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SG_SES(8) SG3_UTILS SG_SES(8)
NAME
sg_ses - access a SCSI Enclosure Services (SES) device
SYNOPSIS
sg_ses [--all] [--descriptor=DES] [--dev-slot-num=SN] [--eiioe=A_F] [--filter] [--get=STR]
[--hex] [--index=IIA | --index=TIA,II] [--inner-hex] [--join] [--maxlen=LEN] [--page=PG]
[--quiet] [--raw] [--readonly] [--sas-addr=SA] [--status] [--verbose] [--warn] DEVICE
sg_ses --control [--byte1=B1] [--clear=STR] [--data=H,H...] [--data=@FN] [--descrip-
tor=DES] [--dev-slot-num=SN] [--index=IIA | --index=TIA,II] [--mask] [--maxlen=LEN]
[--nickname=SEN] [--nickid=SEID] [--page=PG] [--readonly] [--sas-addr=SA] [--set=STR]
[--verbose] DEVICE
sg_ses --data=@FN --status [--raw --raw] [<all options from first form>]
sg_ses --inhex=FN --status [--raw --raw] [<all options from first form>]
sg_ses [--enumerate] [--index=IIA] [--list] [--help] [--version]
DESCRIPTION
Fetches management information from a SCSI Enclosure Service (SES) device. This utility
can also modify the state of a SES device. The DEVICE should be a SES device which may be
a dedicated enclosure services processor in which case an INQUIRY response's Peripheral
Device Type is 13 [0xd]. Alternatively it may be attached to another type of SCSI device
(e.g. a disk) in which case the EncServ bit is set in its INQUIRY response.
If the DEVICE argument is given with no options then the names of all diagnostic pages
(dpages) supported are listed. Most, but not necessarily all, of the named dpages are de-
fined in the SES standards and drafts. The most recent reference for this utility is the
draft SCSI Enclosure Services 4 document T10/BSR INCITS 555 Revision 5 at
http://www.t10.org . Existing standards for SES, SES-2 and SES-3 are ANSI INCITS 305-1998
and ANSI INCITS 448-2008 and ANSI INCITS 518-2017 respectively.
The first form shown in the synopsis is for fetching and decoding dpages or fields from
the SES DEVICE. A SCSI RECEIVE DIAGNOSTIC RESULTS command is sent to the DEVICE to obtain
each dpage response. Rather than decoding a fetched dpage, it may be output in hex or bi-
nary with the --hex or --raw --raw options.
The second form in the synopsis is for modifying dpages or fields held in the SES DEVICE.
A SCSI SEND DIAGNOSTIC command containing a "control" dpage is sent to the DEVICE to cause
changes. Changing the state of an enclosure (e.g. requesting the "ident" (locate) LED to
flash on a disk carrier in an array) is typically done using a read-modify-write cycle.
See the section on CHANGING STATE below.
The third form in the synopsis has two equivalent invocations shown. They decode the con-
tents of a file (named FN) that holds a hexadecimal or binary representation of one, or
many, SES dpage responses. Typically an earlier invocation of the first form of this util-
ity with the '-HHHH' option would have generated that file. Since no SCSI commands are
sent, the DEVICE argument if given will be ignored.
The last form in the synopsis shows the options for providing command line help (i.e. us-
age information), listing out dpage and field information tables held by the utility
(--enumerate), or printing the version string of this utility.
There is a web page discussing this utility at http://sg.danny.cz/sg/sg_ses.html . Support
for downloading microcode to a SES device has been placed in a separate utility called
sg_ses_microcode.
In the following sections "dpage" refers to a diagnostic page, either fetched with a SCSI
RECEIVE DIAGNOSTIC RESULTS command, sent to the DEVICE with a SCSI SEND DIAGNOSTIC com-
mand, or fetched from data supplied by the --data= option.
OPTIONS
Arguments to long options are mandatory for short options as well. The options are ar-
ranged in alphabetical order based on the long option name.
-a, --all
shows (almost) all status dpages, following references and presenting the informa-
tion as a long list whose indentation indicates the level of nesting. This option
is actually the same as --join, see its description for more information.
-b, --byte1=B1
some modifiable dpages may need byte 1 (i.e. the second byte) set. In the Enclosure
Control dpage, byte 1 contains the INFO, NON-CRIT, CRIT and UNRECOV bits. In the
Subenclosure String Out, Subenclosure Nickname Control and Download Microcode Con-
trol dpages, byte 1 is the Subenclosure identifier. Active when the --control and
--data=H,H... options are used and the default value is 0. If the --clear=STR or
--set=STR option is used then the value read from byte 1 is written back to byte 1.
B1 is in decimal unless it is prefixed by '0x' or '0X' (or has a trailing 'h' or
'H').
-C, --clear=STR
Used to clear an element field in the Enclosure Control or Threshold Out dpage.
Must be used together with an indexing option to specify which element is to be
changed. The Enclosure Control dpage is assumed if the --page=PG option is not
given. See the STR FORMAT and the CLEAR, GET, SET sections below.
-c, --control
will send control information to the DEVICE via a SCSI SEND DIAGNOSTIC command.
Cannot give both this option and --status. The Enclosure Control, String Out,
Threshold Out, Array Control (obsolete in SES-2), Subenclosure String Out, Suben-
closure Nickname Control and Download Microcode dpages can be set currently. This
option is assumed if either the --clear=STR or --set=STR option is given.
-d, --data=H,H...
permits a string of comma separated (ASCII) hex bytes to be specified (limit 1024).
A (single) space separated string of hex bytes is also allowed but the list needs
to be in quotes. This option allows the parameters to a control dpage to be speci-
fied. The string given should not include the first 4 bytes (i.e. page code and
length). See the DATA SUPPLIED section below.
-d, --data=-
reads one or more data strings from stdin, limit almost 2**16 bytes. stdin may pro-
vide ASCII hex as a comma separated list (i.e. as with the --data=H,H... option).
Additionally spaces, tabs and line feeds are permitted as separators from stdin .
Stops reading stdin when an EOF is detected. See the DATA SUPPLIED section below.
-d, --data=@FN
reads one or more data strings from the file called FN, limit almost 2**16 bytes.
The contents of the file is decoded in the same fashion as stdin described in the
previous option. See the DATA SUPPLIED section below.
-D, --descriptor=DES
where DES is a descriptor name (string) as found in the Element Descriptor dpage.
This is a medium level indexing alternative to the low level --index= options. If
the descriptor name contains a space then DES needs to be surrounded by quotes
(single or double) or the space escaped (e.g. preceded by a backslash). See the DE-
SCRIPTOR NAME, DEVICE SLOT NUMBER AND SAS ADDRESS section below.
-x, --dev-slot-num=SN, --dsn=SN
where SN is a device slot number found in the Additional Element Status dpage. Only
entries for FCP and SAS devices (with EIP=1) have device slot numbers. SN must be a
number in the range 0 to 255 (inclusive). 255 is used to indicate there is no cor-
responding device slot. This is a medium level indexing alternative to the low
level --index= options. See the DESCRIPTOR NAME, DEVICE SLOT NUMBER AND SAS ADDRESS
section below.
-E, --eiioe=A_F
A_F is either the string 'auto' or 'force'. There was some fuzziness in the inter-
pretation of the 'element index' field in the Additional Element Status (AES) dpage
between SES-2 and SES-3. The EIIOE bit was introduced to resolve the problem but
not all enclosures have caught up. In the SES-3 revision 12 draft the EIIOE bit was
expanded to a 2 bit EIIOE field. Using '--eiioe=force' will decode the AES dpage
as if the EIIOE field is set to 1. Using '--eiioe=auto' will decode the AES dpage
as if the EIIOE field is set to 1 if the first AES descriptor has its EIP bit set
and its element index field is 1 (in other words a heuristic to guess whether the
EIIOE field should be set to 1 or 0).
If the enclosure sets the actual EIIOE field to 1 or more then this option has no
effect. It is recommended that HP JBOD users set --eiioe=auto .
-e, --enumerate
enumerate all known diagnostic page (dpage) names and SES elements that this util-
ity recognizes plus the abbreviations accepted by this utility. Ignores DEVICE if
it is given. Essentially it is dumping out tables held internally by this utility.
If --enumerate is given twice, then the recognised acronyms for the --clear=STR,
--get=STR and --set=STR options are listed. The utility exits after listing this
information, so most other options and DEVICE are ignored. Since there are many
acronyms for the Enclosure Control/Status dpage then the output can be further re-
stricted by giving the --index=IIA option (e.g. "sg_ses -ee -I ts" to only show the
acronyms associated with the Enclosure Control/Status dpage's Temperature Sensor
Element Type).
-f, --filter
cuts down on the amount of output from the Enclosure Status dpage and the Addi-
tional Element Status dpage. When this option is given, any line which has all its
binary flags cleared (i.e. 0) is filtered out (i.e. ignored). If a line has some
other value on it (e.g. a temperature) then it is output. When this option is used
twice only elements associated with the "status=ok" field (in the Enclosure status
dpage) are output. The --filter option is useful for reducing the amount of output
generated by the --join option.
-G, --get=STR
Used to read a field in a status element. Must be used together with a an indexing
option to specify which element is to be read. By default the Enclosure Status
dpage is read, the only other dpages that can be read are the Threshold In and Ad-
ditional Element Status dpages. If a value is found it is output in decimal to std-
out (by default) or in hexadecimal preceded by "0x" if the --hex option is also
given. See the STR FORMAT and the CLEAR, GET, SET sections below.
-h, --help
output the usage message then exit. Since there is a lot of information, it is
split into two pages. The most important is shown on the first page. Use this op-
tion twice (e.g. '-hh') to output the second page. Note: the --enumerate option
might also be viewed as a help or usage type option. And like this option it has a
"given twice" form: '-ee'.
-H, --hex
If the --get=STR option is given then output the value found (if any) in hexadeci-
mal, with a leading "0x". Otherwise output the response in hexadecimal; with trail-
ing ASCII if given once, without it if given twice, and simple hex if given three
or more times. Ignored when all elements from several dpages are being accessed
(e.g. when the --join option is used). Also see the --raw option which may be used
with this option.
To dump one of more dpage responses to stdout in ASCII parsable hexadecimal use
-HHH or -HHHH. The triple H form only outputs hexadecimals which is fine for a sin-
gle dpage response. When all dpages are dumped (e.g. with --page=all) then the
quad H form adds the name of each dpage following a hash mark ('#'). The --data=
option parser ignores everything from and including a hash mark to the end of the
line. Hence the output of the quad H form is still parsable plus it is easier for
users to view and possibly edit. -HHHHH (that is 5) adds the page code in hex after
the page's name in the comment.
-I, --index=IIA
where IIA is either an individual index (II) or an Element type abbreviation (A).
See the INDEXES section below. If the --page=PG option is not given then the Enclo-
sure Status (or Control) dpage is assumed. May be used with the --join option or
one of the --clear=STR, --get=STR or --set=STR options. To enumerate the available
Element type abbreviations use the --enumerate option.
-I, --index=TIA,II
where TIA,II is an type header index (TI) or Element type abbreviation (A) followed
by an individual index (II). See the INDEXES section below. If the --page=PG option
is not given then the Enclosure Status (or Control) dpage is assumed. May be used
with the --join option or one of the --clear=STR, --get=STR or --set=STR options.
To enumerate the available Element type abbreviations use the --enumerate option.
-X, --inhex=FN
where FN is a filename. It has the equivalent action of the --data=@FN option. If
FN is '-' then stdin is read. This option has been given for compatibility with
other utilities in this package that use --inhex=FN (or --in=FN) is a similar way.
See the "FORMAT OF FILES CONTAINING ASCII HEX" section in the sg3_utils manpage for
more information.
-i, --inner-hex
the outer levels of a status dpage are decoded and printed out but the innermost
level (e.g. the Element Status Descriptor) is output in hex. Also active with the
Additional Element Status and Threshold In dpages. Can be used with an indexing op-
tion and/or --join options.
-j, --join
group elements from the Element Descriptor, Enclosure Status and Additional Element
Status dpages. If this option is given twice then elements from the Threshold In
dpage are also grouped. The order is dictated by the Configuration dpage.
There can be a bewildering amount of information in the "join" output. The default
is to output everything. Several additional options are provided to cut down the
amount displayed. If the indexing options is given, only the matching elements and
their associated fields are output. The --filter option (see its description) can
be added to reduce the amount of output. Also "--page=aes" (or "-p 0xa") can be
added to suppress the output of rows that don't have a "aes" dpage component. See
the INDEXES and DESCRIPTOR NAME, DEVICE SLOT NUMBER AND SAS ADDRESS sections below.
-l, --list
This option is equivalent to --enumerate. See that option.
-M, --mask
When modifying elements, the default action is a read (status element), mask, mod-
ify (based on --clear=STR or --set=STR) then write back as the control element. The
mask step is new in sg_ses version 1.98 and is based on what is allowable (and in
the same location) in draft SES-3 revision 6. Those masks may evolve, as they have
in the past. This option re-instates the previous logic which was to ignore the
mask step. The default action (i.e. without this option) is to perform the mask
step in the read-mask-modify-write sequence.
-m, --maxlen=LEN
LEN is placed in the ALLOCATION LENGTH field of the SCSI RECEIVE DIAGNOSTIC RESULTS
commands sent by the utility. It represents the maximum size of data the SES device
can return (in bytes). It cannot exceed 65535 and defaults to 65532 (bytes). Some
systems may not permit such large sizes hence the need for this option. If LEN is
less than 0 or greater than 65535 then an error is generated. If LEN is 0 then the
default value is used, otherwise if it is less than 4 then it is ignored (and a
warning is sent to stderr).
-n, --nickname=SEN
where SEN is the new Subenclosure Nickname. Only the first 32 characters (bytes) of
SEN are used, if more are given they are ignored. See the SETTING SUBENCLOSURE
NICKNAME section below.
-N, --nickid=SEID
where SEID is the Subenclosure identifier that the new Nickname (SEN) will be ap-
plied to. So SEID must be an existing Subenclosure identifier. The default value is
0 which is the main enclosure.
-p, --page=PG
where PG is a dpage abbreviation or code (a number). If PG starts with a digit it
is assumed to be in decimal unless prefixed by 0x for hex. Valid range is 0 to 255
(0x0 to 0xff) inclusive. Default is dpage 'sdp' which is page_code 0 (i.e. "Sup-
ported Diagnostic Pages") if no other options are given.
Page code 0xff or abbreviation "all" is not a real dpage (as the highest real dpage
is 0x3f) but instead causes all dpages whose page code is 0x2f or less to be out-
put. This can be used with either the -HHHH or -rr to send either hexadecimal ASCII
or binary respectively to stdout.
To list the available dpage abbreviations give "xxx" for PG; the same information
can also be found with the --enumerate option.
-q, --quiet
this suppresses the number of warnings and messages output. The exit status of the
utility is unaffected by this option.
-r, --raw
outputs the chosen status dpage in ASCII hex in a format suitable for a later invo-
cation using the --data= option. A dpage less its first 4 bytes (page code and
length) is output. When used twice (e.g. -rr) the full dpage contents is output in
binary to stdout.
when -rr is used together with the --data=- or --data=@FN then stdin or file FN is
decoded as a binary stream that continues to be read until an end of file (EOF).
Once that data is read then the internal raw option is cleared to 0 so the output
is not effected. So the -rr option either changes how the input or output is
treated, but not both.
-R, --readonly
open the DEVICE read-only (e.g. in Unix with the O_RDONLY flag). The default is to
open it read-write.
-A, --sas-addr=SA
this is an indexing method for SAS end devices (e.g. SAS disks). The utility will
try to find the element or slot in the Additional Element Status dpage whose SAS
address matches SA. For a SAS disk or tape that SAS address is its target port
identifier for the port connected to that element or slot. Most SAS disks and
tapes have two such target ports, usually numbered consecutively.
SATA devices in a SAS enclosure often receive "manufactured" target port identi-
fiers from a SAS expander; typically will have a SAS address close to, but differ-
ent from, the SAS address of the expander itself. Note that this manufactured tar-
get port identifier is different from a SATA disk's WWN.
SA is a hex number that is up to 8 digits long. It may have a leading '0x' or '0X'
or a trailing 'h' or 'H'. This option is a medium level
indexing alternative to the low level --index= options. See the DESCRIPTOR NAME,
DEVICE SLOT NUMBER AND SAS ADDRESS section below.
-S, --set=STR
Used to set an element field in the Enclosure Control or Threshold Out dpage. Must
be used together with an indexing option to specify which element is to be changed.
The Enclosure Control dpage is assumed if the --page=PG option is not given. See
the STR FORMAT and CLEAR, GET, SET sections below.
-s, --status
will fetch dpage from the DEVICE via a SCSI RECEIVE DIAGNOSTIC RESULTS command (or
from --data=@FN). In the absence of other options that imply modifying a dpage
(e.g. --control or --set=STR) then --status is assumed, except when the --data=
option is given. When the --data= option is given there is no default action: ei-
ther the --control or this option must be given to distinguish between the two dif-
ferent ways that data will be treated.
-v, --verbose
increase the level of verbosity. For example when this option is given four times
(in which case the short form is more convenient: '-vvvv') then if the internal
join array has been generated then it is output to stderr in a form suitable for
debugging.
-V, --version
print the version string and then exit.
-w, --warn
warn about certain irregularities with warnings sent to stderr. The join is a com-
plex operation that relies on information from several dpages to be synchronized.
The quality of SES devices vary and to be fair, the descriptions from T10 drafts
and standards have been tweaked several times (see the EIIOE field) in order to
clear up confusion.
INDEXES
An enclosure can have information about its disk and tape drives plus other supporting
components like power supplies spread across several dpages. Addressing a specific ele-
ment (overall or individual) within a dpage is complicated. This section describes low
level indexing (i.e. choosing a single element (or a group of related elements) from a
large number of elements). If available, the medium level indexing described in the fol-
lowing section (DESCRIPTOR NAME, DEVICE SLOT NUMBER AND SAS ADDRESS) might be simpler to
use.
The Configuration dpage is key to low level indexing: it contains a list of "type head-
ers", each of which contains an Element type (e.g. Array Device Slot), a Subenclosure
identifier (0 for the primary enclosure) and a "Number of possible elements". Correspond-
ing to each type header, the Enclosure Status dpage has one "overall" element plus "Number
of possible elements" individual elements all of which have the given Element type. For
some Element types the "Number of possible elements" will be 0 so the Enclosure Status
dpage has only one "overall" element corresponding to that type header. The Element De-
scriptor dpage and the Threshold (In and Out) dpages follow the same pattern as the Enclo-
sure Status dpage.
The numeric index corresponding to the overall element is "-1". If the Configuration dpage
indicates a particular element type has "n" elements and n is greater than 0 then its in-
dexes range from 0 to n-1 .
The Additional Element Status dpage is a bit more complicated. It has entries for "Number
of possible elements" of certain Element types. It does not have entries corresponding to
the "overall" elements. To make the correspondence a little clearer each descriptor in
this dpage optionally contains an "Element Index Present" (EIP) indicator. If EIP is set
then each element's "Element Index" field refers to the position of the corresponding ele-
ment in the Enclosure Status dpage.
Addressing a single overall element or a single individual element is done with two in-
dexes: TI and II. Both are origin 0. TI=0 corresponds to the first type header entry which
must be a Device Slot or Array Device Slot Element type (according to the SES-2 standard).
To address the corresponding overall instance, II is set to -1, otherwise II can be set to
the individual instance index. As an alternative to the type header index (TI), an Element
type abbreviation (A) optionally followed by a number (e.g. "ps" refers to the first Power
Supply Element type; "ps1" refers to the second) can be given.
One of two command lines variants can be used to specify indexes: --index=TIA,II where TIA
is either an type header index (TI) or an Element type abbreviation (A) (e.g. "ps" or
"ps1"). II is either an individual index or "-1" to specify the overall element. The sec-
ond variant is --index=IIA where IIA is either an individual index (II) or an Element type
abbreviation (A). When IIA is an individual index then the option is equivalent to --in-
dex=0,II. When IIA is an Element type abbreviation then the option is equivalent to --in-
dex=A,-1.
Wherever an individual index is applicable, it can be replaced by an individual index
range. It has the form: <first_ii>-<last_ii>. For example: '3-5' will select individual
indexes 3, 4 and 5 .
To cope with vendor specific Element types (whose type codes should be in the range 128 to
255) the Element type code can be given as a number with a leading underscore. For example
these are equivalent: --index=arr and --index=_23 since the Array Device Slot Element type
code is 23. Also --index=ps1 and --index=_2_1 are equivalent.
Another example: if the first type header in the Configuration dpage has has Array Device
Slot Element type then --index=0,-1 is equivalent to --index=arr. Also --index=arr,3 is
equivalent to --index=3.
The --index= options can be used to reduce the amount of output (e.g. only showing the
element associated with the second 12 volt power supply). They may also be used together
with with the --clear=STR, --get=STR and --set=STR options which are described in the STR
section below.
DESCRIPTOR NAME, DEVICE SLOT NUMBER AND SAS ADDRESS
The three options: --descriptor=DES, --dev-slot-num=SN and --sas-addr=SA allow medium
level indexing, as an alternative to the low level --index= options. Only one of the three
options can be used in an invocation. Each of the three options implicitly set the --join
option since they need either the Element Descriptor dpage or the Additional Element Sta-
tus dpage as well as the dpages needed by the --index= option.
These medium level indexing options need support from the SES device and that support is
optional. For example the --descriptor=DES needs the Element Descriptor dpage provided by
the SES device however that is optional. Also the provided descriptor names need to be
useful, and having descriptor names which are all "0" is not very useful. Also some ele-
ments (e.g. overall elements) may not have descriptor names.
These medium level indexing options can be used to reduce the amount of output (e.g. only
showing the elements related to device slot number 3). They may also be used together
with with the --clear=STR, --get=STR and --set=STR options which are described in the fol-
lowing section. Note that even if a field can be set (e.g. "do not remove" (dnr)) and that
field can be read back with --get=STR confirming that change, the disk array may still ig-
nore it (e.g. because it does not have the mechanism to lock the disk drawer).
STR FORMAT
The STR operands of the --clear=STR, --get=STR and --set=STR options all have the same
structure. There are two forms:
<acronym>[=<value>]
<start_byte>:<start_bit>[:<num_bits>][=<value>]
The <acronym> is one of a list of common fields (e.g. "ident" and "fault") that the util-
ity converts internally into the second form. The <start_byte> is usually in the range 0
to 3, the <start_bit> must be in the range 0 to 7 and the <num_bits> must be in the range
1 to 64 (default 1). The number of bits are read in the left to right sense of the element
tables shown in the various SES draft documents. For example the 8 bits of byte 2 would be
represented as 2:7:8 with the most significant bit being 2:7 and the least significant bit
being 2:0 .
The <value> is optional but is ignored if provided to --get=STR. For --set=STR the de-
fault <value> is 1 while for --clear=STR the default value is 0 . <value> is assumed to be
decimal, hexadecimal values can be given in the normal fashion.
The supported list of <acronym>s can be viewed by using the --enumerate option twice (or
"-ee").
CLEAR, GET, SET
The --clear=STR, --get=STR and --set=STR options can be used up to 8 times in the same in-
vocation. Any <acronym>s used in the STR operands must refer to the same dpage.
When multiple of these options are used (maximum: 8), they are applied in the order in
which they appear on the command line. So if options contradict each other, the last one
appearing on the command line will be enforced. When there are multiple --clear=STR and
--set=STR options, then the dpage they refer to is only written after the last one.
DATA SUPPLIED
This section describes the two scenarios that can occur when the --data= option is given.
These scenarios are the same irrespective of whether the argument to the --data= option is
a string of hex bytes on the command line, stdin (indicated by --data=-) or names a file
(e.g. --data=@thresh_in_dpage.hex).
The first scenario is flagged by the --control option. It uses the supplied data to build
a 'control' dpage that will be sent to the DEVICE using the SCSI SCSI SEND DIAGNOSTIC com-
mand. The supplied dpage data should not include its first 4 bytes. Those 4 bytes are
added by this utility using the --page=PG option with PG placed at byte offset 0). If
needed, the --byte1=B1 option sets byte offset 1, else 0 is placed in that position. The
number of bytes decoded from the data provided (i.e. its length) goes into byte offsets 2
and 3.
The second scenario is flagged by the --status option. It decodes the supplied data assum-
ing that it represents the response to one or more SCSI RECEIVE DIAGNOSTIC RESULTS com-
mands. Those responses have typically been captured from some earlier invocation(s) of
this utility. Those earlier invocations could use the '-HHH' or '-HHHH' option and file
redirection to capture that response (or responses) in hexadecimal. The supplied dpage re-
sponse data is decoded according to the other command line options. For example the --join
option could be given and that would require the data from multiple dpages typically:
Configuration, Enclosure status, Element descriptor and Additional element status dpages.
If in doubt use --page=all in the capture phase; having more dpages than needed is not a
problem.
By default the user supplied data is assumed to be ASCII hexadecimal in lines that don't
exceed 512 characters. Anything on a line from and including a hash mark ('#') to the end
of line is ignored. An end of line can be a LF or CR,LF and blank lines are ignored. Each
separated pair (or single) hexadecimal digits represent a byte (and neither a leading '0x'
nor a trailing 'h' should be given). Separators are either space, tab, comma or end of
line.
Alternatively binary can be used and this is flagged by the '-rr' option. The
--data=H,H... form cannot use binary values for the 'H's, only ASCII hexadecimal. The
other two forms (--data=- and --data=@FN) may contain binary data. Note that when the
'-rr' option is used with --data=@FN that it only changes the interpretation of the input
data, it does not change the decoding and output representation.
CHANGING STATE
This utility has various techniques for changing the state of a SES device. As noted
above this is typically a read-modify-write type operation. Most modifiable dpages have a
"status" (or "in") page that can be read, and a corresponding "control" (or "out") dpage
that can be written back to change the state of the enclosure.
The lower level technique provided by this utility involves outputting a "status" dpage in
hex with --raw. Then a text editor can be used to edit the hex (note: to change an Enclo-
sure Control descriptor the SELECT bit needs to be set). Next the control dpage data can
fed back with the --data=H,H... option together with the --control option; the --byte1=B1
option may need to be given as well.
Changes to the Enclosure Control dpage (and the Threshold Out dpage) can be done at a
higher level. This involves choosing a dpage (the default in this case is the Enclosure
Control dpage). Next choose an individual or overall element index (or name it with its
Element Descriptor string). Then give the element's name (e.g. "ident" for RQST IDENT) or
its position within that element (e.g. in an Array Device Slot Control element RQST IDENT
is byte 2, bit 1 and 1 bit long ("2:1:1")). Finally a value can be given, if not the value
for --set=STR defaults to 1 and for --clear=STR defaults to 0.
SETTING SUBENCLOSURE NICKNAME
The format of the Subenclosure Nickname control dpage is different from its corresponding
status dpage. The status dpage reports all Subenclosure Nicknames (and Subenclosure iden-
tifier 0 is the main enclosure) while the control dpage allows only one of them to be
changed. Therefore using the --data option technique to change a Subenclosure nickname is
difficult (but still possible).
To simplify changing a Subenclosure nickname the --nickname=SEN and --nickid=SEID options
have been added. If the SEN string contains spaces or other punctuation, it should be
quoted: surrounded by single or double quotes (or the offending characters escaped). If
the --nickid=SEID is not given then a Subenclosure identifier of 0 is assumed. As a guard
the --control option must also be given. If the --page=PG option is not given then
--page=snic is assumed.
When --nickname=SEN is given then the Subenclosure Nickname Status dpage is read to obtain
the Generation Code field. That Generation Code together with no more than 32 bytes from
the Nickname (SEN) and the Subenclosure Identifier (SEID) are written to the Subenclosure
Nickname Control dpage.
There is an example of changing a nickname in the EXAMPLES section below.
NVME ENCLOSURES
Support has been added to sg_ses (actually, its underlying library) for NVMe (also known
as NVM Express) Enclosures. It can be considered experimental in sg3_utils package version
1.43 and sg_ses version 2.34 .
This support is based on a decision by NVME-MI (Management Interface) developers to sup-
port the SES-3 standard. This was facilitated by adding NVME-MI SES Send and SES Receive
commands that tunnel dpage contents as used by SES.
NOTES
This utility can be used to fetch arbitrary (i.e. non SES) dpages (using the SCSI READ DI-
AGNOSTIC command). To this end the --page=PG and --hex options would be appropriate.
Non-SES dpages can be sent to a device with the sg_senddiag utility.
The most troublesome part of the join operation is associating Additional Element Status
descriptors correctly. At least one SES device vendor has misinterpreted the SES-2 stan-
dard, specifically with its "element index" field interpretation. The code in this utility
interprets the "element index" field as per the SES-2 standard and if that yields an inap-
propriate Element type, adjusts its indexing to follow that vendor's misinterpretation.
The SES-3 drafts have introduced the EIIOE (Element Index Includes Overall Elements) bit
which later became a 2 bit field to resolve this ambiguity. See the --eiioe=A_F option.
In draft SES-3 revision 5 the "Door Lock" element name was changed to the "Door" (and an
OPEN field was added to the status element). As a consequence the former 'dl' element type
abbreviation has been changed to 'do'.
There is a related command set called SAF-TE (SCSI attached fault-tolerant enclosure) for
enclosure (including RAID) status and control. SCSI devices that support SAF-TE report
"Processor" peripheral device type (0x3) in their INQUIRY response. See the sg_safte util-
ity in this package or the safte-monitor utility on the Internet.
The internal join array is statically allocated and its size is controlled by the
MX_JOIN_ROWS define. Its current value is 520.
EXAMPLES
Examples can also be found at http://sg.danny.cz/sg/sg_ses.html
The following examples use Linux device names. For suitable device names in other sup-
ported Operating Systems see the sg3_utils(8) man page.
To view the supported dpages:
sg_ses /dev/bsg/6:0:2:0
To view the Configuration Diagnostic dpage:
sg_ses --page=cf /dev/bsg/6:0:2:0
To view the Enclosure Status dpage:
sg_ses --page=es /dev/bsg/6:0:2:0
To get the (attached) SAS address of that device (which is held in the Additional Element
Sense dpage (dpage 10)) printed on hex:
sg_ses -p aes -D ArrayDevice07 -G at_sas_addr -H /dev/sg3
To collate the information in the Enclosure Status, Element Descriptor and Additional Ele-
ment Status dpages the --join option can be used:
sg_ses --join /dev/sg3
This will produce a lot of output. To filter out lines that don't contain much information
add the --filter option:
sg_ses --join --filter /dev/sg3
Fields in the various elements of the Enclosure Control and Threshold dpages can be
changed with the --clear=STR and --set=STR options. [All modifiable dpages can be changed
with the --raw and --data=H,H... options.] The following example looks at making the
"ident" LED (also called "locate") flash on "ArrayDevice07" which is a disk (or more pre-
cisely the carrier drawer the disk is in):
sg_ses --index=7 --set=2:1:1 /dev/sg3
If the Element Descriptor diagnostic dpage shows that "ArrayDevice07" is the descriptor
name associated with element index 7 then this invocation is equivalent to the previous
one:
sg_ses --descriptor=ArrayDevice07 --set=2:1:1 /dev/sg3
Further the byte 2, bit 1 (for 1 bit) field in the Array Device Slot Control element is
RQST IDENT for asking a disk carrier to flash a LED so it can be located. In this case
"ident" (or "locate") is accepted as an acronym for that field:
sg_ses --descriptor=ArrayDevice07 --set=ident /dev/sg3
To stop that LED flashing:
sg_ses --dev-slot-num=7 --clear=ident /dev/sg3
The above assumes the descriptor name 'ArrayDevice07' corresponds to device slot number 7.
Now for an example of a more general but lower level technique for changing a modifiable
diagnostic dpage. The String (In and Out) diagnostics dpage is relatively simple (compared
with the Enclosure Status/Control dpage). However the use of this lower level technique is
awkward involving three steps: read, modify then write. First check the current String
(In) dpage contents:
sg_ses --page=str /dev/bsg/6:0:2:0
Now the "read" step. The following command will send the contents of the String dpage
(from byte 4 onwards) to stdout. The output will be in ASCII hex with pairs of hex digits
representing a byte, 16 pairs per line, space separated. The redirection puts stdout in a
file called "t":
sg_ses --page=str --raw /dev/bsg/6:0:2:0 > t
Then with the aid of the SES-3 document (in revision 3: section 6.1.6) use your favourite
editor to change t. The changes can be sent to the device with:
sg_ses --page=str --control --data=- /dev/bsg/6:0:2:0 < t
If the above is successful, the String dpage should have been changed. To check try:
sg_ses --page=str /dev/bsg/6:0:2:0
To change the nickname on the main enclosure:
sg_ses --nickname='1st enclosure' --control /dev/bsg/6:0:2:0
To capture the whole state of an enclosure (from a SES perspective) for later analysis,
this can be done:
sg_ses --page=all -HHHH /dev/sg5 > enc_sg5_all.hex
Note that if there are errors or warnings they will be sent to stderr so they will appear
on the command line (since only stdout is redirected). A text editor could be used to in-
spect enc_sg5_all.hex . If all looks in order at some later time, potentially on a differ-
ent machine where enc_sg5_all.hex has been copied, a "join" could be done. Note that join
reflects the state of the enclosure when the capture was done.
sg_ses --data=@enc_sg5_all.hex --status --join
EXIT STATUS
The exit status of sg_ses is 0 when it is successful. Otherwise see the sg3_utils(8) man
page.
AUTHORS
Written by Douglas Gilbert.
REPORTING BUGS
Report bugs to <dgilbert at interlog dot com>.
COPYRIGHT
Copyright (C) 2004-2021 Douglas Gilbert
This software is distributed under a FreeBSD license. There is NO warranty; not even for
MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
SEE ALSO
sg_inq, sg_safte, sg_senddiag, sg_ses_microcode, sg3_utils (sg3_utils); safte-monitor (In-
ternet)
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