Bug 570460 - Installation to multipath node fails
Summary: Installation to multipath node fails
Keywords:
Status: CLOSED WONTFIX
Alias: None
Product: Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5
Classification: Red Hat
Component: mkinitrd
Version: 5.4
Hardware: All
OS: Linux
low
medium
Target Milestone: rc
: ---
Assignee: Brian Lane
QA Contact: Release Test Team
URL:
Whiteboard:
Depends On:
Blocks:
TreeView+ depends on / blocked
 
Reported: 2010-03-04 11:59 UTC by Alex Zeffertt
Modified: 2018-11-14 13:31 UTC (History)
2 users (show)

Fixed In Version:
Doc Type: Bug Fix
Doc Text:
Clone Of:
Environment:
Last Closed: 2011-10-21 23:35:45 UTC
Target Upstream Version:
Embargoed:


Attachments (Terms of Use)
make initrd always insmod scsi_dh_emc and scsi_dh_rdac if root multipathed (818 bytes, patch)
2010-03-04 11:59 UTC, Alex Zeffertt
no flags Details | Diff

Description Alex Zeffertt 2010-03-04 11:59:10 UTC
Created attachment 397789 [details]
make initrd always insmod scsi_dh_emc and scsi_dh_rdac if root multipathed

Description of problem:

Installation to multipath node fails for disks with non-default hardware_handlers in /etc/multipath.conf.

This is because mkinitrd fails to insmod  the required handler (either scsi_dh_emc.ko or scsi_dh_rdac.ko).

When the initrd runs "/sbin/multipath -v 0 $wwid" the kernel fails to create the map and generates the following warning:

device-mapper: table: 251:0: multipath: unknown hardware handler type
device-mapper: ioctl: error adding target to table

Version-Release number of selected component (if applicable):

mkinitrd-5.1.19.6-54

How reproducible:

100%

Steps to Reproduce:
1. Create multipath node on DGC device
2. install a rhel root filesystem on partition of node
3. specify /dev/mapper/ node in fstab 
3. chroot to root filesystem and run mkinitrd
  
Actual results:

Creates an initrd which does not insmod scsi_dh_emc.ko.  This means that initrd will fail when it runs /sbin/multipath to create the dev mapper node.

Expected results:

initrd should insmod scsi_dh_emc.ko

Additional info:

See patch

Comment 1 David Barr 2011-04-05 16:20:06 UTC
This may be our problem.

This is seen in the wild on boot with

"device-mapper: table: 253:0: multipath: unknown hardware handler type"

I can install from DVD (RHEL 5.4, to which I am limited) or kickstart without error. On reboot following install, the "253" error is typically found in the console.

I'm booting a diskless IBM HS22V connected to an IBM DS5020 SAN LUN for its disk. For multipathd, the vendor "IBM", product "1814" entries already exist.

This is a Sev 1, Pri 1, for us. It's blocking the installation of a medium-sized blade farm.

More information, with console output, command output, and configurations, are available in Support Case 00442947.

Comment 2 David Barr 2011-04-05 16:56:22 UTC
I just verified installing/running mkinitrd-5.1.19.6-54.

Comment 3 Alex Zeffertt 2011-04-05 17:09:44 UTC
Try out the patch and see if that fixes it.  If it does, maybe Red Hat will take it.

Comment 4 David Barr 2011-04-05 18:13:48 UTC
/sbin/mkinitrd -v \
--with=dm-mod \
--with=dm-multipath \
--with=dm-round-robin \
--with=scsi_dh_rdac \
<outfile>.gz `uname -r`


will function as a workaround.

Comment 5 David Barr 2011-04-05 18:15:13 UTC
Hi, Alex,

I didn't see your comment until I posted my workaround. Is the patch in .rpm format? I don't get a file extension when I try to download it.

(Yes, I'd love for this to be taken. Particularly as errata!)

(In reply to comment #3)
> Try out the patch and see if that fixes it.  If it does, maybe Red Hat will
> take it.

Comment 6 David Barr 2011-04-05 18:45:02 UTC
Hi, Alex,

Okay, I just opened up the diff. The bad news is that my managers aren't going to want me to take the time to get the mkinitrd source, apply the diff, and recompile. Even if I got that far, I wouldn't be allowed to put the result in any package repository where it might get out.

The only way I'm going to get a package into our blade environment is if RH gives me an RPM to test. And, the only way I could talk my bosses into that would be if they were comfortable that a follow-on official update/Errata would be available once the fix was confirmed.

(In reply to comment #3)
> Try out the patch and see if that fixes it.  If it does, maybe Red Hat will
> take it.

Comment 7 Brian Lane 2011-04-05 19:04:58 UTC
Alex, does comment 4 fix it for you?

Comment 8 Alex Zeffertt 2011-04-06 09:05:00 UTC
dafydd wrote:
> I didn't see your comment until I posted my workaround. Is the patch in .rpm
> format? I don't get a file extension when I try to download it.

Yes, you can use the patch as part of the rpm.  The file extension doesn't matter.  Note, you will need to add a couple of lines to the spec file as well in order to make the patch get applied.

Brian wrote:
> Alex, does comment 4 fix it for you?

Unfortunately it was over a year ago I was working on this and so I am not able to test this without setting up a load of equipment.  However, what worked for us was rebuilding the RPM with the patch.

I expect that dafydd's mkinitrd command line would work fine for some of the hardware I have used this on, but not all.  This is because it only causes the scsi_dh_rdac module to be included in the initrd, whereas the patch causes the scsi_dh_emc module to be included as well.

Regards,


Note You need to log in before you can comment on or make changes to this bug.