thanks for the RT

we are using block storage and unisphere

are you presenting block storage or file storage ? Are you using VSI plug-in or Unisphere/Navisphere/Celerra Manager ?

here is a good paper on overall integration

http://www.emc.com/collateral/hardware/technical-documentation/h8229-vnx-vmware-tb.pdf

but let's check a few things, how are you connecting from ESX host to VNX (FC, iSCSI, FCOE ) ?

Thx for that. We actually have a celerra ns120 unified storage system not the vnx.  We are using iscsi.

http://www.vmware.com/pdf/vsphere4/r41/vsp_41_iscsi_san_cfg.pdf

chas1121, with your NS series you can have two possible methods of presenting storage via iSCSI.  Could you verify the following:

1) Are you presenting via the datamovers or from the storage processors?

2) also, so that we can help with exact steps are you managing with Unisphere or Celerra Manager/Navisphere? or possibly CLI?

My first instinct is that you are presenting via the datamovers and am suspecting you are missing the LUN Masking.  With the targets created and the initiators logged in and visible in the GUI, you will need to now create your iSCSI LUN Masks which then associates the Initiator(s) with the desired iSCSI LUNs.  When creating the iSCSI LUN Masks, the inputs will be the IQN of the initiators and the list of LUNs in the "Grant LUNs" field.

For block presentation (via the storage processors), the LUN Masking would be accomplished with "Storage Groups".