EMC® PowerPath

Configuration Checker
Version 1.4

Quick Start Guide

P/N 300-013-197
Rev 04

June 19, 2015

This is a quick start summary guide for the PowerPath Configuration

Checker (PPCC). Topics include:
◆ Revision history .................................................................................... 2
◆ What is PowerPath Configuration Checker?.................................... 2
◆ What tasks can PPCC perform? ......................................................... 4
◆ Things to remember ............................................................................. 8
◆ What if I need to deal with problems? .............................................. 8

1
Revision history

Revision history
The following table presents the revision history of this document.

Revision Date Description

A01 October 21, 2011 First publication of the EMC PowerPath

Configuration Checker Quick Start Guide.
A02 December 9, 2011 Updated the example of the PowerPath
Configuration Checker host configuration report.
See “Information about the host configuration: ”
on page 5.

03 October 24, 2012 Updated “How do I configure PPCC? ” on page 3.

04 June 19, 2015 Minor updates.

What is PowerPath Configuration Checker?

PowerPath Configuration Checker (PPCC) is a Windows-based tool
that validates PowerPath ESX, ESXi, UNIX, and Windows host
configurations.
PPCC checks for common configuration errors that prevent
PowerPath from operating correctly. It can help you plan
installations, validate upgrades, or troubleshoot existing
configurations.

What are the operating requirements?

◆ A Microsoft Windows host to run the ppcc executable. The
PowerPath Configuration Checker Release Notes provides more
information on supported versions of Microsoft Windows.
◆ Enough disk space for ZIP or TAR extraction.
◆ One or more output files from EMC Grab or EMC Reports for
PPCC analysis.

2 PowerPath Configuration Checker Quick Start Guide

 What is PowerPath Configuration Checker?

What hosts can PPCC analyze?

Currently PPCC can validate PowerPath hosts with AIX, ESX/ESXi,
HP-UX, Linux, Solaris, and Windows operating systems.
Note that EMC Grab or EMC Reports must also support the
operating system that supports the host you want to check with
PPCC.

How do I configure PPCC?

You can run PPCC on any Windows host that can support PPCC.
PPCC does not have to run directly on the host that is being checked.
PPCC only requires access to the output files from EMC Grab or EMC
Reports.
The PPCC command line options are not case sensitive.
The host that PPCC checks need not have PowerPath installed. PPCC
will review any components it is capable of checking and provide a
report.
PPCC does not require Internet connectivity to validate a
configuration. PPCC contains its own configuration information that
is updated at every PPCC release.

Where can I get the software?

◆ Download PowerPath, the PPCC software, and documentation
from EMC Online Support.
◆ Download EMC Grab or EMC Reports from EMC Online
Support.
◆ Extract the PPCC .zip file to a directory on your system.
◆ PPCC software is bundled with PowerPath releases. It is also
updated whenever there is a major or minor release of PowerPath
and sometimes when new versions of EMC Grab or EMC Reports
are released. Download the latest versions of PPCC, EMC Grab,
or EMC Reports when you check a PowerPath configuration.

PowerPath Configuration Checker Quick Start Guide 3

What tasks can PPCC perform?

What tasks can PPCC perform?

◆ Check a single host:
ppcc –i <input file> [-o <output file>]

◆ Check a specific version of PowerPath:

ppcc –i <input file>] [-o <output file>] –V
<new PP version>

◆ Check multiple hosts at one time:

ppcc_batch –i <input_dir> -o <output_dir>
ppcc_batch –i <input_dir> -o <output_dir> -V
<new PP version>

What does ppcc –i (diagnostic mode) provide?

Information about the current host:

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 What tasks can PPCC perform?

Information about the host configuration: 

PowerPath Configuration Checker Quick Start Guide 5

What tasks can PPCC perform?

What does ppcc –V (upgrade mode) provide?

The ppcc –i information, plus these indicators:

On a good upgrade:

On downgrading to an old release:

On installing an invalid release:

On a possible installation problem:

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 What tasks can PPCC perform?

What does ppcc_batch provide?

Run-time summary:
C:\PPCC-1.4.2>ppcc_batch -i C:\files\4204458 -o C:\files\4204458\outputs
.
.
.
cidcsgiea5t_2011-07-14-04.52.10_SunOS_emcgrab_V4.2_full_CC0000000000 : OK
cidcslpedw01b_2011-07-14-20.07.42_Linux_emcgrab_V4.2_full_CC0000000000 : OK
esx03.xx.com_2011-07-14-07.09.57_ESX_vSphere_emcgrab_V1.3.1_full_CC00000000 : No
PowerPath
esx11.xx.com_2011-07-14-08.17.49_ESX_vSphere_emcgrab_V1.3.1_full_CC00000000 : No
PowerPath

HTML and XML outputs:

◆ Outputs separated into HTML, XML, and Logs directories.
◆ XML is nice for scripting and other types of analysis.
◆ Use the output in the “Logs” directory to determine why a host
might have been omitted (hint: no PowerPath).

PowerPath Configuration Checker Quick Start Guide 7

Things to remember

Things to remember
◆ Use the latest versions of EMC Reports or EMC Grab.
◆ PPCC uses a static database. Download the latest version before
you start.
◆ Remove any passwords on your .zip files.
◆ Put quotes around any paths with embedded spaces.
◆ PPCC does not replace E-Lab Advisor. You still need to do the
normal diagnostic and qualification review.
◆ PPCC does not replace PowerPath documentation. Even if you
see all green boxes, you still have to read the PowerPath
installation and configuration directions.
◆ If PPCC does not find attached arrays, it does not run checks for
the devices.

What if I need to deal with problems?

Collect the EMC Reports, EMC Grab, and the PPCC outputs. Do not
forget to capture the screen information that PPCC writes during its
run.
◆ Did the PPCC program run correctly, or is the problem with the
output? If the program did not run, troubleshoot the Windows
host.
◆ Is the EMC Grab viable? If not, this is a Grab issue.
Open a problem report at:
http://gstools.corp.emc.com/gers/index.asp
and ensure that you specify that the problem was found using
PPCC.

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 What if I need to deal with problems?

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