondary node of the appliance is the opposite of the primary node.
NOTE: For example, if Node A is displayed in the Primary Node on Appliance field, the secondary node is Node B.
4. Identify the IP addresses of the management appliance and the IP addresses of the internal ESXi hosts on the nodes of the
primary appliance.
b. Record the Management Appliance IP address of the primary appliance in the cluster.
c. Record the Host Node IP address, Appliance name, and Node letter of the nodes on the primary appliance.
The Host Node IP addresses are the IP addresses of the internal ESXi hosts on the primary and secondary nodes of the
primary appliance.
Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore

OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x)
Use PowerStore Manager to perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the PowerStore X model cluster that you are planning
About this task

PowerStore OS on the cluster. However, a Health Check cannot verify that the required host configurations for uninterrupted
data access are present on the hosts accessing this cluster. For host connectivity best practices, see the PowerStore Host
Configuration Guide and Host Connectivity Guides in section 7. Host Connectivity/Configuration Documentation on
https://www.dell.com/powerstoredocs.
NOTE: All the appliances in a PowerStore X model cluster must pass the Health Check to allow the upgrade to be
performed.
Steps
2. If the PowerStore OS upgrade package has not been uploaded to PowerStore Manager:
b. Select the PowerStore OS upgrade package, and select Open.
NOTE: Do not close or refresh the browser while the upgrade package is uploaded to PowerStore Manager.
table.
3. When you are ready to perform the Pre-Upgrade Health Check, select the PowerStore OS upgrade package in the Software
packages table, and select Health Check.

NOTE: The Pre-Upgrade Health Check always displays the following failures when it is run before the preupgrade
package is installed and the internal ESXi hosts are updated:
Pre-Upgrade Health Check Failed:

Pre-upgrade health check failed on node A - ["XXXXXXXXXXXXXX"] node B -
["XXXXXXXXXXXXXX"]. Please review the health check steps for more details.
(0xXXXXXXXXXXXX)
Health Check Node A

The component version is below the required version. Update FIRMWARE to version
XX.X.X. (incompatible_version)
This upgrade requires a minimum version of VMware ESXi be installed prior to the
upgrade. (incompatible_upgrade_esxi_version)
This upgrade requires the PowerStore X ESXi VIBs be upgraded prior to the upgrade.
(incompatible_upgrade_esxi_vib_version)
The PowerStore X ESXi VMFS partition is not the correct size to proceed with the
upgrade. Please perform the VMFS resize procedure. (check_vmfs_size_failed_A)
These Pre-Upgrade Health Check failures are resolved when the steps in Install the preupgrade package on the cluster
(PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x) on page 22 and Update the internal ESXi hosts and node firmware (PowerStore OS
2.0.x to 2.1.x) on page 23 are performed.
Results
CAUTION: A green check mark does not indicate that a Pre-Upgrade Health Check completed without any error
or warning messages. A green check mark only indicates that a Pre-Upgrade Health Check step completed
successfully. For more information, see KB article 000130130 (Health Check shows all green when there are
warnings).
Perform an Upgrade Extensions System Check on the cluster (Upgrades

from PowerStore OS 2.1.x only)
The Upgrade Extensions System Check is an additional health check that is required to upgrade a PowerStore cluster running
PowerStore OS 2.1.x to a later version of the PowerStore OS. The Upgrade Extensions System Check provides software
upgrade validations for issues or conditions that might be missing from the Pre-Upgrade Health Check.
Prerequisites
CAUTION: Follow these instructions only when upgrading from PowerStore OS 2.1.x to a later version of the
PowerStore OS.
The Upgrade button on the Settings > Cluster > Upgrades page is disabled unless an Upgrade Extensions System Check has
been run within the past 60 minutes.
About this task

Log in to the Dell Support Site to determine if a new Health Check package for the Upgrade Extensions System Check is
available for download.
● If a new Health Check package is available on the Dell Support Site, download the Health Check package, and install it on the
PowerStore cluster.
● If a new Health Check package is not available on the Dell Support Site, skip step 1.
Steps
1. Perform the following steps if a new Health Check package is available on the Dell Support Site:
a. Log in to the Dell Support Site and download the new Health Check package.
For instructions on downloading packages, see Download the PowerStore upgrade packages on page 5.
b. In PowerStore Manager, select Settings and then select Upgrades in the Cluster section.
c. Select Upload Package.

d. Select the new Health Check package and click Open.
NOTE: Do not close or refresh the browser while the Health Check package is uploaded to PowerStore Manager.
e. Select the uploaded Health Check package on the Upgrades page and select Upgrade to install the Health Check
updates.
2. Run the Upgrade Extensions System Check on the PowerStore cluster.
a. Under Monitoring, select System Checks.
b. Select Run Upgrade Extensions.
The System Check detects if there are issues on the PowerStore cluster that might prevent the upgrade from
completing successfully. If the System Check finds issues on the cluster, resolve those issues before performing the
PowerStore software upgrade.
c. Run the Upgrade Extensions System Check again to ensure that all issues have been resolved.
Next steps
Ensure that a successful Upgrade Extensions System Check is the last health check that is run on the PowerStore cluster
before starting the software upgrade.
Install the preupgrade package on the cluster (PowerStore OS

2.0.x to 2.1.x)
Use PowerStore Manager to install the preupgrade package on the PowerStore X model cluster.
Prerequisites
Ensure that a Pre-Upgrade Health Check has been performed at least seven days before installing the preupgrade package on
the PowerStore cluster. For instructions, see Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to
2.1.x) on page 20.
Extensions System Check on the cluster (Upgrades from PowerStore OS 2.1.x only) on page 21.
About this task

Perform the following steps to install the preupgrade package on the PowerStore X model cluster:
Steps
2. Select the preupgrade package in the Software packages table, and select Upgrade.
NOTE: The preupgrade package is displayed as a Hotfix package in the Software packages table.
The installation of the preupgrade package takes approximately 20 minutes to complete.
Results
Installing the preupgrade package stages the following files on the PowerStore X model cluster:
● Node firmware update
● Dell EMC custom VMware .VIB files
● Dell EMC ESXi 7.0 update
● Service script for resizing the ESXi VMFS datastore (svc_esxi_helper)
Installing the preupgrade package also causes the Pre-Upgrade Health Check to run, which checks for the following issues:
● If the local VMFS datastores on the ESXi hosts contain VMs other than the PowerStore controller VM, the following failure
is displayed:
This upgrade requires that no VMs are present in the ESXi host local datastore other than
the PowerStore VM. Please migrate the VMs located in the ESXi host's local datastore to
another Storage Container prior to upgrade. (esx_check_local_vms_static)

NOTE: If vCLS VMs are stored on the local VMFS datastores, migrate the vCLS VMs to a PowerStore vVol datastore
using Storage vMotion.
● If the vCenter Server that is connected to the PowerStore X model cluster is not running a supported version of vCenter
Server 7.0, the following failure is displayed:
Incompatible vCenter version. Please make sure the vCenter is upgraded to version 7.0.3
(build 16858589) or newer.
To view a list of supported vCenter Server versions, see the VMware Licensing and Support for PowerStore X table in
the PowerStore Simple Support Matrix, which can be downloaded from https://www.dell.com/powerstoredocs.
Next steps
Go to Update the internal ESXi hosts and node firmware (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x) on page 23.
Update the internal ESXi hosts and node firmware (PowerStore OS

2.0.x to 2.1.x)
The VMFS datastore on an internal ESXi host must be resized before you can install ESXi updates and update node firmware.
About this task

Perform the following steps to resize the VMFS datastore and update the ESXi host and node firmware on the secondary node
of an appliance:
NOTE: Some management operations that involve vVols may be unavailable during the upgrade.
Steps
1. Identify the primary appliance and identify the IP addresses of the internal ESXi hosts on the primary and secondary nodes
of the appliance. For instructions, see Minimizing internal ESXi host failover occurrences (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x) on
page 19.
NOTE: The terms peer node and secondary node are used interchangeably in PowerStore documentation.
2. If there are multiple appliances in the cluster, perform the following steps to collect information about the other appliances:
b. Record the Management Appliance IP address for each appliance in the cluster.
c. Record the Host Node IP address, Appliance name, and Node letter of each node in the cluster.
d. For the other appliances in the cluster, select the Hardware > Appliances > appliance > Components card in
PowerStore Manager.
e. Select the Internal View tab.
The text (primary) is displayed next to the primary node of the selected appliance, and the secondary node is opposite
of the primary node. For example, if the text (primary) is displayed for Node A, the secondary node is Node B.
f. Use the collected information to identify the IP addresses of the ESXi hosts on the primary and secondary nodes of the
other appliances in the cluster.
3. To upgrade a single-appliance cluster, perform the following steps starting with the ESXi host on the secondary node of
primary appliance.
To upgrade a multi-appliance cluster, perform the following steps starting with the ESXi hosts on the secondary appliances
first and the primary appliance last.
4. Resize the VMFS datastore of the internal ESXi host on the secondary node of an appliance in the cluster.
a. Log in to the vCenter Server using the vSphere Client.
To start the vSphere Client from PowerStore Manager, select Compute > vCenter Server Connection and select
Launch vSphere.
b. Ensure that the ESXi host on the other node of the appliance has enough system resources to run the user VMs that are
migrated to it when the ESXi host on the secondary node is placed into maintenance mode.
NOTE: If the CPU and memory utilization on the ESXi host is greater than 75%, migrate the VMs to another ESXi
host in the vCenter Server using vMotion or power off the user VMs before continuing.
c. Place the ESXi host on the secondary node of the appliance into maintenance mode.

User VMs automatically migrate to the other node in the appliance. After all user VMs are migrated, the controller VM
automatically shuts down and the ESXi host enters maintenance mode.
NOTE: Some user VMs may not migrate due to local dependencies or lack of resources. User intervention may be
required to manually power off these user VMs to allow the ESXi host to enter maintenance mode. See ESXi and VM
considerations (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to 2.0.x) on page 12 for more information.
CAUTION: Do not manually power off the controller VMs, which are named PSTX-<service_tag>-
<node_letter>. The controller VMs are automatically powered off when an ESXi host is placed into
maintenance mode.
d. Open an SSH client and connect to the management IP address of the appliance that contains the ESXi host that is in
maintenance mode.
NOTE: External SSH management access must be enabled on the appliance.
e. Enter the username and password of the PowerStore service account to log in to the appliance.
f. Run the following command to resize the VMFS datastore on the ESXi host:
svc_esxi_helper upgrade
NOTE: Resizing the VMFS datastore can take over one hour to complete.
5. Reboot the ESXi host on the secondary node of an appliance to update the ESXi host and node firmware.
a. In the vSphere Client, reboot the ESXi host that is in maintenance mode.
After a few minutes, the status ESXi host should change to Not responding, which indicates that the host is
rebooting.
NOTE: The following alert is displayed in PowerStore Manager while the controller VM is shut down:
Node has been physically removed or shut down
b. Monitor the ESXi host reboot.

NOTE: The ESXi and node firmware updates take approximately 30 minutes to complete.
The status changes back to Maintenance Mode after the reboot is complete.
c. Exit maintenance mode on the ESXi host after the reboot is complete.
The controller VM should automatically start when the ESXi host exits maintenance mode.
d. Ensure that the ESXi host and controller VM are operating normally before continuing.
● Monitor the Protocol Endpoint (PE) paths in vCenter to identify when the paths to the ESXi host are Active before
continuing.
● Monitor the alerts in PowerStore Manager to identify when the node is up. Then, wait 15 minutes after the alert is
cleared before continuing.
6. Repeat steps 4 and 5 to resize the VMFS datastore and update the ESXi host and node firmware on the primary node of an
appliance.
NOTE: PowerStore Manager temporally stops displaying performance metrics when the primary node of the primary
appliance reboots during an ESXi update.
7. Migrate the VMs back to the preferred node in the cluster using vMotion.
8. For a multi-appliance cluster, repeat steps 4 through 7 on the nodes of the other appliances in the PowerStore X model
cluster.
Results
The ESXi hosts on the nodes of the cluster are now powered on and running the updated version of ESXi.
● If the ESXi versions on the nodes of an appliance do not match, an alert is generated.
● If the ESXi versions on the appliances in the cluster do not match, an alert is generated.
Next steps
Go to Upgrade the PowerStore OS on the cluster (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x) on page 25.

Upgrade the PowerStore OS on the cluster (PowerStore OS 2.0.x
to 2.1.x)
Use PowerStore Manager to upgrade the PowerStore OS.
Prerequisites
Perform a final Pre-Upgrade Health Check before upgrading the PowerStore OS on the PowerStore X model cluster. For
instructions, see Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x) on page 20.
Extensions System Check on the cluster (Upgrades from PowerStore OS 2.1.x only) on page 21.
About this task

Perform the following steps to upgrade the PowerStore OS on the appliances of the cluster:
Steps
2. Select the PowerStore OS upgrade package in the Software packages table, and select Upgrade.
NOTE: The PowerStore OS upgrade package is displayed as a Software Release package in the Software packages
table.
The PowerStore OS upgrade takes approximately one hour to complete.
Results
The PowerStore X model cluster temporarily stops recording performance metrics when the primary node on the primary
appliance reboots during the ESXi update. When the primary node on the primary appliance reboots, the primary node fails over
to the secondary node and you are disconnected from PowerStore Manager. You can log back in to PowerStore Manager after
the failover process is complete.
Next steps
Use the vSphere Client to manually rebalance the VMs in vCenter or allow VMware Distributed Resource Scheduler (DRS) to
automatically rebalance the VMs .
upgraded.

4
PowerStore drive firmware
PowerStore drive firmware updates are released as upgrade packages on https://www.dell.com/support. For instructions on
downloading PowerStore upgrade packages, see Download the PowerStore upgrade packages on page 5.
To update the drive firmware on a PowerStore cluster, upload the upgrade package to the cluster using PowerStore Manager.
Then use PowerStore Manager to apply the firmware updates to the drives.
Topics:
• Update the drive firmware on the PowerStore cluster
Update the drive firmware on the PowerStore cluster

Use PowerStore Manager to update the drive firmware on a PowerStore cluster.
Steps
1. Download the latest drive firmware update package from the Dell Support Site.
The drive firmware update package contains firmware updates for the drives in the PowerStore cluster. For instructions on
downloading PowerStore upgrade packages, see Download the PowerStore upgrade packages on page 5.
3. Select Upload Package.
4. Select the drive firmware update package, and select Open.
The drive firmware update package is uploaded and displayed in the Software packages table.
NOTE: Do not close or refresh the browser while the drive firmware update package is uploaded to PowerStore
Manager.
5. Select the drive firmware update package in the Software packages table, and select Upgrade.
Results
● To verify the drive firmware version for individual drives in a PowerStore cluster, go to the Hardware > Appliances >
appliance > Components > Drives page in PowerStore Manager.
● To verify the drive firmware version for all the drives in a PowerStore cluster, run the service command svc_diag list
--show_drives. For more information, see the PowerStore Service Scripts Guide.
26 PowerStore drive firmware

PWRSTR Upgrade

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PWRSTR Upgrade

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Dell EMC PowerStore

Software Upgrade Guide

Chapter 1: PowerStore non-disruptive software upgrades.............................................................5

Chapter 2: PowerStore T model clusters....................................................................................... 6

Chapter 3: PowerStore X model clusters......................................................................................10

Chapter 4: PowerStore drive firmware........................................................................................ 26

Where to get help

Download the PowerStore upgrade packages

PowerStore non-disruptive software upgrades 5

Upgrading PowerStore T model clusters

About this task

6 PowerStore T model clusters

Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the

About this task

PowerStore T model clusters 7

Perform an Upgrade Extensions System Check on a PowerStore T

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8 PowerStore T model clusters

Upgrade the software on the PowerStore T model

PowerStore T model clusters 9

Upgrading PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore

About this task

10 PowerStore X model clusters

Upgrade readiness for PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore

PowerStore X model clusters 11

Minimizing internal ESXi host failover occurrences (PowerStore OS 1.0.x to

About this task

Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore

About this task

12 PowerStore X model clusters

Pre-Upgrade Health Check Failed:

Health Check Node A

PowerStore X model clusters 13

About this task

The installation of the preupgrade package takes approximately 10 to 15 minutes to complete.

Install the node firmware update package on the cluster

About this task

14 PowerStore X model clusters

Update the internal ESXi hosts on the cluster (PowerStore OS

About this task

PowerStore X model clusters 15

13. Migrate VMs back to the preferred node using vMotion.

16 PowerStore X model clusters

About this task

PowerStore X model clusters 17

About this task

18 PowerStore X model clusters

Upgrade readiness for PowerStore X model clusters (PowerStore

ESXi and VM considerations (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to 2.1.x)

Minimizing internal ESXi host failover occurrences (PowerStore OS 2.0.x to

PowerStore X model clusters 19

Perform a Pre-Upgrade Health Check on the cluster (PowerStore

About this task

20 PowerStore X model clusters

Pre-Upgrade Health Check Failed:

Health Check Node A

Perform an Upgrade Extensions System Check on the cluster (Upgrades

About this task

PowerStore X model clusters 21

Install the preupgrade package on the cluster (PowerStore OS

About this task

The installation of the preupgrade package takes approximately 20 minutes to complete.

22 PowerStore X model clusters