IBM 86655RY - Netfinity 7600 - 8665 Hardware Maintenance Manual page 100

Note that only one controller in the redundant pair is active at any given time. For
example, if the primary Ethernet controller is active, then the secondary Ethernet
controller cannot be used for any other network operation.
Note: The operating system determines the maximum number of IBM Netfinity
Considerations when combining failover and hot-plug
functions: If the operating system supports hot-plug PCI adapters and the optional
redundant NIC adapter is installed in a hot-plug PCI slot, you can replace the NIC
adapter without powering off the server — even if it is the primary Ethernet
controller. Disconnecting the Ethernet cable from the primary Ethernet controller will
cause the Ethernet traffic to switch automatically to the secondary Ethernet controller.
This can be very useful if a faulty adapter causes a network problem, or if you want to
upgrade the primary adapter hardware.
Note: If you hot replace the primary adapter while the Ethernet traffic is being
Configuring for failover: The failover feature currently is supported by OS/2™,
Windows NT Server, and IntraNetWare. The setup required for each operating
system follows.
Windows NT Server: IBM offers hot-plug support for Windows NT Server Version 4.0.
Failover can work in conjunction with hot-plug support or independently. If you are
not using hot-plug support, go to "Windows NT Server failover setup" on page 91.
Windows NT Server hot-plug setup: IBM Netfinity Hot Plug PCI for Windows NT
Server 4.0 package is available for download from the IBM Web site at:
Enter the brand type of Server, click on Downloadable files and look for Hot Plug.
The IBM Netfinity Hot Plug PCI for Windows NT Server 4.0 package uses the Intel
Desktop Management Interface (DMI) to control hot-plug support for the Ethernet
controllers. The Ethernet controller in the computer is DMI compliant. Download
and install the following software in the order listed:
1.
2.
3.
Note: The order of installation is important. You must install the IBM Netfinity Hot
To install the IBM Netfinity PCI Hotplug for Windows NT 4.0 Failover DMI Agent:
1.
2.
3.
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Hardware Maintenance Manual: Netfinity 7600 – Type 8665 Models 1RY, 2RY
10/100 Fault Tolerant Adapters that you can install in the server. See the
documentation that comes with the adapter for more information.
handled by the secondary Ethernet controller, the traffic does not
automatically switch back to the primary adapter when the primary adapter
comes back online. See "Configuring for failover".
IBM Netfinity PCI Hotplug for Windows NT 4.0 Failover DMI Agent
IBM Netfinity PCI Hot Plug for Windows NT 4.0 Solution
IBM Netfinity 10/100 Fault Tolerant Adapter device drivers
Plug for Windows NT Server 4.0 package before you install the IBM Netfinity
10/100 Fault Tolerant Adapter driver. If you install the adapter device driver
before the PCI Hot Plug Solution package, the adapter device driver will not
recognize the hot-plug code. This happens because the adapter device driver
only checks the NT registry for the Hot Plug package during installation. If
the PCI Hot Plug Solution package is added after the adapter device driver is
installed, the adapter must be removed and added again in order for it to
detect the PCI Hot-Plug Solution code.
Download the IBM Netfinity PCI Hotplug for Windows NT 4.0 Failover DMI
Agent DMI Agent file from the Netfinity Support web page and extract the files
onto a diskette.
Insert the diskette into the diskette drive.
From the Start menu, select the Run option.