.Part 3 Host and Storage System Rules HP SAN Design Reference Guide 785353-001

The configuration shown in Figure 62 (page 174) includes:
• Redundant SANs, with each server connecting to one fabric through one NPV device
• Connectivity to C-series and B-series fabrics
• Support for up to six NPV devices per HP BladeSystem c7000 enclosure, or three NPV devices
per HP BladeSystem c3000 enclosure
NPV with FlexAttach
The Cisco MDS 9124e Fabric Switch for HP c-Class BladeSystem, MDS 9124 switch, and MDS
9134 switch support NPV with FlexAttach. FlexAttach provides automatic mapping of physical
WWNs to virtual WWNs using NAT. When NPV mode is enabled, FlexAttach allows SAN and
server administrators to install and replace servers without having to rezone or reconfigure the
SAN.
With FlexAttach, you can perform the following tasks without the need to make SAN or storage
configuration changes:
• Preconfiguration—You can preconfigure the SAN for the addition of new servers whose
WWPNs are unknown, using the virtual WWPNs. Once the servers are available, you can
bring them online and into the fabric.
• Replacement (new server)—You can replace an existing server with a new server. FlexAttach
assigns a virtual WWPN to the server port.
• Replacement (spare server)—You can bring a spare server online by moving the virtual WWPN
from the current server port to the spare server port.
• Server redeployment—You can move a server to a different NPV switch (in the same fabric
or VSAN). FlexAttach allows you to manually create and transfer virtual WWPNs from one
server port to another server port.
NOTE: Other tasks may require configuration changes. For more information about FlexAttach,
see the Cisco MDS 9000 Family CLI Configuration Guide. The terms pWWN and WWPN are
used interchangeably.
Figure 63 (page 176) shows a view of an HP c-Class BladeSystem using NPV with FlexAttach.
NPV with FlexAttach 175