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Dell PowerStore Virtualization Infrastructure Guide

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Configuring a storage container for NVMe/TCP vVols

Prerequisites

Support for NVMe/TCP vVols on PowerStore requires:

  • VMware ESXi version 8.0 Update 2 or later
  • PowerStoreOS version 3.6.x or later
  • PowerStore storage network configured for the NVMe protocol
    NOTE:After configuring a new storage network or modifying an existing storage network, rescan the VASA Provider in vSphere.
  • A PowerStore host created with the NVMe vVol host Initiator Type. See NVMe host namespaces for vVols for more information.

For the latest information about ESXi version compatibility and special considerations, see KB article 000216664. For information about the latest qualified versions of ESXi with PowerStore, see the PowerStore Simple Support Matrix, which can be downloaded from dell.com/powerstoredocs.

Limitations:

  • Storage networks using Centralized Discovery Controllers (CDC) are not supported for PowerStore vVols.
  • Using an ESXi host that is configured with both an NVMe adapter for FC and an NVMe adapter for TCP for NVMe vVols on a single PowerStore appliance is not supported.
  • Automatic space reclaim is not supported for NVMe vVols. Although PowerStore vVols are thin, vSphere does not present them as thin to the guest operating systems.

About this task

Configure a storage container for vVols using NVMe/TCP.

See the VMware documentation for your ESXi version for detailed vSphere instructions.

Steps

  1. In PowerStore Manager, register the VASA Provider. See Configure a vCenter server connection and register the VASA provider.
    Alternatively, manually register PowerStore as the VASA Provider in vCenter. See Manually register the VASA provider in vCenter Server.
  2. In vSphere on the ESXi host, add the NVMe over TCP storage adapter.
    For more information about configuring the storage adapter, see the Dell Host Connectivity Guide for VMware ESXi Server.
  3. In vSphere on the ESXi host, create the VMkernel adapter with NVMe over TCP enabled, or enable NVMe over TCP on an existing VMkernel adapter. Rescan the VASA provider and the NVMe storage adapter.
    After the rescan, the PowerStore NVMe controllers should be visible in vSphere.
  4. In PowerStore Manager, add the ESXi host NVMe/TCP vVol initiator.
    1. Under Compute, select Hosts Information > Add Host.
    2. On the Host Details page, enter a name for the host and select ESXi as the operating system.
    3. On the Initiator Type page, select NVMe vVol.
    4. On the Host Initiators page, select the host initiator from the autodiscovered initiators list based on the unique NVMe vVol NQN or Host-ID. The Initiator Type column displays NVMe vVol and the NQN string contains the value vvol.
      NOTE:ESXi hosts use a unique Host NQN and Host ID for NVMe vVols, separate from the ESXi host NVMe NQN. Because of the unique NVMe vVol IDs, separate host entries in PowerStore Manager must be created for NVMe vVols and traditional volumes using NVMe.
      • To validate the NVMe vVol-specific NQN for the host initiator in vSphere 8.0 Update 2, run the vSphere PowerCLI esxcli storage vvol nvme info get command.
      • To validate the NVMe vVol-specific NQN for the host initiator in vSphere 8.0 Update 1:
        • Enable SSH on the ESXi host.
        • Log in as root to the local VMware CLI.
        • Run the localcli --plugin-dir /usr/lib/vmware/esxcli/int storage internal vvol vasanvmecontext get command.
  5. In PowerStore Manager, create a storage container with the NVMe storage protocol. See Create a storage container.
  6. In vSphere, mount the new storage container to the ESXi host. Select the host, create a vVol datastore, and select the PowerStore NVMe/TCP storage container.

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