Booting the F87 filer

Boot options for the F87 filer

The F87 filer boots Data ONTAP from a PC CompactFlash card. It does not boot from a set of floppy disks. When you turn on or reboot the F87, the filer console displays a basic boot menu that enables you to perform the following tasks:

Boot Data ONTAP
This is the Data ONTAP software release stored in Partition 1 of the CompactFlash card. By default, the filer automatically boots this release if you do not select an option from the basic menu.
Boot a backup version of Data ONTAP
The CompactFlash card stores a backup release of Data ONTAP in Partition 2 of the CompactFlash card. The backup release provides a "known good" release from which you can boot the filer. For example, if the filer fails to automatically boot Data ONTAP, you can use the Data ONTAP backup release.
Use advanced service options
Advanced service options enable you to perform the following tasks:
- Run the Network Appliance Diagnostics program
- Boot the filer from one of its SCSI disks
  Note
  You boot the filer from a SCSI disk only when you install a new NVRAM adapter in the filer. Do not use this option for normal operation of the filer. For detailed information, see the F87 Hardware and Service Guide.

Booting Data ONTAP

To boot the current release of Data ONTAP or the backup release, complete the following steps.

Step	Action
1	Turn on or reboot the filer. Result The filer console displays Power On Self Test (POST) messages. After POST successfully executes, the system console displays the following boot menu. Data ONTAP Data ONTAP [backup] Service menu


2	Select one of the boot options in the following table by pressing the the Up or Down arrow keys. Note If you do not select an option within five seconds, the filer boots the current release of Data ONTAP.
	Task	Boot menu option
	Boot the current release of Data ONTAP	`Data ONTAP`
	Boot the Data ONTAP backup	`Data ONTAP [backup]`

Checking the Data ONTAP versions on the CompactFlash card

The current release of Data ONTAP is stored in Partition 1 of the CompactFlash card. The Data ONTAP backup is stored in Partition 2. On a new filer, both partitions have the same version of Data ONTAP. In some situations, Partition 2 may have a previous version of Data ONTAP. For example, if a Data ONTAP upgrade fails, Partition 2 may have a previous version of Data ONTAP.

To check the version of the Data ONTAP release in each CompactFlash partition, complete the following step.

Step	Action
1	On the filer console, enter the following command version -b Result The console displays the contents of the CompactFlash partitions. The following lines show the versions of the Data ONTAP releases. Partition 1: NetApp Release 6.1.2: Mon Oct 15 02:24:45 EDT 2001 Partition 2: NetApp Release 6.1.2: Mon Oct 15 02:24:45 PDT 2001 Explanation of results Partition 1 shows the current release of Data ONTAP. Partition 2 shows the version of the Data ONTAP backup. In this example, both partitions have the same version of Data ONTAP.

Step

Action

On the filer console, enter the following command

version -b

Result

The console displays the contents of the CompactFlash partitions. The following lines show the versions of the Data ONTAP releases.

Partition 1: NetApp Release 6.1.2: Mon Oct 15 02:24:45 
EDT 2001

Partition 2: NetApp Release 6.1.2: Mon Oct 15 02:24:45 
PDT 2001

Explanation of results

Partition 1 shows the current release of Data ONTAP. Partition 2 shows the version of the Data ONTAP backup. In this example, both partitions have the same version of Data ONTAP.