Cisco Systems MDS 9500 Series manual Usage Guidelines

Appendix A Migrating to Generation 3 8-Gbps Fibre Channel Switching Modules

Usage Guidelines

Se n d d o c u m e n t a t i o n c o m m e n t s t o m d s f e e d b a ck - d o c @ c i s c o . c o m .

The MDS 9509 Director and the MDS 9506 Director also support the Generation 3 8-Gbps modules. The switches require Supervisor-2 modules and Cisco MDS NX-OS 4.1(1b) to support the Generation 3 8-Gbps modules.

Note To upgrade to NX-OS Release 4.1(1b) from SAN-OS Release 3.2(3a) or earlier, first upgrade to SAN-OS Release 3.3(1x) and then upgrade to NX-OS Release 4.1(1b).

Usage Guidelines

In preparation for using the MDS 9513 Fabric 2 module and the Generation 3 8-Gbps modules in an MDS 9513 Director, be aware of the following usage guidelines:

•Cisco SAN-OS release 3.x supports the MDS 9513 Fabric 2 module.

•Until you upgrade to Cisco NX-OS 4.1(1b) and reload the switch, a MDS 9513 Fabric 2 module functions like a MDS 9513 Fabric 1 module.

•You cannot use any Generation 3 8-Gbps module in a MDS 9513 Director, MDS 9509 Director, or MDS 9506 Director until you upgrade to NX-OS 4.1(1b).

•Supervisor-2 modules are required for the MDS 9509 Director and the MDS 9506 Director to support any Generation 3 8-Gbps module.

•You must do the following to enable the increased bandwidth capabilities of the MDS 9513 Fabric

2 modules:

–Upgrade from Cisco SAN-OS 3.x to NX-OS release 4.1(1b).

–Migrate the existing MDS 9513 Fabric 1 modules in the MDS 9513 chassis to MDS 9513 Fabric 2 modules.

–Reload the switch to enable the increased bandwidth.

•If you install just one MDS 9513 Fabric 2 module, the active slot bandwidth of MDS 9513 Director is 96-Gbps full duplex.

•Once you upgrade to Cisco NX-OS 4.1(1b) and reload the switch, a downgrade to Cisco SAN-OS release 3.x will be disruptive. Following the downgrade, the Generation 3 8-Gbps modules in the switch will not power up.

Table A-1lists the types of Generation 3 modules that the MDS 9513 Director supports.

Table A-1	Module Support Matrix for the MDS 9513 Director
Generation 3 Module		Fabric Module	Software Release
MDS 9000 4/44-port 8-Gbps Host-optimized module,		MDS 9513 Fabric 1	Cisco NX-OS
DS-X9248-48K9		module or MDS	4.1(1b)
		9513 Fabric 2
		module
MDS 9000 48-port 8-Gbps Fibre Channel module,		MDS 9513 Fabric 2	Cisco NX-OS
DS-X9248-96K9		module	4.1(1b)
MDS 9000 24-port 8-Gbps Fibre Channel module,		MDS 9513 Fabric 2	Cisco NX-OS
DS-X9224-96K9		module	4.1(1b)

Cisco MDS 9500 Series Hardware Installation Guide

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