VSI OpenVMS Forum

A hardware configuration question for a SAN using old hardware in support of an AlphaServer VMScluster...

• Two EVA4400s

• One AlphaServer ES40

• One AlphaServer ES47

• Both AlphaServers running OpenVMS Alpha V7.3-2

• The EVA4400s are managed by HP Command View 10.3

• Two fibre channel fabrics (for redundancy)

• Each fabric has one SAN switch (HP rebadged Brocade 300)

• Command View runs on an HP Proliant, Windows Server 2008R2

The Proliant has one fibre HBA that connects to one fabric for managing the EVAs. This seems wrong to me, as I would have expected it to have a fibre connection to both fabrics for redundancy. (That's how it is configured at another site with a similar cluster.) But my service provider (not HPE) tells me that only one fibre connection is supported by Command View and that I should remove the second connection that I have at my other site, even though AFAIK it has never caused any problems. However, the configuration at that second site predates my arrival at the company, so I have no information about WHY it has two connections, let alone whether that was an intentional decision to violate supported configuration rules.

FYI: I did attempt to search the Internet for installation guides and/or supported configuration rules, but came up empty.

Anybody have information about this? Is one connection from the Windows-based management server that runs Command View truly the only supported configuration?

Thanks,
Scott