VVols question

Hmm... vVols works different as you think. The VSM is needed to submit Array and Volume characteristica to vSphere by the "vStorage APIs for Storage Awareness" (VASA). It tells what an array can do so one thing is that a  vsphere admin can specify policies and add them to VM configuration.

There is a VMware Hands On Lab on how to work with Dell EQL/VSM and vVols in vSphere 6.0. You can do it online.

For now

- vVols are only supportet on single Members Groups

- Support for Async. Replication is on the roadmap or maybe already there... check the docs!

- There will never be support for Sync. Replication

- You need vSphere Std. or up

Regards,

Joerg

Hello,

 VSM is needed to create, and manage VVOL Datastores.   AKA Storage Containers.  Additionally VSM provides the VASA provider that VMware needs to talk to the array.  Once VVOLs are up and running, VSM isn't need to start/stop/migrate or pass traffic through.   That wouldn't make for a robust solution if you needed something like VSM to support VMs in that way.

So when everything comes back up the ESXi nodes should reconnect to the VVOL Datastores just like VMFS Datastores and depending on if you have the VMs set to power up, they will come back just like VMFS ones.   Or if not you have to power them up manually.

So VVOLs can be thought of as just another type of Datastore for VMware.   Which is how it's presented inside the GUI.  Under "Storage".

For VVOLs you must be running EQL FW 8.0 EPA or greater,  VMware 6.0, and VSM 4.5.  

This thread has a discussion about VVOLs and some helpful links

This one especially, its a tech "primer" on VVOLs with EQL

en.community.dell.com/.../dell-supports-new-vsphere-6-0-features-out-of-the-gate

Regards,

Don

Re: Async replication.  Not yet.  Everyone is waiting for the next version of VMware VVOL API for replication.  

Also currently with the 8.0 EPA firmware, you are restricted to using VVOLs in Single MEMBER groups only.   That restriction will be lifted later.