Getting FCoE working in CentOS

LLDP = Link Layer Discovery Protocol

RPM packages:

  • fcoe-utils
  • fcoe-target-utils
  • lldpad

Services:

  • fcoe
  • fcoe-target
  • lldpad

Configuration:

  • /etc/fcoe/config
  • /etc/fcoe/cfg-<interface-name>

Commands:

Display adminStatus of interface:

# lldptool -l -i eth0 adminStatus

Set adminStatus of interface:

# lldptool -L -i eth0 adminStatus=rxtx

Use targetcli to create storage targets

Notes

  • If the host is a virtual host using bridging to connect to the local Ethernet/wireless network, note that some bridging software (e.g., on Mac OS X Mavericks) doesn't handle the FCoE Ethernet packet types (e.g., LLDP, type 0x88cc) and appears to simply drop them rather than send them to the network
  • The lldpad daemon scans all network interfaces when it starts and uses the ones it finds (presumably those with MAC addresses such as eth+ and tap+) to initialise its /var/lib/lddpad/lldpad.conf file. An interface can be enabled using the command (above) to set the adminStatus to rxtx