Page 1 Dell™ PowerVault™ NX1950 Systems End-to-End Deployment Guide for iSCSI Model EMU01 w w w . d e l l . c o m | s u p p o r t . d e l l . c o m...
Page 2 Other trademarks and trade names may be used in this document to refer to either the entities claiming the marks and names or their products. Dell Inc. disclaims any proprietary interest in trademarks and trade names other than its own.
Page 3: Table Of Contents
......Active/Passive Vs. Active/Active iSCSI ..Before Setting Up the PowerVault NX1950 Storage Solution as an iSCSI Software Target ..
Page 4 Configuring Settings From the Initiator Server/Client ....Setting Up the Target (PowerVault NX1950 Storage Solution and PowerVault NX1950 Cluster Solution) ....
Page 5 Configuring Secured iSCSI Connections Using Challenge-Handshake Authentication Protocol ... . . CHAP vs IPSec ..... . One-Way CHAP Authentication .
Page 6 Best Practices for Efficient Storage Management . . . Storage Manager for SANs ... . . LUN Management for iSCSI Subsystems ..Related Links ..... . . Index .
Page 7: Introduction
Dell and its storage partners provide a variety of storage solutions that can be implemented easily. This document allows administrators and IT managers to explore iSCSI technology and see actual deployment examples.
Page 8: Terms And Definitions
Solution Throughout this document, the term PowerVault NX1950 storage system refers to the individual storage unit. The term PowerVault NX1950 storage solution refers to the configuration of the storage unit along with the storage arrays. The term PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution refers to the configuration of more than one storage units and the storage arrays.
Page 9: Active/Passive Vs. Active/Active Iscsi
Active/Passive Vs. Active/Active iSCSI In a PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution that is configured with a 3.0 iSCSI Target, only one node that owns the Cluster Resources can create and own the iSCSI Targets. The iSCSI Target service is operative in only one node at a time (Active/Passive configuration).
Page 10 Table 1-1 and Table 1-2 provide information about the iSCSI Target NIC configuration. The optimal connection information is also provided as options. You can configure the iSCSI NICs according to your network requirements. Table 1-1. Using a Single PowerVault NX1950 Storage Solution as a Target Number of NICs Details...
Page 11 Table 1-2. Using a PowerVault NX1950 Cluster Solution as a Target Number of NICs Initiator Refer to Figure NIC-1 - NIC for public network Figure 1-4 (Option 1) NIC-2 - Private network for cluster heartbeat NIC-3 - iSCSI dedicated traffic (subnet A)
Page 12 Figure 1-1. Redundant iSCSI Paths and NIC Teaming for Data Sharing With Four NICs public network host public network (Initiator) NIC Teaming dedicated iSCSI traffic switch switch PowerVault NX1950 storage system with NIC Teaming for File Sharing Introduction...
Page 13 Figure 1-2. Redundant iSCSI Paths With Three NICs public network host (Initiator) public network iSCSI traffic switch switch PowerVault NX1950 storage solution Introduction...
Page 14 Initiators can communicate to both PowerVault NX1950 storage nodes through the dedicated iSCSI link (indicated by blue links from Initiators to switch and PowerVault NX1950 storage nodes). If one node fails, the surviving node takes ownership of all iSCSI Targets of the failed node and continues the I/O operations.
Page 15 Figure 1-4. Redundant iSCSI Paths Using Four NICs public network host (Initiator) host Teamed NIC for (Initiator) public network iSCSI network heartbeat network switch switch PowerVault NX1950 storage PowerVault NX1950 storage system (cluster node) system (cluster node) Introduction...
Page 16 For more information about the pre-requisites to configure the PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution as an iSCSI Target, see the section Creating a Highly Available iSCSI Target in Dell PowerVault NX1950 Cluster Systems Installation and Troubleshooting Guide on the Dell Support website at support.dell.com.
Page 17: Quick Install Steps For Initiator-Target
This section describes the procedure for iSCSI Target discovery in Initiator using direct Target portals. To perform the Target discovery, enter the IP address of one of the NICs of PowerVault NX1950 storage solution that is configured for iSCSI traffic in the Initiator and thereby enabling the Initiator to discover all Targets of this Target server.
Page 18: Configuring The Initiator (Host)
1 Go to the server that has Microsoft iSCSI Initiator installed. Select Start→ Programs→ Microsoft iSCSI Initiator→ iSCSI Initiator Properties→ Discovery tab→ Select Add. 2 Add the IP address of one of the NICs on the PowerVault NX1950 storage system that is configured for iSCSI traffic. 3 Click OK.
Page 19: Configuring Iscsi Connection With The Powervault Nx1950 Storage Solution
Configuring iSCSI Connection With the PowerVault NX1950 Storage Solution Creating the Target 1 From the PowerVault NX1950 storage solution, select Start→ Programs→ Administrative Tools→ Windows Unified Data Storage Server. The PowerVault NX1950 Management Console appears. 2 Select Microsoft iSCSI Software Target option. The options iSCSI Targets, Devices, and Snapshots are displayed.
Page 20: Creating A Virtual Disk
9 If you choose the Advanced option, you can select the IQN identifier by performing the following steps: When you choose the Advanced.. option, the Advanced Identifiers screen appears and displays the Add option. Select Add. The Add/Edit Identifier appears and provides four options namely— IQN, DNS Domain Name, IP address, and MAC Address to add the IQN identifier.
Page 21: Configuring Iscsi Connection With The Powervault Nx1950 Cluster Solution
(source) IP address and exclusive iSCSI virtual IP address of the cluster as Target portal from Initiator. This ensures proper connection during cluster node failover. 2 Configure the Target on the active node of PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution. Quick Install Steps for Initiator-Target Connection...
Page 22 If the Resource name exceeds the maximum allowable size of 15 characters, it is truncated to 15 characters. 5 Click OK. The highly-available iSCSI instance is created successfully. 6 Repeat the procedure for all nodes of the PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution. Quick Install Steps for Initiator-Target Connection...
Page 23: Configuring The Initiator-Target Connection From Initiator (Host)
Choose the corresponding iSCSI highly-available instance resource from the drop-down menu and select Next. Perform step 10 of "Creating the Target" on page 19. 4 Create and configure Targets on all nodes of PowerVault NX1950 system. NOTE: Redundant iSCSI NICs (MPIO) are supported with your PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution configured with 3.1 iSCSI Target and Microsoft iSCSI...
Page 24: Method 2 (Discovery Using Isns Server)
Go to the Targets tab and select the Target that is Connected. Repeat step 1 to step 4. In the Advanced Settings→ Target Portal address, choose the redundant host IP address and the IP address of the PowerVault NX1950 storage solution. NOTE: During the iSCSI Initiator software installation, Microsoft MPIO is already selected.
Page 25: Pre-Requisites
(PowerVault NX1950 storage solution). Install the software on a separate Client/Server running Windows operating system. 3 Turn on the PowerVault NX1950 storage system and the PowerVault MD3000 storage array or Dell|EMC storage array configured with the storage system. Create one or more volumes on the storage array for creating Virtual Disks for iSCSI Targets.
Page 26 4 To create a target, follow the instructions in "Creating the Target" on page 19 and to create a virtual disk, follow the instructions in "Creating a Virtual Disk" on page 20. During step 7 of "Creating the Target" on page 19, use the Browse option to ensure that the iSCSI Initiator Identifier screen displays all Initiators that are registered with iSNS server.
Page 27: Detailed End-To-End Iscsi Setup
Setting up Target IP Addresses in the PowerVault NX1950 Cluster Solution To set up the Target IP address in a PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution: Using the 3.0 iSCSI Target 1 Assign IP addresses to the iSCSI NICs in different subnets.
Page 28: Configuring Iscsi Devices
EM64T processors), and IA64 (for Intel processors) are available. For all procedures in this document, go to the Dell PowerVault NX1950 Systems Support Matrix and verify the iSCSI Initiator Version that is used on all hosts. Download and extract the supported iSCSI Initiator software version on the client/server that is used as an Initiator device.
Page 29 3 The Microsoft iSCSI Initiator Installation screen appears. The options Initiator Service and Software Initiator are selected by default. The Microsoft MPIO multi-pathing is unchecked. You must check this options as the installation requires the use of Multipath I/O (MPIO) feature. Click Next.
Page 30: Configuring The Microsoft Iscsi Initiator
Add the virtual IP address that was created and added as a cluster resource using the iSCSI NIC (3.0 Target). All Targets that are created in the PowerVault NX1950 cluster solutions are listed in the Targets tab. If you use the iSNS servers option in the Discovery tab, the Targets created in all PowerVault NX1950 storage solutions/cluster solutions that are registered with iSNS server are displayed.
Page 31 Figure 3-1. The PowerVault NX1950 Configuration Tasks Window 2 Launch the PowerVault NX1950 Management Console—When you close the PowerVault NX1950 Configuration Tasks window, the PowerVault NX1950 Management Console is launched. You can use the PowerVault NX1950 Management Console to perform all storage management functions for PowerVault NX1950 storage solution.
Page 32 The scenario walks you through the procedure to provision storage and create volumes. The right-pane of the PowerVault NX1950 Management Console is context-sensitive and changes based on the item you select on the left-pane. When you select Share and Storage Management on the left-pane, the Provision Storage wizard is displayed on the right-pane.
Page 33 Figure 3-3. Provision Storage Wizard The Storage Subsystem screen appears and prompts you to select at least one storage subsystem. Select at least one subsystem and click Next. The LUN Type screen appears. You can choose the LUN type from the available types of LUNs.
Page 34 The iSCSI Targets that are created are configured to be assigned to external application servers later. NOTE: If you are configuring a PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution as the Target, select the All servers in this cluster option in the Server Assignment screen.
Page 35 The PowerVault NX1950 storage solution uses Windows Unified Data Storage Server 2003 with Microsoft Virtual Disk Service (VDS) internally. You can also view the LUN in the PowerVault NX1950 Management Console→ Storage Manager for SANs section. 5 Configuring NICs for iSCSI traffic in the PowerVault NX1950 storage solution in standalone mode—...
Page 36 6 Configuring NICs for iSCSI traffic in the PowerVault NX1950 storage solution in cluster mode— If you are setting up PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution as an iSCSI Target, perform the following prerequisites: – Follow the steps listed in the section Creating a Highly Available...
Page 37 Click OK and add IP address for the second NIC if you have redundant iSCSI NIC. Click OK again. NOTE: Before you create iSCSI Virtual Disks, create few Dell|EMC LUNs or PowerVault MD3000 LUNs and assign them to the Cluster's highly-available Sever (iSCSI HA instance) using PowerVault NX1950 Management console.
Page 38 7 Perform the following steps to create iSCSI Targets: Figure 3-4. Creating iSCSI Targets NOTE: In the PowerVault NX1950 Management Console, right-click Microsoft iSCSI Software Target, and select Properties. In the Networks tab, select the corresponding iSCSI NIC IP address and deselect the remaining IP addresses.
Page 39 Targets. NOTE: It is recommended that you use the IQN as the Identifier. The PowerVault NX1950 Management Console now displays the newly-created iSCSI Target. The PowerVault NX1950 Management Console also displays the devices available for the iSCSI Targets. The storage that are used by the iSCSI Initiators (application hosts) are defined in a later step when the Virtual Disks are created.
Page 40 Virtual Disk creation. Repeat step a through step f to create an additional Virtual Disk. After configuring the Virtual Disks, the PowerVault NX1950 Management Console displays the Virtual Disks associated with the iSCSI Target.
Page 41: Establishing Connections
Configuring Devices You can perform all operations related to Virtual Disks (Devices) using the following options in PowerVault NX1950 Management Console: • Create/Delete Virtual Disk—Virtual Disks are represented with a .vhd extension. You can create or delete Virtual Disks using this option.
Page 42 Local Adapter — Microsoft iSCSI Initiator – Source IP — one of the host I/P addresses – Target Portal — iSCSI IP address of the PowerVault NX1950 storage solution In the Advanced Settings window, click OK. In the Log On to Target window, click OK.
Page 43: Configuring Iscsi Luns
You can also configure Load balancing and failover by using Microsoft MPIO support or Multiple Connections per Session (MC/S). Currently the MPIO option is supported with PowerVault NX1950 storage solution and PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution configured with 3.1 iSCSI Target and Microsoft iSCSI Initiator version 2.06 or later.
Page 44: Multiple Sessions
PowerVault NX1950 storage systems. • You cannot configure multiple Initiators to access the same iSCSI Target of a PowerVault NX1950 storage or cluster solution. NOTICE: Accessing the same Target device using multiple iSCSI Initiators with 3.0 and 3.1 iSCSI Target is not supported, as it requires host clustering which is not supported.
Page 45 To automate the creation of snapshots and the mounting of iSCSI Virtual Disks for regular backups, you can use the Schedule Snapshot Wizard. Snapshots of Virtual Disks that reside on an NTFS file system volume are persistent, which means they remain after a system restart. Snapshots that are created on the iSCSI Target server are crash consistent.
Page 46 Although you do not change the default settings, go to Volume→ Properties→ Shadow Copies→ Settings and click OK. Perform this action especially in a PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution to ensure proper Snapshot recovery in the event of cluster node failure. Active snapshots may be lost on account of a cluster node failure, if you do not have enough space or if you have not configured the Snapshots properly.
Page 47 You can select all or selected Virtual Disks for snapshots. NOTE: In a PowerVault NX1950 storage solution, all Virtual Disks are listed in the Virtual Disks screen. In a PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution, Virtual Disks of the volumes that are available in the selected Resource Group are listed.
Page 48 Go to the Target and verify that this snapshot has been added as a Virtual Disk. NOTE: In a PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution, the snapshot must be exported to the targets belonging to the same resource group. • Delete snapshot—Select the Snapshot that you want to delete, right-click and click Delete.
Page 49: Disconnecting/Cleaning Up Iscsi Devices
• Rollback—Use this option to rollback an iSCSI Virtual Disk to a previous Snapshot. This operation uses the temp directory located at C:\Windows\Temp. Ensure that the temp directory contains sufficient space to store the differential data. The rollback fails if enough space. is not available.
Page 50: From Target
5 If you want to remove Target IQN name entries, go to the Discovery tab and remove the IP address/DNS name of the PowerVault NX1950 storage system in the Target Portals section or remove the IP address/DNS name entry of the iSNS server.
Page 51: Configuring Secured Iscsi Connections
If the hash values match, the Initiator is authenticated. The other security information includes an ID value that is increased with each CHAP dialog to protect against replay attacks. The Dell™ PowerVault™ NX1950 storage solution also supports Mutual CHAP .
Page 52: Chap Vs Ipsec
Targets and Virtual Disks are already created and the Virtual Disks are assigned to the Targets. 1 On an iSCSI Target, go to PowerVault NX1950 Management Console→ Microsoft iSCSI Software Target→ iSCSI Targets → <Target name> and either right-click and select Properties or go to Actions pane→ More Actions→...
Page 53: Iscsi Initiator Settings
iSCSI Initiator Settings 1 Go to the Discovery tab. 2 Log in to the Target on which you have enabled CHAP in "iSCSI Target settings" on page 52 by clicking iSCSI Initiator Properties→ Targets tab→ Log On..3 In the Log On to Target window, select Advanced. 4 In the Advanced Settings window, select the check box for CHAP logon information.
Page 54: Target Settings
Target Settings Configure the Target settings of CHAP as described in "iSCSI Target settings" on page 52 and perform the following steps: 1 In the <Target Name> Properties window, select the Authentication tab. 2 Select the check box for Enable reverse CHAP authentication. In the User name field, enter the IQN of the Initiator.
Page 55: A Appendix
Appendix The previous chapters in this document describe the procedures for basic iSCSI session/connection information. This chapter briefly describes procedures for a few advanced configuration settings. The following topics are discussed: • "Initiator Details" on page 55 • "Advanced Configuration Details" on page 61 •...
Page 56: Discovery Tab
Target solution. Provide the dedicated iSCSI NIC IP address of the solution for PowerVault NX1950 storage solution. If no Target portals are listed, you can add them using the IP address or DNS name of the Target server. In the following example, two iSCSI Target portals are already added.
Page 57 Figure A-2. Discovery Tab in iSCSI Initiator Properties Window NOTE: If you are using the PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution configured with Target 3.0 iSCSI Target software, you must add a virtual iSCSI IP that is part of the Cluster Resource in the Target Portals field. This IP address must be a virtual IP address in the same subnet where iSCSI NICs are configured.
Page 58: Targets Tab
Targets Tab The Targets tab provides the list of individual Targets available to the iSCSI Initiator. In the following example, three Targets are available to the iSCSI Initiator. Figure A-3. Targets Tab in iSCSI Initiator Properties Window NOTE: The above illustration is an example of discovery in the Targets tab. In practice, the targets are discovered only after you configure the PowerVault NX1950 storage/cluster system as a Target.
Page 59 NOTE: MPIO connections are not supported with the PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution configured with 3.0 iSCSI Target. MPIO connections are supported with PowerVault NX1950 cluster solution configured with 3.1 iSCSI Target and Microsoft iSCSI Initiator version 2.06 or later. Appendix...
Page 60 Persistent Targets Tab You can configure Persistent Targets so that the connection to the Target is automatically restored when the system reboots. If the Targets are configured to be persistent, they appear in this Persistent Targets tab. Figure A-5. Persistent Targets Tab in iSCSI Initiator Properties Window Bound Volumes/Devices Tab If a host service or application depends on the availability of an iSCSI volume, you must configure it as bound so that the iSCSI service includes...
Page 61: Advanced Configuration Details
Figure A-6. Bound Volumes/Devices Tab in iSCSI Initiator Properties Window Advanced Configuration Details Enabling Multi-Path on the Initiator After you establish the iSCSI Initiator-Target connection, perform the following steps to enable multi-path operation: 1 On the Initiator, go to iSCSI Initiator Properties→ Targets tab→ Log On...→...
Page 62: Using The Advanced Option
Using the Advanced Option You can use the Advanced option to perform the following functions: • Go to iSCSI Initiator Properties→ Targets tab→ LogOn...→ Log On to Target window→ Advanced option. The Advanced Settings screen appears and consists of two tabs namely—Advanced and IPSec. The General tab allows you to set CRC/Checksum, CHAP and choose source IP address and Target Portal—IP address of iSCSI Target.
Page 63: Load Balance Policy
Devices Tab The Devices tab of Target Properties screen provides generic device details like the Virtual Disks that are associated with Target. Click Advanced to view information about MPIO and Launch the Device Details screen. To modify the MPIO settings, you can use the MPIO tab. Properties Tab The Properties tab of Target Properties screen provides information about Target Alias, Authentication, Associated Network portals and other details of...
Page 64: Installing And Configuring Isns Server
• Round Robin With Subset—The round robin subset policy executes the round robin policy only on paths designated as active. The stand-by paths will be tried on a round-robin approach upon failure of all active paths. Least Queue Depth—The least queue depth policy •...
Page 65: Configuring The Isns Server
Initiators from iSNS server for association. NOTE: In PowerVault NX1950 storage solution, the 3.0 iSCSI Software Target does not query the iSNS server for registered iSCSI Initiators, during Target creation. You have to enter the IQN name of the Initiator manually. After you create the Target, the Target IQN is listed in iSNS Server registered device list and can be accessed by Initiators that were added during Target creation.
Page 66 Targets of PowerVault NX1950 storage solution are listed. If multiple PowerVault NX1950 storage systems are registered with iSNS server, then all Target Devices that are created in the PowerVault NX1950 storage systems are listed in iSNS server. 2 You can use the Discovery Domains feature to group certain Initiators with Targets with specific access: Go to iSNS Server Properties→...
Page 67: Best Practices For Efficient Storage Management
Best Practices for Efficient Storage Management Storage Manager for SANs Storage Manager for SANs is a Microsoft Management Console snap-in that system administrators can use to create and manage the logical unit numbers (LUNs) that are used to allocate space on storage arrays in both Fibre Channel and iSCSI environments.
Page 68: Related Links
Related Links For more information on storage for Microsoft Windows Storage Server 2003 operating systems and iSCSI in particular, see the following websites: Microsoft Storage website at http://www.microsoft.com/storage/ • • Microsoft iSCSI Storage website at http://www.microsoft.com/WindowsServer2003/technologies/storage/iscsi /default.mspx • Microsoft Windows Storage Server website at http://www.microsoft.com/windowsserversystem/wss2003/default.mspx •...
Page 69: Index
Index Numerics 3.0 iSCSI Target, 9 3.1 iSCSI Target, 9 CHAP, 51 mutual, 53 one-way, 52 Initiator Configuring, 18 iSCSI, 7 iSNS, 8 Microsoft iSCSI Initiator, 30 Virtual Disk, 20 Index...
Page 70 Index...

Dell PowerVault NX1950 Deployment Manual

1 Introduction

2 Quick Install Steps for Initiator-Target

3 Detailed End-To-End Iscsi Setup

4 Configuring Secured Iscsi Connections

A Appendix

Index

Quick Links

Related Manuals for Dell PowerVault NX1950

Summary of Contents for Dell PowerVault NX1950

Table of Contents