EMC 300-000-978 REV A03 manual Function Native Device Pseudo Device

5

PowerPath Administration on Solaris

Table 5-1 summarizes the functional differences between native devices and emcpower devices in the Solaris environment.

	Table 5-1	Native Devices versus emcpower Devices
		Function	Native Device	Pseudo Device
		I/O failover	✔	✔
		I/O load balancing	✔	✔
		Booting: boot-path failover	No	✔
		Reboot (reconfiguration)	✔ (Partial support)	✔ (Full support)
			If a path is missing, PowerPath
			does not create a
			“replacement” c#t#d#
			device.
		Support for VxVM sliced	✔	No
		disks
		Support for VxVM simple	✔	✔
		disks
		Support for Solaris disk	✔	✔
		partitions (slices)
		Support for interaction	✔	✔
		with VxVM DMP (Dynamic
		MultiPathing)
		(When using PowerPath
		4.0.0, you can manage a
		CLARiiON® storage
		system with either
		PowerPath or DMP, but
		not both.)
		DR transparency	Limitations — c#t#d#s#	✔
			paths are removed, which can
			be disruptive to applications
			using those paths.
		IOCTL deterministic path	✔ (PowerPath selects the	No (PowerPath selects an
		selection	specific path.)	arbitrary path.)
		PowerPath’s No Redirect	Native devices deliver I/O to the	Pseudo devices select a
		load-balancing and	path where it would go if	configured path for all
		failover policy (transparent	PowerPath were not installed. If	subsequent I/O. If that path
		mode)	that path fails, I/Os fail.	fails, I/O to the pseudo
				device fails.
5-8	PowerPath for UNIX Installation and Administration Guide