In this article we’ll cover the steps on how to update quantum DXi software installation. In the previous article we have seen the steps on the deployment of the Quantum DXi virtual appliance on a VMware vSphere environment. At this step we are now ready to progress the installation by registering the virtual appliance and checking for the latest release of the firmware available from the Quantum website. At the time of writing the latest version of the firmware to update Quantum DXi v1000 appliance is version 2.3.4.
The latest firmware to update Quantum DXi includes a number of fixes and improvement. Namely, from the Quantum website:
- Web Browser Compatibility – Access the DXi Remote Management Console using Google Chrome, in addition to Microsoft Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox.
- Help Menu – Quickly access documentation and learning resources on Quantum.com, as well as the built-in online help, using the Help drop-down menu.
- Multiple Replication Targets – Replicate data from a source DXi system to up to two target DXi systems. Each share or partition can be configured individually to replicate to one or both targets, and replication can be paused per target.
- Replication Send Page – The redesigned Replication > Send page lets you easily manage data replication for all shares or partitions. In addition, you can quickly enable or disable replication for one or more shares or partitions.
- OST Status Page – The enhanced Status > OST page provides statistics for recent OST optimized duplication as well as DXi Accent activity.
- Replication Configuration Page – The redesigned Configuration > Replication page allows you to manage both replication targets and sources using a single, unified interface.
- Increased Replication Snapshots – You can retain up to 32 snapshots for each share or partition configured for replication.
- Scheduler Page – The redesigned Configuration > Scheduler page provides tools for quickly adding a new scheduled event, as well as for managing schedules for multiple shares or partitions.
- Network Address Translation (NAT) – You can specify a NAT IP address for the DXi to enable replication across a public network, when the source and target are located behind NAT-enabled routers.
- Software Upgrade Utility – The Software Upgrade Utility can automatically check for software upgrades for your DXi system. If an upgrade is found, you can choose to download and install it to update your DXi to the latest software version.
- Chargeback Reporting – DXi Advanced Reporting enables per share reporting, also called chargeback reporting. Using the chargeback reports, you can see ingest, incoming replication, and outgoing replication statistics for individual CIFS/NFS shares, OST LSUs, or VTL partitions.
A lot of features are included and makes sense to update Quantum DXi to the latest firmware before going to production. The other nice feature is the update process can be done directly using a Web browser as shown in the next steps.
Update Quantum DXi v1000 software installation
From the main console in the Support section we can progress the installation by registering the virtual appliance and simply following the wizard.
Let’s start the Registration process.
Same wizard can also be used to automatically collect all the system ans diagnostic information. These file can be sent to Quantum Support in case of issues.
The procedure will take a few seconds to complete.
At this point the final part of the registration consist in providing the License Key. This can be provided by Quantum support and even downloaded directly. In the latter case the Quantum DXi should have access to the internet.
A few moments later the virtual appliance is registered and properly licensed with all features up to 1 TB of storage after deduplication. Quantum DXi v1000 has a reduction of 15:1.
At this point we are ready to update Quantum DXi to the latest release.
In the Home > System Overview page it offers the main information and details about the system with links to the pertinent sections including the option to run software upgrades.
One way to update Quantum DXi software is to use the standard wizard from the main page. This brings the software updates for the current release.
In case of firmware upgrades (which might include software upgrade as well) the Utilities > Software Upgrades > Upload New DXi Software Upgrade file gives the option to manually provide the firmware update. At the time of writing this is version 2.3.4.
The first step is to import or upload the upgrade file locally on the Quantum DXi virtual appliance. The file is roughly 1.3 GB in size.
The Quantum DXi appliance will automatically verify the file upon upload.
At this point from the wizard we can proceed with the install option. It is grayed out as there are some notifications which require an administrator attention.
Let’s review and delete the administration alerts. This is a very useful feature as it preserve the system before making any actual change to the firmware which includes by the way a full system reboot.
Once all the messages have been cleared it is possible to proceed to update Quantum DXi virtual appliance.
The process for the upgrade itself doesn’t take long. The system will also automatically reboot to apply changes.
As soon as the Quantum DXi has rebooted and all services are up and running, by visiting the system overview page the software is now updated to the latest version 2.3.4
In the next article we’ll review the system settings like Network, Time and Security.
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