In this video, we will show you how to attach a VMware ESXi host to an ME5 system through the iSCSI protocol. Before you begin: Complete the installation of your ME5 system hardware Complete the basic setup of PowerVault Manager Review the Dell PowerVault ME5 Series Storage System Deployment Guide for host cabling and set-up instructions.
Review the ME5 Series Storage System Administrator’s Guide for information on configuring hosts and volume in PowerVault Manager. Prepare a network planning worksheet based on the examples in the Deployment Guide.
Set up a new iSCSI software adapter in vSphere. First connect the ME5 system to your ESXi host according to instructions in the ME5 Series Deployment Guide.
Your configuration may vary, but it will look similar to this diagram. On the ME5 5U system, controller A is on the right and controller B is on the left. Ports are identified as port 0 through port 3 going right to left.
On your network planning worksheet, record each controller port and the switch port or host server port it is connected to. Later we will identify the WWN.
It is recommended that you track the IPs for the ports and devices connected to the ME5 system in a planning worksheet. As a best practice, use a consistent convention to create the IPs.
For example: The 2nd number in the final octet represents the port number, and the last digit of the 4th octet represents which controller the port is on.
All Controller A addresses end in 0, whereas all Controller B addresses end in 5. In this example, Controller A, port 0 uses 200 in the 4th octet of the IP address, Controller A, port 1 uses 210 in the 4th octet, and Controller A, port 2 uses 220 in the 4th octet. Controller B, Port 0 ends in 205, B1 ends in 215, and so on.
The 3rd octet of the IP address indicates which subnet the port is connected to. For example, A0 is on subnet 10 and the 3rd octet is 10, whereas A1 is on subnet 11 and the 3rd octet is 11.
Next, configure the networking devices in vSphere. On the Configure tab, under Networking, select Physical Adapters. Locate the name of the iSCSI NIC and record it.
It is important to assign the correct IP to each NIC. Under Networking, select Virtual switches. Select Add Networking to launch the Add Networking wizard.
In the wizard, leave the connection type as the default of VmKernel Network Adapter. For the target device, select New standard switch. Also specify the MTU.
For Assigned adapters, click the plus sign to Add Adapters. Add a physical adapter on the correct subnet to the virtual switch. In this case, we identified vmnic4 as the first NIC.
Click OK to return to the Add Networking wizard, and then click Next. In the Port properties, change the Network label to something that helps identify the purpose of the NIC, such as iSCSI A0 where A0 is the first port on Controller A.
Leave other options at their default settings and click Next. In the IPv4 settings, select Use static IP settings and enter the IP address and gateway for the port that will connect to the adapter.
Use information from the network planning worksheet to complete the wizard. Review the settings and click Finish. The new Virtual switch is shown in the Virtual switches pane.
Repeat steps 5-9 for each NIC used to connect to the ME5. On the Configure tab, under Storage, select Storage Adaptors. Select the iSCSI adapter and then click the Dynamic Discovery tab.
Click Add. Enter the iSCSI IP address that is assigned to the iSCSI host port of controller A and then click OK. Repeat these steps for the iSCSI host port on controller B.
Note: If each of the VMkernels used for iSCSI are on separate subnets, skip this step. If multiple VMkernels are used on the same subnet, configure the network port binding.
Click the Network Port Binding tab, then click Add to add the virtual network port to bind with the iSCSI adapter. NOTE: This step is required to establish a link between the iSCSI Adapter and the Vmkernel adapters that you created.
Repeat these steps for the other VMkernals. Rescan the storage adapters. Next, configure the hosts on the PowerVault ME5 system. Log in to PowerVault Manager.
From the main dashboard, go to Provisioning and select Hosts. Select Create Host to launch the wizard. Enter the Host Name. Select the correct initiator for the host, using your worksheet as a guide to map the IP and Initiator ID.
You can give this host initiator a nickname. It is recommended to use something that clearly identifies the initiator for that particular host. Then, select Add Initiators To Host, and click Continue.
Optionally, attach the host or host group to a volume. You can choose to create a new volume during this step or attach the host to an existing volume. For this video, we will create a new volume to attach to the host.
Select Attach host or host groups to volumes and select Create new volumes to attach to host or Host Group. Click Continue. Select the pool on which you want to deploy the volume. Name the volume.
Again, it is recommended that you include something descriptive of the volume use in the name, such as the host name. Click Add Volume, then click Continue.
Review the information for the host and associated volume and click Continue to complete the Create Host wizard. When hosts are created, you will see a Success message pop up.
Next, complete the configuration of the volume in vSphere. Launch the vSphere client. Select the host, click the Configure tab, select Storage and then click Rescan Storage.
The associated volume for the host should appear as a new storage device. Next, create a new datastore. Click Datastores. Select Actions Storage New Datastore.
Select VMFS as the datastore typee and click Next. Name the datastore, then select the ME5 volume from the list of devices. Click Next. Select the version VMFS 6 and click Next.
Leave the partition settings at their default values and click Next. Review the information, then click Finish. For more detailed steps on configuring the datastore in vSphere, review the VMware vSphere documentation.
Lastly, set up multipathing. Select the newly created datastore Select Connectivity and Multipathing. Make sure the Path selection Policy is set to Round Robin (VMware).
If not, edit the multipathing policy. Your ME5 system storage is now ready to be used by the hosts. For detailed steps and custom commands for MPIO see the Dell PowerVault ME5 Series: VMware vSphere Best Practices guide.
To access this guide and for more information or support about managing PowerVault ME5 hosts, visit Dell.com/Support.
