Dell PowerVault NX3600 Instruction Manual

Dell PowerVault FluidFS NAS Solutions
Release Notes

Notes, Cautions, and Warnings
NOTE: A NOTE indicates important information that helps you make better use of your computer.
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.
©2012 Dell Inc.
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2012 – 07
Rev. A00

Contents
Notes, Cautions, and Warnings...................................................................................................2
1 Introduction..................................................................................................................................5
What's New In the System.......................................................................................................................................5
Introduction Of The Dell PowerVault NX3600 And NX3610 Appliances.............................................................5
Introduction Of The NAS Initial Deployment Utility............................................................................................5
Known Issues And Limitations..................................................................................................................................5
Fluid FS Version 2.0............................................................................................................................................5
NAS Initial Deployment Utility............................................................................................................................7
Contacting Dell .........................................................................................................................................................8

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Introduction
This document describes important product information and restrictions for the Dell PowerVault NX3600/NX3610 NAS
appliances, Dell Fluid File System (FluidFS) version 2.0, and the NAS Initial Deployment Utility (IDU).
What's New In the System
Introduction Of The Dell PowerVault NX3600 And NX3610 Appliances
FluidFS version 2.0 introduces the next generation of hardware platforms for NAS:
• The NX3600 appliance containing two 1 Gb NAS controllers
• The NX3610 appliance containing two 10 Gb NAS controllers
The NX3600/NX3610 appliances contain two highly available active/active NAS controllers in a single 2U chassis. The
NX3600/NX3610 appliances are also easy to deploy as they have integrated Backup Power Supplies (BPS) and require
fewer network connections than the NX3500. An NX3610 cluster can contain up to two NAS appliances or four active
NAS controllers in a single namespace. With built-in client load balancing, all controllers actively serve data, thus
maximizing resource utilization and hence performance. With redundant hardware components and a clustered file
system architecture, the NAS appliances are built for high availability. In a NAS cluster, any single controller can fail
without affecting data availability or causing data loss. A controller failure causes the peer controller in the same
appliance to take over the failed controller.
Introduction Of The NAS Initial Deployment Utility
The NAS IDU is a Windows-based application that performs initial configuration for the NX3600/NX3610 appliances.
When installed on a Windows-based computer that is connected to the same network as a NX3600/NX3610 appliance,
the NAS IDU uses non-routable IPv6 unicast traffic to discover the appliance. After discovery is complete, the NAS IDU
allows you to assign IP addresses to the appliance and create a cluster from the available controllers.
Known Issues And Limitations
Fluid FS Version 2.0
LDAP Requires Anonymous Access
Description FluidFS currently does not support non-anonymous LDAP. If you try to connect to your cluster
with a non-anonymous LDAP account, the following message related to client connection
rebalance is erroneously displayed:
Client connection rebalance across available NAS nodes
succeeded. Not all NAS nodes are available at this time.
Workaround/
Solution
Use anonymous LDAP user credentials to connect to your cluster.
5

The Console Displays An Inaccurate (Failed) Message When The Controller Is In Standby Mode
Description When the controller is in standby mode, the following message is displayed on the console:
Press: 'i' - re-Install standby controller[FAILED]
This messages indicates that the controller is in standby mode.
Workaround/
Solution
Ignore this status message, this message is not displayed after clusterization is complete.
Cannot Rename NAS Volume That Is Part Of A Replication
Description The system does not allow renaming of NAS volumes that are a part of a replication
partnership.
Workaround/
Solution
Do not rename a NAS volume that is a part of a replication partnership.
Add Pair Via NAS Manager Can Not Be Restarted If The Add Pair Operation Fails To Attach Members Due
To IP Address Conflict
Description You cannot restart the add pair operation using the NAS Manager , if the add pair operation
fails due to an IP address conflict.
Workaround/
Solution
Contact Dell support.
Replication Status Fails After Detach Operation Is Run From The Source Cluster.
Description Detaching a node from the source cluster during active replication operation may cause
replication to fail.
Workaround/
Solution
Retry the replication after the node is detached successfully.
No Message Is Displayed When Deleting A Replication Partnership From The Destination Cluster
Description When deleting a replication partnership from the destination cluster, FluidFS does not prompt
you to apply the volume configuration.
Workaround/
Solution
You must manually apply the volume configuration on the destination cluster.
Interrupted System Call Warning Message Repeatedly Logged In Syslog
Description The warning message Error in payload recv_n errno 4 Interrupted
system call is repeatedly logged in the Syslog.
Workaround/
Solution
This warning message can be safely ignored.
6

Progress Bar In Microsoft Internet Explorer Version 8 Remains at 99% Completion When Applying Service
Pack Upgrade
Description When you apply a service pack upgrade using Microsoft Internet Explorer version 8, the
progress bar remains at 99% completion after the service pack is applied successfully.
Workaround/
Solution
Follow any of the workarounds to resolve the issue:
• Before upgrading the service pack, update the Microsoft Internet Explorer to version 9.
• Use any web browser other than Microsoft Internet Explorer version 8 to apply the
service pack upgrade.
• Use the Command Line Interface to apply the service pack upgrade.
NAS Initial Deployment Utility
Host Discovery Fails For Hosts With More Than One IP/Subnet
Description Running the NAS IDU on hosts with more than one IP/subnet causes host discovery failures.
Workaround/
Solution
Ensure that the system running the NAS IDU is connected to only one subnet.
Clusterization Fails If Broadcast And Network IP Addresses Are Entered In Host Address Fields
Description NAS IDU incorrectly accepts broadcast and network IP addresses in host address fields.
Clusterization fails if broadcast or network IP addresses are entered in the host address fields.
Workaround/
Solution
Ensure that you do not enter broadcast or network IP addresses in the host address fields.
Clusterization Fails If There Are IP Address Conflicts
Description NAS IDU does not check for IP address conflicts on the network. Clusterization fails if IP
address conflicts exist.
Workaround/
Solution
After entering all the IP addresses, on the Summary screen, check the list of IP addresses to
ensure that there are no IP address conflicts with your network environment.
NAS IDU Does Not Automatically Or Manually Discover The NAS Appliance(s)
Description NAS IDU fails to discover the NAS appliance(s) both automatically and manually.
Workaround/
Solution
Connect the system running the NAS IDU to the same switch as the FluidFS NAS appliance(s).
IP Addresses For Two MD Arrays Required Even When Only When MD Array Is Connected
NOTE: This issue is applicable only to the NX3610 NAS appliance.
Description The NAS IDU requires IP addresses for two MD arrays even if only one MD array is connected.
Workaround/
Solution
You must enter the IP address of the single MD array in both fields.
7

Contacting Dell
To contact Dell for sales, technical support, or customer service issues:
1. Visit support.dell.com.
2. Verify your country or region in the Choose a Country/Region drop-down menu at the bottom of the page.
3. Click Contact Us on the left side of the page.
4. Select the appropriate service or support link based on your need.
5. Choose the method of contacting Dell that is convenient for you.
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