Introduction

This document describes how to install device drivers on the Cisco Unified Computing System (UCS) for common operating systems.

Vmware Tools Device Drivers

Tip: When you choose which driver bundle to download, it is important to select the driver bundle version that is most similar to the server firmware release. For example, if you run a UCS-B Release 3.2(2b), then VMware driver bundle ucs-bxxx-drivers-vmware.3.2.2.iso is required.

Prerequisites

Requirements

The following device drivers can be included with VMware Tools. SVGA driver This virtual driver enables 32-bit displays, high display resolution, and faster graphics performance. When you install VMware Tools, a virtual SVGA driver replaces the default VGA driver, which allows for only 640 X. Interrupted Download: VMware Pointing Device Driver most updated driver version for Windows XP Media Center Edition 2014:: 483: 449: 99%: Interrupted Download: VMware Pointing Device Driver free driver download for Windows XP Media Center Edition 2003 2014: 26.1.2021: 176: 142: 100%. I am having the same issue with Windows 10 Preview on VMware Player. When I run VMware Player in USB 3.0 mode, I can usually connect to USB 3.0 devices when it is plugged into a USB 3.0 port using USB 3.0 as my configuration. Similarly, I can connect a USB 2.0 device if I have a USB 2.0 port and USB 2.0 configuration. Download VMware Workstation for Windows. Device Drivers; Product Finder. Recent Activity. USB devices can automatically connect to a powered on virtual machine when you configure.

Cisco recommends that you have knowledge of these topics:

• Cisco UCS Manager
• Cisco Integrated Management Controller (CIMC)
• Virtual Machine-ware (VMware), Windows Server, or Linux Operating Systems (OS)

Components Used

The information in this document is based on these hardware platforms:

• UCS B Series
• UCS C Series
  

The information in this document was created from the devices in a specific lab environment. All of the devices used in this document started with a cleared (default) configuration. If your network is live, make sure that you understand the potential impact of any command.

Background Information

Driver Definition

A device driver is software that is the interface between the OS and the hardware. The device driver translates general OS commands into specialized commands for a particular device, which allows the OS to communicate with hardware devices.

Devices that Require a Driver

Here is a list of hardware devices that require device drivers:

• Ethernet Network Interface Card (ENIC)
• Fibre Channel Network Interface Card (FNIC)
• Redundant Array of Indepent Disks (RAID) Controller
• Motherboard Chipset
• Video Card
• Trusted Platform Module (TPM)

Drivers Versus Firmware

Device drivers are different from firmware. Device driver software is installed on the OS, whereas firmware is lower-level code that is installed on hardware devices. Firmware is stored in non-volatile memory, such as ROM, Erasable Programmable ROM (EPROM), or flash memory.

Driver Dependence on Firmware

Device drivers have a strong dependence on the device firmware. Device drivers must be compatible with the firmware level of a hardware device, so that they properly communicate with each other; driver and firmware functionality must match for correct operation to take place.

When Drivers Must be Installed and Updated

Device drivers come pre-installed with operating systems (such as Cisco OEM VMware ESXi images), or they can be manually installed post-OS setup.

Device drivers generally need to be updated after these procedures:

• UCS firmware upgrades
• Major OS upgrades/patches

Driver Versions Required

The UCS Hardware and Software Interoperability matrix outlines the driver versions that are required for a particular OS, device, and firmware combination.

Warning: The driver versions listed on the matrix have been tested and verified by the Cisco Engineering Quality Assurance team, and it is crucial to install the correct driver; otherwise, you might run into unexpected behavior which could lead to network outages.

This example shows that an FNIC driver version of 1.6.0.36 is required for a B200 M4 with a Virtual Interface Card (VIC) 1240 that runs ESXi 6.0 U3, on UCS Release 3.2.2.

Download the Driver Bundle

Complete these steps in order to download the driver bundle:

1. In a web browser, navigate to http://www.cisco.com.
2. Under Support, click Download Software.
3. Click Unified Computing and Servers.
4. Choose your server. Cisco UCS drivers are available for both Cisco UCS B-Series Blade servers and Cisco UCS C-Series Rack-Mount.
5. Click Unified Computing System (UCS) Drivers.
6. Select the bundle you want to download, and click Download Now.
   

Tip: When you choose which driver bundle to download, it is important to select the driver bundle version that is most similar to the server firmware release. For example, if you run a UCS-B Release 3.2(2b), then VMware driver bundle ucs-bxxx-drivers-vmware.3.2.2.iso is required.

Tip: Most VMware ESXi drivers are downloaded directly from www.vmware.com/download, with a search for the driver version. This is often quicker than if you were to download the entire driver bundle.

Identify Server Hardware

Before you select the correct driver, you must identify what hardware devices are installed on the server. This section describes how to find the devices located on the UCS Manager and in the CIMC.

UCS B Series

This example shows how to find the server inventory in UCS Manager. Server 1/1 has two adapter models installed: the VIC 1240 and 1280.

UCS C Series

This example shows how to find the server hardware devices in the CIMC. The server has a LSI 9266-8i RAID controller installed.

Identify the UCS Firmware Release

Before the correct driver version is selected, the UCS release must be identifed. This section describes how to identify the current UCS release installed on the servers.

UCS B Series

In this example, the UCS B Series runs UCS Release 2.1(1a).

UCS C Series

In this example, the UCS C Series runs UCS Release 1.4(6d).

OS Specifics

This section describes how to check driver versions and how to install drivers on common OSs.

VMware ESXi

Use these commands in order to check the current driver versions and VMware build:

Tip: These commands are executed from the ESXi CLI. Secure Shell (SSH) must be enabled before an SSH session is initated.

These examples show that vmnic2 uses a Cisco VIC and a driver version of 1.4.2.15a.

These examples show that the Qlogic Host Bus Adapter (HBA) uses driver qla2xxx Version 901.1k.1-14vmw.

Install the Driver

Complete these steps in order to install the driver:

1. Extract the contents of the driver zip file, and identify the *.vib file.
2. Use the Datastore Browser in order to upload the *.vib file to an ESXi host datastore.
   
3. Enter the host into Maintenance mode.
4. Install the driver.

ESXi 5.x/6.x

Use this command in order to install the driver on ESXi Release 5.x/6.x:

Note: If the drivers require a signature verification, run this command with the --no-sig-check switch. Ensure that you use the full path to the file.

ESXi 4.x

Use this command in order to install the driver on ESXi Release 4.x:

Finish the Installation

After you install the driver with one of the previously mentioned commands, exit Maintenance mode and reboot the host. For more information on how to install drivers, reference the Related Information section at the end of this document.

Useful VMware CLI Commands

Here are some other useful VMware commands that you can use when you install a driver:

Check Maintenance Mode Status

Check for Powered-On VMs

Power-Off VMs

Enter Maintenance Mode

Exit Maintenance Mode

Microsoft Windows Server

This section describes how to install a driver on a Microsoft Windows server.

Check Current Driver Version

In order to check the device drivers in Microsoft Windows, use the Device Manager located in the Control Panel.

Check Current Driver Version CLI

For Windows Server Core the Plug-and-Play (PnP) Utility (PNPUtil.exe) is used to check driver versions.

Missing Drivers

Vmware Usb Device Driver Download

Hardware devices with missing drivers are displayed in the Device Manager with a yellow question mark. These devices should be updated with the correct driver in order to prevent unexpected behavior.

Install the Driver

In order to install or update a driver in Microsoft Windows, right-click on the device, and choose Install/Update Driver in order to start the Installation Wizard.

Install the Driver from CLI

The PNPUtil tool can also be used to install drivers from the CLI. The driver ISO bundle can be mounted via the UCS KVM Console Virtual Media.

Useful Windows CLI Commands

Red Hat and SUSE Linux

This section describes how to install and validate a driver on Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) and SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES).

SUSE Background Information

Starting with SLES 12 SP1, the Cisco eNIC and usNIC drivers are bundled together into a single RPM (vs. being packaged in separate RPMs, as they are for other Linux distributions). Bundling both drivers into a single RPM is required because of how kernel module dependencies are managed in SLES 12 SP1 and later. If you are not using Cisco usNIC functionality (i.e., if you have not provisioned any usNIC devices in UCSM / CIMC), the usNIC driver will effectively be ignored.

The eNIC and usNIC drivers have their own distinct version numbers. If you install the cisco-enic-usnic RPM on SLES 12 SP 1 or later, once those drivers are loaded into the running kernel (e.g., via rebooting), use cat /sys/module/enic/version and cat /sys/module/usnic_verbs/version to view their respective version numbers. The cisco-enic-usnic RPM has its own distinct version number as well. Because it represents the packaging of the eNIC and usNIC drivers, the RPM version number may look similar, but does not reflect the specific version of either driver.

For additional information on the exact driver versions query and review the RPM description section. The query looks similar to the example below:

Verify current driver versions and OS Release

Here is a list of commands used in order to check the current driver version and OS release:

Note: Be aware of the command modinfo [ driver name ]shows the module information about the driver that will be loaded upon next reboot. This is not necessarily the same driver version currently loaded in the running kernel. Review cat/sys/module/DRIVER_NAME/version to validate the driver version loaded in the currently running kernel, and/or use the command modinfo [ /path/to/driver.ko ] to validate the module info for a specific driver kernel object file.

Tip: Refer to the Driver Name Reference Table located in the Appendix for examples of other common driver names.

This example shows that an ENIC driver version of 3.2.210.18-738.12 bundled in the cisco-enic-usnic RPM package 3.2.272.23 is installed on SLES 15 GA.

Install the Driver

Drivers in RHEL and SLES are installed using the Redhat Package Manager (RPM). Use this command in order to install the driver:

Tip: When you install drivers in Linux, ensure that you review the README files associated with the driver if available. You can look at the contents of the RPM to see where its associated README file was installed (e.g., rpm -qp kmod-enic). Some RPM driver packages have dependencies on other modules, and require installation of additional RPM packages. The README files contain full instructions on how to install the driver file.

Appendix

Driver Name Reference Table

This table shows the driver names or prefixes for common drivers.

Related Information

Vmware Driver Download

On a Windows host, by default, unless Workstation Pro is currently configured to remember a connection rule for a specific USB device, when you plug the USB device into the host system, Workstation Pro prompts you to select a machine to connect the device to. Workstation Pro connects the device to the machine you select, but a remember option is also available, which creates a USB device connection rule that, in the future, directs Workstation Pro to either automatically connect that device to the host or to a virtual machine, depending on the machine you selected.

Vmware Usb Driver Error

On a Linux host, when a virtual machine is running, its window is the active window. If you plug a USB device into the host system, the device connects to the virtual machine instead of the host by default. If a USB device connected to the host system does not connect to a virtual machine at power on, you must manually connect the device to the virtual machine.

Download Vmware USB Devices Drivers Update

Also, on a Linux host, when you connect a USB device to a virtual machine, Workstation Pro retains the connection to the affected port on the host system. You can suspend or power off the virtual machine, or unplug the device. When you plug in the device again or resume the virtual machine, Workstation Pro reconnects the device. Workstation Pro retains the connection by writing an autoconnect entry to the virtual machine configuration (.vmx) file. If Workstation Pro cannot reconnect to the device, for example, because you disconnected the device, the device is removed and Workstation Pro displays a message to indicate that it cannot connect to the device. If the device is still available, you can connect to it manually. To connect a USB device to the virtual machine manually, select VM > Removable Devices > Device Name > Connect (Disconnect from host)

Vmware Usb 3.0 Drivers

Follow the device manufacturer's procedures for unplugging the device from the host computer when you physically unplug the device, move the device from the host system to a virtual machine, or move the device from a virtual machine to the host computer. Following these procedures is especially important for data storage devices, such as zip drives. If you move a data storage device too soon after saving a file and the operating system did not actually write the data to the disk, you can lose data.