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StorageTek SL3000 User's Guide E20875-05 |
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# 5 Library Partitioning

Library partitioning reserves library resources (drives, cells, and CAPs) for the exclusive use of specified hosts. Each partition appears to the host as a separate library. Partitioning is an optional feature enabled with a hardware activation file (see "Hardware Activation Files").

The SL3000 library partitioning specifications include:

- Up to eight partitions

- Smallest increment is a single storage cell, single tape drive, or CAP

- Support for non-contiguous resource assignments

- The total number of storage cells allocated to all library partitions cannot exceed the activated capacity of the library (see "Configuring Active Capacity").

- Supports "HLI Hosts" or "FC-SCSI Hosts" (one type per partition)

## Partitioning CAPs

Note: AEM CAPs are subject to the same partitioning rules and restrictions as rotational CAPs. In this chapter, the term CAP refers to both types of CAPs, unless otherwise specified.

A partition can only use a CAP explicitly allocated to it. All cells in the CAP are allocated as a whole to the partition. It is not possible to allocate or remove individual cells within a CAP (the library does not support common CAPs, split CAPs, or the allocation of individual CAP cells to a partition).

Because a library can have more partitions than CAPs, it may be necessary to share CAPs among partitions. Only partitions with the same host interface type (FC-SCSI or HLI) can share a CAP. Each partition can have dedicated CAPs or shared CAPs, but not both. A shared CAP can be used by only one partition at a time (see "HLI CAP Reservations" and "FC-SCSI CAP Associations").

## HLI Hosts

An HLI partition can have up to 16 assigned hosts. You define the HLI host-partition connection configuration through the library management software, ACSLS or ELS, (see the tape management software documentation).

A single ACSLS server can manage multiple partitions in the same library. Each partition is configured as a separate automated cartridge system (ACS).

ELS hosts using a common control data set (CDS) database (called a host group) can share one partition. A single ELS CDS database can manage more than one partition within the same SL8500 library. Individual HSC hosts and groups of up to 16 ELS hosts that share a common control data set can control a single partition.

### Configuration Changes in HLI Partitions

A partition remains online when allocating resources to the partition. You do not need to stop host jobs. However, a partition will go offline when resources are removed from the partition. The partition automatically comes back online and the library notifies all hosts connected to the partition that a configuration change has occurred. Neighboring partitions are always left undisturbed. After allocating or removing resources, the hosts experience a brief interruption as library configuration information is updated. The host automatically continues to process jobs.

### HLI CAP Reservations

HLI hosts use a reservation scheme to manage CAP usage. Each host reserves a CAP for exclusive use as needed, then releases the CAP when it is no longer required. A host can reserve a CAP if the CAP is empty, closed, locked, and not already reserved by another partition. After an enter or eject operation completes, the host terminates the command. Then, the library controller releases the CAP after verifying that the CAP is closed and empty.

If for any reason a CAP reservation is not released and the enter or eject command cannot be terminated in ACSLS or HSC on the host, a library administrator must override the host partition reservation (see "Override a CAP Reservation").

#### CAP Auto Enter Mode

CAP auto enter mode enables a library operator to open a CAP and initiate an enter operation without issuing an explicit enter request and without an explicit reservation from a host application. Auto enter mode is available for HLI CAPs that have been dedicated to a partition. CAPs in auto enter mode are left unlocked.

Auto enter mode is managed by host applications (see the tape management software documentation).

#### CAP States

Table 5-1 Default States of HLI CAPs in Partitioned Library

Type of CAP | Default State | Default CAP Light Condition | Comment
--- | --- | --- | ---
Dedicated or shared | Locked | Off | Host reservation unlocks the CAP and turns the light on.
Auto enter mode | Unlocked | On | N/A

## FC-SCSI Hosts

An FC-SCSI partition can have one or more host-partition connections. However, some host applications may not allow for CAP sharing (see "FC-SCSI CAP Associations").

### Configuration Changes in FC-SCSI Partitions

The host-partition connection configuration is user-defined and consists of the world wide port name of the FC-SCSI host bus adapter and the logical unit number (LUN) of the host.

After adding or deleting a host-partition connection or changing the LUN, the affected partition goes offline with a "LUNS Data Has Changed Unit Attention" condition. If a host has unique ITL nexus connection mappings for each partition connection, then only the partition experiencing the connection change is affected.

After allocating or removing a storage cell, drive, or CAP in a partition, the affected partition goes offline with a condition of "Mode Parameters Have Changed Unit Attention".

Neighboring partitions and their connected hosts are not disturbed. The hosts connected to an affected partition must issue the appropriate commands to update their library configuration information (see the tape management software documentation).

### FC-SCSI CAP Associations

Most FC-SCSI host applications typically assume sole ownership of a CAP and therefore do not coordinate CAP sharing. To avoid contention among partitions for a shared CAP, you must manually associate a partition to a CAP for an enter or eject operation (see "Enter/Eject Cartridges for FC-SCSI Partition with Shared CAP").

The following rules apply when making partition-CAP associations:

- You can associate only one partition at a time to a CAP.

- Selecting a partition causes all its allocated CAPs to become associated. You cannot select an individual CAP.

- Partition-CAP associations remain active until you explicitly remove them, the CAP becomes allocated to a different partition, the library reboots, the power cycles, the library door open/closes, or the CAP initializes.

If a partition-CAP association is removed while the CAP is open or has cartridges in it, the CAP ownership will be changed to the default requester (the library controller), and the CAP will be unavailable to all partitions. You must empty and close the CAP before it can be associated to any partitions.

#### CAP Stat es

Table 5-2 Default States of FC-SCSI CAPs in Partitioned Library

Type of CAP | Default State | Default CAP Light Condition | Comment
--- | --- | --- | ---
Dedicated | Unlocked | On | N/A
Shared | Locked | Off | Partition-CAP association unlocks the CAP and turns the light on.

## Deleting the Partitioning Feature

To delete an individual partition, see "Delete a Partition". To delete the partitioning feature, you must delete the partitioning hardware activation file from the library (see "Delete a Hardware Activation File"). You must reboot the library after deleting the partitioning activation file for the deletion to take effect.

Caution: The partitioning feature cannot be deleted if it was activated by a legacy hardware activation file prior to SL8500 firmware version FRS_3.0.

Deleting the partitioning feature has the following effects on the library configuration:

- Changes the library state to non-partitioned.

- Makes all activated storage cells, drives, and CAPs accessible to hosts.

- All existing partition summary information and resource allocations are retained, but not usable. If the partitioning activation file is later re-installed, the partition allocations are restored.

## Hardware Changes to a Partitioned Library

Some library hardware changes may require modification of an existing partitioned module. Use the following process to make such hardware changes without losing partitioning information for unchanged library sections.

1. All resources that will be affected by the hardware change must be removed from their respective partitions (see "Module Map & Design Tabs - Design a Partition").

2. Power down the library (see "Power Off the Library").

3. Install the hardware change.

4. Power up the library (see "Power On the Library").

   All partition allocations for the unchanged parts of the library remain in effect.

5. Allocate the library resources that have been added due to the hardware change (see "Module Map & Design Tabs - Design a Partition").

## Partitioning Icons in SLConsole

Table 5-3 Partitioning Icons

Icon | Description
--- | ---
(rectangle with X) | Not Accessible — resources not available for host operations (reserved system cell, physically blocked, and so on).
(white rectangle) | Unallocated — resource unassigned to a partition and available for assignment
(yellow rectangle) | Partition # — resources assigned to the current partition
(red rectangle) | Other Partitions — resources assigned to another partition
(gray rectangle) | Shared CAP — a CAP assigned to multiple partitions

## Library Partitioning

- "Instructions Tab - Prepare for Partitioning"

- "Summary Tab - Add, Delete, or Modify a Partition"

- "Module Map & Design Tabs - Design a Partition"

- "Commit Tab - Confirm Partitioning Changes"

- "Reports Tab - Generate Partitioning Reports"

- "Current Partition Definitions Tab"

Note: No actual changes to partitioning occur until the design is applied using the Commit tab. At any time, you can discard all uncommitted partition changes by clicking the Refresh button.

### Instructions Tab - Prepare for Partitioning

1. Quiesce any host operations.

   You should make the library unavailable to other users before committing partitioning changes. Configuration conflicts may arise if you change partition boundaries while other users are assessing the library.

2. Select Tools > Partitions.

3. Review the Instructions tab.

### Summary Tab - Add, Delete, or Modify a Partition

You can create up to eight partitions.

#### Add a Partition

1. Select the Summary (Step 2) tab of the Partitions interface.

2. In the Partition Allocation Summary area, click Add Partition.

3. Select the Partition ID and enter the Name and Interface Type. Partition IDs do not need to be contiguous.

4. Click OK.

5. Repeat steps 2-4 until you have added all the required partitions.

6. For FC-SCSI partitions, you must add a host connection (HLI host-partition connections are configured through the host library management software):

   1. In the Partition Allocation Summary area, click the partition.

   2. Click Add Connection.

   3. Enter the Initiator (WWPN) and LUN. Each initiator connected to the library must have one library partition assigned to LUN 0.

   4. Click OK.

   5. Repeat steps a - d until you have added all required FC-SCSI connections. Each partition can have up to nine host connections, and each host can connect to multiple partitions.

7. Design the partition (see "Module Map & Design Tabs - Design a Partition").

#### Delete a Partition

When you delete a partition:

- All resources allocated to the partition are marked available.

- All host connections for the partition are deleted.

- The partition ID is deleted.

To delete a partition:

1. Click the Summary (Step 2) tab of the Partitions interface.

2. In the Partition Allocation Summary area, click the partition to remove.

3. Click Delete Partition.

4. Click OK to confirm the deletion. If partitions still remain in the library, proceed to the next step.

   If no partitions remain, select the library interface type you want to assign for all host connections to the library, either HLI or FC-SCSI. Click OK.

5. Click OK to confirm the change.

6. Commit the changes, see "Commit Tab - Confirm Partitioning Changes".

#### Modify a Partition

You cannot change the partition ID. To assign a different Partition ID, you must delete the old partition and create a new one with the new ID.

1. Select the Summary (Step 2) tab of the Partitions interface.

2. To modify the name or interface type:

   1. In the Partition Allocation Summary area, click the partition to modify.

      Caution: Changing the interface type can result in loss of active host connections or existing shared CAP assignments.

   2. Enter the changes you want to make. Click OK.

3. To modify a FC-SCSI host connection:

   1. In the Connections section, select the host-partition connection to modify.

   2. Click Modify a Connection.

   3. Enter the changes you want to make. Click OK.

4. Commit your changes (see "Commit Tab - Confirm Partitioning Changes").

### Module Map & Design Tabs - Design a Partition

Library resources can be allocated to only one partition at a time. If you want to add currently-allocated resources to a different partition, you must first remove the resources from the assigned partition, and then add them to the new partition. CAPs can be shared (see "Partitioning CAPs").

1. Click the Module Map (Step 3a) tab of the Partitions interface.

2. Click the module for which you want to design a partition.

3. Click the Design (Step 3b) tab.

4. Use the list control to select a partition ID.

5. Choose the Select by method, and then select either the Add or Remove option.

6. Use the library map to select the resources to add or remove. Click Move Left or Move Right to display an adjacent module.

7. After you have completed the partition configuration, click Verify. This checks for orphaned cartridges, oversubscribed capacity, and whether each host has a partition assigned to LUN 0.

8. If there are warnings, click Details.

   If orphaned cartridges were found, perform recovery moves on the all listed volumes (see "Moving Cartridges (Recovery Moves)"). After you have resolved all orphaned cartridges, re-verify the partitioning configuration.

9. If there are no warnings, repeat steps 4-8 for each partition ID. After all partitions are configured, see "Commit Tab - Confirm Partitioning Changes".

### Commit Tab - Confirm Partitioning Changes

Use this procedure to apply the partition configuration. No changes are made to the library until you complete these procedures.

1. Take the library offline to ACSLS and ELS tape management software (see the tape management software documentation).

2. Click the Commit (Step 4) tab of the Partitions interface.

3. Click Apply. If the library capacity is over-subscribed, the Apply button is grayed out. Remove storage cells from a partition or purchase more capacity.

4. If there are no warnings, click OK. If there are warnings, click Details >>.

   If orphaned cartridges were found, perform recovery moves on all listed volumes before committing partitioning changes. See "Moving Cartridges (Recovery Moves)".

5. Configure all affected library host applications (see the tape management software documentation).

### Reports Tab - Generate Partitioning Reports

1. Select the Reports tab of the Partitions interface.

2. Select a report from the menu:

   - Cartridge Cell and Media Summary - displays a list of all resource partition assignments.

   - Host Connections Summary - displays host-partition connection information for all partitions.

   - Orphaned Cartridge Report - displays a list of all orphaned cartridges.

   - Partition Details - displays information for a selected partition.

   - Partition Summary - displays summary information for all partitions.

3. To print the report data, click Print. To save the report, click Save to File.

### Current Partition Definitions Tab

Use this procedure to display current partition boundaries and allocations. You can also display detailed information about cartridge, drive, and storage cell locations.

1. Click the Module Map (Step 3a) tab of the Partitions interface.

2. Click the module to display.

3. Click the Current Partition Definitions tab. You can hover over a cell to display a tooltip of detailed information about the cell.

## CAP Operational Tasks

This section describes tasks for operating CAPs in a partition.

### Enter/Eject Cartridges for FC-SCSI Partition with Shared CAP

This procedure is not necessary for dedicated FC-SCSI CAPs. For HLI hosts or dedicated CAPs, see "Entering Cartridges" and "Ejecting Cartridges".

Use this procedure to give the partition exclusive ownership of a shared CAP for an enter or eject operation. The association remains until you explicitly remove the association.

1. Select Tools > Shared CAP Assignment.

2. Select the check box of the partition into which you want to enter cartridges.

3. Click Apply, and then OK.

4. Perform the enter or eject operation (see "Entering Cartridges" and "Ejecting Cartridges").

5. Once the operation is complete, remove the CAP association. Select Tools > Shared CAP Assignment.

6. Deselect the check box of the partition with the CAP associations.

7. Click Apply, and then OK.

### Override a CAP Reservation

If for any reason a CAP reservation by a partition is not released and the enter or eject command cannot be terminated on the ACSLS or HSC host, use this procedure to override the CAP reservation.

Note: You must follow all steps in this procedure, or the CAP could be left unavailable to all partitions.

1. Select Tools > Shared CAP Assignment.

2. Expand the CAP folder, and then click the CAP to override. AEM CAPs are identified as column –31 for the left and column 31 the right.

3. Click the Unreserve tab.

4. Click Apply to override the reservation.

5. Click OK to continue with the override operation.

6. If the CAP is locked, unlock it at the SLConsole (see "Lock/Unlock a CAP or AEM").

7. Open the CAP. Remove any cartridges and label them with the partition ID.

8. Close the CAP. The CAP status changes to "unreserved".

9. Determine if the cartridges from the CAP should be re-entered into the library and then enter the cartridges into the correct partition.