Dell EMC SC Series Storage with SAS Front-end Support for VMware vSphere Abstract This document describes how to configure VMware® vSphere® hosts equipped with supported SAS HBAs to access SAN storage on select Dell EMC™ SC Series arrays with SAS front-end ports.
Revisions Revisions Date Description October 2015 Initial release February 2016 Updated technical support information July 2016 Updated to include support for SC4020 storage arrays with the release of SCOS 7.1 September 2017 Updated to include support for SCv3000 and SC5020 storage arrays Acknowledgments Author: Chuck Armstrong, Midrange Storage Technical Solutions The information in this publication is provided “as is.” Dell Inc.
Table of contents Table of contents Revisions.............................................................................................................................................................................2 Acknowledgments ...............................................................................................................................................................2 Table of contents ................................................................................................
Executive summary Executive summary Select Dell EMC SC Series arrays support serial-attached SCSI (SAS) front-end (FE) ports for connecting host servers equipped with a supported SAS host bus adapter (HBA) directly to SC Series array SAN storage. SAS FE is a simple, cost-effective transport option that is ideal for locations such as a branch office with a limited number of host servers.
Introduction 1 Introduction SC Series arrays configured with Fibre Channel or iSCSI continue to be the preferred front-end transport option for most environments due to their flexible, robust, and highly scalable configurations. However, for smaller locations, such as a branch office, SAS FE is an appealing solution. SAS FE SC Series environments do not require any additional switching hardware, as the hosts are connected directly to the array, and can include as many as four hosts. 1.
Introduction Front and rear views of an SCv3000/SC5020 array with SAS FE ports For more information about the SC Series arrays in this paper, including the release notes, getting started guides, system deployment guides, and owner’s manuals, see the resources available at Dell Support. 1.2 VMware vSphere This document assumes the reader is familiar with the basics of VMware vSphere and its components.
SAS FE host path configuration options 2 SAS FE host path configuration options When an SC Series array is configured with SAS FE ports, eight ports (four on each controller) are available to connect hosts with SAS HBAs. SC Series arrays with SAS-FE connectivity support a maximum of four hosts (path redundancy is required for each host SAS HBA). SCv2000/SC4020 with SAS FE ports (4 ports on each controller) SCv3000/SC5020 with SAS FE ports (4 ports on each controller) 2.
SAS FE host path configuration options Note: The SCv2000 and SC4020 arrays utilize a 2U chassis, whereas the SCv3000 and SC5020 arrays utilize a 3U chassis. SAS FE functionality is similar on all supported SC models.
SAS FE host path configuration options SCv3000/SC5020 with a 4-node vSphere cluster 9 Dell EMC SC Series Storage with SAS Front-end Support for VMware vSphere | 3027-CD-VM
SAS FE host path configuration options SCv2000/SC4020 with two 2-node vSphere clusters 10 Dell EMC SC Series Storage with SAS Front-end Support for VMware vSphere | 3027-CD-VM
SAS FE host path configuration options SCv3000/SC5020 with two 2-node vSphere clusters 11 Dell EMC SC Series Storage with SAS Front-end Support for VMware vSphere | 3027-CD-VM
SAS FE host path configuration options SCv2000/SC4020 with a 3-node vSphere cluster and one standalone host 12 Dell EMC SC Series Storage with SAS Front-end Support for VMware vSphere | 3027-CD-VM
SAS FE host path configuration options SCv3000/SC5020 with a 3-node vSphere cluster and one standalone host 13 Dell EMC SC Series Storage with SAS Front-end Support for VMware vSphere | 3027-CD-VM
SAS FE host path configuration options SCv2000/SC4020 with a 2-node vSphere cluster – each with two dual-port SAS HBAs SCv3000/SC5020 with a 2-node vSphere cluster – each with two dual-port SAS HBAs 14 Dell EMC SC Series Storage with SAS Front-end Support for VMware vSphere | 3027-CD-VM
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 3 Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports This section provides instructions for configuring VMware vSphere hosts with SAS HBAs to access SAN storage on SC Series arrays with equipped with SAS FE ports. 3.1 Prepare the environment Before configuring the vSphere hosts with SAS HBAs to access an SC Series array with SAS FE ports, verify compliance with the prerequisites listed in Table 1.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports Tasks Stage hosts with a supported VMware vSphere ESXi version and patch them to the required level. vSphere ESXi 5.1 Update 2 or newer is required to support the Dell 12Gbps SAS HBA drivers. vSphere 6.5 Update 1 is used in the examples shown in this document.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports Note: If the Dell 12 Gbps SAS HBA is installed in the server before it is staged with the OS, the server Lifecycle Controller (press [F10] at boot) can be used to update the firmware and install the drivers from the latest Dell server driver pack (from ftp.dell.com – no user name or password required) Note: vSphere may detect and install a native driver for the SAS HBA.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 3. Specify to create 4 fault domains (the maximum number) and click Next. 4. Review the fault domain information. A matching port on each SAS controller is automatically paired to create each fault domain. Click Next. Note: SAS FE ports must be assigned to a fault domain before the ports become available to hosts. 5. Allow the wizard to complete and click Finish. 6.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 7. Right-click a fault domain and select Edit to view additional information or to perform actions such as renaming the fault domain or assigning friendly names to each physical port.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 8. As a best practice, modify the fault domain names and port names. This enables intuitive administration in later steps and makes troubleshooting easier. In this example, a host name is added to each component (the hosts are named S13xx). 3.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports Modify these steps to fit the design of your environment. 9. Starting with the first vSphere host, connect a SAS cable from the server to SAS Port 1 on the host to SAS FE port 1 in the top controller of the SC Series array. The host does not need to be turned off before connecting or removing SAS cables. 10. Connect a second SAS cable from the other host SAS Port to SAS FE port 1 in the bottom controller of the SC Series array.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 14. In the Hardware tab, click Chassis > Controllers > Top Controller > IO Ports > SAS and then select the SAS port that is connected to the first host (S1350 Top in this example). Ports that are assigned intuitive names before this step will make this process easier. Click the Connectivity tab and note the initiator WWN for the host SAS port (ending in 4C00 in this example). 15.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports Note: The Create Server from VMware vSphere or vCenter option is currently not operational for SAS FE connected servers. This functionality with SAS FE configurations is expected in the next release of DSM. 18. In the wizard, configure the following: 19. Provide a name for the host. In this example, the server is named S1350-ESXi. 20. Select the correct operating system from the drop down list. VMware ESXi 6.5 is used in this example. 21.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 24. Repeat the steps 5-7 to create additional hosts on the SC Series array. In this example, a second host is added named S1351-ESXi. 3.6 Create server cluster object on the SC Series array To simplify managing volumes on the SC Series array that will be used by clustered hosts, create a server cluster object with selected server objects as members of the cluster.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 3. The selected vSphere hosts are now listed below the server cluster object. 3.7 Create and map storage volumes to vSphere hosts With cluster object created on the SC Series array, the next step is to create and map storage to the cluster object. In this example, two volumes (150GB and 170GB) are created and mapped to the cluster object. 1. Right-click the desired Volumes folder and select Create Volume. 2.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 3. Repeat steps 1 and 2 to create and map any additional data volumes to the server cluster object. In this example, a 170 GB volume named SC-SAS-DS-02-170GB is created and mapped to the SAS vSphere ESXi Cluster 01 server cluster object. 4. Click the server cluster object and under the Mappings tab, the two new volumes along with the mapping details are displayed.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 3.8 Create datastores and configure Multipath settings This section covers connecting vSphere hosts to storage presented from SC Series SAS FE arrays. Steps are provided for both environments managed by VMware vCenter, as well as standalone host environments. Note: Mapping volumes to VMware vSphere clusters or stand-alone VMware vSphere hosts one at a time helps to properly correlate volumes to datastores. 3.8.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 3.8.1.2 Create datastore 1. From the vSphere Web Client, select Hosts and Clusters and select a host. 2. In the Configure tab, click Storage > Datastores to display the existing datastores. 3. Click the Add Storage icon (it has a green plus sign) to start the Add Storage Wizard. 4. Select the type of Datastore. In this example, VMFS is selected. Click Next.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 5. Enter the name for the new datastore (SCv2020-SAS-DS-01-150GB) and select the storage device. Click Next. Note: Best practices include giving the datastore the same name as (or one containing) the volume name on the storage array. 6. Select the VMFS version and click Next. Note: If vSphere hosts running ESXi version 6.0 or earlier require access to the datastore, select VMFS version 5 for backward compatibility.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 8. Upon completing the New Datastore wizard, verify the information and click Finish. 9. Click the Refresh icon for the new datastore to be displayed in the Datastores list.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 10. Repeat steps 1 – 9 for each additional datastore. 11. For additional VMware vSphere hosts to which the storage volumes are mapped, rescan the SAS HBA to refresh and populate the datastores list. 3.8.1.3 Configure Multi-path settings The VMware native Multi-path uses a default Path Selection Policy (PSP). For best results, modify the default PSP to Round Robin, as described in Dell EMC SC Series Best Practices with VMware vSphere 5.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 3.8.2.1 Connect to mapped storage 1. In the vSphere Embedded Host Client, select Host > Manage > Storage. 2. In the Adapters tab, select the HBA (in this case, the Dell 12Gb SAS HBA) and click the Rescan button. 3. Open the Devices tab to view the new SAS storage devices. 3.8.2.2 Create a datastore 1.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 4. Enter the name for the new datastore and select the storage device on which it will be created. Click Next. (SC-SAS-DS-01-150GB in this case) 5. Select the partitioning options (or leave the defaults). Click Next.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 6. Review the information and click Finish. 7. Confirm erasure of the disk by clicking Yes. 8. Repeat steps 1 - 7 for each additional datastore as needed.
Configure VMware hosts to access SC Series arrays with SAS FE ports 9. After completing the New datastore wizard, the new datastore(s) will appear in the datastores list for the host. In this example, the datastores were named SC-SAS-DS-01-150GB and SC-SAS-DS-02170GB. Note: Best practices include giving the datastore the same name as (or one containing) the volume name on the storage array. 3.8.2.3 Configure Multi-path settings The VMware native Multi-path uses a default Path Selection Policy (PSP).
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