Users Guide

2
Working with Dell Storage
The Dell Storage vSphere Web Client Plugin communicates with Enterprise Manager and enables the
management of Dell storage.
Introduction to Dell Storage
An administrator can use the Dell Storage vSphere Web Client Plugin to manage Dell storage on a
Storage Center or FluidFS cluster.
A Storage Center configures and uses storage based on the following settings.
Storage Term Description
Storage Tier
physical media classes
Storage tiers represent the classification of all physical storage
media in the Storage Center. Storage Center automatically
populates storage tiers with the available media in the Assigned
disk folder:
• Tier 1: Contains the fastest media appropriate for frequently
used, mission-critical data. Tier 1 media is typically the most
expensive media.
• Tier 2: Contains medium-quality media appropriate for
medium-priority data.
• Tier 3: Contains slower, inexpensive media appropriate for
backup copies, Replays, and low-priority, rarely used data.
Storage Type
RAID level and page size
Within each tier, data can be stored as:
• Non-redundant: RAID 0 with 2-MB page size
• Redundant: RAID 10, RAID 5-5, RAID 5-9 with 512-KB, 2-MB, or
4-MB page size.
• Dual redundant: RAID 10 with 2-MB page size
• The default (and recommended) setting for storage type is
redundant using both RAID 10 and RAID 5-9 with a 2-MB page
size.
Volume
a logical unit of storage
On the Storage Center, a volume is a logical unit of storage. When
you add a datastore within the vSphere Client, you create and map
a new Dell volume as a datastore, or map an existing Dell volume
as a datastore. When mapping an existing Dell volume as a
datastore, the volume must have been a previously formatted
VMFS volume that was used as a datastore and unmapped.
Live Volume
keeps applications online and data
accessible during planned or
unplanned downtime
A Live Volume is a replicating volume that can be mapped and
active on a source and destination Storage Center at the same
time.
Data Type Volume data can be either of the following types:
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Working with Dell Storage