Dell VxRail 7.0.x Administration Guide

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VxRail components and features

PowerEdge servers provide power to VxRail which then uses HCI system software to provide virtualization, compute, and storage in a scalable system. VxRail provides centralized management, orchestration, and life cycle management. VxRail can be rapidly deployed into an existing data center environment that can deploy applications and services.

The following table provides an overview of VxRail components and features:

Table 1. VxRail components and featuresVxRail components and features
Components	Description
Management	VxRail Manager is a plug-in for the VMware vCenter Server to administer VxRail clusters from the VMware vSphere Web Client. The following functions are run by VxRail Manager: Performs diagnostics by automating physical views of each node, down to the component level. Automatically detects new nodes and adds the nodes to a cluster. Automates Day 0, Day 1, and Day 2 operations. Provides a single point of support, KB articles, user forums, and best practices. Provides a software stack for SDDC building blocks that include compute, network, storage, and management. Monitors system health with deep hardware intelligence and a UI. Views software versions and updates and upgrade system software. Accesses qualified software products with VxRail Market. Replaces hardware, add drives, and cycle power to the cluster or nodes. Continuously Validated State (CVS) monitors the VxRail compliance state and reports detected drifts.
Management	VxRail SaaS multicluster management provides centralized data collection and analytics to streamline monitoring of VxRail clusters, improve serviceability, and upgrade clusters. Use this information to manage the performance and capacity of your engineered HCI.
Storage	VMware vSAN represents VMware vSAN Original Storage Architecture (OSA). VxRail dynamic nodes PowerStore, PowerMax, and Dell Unity PowerFlex Another VMware vSAN cluster through vSAN HCI Mesh Virtualization infrastructure administrators manage storage on a per-VM basis. Storage policies are defined at the VM level for provisioning and load balancing.
Virtualization	VMware vSphere, including VMware ESXi VMware vCenter Server
VMs	RecoverPoint for VMs among other applications.

VxRail leverages VMware vSphere and VMware vSAN to provide server virtualization and software-defined storage. Through the logical and physical networks, individual nodes act as a single system providing scalability, resiliency, and workload balance.

The VxRail software bundle in the compute nodes contains VxRail Manager, VMware vCenter Server, VMware vSAN, and VMware vSphere. VMware vSAN and VMware vSphere are installed with temporary licenses. You must upgrade your license after the evaluation period has expired.