Configuring iSCSI software initiator

The software initiator is configured using SMIT as shown in this procedure.

Select Devices.
Select iSCSI.
Select Configure iSCSI Protocol Device.
Select Change / Show Characteristics of an iSCSI Protocol Device
Verify that the Initiator Name value is correct.
The Initiator Name value is used by the iSCSI Target during login.
Note: A default initiator name is assigned when the software is installed. This initiator name can be changed by the user to match local network naming conventions.
The Maximum Targets Allowed field corresponds to the maximum number of iSCSI targets that can be configured.
If you reduce this number, you also reduce the amount of network memory pre-allocated for the iSCSI protocol driver during configuration.
Configure the iSCSI discovery method by using the Discovery Policy field to discover the iSCSI targets.
The iSCSI initiator software supports the following 4 discovery methods:

file

The information about targets is stored in a configuration file.

odm

The information about targets is stored in the Object Data Manager (ODM) objects. When using an iSCSI disk as a boot disk or as part of the rootvg boot, the odm discovery method must be used. See Adding a statically-discovered iSCSI target into ODM.

isns

The information about targets is stored on an Internet Storage Name Service (iSNS) server and automatically retrieved during the iSCSI initiator configuration.

slp

The information about targets is stored on a Service Location Protocol (SLP) service agent or directory agent and automatically retrieved during the iSCSI initiator configuration.

After the software initiator is configured, do the following:

If the discovery policy is file, edit the /etc/iscsi/targets file to include the iSCSI targets needed during device configuration.
Each uncommented line in the file represents an iSCSI target. For more information, see targets File in Files Reference.

If the discovery policy is odm, use the mkiscsi command or smit panels to create the target definitions in ODM. For more information, see Adding a statically-discovered iSCSI target into ODM.

If the discovery policy is isns or slp, ensure that the iSNS or SLP server is properly configured and accessible by the iSCSI initiator.

iSCSI device configuration requires that the iSCSI targets can be reached through a properly configured network interface. Although the iSCSI software initiator can work using a 10/100 Ethernet LAN, it is designed for use with a gigabit Ethernet network that is separate from other network traffic.
After defining the targets, type the following command:
```
cfgmgr -l iscsi0
```
This reconfigures the software initiator driver.
This command causes the driver to attempt to communicate with the targets listed in the /etc/iscsi/targets file, and to define a new hdisk for each LUN on the targets that are found. For more information, see the cfgmgr command description in Commands Reference, Volume 1.

Note: If the appropriate disks are not defined, review the configuration of the initiator, the target, and any iSCSI gateways to ensure correctness, and then rerun the cfgmgr command.

If you want to further configure parameters for iSCSI software initiator devices, use SMIT as follows:

Select Devices.
Select Fixed Disk.

A typical software initiator device look similar to the following:

  hdisk2   Available              Other iSCSI Disk Drive

If the iSCSI disk supports command tag queuing and NACA=1 in the control byte, consider changing the queue depth setting of the disk to a larger value. A larger value may help improve device performance. The optimal queue depth setting cannot exceed the actual queue size on the drive. Setting the queue depth to a value larger then the drive's queue size would possibly degrade performance. To determine the drive's queue size consult the drive's documentation.