Technical
Brief
Using Emulex LightPulse HBAs
and OneConnect 10GbE Adapters
with VMware vStorage
Connectivity
Emulex supports VMware vStorage with high-performance HBAs and 10GbE Adapters
Introduction
Server virtualization has become a key technology to optimize resources and
reduce costs in the data center. VMware is the global leader in server virtualization
and is continuing to deliver new technologies that improve both performance and
functionality.
VMware vStorage APIs enhance the storage infrastructure for VMware vSphere 4
and vSphere 5, and also deliver significant improvements in I/O performance. A
SAN based on the Fibre Channel protocol is the complementary technology that
provides shared, scalable, high-performance storage that fully enables vStorage.
Emulex LightPulse HBAs and OneConnect 10GbE adapters are fully compatible
with vStorage and provide both the performance and bandwidth required to
achieve high virtualization ratios and to virtualize I/O-intensive applications. This
tech brief will highlight the benefits of vStorage with support by Emulex HBAs and
10GbE iSCSI and FCoE adapters.
VMware vStorage APIs
vStorage APIs enable VMware storage array partners to tightly integrate their
array-based capabilities with VMs that are deployed on ESX Server. These APIs
include support for:
n
n
Data protection—Using vStorage APIs, VMware partners can enhance their
backup applications to seamlessly integrate with VMs running on vSphere 4 and
vSphere 5. This includes support for snapshots, backup and restore.
Multipathing—The ESX VMkernel includes a Pluggable Storage Architecture
(PSA) that provides multipathing support for both the ESX Native Multipathing
Module and custom software plug-in modules that use vStorage APIs. Using
vStorage multipathing APIs, VMware partners can provide load balancing
capabilities for VMs that are similar to solutions for physical servers.
Emulex HBAs and 10GbE iSCSI and FCoE adapters are fully tested and qualified
for use with a wide range of products from the leading storage array providers for
Fibre Channel SANs. Emulex drivers are fully integrated with the ESX environment
and natively “just work” with vStorage APIs.
At a Glance
VMware® vStorage application programming
interfaces (APIs) enhance the storage
infrastructure for VMware vSphere 4 and
vSphere 5. Using these APIs, storage
providers are delivering data protection
and multipathing solutions that support
virtual machines (VMs) in the same way that
physical machines have been supported.
VMware vStorage also includes storage
features that enhance both scalability and
performance for Storage Area Network
(SAN)-attached storage. These include
Thin Provisioning, Volume Grow and
VMDirectPath.
Emulex® LightPulse® Host Bus Adapter
(HBAs) and OneConnect™ 10Gb Ethernet
(10GbE) iSCSI and Fibre Channel over
Ethernet (FCoE) adapters are fully compatible
with vStorage with no special setup required,
they “just work”. Emulex adapters also
provide the performance and bandwidth
required to achieve high virtualization ratios
and to virtualize I/O-intensive applications.
Using Emulex LightPulse HBAs
and OneConnect 10GbE Adapters
with VMware vStorage
New Storage Capabilities
vStorage also provides capabilities that enable more effective use
of SAN storage. These include:
n
Thin provisioning—Virtual disks can be created with disk space
allocated for current and future requirements, but with actual
disk space only used as needed. A typical thin provisioning
implementation could reduce storage usage by up to 50%.
n
VMDirectPath—A direct connection is provided from a
guest operating system to an I/O device, bypassing storage
virtualization in ESX Server to deliver high-performance access
to storage with greater CPU efficiency. VMDirectPath is ideally
suited for applications that require maximum I/O, but there are
also significant restrictions and limitations. Virtualization features,
such as hardware independence and VMotion are not available
to VMs that use VMDirectPath. VMs that use VMDirectPath also
require a fully dedicated HBA port.
Thin Provisioning and Volume Grow are designed to work with
shared and scalable SAN-based storage and both are supported by
Emulex HBAs and 10GbE iSCSI and FCoE adapters. VMDirectPath
is supported with Emulex LightPulse LPe12000 8Gb/s HBAs.
VMware vCenter Storage Management
Using the “Storage Views” tab in VMware vCenter, users can see
an end-to-end view of storage from the VM to storage targets
(array ports). The view can also be tailored to target specific
components for analysis and troubleshooting.
Figure 1 Thin provisioning improves disk utilization.
VStorage thin provisioning only applies to extending the Virtual
Machine File System (VMFS) datastore. It does not affect arraybased capabilities for thin provisioning and is therefore arrayagnostic. Alarms and reports are provided to track usage and
prepare for storage expansion, and there are several options that
can be used when the datastore becomes fully used. Remedies
include adding extents to the datastore, increasing the existing
extent with Volume Grow, and migrating virtual disks using
Storage vMotion.
n
Volume Grow—VMFS datastores can be expanded without
affecting running VMs. The two-step process begins by using
an array’s management utility to increase space allocated for
the datastore logic unit number (LUN). Volume Grow can then
expand the datastore up to the increased LUN size.
Figure 2 End-to-end view of storage with VMware vCenter.
Using Emulex LightPulse HBAs
and OneConnect 10GbE Adapters
with VMware vStorage
Host-based quality of service (QoS) can also be used to set I/O
priorities for virtual disks.
Emulex OneCommand Manager Application
Complementing VMware vCenter, the OneCommand™ Manager
application provides management of Emulex HBAs and 10GbE
iSCSI and FCoE adapters throughout the data center from a
centralized console. OneCommand Manager includes the capability
to manage ESXi servers online using a Common Interface Model
(CIM) provider that ships in-box with ESX and ESXi.
Emulex also offers the OneCommand Manager plug-in for VMware
that allows data center administrators to manage Emulex adapters
directly from the VMware vCenter management console. This
option provides adapter management that is fully integrated into
the VMware management framework.
Conclusion
Fibre Channel SANs provide the storage infrastructure needed
to optimize server virtualization. VMware vStorage enhances that
infrastructure with new capabilities and APIs for integration with
third-party applications. Emulex HBAs and 10GbE iSCSI and
FCoE adapters provide a high-performance SAN connection that
fully enables vStorage.
Figure 3 Setting virtual disk QoS with VMware vCenter
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©2011 Emulex, Inc. All rights reserved. This document refers to various companies and products by their trade names. In most,
if not all cases, their respective companies claim these designations as trademarks or registered trademarks. This information
is provided for reference only. Although this information is believed to be accurate and reliable at the time of publication, Emulex
assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions. Emulex reserves the right to make changes or corrections without notice.
This report is the property of Emulex and may not be duplicated without permission from the Company.
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