Meridian Data SecurStor Astra ES User Manual
A subsidiary of Alanco Technologies, Inc.
SecurStor Astra ES
Administration Guide
Revision: 1.0
Contact Information
Excel Meridian Data, Inc.
3220 Commander Drive Ste 101
Carrollton, TX 75006-2564
Toll Free: (800) 995-1014
Phone: (972) 980-7098
Fax: (972) 980-0375
sales@emdstorage.com
support@emdstorage.com
http://www.emdstorage.com
Copyright ©2007
This guide and any accompanying software and firmware are copyrighted. No parts of this
publication may be reproduced, stored on a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or
by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without prior
written consent except for copies retained by the purchaser for backup purposes. All rights
Reserved.
Notice
We make no warranties with respect to this documentation either express or implied and
provide it "as is". This includes but is not limited to any implied warranties of
merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. The information in this document is
subject to change without notice. We assume no responsibility for any errors that may
appear in this document. The manufacturer shall not be liable for any damage, or for the
loss of information resulting from the performance or use of the information contained
herein.
Trademarks
Product names used herein are for identification purposes only and may be the trademarks
of their respective companies. All trademarks or registered trademarks are properties of
their respective owners.
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SECURSTOR ASTRA ES 3
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction to Astra ES ....................................................................... 7
About This Manual ................................................................................................... 7
Astra ES Overview ................................................................................................... 8
Architectural Description .......................................................................................... 9
Specifications ........................................................................................................ 10
Chapter 2: Astra ES Installation ........................................................................... 13
Unpacking the Astra ES .......................................................................................... 13
Mounting Astra ES in a Rack ................................................................................... 14
Installing Disk Drives ............................................................................................. 15
Making Management and Data Connections .............................................................. 16
Fibre Channel Host ............................................................................................. 16
Serial Attached SCSI Host.................................................................................... 18
Connecting the Power ............................................................................................ 20
Chapter 3: Management with Astra GUI
Logging into Astra GUI ........................................................................................... 21
Selecting a Language ............................................................................................. 22
Perusing the Interface ............................................................................................ 22
Logging out of Astra GUI ........................................................................................ 23
Working with the Storage Network .......................................................................... 24
Working with Subsystems ....................................................................................... 24
Managing Users ..................................................................................................... 30
Managing the Network Connection ........................................................................... 33
Managing Fibre Channel Connections ....................................................................... 34
Managing SAS Connections ..................................................................................... 37
Managing Storage Services ..................................................................................... 39
Managing Software Services ................................................................................... 40
Exporting the User Database ................................................................................... 45
Updating the Firmware ........................................................................................... 47
Restoring Factory Defaults ...................................................................................... 47
Clearing Statistics .................................................................................................. 47
Shutting Down the Subsystem ................................................................................ 48
Restarting the Subsystem ....................................................................................... 48
Managing Controllers ............................................................................................. 48
Managing Enclosures ............................................................................................. 51
Managing Physical Drives ....................................................................................... 54
Managing Disk Arrays ............................................................................................ 57
Managing Logical Drives ......................................................................................... 65
Managing Spare Drives .......................................................................................... 69
Working with the Logical Drive Summary ................................................................. 72
Chapter 4: Maintenance ....................................................................................... 73
Updating the Firmware ........................................................................................... 73
Replacing a Power Supply ....................................................................................... 74
Replacing a Cooling Unit Blower .............................................................................. 75
Replacing a Cache Battery ...................................................................................... 77
Replacing a RAID Controller .................................................................................... 78
Chapter 5: Technology Background ...................................................................... 81
Introduction to RAID .............................................................................................. 81
Choosing a RAID Level ........................................................................................... 92
Choosing Stripe Size .............................................................................................. 95
Choosing Sector Size ............................................................................................. 95
................................................................ 21
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Cache Policy ......................................................................................................... 96
LUN Affinity .......................................................................................................... 96
Capacity Coercion .................................................................................................. 97
Initialization .......................................................................................................... 98
Hot Spare Drive(s) ................................................................................................ 98
Partition and Format the Logical Drive ...................................................................... 98
RAID Level Migration ............................................................................................. 99
Media Patrol ........................................................................................................ 100
Predictive Data Migration (PDM) ............................................................................ 101
Transition ........................................................................................................... 101
Chapter 6: Troubleshooting ................................................................................ 105
Beep Tones ......................................................................................................... 105
LEDs Display ....................................................................................................... 105
Astra Web GUI Reports a Problem ......................................................................... 108
Event Notification Response .................................................................................. 110
Critical & Offline Disk Arrays ................................................................................. 130
Incomplete Array................................................................................................. 132
Physical Drive Problems ....................................................................................... 132
Enclosure Problems ............................................................................................. 134
Appendix A: SNMP MIB Files .............................................................................. 137
Appendix B: Adding a Second Controller ............................................................ 139
SECURSTOR ASTRA ES 5
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6 EXCEL MERIDIAN DATA
Chapter 1: Introduction to Astra ES
Note
A Note provides helpful information such as hints or alternative
ways of doing a task.
Important
An Important calls attention to an essential step or point required
to complete a task. Important items include things often missed.
Caution
A Caution informs you of possible equipment damage or loss of
data and how to avoid them.
Warning
A Warning notifies you of probable equipment damage or loss of
data, or the possibility of physical injury, and how to avoid them.
This chapter covers the following topics:
• About this Manual
• Astra ES Overview
• Architectural Description
• Specifications
Thank you for purchasing the SecurStor Astra ES disk array subsystem from Excel Meridian Data.
About This Manual
This Product Manual describes how to setup, use and maintain the Astra ES disk array subsystem. It also
describes how to use the embedded Web-based Astra ES Management GUI software.
Note these four levels of notices:
SECURSTOR ASTRA ES 7
RAID Controller 1
Power Supply 1 Power Supply 2Cooling Unit 1
with Battery
Cooling Unit 2
with Battery
RAID Controller 2
Controller 1
Power Supply 1 Power Supply 2Cooling Unit 1
with Battery
Cooling Unit 2
with Battery
Controller 2
Astra ES Overview
Astra ES provides data storage solutions for applications where high performance and data protection are
required. The failure of any single drive will not affect data integrity or accessibility of the data in a RAID
protected logical drive.
A defective drive may be replaced without interruption of data availability to the host computer. If so configured, a
hot spare drive will automatically replace a failed drive, securing the fault-tolerant integrity of the logical drive.
The self-contained hardware-based RAID logical drive provides maximum performance in a compact external
chassis.
Figure 1: Astra ES (FC Host) rear view
Figure 2: Astra ES (SAS Host) rear view
8 EXCEL MERIDIAN DATA
Architectural Description
The Astra ES is a Fibre Channel or Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) host, SAS+SATA disk, subsystem suitable for
Direct Attached Storage (DAS), Storage Area Network (SAN), and Expanded Storage.
Only hard disk drives from Excel Meridian Data are approved for use in this solution.
All enclosures include a mid-plane, RAID controller, power and cooling units, and enclosure processor all in one
cable-less chassis design. Multiple fans and power supplies provide redundancy to ensure continued usage
during component failure. The RAID controller is hardware based and controls all logical drive functions
transparently to the host system. Astra ES appears to the computer’s operating system as a standard SCSI drive
or drives.
Features and Benefits
Highlights
• Dual channel active/active, failover/failback RAID controllers
• 12 hot-swappable drive bays in a robust 2U rackmount chassis with redundant, hot-swappable power and
cooling modules
• Supports for Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) and Serial ATA (SATA) 3 Gb/s drives simultaneously in the same
system—choose the drive that is best suited to your application
• Dual Fibre Channel and SAS host ports provide high-availability SAN and cluster-friendly platform
• JBOD expansion support through a 3 Gb/s SAS x4 port—up to four Astra ES JBOD systems
• Simplified remote management with a comprehensive embedded web-based management via Ethernet—
Astra ES Management GUI.
• Five years complete system limited warranty including email and phone support with highly experienced
technical support technicians.
• Resilient data protection features such as Predictive Data Migration™ and PerfectRAID™ provide rock solid
data protection
• LUN Mapping and Masking bring flexibility for multiple application and OS support on the same storage
subsystem
• Open architecture, industry’s most comprehensive support for SAS and SATA hard drives and standardsbased management interfaces
• Support for the industry standard Disk Data Format (DDF from SNIA) ensures interoperability and drive
roaming even among different RAID vendors
• Compatible with leading SAS hard drives, host bus adapters and RAID controllers
Subsystem and Controller Features
Controllers: Dual-controller configuration or single-controller configuration, upgradeable to dual. Dual-controller
subsystems feature Active/Active, Failover/Failback.
Drive Support: Up to twelve 3.5" x 1" hard disk drives: SAS 3Gb/s, SATA II 3Gb/s and 1.5Gb/s. SATA drives
require a MUX Adapter in dual I/O module configuration (dual-controller) subsystems.
Supports any mix of SAS and SATA II 3Gb/s or 1.5Gb/s drives simultaneously in the same system. Staggered
physical drive spin-up.
External I/O Ports (per controller): Dual 4-Gb Fibre Channel host port; One external 3 Gb/s SAS x4 ports for
JBOD expansion (up to four Astra ES JBOD Systems).
Data Cache: Shared 512 MB predictive data cache (expandable to 2 GB); Automatic write cache destaging; 72hour battery backup (for 512 MB cache).
Command Queue Depth: 512 commands per Astra ES system (up to 1024 commands with 512 MB memory).
Operational Features
RAID Levels: RAID 0, 1, 1E, 5, 6, 10, 50, and 60 – Any combination of these RAID levels can exist at the same
time.
SECURSTOR ASTRA ES 9
Configurable RAID stripe size: 64 KB, 128 KB, 256 KB, 512 KB, and 1 MB stripe size per logical drive.
Background task priority tuning: Adjustment of minimum I/O reserved for server use during all background tasks.
Hot spares: Multiple global or dedicated hot-spare drives with revert option.
Maximum LUNs per subsystem: 256 in any combination of RAID levels.
Maximum LUNs per array: 32 logical drives (LUNs). Supports LUN carving by allowing an array to be divided into
multiple logical drives. Supports out-of-order logical drive deletion and re-creation.
Max LUNs per Target ID: Up to 256, depending on host side driver and operating system.
LUN Masking and Mapping: Supports multiple hosts.
Background Activities: Media Patrol, background synchronizing, disk array rebuild, Redundancy Check, SMART
condition pooling, Online Capacity Expansion (OCE), RAID Level Migration (RLM). Includes priority control, rate
control, and watermarking per BGA in disk and NVRAM.
Foreground Activities: Disk array initialization.
Physical Drive Error Recovery: Predictive Data Migration (PDM), replaces un-healthy disk member in array, while
maintaining normal array status during the data transition. Bad Sector Mapping, Media Patrol, SMART, Hard/Soft
Reset to recover HD from bad status, HD Power-control to recover HD from hung status.
Array Error Recovery: Data recovery from bad sector or failed HD for redundant RAID, RAID 5/6 inconsistent
data Prevent (Write Hole Table), Data content Error Prevent (Read/Write Check Table) NVRAM event logging.
SCSI Commands: Supports extensive SCSI command set equivalent to SCSI/FC hard disk drives. Variable
sector size (512 byte to 4 KB) to break OS 2TB limitation. 16 byte CDB support for 64-bit LBA addressing.
Management
Supported Operating Systems: Windows 2000 Server, Windows 2003 Server, Linux (Red Hat, SuSE), Macintosh
OS X, Solaris.
Management Tools: Astra ES Management GUI via out-of-band Ethernet. OS independent, localized in multiple
languages, SSL Security support. Standard Management Protocols: SNMP
RAID Creation: Automatic, Express, and Advanced configuration support for novice to skilled users.
Management Protocols: Embedded web server and management support—no host agent needed. Ethernet, RJ-
11 serial port, SNMP, SSL, Telnet, Email.
Specifications
Current (maximum): 8 A @ 100 VAC or 4 A @ 240 VAC Current rating with two power cords.
Power Consumption: 78.67 W (not including disk drives).
Power Supply: Dual 400W, 100-240 VAC auto-ranging, 50-60 Hz, dual hot swap and redundant.
Operating Temperature: 5° to 40ûC operational (-40° to 60ûC non-operational)
Relative Humidity: Maximum 95 percent.
Vibration: Random, 0.21 grms, 5-500Hz, 30Mins, X, Y, Z axis.
Dimensions (H x W x D): 8.8 x 44.4 x 56.1 cm (3.5 x 17.5 x 22.1 in)
Net Weight (subsystem only): 22 kg (49 lb) without drives, 28 kg (62 lb) with 12 drives, assuming 0.5 kg (1.1 lb)
per drive.
Gross Weight (including carton): 30 kg (66 lb) without drives.
Safety: CE, FCC Class A, cUL.
10 EXCEL MERIDIAN DATA
Warranty and Support
Warranty: Five years complete system limited warranty. Contact Excel Meridian Data for details.
Support: Email and phone support.
FCC Statement
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) this
device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device must accept any interference received, including
interference that may cause undesired operation.
CE Statement
Warning: This is a class A product. In a domestic environment this product may cause radio interference in which
case the user may be required to take adequate measures.
SECURSTOR ASTRA ES 11
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12 EXCEL MERIDIAN DATA
Chapter 2: Astra ES Installation
• Astra ES Unit
• Quick Start Guide
• This Administration Guide
• Rail kit
• RJ11-to-DB9 serial data cable
• 10ft CAT6 RJ45 network cable(s)
• 5ft Power cords (4) (2 US and 2
European)
• CD with AstraPath, Product Manual
and Quick Start Guide
Warning
The electronic components within the Astra ES disk array are
sensitive to damage from Electro-Static Discharge (ESD).
Observe appropriate precautions at all times when handling the
Astra ES or its subassemblies.
Important
Use the following categories of network cables with Astra ES:
• Cat 6, preferred (included)
• Cat 5E, minimum
This chapter covers the following topics:
• Unpacking the Astra ES (below)
• Mounting in a rack
• Installing disk drives
• Making management connections
• Connecting power
Unpacking the Astra ES
The Astra ES box contains the following items:
SECURSTOR ASTRA ES 13
Mounting Astra ES in a Rack
Cautions
• At least two persons are required to safely lift, place, and
attach the Astra ES enclosure into a rack system.
• Do not lift or move the Astra ES enclosure by the handles,
power supplies or the controller units. Hold the enclosure
itself.
• Do not install the Astra ES enclosure into a rack without rails
to support the enclosure.
The subsystem installs in the rack using the supplied mounting rails.
To install the Astra ES enclosure into a rack with the supplied mounting rails:
1. Check the fit of the mounting rails in your rack system.
2. Please note that the plates are already attached to each side of the chassis.
3. Confirm the screws are properly tightened for each of the 2 plates on the chassis.
4. Slide one of the rails over the plate on one side of the enclosure.
The rail is designed to slide freely over the plate.
5. Attach a four-hole flange to the rail, with the flange toward the front (disk drive end) of the enclosure.
Install four rail adjustment screws (included) through the flange into the rail.
6. Attach a two-hole flange to the rail, with the flange toward the back (connector end) of the enclosure.
Install four rail adjustment screws (included) through the flange into the rail.
7. Repeat steps 4 through 6 to attach the other rail and flanges to the enclosure.
8. Place the enclosure with mounting rails into your rack system.
9. Attach the four-hole flanges to the inside of the rack’s front post, using the attaching screws from your rack
system.
10. Attach the two-hole flanges to the inside of the rack’s rear post, using the attaching screws from your rack
system.
11. Square the rails in the rack.
12. Tighten the adjustment screws and the attaching screws.
14 EXCEL MERIDIAN DATA
Inside of post
Rack f ront post
Rail attaching screw
(not included)
Rail adjustment screw
Rail
Rail attaching screw
(not included)
Inside of post
Rack back post
Plate
Front flange
Rail adjustment screw
Rear flange
Figure 3: Rackmount assembly
Installing Disk Drives
Your solution is sold with SAS or SATA (or a combination of both) hard disk drives. Excel Meridian Data will not
support any solution populated with disk drives not purchased through Excel Meridian Data.
The hard disk drives are shipped in specially designed packaging and are not pre-installed into the enclosure.
You will need to unpack them from their cartons and install them after you have racked the enclosure and
secured it. Do not install the drives prior to securing the enclosure in the rack.
Drive Slot Numbering
You can install any disk drive into any slot in the enclosure. The diagram below shows how Astra ES drive slots
are numbered. Slot numbering is also reflected in the web user interface.
Install all of the drive carriers into the Astra ES enclosure to ensure proper airflow, even if you not all
carriers are populated with disk drives.
MUX Adapter
If your Astra ES has dual controllers—Fibre Channel or SAS—and you plan to install SATA drives, you must
install a MUX adapter with each SATA drive. MUX adapters are available from Excel Meridian Data.
SECURSTOR ASTRA ES 15
Making Management and Data Connections
Fibre Channel data port 1
SAS expansion
port (to JBOD)
Management port
Fibre Channel data port 2
For Serial Attached SCSI setup skip to the next section.
Fibre Channel Host
Astra ES models can have one or two RAID controllers. Each controller has an Ethernet (RJ45) Management
Port connector that enables you to monitor the Astra ES over your network using the Astra ES Management GUI
Software. Astra ES supports HTTP(S) and Telnet protocols.
The Astra ES RAID controller has two 4-Gb Fibre Channel (FC) connections for the data ports.
You can configure your Astra ES for:
• Storage Area Network (SAN)
• Direct Attached Storage (DAS)
• JBOD Expansion using a SAS data connection
Configuring a Storage Area Network
A storage area network (SAN) requires:
• A Fibre Channel switch
• A Fibre Channel HBA card in each Host PC or Server
• A network switch
• A network interface card (NIC) in each Host PC or Server
To establish the data path:
On the Astra ES controller, connect one of the Fibre Channel data ports to your Fibre Channel switch.
To establish the management path:
1. On the Astra ES controller, connect the Management Port to your network switch.
2. Connect each Host PC’s or Server’s standard NIC to your network switch.
Configuring Direct Attached Storage
Direct attached storage (DAS) requires:
• Two Fibre Channel HBA cards in the Host PC or Server
• A network switch
• A network interface card (NIC) in the Host PC or Server
Figure 4: Fibre Channel controller data and management connectors
To establish the data path:
16 EXCEL MERIDIAN DATA
On the Astra ES controller, connect one of the Fibre Channel data ports to your Fibre Channel switch.
To establish the management path:
1. On the Astra ES controller, connect the Management Port to your network switch.
2. Connect the Host PC’s or Server’s standard NIC to your network switch.
Configuring JBOD expansion:
To expand the number of disk drives:
1. On the RAID controller, connect the SAS connector (a subtractive-routed port) to CN1 (a table-routed port)
on the I/O module of the first JBOD unit.
2. Connect CN3 (a subtractive-routed port) on the first JBOD unit to CN1 on one of the I/O modules of the next
JBOD unit.
3. Connect the remaining JBOD units in the same manner.
You can expand a SAN system with no single point of failure. Such an arrangement requires:
• Two Fibre Channel switches
• Two Fibre Channel HBA cards in each Host PC or Server
• A network switch (not shown)
• A network interface card (NIC) in each Host PC or Server
This completes management and data connections for Astra ES Fibre Channel Host.
SECURSTOR ASTRA ES 17
SAS data port (optional)
SAS data/cascade port (optional)
SAS data/cascade port
SAS data port
SAS expansion
port (to JBOD)
Management port
Serial Attached SCSI Host
Astra ES models can have one or two RAID controllers. Each controller has an Ethernet (RJ45) Management
Port connector that enables you to monitor the Astra ES over your network using the Astra ES Management GUI
Software. Astra ES supports HTTP(S) and Telnet protocols.
The standard Astra ES SAS Host controller has three SAS ports:
• Data port – Connects to the Host PC or Server
• Data/Cascade port – Connects to the data port of a second Astra ES SAS controller or to the Host PC or
Server
• SAS Expansion port – Connects to a Astra ES JBOD expansion subsystem
You can configure your Astra ES for:
• Direct Attached Storage (DAS)
• Cascaded Storage (Multiple Astra ES subsystems)
• JBOD Expansion using a SAS data connection
Configuring Direct Attached Storage
Direct attached storage (DAS) requires:
• Two SAS HBA cards in the Host PC or Server
• A network switch
• A network interface card (NIC) in the Host PC or Server
To establish the data path:
On the Astra ES controller, connect a SAS data port or a SAS data/cascade port to one of your SAS HBA cards.
To establish the management path:
1. On the Astra ES controller, connect the Management Port on each Controller to your network switch.
2. Connect the Host PC’s or Server’s standard NIC to your network switch.
18 EXCEL MERIDIAN DATA
Figure 5: SAS controller data and management
Configuring Cascaded Storage
Cascaded storage requires:
• One SAS HBA card in the Host PC or Server
• A network switch
• A network interface card (NIC) in the Host PC or Server
To establish the data path:
1. On the Astra ES controller, connect a SAS data port or a SAS data/cascade port to your SAS HBA card.
2. Connect the data/cascade port (a subtractive-routed port) of the first Astra ES RAID header to the data port
(a table-routed port) on the second Astra ES RAID header.
3. Connect the remaining Astra ES RAID headers in the same manner.
You can cascade up to eight Astra ES subsystems.
To establish the management path:
1. On the Astra ES controller, connect the Management Port on each Controller to your network switch.
2. Connect the Host PC’s or Server’s standard NIC to your network switch.
Configuring JBOD expansion:
To expand the number of disk drives:
1. On the Astra ES RAID controller, connect the SAS expansion port (a subtractive-routed port) to the CN1 (a
table-routed port) on one of the I/O modules of the first JBOD unit.
2. Connect CN3 (a subtractive-routed port) on the first JBOD unit to CN1 on one of the I/O modules of the next
JBOD unit.
3. Connect the remaining JBOD units in the same manner.
You can expand a SAN system with no single point of failure. Such an arrangement requires:
• Two SAS HBA cards in each Host PC or Server
• A network switch (not shown)
• A network interface card (NIC) in each Host PC or Server
• One to four Astra ES JBOD subsystems
This completes Network and Data connections for Astra ES SAS Host.
SECURSTOR ASTRA ES 19
Power
Controller-2 Activ ity
FRU Status
Logical Driv e Status
Controller-1 Activ ity
Controller Heartbeat
Connecting the Power
Plug the power cords and switch on both power supplies on. When the power is switched on, the LEDs on the
front of the Astra ES will light up.
Figure 6: Astra ES front panel LED display
When boot-up is finished and the Astra ES is functioning normally:
• Controller LED blinks green once per second for five seconds, goes dark for ten seconds, then blinks green
once per second for five seconds again.
• Power, FRU and Logical Drive LEDs display green continuously.
• Controller LEDs flash green if there is activity on that controller.
There are two LEDs on each disk drive carrier. They report the presence of power and a disk drive, and the
current condition of the drive.
After a few moments the Power/Activity LED should display Green. If there is no disk drive in the carrier, the
Power/Activity LED will remain dark.
The Power/Activity LED flashes during drive activity.
The Disk Status LED displays Green when a drive is present and configured.
20 EXCEL MERIDIAN DATA
Chapter 3: Management with Astra GUI
• Logging into Astra GUI
• Selecting a language
• Perusing the interface
• Logging out of Astra GUI
• Working with the Storage Network
• Working with Subsystems
• Managing the User Database
• Managing the Ethernet Network
interfaces
• Managing the Fibre Channel
interfaces
• Managing the SAS interfaces
• Managing the Storage Services
• Managing the Software Services
• Exporting the User Database
• Importing a User Database
• Updating the Firmware
• Restoring the Factory Defaults
• Clearing statistics
• Shutting down and Restarting the
subsystem
• Managing controllers
• Managing enclosures
• Managing physical drives
• Managing disk arrays
• Managing logical drives
• Managing spare disk drives
• Working with the logical drive
summary
Note
This chapter covers the following topics:
Logging into Astra GUI
In order to log into Astra GUI, you must first know the IP address of the SecurStor Astra ES on your network. By
default, the unit will obtain an IP address from your DHCP server. Use your normal DHCP scope browse tools to
locate the Astra ES IP. The full MAC address for each Ethernet Network Interface is labeled next to the RJ-45
Ethernet Port on the rear of the unit.
To log into Astra GUI:
1. Launch your Browser.
2. In the Browser address field, type in the IP address of the Astra ES Management port.
Note that the IIP address shown below is only an example. The IP address you type into your browser will
be different.
Regular Connection
• Astra ES uses an HTTP connection ........................................ .http://
• Enter the Astra ES Management Port IP address....... 192.168.10.85
Together, your entry looks like this:
http://192.168.10.85
Secure Connection
• Astra ES uses a secure HTTP connection ............................. .https://
• Enter the Astra ES Management Port IP address....... 192.168.10.85
Together, your entry looks like this:
https://192.168.10.85
SECURSTOR ASTRA ES 21
Whether you select a regular or a secure connection, your login
to Astra GUI and your user password are always secure.
3. When the log-in screen (Figure 1) appears:
• Type administrator in the User Name field.
• Type admin in the Password field.
• Click the Login button.
The User Name and Password are case sensitive.
4. Click the Login button.
Selecting a Language
Astra GUI displays in English, German, French, Italian, Japanese, Chinese Traditional, Chinese Simple, and
Korean.
1. Click Language the Astra GUI Header.
The language list appears in the Header.
2. Click the language you prefer.
The Astra GUI user interface displays in the selected language.
Figure 7: Selecting the language from the header bar
Perusing the Interface
Astra GUI is browser-based RAID management software with a graphic user interface.
There are four major parts to the graphic user interface:
• Header Bar
• Left Navigation Tree
• Management View
• Event Frame
Using the Header
The Header contains the following items:
• Language – To change languages.
• View – To view the Event Frame in-line at the bottom of each page.
• Storage Network – To view all of the Astra subsystem enclosures currently accessible the network.
• Contact Us – Click on Contact Us for a list of contact information, including Technical Support.
• Logout – To logout of Astra GUI.
• Help – Click on Help in the Header to access the main online help menu.
• About – Click on About in the Header to display the Astra ES software version and build date.
22 EXCEL MERIDIAN DATA
Using Tree View
Tree View enables you to navigate around all components of the Subsystem, including Fibre Channel or SAS
management, network and service management, RAID controller, enclosure, physical drives, disk arrays, logical
drives, and spare drives. The figure below shows the components of Tree View.
The Administrative Tools section is different for the Super User than for other users. The remainder of the Tree is
the same for all users.
Management View displays information according to the item you select in Tree View.
Using Management View
Management View provides the actual user interface with the Astra ES, including creation, maintenance,
deletion, and monitoring of disk arrays and logical drives.
Function Tabs control specific actions and processes. This window changes depending on which item you select
in Tree View and which tab you select in Management View itself.
Click the Help button in Management View to access online help for the function that is currently displayed.
Viewing the Event Frame
To view the Event Frame:
1. Click on View in the Header.
2. Click the Show Event Frame popup option.
The Astra ES user interface will display the Event Frame below Management View.
3. Click View again to hide the Event Frame.
In the event frame, events are listed and sorted by:
• Item Number – A consecutive decimal number assigned to a specific event
• Device – Battery, controller, logical drive, physical drive, port, etc.
• Event ID – The hexadecimal number that identifies the specific type of event
• Severity – Information, Warning, Minor, Major, Critical, and Fatal. The severity level is user-specified.
• Time – Time and date of the occurrence
• Description – A brief description of the event
Sorting Events
You can sort the events by Item Number, Device, Event ID, Severity, Time and Date, or Description.
Click on the link at the top of the column by which you want to sort the events. After you click on the item, a
triangle icon appears.
• If the triangle points upward, the column is sorted low-to-high or old-to-new.
• If the triangle points downward, the column is sorted high-to-low or new-to-old.
Click the link a second time to change to flip the triangle and reverse the sort sequence.
Logging out of Astra GUI
There are two ways to log out of Astra Management GUI:
• Close your browser window
• Click Logout the Astra GUI banner
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Figure 8: Clicking logout in the header bar
Clicking Logout brings you back to the Login Screen. After logging out, you must enter your user name and
password in order to log in again.
Working with the Storage Network
When you log into Astra Management GUI, you access a specific Astra ES subsystem.
The Storage Network feature enables you to access all of the Astra subsytems with a Management Port
connection to your network.
Each Astra ES subsystem is identified by its Management Port IP address.
Storage Network functions include:
• Viewing other subsystems
• Updating the list of subsystems
• Logging into a subsystem
• Hiding the other subsystems
Viewing Other Subsystems
To view the other Astra subsystems the Storage Network:
1. Click on Storage Network in the Header.
2. Click the Show Network Subsystems popup option.
The list will show all subsystems the network at the time the GUI was launched.
Updating the List of Subsystems
To update the list of the Astra subsytems the Storage Network:
Click the Discover button at the bottom of the subsystem list.
Logging into a Subsystem
To log into any of the displayed Astra subsystems:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon of the subsystem you want to see.
If your user name and password do not match the subsystem you are logging into, the log in screen will
appear.
2. Log into the new subsystem, as needed.
Hiding the Other Subsystems
To hide the other Astra subsystems the Storage Network:
1. Click on Storage Network in the Header.
2. Click the Hide Network Subsystems popup option.
Working with Subsystems
An Astra subsystem is identified by its Management Port IP address. Subsystem functions include:
• Viewing Subsystem Information
• Setting an Alias
• Setting Redundancy options
• Setting the Date and Time
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• Viewing and Clearing event logs
• Viewing current Background activities
• Running Media Patrol
• Running PDM
• Viewing, Deleting and Scheduling activities
• Viewing, Setting, Renewing and Releasing the Lock status
Viewing Subsystem Information
To view information about a subsystem, click the Subsystem icon in Tree View. Management View displays
the subsystem information.
Setting an Alias for the Subsystem
An alias is optional. To set an alias for this subsystem:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Settings tab.
2. Enter a name into the Alias field.
2. Maximum of 48 characters. Use letters, numbers, space between words, and underscore.
4. Click the Submit button.
Setting Redundancy for the Subsystem
To set redundancy for this subsystem:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Settings tab.
3. In the Redundancy Type dropdown menu, select:
• Active-Active – Both RAID controllers are active and can share the load
• Active-Standby – One RAID controller is in standby mode and goes active if the other fails
4. Click the Submit button.
If you change Redundancy Type, be sure both controllers are properly installed in the subsystem before you
restart.
If your subsystem has dual controllers and they are set to Active-Active, you can use the LUN Affinity feature.
Setting Subsystem Date and Time
To set a Date and Time for this subsystem:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Settings tab dropdown menu and select Date and Time Settings.
3. Under Subsystem Date, select the Month and Day from the dropdown menus.
4. Type the current year into the Year field.
5. Under Subsystem Time, select the Hour, Minutes and Seconds from the dropdown menus.
6. Click the Submit button.
Viewing the Runtime Event Log
Runtime Events lists information about the 1023 most recent runtime events recorded since the system was
started. To view runtime events:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Events tab dropdown menu and select Runtime Events.
Events are displayed by:
• Item Number – A consecutive decimal number assigned to a specific event
• Device – Battery, controller, logical drive, physical drive, port, etc.
• Event ID – The hexadecimal number that identifies the specific type of event
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• Severity – Information, Warning, Minor, Major, Critical, and Fatal. The severity level is user-specified.
• Time – Time and date of the occurrence
• Description – A brief description of the event
3. Click on the link at the top of the column by which you want to sort the events. After you click on the item, a
triangle icon appears.
• If the triangle points upward, the column is sorted low-to-high or old-to-new.
• If the triangle points downward, the column is sorted high-to-low or new-to-old.
Click the link a second time to change to flip the triangle and reverse the sort sequence.
Saving the Runtime Event Log
To save the runtime event log as a text file:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Events tab dropdown menu and select Runtime Events.
3. Click the Save Event Log button.
4. In the File Download dialog box, click the Save button.
5. In the Save dialog box, name the file, navigate to the folder where you want to save the log file, and click the
Save button.
Clearing the Runtime Event Log
To clear the runtime event log:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Events tab dropdown menu and select Runtime Events.
3. Click the Clear Event Log button.
4. In the Confirmation dialog box, type confirm and click the OK button.
Viewing NVRAM Events
NVRAM Events lists information about the 63 most recent important events. NVRAM events are stored in nonvolatile memory. To view runtime events:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Events tab dropdown menu and select System Events in NVRAM.
Events are displayed by:
• Item Number – A consecutive decimal number assigned to a specific event
• Device – Battery, controller, logical drive, physical drive, port, etc.
• Event ID – The hexadecimal number that identifies the specific type of event
• Severity – Information, Warning, Minor, Major, Critical, and Fatal. The severity level is user-specified.
• Time – Time and date of the occurrence
• Description – A brief description of the event
3. Click on the link at the top of the column by which you want to sort the events. After you click on the item, a
triangle icon appears.
• If the triangle points upward, the column is sorted low-to-high or old-to-new.
• If the triangle points downward, the column is sorted high-to-low or new-to-old.
Click the link a second time to change to flip the triangle and reverse the sort sequence.
Saving NVRAM Events
To save the NVRAM event log as a text file:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Events tab dropdown menu and select System Events in NVRAM.
3. Click the Save Event Log button.
4. In the File Download dialog box, click the Save button.
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5. In the Save dialog box, name the file, navigate to the folder where you want to save the log file, and click the
Save button.
Clearing NVRAM Events
To clear the NVRAM event log:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Events tab dropdown menu and select System Events in NVRAM.
3. Click the Clear Event Log button.
4. In the Confirmation dialog box, type confirm and click the OK button.
Viewing Current Background Activities
To view the current background activities:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Background Activities tab.
A list of current background activities appears, including:
• Rebuild
• PDM – Predictive Data Migration
• Synchronization
• Redundancy Check
• Migration
• Transition
• Initialization
• Media Patrol
Making Background Activity Settings
To make settings for background activities:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Background Activities tab and select Settings from the dropdown menu.
3. Click the dropdown menu to choose a priority of Low, Medium, and High for the following functions:
• Rebuild – Rebuilds the data from a failed drive in a disk array
• Synchronization – Checks the data integrity on disk arrays
• Initialization – Sets all data bits in the logical drive to zero
• Redundancy Check – Checks, reports and can correct data inconsistencies in logical drives
• Migration – Change RAID level or add physical dries to disk arrays
• PDM – Looks for bad blocks the physical drives of disk arrays
• Transition – Returns a revertible spare drive to spare status
The rates are defined as follows:
• Low – Fewer resources to activity, more to data read/write.
• Medium – Balance of resources to activity and data read/write.
• High – More resources to activity, fewer to data read/write.
4. Highlight the following PDM trigger settings and type a value into the corresponding field:
• Reassigned Block Threshold – 1 to 512 blocks
• Error Block Threshold – 1 to 1024 blocks
5. Check to enable or uncheck to disable the following functions:
• Media Patrol – Checks the magnetic media on physical drives
• Auto Rebuild – If there is a spare drive of adequate capacity, a critical disk array will begin to rebuild
automatically. If not spare drive is available, the disk array will begin to rebuild as soon as you replace
the failed physical drive with an unconfigured physical drive of equal or greater size.
6. Click the Submit button to save your settings.
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Running Background Activities
To run a background activity from the Background Activities tab:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Background Activities tab and select one of the following from the dropdown
menu.
• Media Patrol
• Rebuild
• PDM
• Transition
• Initialization
• Redundancy Check
3. In the next screen, make the choices as requested.
4. Click the Start button.
Running Media Patrol
Media Patrol checks the magnetic media on physical drives. When it finds the specified number of bad blocks, it
will trigger PDM.
You can also schedule Media Patrol to run automatically.
To run Media Patrol:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. From the dropdown menu on the Background Activities tab, select Start Media Patrol.
3. In the next screen, click the Start button.
Running PDM
Predictive Data Migration (PDM) migrates data from the suspect physical drive to a spare disk drive, similar to
Rebuilding. But unlike Rebuilding, PDM acts before the disk drive fails and your Logical Drive goes Critical.
To run PDM:
1. In Tree View, click the Subsystem icon.
2. In Management View, click the Background Activities tab and select Start Media Patrol from the dropdown
menu.
3. In the next screen, select the Source and Target physical drives.
The suspect physical drive is the source. The replacement physical drive is the target.
4. Click the Start button.
Viewing Scheduled Activities
To view scheduled activities for this subsystem:
1. Click the Subsystem icon Tree View.
2. Click the Scheduler tab in Management View.
Scheduling an Activity
To set a scheduled activity for this subsystem:
1. Click the Subsystem icon Tree View.
2. From the dropdown menu on the Scheduler tab, choose an item:
• Media Patrol
• Redundancy Check
• Battery Reconditioning
• Spare Drive Check
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3. In the Scheduler dialog box, check the Enable This Schedule box.
Note
You can schedule only ONE Redundancy Check for each logical
drive.
4. Select a start time (24-hour clock).
5. Select a Recurrence Pattern.
• Daily – Enter the number of days between events.
• Weekly – Enter the number of weeks between events and select which days of the week.
• Monthly – Select a calendar day of the month (1 – 31).
If you select a higher number than there are days in the current month, the actual start date will occur at the
beginning of the following month.
Or, select a day of the week and select the first, second, third, fourth, or last occurrence of that day in the
month.
Then, select the months in which you want the activity to occur.
6. Select a Range of Occurrence.
• Start-from date. The default is today's date.
• End-on date.
Select No End Date (perpetual).
Or, select a number of occurrences for this activity.
Or, select a specific end date. The default is today's date.
7. For Redundancy Check only:
• Choose the Auto Fix option. This feature attempts to repair the problem when it finds an error.
• Choose the Pause on Error option. This feature stops the process when it finds an error
• Check the boxes beside the logical drives (all except RAID 0) to which this activity will apply.
Each logical drive can have only one scheduled Redundancy Check.
8. Click the Submit button.
Deleting a Scheduled Activity
To delete a scheduled activity for this subsystem:
1. Click the Subsystem icon Tree View.
2. From the dropdown menu on the Scheduler tab, choose Delete Schedules.
3. Check the box to the left of the schedule you want to delete.
4. Click the Submit button.
Viewing Lock Status
The lock prevents other sessions (including by the same user) from making a configuration change to the
controller until the lock expires or a forced unlock is done.
To view the lock status for this subsystem:
1. Click the Subsystem icon Tree View.
2. Click the Lock tab in Management View.
The following information is displayed:
• Lock Status – The User who set (owns) the current lock.
• Expiration Time – Amount of time left until the lock automatically releases.
• Expire At Time – The date and time when the lock will automatically release.
Setting the Lock
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The lock prevents other sessions (including by the same user) from making a configuration change to the
controller until the lock expires or a forced unlock is done.
You can set the lock to last from one minute to one day. To set the lock for this subsystem:
1. Click the Subsystem icon Tree View.
2. Click the Lock tab in Management View.
3. Click the Lock option.
4. Enter a time interval between 1 and 1440 minutes (one day) that you want the lock to stay active.
5. Click the Submit button.
Renewing the Lock
The lock prevents other sessions (including by the same user) from making a configuration change to the
controller until the lock expires or a forced unlock is done.
Renewing the lock extends the period of time the controller remains locked. To renew an existing lock for this
subsystem:
1. Click the Subsystem icon Tree View.
2. Click the Lock tab in Management View.
3. Click the Renew option.
4. Enter a time interval between 1 and 1440 minutes (one day) that you want the lock to stay active.
The renew time replaces the previous Expiration Time.
5. Click the Submit button.
Releasing the Lock
The lock prevents other sessions (including by the same user) from making a configuration change to the
controller until the lock expires or a forced unlock is done.
When the user who locked the controller logs out, the lock is automatically released. You can also release the
lock before the scheduled time.
To release the lock for this subsystem:
1. Click the Subsystem icon Tree View.
2. Click the Lock tab in Management View.
If you are the User who set the lock, click the Unlock option.
If another User set the lock and you are a Super User, click the Unlock option and check the Force Unlock
box.
3. Click the Submit button.
Managing Users
User Management includes all functions dealing with user accounts. Functions include:
• Viewing User Information
• Managing User Settings
• Changing User Passwords
• Creating and Deleting Users
• Viewing and Managing other User Sessions
Viewing User Information
The view a list of users, their status, access privileges, display name, and email address:
1. Click the Subsystem icon in Tree View.
2. Click the Administrative Tools icon.
3. Click the User Management icon.
The Information tab appears in Management View.
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