Pillar Axiom: Axiom Path Manager (APM) OS dependency and compatibility

Asset ID:	1-71-1465786.1
Update Date:	2012-07-02
Keywords:

Solution Type Technical Instruction Sure

Solution 1465786.1 : Pillar Axiom: Axiom Path Manager (APM) OS dependency and compatibility

Applies to:

Pillar Axiom 600 Storage System - Version Not Applicable to Not Applicable [Release N/A]
Information in this document applies to any platform.

Goal

This document addresses OS-agnostic questions associated with choosing the correct Axiom Path Manager (APM) software to use

Fix

The questions below may apply to other OSes, even though this was specific to Linux distros
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1- Given that the APM release 3.5.0 for RHEL 5.7 looks more recent than it is for RHEL 6.2 (APM release 3.2.0), can the APM 3.5.0 be installed on all RHEL 5.6+ and 6+ releases? Answer: The versions released for their respective OS versions cannot be mixed. There may be separate APM development taking place against each OS branch.

2- What’s different between the axiompm offered for each Linux distribution? I ran a md5 of axiompm-CentOS5.6-3.4-1.x86_64.rpm and axiompm-RHEL5.6-3.4-1.x86_64.rpm and they both turn out exactly identical. Is this always the case?

Answer: For this particular reason, it is the case because CentOS and RHEL use the same kernel base, and will therefore be interchangeable. The same is not true for other base OS. So, it's always a good practice to download the APM for your particular OS version, just in case divergence of base kernels takes place.

3- What’s different between the axiompm offered from one minor revision to another of a single Linux distribution (e.g. between CentOS 5.6 and 5.7)? What do they depend on? I can run a CentOS 5.6 server and update it with a few packages from CentOS 5.8. Will it break the axiompm?

Answer: APM relies on the correct version of multipath drivers, and HBA drivers associated with the OS or anything underlying. If you want to update a few packages, ensure that they don't have dependencies with either packages I mentioned.

4- What does APM depend on? The kernel version? What about Oracle Linux running either the RedHat kernel vs the UEK kernel provided by Oracle?

Answer: See response to item 4 above.

5- CentOS/RHEL/OEL 5.8 are not in the list, are they supported and which APM version would need to be installed?

Answer: If they are not on the list, then it means we have not fully certified any APM version to work with it, and you may need to rely on the native multipathing support from within the OS. You will need to check with us when an APM client is available.

6- What about legacy systems that run some older CentOS/RHEL/OEL 4/5 (of various minor revisions)? Can APM be installed and if so, which version?

Answer: We may keep some deprecated versions of APM at some point. Just let us know if we still carry one specific to your needs and we will let you know.

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