StorSimple 5000/7000 Series: Critical Update (Software Version 2.1.1.518) Now Available

  • Article

A new critical update for StorSimple 5000 and 7000 series appliances, version 2.1.1.518 is now available for download.

This release mitigates the NVRAM memory issues sometimes seen in appliances running v2.1.1.386 or earlier when the upgrade starts.

Some features of the previous update (version 2.1.1.500) which are included in this release are:

  • Support for migration from the 5000/7000 series to the 8000 series appliance. Improved feature offerings of the 8000 series appliances include efficient centralized management of multiple appliances through the StorSimple Manager service, better class of hardware and updated firmware, virtual appliances, data mobility, as well as features in the future roadmap. With this release, you can export an encrypted configuration file from your 5000-7000 series appliance, enabling migration to the StorSimple 8000 series appliance. The file can be encrypted by a user-supplied or an automatically generated key.
  • Support for the latest Microsoft Azure Storage API. StorSimple 5000/7000 series devices using software versions older than 2.1.1.500 use a version of the Azure Storage Services APIs older than February 12, 2012. Versions 2.1.1.518 and .500 contain an upgrade to the latest version of the Storage service APIs . We strongly recommend upgrading to the latest software version, 2.1.1.518, to gain the benefits of the new features and improvements in this version.
  • Support for Azure ZRS (zone-redundant storage). StorSimple 5000/7000 series now supports Azure storage accounts created with the zone redundant replication option. Zone-redundant storage replicates your data across two to three facilities, either within a single region or across two regions, providing higher durability than locally redundant storage (LRS), at a lower cost point per unit of storage than the geo-redundant storage (GRS) offering. More information on Azure storage redundancy options is available as part of the Azure documentation here.

Notes:

  • Version 2.1.1.518 is a software only release and there is no firmware upgrade patch associated with it as with some previous releases. The most up-to-date firmware version continues to be v2.1.1.461. There is a link to this firmware version in the upgrade guide for software version 2.1.1.518. If you are unsure which firmware version is installed on your appliance, running the 2.1.1.461 upgrade is recommended. If the firmware is already the latest version, re-running the upgrade will not cause any issues. The upgrade process will detect that the latest version is already installed and will make no changes.

 

  • Version 2.1.1.518 is compatible with v2.1.1.500 only, and is not compatible with previous versions of appliance software as it contains a metadata change. For example, if your appliance is on v2.1.1.518 and you do a controller replacement with a controller having an older software version installed, that controller would require a mandatory upgrade to v2.1.1.518 as well.