Ask the Expert: VMAX3 New Features, Best Practices, Trouble-Shooting Tips

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This Ask the Expert session is now open for questions. For the next couple of weeks our Subject Matter Experts will be around to reply to your questions, comments or inquiries about our topic.

Let’s make this conversation useful, respectful and entertaining for all. Enjoy!

Hi team, first of all - many thanks for your participation in creating such a great product as VMAX3, cheers.

I am interested in any embedded hypervisor evolution: as I know, currently Hypermax OS hypervisor offers three types of VMs (Control Station VM, Data Mover VM, eManagement VM). Do you have any future plans or roadmaps for "placing" new services inside Hypermax OS hypervisor VMs?

Thanks and regards, Pavel Goncharov

So I have a question. I was reading this blog: vSphere 6 and VAAI performance boost on VMAX and found the discussion around copying with an extent size of 4 MB interesting. From reading the blog I understand that with vSphere 6 we can adust the values to allow for a maximum extent size of 240 MB. Steps in the blog take the reader through how to make the necessary changes.

Have you tried configuring for a larger extent size on the VMAX or VMAX3 and what have been the results?

Evan,

with the September 2015 release of HyperMaxOS you can grow/expand devices non-disruptively, the neat thing about this is that you don't need to use any BCV as in previous generations just specify the new size in CYL/MB/MB or TB, a device can grow up to 64 TB with this release.  It's easy to do this via Unipshere or with the symdev command in Symcli.

Hi Pavel,

As you are aware, we introduced our eNAS(Embedded NAS) solution in Q4 of 2014.

EMC is now offering embedded management (eManagement) through the HYPERMAX OS hypervisor. This announcement enables customers to further simplify management, reduce cost, and increase availability by running VMAX3 management software directly on VMAX3 arrays. A separate management server is not required. Key elements of eManagement include running embedded Unisphere, Solutions Enabler, and SMI-S management software on VMAX3. Customers can continue to run VMAX3 management software on a dedicated server if they plan to manage several VMAX3 arrays from a single management console.

We are always looking at additional data services to embed that would provide value to our customers. Are there some specific ones you would like us to consider? And if so, how would the provide additional value for you?

Thanks,

Harold

As I mentioned in my blog I did not want to get into the weeds too much but if you read my whitepaper it explains there are only 8 segments available in a command and each one holds 30 MB so 240 MB is the maximum.

Drew - thanks for the input.

ALL: below is the link to the VMware API integration with VMAX white paper:

http://www.emc.com/collateral/hardware/white-papers/h8115-vmware-vstorage-vmax-wp.pdf

Harold,

SMAS aka Unisphere for VMAX could run on the service processor before (if CE enabled it during install). So what's different now as far as VMAX3 management software is concerned ?

Thanks

Paul Martin wrote: Evan, with the September 2015 release of HyperMaxOS you can grow/expand devices non-disruptively, the neat thing about this is that you don't need to use any BCV as in previous generations just specify the new size in CYL/MB/MB or TB, a device can grow up to 64 TB with this release.  It's easy to do this via Unipshere or with the symdev command in Symcli.

release notes ?

Dynamox,

in response to the embedded management, Unisphere is not running on the SP hardware, it's running in the HyperMax OS as a Guest OS (VM) on the director hardware in the FA emulation. When we run Unisphere for VMAX embedded it runs in a high availability mode so if for any reason a director goes offline we still have all of management functionality and monitoring.  I think Harold has highlighted the main benefits already.

Dyanamox,

release notes will be posed when the Q3 code GA's late september

Thanks Paul.  Can you tell me more about the Solutions Enabler functionality ? Does it mean that i no longer need to stand up my own VM, present gatekeepers to it ? I could install SE on my workstation and configure SE in client/server configuration, server being the HyperMAX Guest ?

Paul,

we use device groups a lot, will SE allow me to create device groups on eMGMT itself ( we are not usig GNS).