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MD3000i + 2 R710 servers + VMware Infrastructure = advice needed!
I am soon to order 2 R710 servers and an MD3000i, along with VMWare Infrastructure Enterprise. I have been reading numerous documents and forums for days on end. The picture becomes more clear each day, but things are still a bit fuzzy :-)
First of all, I first had Dell spec out the servers with 4 NIC ports each. However after reading around, I think it might be best if each server has 6 NIC ports. I will be using ESXi, running from the on board SD slot.
I have struggled over whether or not I should use my existing core switch (HP 5308XL) for this project, or get a new switch(s). I'd like to avoid VLANS if possible.
If I did go with new switches, would the dell powerconnect 5424 be a good choice? Or should I go with HP Procurve 2810 24G switches? All of the switches on my network are HP Procurve 26xx series, and I use the Procurve Manager Plus software. I'd like the switches to allow the single subnet configuration, since VMware does not support the 2 subnet config. The following thread has been helpful, but I'm still confused: http://www.delltechcenter.com/thread/1963035/MD3000i+and+vmware+%3A+redundant+iscsi+setup
I have a lot of questions...I want to get the right equipment ordered and set up right the first time! Any help would be greatly appreciated!
First of all, I first had Dell spec out the servers with 4 NIC ports each. However after reading around, I think it might be best if each server has 6 NIC ports. I will be using ESXi, running from the on board SD slot.
I have struggled over whether or not I should use my existing core switch (HP 5308XL) for this project, or get a new switch(s). I'd like to avoid VLANS if possible.
If I did go with new switches, would the dell powerconnect 5424 be a good choice? Or should I go with HP Procurve 2810 24G switches? All of the switches on my network are HP Procurve 26xx series, and I use the Procurve Manager Plus software. I'd like the switches to allow the single subnet configuration, since VMware does not support the 2 subnet config. The following thread has been helpful, but I'm still confused: http://www.delltechcenter.com/thread/1963035/MD3000i+and+vmware+%3A+redundant+iscsi+setup
I have a lot of questions...I want to get the right equipment ordered and set up right the first time! Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Kong Yang
180 Posts
0
May 13th, 2009 15:00
Have you read through the Dell VSE team's reference architecture?
http://i.dell.com/sites/content/business/solutions/whitepapers/en/Documents/virtualization_ref_architecture_v1_1.pdf
Razorhog1
8 Posts
0
May 13th, 2009 16:00
Kong Yang
180 Posts
0
May 15th, 2009 13:00
I'm glad to hear that you're up and running. The Dell VSE RA does show a highly available config with 2-switches ISL'ed together.
Also, have you seen the MD3000i + ESX setup guide?
http://i.dell.com/sites/content/business/solutions/engineering-docs/en/Documents/md3000i_esx_deploy_guide.pdf
If you have further questions, please do post them.
Razorhog1
8 Posts
0
May 15th, 2009 14:00
Take a look at my Visio drawing and see what you think. I'm confused about the management and vmotion networks. http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3370/3534476366_b842e34322_o.jpg
Andreas Erson
94 Posts
0
May 18th, 2009 00:00
Razorhog1
8 Posts
0
May 18th, 2009 05:00
Andreas Erson
94 Posts
0
May 18th, 2009 06:00
Razorhog1
8 Posts
0
May 18th, 2009 11:00
Andreas Erson
94 Posts
0
May 18th, 2009 15:00
Razorhog1
8 Posts
0
May 18th, 2009 16:00
Razorhog1
8 Posts
0
May 20th, 2009 10:00
Andreas Erson
94 Posts
0
May 21st, 2009 05:00
jhboricuamn
26 Posts
0
May 21st, 2009 11:00
Razorhog1
8 Posts
0
May 21st, 2009 12:00
Thanks to everyone who replied!
Andreas Erson
94 Posts
0
May 22nd, 2009 02:00
The HP 5308xl has a switch fabric that only handle 78Gbps. If you populate the 8 module slots with three 16-port GbE-modules (J4907A) you are already up to 96Gbps. Throw in a couple of 24-port FE-modules at 4.8Gbps á pop and you can see that the 5308xl is nowhere near wirespeed in the switch fabric. The HP 5300xl-series was released in 2002 and that switch fabric wasn't bad back then. In 2006 they released the 5400yl with a switch fabric capable of 345.6Gbps for the 6 modules version.
Both solutions would work in your scenario since there is no chance you would come even near the performance limits with your current setup.