Dell PowerVault MD3060e Installation And Configuration Manual

Dell PowerVault MD3060e Installation And Configuration Manual

Dell powervault md storage array vmware vcenter plug-in installation and configuration guide
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Dell
PowerVault
MD Storage Array
VMware
vCenter Plug-in
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Installation and Configuration Guide

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Summary of Contents for Dell PowerVault MD3060e

  • Page 1 ™ ™ Dell PowerVault MD Storage Array VMware vCenter Plug-in ® Installation and Configuration Guide...
  • Page 2 Reproduction of these materials in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of Dell Inc. is strictly forbidden. Trademarks used in this text: Dell™, the DELL logo and PowerVault™ are trademarks of Dell Inc. Microsoft® and Windows® are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries. VMware®, vCenter®, and vSphere®...
  • Page 3: Table Of Contents

    MD vCenter Plug-in Features ..........................21 Configuring Storage Arrays ..........................21 Adding a Storage Array ............................22 Removing a Storage Array ........................... 23 Editing System Properties ............................ 23 Storage Array Configuration Backup ........................23 Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 4 Why Can I Not Make Changes to the Storage Array? ..................... 58 The MD vCenter Plug-in Does Not Show the New Storage Array Name after a Clear Configuration Operation in MDSM ..................... 58 Getting Help ..........................62 Contacting Dell ..............................62 Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 5: Overview

    ESX/ESXi hosts to connect to MD storage arrays and » create, map and delete virtual disks, » view the vCenter datastores available to Dell MD storage array virtual disks, and » create snapshots, virtual disk copies, and remote replication between arrays (if premium features activated).
  • Page 6: Installation Prerequisites

    From the application server, download the latest version of the MD vCenter Plug-in from the Download and Drivers page at support.dell.com by selecting your specific MD storage array model. See the MD-Series Support Matrix at support.dell.com/manuals for information on supported firmware levels, operating system versions and other supported hardware components.
  • Page 7: Before You Install The Md Vcenter Plug-In

    IP Addresses: vCenter Administrator Username: Password: Storage Administrator Username: Password: Application Server Host Name: DNS Names: IP Addresses: MD Storage Array Array Name: Password: IP Addresses: MD Storage Array Array Name: Password: IP Addresses: Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 8: Installing The Md Vcenter Plug-In

    11 When the installation completes, click Done to close the installation wizard. The installation automatically installs a Jetty application server and associated .jar files on your application server and registers the MD vCenter Plug-in with the vCenter Server. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 9: Configuring The Application Server And Md Vcenter Plug-In

    From the vSphere Client menu bar, select Plug-ins > Manage Plug-ins • The Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in should be listed as Enabled If the MD vCenter Plug-in is listed as disabled with an error message indicating that it cannot communicate with the application server, verify the port number defined for the Jetty server is enabled to pass through any firewalls in use.
  • Page 10: Configuring Storage Administrator Roles

    A list of roles and usages appears. Figure 3. MD vCenter Plug-in Roles List Click the Add Role icon in the menu bar, or right-click and select Add from the pop-up menu. The Add New Role window opens. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 11 To assign Read Only or Read Write access permissions to the storage arrays, select the appropriate permission. When finished, click OK. NOTE: Existing non-administrator roles may be modified to include the new Storage Administrator privileges created. However, an existing administrator role cannot be modified. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 12: Adding An Existing User To The Storage Administrator Role

    Figure 5. Assign Storage Administrator Role Click Add to select the users need access to the storage arrays. Select the role you want to assign them from the drop-down box under Assigned Role. Click OK to apply the permissions. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 13: Configuring Sas Support On Esx And Esxi Hosts

    Figure 6. No Access Message Configuring SAS Support on ESX and ESXi Hosts To configure the MD vCenter Plug-in for ESX or ESXi hosts connecting to SAS-based Dell MD storage arrays, the SAS SMI-S provider must be upgraded on the host.
  • Page 14: Installing The Sas Provider Upgrade

    The following messages should appear: cross_lsi-provider_410.04.V0.24-260249 pending,installed cross_lsi-provider_410.04.V0.24-140815 retired Stop any running VMs. Reboot the host. When the host reboot is complete, run the command to verify that the upgrade rpm -q lsi-provider was successfully applied. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 15 VIBs Removed: VIBs Skipped: Stop any running VMs. Reboot the host. When the host reboot is complete, run the command to esxcli software vib list | grep LSI verify that the upgrade was successfully applied. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 16: Md Vcenter Plug-In Security

    Authorities store, a Security Alert dialog box appears. Figure 7. SSL Security Alert Message To avoid this message, you can import the install-generated certificate into the system's Trusted Root Certification Authorities store using these steps: Click View Certificate Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 17 Figure 8. Install Certificate Dialog Box From the Certificate window, click Install Certificate. In the Certificate Import Wizard, click Next. Figure 9. Certificate Import Wizard Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 18 From the Certificate Store window, select Place all certificates in the following store. Click Browse In the Select Certificate Store window, highlight the Trusted Root Certification Authorities folder and click OK. Figure 10. Select Certificate Store Dialog Box Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 19 Clicking Add establishes a trust relationship with the application server. NOTE: You may also be prompted to add about:security_VpxClient.exe to your Trusted sites. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 20 NOTE: If you are using a Save File option, you will also need to add the DNS name or IP address of the MD vCenter Plug-in application server in non-SSL format (for example, http://192.168.10.14) as a trusted site Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 21: Md Vcenter Plug-In Features

    Automatic and manual storage array configuration backups Configuring Storage Arrays To use the MD vCenter Plug-in to create or modify virtual disks on the storage array, click the Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in icon on the vSphere Client home page.
  • Page 22: Adding A Storage Array

    In Password, enter a password for the storage array you are adding. This password will be required by the MD vCenter Plug-in to access the storage array. It will not change or override an existing storage array password set in Dell MD Storage Manager. Click Add.
  • Page 23: Removing A Storage Array

    The MD vCenter Plug-in supports configuration backups to script files that may be applied to a storage array from the Dell MD Storage Manager (MDSM). These script files will facilitate the restoration of the storage array configuration, such as storage array name, disk group configurations, virtual disk names, and virtual disk capacities.
  • Page 24 Plug-in application server and vCenter Server. To disable automatic save configuration, clear the selection box. Figure 16. Automatic Save Configuration Message NOTE: The automatic backup script files are located in C:\Program Files (x86)\Dell\MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-In\jetty\savecfg directory. Initiate A Manual Save Configuration To perform a manual save configuration: Open the Storage Array Manager View.
  • Page 25 If you get an error message stating your current security settings do not allow this file to be downloaded, add the non-secured HTTP address for your vCenter application server to Internet Explorer trusted sites list. Figure 18. File Download Dialog Click Save. A Save As dialog box is shown. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 26 Figure 19. Save As Dialog Select the location and file name to save the backup configuration script. Click Save. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 27: Esx/Esxi Host San Configuration

    ESX/ESXi Host SAN Configuration The MD vCenter Plug-in allows an ESX/ESXi host to be automatically configured to use a Dell MD storage array by detecting the installed Host Bus Adapters (HBAs) within the host and configuring new hosts on the storage array with the Worldwide Names (WWNs) of the HBAs from the host.
  • Page 28 If a storage controller also fails, the host can still access the remaining controller and all virtual disks fail over to that controller. A complete loss of access to storage occurs if any other element fails. Figure 21. Single Failure Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 29 HBA groups. When this method is used in the array, the Automatic host configuration utility cannot determine which HBAs are configured to each fabric zone. The user must verify that a single HBA is connected to both fabric zones for each HBA pair group. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 30 Figure 23. Quad HBA Port Configuration NOTE: The intent of this configuration is to pair the HBAs so that no group of HBA ports would be contained on a single HBA card (if dual-port cards are used). Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 31 Most Recently Used (MRU) to Round Robin (RR). To identify the current SATP claim rule and PSP policy used by your storage array, use the following command: #esxcli storage nmp device list Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 32: Networking Configuration For Fibre Channel And Iscsi Storage (Esx/Esxi 4.X Only)

    Connecting a Dell MD3600i-Series or MD Dense iSCSI Storage Array If using a Dell MD3600i-series or MD Dense iSCSI storage array with ESX/ESXi 4.x, run the following commands before mapping any virtual disks from the iSCSI storage array to the host.
  • Page 33 Connecting a Dell MD3600f-Series or MD Dense Fibre Channel Storage Array If using a Dell MD3600f-series or MD Dense storage array with ESX/ESXi 4.x, run the following commands before mapping any virtual disks from the fibre channel storage array to the host.
  • Page 34 Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 35: Esx/Esxi Host Configuration Wizard

    ESX/ESXi Host Configuration Wizard To use the Automatic Host Configuration utility, navigate to Hosts and Clusters of the vSphere Client home page and select the host to be configured. Then, right-click the host and select Configure ESX Host to Storage Array from the pull-down menu.
  • Page 36 Figure 26. Configure Host to Storage Array View (Fibre Channel) To automatically configure the host to a Dell MD storage array: Select the MD storage array to be configured and click Suggest.
  • Page 37 Figure 27. Configure Host to Storage Array View (iSCSI) Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 38 (see Installing the SAS Provider Upgrade). When the provider is not upgraded, the list of available HBA addresses does not appear and the icon above the servers will be red. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 39: Storage Array Summary

    − hot spares − capacity usage The storage array event log is also accessible by clicking View Event Log. See the Datastores view for additional event log details. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 40 To perform either of these management functions, you must use MD Storage Manager. For information on setting up disk pooling on your MD storage array, refer to either the Administrator's Guide for your array model or the MD Storage Manager online help. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 41: Create Disk Group

    Four filtering options guide creation of the new disk group: capacity, speed, tray loss protection (TLP) and drawer loss protection (DLP). TLP and DLP allow for a complete drive tray or complete drawer failure without failing the virtual disk(s) within the disk group. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 42: Formatting Virtual Disks

    Provide more flexibility, since the multi-pathing policy and disk shares are set per virtual disk. − Microsoft Cluster Service requires that each cluster disk resource is in its own virtual disk. − Offer better performance because there is less contention for a single virtual disk. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 43: Decision-Making Schemes

    If performance is not acceptable, create a new, larger virtual disk and repeat the process. You can also use a different RAID level. Use migration so that you do not lose virtual machines when you re-create the virtual disk. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 44: Creating A Virtual Disk

    Create Snapshot – Creates a new snapshot of a base virtual disk. • Disable Snapshot – Disables the snapshot of a base virtual disk. • Recreate Snapshot – Recreates a disabled snapshot. • Delete – Deletes a snapshot of a virtual disk. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 45 NOTE: Re-creating a snapshot disables the original snapshot before the new snapshot is created. Deleting a Snapshot Select the snapshot virtual disk in the Virtual Disks tree and click Delete. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 46: Creating A Virtual Disk Copy

    This allows for continued read-write operations to the source virtual disk from the host during the establish period. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 47 Figure 36. Create Virtual Disk Copy Dialog Click Next to select the target virtual disk for the virtual disk copy and select the copy priority to use. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 48: Remote Replication

    MD vCenter Plug-in. From this tab, existing remote replication pairs are displayed which allows for creation of new replication pairs, suspending an existing replication pair, resuming a replication pair, removing a replication pair, testing replication communications, or changing replication parameters. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 49 From the drop-down list, select the secondary virtual disk to be the target of the source remote replication. Choose the write mode for the remote replication and click Next. Review the summary information on the Confirmation page and click Finish to establish the replication. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 50 Testing remote replication displays the round trip times between the virtual disks in the replicated pair. The times are displayed as average round trip times, shortest round trip times, and longest round trip times. To test remote replication, click Test Replication Communication. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 51: Mapping A Virtual Disk

    NOTE: When your MD storage array uses multiple groups of HBAs per host, the new virtual disks should be balanced across all hosts/host groups. Do not add all the virtual disks to a single host/host group −− no I/O balancing is possible if this occurs. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 52 Manage Paths, a window opens that shows the number of paths for the target device. There should be four paths to each device −− two Active and two Standby. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 53: Datastores View

    This view also displays the details of the datastore, such as the extent, LUN number and health status. The Datastores View is context-sensitive, so selecting a VM in the tree only displays storage elements for the selected VM. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 54: Storage Array Event Log

    By default, the Event Log retrieves the most recent 100 events. However, from the Retrieve the most recent events drop-down list, you can specify a specific number of events to retrieve. After making any changes to the Event Log Viewer, click Update. Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 55: Manually Unregistering The Md Vcenter Plug-In

    Click ExtensionManager to display a list of registered extensions Click UnregisterExtension and enter the extension name to be unregistered from the list of available extensions (for example, Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in). Click Invoke Method to unregister the extension.
  • Page 56 Uninstall the MD vCenter Plug-in using the uninstaller located on the application server at: C:\Program Files\Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Management Plug-in\Uninstall Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-In\Uninstall Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Management Plug- in.exe The Plug-in can also be uninstalled using Add/Remove Programs (or Programs and Features on Windows 2008 and later).
  • Page 57: Troubleshooting Md Vcenter Plug-In Issues

    Application Server Logs All procedures that are performed from the MD vCenter Plug-in are logged to the following file on the application server: C:\Program Files\Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Management Plug-in\jetty\logs\ vCenter2-logx.y.csv The file is archived every 24 hours and stored for 10 days, after which the file is overwritten. You can open the file and view it in Notepad, CVSed, or a similar viewer.
  • Page 58: I Cannot Communicate With The Application Server

    Configuring Storage Administrator Roles. How Can I Maximize Client Performance The Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in is a client-side, intensive application. A fast CPU client, with sufficient memory to avoid page swapping, provides the best environment for running the vSphere Client.
  • Page 59 When viewing details of MEL events within the MEL view, the right-side scrollbar goes beyond the limit of the displayed panel. Closing and reopening the window will reset the scrollbar for the current entry. Figure 47. Scrollbar Beyond Limit Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 60 The name of the ESX host may wrap incorrectly or not completely display unless the ESX Host to Storage wizard is resized. Resize the wizard display window to view entire host name. Figure 48. Wrapped ESX host Name Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 61 Dell MD Storage Array vCenter Plug-in...
  • Page 62: Getting Help

    Contacting Dell Dell provides several online and telephone-based support and service options. Availability varies by country and product, and some services may not be available in your area. To contact Dell for sales, technical support, or customer service issues: Visit support.dell.com.

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