VPLEX: How to reboot the VPLEX management server.

 Issues:

• Unable to contact the management server during a maintenance activity.
• How to reboot the VPLEX management server.

The field was following the SolVe procedure for replacing the management server and were not able to receive the correct IP address from the Management Server Service Port (Red Cable). Instead, they receive the address, 128.221.252.x, the laptop showed IP address 169.254.242.223 with netmask 255.255.0.0.

Using a static IP address on the laptop did not resolve the issue.

The DHCP server on the management server is not working. When setting a static IP address on the laptop it does not allow contact to the management server.

Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) is not responding or is assigning an incorrect address when connecting to a laptop on the service LAN Port (eth1) RED Cable.

Workaround:

The workaround is to reboot the management server. 

Warning!!: Before rebooting the management server, advise users that may be working in the VPLEX GUI or CLI to stop all work, especially any configuration change activity, while the management server is being rebooted. This takes approximately five minutes.

1. After asking users to stop all work in the VPLEX GUI or CLI and they have confirmed they have exited the GUI or CLI, reboot the VPLEX management server as shown below.
   
   
2. From the Linux shell prompt, issue the following command:

Login as: service
Using keyboard-interactive authentication.
Password:

service@ManagementServer:~> sudo /sbin/shutdown -rf

Broadcast message from root (pts/1) (Wed Sep 11 15:23:21 2018):
The system is going down for reboot NOW!

service@ManagementServer:~>

Important Note:
The "force" option, ' -f ', should be included in the command /sbin/shutdown -rf in order to have more of a chance for the VPLEX management server to come back up after reboot, particularly if there is already some issue with the VPLEX management server itself that requires reboot in the beginning.

Support has seen instances where a number of VPLEX management servers did not come back up after running either sudo /sbin/shutdown -r (without the -force option). Hence this is why it is best practice to use the -f option at the end of /sbin/shutdown command.

Reason to use the -f, force, option:
All processes will be killed forcibly, hence a drastic, yet relatively safe option to request an immediate reboot. If the -f option is not used, sometimes the processes within the VPLEX management server cannot be shut down properly causing the management server to not come back up.

VS2 Management Server: 




VS6 Management Server (MMCS)

VS6 Component Location, look for MMCS-A:

VS6 MMCS-A (Management Server) Service Port:

                    
                     This module is flipped for the MMCS-B so the
                     service port is on the opposite side.

VS6 MMCS Service port cable (Red):
                     

 

The RED Ethernet service cable is connected to MMCS-A on Engine-1 of the cluster. If MMCS-A is faulty and is being replaced, temporarily transfer the service cable from MMCS-A and insert it in the service port on MMCS-B.