6.7
Table Of Contents
- vSphere Storage
- Contents
- About vSphere Storage
- Introduction to Storage
- Getting Started with a Traditional Storage Model
- Overview of Using ESXi with a SAN
- Using ESXi with Fibre Channel SAN
- Configuring Fibre Channel Storage
- Configuring Fibre Channel over Ethernet
- Booting ESXi from Fibre Channel SAN
- Booting ESXi with Software FCoE
- Best Practices for Fibre Channel Storage
- Using ESXi with iSCSI SAN
- Configuring iSCSI Adapters and Storage
- ESXi iSCSI SAN Recommendations and Restrictions
- Configuring iSCSI Parameters for Adapters
- Set Up Independent Hardware iSCSI Adapters
- Configure Dependent Hardware iSCSI Adapters
- Configure the Software iSCSI Adapter
- Configure iSER Adapters
- Modify General Properties for iSCSI or iSER Adapters
- Setting Up Network for iSCSI and iSER
- Using Jumbo Frames with iSCSI
- Configuring Discovery Addresses for iSCSI Adapters
- Configuring CHAP Parameters for iSCSI Adapters
- Configuring Advanced Parameters for iSCSI
- iSCSI Session Management
- Booting from iSCSI SAN
- Best Practices for iSCSI Storage
- Managing Storage Devices
- Storage Device Characteristics
- Understanding Storage Device Naming
- Storage Rescan Operations
- Identifying Device Connectivity Problems
- Enable or Disable the Locator LED on Storage Devices
- Erase Storage Devices
- Working with Flash Devices
- About VMware vSphere Flash Read Cache
- Working with Datastores
- Types of Datastores
- Understanding VMFS Datastores
- Upgrading VMFS Datastores
- Understanding Network File System Datastores
- Creating Datastores
- Managing Duplicate VMFS Datastores
- Increasing VMFS Datastore Capacity
- Administrative Operations for Datastores
- Set Up Dynamic Disk Mirroring
- Collecting Diagnostic Information for ESXi Hosts on a Storage Device
- Checking Metadata Consistency with VOMA
- Configuring VMFS Pointer Block Cache
- Understanding Multipathing and Failover
- Failovers with Fibre Channel
- Host-Based Failover with iSCSI
- Array-Based Failover with iSCSI
- Path Failover and Virtual Machines
- Pluggable Storage Architecture and Path Management
- Viewing and Managing Paths
- Using Claim Rules
- Scheduling Queues for Virtual Machine I/Os
- Raw Device Mapping
- Storage Policy Based Management
- Virtual Machine Storage Policies
- Workflow for Virtual Machine Storage Policies
- Populating the VM Storage Policies Interface
- About Rules and Rule Sets
- Creating and Managing VM Storage Policies
- About Storage Policy Components
- Storage Policies and Virtual Machines
- Default Storage Policies
- Using Storage Providers
- Working with Virtual Volumes
- About Virtual Volumes
- Virtual Volumes Concepts
- Virtual Volumes and Storage Protocols
- Virtual Volumes Architecture
- Virtual Volumes and VMware Certificate Authority
- Snapshots and Virtual Volumes
- Before You Enable Virtual Volumes
- Configure Virtual Volumes
- Provision Virtual Machines on Virtual Volumes Datastores
- Virtual Volumes and Replication
- Best Practices for Working with vSphere Virtual Volumes
- Troubleshooting Virtual Volumes
- Filtering Virtual Machine I/O
- Storage Hardware Acceleration
- Hardware Acceleration Benefits
- Hardware Acceleration Requirements
- Hardware Acceleration Support Status
- Hardware Acceleration for Block Storage Devices
- Hardware Acceleration on NAS Devices
- Hardware Acceleration Considerations
- Thin Provisioning and Space Reclamation
- Using vmkfstools
- vmkfstools Command Syntax
- The vmkfstools Command Options
- -v Suboption
- File System Options
- Virtual Disk Options
- Supported Disk Formats
- Creating a Virtual Disk
- Initializing a Virtual Disk
- Inflating a Thin Virtual Disk
- Converting a Zeroedthick Virtual Disk to an Eagerzeroedthick Disk
- Removing Zeroed Blocks
- Deleting a Virtual Disk
- Renaming a Virtual Disk
- Cloning or Converting a Virtual Disk or RDM
- Extending a Virtual Disk
- Upgrading Virtual Disks
- Creating a Virtual Compatibility Mode Raw Device Mapping
- Creating a Physical Compatibility Mode Raw Device Mapping
- Listing Attributes of an RDM
- Displaying Virtual Disk Geometry
- Checking and Repairing Virtual Disks
- Checking Disk Chain for Consistency
- Storage Device Options
Prerequisites
n
Verify whether the adapter must be licensed.
n
Install the adapter on your ESXi host.
For information about licensing, installation, and firmware updates, see vendor documentation.
The process of setting up the independent hardware iSCSI adapter includes these steps.
Step Description
View Independent Hardware iSCSI
Adapters
View an independent hardware iSCSI adapter and verify that it is correctly installed and
ready for configuration.
Modify General Properties for iSCSI
or iSER Adapters
If needed, change the default iSCSI name and alias assigned to your iSCSI adapters. For
the independent hardware iSCSI adapters, you can also change the default IP settings.
Edit Network Settings for Hardware
iSCSI
Change default network settings so that the adapter is configured properly for the iSCSI
SAN.
Configure Dynamic or Static
Discovery for iSCSI and iSER
Set up dynamic discovery. With dynamic discovery, each time the initiator contacts a
specified iSCSI storage system, it sends the SendTargets request to the system. The iSCSI
system responds by supplying a list of available targets to the initiator. In addition to the
dynamic discovery method, you can use static discovery and manually enter information for
the targets.
Set Up CHAP for iSCSI or iSER
Adapter
If your iSCSI environment uses the Challenge Handshake Authentication Protocol (CHAP),
configure it for your adapter.
Enable Jumbo Frames for
Independent Hardware iSCSI
If your iSCSI environment supports Jumbo Frames, enable them for the adapter.
View Independent Hardware iSCSI Adapters
View an independent hardware iSCSI adapter and verify that it is correctly installed and ready for
configuration.
After you install an independent hardware iSCSI adapter on a host, it appears on the list of storage
adapters available for configuration. You can view its properties.
Prerequisites
Required privilege: Host.Configuration.Storage Partition Configuration
Procedure
1 Navigate to the host.
2 Click the Configure tab.
3 Under Storage, click Storage Adapters.
If installed, the hardware iSCSI adapter appears on the list of storage adapters.
4 Select the adapter to view.
The default details for the adapter appear.
vSphere Storage
VMware, Inc. 78