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Manage iSCSI HBA allocation at the Windows side of the iSCSI network

A Windows server may have multiple physical iSCSI HBA ports. An iSCSI HBA port may carry traffic for iSeries™ storage paths, virtual Ethernet networks, or both. A number of factors influence the nature of the traffic that flows through each iSCSI HBA port on the Windows server.

IP addresses

iSCSI HBA ports may have a SCSI IP address, a LAN IP address, or both. A port with a SCSI IP address is a candidate for carrying storage traffic. A port with a LAN IP address is a candidate for carrying virtual Ethernet traffic.

Boot storage configuration

You select the iSCSI HBA port used to boot Windows with the CTRL-Q utility. After Windows has booted, the selected iSCSI HBA port will continue to provide a connection to the iSeries storage path that corresponds to the system drive.

Automatically allocating iSCSI HBA ports to virtual Ethernet and non-boot storage paths

The Windows environment on iSeries includes programs running in Windows that automatically read the i5/OS™ objects that contain the server configuration information. The iSCSI HBAs for iSeries are configured in the i5/OS objects, but iSCSI HBA ports for the hosted system are not. Instead, the programs automatically allocate iSCSI HBA ports to virtual Ethernet and non-boot storage paths.

Manually allocating a virtual Ethernet adapter to a physical iSCSI HBA port

If you want to override automatic allocation, you can manually allocate an iSCSI HBA port by performing the following steps at the Windows console.

  1. Navigate to the Network Connections Window.
  2. Double click the IBM® iSeries Virtual Ethernet x adapter that you want to configure.
  3. Click Properties.
  4. Click Configure.
  5. Click Advanced.
  6. Click Initiator LAN IP Address.
  7. Enter the IP address of the iSCSI HBA port in Windows that you want the virtual Ethernet adapter to use for its physical connection.
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