How do I upgrade to a later version of Archimedia?

Here are the steps to upgrading to a later version of Archimedia. Similar steps are followed if you want to setup Archimedia on a different hard disk partition:

1. Begin by flushing and purging all your XFS(s). Your cache should report 0 for Dirty and Used file sizes.
2. Stop the S93xfs process and back up your xfs folder under /var/kpar. The XFSs are retained with an upgrade, however a backup is recommended in case.
3. Write down your license key (password) which can be found in the /etc/system file at the bottom.
4. Remove the old version of Archimedia using pkgrm KPARarch.
5. Install the new version of Archimedia. Copy the backed up xfs folder into /var/kpar if not restored automatically..
6. Verify that all the relevant processes are running, that is xfsd, jbcd, knfsd, kmountd. Kksmbd is only required if you have Windows clients.
7. Finally, re-share and re-mount your XFS(s).

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How can I tell if my server is seeing the hardware devices that are on the SCSI bus?

The simplest way to tell if the UNIX server is seeing the jukebox and/or drives is to do a probe-scsi-all at the boot prompt.

This is known to hang the machine on an ultra-based sparc machine. In order to prevent this make sure that a reset-all is performed first. Always ensure that you perform this after having halted the operating system, or at boot.

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Can I load the password (license key)into the kernel after software installation without rebooting?

It is possible to dynamically load the password into the kernel without the need to reboot. You need to have added the driver into the kernel using the add_drv command. Add the specific drivers as per your hardware devices:

The driver module for KPAR_cdr will be loaded using the configuration file /kernel/drv/KPAR_cdr.conf , the driver module for KPAR_sk will be loaded using the configuration file /kernel/drv/KPAR_sk.conf and the driver module for KPAR_sj will be loaded using the configuration file /kernel/drv/KPAR_sj.conf.

If this configuration file is incorrect, it may attach to the wrong device and problems may occur. Always check the first time, that in the system messages the correct devices are being attached to. The password should also be modified in the /etc/system file.

For the drivers' password to then be loaded into the kernel, you need to type the following (password format below if for Archimedia V4.2.0 and above):

You will need to first remove the drivers using rem_drv and then re-add themt to reload the updated driver if making a password change.

Also, the kpar_xfsconfig utility needs to be run to set the password in the /var/kpar/xfs/password file. After doing this the S93xfs daemon needs to be re-started.

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My UNIX server does not have XWindows installed due to security reasons. Can I still use Archimedia?

Yes. All Archimedia functions can be performed from the command prompt. These can be viewed in the Archimedia manual under "Utility Programs".

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Where are the passwords for the device drivers held on the system?

The passwords for all K-PAR drivers on Solaris are held in the /etc/system and /var/kpar/xfs/password files

In order to alter the password after installation you will need to be system user: root.

The format that the password line takes in the /etc/system file is:

The password only gets read from this location at boot, so a reboot may be required to ensure that the password is installed into the kernel. If you cannot reboot the system use the kpar_password and kpar_xfsconfig utilities after making the change in the /etc/system file and re-load the drivers as per the question titled "Can I load the password (license key)into the kernel after software installation without rebooting?" .

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How can I stop my server's internal CD/DVD drive from getting claimed by Archimedia?

The Volume Management Daemon, vold, needs to be reconfigured if this is happening. This option is available during the installation.

The /etc/vold.conf file which has been renamed to vold.conf.DISABLE should be renamed back to vold.conf. Look for the entry "Use cdrom drive /dev/rdsk/..." in the file. If the internal CD/DVD drive is on the first SCSI bus, and the external CD/DVD-R device that you are configuring with Archimedia is on the second bus, then change the device name to read /dev/rdsk/c0t*s2.

Alternatively, if the internal CD/DVD drive is on target 6 and the external recorder is not, change the device name to read /dev/rdsk/c*t6*s2

Please refer to Sun's vold.conf manual page for more information on this.

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How can I mount my XFS?

Mounting of your XFS is going to be dependent on the kinds of services that you are running, which will determine the port that you will mount onto. It is recommended to use "noac" when mounting to improve the NFS performance. This option is not required for Archimedia V4.2.0 and above. With the later versions, the xfs_mount command can be used, here is the syntax:

If NFS is using the default port of 2049 on the system, then the mount command can be as follows, if port 2401 is selected for mounting the file system:

If NFS is not running on the system, then the command can be typed as follows:

This will use port 2049, the default port for mounting.

Please refer to Chapter 11 in the Archimedia V4.3.0 Unix User's Manual for more information.

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I have suffered a system crash. Is there anything I should do?

The first thing that should always be done after suffering from a system crash is to run the xfs_correct and xfs_check utilities in the following manner:

1. Begin by stopping the xfs daemon, /etc/rc3.d/S93xfs and closing all Archimedia-related applications.
2. Run the following command from command line:
# xfs_correct –fldy <xfs-name>

<xfs-name> is the name of your XFS, you can get this name(s) by running the xfs_list utility.
3. After the above is completed, then run the following:
# xfs_check –ciy <xfs-name>
4. Now, re-start all the services.

These utilities will look through the index files and try and establish if there are any inconsistencies in them. If there are any, it will then try and correct them. Not every scenario can be corrected.

If the indices cannot be corrected then there are two options to recover:

1. Recover the indices from a known good backup. XFSs can be backed up by stopping the xfs daemon and then backing up the xfs folder under /var/kpar. Refer to "How can I backup my filesystem (XFS(s)) and cache?" in the Archimedia (General) FAQs.

This will place a good working set of indices back on the hard disk, which can then be used to recover. Running xfs_correct followed by an xfs_check should recover the indices to a good working set.

2. Start re-indexing the complete file system from scratch. This may be a lengthy process depending on the number of XFS file systems and the number of pieces of media included in each file system. This would mean deleting the XFS and building a new one and creating subsystems for each media.

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Problems reading discs in other drives.

It has been noticed that not all media are compatible with their respective drives. Try using several brands of media to see which best suits the drive that you are using. Also check the hardware manufacturers' websites or consult with their support group to determine the recommended media for your specific drive. Drive manufacturers regularly update the firmware for their drives, so that the latest media can be accommodated.

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Where to look for errors.

The system log for Solaris is located in: /var/adm/messages.

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I keep seeing SCSI warnings being generated in my console and /var/adm/messages file.

This could be due to one or many of the following:

• The SCSI cable is too long, or the cables are of poor quality. For a device to work at a reasonable speed, there should be fewer devices on it and shorter cables connecting them. Device negotiation problems generally mean that there are too many devices on the bus.
• One of the devices on the bus is incorrectly terminated. Ensure that the bus is terminated with a good quality terminator of the correct type for the bus.
• The hardware is unable to work at the fast speeds that modern SCSI adaptors can handle. Check with the hardware manufacturer to see if there is any updated firmware which may resolve SCSI issues. Check with Sun for details on how to slow down a particular SCSI bus on a system.

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Why do I keep suffering from buffer underruns?

This means that the data throughput to the drive is not being supplied quickly enough to ensure a continuous flow of data to write the track.

There are several possible causes for this :

• The SCSI bus may have too many other devices that need to use the bus too frequently, which results in the data flow being interrupted. A CD/DVD recorder should ideally be on a separate bus from other devices.
• A system daemon called vold which handles mounting of removable media, may be running on the system and looking at the CD/DVD-R drive. The daemon may try to access the drive to mount it a number of times when the media is placed into the drive. This is likely to cause a burn failure as the bus will be utilized for mounting, and as it cannot mount the CD/DVD as it is blank, it will keep failing.
• A very long cable or a poor quality cable can be the cause.
• A heavily utilized CPU may not be able to allocate enough system resources to the burn. In this case try burning the CD/DVD as root, so that a higher priority can be allocated to the burn process.

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Latest patches and updates from Sun.

Useful web sites for Sun Solaris patches include:

• http://sunsolve.sun.com
• http://access1.sun.com

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Latest drive/library firmware from manufacturers.

Try following the links to the CD, DVD, Optical or Blue Ray media manufacturers' web sites in order to download the latest firmware. Usually the firmware can be found under technical/support/downloads links at the manufacturers' web sites.

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