Dell PowerVault MD3860i User Manual
Dell MD Storage Array VMware vStorage APIs For
Storage Awareness (VASA) Provider
User's Guide
Regulatory Model: E16S Series
Regulatory Type: E16S001
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Contents
1 Overview.......................................................................................................................................5
VASA Storage Capabilities....................................................................................................................................... 6
Profile-Driven And Policy-Based Storage................................................................................................................ 8
Storage Service-Level Agreements...................................................................................................................8
Storage Distributed Resource Scheduler.................................................................................................................8
VASA Session Communications............................................................................................................................... 8
2 Installing The VASA Provider....................................................................................................9
Before You Install..................................................................................................................................................... 9
Supported Operating Systems And Platforms................................................................................................... 9
Supported Host Operating Systems...................................................................................................................9
Required VMware Application Platforms.......................................................................................................... 9
Supported MD Series Storage Arrays............................................................................................................... 9
Required RAID Controller Module Firmware....................................................................................................10
Downloading The VASA Provider...........................................................................................................................10
Installing The VASA Provider................................................................................................................................. 10
Uninstalling The VASA Provider............................................................................................................................. 10
3 Using The VASA Provider........................................................................................................ 11
Bringing Storage Arrays Under VASA Management............................................................................................. 12
Adding Your Storage Arrays To VASA Control.................................................................................................12
To Register The VASA Provider In Your vSphere Client.................................................................................. 13
Verifying VASA Registration.............................................................................................................................15
Working with Storage Profiles................................................................................................................................16
Assigning VM Storage Profiles To Existing Virtual Machines......................................................................... 17
Checking Storage Profile Compliance............................................................................................................. 18
Storage Array Events And Alerts............................................................................................................................19
Troubleshooting Tips.............................................................................................................................................. 19
Troubleshooting Logs.......................................................................................................................................20
Configuration Reset..........................................................................................................................................20
4 Getting Help................................................................................................................................21
Locating Your System Service Tag.........................................................................................................................21
Contacting Dell....................................................................................................................................................... 21
Documentation Feedback.......................................................................................................................................21
4
1
Overview
VMware vStorage APIs for Storage Awareness (VASA) is a set of application program interfaces (APIs) that support Dell
PowerVault MD-Series iSCSI and Fibre Channel storage arrays. VASA enables vSphere vCenter to recognize MD
storage array features and corresponding datastores, which allows storage administrators to more easily set
virtualization and maintenance policies.
Using the VASA provider on an MD storage array also allows a vCenter-based storage administrator to:
• See information about MD-attached expansion storage.
• Discover and characterize an attached datastore’s static capabilities, which helps in selecting the appropriate
disk for virtual machine (VM) placement.
• Receive alert and event notifications from the MD storage arrays managed in vCenter.
The following figure shows the high-level VASA provider architecture and how it integrates with the vCenter
management environment.
5
Figure 1. VASA Provider in a vCenter Storage Management Architecture
VASA Storage Capabilities
Storage provisioning operations available in vSphere allow VASA to monitor whether a storage array's physical
components can meet virtual machine needs according to defined capabilities. Available capabilities and their common
performance ranges are shown in table below.
Table 1. Available VASA Storage Capabilities
Storage Capabilities Common Use/Performance Range
SSD Drives
6
Storage Type Virtual disks comprised of solid-state physical disks
Storage Capabilities Common Use/Performance Range
SSD Drives-Thin
10K/15K Drives
10K/15K Drives-Thin
NLSAS Drives
Performance
Level
Storage Type Thin-provisioned virtual disks comprised of solid-state physical
Performance
Level
Storage Type Virtual disks comprised of high-performance physical disks
Performance
Level
Storage Type Thin-provisioned virtual disks comprised of high-performance
Performance
Level
Storage Type Virtual disks comprised of Near-Line SAS (NL-SAS) physical disks
Performance
Level
Highest available
disks
Highest available
High (used in most standard environments)
physical disks
High (used in most standard environments)
10K RPM or less
Intermediate performance, good for bulk storage needs
NLSAS Drives-Thin
Replicated SSD Drives
Replicated 10K/15K
Drives
Replicated NLSAS
Drives
Steps for assigning these capabilities in vSphere are detailed in
Storage Type Thin-provisioned virtual disks comprised of Near-Line SAS (NL-
SAS) physical disks 10K RPM or less
Performance
Level
Storage Type Virtual disks comprised of solid-state physical disks
Performance
Level
Storage Type Virtual disks comprised of high-performance physical disks
Performance
Level
Storage Type Replicated virtual disks comprised of Near-Line SAS (NL-SAS)
Performance
Level
Intermediate performance, good for bulk storage needs
Highest available for replicated virtual disks
High (used in most standard replicated environments)
physical disks 10K RPM or less
Intermediate performance, good for bulk storage needs
Using the VASA Provider
later in this guide.
7
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