alt_disk_install problem

[bi]

I am trying to do an alt_disk_install (migration) of a 4.3.3 system to 5.1 ML 07. The original OS disks (hdisk0 and hdisk1) were only 4 GB and couldn't hold much more data, so we had to add two 18 GB disks to the system. I mirrored the OS to one of the 18 GB disks, did a bosboot -ad hdisk2, and broke the rootvg mirror, taking hdisk0 and hdisk1 out of the VG.

This left hdisk2 as the sole disk in rootvg. It has all the necessary LVs, including hd5. The command bootinfo -d gives the result hdisk0.


I started the alt_disk_install and got this error message at the beginning:

0301-168 bosboot: The current boot logical volume, /dev/hd5, does not exist on /dev/hdisk0.

I called IBM and they said it would be OK, because I could see that NIM had created alt_hd5.

Two hours later, at the end of the alt_disk_install process, I got this message:

Creating client boot image.
bosboot: Boot image is 17108 512 byte blocks.
Writing boot image to client's alternate boot disk hdisk3.
dd: 0511-053 The write failed.
: There is a request to a device or address that does not exist.
0505-184 nimadm: Error writing client boot image.
Cleaning up alt_disk_migration on the NIM master.

Does anyone have any ideas? Should I have used this bosboot command: bosboot -ad /dev/hdisk2? Should I boot off hdisk2 before I attempt the alt_disk_install again so the system will see that hdisk2 is bootable?

I've sent this info into IBM, but am hoping I can get a quick answer from this forum.

Thanks for any help you may give me.

 

[p5wizard]

after moving hd5 boot image to another disk, I always do

bosboot -a -d /dev/<newdisk> -l /dev/hd5
bootlist -m normal <newdisk> (or use diag command and also alter service mode bootlist)

A reboot is not really necessary, but it will give you proof that all is well.


HTH,

p5wizard

 

[madmurdock]

I am sorry for you, bi, but you cannot migrate the OS via alt_disk_install, because this is a major Release number. You will always fail on that. I had an official call to the IBM support in this matter and got the answer, that only minor releases ( e.g. 5.1 -> 5.2 ) can made with alt_disk_install.

YOu have to find another way to migrate....

greetings

mad

Advanced Interactive eXecutable

 

[bi]

Thanks, p5wizard and madmurdock.

I ran bosboot -a -d /dev/hdisk3 -l /dev/hd5 and got the same initial error.

I have successfully updated a 4.3.3 test system several times to 5.1 using alt_disk_install, so I know it works.

 

[kHz]

I agree. I did an alt_disk_install to 5.1 from 4.3.3.

You removed hdisk0 and hdisk1 from rootvg?
You ran `bosboot -ad /dev/hdisk2`?
Try `bosboot -ad /dev/ipldevice`
You ran `bootlist -m normal /dev/hdisk2`?
You ran `chpv -c /dev/hdisk0`?
You ran `chpv -c /dev/hdisk1`? (I think chpv -c clears the disk of boot info. Not in front of an AIX system right now.)
You are trying to create the alt_install on hdisk3?
What does and `lspv` show?
What does `bootlist -m normal -o` show?

 

[kHz]

Oops.

With chpv and bootlist ignore the /dev and just use the disk name:

bootlist -m normal hdisk2

 

[bi]

Thanks, kHz. To answer your questions:

After I removed hdisk0 and hdisk1 from rootvg, I ran a chpv -c hdisk0 and chpv -c hdisk1.

I have run bosboot -ad hdisk3 and then bosboot -ad /dev/hdisk3 and bosboot -a -d /dev/hdisk2 -l /dev/hd5.

I will try the bosboot -a -d /dev/ipldevice after the current alt_disk_migration completes. (IBM asked me to run it again in verbose and debug modes.) Should I include the hdisk in the bosboot -a -d /dev/ipldevice command?

I ran bootlist -m normal hdisk2.

Here is the output of lspv:

hdisk0 00095230bf1d1f00 None
hdisk1 00095230459a0f62 None
hdisk2 000931169aef65de rootvg
hdisk3 000931162eb26092 altinst_rootvg (I'm in the middle of an alt_disk_install right now)

# bootlist -m normal -o
hdisk2

And here is an lsvg -l for altinst_rootvg:

# lsvg -l altinst_rootvg
altinst_rootvg:
LV NAME TYPE LPs PPs PVs LV STATE MOUNT POINT
alt_hd5 boot 1 1 1 closed/syncd N/A
alt_hd6 paging 256 256 1 closed/syncd N/A
alt_hd8 jfslog 1 1 1 open/syncd N/A
alt_hd4 jfs 31 31 1 open/syncd /alt_inst
alt_hd2 jfs 198 198 1 open/syncd /alt_inst/usr
alt_hd9var jfs 18 18 1 open/syncd /alt_inst/var
alt_hd3 jfs 16 16 1 open/syncd /alt_inst/tmp
alt_hd1 jfs 2 2 1 open/syncd /alt_inst/home
alt_hd10opt jfs 17 17 1 open/syncd /alt_inst/opt
alt_lv01 sysdump 15 15 1 closed/syncd N/A


And from rootvg:

# lsvg -l rootvg
rootvg:
LV NAME TYPE LPs PPs PVs LV STATE MOUNT POINT
hd5 boot 1 1 1 closed/syncd N/A
hd6 paging 256 256 1 open/syncd N/A
hd8 jfslog 1 1 1 open/syncd N/A
hd4 jfs 43 43 1 open/syncd /
hd2 jfs 145 145 1 open/syncd /usr
hd9var jfs 18 18 1 open/syncd /var
hd3 jfs 16 16 1 open/syncd /tmp
hd1 jfs 2 2 1 open/syncd /home
lv01 sysdump 15 15 1 open/syncd N/A


And bootinfo -B hdisk2 gives the result of 1. (This proves the disk can be booted from based on its hardware location.)

 

[kHz]

A `bosboot -ad /dev/ipldevice` will take care of all devices. And you woudln't need to know which device it specifically is, but no you don't include the hdisk in the command.

It would be interesting to see if the alt_install would work if using hdisk0 or hdisk1.

 

[bi]

bosboot -ad /dev/ipldevice gives me this error message:

0301-168 bosboot: The current boot logical volume, /dev/hd5,
does not exist on /dev/hdisk0.

I think I will remirror to hdisk0 and try it again.

 

[hirschaj]

Sounds like your /dev/ipldevice is linked to the wrong disk. Unlink it and relink it to the proper disk device file using the ln command. You can reference the following URL....

http://www16.boulder.ibm.com/pseries/en_US/aixins/insgdrf/system_error_msgs.htm

Jim Hirschauer

http://www.aixexpert.com

 

[bi]

I finally got alt_disk_install to work. This is what I did:

I brought hdisk0 back into rootvg and did the alt_disk_install using just that disk in rootvg. That solved the first error message I got.

The second error message I got (dd: 0511-053 The write failed. : There is a request to a device or address that does not exist.) was caused because the boot logical volume (hd5) in AIX 4.3 is about 8 MB and in AIX 5.1 it is about twice that size. When the altnernate logical volumes were created, the alternate hd5 was given only one physical partition. Because the disk size of hdisk0, which was being cloned to hdisk2, was only 4 GB, the PPs were only 8 MB. I had to first increase the size of hd5 in rootvg to 2 PPs and then do the alt_disk install.

Thanks to everyone for their input.