Oct 31, 2017 When working on my recent article, How to check that your TCP Segmentation Offload is turned on in both your VMware ESXi server and your VMs; I quickly discovered that there seemed to be some shortcomings when checking the device driver versions for some network adapters, such as those that are found my set of two Xeon D servers.These SoC (System on a Chip) servers feature two. Jump to Steps to Update NIC drivers in vSphere 4 - Verify your version of ESX and/or ESXi. Verify the NIC type you are running and the driver name.
Hello Due to network issues with our ESXi hosts we have been advised by vmware to upgrade our network drivers/firmware. We have 2 types of nic's, Emulex and Broadcom. We have managed to upgrade the Emulex drivers without problems but have problems trying to find the correct update for the Broadcom nics Broadcom Corporation Broadcom NetXtreme II BCM5709S 1000Base-SX driver: bnx2 version: 2.2.1l.v50.1 firmware-version: bc 6.2.0 NCSI 2.0.11 bus-info: 0000:1b:00.0 I think I found the correct driver bundle from vmware but it contains approx 6 different versions. Is the correct version for my nic this: Broadcom_bootbank_net-bnx2_2.1.12b.v50.3-1OEM.500.0.0.472560.vib Also, we have 4 broadcom nics on the one host, when i upgrade will it upgrade all of them or....? Thanks in advance Introduction
This document describes how to install device drivers on the Cisco Unified Computing System (UCS) for common operating systems.
PrerequisitesRequirements
Cisco recommends that you have knowledge of these topics:
Components Used
The information in this document is based on these hardware platforms:
The information in this document was created from the devices in a specific lab environment. All of the devices used in this document started with a cleared (default) configuration. If your network is live, make sure that you understand the potential impact of any command.
Background InformationDriver Definition
A device driver is software that is the interface between the OS and the hardware. The device driver translates general OS commands into specialized commands for a particular device, which allows the OS to communicate with hardware devices.
Devices that Require a Driver
Here is a list of hardware devices that require device drivers:
Drivers Versus Firmware
Device drivers are different from firmware. Device driver software is installed on the OS, whereas firmware is lower-level code that is installed on hardware devices. Firmware is stored in non-volatile memory, such as ROM, Erasable Programmable ROM (EPROM), or flash memory.
Driver Dependence on Firmware
Device drivers have a strong dependence on the device firmware. Device drivers must be compatible with the firmware level of a hardware device, so that they properly communicate with each other; driver and firmware functionality must match for correct operation to take place.
When Drivers Must be Installed and Updated
Device drivers come pre-installed with operating systems (such as Cisco OEM VMware ESXi images), or they can be manually installed post-OS setup.
Device drivers generally need to be updated after these procedures:
Driver Versions Required
The UCS Hardware and Software Interoperability matrix outlines the driver versions that are required for a particular OS, device, and firmware combination.
Warning: The driver versions listed on the matrix have been tested and verified by the Cisco Engineering Quality Assurance team, and it is crucial to install the correct driver; otherwise, you might run into unexpected behavior which could lead to network outages.
This example shows that an FNIC driver version of 1.6.0.36 is required for a B200 M4 with a Virtual Interface Card (VIC) 1240 that runs ESXi 6.0 U3, on UCS Release 3.2.2.
Download the Driver Bundle
Complete these steps in order to download the driver bundle:
Tip: When you choose which driver bundle to download, it is important to select the driver bundle version that is most similar to the server firmware release. For example, if you run a UCS-B Release 3.2(2b), then VMware driver bundle ucs-bxxx-drivers-vmware.3.2.2.iso is required.
Tip: Most VMware ESXi drivers are downloaded directly from www.vmware.com/download, with a search for the driver version. This is often quicker than if you were to download the entire driver bundle.
Identify Server Hardware
Before you select the correct driver, you must identify what hardware devices are installed on the server. This section describes how to find the devices located on the UCS Manager and in the CIMC.
UCS B Series
This example shows how to find the server inventory in UCS Manager. Server 1/1 has two adapter models installed: the VIC 1240 and 1280.
UCS C Series
This example shows how to find the server hardware devices in the CIMC. The server has a LSI 9266-8i RAID controller installed.
Identify the UCS Firmware Release
Before the correct driver version is selected, the UCS release must be identifed. This section describes how to identify the current UCS release installed on the servers.
UCS B Series
In this example, the UCS B Series runs UCS Release 2.1(1a).
UCS C Series
In this example, the UCS C Series runs UCS Release 1.4(6d).
OS Specifics
This section describes how to check driver versions and how to install drivers on common OSs.
VMware ESXi
Use these commands in order to check the current driver versions and VMware build:
Tip: These commands are executed from the ESXi CLI. Secure Shell (SSH) must be enabled before an SSH session is initated.
These examples show that vmnic2 uses a Cisco VIC and a driver version of 1.4.2.15a.
These examples show that the Qlogic Host Bus Adapter (HBA) uses driver qla2xxx Version 901.1k.1-14vmw.
Install the Driver
Complete these steps in order to install the driver:
ESXi 5.x/6.x
Use this command in order to install the driver on ESXi Release 5.x/6.x:
Note: If the drivers require a signature verification, run this command with the --no-sig-check switch. Ensure that you use the full path to the file.
ESXi 4.x
Use this command in order to install the driver on ESXi Release 4.x:
Finish the Installation
After you install the driver with one of the previously mentioned commands, exit Maintenance mode and reboot the host. For more information on how to install drivers, reference the Related Information section at the end of this document.
Useful VMware CLI Commands
Here are some other useful VMware commands that you can use when you install a driver:
Check Maintenance Mode Status
Check for Powered-On VMs
Power-Off VMs
Enter Maintenance Mode
Exit Maintenance Mode
Microsoft Windows Server
This section describes how to install a driver on a Microsoft Windows server.
Check Current Driver Version
In order to check the device drivers in Microsoft Windows, use the Device Manager located in the Control Panel.
Check Current Driver Version CLI
For Windows Server Core the Plug-and-Play (PnP) Utility (PNPUtil.exe) is used to check driver versions.
Missing Drivers
Hardware devices with missing drivers are displayed in the Device Manager with a yellow question mark. These devices should be updated with the correct driver in order to prevent unexpected behavior.
Install the Driver
In order to install or update a driver in Microsoft Windows, right-click on the device, and choose Install/Update Driver in order to start the Installation Wizard.
Install the Driver from CLI
The PNPUtil tool can also be used to install drivers from the CLI. The driver ISO bundle can be mounted via the UCS KVM Console Virtual Media.
Useful Windows CLI Commands
Red Hat and SUSE Linux
This section describes how to install and validate a driver on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES).
SUSE Background Information
Starting with SLES 12 SP1, the Cisco eNIC and usNIC drivers are bundled together into a single RPM (vs. being packaged in separate RPMs, as they are for other Linux distributions). Bundling both drivers into a single RPM is required because of how kernel module dependencies are managed in SLES 12 SP1 and later. If you are not using Cisco usNIC functionality (i.e., if you have not provisioned any usNIC devices in UCSM / CIMC), the usNIC driver will effectively be ignored.
The eNIC and usNIC drivers have their own distinct version numbers. If you install the cisco-enic-usnic RPM on SLES 12 SP 1 or later, once those drivers are loaded into the running kernel (e.g., via rebooting), use cat /sys/module/enic/version and cat /sys/module/usnic_verbs/version to view their respective version numbers. The cisco-enic-usnic RPM has its own distinct version number as well. Because it represents the packaging of the eNIC and usNIC drivers, the RPM version number may look similar, but does not reflect the specific version of either driver.
For additional information on the exact driver versions query and review the RPM description section. The query looks similar to the example below:
Verify current driver versions and OS Release
Here is a list of commands used in order to check the current driver version and OS release:
Note: Be aware of the command modinfo [ driver name ]shows the module information about the driver that will be loaded upon next reboot. This is not necessarily the same driver version currently loaded in the running kernel. Review cat/sys/module/DRIVER_NAME/version to validate the driver version loaded in the currently running kernel, and/or use the command modinfo [ /path/to/driver.ko ] to validate the module info for a specific driver kernel object file.
Tip: Refer to the Driver Name Reference Table located in the Appendix for examples of other common driver names.
This example shows that an ENIC driver version of 3.2.210.18-738.12 bundled in the cisco-enic-usnic RPM package 3.2.272.23 is installed on SLES 15 GA.
Install the Driver
Drivers in RHEL and SLES are installed using the Redhat Package Manager (RPM). Use this command in order to install the driver:
Tip: When you install drivers in Linux, ensure that you review the README files associated with the driver if available. You can look at the contents of the RPM to see where its associated README file was installed (e.g., rpm -qp kmod-enic). Some RPM driver packages have dependencies on other modules, and require installation of additional RPM packages. The README files contain full instructions on how to install the driver file.
AppendixDriver Name Reference Table
This table shows the driver names or prefixes for common drivers.
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