IBM Support

PowerHA Tools for IBM i - Full System Replication

General Page

The Full System Replication Manager is a toolkit designed to help automate and manage DS8K and Storwize replication and switches for IBM i LPARs. It consists of a controlling LPAR (IBM i) which communicates with the storage unit, the LPAR HMC, and the production LPARs. From the controlling LPAR the replication can be monitored, managed, and switched using a variety of commands and menus. Each site should have a dedicated controlling LPAR and PowerHA® Clustering is used to keep the controllers in sync. Should a site be lost, the remaining controller can manage the switch to the remaining site. Switch initiation is not automated; it requires an external trigger from a command. This ensures that a switch is never erroneously triggered when other remedial actions would be appropriate.
Version 5.2 of our toolkit has been released and is available to all customers with active toolkit maintenance agreements. The primary new features support:
 
  • FlashSystems Volume Group Flashcopy
  • FlashSystems Policy-Based Replication
  • FlashSytems SafeGuarded Copy without CSM
 
Migrating from consistency-group to volume-group based operations is not trivial and service engagements are strongly encouraged.
 
PowerHA Tools 4.6 will continue to be supported for some time. The compatibility matrix is available here:
 
All versions older than 4.3 will no longer be supported as of January 1st, 2022.
Check out the "What's New" attachment at the bottom of this page.
  • Supported Storage Devices
    • Support for Storwize products which have an SVC (V3700, V5000, V7000, V9000).
      • Firmware should be 7.6.0.3 or higher
    • Support for all DS8000 models at recent firmware levels
  • Pre-engagement Requirements
    Prior to implementing the Full System Replication Toolkit, fullfilling the following requirements will ensure the engagement goes smoothly. We can assist with any of the tasks below, but it will extend the time required to implement the toolkit. We'll send you the toolkit savefile before we arrive, which you can place on the controlling and production LPARs. Our engagement style is to direct the customer on the work involved. While this does extend the time required for the implementation somewhat, it allows them to participate in all the decisions and to understand how the toolkit is installed, take notes, and initiate a dialogue at any point during the skills transfer. If multiple personnel are to be included, a conference room with a projector is beneficial. We rarely need to access the physical hardware.

    NOTICE: IBM i 7.2 compatibility:
    7.2 is included in the tables below for historical purposes, but has limited support. The support matrix is here.

    • Production LPAR created and functional
      • System value QALWUSRDMN must either be set to *ALL, or have QZRDHASM and QZRDMEDCLS libraries listed
        • In addition to the typical LPPs and PTFs required for the system to be usable, the following LPPs and PTFs should be installed:
          The following LPPs and PTFs are installed
          7.2 7.3 7.4
          5770WDS *BASE, 21 5770WDS *BASE, 21 5770WDS *BASE, 21
          5770999: MF62565 5770999: MF62566
    • Controlling LPAR created with the OS and PTFs installed
      • Job CCSID must be 37
      • Can communicate the storage, HMC, and production LPAR
        • Controllers must be able to ping (iCMP) the HMC, Storage and production LPARs
        • Controllers use SSH (port 22) access the HMCs
        • Controllers use SSH (port 22) to the Storwize or DSCLI (ports 1751 and 8542) to the DSs
        • Controllers and production LPARs use port 55920 to communicate (this port is configurable)
        • PowerHA on the controllers must be able to communicate with each other on ports 5550 and 5551
      • > 0.05 CPU, uncapped (0.25 for PowerVS VMs)
      • 6 GB mainstore
      • > 400 GB DASD (enough for the OS, LPP's, PTF's etc)
      • In addition to the typical LPPs and PTFs required for the system to be usable, the following LPPs and PTFs should be installed:
        LPPs and PTF for the controlling LPAR
        7.2 7.3 7.4
        5733SC1 *Base, 1 5733SC1 *Base, 1 5733SC1 *Base, 1
        5770SS1 30, 33, 34, 41 5770SS1 30, 33, 34, 41 5770SS1 30, 33, 34, 41
        5770JV1, *Base, 16 5770JV1, *Base, 16 5770JV1, *Base, 16
        5770WDS, *Base, 21 5770WDS, *Base, 21 5770WDS, *Base, 21
        5770HAS *Base, 1 5770HAS *Base, 1 5770HAS *Base, 1
        Recent Group PTFs SF99776, SF99716 (level 27+) Recent Group PTFs SF99876, SF99725 Recent Group PTFs SF99666, SF99665
        5770HAS PTF SI57302, SI62180, SI65314
        5770999 PTF MF62565 5770999 PTF MF62566
    • DR LPAR created, no OS is required
      • Available IP address if different from Production LPAR
      • Host connections to replication target LUNs
    • IP addresses, adminstrative user IDs and passwords for:
      • HMC's
      • LPAR's
      • Storage devices (SVC / DS8K)
    • The storage unit (DS8K/SVC) has:
      • Been installed and is running
      • Replication licensed
      • LUNs for the target LPAR created and mapped to host
      • Replication started
      • NOTE: DS firmware levels 7.8.30.470 or greater requires Java 8 (5770JV1 opt 16) on the controlling LPAR
  • Troubleshooting, Access Codes and Support

    For non-urgent issues or questions contact the consultant who installed the Toolkit. To reach a Toolkit developer for non-urgent issues and questions, or to report a bug, send an email to iessspt@us.ibm.com

    For immediate 24x7 assistance, reach out to IBM Support (IBM i Software) at https://www.ibm.com/planetwide/

    Defect Support for the PowerHA® Toolkit for IBM i is for customers who meet the following criteria:

    • Current IBM i Software Maintenancee Agreement

    • Current Technology Expert Labs Toolkit Software Maintenance Agreement

    Before contacting support, please do the following:

    • Read the job log from the bottom up, and look for messages which indicate the problem. Many toolkit messages include recovery steps.

    • Read the toolkit log (QZRDHASM/VIEWLOG) from the bottom up. Note that it may indicate information is provided in another log.

    • Run the command QZRDHASM/DMPINF on the controller and provide the generated compressed file to support.

    Additional Configuration topics: Additional troubleshooting topics:
  • Upgrade and Version History

    Current GA version for all customers: 5.2
    Compatibility Matrix

    The FSR Manager is undergoing constant development. As the toolkit is "consulting-ware" (as opposed to "shrinkwrapped" software) we have the ability to quickly respond to customer needs with short turnaround times. We release frequently, with minor updates between the versions.

    To view the currently installed version and build date, issue the following command:

    DSPDTAARA QZRDHASM/BUILD

    Each link below will take you to a list of the features added at that release, and a link which describes how to upgrade from prior releases.

While this page may be replaced by a new page and URL in the future, http://ibm.biz/FSRManager should redirect to the current correct URL.
To receive notifications when this page is updated, use the Cross Reference details below with 'My Notifications' at https://ibm.com/mysupport.
The top-level web page for the PowerHA Tools for IBM i is here: http://ibm.biz/PowerHATools

Current documentation:
Documentation for older releases:

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Document Information

Modified date:
17 April 2024

UID

ibm11126023

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