Welcome to Dell EMC video for Connectrix Cisco Data Center Network Manager.
How to enable the slowdrain collect parameter and capture the Slow Drain Analysis Report from DCNM reference Dell EMC Knowledge Base Article # 546553. This video was created to enable the "slowdrain collect parameter" which is under "server.properties" file in DCNM Web Client.
Collect the Slow Drain Analysis Report from the Web Client for the fabrics which are discovered in DCNM. This video presents the following. In a SAN environment, performance issues are the common problems that we face. This should be identified and then rectified in order to avoid any disruption in the SAN fabrics.
On DCNM Web Client we will first enable the "slowdrain collect" parameter which is under "server.properties" file. If this parameter is not enabled then we will not be able to retrieve the values for all the switch interfaces in our Slow Drain Analysis Report. The Slow Drain Analysis enables you to view slow drain statistics at the switch level and also, at the port level.
Please take a moment to review the details. When do we do this? When we observe a Performance issue in the fabrics. Once the performance issue occurs the device processing speed degrades, I/O warnings pop up. The cause of the performance issue could be hosts, storage, or switch ports.
For some reason, they cannot return buffer credits to upstream devices delay or congestion and even dropped frames cause performance issues. The possible factors that may cause bottleneck devices can be a physical layer for example, fiber optic module (SFP) fiber optic cable, patch panel/ODF or terminal devices, such as host insufficient CPU/RAM poor storage performance.
It can also be caused by SAN itself such as the actual traffic exceeds the maximum capacity. Before you begin kindly have the IP address of the DCNM server. Also, have Administrator credentials for the DCNM Web Client. Demonstration of how to enable the slowdrain collect all parameter and to capture the Slow Drain Analysis Report from Data Center Network Manager (DCNM). Launch the DCNM Web Client.
Key in the username, which is Administrator in this case. Type the password used to log into the DCNM Web Client. Click on the Login button. Expand monitor on the left pane. Select Slow Drain Analysis. Select a desired fabric which is discovered on DCNM server to generate the report.
The duration can be either once or daily. When selecting "daily," set the start and end time for the report to run. Then the same can be forwarded to an email ID. You can also schedule jobs to capture the report on a daily basis. In this video, we are selecting the duration as "once" and we will run the Slow Drain Analysis Report for ten minutes.
Click on the Start Collection icon to run the Slow Drain Analysis Report. On the right-hand side you will be able to check the time remaining for the report generation to finish. You can check the status of the report that is being generated under Current jobs for the fabric that is selected.
Click on the Expand button for the Current jobs in order to view the report post-completion. Select job post-completion. Click on Result to view the generated report. We can apply filters to the selected job. The options will be listed for selection, in this case option "All" is selected.
You can see that we are unable to view the report generated for all switch interfaces. We are able to view the Slow Drain Analysis Report only for two switch interfaces, which are used for inter-switch links. You can print the report which will open in a new tab on the same browser.
This is the complete view of the generated Slow Drain Analysis Report. By default, we can only view the report only for inter-switch link port, and not for FPort. Now, we will check how to enable the slowdrain collect all parameter. Click on Administration. Under DCNM server, you have to select the Server Properties.
The slowdrain collect all parameter can be retrieved under Performance Manager, Collections. We can see that the parameter slowdrain.collectAll by default is set to "false." Slow drain feature to collect all ports default is "false." We have to set the slowdrain.collectAll parameter to "true." Click on Apply Changes to save the configuration on Server Properties.
You will receive a pop-up stating This option is applicable when we have DCNM configuration in federated mode. "Please resync vmm if you updated vmm.resync.timer." This option is applicable when we have center compute virtualization enabled in DCNM.
Click Ok to continue. Kindly note that you will have to go ahead and restart the services on the DCNM server post which you will have to return to the DCNM Web Client to log in. Note: DCNM Web Client will take a few minutes to log in post restarting the services on DCNM server.
The fabric with name "fabric switch 1" is selected here. Click on the Start Collection icon to run the Slow Drain Analysis Report once again. You can check the status of the report that is being generated displaying as "Collection In Progress" under current jobs for the fabric that is selected.
The time remaining is displayed on the right side. Click on the Expand button for the current jobs in order to view the report post-completion. Click on the Expand button for the current jobs in order to view the report post-completion. Click on Result to view the generated report.
We can apply filters to the selected job. Select the "All" option which will display the result for all switch interfaces. We are able to view the Slow Drain Analysis Report for all the switch interfaces. You can print the report which will open in a new tab on the same browser by clicking on the Print button.
The Slow Drain Analysis Report will open on a new tab in the same browser. This is the complete view of the generated Slow Drain Analysis Report which displays the results for all the switch interfaces.
In order to save the Slow Drain Analysis Report on your local machine, you will have to export it. The Slow Drain Analysis Report can be exported either in CSV or Excel format. Here, we have selected the option "Excel." Then, click on Export to save the file. Note: You will not be able to export the file in CSV format.
It is no longer supported by DCNM. Even if you select it, the file exported will be in Excel. You can check at the bottom left that the Excel file is getting saved on your local machine. Click the file to open it. The Slow Drain Analysis Report enables you to view slowdrain statistics at the switch level and the port level.
It provides a high-level view of TXWait, timeout drops, credit loss recovery overutilization and port monitor events. The slow drain statistics are stored in the cache memory. Therefore, the statistics are lost when the server is restarted or a new diagnostic request is placed.
Kindly note you will observe values incremented under the report only if there are ongoing issues. Otherwise, the values obtained would be zero. Please take a few minutes to review the important notes for your reference. Refer to the following for more information.
From the Dell EMC Support portal you can view the Knowledge Base article for a detailed explanation. Refer to the DCNM SAN Management Configuration Guide.
Thank you for watching.
