7
On Windows, resulting speeds ranged from 18MB/s to 93MB/s (again, not counting the 5
and 6 MB/s values). The average speed is 42.8 MB/s. Similar to the Linux graph, the
wait for the dirty filesystem cache write can be seen again in the lower left back of the
graph.
Hardware Initiator (using QLA4050c HBA)
Linux Setup
The QLA4050c HBA fits in a standard PCI-X slot. The driver is available from
QLogic’s website. The driver install program will detect the card and install the
appropriate files. All HBA settings are managed through the “SANsurfer iSCSI HBA
client” (also from the QLogic website). The HBA must have a unique ip address. Unlike
the software initiator, assigning an iscsi-alias to the HBA is simple, just type it in the text
entry area and save. The SANsurfer client does all the other magic of forming the full
iscsi-name. The ip addresses of the router’s gigE ports also need to be added to the HBA
configuration. The HBA should now be logged in to the router. Mapping luns to the host
HBA is the same as with the software initiator. A big difference between Linux and
windows is that on Linux, the setup for the software initiator and the HBA are completely
separate. Either one can be changed or taken offline (for maintenance or other reason)
without affecting the other. Windows on the other hand, seems to link the two together.
Windows Setup
The QLogic website provides 2 different drivers for Windows: the “SCSI miniport”
driver and the “STOR miniport” driver. The instructions below are for the former.
Typically, after installing the HBA, the “Found New Hardware” wizard will start upon
