VCP5 Brownbag

Section 3 – Plan and Configure vSphere Storage

“Tools” (Guides) Required for Section 3

• vSphere Installation and Setup guide • vSphere Storage guide • VMware vSphere Examples and Scenarios Guide • VMware vSphere Storage Appliance Installation and Configuration Guide • VMware vSphere Storage Appliance Administration Guide • VSA Manager • vSphere Client

(below blogs are obviously not required/official VMware resource, but recommended)Jason Langer’s blog: http://virtuallanger.com/vcp5/Andrea Mauro PDF: http://vinfrastructure.it/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/VCP5-study-notes-EN-1.3.pdfMike Preston’s blog: http://blog.mwpreston.net/vcp-5/

Objective 3.1 – Configure Shared Storage for vSphere

• Identify storage adapters and devices Pg. 12 of Storage Guide → SCSI, iSCSI, RAID, FC, FCoE, Ethernet; Drivers are part of VMkernel

• Identify storage naming conventions– Pg. 19 of Storage Guide; 3 types of Identifiers:

• SCSI INQUIRY Identifier → naa.number; t10.number; eui.number• Path-based Identifier → mpx.path name (ex. mpx.vmhba1:C0:T1:L3)• Legacy Identifier → Vml.number (# is unique to device)

• Identify hardware/dependent hardware/software iSCSI initiator requirements (Pg. 65 of Storage Guide)– Dependent Hardware: dependent on networking/iSCSI config & mgmt interface within

VMware; relies on host for IP/MAC network configuration– Independent Hardware: implements OWN networking/iSCSI config & mgmt interface– Software iSCSI → built into VMkernel; connection is done via host’s physical NIC

3.1 Cont…

• Compare and contrast array thin provisioning and virtual disk thin provisioning – Virtual Disk Thin Provisioning (Pg. 183-185 of Storage Guide) – space is committed to

VMDK as it’s used, up to it’s allocated amount– Array Thin Provisioning – See Pg. 186-189 of Storage Guide

• Describe Zoning and LUN masking practices: (Pg. 33-35 of Storage Guide); access control to LUNs; Zone => HBA to Target; Masking => Host to LUN

• Scan/Rescan storage: (Pg. 124 of Storage Guide) vSphere Client (Demo)

• Identify use cases for FCoE: (Pg. 39 of Storage Guide)– Use when able to support 10Gb Ethernet– Use with current Datacenter Bridging (DCB) technologies– Reduce host complexity (cable, offload)

3.1 Cont…

• Create an NFS share for use with vSphere– Dependent on device vendor

• Connect to a NAS device:– vSphere Client (Demo)

• Enable/Configure/Disable vCenter Server storage filters: – Pg. 125 of Storage Guide; enabled by default (Demo)

• Configure/Edit hardware/dependent hardware initiators:– Pg. 71-74 of Storage Guide; vSphere Client

• Enable/Disable software iSCSI initiator:– Pg. 74-75 of Storage Guide; vSphere Client (Demo)

• Configure/Edit software iSCSI initiator settings:– Pg. 74-75 of Storage Guide; vSphere Client (Demo)

3.1 Cont…

• Configure iSCSI port binding:– Pg. 80; vSphere Client; adding VMkernel Port Group/Physical Adapter

to iSCSI Adapter

• Enable/Configure/Disable iSCSI CHAP:– vSphere Client (Demo)

• Determine use case for hardware/dependent hardware/software iSCSI initiator – Different with each environment/org; budget

• Determine use case for and configure array thin provisioning

Objective 3.2 – Configure the Storage Virtual Appliance for vSphere

• Define vSphere Storage Virtual Appliance (VSA) architecture– SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 11 & set of clustering

services pkg’d in a virtual appliance– See Diagram from VSA Install & Config Guide, pg. 9

(next slide) and from Deepdive whitepaper (2nd slide)– 3-node cluster is the same, but with addt’l host

3.2 Cont…• Configure ESXi hosts as VSA hosts

– Host Sys Req’s on Pg. 21-24 VSA Install and Config Guide– Pg. 26-30 of the Guide have detailed install procedures

• vCenter Server install => Pg. 31-33

• Configure the storage network for the VSA – Pg. 40-41 cover this; I recommend reviewing blogs for ‘cleaner’ steps

• Deploy/Configure the VSA Manager– Pg. 34-36 cover req’s; Pg. 36 covers Install; Pg. 39-44 covers Config– Deepdive whitepaper: http://

www.vmware.com/files/pdf/techpaper/VM-vSphere-Storage-Appliance-Deep-Dive-WP.pdf

3.2 Cont…

• Administer VSA storage resources– Done via VSA Manager tab (Memory, Maintenance, Pwd Chg, Netwk Chg, Monitor, etc.)

• Determine use case for deploying the VSA– Geared towards SMBs with low budget (can’t purchase SAN)

• Determine the appropriate ESXi host resources for the VSA– This goes back to host requirements to an extent:

• Depends on environment• Limited disks → 8 – 2TB drives configured in a RAID10• No memory overcommittment• 4-port NIC requirement

Objective 3.3 – Create & Configure VMFS and NFS Datastores

• Identify VMFS & NFS Datastore properties– Storage Guide reference: Pg. 114 for VMFS; Pg. 127 for NFS– Datastore → logical container that hides physical storage specifics from VMs

• Identify VMFS5 capabilities– Pg. 114-115– Highlights → Up to 64TB Datastore; 1 standard block size (1MB); thin disk storage reclamation;

seamless VMFS upgrade with no host/VM disruption

• Create/Rename/Delete/Unmount a VMFS Datastore– vSphere Client (Demo)– Pg. 118-124 of Storage Guide discusses Creation, Deletion, Upgrading VMFS, etc.

• Mount/Unmount a NFS Datastore: Pg. 128-129 Storage Guide

• Extend/Expand VMFS Datastore: vSphere Client (Demo)

• Upgrade a VMFS3 Datastore to VMFS5: (see above, Pg. 121)

3.3 Cont…

• Place a VMFS Datastore in Maintenance Mode– vSphere Client (Demo)

• Select the Preferred Path for a VMFS Datastore– vSphere Client (Demo)

• Disable a path to a VMFS Datastore– vSphere Client (Demo)

• Determine use case for multiple VMFS/NFS Datastores

• Determine the appropriate Path Selection Policy (PSP) for a given Datastore