Docu61138 Configuring Storage Pools

8/16/2019 Docu61138 Configuring Storage Pools

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EMC® VNXe® SeriesVersion 3.1

Configuring Storage Pools300-015-479 REV 01


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Copyright © 2015 EMC Corporation. All rights reserved. Published in USA.

Published September, 2015

EMC believes the information in this publication is accurate as of its publication date. The information is subject to change

without notice.

The information in this publication is provided as is. EMC Corporation makes no representations or warranties of any kind withrespect to the information in this publication, and specifically disclaims implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a

particular purpose. Use, copying, and distribution of any EMC software described in this publication requires an applicablesoftware license.

EMC², EMC, and the EMC logo are registered trademarks or trademarks of EMC Corporation in the United States and other countries. All other trademarks used herein are the property of their respective owners.

For the most up-to-date regulatory document for your product line, go to EMC Online Support ( https://support.emc.com ).

EMC CorporationHopkinton, Massachusetts 01748-91031-508-435-1000 In North America 1-866-464-7381www.EMC.com

2 EMC VNXe Series 3.1 Configuring Storage Pools


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Introduction to storage pools 5

About storage pools........................................................................................ 6Storage tiers....................................................................................................6Optimizing disk performance using the FAST Cache and FAST VP (physicaldeployments only)...........................................................................................7Storage pool best practices.............................................................................8RAID groups (physical deployments only)........................................................9

About RAID groups ............................................................................ 9RAID configurations .........................................................................10Disk IOPS by RAID type.....................................................................12

Hot Spares (physical deployments only)........................................................13Hot spare policy .............................................................................. 13View spare disk details (physical deployments only)........................14

Configuring storage pools 15

Standard pool configuration using Quick Start mode (physical deploymentsonly)............................................................................................................. 16Configure storage pools using Quick Start mode (physical deployments only)..................................................................................................................... 17About conf iguring custom storage pools for physical deployments................17Configure a custom storage pool (physical deployments only).......................18Cr eate a storage pool for virtual deployments................................................19Automatic snapshot deletion for storage pools..............................................19Enable automatic snapshot deletion for a storage pool................................. 19

Expand a storage pool...................................................................................20View storage pool contents and space usage................................................ 20Monitor storage pool space allocation and usage..........................................20Delete a storage pool.................................................................................... 21

Using the FAST Cache (physical deployments only) 23

About the FAST Cache ...................................................................................24FAST Cache best practices.............................................................................25Create the FAST Cache ..................................................................................25Enable the FAST Cache for a storage pool ..................................................... 25View-system level FAST Cache information ................................................... 26

View pool-level FAST Cache information ....................................................... 26Delete the FAST Cache ..................................................................................26

Using FAST VP 27

About FAST VP ..............................................................................................28Data relocation with FAST VP ........................................................................ 28FAST VP tiering policy ................................................................................... 29Best practices for configuring storage tiers....................................................30Enable scheduled data relocations at the system level ................................. 30Modify the data relocation schedule .............................................................31Stop a stor age pool from participating in scheduled data relocations ........... 31

Manually initiate or stop data relocations for a storage pool .........................31

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

CONTENTS

EMC VNXe Series 3.1 Configuring Storage Pools 3


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Pause or resume data relocations for all storage pools ................................. 32View storage pool tier information.................................................................32View system level data relocation information ..............................................33View data relocation information for a storage pool ...................................... 33

Configuring storage pools using the CLI 35Configure storage pools automatically (physical deployments only).............. 36

Initiate automatic storage pool configuration................................... 37View configuration settings for automatic storage pool creation....... 37

Configure custom storage pools.................................................................... 38Configure storage pools................................................................... 41View storage pools ...........................................................................44Change storage pool settings...........................................................46Add disks or tiers to storage pools................................................... 48Delete storage pools........................................................................ 49

Manage storage pool tiers.............................................................................50View storage tiers.............................................................................50

Manage FAST Cache (physical deployments only)..........................................52Create FAST Cache........................................................................... 52View FAST Cache settings.................................................................53Delete FAST Cache........................................................................... 53

Manage FAST VP general settings..................................................................54Change FAST VP general settings......................................................55View FAST VP general settings..........................................................56

Manage FAST VP pool settings.......................................................................57Change FAST VP pool settings.......................................................... 59View FAST VP pool settings...............................................................59Start data relocation........................................................................ 60Stop data relocation.........................................................................61

View storage pool r esources..........................................................................61View storage profiles (physical deployments only)........................................ 63Manage disk groups (physical deployments only)......................................... 65

View disk groups..............................................................................65View recommended disk group configurations................................. 66

The show action command............................................................................67

Chapter 5

CONTENTS



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CHAPTER 1

Introduction to storage pools

l About storage pools................................................................................................6l Storage tiers............................................................................................................6l Optimizing disk performance using the FAST Cache and FAST VP (physical

deployments only)...................................................................................................7l Storage pool best practices.....................................................................................8l RAID groups (physical deployments only)................................................................9l Hot Spares (physical deployments only)................................................................13

Introduction to storage pools 5


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About storage poolsA storage pool is a set of disks that provide specific storage characteristics for theresources that use them. For example, the storage pool configuration defines the types

and capacities of the disks in the pool.For physical deployments, the storage pool configuration also defines the RAIDconfigurations (RAID types and stripe widths) for these disks.

When multiple pools are configured, you can choose which pool to use when you createnew storage resources. If only one pool is available, the available pool is automaticallyselected when creating any new storage resource.

Note

Before you create storage resources, you must configure at least one storage pool. Once

you create a pool, you cannot reconfigure the pool's disks without deleting the storage

resources configured in the pool and the pool itself. However, you can add disks to

expand the pool.

Storage pools generally provide optimized storage for a particular set of applications or conditions. When you create a storage resource for hosts to use, you must choose astorage pool with which to associate the storage resource. The storage that the storageresource uses is drawn from the specified pool.

If the FAST VP license is installed, and there are multiple disk types on the system, youcan define multiple tiers for the storage pool. For physical deployments, Each tier can beassociated with a different RAID type.

Storage tiersThe storage tiers available for both physical and virtual deployments are described in thetable below.

l For physical deployments, the storage tier is associated with the physical disk type.

l For virtual deployments, the storage tier is associated with the virtual disk'sunderlying characteristics and must be manually assigned.

l For both types of deployments, if FAST VP is installed on the system, you can createtiered storage pools to optimize disk utilization. A tiered pool consists of multipledisk types, such as Flash disks and SAS disks.

Table 1 Storage tier descriptions

Storage tier Disk types Description Default RAIDconfiguration(physicaldeployments only)

Extreme

Performance

tier

l SAS Flash - Solid state

extreme performance

disk

l SAS Flash VP - Solid

state extreme

performance disk

Provides very fast access times for resources subject to

variable workloads. For example, databases can achieve

their best performance when using Flash disks. Flash

disks are more expensive than SAS disks per GB of

storage.

RAID 5 (4 + 1).




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Table 1 Storage tier descriptions (continued)

Storage tier Disk types Description Default RAIDconfiguration(physical

deployments only)

Note

Only SAS Flash disks can be used in the FAST Cache.

Performance

tier

SAS - Rotating performance

disk

Provides high, all-around performance with consistent

response times, high throughput, and good bandwidth at

a mid-level price point. Performance tier storage is

appropriate for database resources accessed centrally

through a network.

RAID 5 (4 + 1).

Capacity tier NL-SAS - Rotating capacity

disk

Provides the highest storage capacity with generally lower

performance. Capacity storage is appropriate for storing

large amounts of data that is primarily static (such as

video files, audio files, and images) for users and

applications that do not have strict performance

requirements.

Note

For data that changes or is accessed frequently, capacity

tier storage has significantly lower performance.

RAID 6 (6 + 2).

Optimizing disk performance using the FAST Cache and FAST VP(physical deployments only)

The FAST (Fully Automated Storage Tiering) Suite includes features that enable you to:

l Leverage Flash disks as additional read/write cache for improved performance (FAST Cache).

l Dynamically tier data across different types of disks (FAST VP).

Comparison of FAST Cache and FAST VP

The following table describes the differences between the FAST Cache and FAST VPfeatures:

Table 2 Differences between the FAST Cache and FAST VP features

FAST Cache FAST VP

Enables SAS Flash disks to be used

as an additional read/write cache for

the storage system.

Leverages pools to provide sub-LUN and file system

tiering, which moves data to the appropriate tier based

on the FAST VP tiering policy.

Caches 64-KB data chunks for higher

performance.

Relocates 256-MB data chunks based on the FAST VP

tiering policy and I/O activity.


Optimizing disk performance using the FAST Cache and FAST VP (physical deployments only) 7


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Table 2 Differences between the FAST Cache and FAST VP features (continued)

FAST Cache FAST VP

Copies data from Hard Disk Drives

(HDDs) to Flash disks when the data

is accessed frequently.

Moves data between different storage tiers based on the

FAST VP tiering policy.

Adapts continuously to changes in

workload.

Uses a data relocation process to periodically make

storage tiering adjustments. The data relocation schedule

is configurable, and the data relocation can take place

once a day or on an ongoing basis throughout the day.

Interoperability considerations

You can use FAST Cache and FAST VP functionality together to yield high performance andimprove Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) for the storage system. EMC recommends thatyou:

1. Use available Flash drives for the FAST Cache first, because this can benefit allstorage resources in the storage system.

2. Supplement performance as needed by adding additional Flash drives to storagepool tiers for use by FAST VP.

For example, in scenarios where limited Flash drives are available, you can use Flashdisks to create the FAST Cache, and you can apply FAST VP on a one- or two-tier pool (SASand NL-SAS). From a performance point of view, FAST Cache dynamically providesperformance benefits to bursts of data, while FAST VP moves "hotter" data toperformance drives and "colder" data to capacity drives. From a TCO perspective, FAST Cache, with a small number of Flash drives, serves the data that is accessed mostfrequently, while FAST VP optimizes disk utilization and efficiency.

The FAST Cache feature is storage-tier-aware and works with FAST VP to make sure thatthe storage system resources are not wasted by unnecessarily copying data to FAST Cache, if it is already on a Flash drive. If FAST VP moves a chunk of data to the ExtremePerformance Tier on a storage pool, the system will not copy that chunk of data into FAST Cache, even if FAST Cache criteria is met for promotion. This ensures that the storagesystem resources are not wasted in copying data from one Flash drive to another.

Storage pool best practicesCreate multiple storage pools to:

l Separate workloads that have different I/O profiles. For example, create one set of

pools for workloads that are mostly sequential and another for workloads that aremostly random.

l Separate pools for block and file storage resources.

l Dedicate pools to meet specific performance goals.

l Vary pool parameters, such as enabling the FAST Cache on one pool but not onanother pool.

l Minimize failure domains. For example, although unlikely, loss of a RAID group in apool can compromise the total capacity of that pool. As a result, for physicaldeployments, you may want to create multiple smaller pools rather than use the totalavailable capacity in a single pool.




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Capacity considerations

EMC recommends that you leave free physical space in a pool to accommodate dataservices, as described in the following table.

Table 3 Storage pool capacity considerations

Service Recommendation

Snapshots Maintain about 10% free space to buffer snapped writes.

FAST VP Maintain at least 10% free space to accommodate the fastest

rebalancing.

Snapshots and FAST VP

together

10% free space will meet the requirements of both.

File systems File systems share pool space with their snapshots. They also share

space with LUNs, if the pool is shared. Follow these

recommendations:

l

Do not oversubscribe space in a pool that contains file systems.l Ensure that the pool has sufficient capacity to cover the

maximum size of all file systems, their snapshots, and the LUNs

sharing the pool.

RAID groups (physical deployments only)

About RAID groups

Redundant array of independent disks (RAID) is a method for providing high levels of storage reliability by arranging disks in redundant storage arrays, and dividing andreplicating data among the arrays.

A RAID group is a set of disks with the same capacity and redundancy on which youcreate one or more storage resources. When you create a storage resource, it isdistributed equally across the disks in the RAID group. For example, the following illustration shows a five-disk RAID 5 group with three LUNs:

Figure 1 Five-disk RAID 5 group with three LUNs

RAID groups usually have the characteristics of parity, striping, or both:

l Parity provides redundancy for blocks of data on the disks. Depending on the RAIDtype, this provides the ability to continue to operate with the loss of one or moredisks.

l Striping provides a mechanism for processing data that allows the comprehensiveread/write performance of a RAID group to exceed the performance of its component

disks.


RAID groups (physical deployments only) 9


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You select disk types and RAID configurations (RAID types and stripe widths) for a storagepool. The system then creates one or more RAID groups for the pool, based on thespecified configuration. For example, assume there is one storage tier in the pool. Using the five-disk RAID 5 example shown above, the system would create the pool with asingle RAID 5 (4+1) RAID group. If you want to create the pool with more than five disks,you must do so in increments of five. Alternatively, you can select the Maximum Capacity

option, which optimizes based on number of disks selected and may create multiple RAIDgroups of the same RAID type but different stripe widths.

If the FAST VP license is installed and there are unused disks of different types, you canconfigure multiple storage tiers for the pool and can specify a different RAID configurationfor each tier.

Once a storage pool is configured, you cannot change the RAID type of a tier. However,you can add a new tier with a different RAID type.

The system supports RAID 5, 6, and 1/0 (also called RAID 10).

RAID configurations

Storage pool tiers are built using a set of one or more individual disk groups based on thetier's RAID type and stripe width. The RAID type determines the performancecharacteristics of each disk group. The stripe width determines the fault characteristics of each disk group.

For example, a RAID 5 disk group can still operate with the loss of one disk. A RAID 5(4+1), 5 disk configuration has less risk of multiple disk faults than a RAID 5 (12+1), 13disk configuration.

For best performance from the least number of drives, match the appropriate RAID levelwith the expected workload. The following table describes the supported RAID types for the intended storage usage:

Table 4 Supported RAID levels

RAID level Description

RAID 1/0 (also

called RAID 10)

Best suited for applications with fast or high processing requirements, such

as enterprise servers and moderate-sized database systems. Provides both

high performance and reliability at medium cost, while providing lower

capacity per disk.

RAID 1/0 requires a minimum of two physical disks to implement, where two

disks are mirrored together to provide fault tolerance. A RAID 1/0

configuration can continue to operate as long as 1/2 of each mirrored disk

pair is healthy.

For example, if you have a RAID (2+2) configuration, you can lose two disks,

as long as they are not the source and mirror of the same mirrored pair. If you

lose both the source and mirror of the same mirrored pair, you must

immediately replace the disks and rebuild the array.

l RAID 1/0 (1+1): A minimum of two disks can be allocated at a time to a

pool, with one used strictly for mirroring. One disk out of every two is an

exact duplicate of the other, and the usable disk capacity for every two-

disk group is approximately one disk (50%). This RAID configuration is

equivalent to RAID 1.

l RAID 1/0 (2+2): A minimum of four disks can be allocated at a time to a

pool, with two used strictly for mirroring. Two disks out of every four are

exact duplicates of the other, and the disk usable disk capacity for every




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Table 4 Supported RAID levels (continued)


four-disk group is approximately two disks (50%). In addition, this

configuration is striped to improve I/O performance.

l RAID 1/0 (3+3): A minimum of six disks can be allocated at a time to a

pool, with three used strictly for mirroring. Three disks out of every six are


six-disk group is approximately three disks (50%). In addition, this


l RAID 1/0 (4+4): A minimum of eight disks can be allocated at a time to a

pool, with four used strictly for mirroring. Four disks out of every eight are


eight-disk group is approximately four disks (50%). In addition, this


CAUTION

A failure of a mirrored pair in a RAID 1/0 disk group will render any storage in

the RAID group unavailable until the failed disks are replaced and the data is

restored. This may cause data loss since the last backup of the storage pool.

RAID 5 Best suited for transaction processing and often used for general purpose

storage, as well as for relational database and enterprise resource systems.

Depending on the disks used, this RAID type can provide a fairly low cost per

MB while still retaining redundancy.

RAID 5 stripes data at a block level across several disks and distributes parity

among the disks. No single disk is devoted to parity. Because parity data is

distributed on each disk, read performance can be lower than with other RAID

types.

RAID 5 requires all disks but one to be present to operate. If a disk fails, it will

reduce storage performance and should be replaced immediately. Data loss

will not occur as a result of a single disk failure.

l RAID 5 (4+1): A minimum of five disks can be allocated at a time to each

pool. The usable capacity for every five-disk group is approximately four

disks (80%).

l RAID 5 (8+1): A minimum of nine disks can be allocated at a time to each

pool. The usable capacity for every nine-disk group is approximately

eight disks (89%).

l

RAID 5 (12+1): (Not for general use) A minimum of 13 disks can beallocated at a time to each pool. The usable capacity for every 13-disk

group is approximately 12 disks (92%). This configuration should only be

used when lower data protection characteristics are acceptable.

CAUTION

A failure of two disks in a RAID 5 disk group will render any storage in the

RAID group unavailable until the failed disks are replaced and the data is

restored. This may cause data loss since the last backup of the storage pool.

RAID 6 Best suited for read-biased workloads, such as archiving and backup to disk.


RAID configurations 11


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Table 4 Supported RAID levels (continued)


RAID 6 is similar to RAID 5, but includes a double parity scheme that is

distributed across different disks and thus offers extremely high fault- and

disk-failure tolerance. RAID 6 also provides block-level striping with parity

data distributed across all disks.

The storage pool will continue to operate even when up to two disks fail.

Double parity provides time to rebuild the RAID group, even if another disk

fails before the rebuild is complete.

l RAID 6 (6+2): A minimum of eight disks can be allocated at a time to

each pool. The usable capacity for every eight-disk group is

approximately six disks (75%).

l RAID 6 (8+2): A minimum of 10 disks can be allocated at a time to each

pool. The usable capacity for every ten-disk group is approximately eight

disks (80%).


pool. The usable capacity for every 12-disk group is approximately 10

disks (83%).


pool. The usable capacity for every sixteen-disk group is approximately

fourteen disks (88%).

CAUTION

A failure of three disks in a RAID 6 disk group will cause data loss and render

any storage in the RAID group unavailable until the failed disks are replaced

and the data is restored. This may cause data loss since the last backup of

the storage pool.

Mixed RAID configurations

If FAST VP is installed on the system, you can create a pool with multiple storage tiers.Each tier can have its own RAID type. Only one RAID type can be used within a tier, butthe tier can have different stripe configurations. For example, you can mix RAID 5 (4+1)and RAID5 (8+1) in a tier. To do this:

l Select the Maximum Capacity RAID configuration when you create the pool. Thisconfiguration might mix RAID types in the pool.

l Expand the pool using a different stripe width than currently exists in the pool.

Disk IOPS by RAID type

Front-end application workloads translate into different back-end disk workloads basedon the RAID type in use. For front-end reads, there is no impact by RAID type: 1 front-endread I/O equals 1 back-end read I/O.

The following table shows the impact by RAID type for random front-end writes.




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Table 5 IOPS by RAID type for front-end writes

RAID type IOPS per 1 front-end write I/O

RAID 1/0 2 back-end write I/0s

RAID 5 2 back-end reads and 2 back-end writes

RAID 6 3 back-end reads and 3 back-end writes

Hot Spares (physical deployments only)

Hot spare policy

The storage system uses permanent hot sparing to replace a disk that has failed or faulted. Any unused disk in the system with the appropriate disk technology and size can

be used to replace a failed or faulted disk in a storage pool. Most of the diskconfigurations require the use of the hot spare, except for the following:

l If the system has only 8 disks in total, and they are of the same type, you mayconfigure RAID 6 (6+2) with no hot spare.

l If the system has only 12 disks in total, and they are of the same type, you mayconfigure RAID 6 (10+2) with no hot spare.

Note

When you create or expand pools for a disk configuration, the system prevents you from

configuring all available disks, so as to leave some disks as hot spares.

The hot spare policy follows these rules to determine how many disks are left as spares:

l In general, the system reserves one spare disk for every group of 1-30 disks that havethe same type, capacity, and rotational speed (or Flash type). For example, if thereare 40 300-GB, 15K-RPM SAS disks in the system, the system reserves two of thosedisks as hot spares.

l The system does not reserve a hot spare disk for:

n The FAST Cache.

n A system disk, unless it has user data on it.

l Any unused non-system disk can become a hot spare.

l A system disk that does not contain user data can be a hot spare for a failed systemdisk that has user data.

l A hot spare can be used to replace a failed or faulted disk in the FAST Cache.

l When a hot spare swaps into a pool, it becomes a permanent member of that pooland cannot be used in another pool.

l When a broken disk is fixed, it can be a candidate for a hot spare or used in another pool.

Refer to the compatibility and interoperability documentation on the support website for a listing of basic platform and component support for the storage system, including capacity limits.


Hot Spares (physical deployments only) 13


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CHAPTER 2

Configuring storage pools

l Standard pool configuration using Quick Start mode (physical deployments only)............................................................................................................................. 16

l Configure storage pools using Quick Start mode (physical deployments only)....... 17l About configuring custom storage pools for physical deployments........................17l Configure a custom storage pool (physical deployments only)...............................18l Create a storage pool for virtual deployments........................................................19l Automatic snapshot deletion for storage pools......................................................19l Enable automatic snapshot deletion for a storage pool......................................... 19l Expand a storage pool...........................................................................................20l View storage pool contents and space usage........................................................ 20l Monitor storage pool space allocation and usage..................................................20l Delete a storage pool............................................................................................ 21

Configuring storage pools 15


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Standard pool configuration using Quick Start mode (physicaldeployments only)

When you configure storage pool, you can choose Quick Start mode to have the systemautomatically configure disks into standard storage pools. Quick Start mode is availablewhen both of these circumstances are true:

l No storage pools exist on the system.

l The system is not licensed for FAST VP or FAST Cache.

With Quick Start mode, storage disks are assigned to pools based on the number andtype of available disks. Quick Start mode picks the configuration that makes the mostefficient use of the disks. The following table describes the standard storage pools:

Table 6 Standard storage pools

Pool name Disk and RAIDtypes used Description

Capacity NL-SAS, RAID 6 Provides storage that maximizes the amount of available

storage capacity, but does not provide the same read/

write performance as the Performance pool. For example,

Capacity pool storage can be appropriate for storing large

amounts of data that is primarily static (such as video

files, audio files, images, and so on) and that do not have

strict performance requirements.

Note

For data that changes or is accessed frequently, Capacity

pool storage can significantly lower performance, support

fewer simultaneous read/operations, and support fewer

overall users than Performance pool storage.

Performance SAS, RAID 5 Provides enhanced performance for frequent storage

read/write operations (especially for databases and

general purpose use), but allows fewer bytes of storage

per disk. For example, Performance pool storage can be

appropriate for database resources that need to provide

quick read/write access times.

Extreme

Performance

SAS Flash VP, RAID

5

Provides the highest performance, but at the highest cost

per GB of storage. Extreme Performance pool storage is

more expensive than Performance or Capacity pool

storage per GB of storage, but it provides the fastest

access times for resources subject to intensive and

variable workloads. For example, Extreme Performance

pool storage can be appropriate for central database

resources that are accessed through an intranet or LAN.

Storage pools configured with the minimum configuration (only 12 NL-SAS disksconfigured with RAID 6 (6 + 2)) do not require hot spares. For all other types of pools, thesystem automatically allocates one hot spare disk for every 1 - 30 disks of the same typethat also have the same capacity and rotational speed.




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Configure storage pools using Quick Start mode (physicaldeployments only)

Use the Storage Pool Wizard to configure a storage pool. You can launch this wizard fromthe Unisphere Configuration wizard by clicking Create Storage Pools in the Disk Configuration step. You can also launch this wizard by clicking Storage > Storage Poolsand then clicking Create.Quick Start mode is available when both of these circumstances are true:

l No pools exist on the system.

l The system is not licensed for FAST VP or FAST Cache.

To configure storage pools using Quick Start mode:

Procedure

1. From the Storage Pool Wizard, select Quick Start, and then click Next.

If a proposed pool mixes rotational speeds or Flash disk types, the wizard displays awarning for that pool. Using a pool that mixes rotational speeds can lower performance. It is recommended that you create a custom pool, if you need to create apool that mixes rotational speeds or Flash disk types.

The wizard displays a Summary page that contains the proposed pool configuration.Click the right arrow in the pool description to display additional information aboutthe pool.

2. Click Finish to accept the proposed configuration or Back to select another configuration mode.

Note

Once you create a pool, you cannot reconfigure the pool's disks without deleting the

storage resources configured in the pool and the pool itself. However, you can add

disks to expand the pool.

About configuring custom storage pools for physicaldeployments

When you configure storage pools with the Storage Pool Wizard, you can configurecustom storage pools based on the storage characteristics associated with available disk

types. Configure a custom pool for physical deployments by specifying the following information:

l RAID configuration for each tier. You can use the default RAID configuration, select anon-default RAID configuration, or select the Maximum Capacity option. Selecting theMaximum Capacity option enables the system to achieve a more efficient use of disks. The system can mix stripe widths to achieve this efficiency.

l Number and type of disks to use in the pool. If the FAST VP license is installed, andthe system has multiple disk types, such as SAS and NL-SAS, you can create a multi-tier pool.

l Enable the pool to use the FAST Cache, if the FAST Cache license is installed and thesystem has available SAS Flash disks to support the FAST Cache.


Configure storage pools using Quick Start mode (physical deployments only) 17


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Note


storage resources configured in the pool and the pool itself. However, you can add disks

to expand the pool.

Configure a custom storage pool (physical deployments only)Procedure

1. Launch the Storage Pool Wizard in one of these ways:

l Click Storage > Storage Configuration > Storage Pools, and then click Create.

l In the Configuration Wizard, click Create Storage Pools in the Disk Configurationstep.

2. If the Select Configuration Mode step appears, select Custom.

This step appears only if no pools exist on the system, and the system is not licensedfor FAST VP or FAST Cache.

3. Enter the pool name and optionally, the pool description, and click Next. The poolname can contain up to 63 characters. It cannot contain forward slash (/) or anycontrol characters. It must also not start with period (.) or tilde (~) characters.

The wizard displays the available storage tiers.

4. Select one or more storage tiers to use for the pool. You can only select multiplestorage tiers if the system is licensed to use FAST VP.

The wizard displays the default RAID configuration for the selected tiers.

5. Optionally, change the RAID configuration for the selected tiers. For each tier you wantto change:

l Click the Change link next to the tier name.

l Select a new RAID configuration, and click OK .

6. When the RAID configurations are configured as you like, click Next.

The wizard displays the number and types of disks you can choose based on the RAIDconfiguration and hot spare policy.

7. Select the number and type of disks to include in the pool, and click Next.

l If the FAST Cache exists on the system, the wizard displays the FAST Cache pageand asks if you want the new pool to use the FAST Cache.

l If the FAST Cache does not exist on the system, go to Click Finish to create the

pool. on page 18.

8. Click Next to use the FAST Cache for the pool. If you do not want to use the FAST Cache, select No, and then click Next.

9. Click Finish to create the pool.

10.Optionally, click Create Another Storage Pool to create another pool.

Note







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Create a storage pool for virtual deploymentsProcedure

1. Launch the Storage Pool Wizard in one of these ways:

l Click Storage > Storage Configuration > Storage Pools, and then click Create.

l In the Configuration Wizard, click Create Storage Pools in the Disk Configurationstep.

2. Enter the pool name and optionally, the pool description, and click Next. The poolname can contain up to 63 characters. It cannot contain forward slash (/) or anycontrol characters. It must also not start with period (.) or tilde (~) characters.

The wizard displays the available virtual disks and their associated tiers.

3. Select one or more virtual disks to use in the pool, and click Next. When you select avirtual disk, you must also select its associated tier, based on the disk's underlying characteristics. (See your storage administrator for this information.) The selected

virtual disks must be in the same tier, so selecting a tier for one disk associates thattier with all available disks.

4. Click Finish to create the pool.

5. Optionally, click Create Another Storage Pool to create another pool.

Note




Automatic snapshot deletion for storage poolsAutomatic snapshot deletion for storage pools is a space management feature used toautomatically manage the number of snapshots in a pool. Automatic snapshot deletionapplies to pool snapshots, individual snapshots groups of snapshots on a LUN group,and snapshot schedule rules.

You can set automatic snapshot deletion to occur when the total pool space reaches aspecified threshold, total snapshot space reaches a specified threshold, or both. You canalso set an expiration date and time for snapshots. If deleting expired snapshots doesnot satisfy the thresholds, the system deletes the oldest, unattached snapshots with theauto-delete function enabled.

Enable automatic snapshot deletion for a storage poolProcedure

1. Click Storage > Storage Configuration > Storage Pools.

2. Select a storage pool, and click Details.

3. Click the Settings tab.

4. In the automatic deletion section, select whether you want the automatic deletion tooccur when the total pool space reaches a threshold you set, total snapshot spacereaches a threshold you set, or both. For each option, you can also set the threshold

when the automatic snapshot deletion stops. When you create a pool, the automatic


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deletion values are set by default. You cannot change this during the pool creation. If you clear both boxes, you disable automatic deletion for the pool, but you can stilluse an expiration value.

5. Click Apply.

Expand a storage pool You expand a storage pool by adding disks to the pool:

Procedure


2. Select a storage pool, and click Expand.

3. For physical deployments, follow these steps:

a. Optionally, change the RAID characteristics of each selected tier. If you are adding a new tier to the storage pool, you can select a different RAID configuration for thedisks in the tier. If you are adding disks to an existing tier, you can change thestripe width, but not the RAID type of the new disks.

For each tier you want to change, click the Change link next to the tier name. Thenselect the new RAID type (if applicable), stripe width, or both, and click OK

b. When the RAID configurations are configured as you like, click Next.

4. For virtual deployments, select the virtual disks you want to add, and click Next. Youcan only add virtual disks that have the same tier as the existing disks in the pool.

5. In the Select Amount of Storage step, select the number and type of disks to add, andclick Next.

6. Verify the information shown on the Summary page, and click Finish to expand thepool.

View storage pool contents and space usageProcedure

1. Click Storage > Storage Configuration> Storage Pools.

2. Select a storage pool from the list and click Details.

3. Click on the Storage Resources tab.

The system lists the storage resources and NAS servers in the storage pool. For eachresource, it displays the following information:

l Snapshot Size - Total pool space used by snapshots of the resource (notapplicable to NAS servers).

l Total Pool Size Used - Total pool space by the resource, including space used for primary data, snapshots, and metadata.

Monitor storage pool space allocation and usageProcedure


2. Select a pool from the list, and click Details.




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3. Click the Utilization tab to view the following information:

l Quantity of used space, snapshot size used, available space, and total space for the pool.

l Subscription amount, which is the percentage of the pool's total space that hasbeen requested by its associated storage resources. When this value is over

100%, the pool is oversubscribed.l Alert threshold, which is the percentage of storage allocation at which Unisphere

generates notifications about the amount of space remaining in the pool. Drag theslider to set the value between 50% and 84%.

l Disk type

l Number of disks within each tier.

l Total and available space for each tier.

Delete a storage pool

You can delete storage pools if they contain no allocated storage resources, including LUN groups, LUNs, file systems, VMware datastores, or NAS servers.To delete a pool:

Procedure


2. Select the storage pool you want to delete, and click Delete.


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CHAPTER 3

Using the FAST Cache (physical deploymentsonly)

l About the FAST Cache ...........................................................................................24l FAST Cache best practices.....................................................................................25l Create the FAST Cache ..........................................................................................25l Enable the FAST Cache for a storage pool ............................................................. 25l View-system level FAST Cache information ........................................................... 26l

View pool-level FAST Cache information ............................................................... 26l Delete the FAST Cache ..........................................................................................26

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About the FAST CacheThe FAST Cache is a large capacity secondary cache that uses SAS Flash disks to improvesystem performance by extending the storage system's existing caching capacity. You

can configure individual storage pools to use the FAST Cache. When you do this, allstorage resources created in those pools will use the FAST Cache.

The FAST Cache provides the following benefits:

l Improved Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)The FAST Cache reduces the number of disk spindles needed for a given level of performance and allows you to replace high performance disks with more economicaloptions. This is possible because the load on back-end hard drives is reduced.Because the FAST Cache copies the busy subsets of large storage capacities in 64 KBdata chunks to Flash disks, the busiest areas of many LUNs or file systems use asmall set of Flash disks. This allows a large set of slower, less expensive disks todeliver the performance typically provided by faster, more expensive disks. Over aperiod of time, pools with faster SAS disks can be replaced by new pools with slower NL-SAS disks, while maintaining the same application performance. This improvesthe financial (IOPS/dollar) and power (IOPS/KWH) efficiency of the storage system.

l Reduced complexityAt a system level, the FAST Cache helps make the most efficient use of Flash diskcapacity. The FAST Cache does this by using Flash disks for the most frequentlyaccessed data in the storage system instead of dedicating Flash disks to a particular application. It adjusts to a hot spot anywhere in the storage system, so that you donot need to analyze specific application requirements. It provides better performanceto all applications in the storage system while using fewer Flash disks.

l Highly scalable cache capacityThe FAST Cache can scale up to a larger capacity than the maximum DRAM Cache

capacity. This larger cache capacity means that all or a higher percentage of acustomers working set can be promoted into the better performing FAST Cache. Theworking set is the most active part of an application.

FAST Cache disk configurations

The FAST Cache is configured in RAID 1 pairs, and uses one of the following diskconfigurations:

Table 7 Disk configuration options

Disk quantity Disk size FAST Cache capacity

2 100 GB 100 GB

4 100 GB 200 GB

6 100 GB 300 GB

8 100 GB 400 GB

2 200 GB 200 GB

4 200 GB 400 GB

You cannot mix disk types or sizes in the FAST Cache or expand capacity dynamically. Toexpand the capacity, delete the current configuration, and create a new FAST Cacheconfiguration.

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Note

Deleting the FAST Cache can impact system performance and the performance of storage

pools currently using the FAST Cache. The FAST Cache deletion process can take a long

time, because it has to flush all of the cache data to the storage pool disks.

FAST Cache best practicesUse the FAST Cache under the following circumstances:

l Large working sets of data must be stored and read, accessed frequently, and readilyavailable. Regular (MCC) storage is not suitable for this type of data, because it issmaller and frequently flushed.

l The system has enough disks for both data storage and performance improvement.

For example, use the FAST Cache if the system has enough SAS Flash disks, is active withdaily read/write transactions of big blocks of data, and is not used as stored long termstorage for archival purposes that would be accessed on a weekly or monthly basis.

Avoid using the FAST Cache for data that is sequential or that uses large-block I/O. For example, do not use the FAST Cache for database logs or circular logs, since their data issequential.

Create the FAST CacheBefore you begin

To create the FAST Cache, the FAST Cache license must be installed on the system, andthe system must have at least two available 100-GB SAS Flash disks or two 200-GB SASFlash disks.

Procedure

1. Click Storage > Storage Configuration > FAST Cache.

2. Click Create to launch the FAST Cache Wizard.

The wizard displays the number and size of the SAS Flash disks you can use for theFAST Cache. The numbers are based on the number of available SAS Flash disks, hotspare policy, and system limits.

3. Optionally, select No if you do not want the FAST Cache enabled on all existing storage pools. If you choose No, you can enable the FAST Cache on an existing poollater by accessing the Settings tab on the details page for that pool.

4. Click Next.

The wizard displays the FAST Cache configuration information.

5. Optionally, click the right arrow to see more configuration details.

6. Click Finish to accept the settings and create the FAST Cache.

Enable the FAST Cache for a storage poolProcedure


2. Select the storage pool for which you want to enable the FAST Cache, and click

Details.


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3. Click the Settings tab.

4. Select Allow this pool to use the FAST Cache.

5. Click Apply.

View-system level FAST Cache informationProcedure


2. View information in the following tabs:

l General - Displays the FAST Cache status, total amount of space allocated to theFAST cache, and number of disks in the FAST Cache.

l Disks - Displays the status, name, and capacity of each disk in the FAST Cache.

View pool-level FAST Cache informationAt the pool level, you can verify whether a specific pool is using the FAST Cache.To view pool-level FAST Cache information:

Procedure


2. Select a storage pool from the list, and click Details.

3. Click the Settings tab to verify whether the FAST Cache is enabled for the storagepool.

Delete the FAST CacheProcedure


2. In the General tab, click Delete to delete the FAST Cache.

3. Click Yes on the confirmation message.

Note

Deleting the FAST Cache can impact system performance and the performance of

storage pools currently using the FAST Cache. The FAST Cache deletion process can

take a long time, because it has to flush all of the cache data to the storage pooldisks.




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CHAPTER 4

Using FAST VP

l About FAST VP ...................................................................................................... 28l Data relocation with FAST VP ................................................................................ 28l FAST VP tiering policy ........................................................................................... 29l Best practices for configuring storage tiers ............................................................30l Enable scheduled data relocations at the system level .........................................30l Modify the data relocation schedule .....................................................................31l Stop a storage pool from participating in scheduled data relocations ...................31l Manually initiate or stop data relocations for a storage pool .................................31l Pause or resume data relocations for all storage pools ......................................... 32l View storage pool tier information.........................................................................32l View system level data relocation information ......................................................33l View data relocation information for a storage pool ..............................................33

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About FAST VPFully Automated Storage Tiering for Virtual Pools (FAST VP) enables the system to retainthe most frequently accessed or important data on fast, high-performance disks and

move the less frequently accessed and less important data to lower-performance, cost-effective disks. FAST VP does the following for storage pools:

l Monitors the usage of the data in a tiered pool. Tiered pools are heterogeneous poolsthat are configured with multiple classes of disks (Flash plus SAS and/or NL-SAS).

l Depending on the tiering policy, uses the monitoring statistics to automaticallyrelocate data chunks, at 256 MB granularity, to other tiers within the pool. For example, the Start High then Auto-Tier policy relocates data to the storage tier that isbest suited for that data, based on relative activity.

l Performs load balancing across the disks in tiered and non-tiered pools.

FAST VP is an automated feature that optimizes disk utilization. It requires very littlemanual intervention.

Note

To configure and use the FAST VP feature, the FAST VP license must be installed on the

system.

The data relocation performed by FAST VP can help you achieve the following benefits:

l Increased performanceIn some cases, you can double performance throughput by adding less than 10percent of a pool's total capacity in Flash disks.

l Reduced Total Cost of Ownership (TCO)Using a combination of NL-SAS, SAS, and Flash disks instead of all SAS disks enables

you to address performance requirements and still reduce the disk count. In somecases, you can achieve up to a two-thirds reduction in disk count by using FAST VP.

Data relocation with FAST VPData relocation (also called auto-tiering) is the process by which the system relocatesdata to another tier within the same pool and rebalances data within a tier to achievemaximum pool performance gain. Data relocation can be scheduled or manually initiated.

The data relocation process does the following:

l Relocates the most active data up to the highest available tier.

l Relocates the least active data to lower tiers, as needed to free up space for moreactive data in the higher tiers.

l Rebalances data within a tier.

Scheduled data relocation

Scheduled data relocation is enabled for all storage pools by default when FAST VP isinstalled on your system. The system performs scheduled data relocations for poolsparticipating in the automatic data relocation schedule. By default, the data relocationwindow is every day from 22:00 to 6:00 (UTC time) the next day. The specified datarelocation times provide the window of time in which data relocations occur on anongoing basis, if the system determines the relocations are needed.

You can do the following to configure scheduled data relocations:

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l Disable or re-enable scheduled data relocations for the system.

l Change the days on which data relocation occurs and the data relocation windowstart time and end time for each scheduled day.

l Configure individual storage pools to participate in scheduled data relocations.

l Pause all scheduled data relocations. (This action also pauses manual datarelocations that are currently in progress.)

l Resume all scheduled data relocations (This action also resumes paused manualdata relocations whose specified end times have not expired.)

Note

The system rebalances data within a tier automatically when a pool tier is expanded.

Manual data relocation

You can manually initiate data relocations for individual storage pools. When you start amanual data relocation, you specify a data relocation rate and an end time for the datarelocation operation.

You can do the following to control manual data relocations:

l Start or stop a manual data relocation.

l Pause manual relocations that are currently in progress. This action also pauses allscheduled data relocations.

l Resume paused manual relocations whose end times are not over. This action alsoresumes all scheduled data relocations.

FAST VP tiering policyThe following table describes the FAST VP tiering policy settings, which are defined at the

data-resource level. This policy defines both the initial tier placement and the ongoing automated tiering of data during data relocation operations.

Table 8 FAST VP tiering policy settings

Tiering policy Corresponding initialtier placement

Description

Start High then

Auto-Tier

(default)

Highest available tier Recommended setting. Sets the initial data

placement to the highest-performing disks with

available space, and then relocates portions of the

storage resource's data based on I/O activity.

Auto-Tier Optimize for poolperformance

Sets the initial data placement to an optimum,system-determined setting, and then relocates

portions of the storage resource's data based on the

storage resource's performance statistics such that

data is relocated among tiers according to I/O

activity.

Highest

Available Tier

Highest available tier Sets the initial data placement and subsequent data

relocation (if applicable) to the highest-performing

disks with available space.

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Table 8 FAST VP tiering policy settings (continued)

Tiering policy Corresponding initialtier placement

Description

Lowest

Available Tier

Lowest available tier Sets the initial data placement and subsequent data

relocation (if applicable) to the most cost-effective

disks with available space.

No Data

Movement

Based on the previous

FAST VP policy used

Prevents any ongoing data movement for the

associated storage resource. The current initial

placement of data is retained. Only available after

the storage resource is created.

Best practices for configuring storage tiers

The number of tiers required in a storage pool is influenced by performancerequirements, capacity requirements, and the knowledge of the skew between active andinactive capacity. (Skew is when a small percentage of the total storage capacity in astorage system is the target for the majority of the IOPS served by the system.) Bestperformance is achieved when the entire active dataset can be contained within thecapacity of the Extreme Performance (Flash) and Performance (SAS) tiers.

If the skew is known, the capacity per tier should be sized accordingly. Otherwise, followthese general guidelines for configuring storage tiers:

l When the FAST Cache is available, use a 2-tier pool comprised of SAS and NL-SASdisks. Enabling the FAST Cache as a cost-effective way of realizing Flash performancewithout dedicating Flash to the pool. You can add a Flash tier later if the FAST Cachedoes not fully capture the active data.

l Using a 2-tier pool comprised of Flash disks and SAS disks as an effective way toprovide consistently good performance. You can add NL-SAS disks later on, if there isuncertainty about the active data fitting in the Flash tier. Avoid using a 2-tier pool of Flash and NL-SAS if there is uncertainty about the active data fitting in the flash tier.

l For a 3-tier pool, start with 5% Flash, 20% SAS, and 75% NL-SAS. This works on theassumption that less than 25% of the used capacity will be active and relocationsfrom the lowest tier will be infrequent. You can expand the tiers later, if needed.

l The Performance tier provides a buffer for active data not captured in the Flash tier. Itprovides modest performance, as well as a quicker promotion to Flash whenrelocations occur.

l Add a Flash tier to a pool with thin LUNs so that metadata is promoted to Flash disks.This improves overall performance.

Enable scheduled data relocations at the system levelWhen you enable scheduled data relocations at the system level, storage pools that havescheduled data relocations enabled at the pool level will participate in scheduled datarelocations. Scheduled data relocation functionality is enabled at the system and poollevels by default.To enable scheduled data relocations at the system level:

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Procedure

1. Click Settings > Data Efficiency Settings.

2. On the General tab, select Enable Scheduled Relocations.

3. On the Schedule tab, view the schedule, and optionally, modify it.

4. Click Apply.

Modify the data relocation scheduleModifying the data relocation schedule changes the schedule for all storage pools thatparticipate in scheduled data relocations. If you change the data relocation schedulewhen a data relocation is taking place, the system will complete the data relocation.To modify the data relocation schedule:

Procedure


2. Click the Schedule tab to view the current data relocation schedule.3. Change the selected days, start time, and end time, as appropriate.

4. Click Apply.

Stop a storage pool from participating in scheduled datarelocations

To stop a storage pool from participating in scheduled data relocations:

Procedure

1. Click Storage > Storage Configuration > Storage Pools.2. Select the storage pool that you want to stop from participating in scheduled data

relocations, and click Details.

3. Click on the Fast VP tab.

4. Clear the Include this pool in scheduled relocations checkbox.

5. Click Apply.

Manually initiate or stop data relocations for a storage poolIf a FAST VP license is installed on the system, you can manually initiate or stop data

relocations for storage pools.Procedure


2. Select the storage pool for which you want to initiate or stop data relocations, andclick Details.

3. Click on the FAST VP tab.

4. Do either of the following:

l To start data relocations for the pool, choose Start Data Relocation, and select therate and end time for the data relocation. A data relocation rate of Low has theleast impact on system performance, Medium (the default) has a moderate impact

on system performance, and High has the most impact on system performance.

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l To stop data relocations, choose Stop Data Relocation. This stops all datarelocations for the pool, including manually initiated data relocations that arecurrently in progress and scheduled data relocations.

Pause or resume data relocations for all storage poolsPausing data relocations stops all scheduled data relocations as well as manual datarelocations that are in progress. Resuming data relocations restarts these datarelocations.

Procedure

1. Select Settings > Data Efficiency Settings.

2. Do either of the following:

l To pause data relocations for all pools, click Pause Data Relocation, and then click Yes on the confirmation dialog.

l To resume data relocations for all pools, click Resume Data Relocation, and then

click Yes on the confirmation dialog.

Note

If the end time for a paused data relocation occurs before data relocations are

resumed, the data relocation will not resume until the next schduled relocation

time.

View storage pool tier informationProcedure

1. Click Storage > Storage Configuration > Storage Pools.2. Select a storage pool from the list and click Details.

3. Click one of the following tabs to view the storage pool tier information:

Tab Description

General Describes the disk types and RAID configuration for each tier.Click the arrows next to the disk types to view additional disktype and RAID configuration information.

Utilization Displays the following tier-level information:

l Disk type

l Number of disks within each tier.


FAST VP physical

deployments only)

The lower part of the screen shows the following tier-levelinformation:

l Amount of data within each tier to relocate and rebalance.


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View system level data relocation informationProcedure


The General tab shows the following information:

l Whether scheduled relocations are enabled for the system.

l Amount of data scheduled to move to higher and lower tiers.

l Amount of data scheduled to be rebalanced within a tier.

l Estimated data relocation time for scheduled data relocations.

l Data relocation rate. Low has the least impact on system performance, Medium(the default) has a moderate impact on system performance, and High has themost impact on system performance.

2. Click the Schedule tab to view or modify the data relocation schedule.

View data relocation information for a storage poolData relocation is enabled for all storage pools by default when a FAST VP license isinstalled on the system.To view data relocation information for a storage pool:

Procedure


2. Select a storage pool, and click Details.

3. Click the Fast VP tab.The system displays pool-specific storage tier information, including:

l Data relocation state.

l Data relocation start and end times.

l Estimated time for the data relocation.

l Amount of data relocated. For an active data relocation session, this is the amountof data relocated so far in the relocation process. For a completed data relocationsession, this is the total amount of data relocated during the last relocationsession.

l Amount of data to relocate.

You can use this tab to include or exclude the pool from participating in scheduleddata relocations.

4. Optionally, click FAST VP Settings to view the system-wide data relocation scheduleon the Schedule tab of the FAST VP Settings page.

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CHAPTER 5

Configuring storage pools using the CLI

l Configure storage pools automatically (physical deployments only)...................... 36l Configure custom storage pools............................................................................ 38l Manage storage pool tiers.....................................................................................50l Manage FAST Cache (physical deployments only)..................................................52l Manage FAST VP general settings.......................................................................... 54l Manage FAST VP pool settings...............................................................................57l View storage pool resources..................................................................................61l View storage profiles (physical deployments only) ................................................ 63l Manage disk groups (physical deployments only)................................................. 65l The show action command....................................................................................67

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Configure storage pools automatically (physical deploymentsonly)

Storage pools are the groups of disks, called disk groups, on which you create storageresources. The system can automatically configure storage pools by selecting theappropriate disk groups based on the type and availability of disks in the system.Configure custom storage pools on page 38 explains how to configure custom storagepools.

Note

Before you create storage resources, you must configure at least one storage pool.

The following table lists the attributes for automatic pool configuration.

Table 9 Automatic pool configuration attributes

Attribute Description

Target Type of disk configuration. Value is one of the following:

l pool - Disks configured in a pool.

l spares - Disks assigned to storage pools as spares. The number of spares

assigned to a pool is dependent on the disk type and pool type:

n For Capacity pools, no spare disks are assigned.

n For Performance pools, a spare disk is assigned for the first 0-30 disks,

and then another spare disk is assigned for every group of thirty disks

after that.

n For Flash pools, a spare disk is assigned for the first 0-30 disks, and

then another spare disk is assigned for every group of thirty disks after

that.

Name Name of the pool. The system allocates disks to one or more of the following

pools based on the types and characteristics of the disks on the system:

l Capacity - Storage allocated from near-line (NL) serial attached SCSI

(SAS) disks. Provides high-capacity storage, but with lower overall

performance to regular SAS and Enterprise Flash Drive (EFD) disks. Use NL

SAS disks to provide extremely economical storage for operations, such as

data backup, that do not require high I/O performance.

l

Performance - Storage allocated from serial attached SCSI (SAS) disks.Provides medium performance and medium capacity storage for

applications that require balance of performance and capacity.

l Flash - Storage allocated from EFD disks. Extremely high level

performance, but at a relatively high cost per GB of storage. EFDs are most

applicable to applications that require high I/O performance and energy

efficiency.

Depending on the pool type, the system configures the disks into different RAID

groups and assigns disks to pools as spares. The Unisphere online help

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Table 9 Automatic pool configuration attributes (continued)


Drives

(current)List of disks currently in the pool.

Drives

(new)List of disks to be added to the pool.

RAID level RAID level applied.

Stripe

lengthComma-separated list of disks in the stripe.

Initiate automatic storage pool configuration

Start configuring storage pools automatically. View configuration settings for automatic

storage pool creation on page 37 displays the configuration settings that the systemwill apply when you run this command.

Format/stor/config/auto set

Action qualifier

Qualifier Description

-async Run action in asynchronous mode.

Example

The following command initiates automatic storage pool configuration:

uemcli -d 10.0.0.1 -u Local/joe -p MyPassword456! /stor/config/auto

set

Storage system address: 10.0.0.1Storage system port: 443HTTPS connection

Operation completed successfully.

View configuration settings f or automatic storage pool creation

View the settings for automatic storage pool creation that will be applied to the system.Initiate automatic storage pool configuration on page 37 explains how to apply thesesettings to the system.

Note

The show action command on page 67 explains how to change the output format.

Format/stor/config/auto show

Example

The following command shows how storage pools and spares will be configuredautomatically on the system:


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uemcli -d 10.0.0.1 -u Local/joe -p MyPassword456! /stor/config/auto

show

Storage system address: 10.0.0.1Storage system port: 443HTTPS connection

1: Target = PoolName = Performance

Drives (current) = 5 x 600GB SAS; 5 x 300GB SAS Drives (new) = 5 x 600GB SAS RAID level = 5 Stripe length = 5,9

2: Target = PoolName = Capacity

Drives (current) = 10 x 1TB NL-SAS Drives (new) = 2 x 1TB NL SAS RAID level = 5 Stripe length = 5,9

3: Target = Pool

Name = Extreme Performance Drives (current) = 10 x 100GB EFD Drives (new) = 10 x 100GB EFD RAID level = 1 Stripe length = 2

4: Target = SparesName = Unused / Hot Spare Candidates

Drives (current) = 1 x 600GB SAS; 1 x 300GB SAS; 1 x 1TB NL SAS Drives (new) = 1 x 100GB EFD

RAID level = Stripe length =

Configure custom storage poolsStorage pools are the groups of disks on which you create storage resources. Configurestorage pools based on the type of storage resource and usage that will be associatedwith the pool, such as file system storage optimized for database usage. The storagecharacteristics differ according to the following:

l Type of disk used to provide the storage.

l RAID level implemented for the storage.

Note

Before you create storage resources, you must configure at least one storage pool.

Configure storage pools automatically (physical deployments only) on page 36 explainshow to have the system configure storage pools automatically.

The following table lists the attributes for storage pools:

Table 10 Custom storage pool attributes


ID ID of the storage pool.

Name Name of the storage pool.

Description Brief description of the storage pool.




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Table 10 Custom storage pool attributes (continued)


Total space Total storage capacity of the storage pool.

Current allocation Amount of storage in the storage pool allocated to storage resources.

Remaining space Amount of storage in the storage pool not allocated to storage

resources.

Subscription For thin provisioning, the total storage space subscribed to the

storage pool. All storage pools support both standard and thin

provisioned storage resources. For standard storage resources, the

entire requested size is allocated from the pool when the resource is

created, for thin provisioned storage resources only incremental

portions of the size are allocated based on usage. Because thin

provisioned storage resources can subscribe to more storage than is

actually allocated to them, storage pools can be over provisioned to

support more storage capacity than they actually possess.

Note

The system automatically generates an alert when the total pool

usage reaches 85% of the pool's physical capacity. -

alertThreshold specifies the alert threshold value.

Subscription

percentFor thin provisioning, the percentage of the total space in the storage

pool that is subscription storage space.

Alert threshold Threshold for the system to send an alert when hosts have consumed

a specific percentage of the subscription space. Value range is 50 to

85.

Drives List of the types of disks on the system, including the number of disks

of each type, in the storage pool.

Number of drives Total number of disks in the storage pool.

Number of unused

drivesNumber of disks in the storage pool that are not being used.

RAID level (physical

deployments only)

RAID level of the disks in the storage pool.

Stripe length

(physical deployments

only)

Number of disks the data is striped across.

Rebalancing Indicates whether a pool rebalancing is in progress. Value is one of

the following:

l Yes

l No

Rebalancing

progressIndicates the progress of the pool rebalancing as a percentage.

System defined

poolIndication of whether the system configured the pool automatically.

Valid values are:

l

Yes


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l No

Health state Health state of the storage pool. The health state code appears in

parentheses. Value is one of the following:

l Unknown (0) - Health is unknown.

l OK (5) - Operating normally.

l OK BUT (7) - Pool has exceeded its user-specified threshold

or the system specified threshold of 85%.

l Degraded/Warning (10) - Pool is operating, but degraded

due to one or more of the following:

n Pool has exceeded the user-specified threshold.

n Pool is nearing capacity.

n Pool is almost full.

n Pool performance has degraded.

l Major failure (20) - Dirty cache has made the pool

unavailable.

l Critical failure (25) - Pool is full. To avoid data loss,

add more storage to the pool, or create more pools.

l Non-recoverable error (30) - Two or more disks in the

pool have failed, possibly resulting in data loss.

Health details Additional health information. See Appendix A, Reference, for healthinformation details.

FAST Cache enabled Indicates whether FAST Cache is enabled on the storage pool. Value is

one of the following:

l Yes

l No

Protection size

usedQuantity of storage used for data protection.

Auto-delete state Indicates the state of an auto-delete operation on the storage pool.

Value is one of the following:

l Idle

l Running

l Could not reach LWM

l Could not reach HWM

Note

If the auto-delete operation cannot satisfy the high water mark,

and there are snapshots in the storage pool, the auto-delete

operation sets the auto-delete state for that watermark to Could

not reach HWM , and generates an alert.




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l Failed

Auto-delete paused Indicates whether an auto-delete operation is paused. Value is one of

the following:

l Yes

l No

Auto-delete pool

full threshold

enabled

Indicates whether the system will check the pool full high water mark

for auto-delete. Value is one of the following:

l Yes

l No

Auto-delete pool

full high watermark

The pool full high watermark on the storage pool.

Auto-delete pool

full low water

mark

The pool full low watermark on the storage pool.

Auto-delete

snapshot space

used threshold

enabled

Indicates whether the system will check the snapshot space used

high water mark for auto-delete. Value is one of the following:

l Yes

l No

Auto-delete

snapshot space

used high water

mark

High watermark for snapshot space used on the storage pool.

Auto-delete

snapshot space

used low water

mark

Low watermark for snapshot space used on the storage pool.

Configure storage pools

Configure a storage pool.

Format/stor/config/pool create [-async] –name [-descr ] {-diskGroup -drivesNumber –storProfile | -disk [-tier ]} [-alertThreshold ] [-snapPoolFullThresholdEnabled {yes|no}] [ -snapPoolFullHWM ] [-snapPoolFullLWM ] [-snapSpaceUsedThresholdEnabled {yes|no}] [-snapSpaceUsedHWM ] [-snapSpaceUsedLWM ]


Configure storage pools 41


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Action qualifier

Qualifier Description

-async Run the operation in asynchronous mode.

-name Type a name for the storage pool.

-descr Type a brief description of the storagepool.

-storProfile (physical deployments

only)

Type the ID of the storage profiles,separated by commas, to apply to thestorage pool, based on the type of storageresource that will use the pool and theintended usage of the pool. View storageprofiles (physical deployments only) onpage 63 explains how to view the IDs of available storage profiles on the system. If this option is not specified, a default RAID

configuration is selected for eachparticular drive type in the selected diskgroup: NL-SAS (RAID 6 with a stripe lengthof 8), SAS (RAID 5 with a stripe length of 5), or Flash (RAID 5 with a stripe length of 5).

-diskGroup (physical deployments only) Type the IDs of the disk groups to use inthe storage pool. Specifying disk groupswith different disks types causes thecreation of a multi-tier storage pool. Viewdisk groups on page 65 explains how toview the IDs of the disk groups on the

system.

-drivesNumber (physical deployments

only)

Specify the disk numbers, separated bycommas, from the selected disk groups touse in the storage pool. If this option isspecified when -storProfile is not

specified, the operation may fail when the-drivesNumber value does not match

the default RAID configuration for eachdrive type in the selected disk group.

-disk (virtual deployments only) Specify the list of disks, separated bycommas, to use in the storage pool.

Specified disks must be reliable storageobjects that do not require additionalprotection.

-tier (virtual deployments only) Specify the list of tiers, separated bycommas, to which the disks are assigned.If a tier is omitted, it will be assignedautomatically if tiering information for theassociated disk is available. Valid valuesinclude:

l capacity

l performance



Date post:	05-Jul-2018
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Docu61138 Configuring Storage Pools

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