Drivers for VMware ESXi
Release	ESXi 6.5	12.6.182.2
	    
Purpose and Contact Information
These release notes describe the new features, resolved issues, known issues, and technical tips associated with these Emulex. drivers for VMware releases. 
For the latest product documentation, go to www.broadcom.com. If you have questions or require additional information, contact an authorized Broadcom. Technical Support representative at ecd-tech.support@broadcom.com.

New Features
1. Adds support for loop topology on LPe31000-series and LPe32000-series adapters. 
2. The format of esxcli elxmgmt commands has been modified to comply with VMware CLI formatting. For the new format of commands and newly added namespaces, refer to the Emulex Drivers for VMware ESXi User Guide Release 12.6. Deprecated commands are no longer supported. 
   NOTE: The Emulex OneCommand. Manager application has been renamed as the Emulex HBA Manager application. 

Resolved Issues
On Brocade switches that use LPe35000-series adapters with two-lane or four-lane trunking enabled, the issue of port speed in FDIM Port attributes being incorrectly displayed is fixed. 

Known Issues
All Versions, Known Issues
1. Known issues related to software migration.
   Beginning with software release 11.2, FC HBAs and OneConnectB. adapters have independent software kits. Before updating earlier drivers and applications to the software in release       12.4.2, refer to the Emulex Software Kit Migration User Guide for special instructions and considerations for using the 11.2 and later software kits for FC HBAs and OneConnect       adapters.
2. The adapter model name and description do not match the vendor brand name field. 
   The VMware vSphere client shows only the adapter family model names with a single port. 
   For example:
   LPe31000-series and LPe32000-series adapters is shown as the Emulex LightPulse LPe32000 PCIe Fibre Channel Adapter.
   LPe35000-series adapter is shown as the Emulex LightPulse LPe36000 Fibre Channel Adapter.
   This issue occurs with the native tool lspci as well. The vSphere client gets the adapter model name and description from the XML package files installed with the operating system or    with an out-of-box kit, rather than from the adapter vital product data (VPD). Other native tools work in a similar manner.
   Workaround
   To show all available Key Value (KV) instances, use the following command:
   /usr/lib/vmware/vmkmgmt_keyval/vmkmgmt_keyval -d
   For storage adapters, look for vmhbaX/Emulex.
3. Some inbox drivers do not support LPe35000-series adapters, as described in the following.
   ESXi 6.5	No; use the latest I/O Vendor Partner (IOVP) certified driver.
4. Revision A of the FOIT AFCT-57F3TMZ-ELX (16GFC longwave optic transceiver) does not support D_Port (also called ClearLink) for BrocadeB. switches and MDS Diagnostic for Cisco switches. 
   Workaround
   None.
5. Neither Revision A nor Revision B of the FOIT AFCT-57F3TMZ-ELX (16GFC longwave optic transceiver) or 
   AFCT-57G5MZ-ELX (32GFC longwave optic transceiver) supports D_Port for Brocade switches. 
   Workaround
   None.
6. Boot from SAN is not supported if FC-SP-2 authentication (DHCHAP) is enabled.
   Workaround
   None.
7. Brocade switches using Fabric Operating System (FOS) version 8.2.1B and earlier might encounter the following issues with DHCHAP authentication:
   -- You might not be able to configure the secret pair between the switch and the HBA. 
   -- When authentication is enabled on the switch, and authentication is disabled on the HBA, the switch      disables the port, but it does not issue the expected status messages. 
   -- The Brocade switch authenticates the HBA port when authentication is disabled on the switch, or when a frame is dropped.
   Workaround
   None.
8. The trunking speed is incorrectly displayed as 0 when you execute the esxcli storage san fc list command.
   Workaround
   To view the correct trunking speed, use any of the following options:
   -- Execute the following keyval command:
     /usr/lib/vmware/vmkmgmt_keyval/vmkmgmt_keyval  -i vmhba<port instance>/Emulex  -g -k port
   -- Execute the following esxcli elxmgmt command:
     esxcli elxmgmt portattributes -w <wwpn>
   -- Execute the following hbacmd CLI command:
     HbaCmd.exe h=<ESXi Host IP> m=cim portattributes <wwpn>
   -- Use the Emulex OneCommand Manager GUI. 
9. Dependency errors might occur when you use the esxcli command to upgrade from release 12.4 elxfccli or elxmgmt vib to release 12.6 elxfccli or elxmgmt vib, 
   Workaround
   Remove the existing release 12.4 vib and install the release 12.6 vib. 
10. Delay in processing ELS commands might be observed if enable_mds_diags module parameter is enabled. 
	Workaround
	Disable enable_mds_diags. This parameter must be enabled only when attempting a Cisco MDS diagnostic test. 

ESXi 6.5 Known Issues
 There are no known issues.


Technical Tips
1. When the Virtual Machine Identifier (VMID) feature is used in an ESXi environment with ESXi mobility (vMotion), the VMID strings might not be available from the operating system on the    backup server (the server to which vMotion moved) for 10 to 20 minutes. During this time, the VMID strings are not available for registration on the fabric switch. (BZ 199484, 199252)
   Workaround
   After the vMotion action, wait until the operating system settles and the VMID strings are available.
2. ESXi servers can appear to have the same VMID Application ID. The VMID is the combination of the Application ID appended to the end of the N_Port ID, which provides uniqueness within the    fabric.
3. To view VMID information on all VMs in a multipathing configuration, set the path policy to Round Robin.
4. The server must be in ESXi maintenance mode to safely change the firmware in flash memory.
   For operations, such as firmware download, bring the server into ESXi maintenance mode prior to flashing the firmware.
5. Install an offline bundle locally on an ESXi server using the esxcli command.
   Install an offline bundle on a VMware ESXi server locally using the esxcli command. 
   [root@testmachine ~]# esxcli software vib install --maintenance-mode -d <offline-bundle.zip>
   Where <offline-bundle.zip> is the file name of the offline bundle to be installed.
6. Dynamic D_Port is enabled by default and cannot be simultaneously enabled with FA-PWWN or DHCHAP.
   Workaround
   To enable FA-PWWN or DHCHAP, disable Dynamic D_Port first using the Emulex HBA Manager application. You can
   disable DHCHAP using the lpfc_enable_auth parameter.




