Updating the firmware and driver on an HBA on ESXi 5.0

When updating firmware on an HBA, it will update the driver at the same time as both parts are included in the installation VIB file.

First step is to verify the type of HBA in your ESXi host:

Run the following command:

# esxcfg-scsidevs -a

Or see this KB article for more info

In the example below, the HBA is a Qlogic ISP2532 PCI-Express

However, this name will not always be used to (at least not in the case of HP) in the documentation when you're looking for a specific model.

Another way to get info on the HBA type can be combined with locating the firware version (see next step)

Next step is to identify the current firmware level of the HBA:

For a Qlogic HBA, use the following command:

# more /proc/scsi/qla2xxx/0

(The '0' can also be a '1' or a '2')

For other types of HBAs, see this KB article

In the screendump above, you can see firmware and driver version and also another name for the HBA, QMH2562.

Now that we know the model and firmware version, we can look for the latest recommended version.

Go to this KB article to find the latest version.

For HP, it takes you to the following site: http://vibsdepot.hp.com/hpq/recipes/ where you should choose the PDF called: "HP-VMware-Recipe.pdf" which is the latest one.

In the PDF, you can search for you model, in this case QMH2562:

Find your model and follow the link. It will let you download a zip file. In this example the file is called:

qla2xxx-934.5.6.0-887798.zip

Unpack the zip file and locate the .vib file which will be used for the update.

In this case the .vib file is called:

scsi-qla2xxx-934.5.6.0-1OEM.500.0.0.472560.x86_64.vib

Now, transfer the .vib file to the following folder on the ESXi host:

/var/log/vmware

Run the following command:

# esxcli software vib update -v scsi-qla2xxx-934.5.6.0-1OEM.500.0.0.472560.x86_64.vib

Reboot to finish updating.

And then verify that the update has properly installed by re-running:

# more /proc/scsi/qla2xxx/0

You can also get detailed VIB package info by running:

# esxcli software vib list | grep scsi
# esxcli software vib get -n scsi-qla2xxx