Dealing With Hardware Faults; Firmware Updates; Configuring Partner Firmware Update; Continuous Operation During Replacement - Dell EMC ME4 Series Owner's Manual

If you do not have any of the suggested equipment for proper grounding, have an authorized technician install the part. For more
information about static electricity or assistance with product installation, contact customer support. For additional information, see
www.dell.com/support.

Dealing with hardware faults

Ensure that you have obtained a replacement module of the same type before removing any faulty module.
CAUTION:
• If the enclosure system is powered up and you remove any module, replace it immediately. If the system is used with any modules
missing for more than a few seconds, the enclosure(s) can overheat, causing power failure and potential data loss. Such action can
invalidate the product warranty.
• Observe applicable/conventional ESD precautions when handling modules and components, as described in
Avoid contact with midplane components, module connectors, leads, pins, and exposed circuitry.

Firmware updates

After installing the hardware and powering on the storage system components for the first time, verify that the controller modules,
expansion modules, and disk drives are using the current firmware release. Periodically, ensure that the firmware versions used in the
enclosure modules are compatible.

Configuring partner firmware update

In a dual-controller system in which partner firmware update (PFU) is enabled, when you update firmware on one controller, the system
automatically updates the partner controller. Disable PFU only if requested by a service technician. Use the ME Storage Manager or CLI to
change the PFU setting.
NOTE:
• See the topic about updating firmware in the Dell EMC ME4 Series Storage System Administrator's Guide before performing a
firmware update.
• The ME Storage Manager and CLI provide an option for enabling or disabling PFU for the partner controller as described in the Dell
EMC ME4 Series Storage System Administrator's Guide. To enable or disable the setting via the CLI, use the set advanced-
settings command, and set the partner-firmware-upgrade parameter. See the Dell EMC ME4 Series Storage System CLI Guide for
more information about command parameter syntax.

Continuous operation during replacement

Your hardware or software enclosure management application determines the capability for replacing a failed disk without the loss of
access to any file system on the enclosure. Enclosure access and use during this period is uninterrupted. If an enclosure is equipped with
redundant PCMs or PSU, sufficient power is provided to the system while the faulty module is replaced.
NOTE: ME4 Series Storage System enclosures support hot-plug replacement of redundant controller modules, power supplies,
and expansion modules. Hot-add replacement of expansion enclosures is also supported.

Shut down attached hosts

For systems with only a single controller, you must shut down all attached hosts before shutting down a controller.

Shutting down a controller module

Shutting down the Storage Controller in a controller module ensures that a proper failover sequence is used, which includes stopping all I/O
operations and writing any data in write cache to disk. If the Storage Controller in both controller modules is shut down, hosts cannot
Before you
Module removal and replacement
begin.
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