Flashes (Alerts)
Abstract
IBM Storage Scale has identified a critical issue during the upgrade process on IBM Storage Scale System 6000 nodes from earlier releases that run on RHEL 9.2 to newer versions such as 6.2.3.4 or 7.0.0.1 that run on RHEL 9.6. During these upgrade attempts, the nodes may enter kernel panic mode, thus resulting in service disruption. Upgrades to version 6.2.3.4 from any release that runs on RHEL 9.2 are currently blocked to prevent nodes from crashing due to the kernel panic issue. Upgrades to version 7.0.0.1 are not blocked and can encounter this issue when upgrading from versions 6.2.1.0 or 6.2.1.1 (that is, an N-3 upgrade path). Until the problem is fully resolved, avoid performing upgrades to 7.0.0.1 from N-3 versions such as 6.2.1.0 or 6.2.1.1.
Content
Users Affected
Users of IBM Storage Scale System 6000 (MTM 5149-F48) that run RHEL 9.2 with one of the following IBM Storage Scale System versions:
- IBM Storage Scale System 6.1.9.4
- IBM Storage Scale System 6.2.0.0
- IBM Storage Scale System 6.2.0.1
- IBM Storage Scale System 6.2.1.0
- IBM Storage Scale System 6.2.1.1
And are upgrading to a version of IBM Storage Scale System that runs on RHEL 9.6, namely:
- IBM Storage Scale System 6.2.3.3
- IBM Storage Scale System 6.2.3.4
- IBM Storage Scale System 6.2.3.5
- IBM Storage Scale System 6.2.3.6
- IBM Storage Scale System 7.0.0.0
- IBM Storage Scale System 7.0.0.1
Problem Determination
If you attempt an upgrade to IBM Storage Scale System version 7.0.0.1 from a release running RHEL 9.2, you may encounter a failure in the essrun process after the operating system upgrade. When this occurs, the node may enter a kernel panic state during boot.
To confirm whether the issue is present, access the node console through the ipmitool and review the boot logs. Look specifically for entries that indicate a kernel panic.
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885542] Kernel panic - not syncing: Timeout during microcode update!^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885545] CPU: 43 PID: 236 Comm: migration/43 Tainted: G W OE -------- --- 5.14.0-284.75.1.el9_2.x86_64 #1^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885549] Hardware name: IBM ESS6000 : -[5149-F48]-/ESS 6000 AMD MB, BIOS 0.97 08/30/2024^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885550] Stopper: multi_cpu_stop+0x0/0x100 <- stop_machine_cpuslocked+0x137/0x170^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885559] Call Trace:^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885563] <TASK>^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885567] dump_stack_lvl+0x34/0x48^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885573] panic+0xf4/0x2c6^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885579] __reload_late.cold+0x23/0x23^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885583] multi_cpu_stop+0x66/0x100^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885586] ? stop_machine_yield+0x10/0x10^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885588] cpu_stopper_thread+0x93/0x140^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885590] ? smpboot_register_percpu_thread+0xf0/0xf0^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885594] smpboot_thread_fn+0xd8/0x1d0^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885596] kthread+0xd9/0x100^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885599] ? kthread_complete_and_exit+0x20/0x20^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885601] ret_from_fork+0x22/0x30^M
[2026-02-25T11:05:58-05:00] [ 58.885608] </TASK>^M
Recommendations
Do not perform upgrades from any version of IBM Storage Scale System that runs RHEL 9.2 directly to versions with RHEL 9.6. Instead, first upgrade to an intermediate release (N-2) that runs at least RHEL 9.4 (6.2.2.0, 6.2.2.1, 6.2.3.0, 6.2.3.1, or the recommended version 6.2.3.2); then, proceed with the upgrade to the version with RHEL 9.6.
If your node is already failing to start due to this problem, you can attempt a temporary recovery by using the following steps.
Access the node console by using the ipmitool.
Power cycle the node, with
ipmitool chassis power cycleor by using the BMC web interface.During the node start, when the GRUB boot menu appears, press up or down arrow keys to stay in this menu.
With the arrow keys, select the first kernel boot entry and press e to edit the entry. Append the following parameter at the end of the kernel line:
dis_ucode_ldr
To continue booting with the modified parameters, press Ctrl + x.
Verify that the node starts.
- Contact IBM Support for full system remediation.
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Document Information
Modified date:
02 April 2026
UID
ibm17266332