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March 4th, 2011 05:00

Enable Jumbo Frames on MD3200i?

Right up front let me say that I am new to iSCSI storage, so if any of these questions seem patently obvious just chuckle and consider the source ... please :emotion-8:

My question is simple .... Do I need to enable Jumbo Frames on each of the host ports on the MD3200i in order to accept MTUs above 1500? I know the answer seems obvious, but I ask because:

  1. In the past (3) months I have installed (2) MD32x0i SANS for use with VSphere ESXi 4.1 environments.
  2. With each configuration I used Dell Installation Support services to setup and configure the end to end iSCSI traffic.
  3. With each configuration the Dell technical support reps walked me through configuring the iSCSI dedicated VLANS (Dell 6248 switches) to accommodate Jumbo Frames.
  4. With each configuration the Dell reps walked me through setting up the VSwitch, VMK ports and iSCSI initiator on the various ESXi 4.1 host servers.
  5. At no time during either installation did the Dell rep have me enable Jumbo Frames on any of the (8) MD32x0i host ports.

It seems to me that if I have enabled Jumbo Frames at each leg of the journey to the MD32x0i, then Jumbo Frames should be enabled on the MD32x0i as well. Am I missing something or was this an oversight on the part of Dell? I am inclined to think it is an oversight, because on the first installation they also forgot to have me set the MTU = 9000 on the vSwitches and VMK ports ... that's another topic for another time.:emotion-6:

Everything SEEMS to be working well enough, but I don't have any tools to actually track disk performance or Jumbo Frame packet transmission.

So, do they NEED to be enabled or does leaving this value unchecked somehow allow the device to "auto sense" packet size and adapt accordingly?

Thanks in advance.

4 Operator

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9.3K Posts

March 4th, 2011 06:00

You are correct; if you don't set the maximum allowable frame size on the array's iSCSI ports to 9000, your performance may suffer significantly if your set up the host (irregardless of the OS) to send jumbo frame packets.

899 Posts

March 4th, 2011 07:00

So, do they NEED to be enabled or does leaving this value unchecked somehow allow the device to "auto sense" packet size and adapt accordingly?

     You must check the box and set your frame size. If the box is left unchecked it will Default to 1500. Looks like this was an oversight by your installation team.


Bob



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