Mutipathing

With Windows 2003, do you need a third party multt-pathing software for
HBAs? Or does w2k3 support this natively?

Kevin

Please note, this may not be a true statement.

My understanding was that you needed a third party because the MPIO
interface was just an API that allowed MS to put a steak in the ground and
have all the vendors use it for a consistent, supportable configuration
accross all of them.

Hardware vendors like EMC, Hitachi, HP, etc... as well as at least one
software vendor, Veritas, offer these tools.

Perhaps someone can clarify this...

jh

As far as EMC is concerned powerpath is the failover software
which is required to manage multiple paths.

I agree with Joseph that MPIO is only an API. So i guess EMC would
have to implement the API for powerpath.

Vendors would require to provide Device Specific modules (DSM) , which
are like plugins into the MPIO arch.

Ritesh N.

this is not true. MPIO is not an API at all, it is a development kit that
consists of a set of binaries (redistributable) that along with one or more
vendor-supplied "device specific modules" can implement a complete
multipathing (load balance and failover) solution.

Refer to this website for more information:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversystem/storage/technologies/mpio/default.mspx

In the near future, MPIO will be integrated with the Microsoft iSCSI
initiator as well, providing generic support for targets that have passed
the logo program.

Jeff [MSFT]

The key words were vendor supplied device specific modules...

Would that imply that it is not exposed to the OS in 2003 as a function that
an end user could turn on or impliment without a third party set of tools?
or is this something that "out of the box" Windows 2003 supports
multi-pathing on its own?

Working for one of those vendors, our messaging indicates that you do
require a third party. If this is incorrect, I would like to get our
messaging straight so that we are not stating something that is untrue.

thanks in advance for the reply.

jh

This is correct. Unlike VSS which will default to a softwate provider, MPIO
will not have a default setting. VSS is the framework. Vendors (like EMC or
Veritas) provide the plug-ins to be able to make it work.

- Brian

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1 9th March 15:09 kevin wheeler External User Posts: 1	Mutipathing With Windows 2003, do you need a third party multt-pathing software for HBAs? Or does w2k3 support this natively? Kevin

3 9th March 15:10 ritesh External User Posts: 1	Mutipathing As far as EMC is concerned powerpath is the failover software which is required to manage multiple paths. I agree with Joseph that MPIO is only an API. So i guess EMC would have to implement the API for powerpath. Vendors would require to provide Device Specific modules (DSM) , which are like plugins into the MPIO arch. Ritesh N.

6 18th March 21:37 brian henderson¸šœw§uêì¢wb±Ë¬²*²hœ®‹(~×( External User Posts: 1	Mutipathing This is correct. Unlike VSS which will default to a softwate provider, MPIO will not have a default setting. VSS is the framework. Vendors (like EMC or Veritas) provide the plug-ins to be able to make it work. - Brian