HP StorageWorks Scalable File Share for SFS20 Enclosure Hardware Installation Guide Version 2.2

1 Overview
An HP StorageWorks Scalable File Share (HP SFS) system is a set of independent computers and
storage subsystems combined into a unified system through system software and networking
technologies that provides a storage system for standalone servers or compute clusters.
An HP SFS storage system may use the EVA4000 or HP StorageWorks Scalable File Share 20
Enclosure (HP SFS20 Enclosure, or SFS20). This manual covers the HP SFS system using the
SFS20 for storage.
This chapter presents the following information about an HP StorageWorks Scalable File Share
system using the SFS20 for storage:
• An introduction to an HP SFS system which uses the SFS20 for storage (“HP StorageWorks
Scalable File Share Overview”)
• A list of hardware components that comprise an HP SFS system which uses the SFS20 for
storage (“HP SFS Hardware Components”)
• HP SFS block diagrams and rack configurations using the SFS20 for storage (“HP
StorageWorks Scalable File Share System Block Diagrams and Rack Configurations”)
1.1 HP StorageWorks Scalable File Share Overview
An HP StorageWorks Scalable File Share system consists of the hardware and software necessary
to support the Lustre File System from Cluster File Systems, Inc.
Clusters of high-performance compute servers require a high-performance distributed file system
that provides for its data storage and data-sharing needs.
The Lustre File System is an open source, distributed file system that allows separation of
computational and storage resources; the compute engine is a cluster that uses the storage
resources provided by the HP SFS system with the Lustre File System.
The Lustre File System runs on commodity hardware. It uses object-based disks for storage and
metadata servers (MDS servers) for storing file system metadata.
An HP SFS system uses a pair of failover metadata servers to maintain a transactional record of
file and file system changes. One MDS server is responsible for the metadata. The standby MDS
server functions as an administration server, routing administrative commands to all other servers
in the configuration.
Once operational software has been installed, the administration server is responsible for:
• Boot and shutdown of all server nodes
• HP SFS20 Enclosure administration
• File systems administration
• Server node administration
• Network administration
• Software administration
Object Storage Servers are responsible for actual file system I/O, for interfacing with the storage
devices containing the file system data, and for transferring data to and from the compute cluster.
There can be from 2 to 64 Object Storage Servers, and data can be striped across several Object
Storage Servers using redundant array of independent disks (RAID) technology.
In an entry-level HP SFS system, the MDS and administration servers can provide the function
of the Object Storage Servers. This configuration would be limited to two ProLiant DL380 servers
and associated HP SFS20 Enclosures.
An existing compute cluster, such as an HP XC3000 or HP XC6000 compute cluster, can be
connected to an HP SFS system through the compute cluster's interconnect. All storage I/O over
1.1 HP StorageWorks Scalable File Share Overview 21