Linux Clustering With Csm and Gpfs

5.4 Special considerations for storage node installation

The steps for installing the storage node are almost the same as the compute node installation. When installing the storage node, be sure to turn off any Fibre-attached storage before performing the installation. Otherwise, the node may fail to be installed correctly. The system may panic during boot up due to an invalid boot device.

The following additional steps are required for the storage node installation:

1. Modify the /etc/modules.conf file.

   Once the Linux and CSM installation is complete, perform the following changes to /etc/modules.conf file to ensure proper boot order.

   Move the scsi_hostadapter qla2x00 entry to the end of the scsi_hostadapter entries, and renumber the scsi_hostadapter lines appropriately (that is, first adapter is blank, then '1', '2', and so on.).

   In addition, make sure the following line is added:

   options scsi_mod max_scsi_luns=255

   Example 5-38 shows the /etc/modules.conf file before and after the changes.

   Example 5-38: /etc/modules.conf changes

   The /etc/modules.conf file BEFORE the changes alias eth0 eepro100 alias scsi_hostadapter qla2x00 alias scsi_hostadapter1 aic7xxx alias scsi_hostadapter2 ips alias eth1 e1000 alias parport_lowlevel parport_pc alias usb-controller usb-ohci The /etc/modules.conf file AFTER the changes alias eth0 eepro100 alias scsi_hostadapter aic7xxx << alias scsi_hostadapter1 ips << alias scsi_hostadapter2 qla2x00 << alias eth1 e1000 alias parport_lowlevel parport_pc alias usb-controller usb-ohci options scsi_mod max_scsi_luns=255 <<

2. Install a new boot ramdisk to reflect the changes in /etc/modules.conf.

   This can be achieved by using the following sequence of Linux commands:

   # depmod -a # mv /boot/initrd-<KNLVER>.img /boot/initrd-<KNLVER>.img.old # mv /boot/initrd-<KNLVER>smp.img /boot/initrd-<KNLVER>smp.img.old # mkinitrd /boot/initrd-<KNLVER>.img <KNLVER> # mkinitrd /boot/initrd-<KNLVER>smp.img <KNLVER>smp

   where <KNLVER> is the Kernel version of the Linux running on the storage node. It may be found by using the uname -r command. Be sure to perform this for both the smp and uniprocessor versions of the kernel.

   Important:

   If, for some reason, you are running the legacy LILO boot loader rather than the default (GRUB), you will need to run the lilo -v command after creating the new ramdisks. Otherwise, your system may fail to boot.

3. Turn on or reconnect the Fibre Channel-connected storage and reboot. You should then be able to see your external storage.