VMware ESXi 6.0, Patch ESXi600-201702211-UG: Updates qlnativefc

Products

• VMware

Issue/Introduction

Release date: Feb 24, 2017

Patch Category	Bugfix
Patch Severity	Important
Build	For build information, see KB 2148155.
Host Reboot Required	Yes
Virtual Machine Migration or Shutdown Required	Yes
Affected Hardware	N/A
Affected Software	N/A
VIBs Included	VMware_bootbank_qlnativefc_2.1.50.0-1vmw.600.3.57.5050593
PRs Fixed	1760450
Related CVE numbers	N/A

Resolution

Summaries and Symptoms

This patch updates the qlnativefc VIB to resolve the following issue.

• ESXi 6.x hosts stop responding after running for 85 days. When this problem occurs, the /var/log/vmkernel log file displays entries similar to the following:

  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:34255)qlnativefc: vmhba2(5:0.0): Recieved a PUREX IOCB woh oo
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:34255)qlnativefc: vmhba2(5:0.0): Recieved the PUREX IOCB.
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674)qlnativefc: vmhba2(5:0.0): sizeof(struct rdp_rsp_payload) = 0x88
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674qlnativefc: vmhba2(5:0.0): transceiver_codes[0] = 0x3
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674)qlnativefc: vmhba2(5:0.0): transceiver_codes[0,1] = 0x3, 0x40
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674)qlnativefc: vmhba2(5:0.0): Stats Mailbox successful.
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674)qlnativefc: vmhba2(5:0.0): Sending the Response to the RDP packet
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Ah Bh Ch Dh Eh Fh
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674)--------------------------------------------------------------
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 53 01 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 04 00 01 00 00 10
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) c0 1d 13 00 00 00 18 00 01 fc ff 00 00 00 00 20
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 00 00 00 00 88 00 00 00 b0 d6 97 3c 01 00 00 00
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Ah Bh Ch Dh Eh Fh
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674)--------------------------------------------------------------
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 02 00 00 00 00 00 00 80 00 00 00 01 00 00 00 04
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 18 00 00 00 00 01 00 00 00 00 00 0c 1e 94 86 08
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 0e 81 13 ec 0e 81 00 51 00 01 00 01 00 00 00 04
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 2c 00 04 00 00 01 00 02 00 00 00 1c 00 00 00 01
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 00 00 00 00 40 00 00 00 00 01 00 03 00 00 00 10
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 50 01 43 80 23 18 a8 89 50 01 43 80 23 18 a8 88
  YYYY-MM-DDTHH:MM:SS.833Z cpu58:33674) 00 01 00 03 00 00 00 10 10 00 50 eb 1a da a1 8f

  This issue is caused by a qlnativefc driver bug sending a Read Diagnostic Parameters (RDP) response to the HBA adapter with an incorrect transfer length. As a result, the HBA adapter firmware does not free the buffer pool space. Once the buffer pool is exhausted, the HBA adapter is not able to further process any requests causing the HBA adapter to become unavailable. By default, the RDP routine is initiated by the FC Switch and occurs once every hour, resulting in the buffer pool being exhausted in approximately 80 to 85 days under normal circumstances.

Patch Download and Installation

The typical way to apply patches to ESXi hosts is through the VMware vSphere Update Manager. For details, see the Installing and Administering VMware vSphere Update Manager.

ESXi hosts can be updated by manually downloading the patch ZIP file from the VMware download page and installing the VIB by using the esxcli software vib command. Additionally, the system can be updated using the image profile and the esxcli software profile command. For details, see the vSphere Command-Line Interface Concepts and Examples and the vSphere Upgrade Guide.