Introduction

The storage workshop is a chance for VCPs to explain virtual storage, and a chance for the Storage team to explain the organization's storage setup.

The goal is to bring the two teams together and produce an outline of a possible design, and a list of actions to complete the design and input to the Technical Design document.

Intended Audience

VMware Certified Professionals (VCP) and Network experts (CCNA, CCIE)

Outline

1. Reference to VI3 Requirements Specifications

2. VMware Storage

3. Organization Storage

4. Integration Points

5. Design Actions

On a large piece of paper on the wall, the key networking requirements from VI3.Blueprint Requirements Specification.

In this VI3.Blueprint, the requirements are as follows:

{extract table rows from requirements doc}

The first key part of this workshop is to explain VMware Storage. The following topics should be either whiteboarded or using Powerpoint slides, with a top-down (app down thru infra) explanation.

This is a logical/high-level discussion that doesn't show physical ports, but may show logical paths and LUNs.

The VCP should lead this discussion and keep the diagrams for later discussions.

1. Local disk, FC, iSCSI and NFS

2. VMware's virtual filesystem VMFS3

1. Features

2. Performance

3. Virtual Disks and Raw Disk Mappings (RDMs)

4. vmkernel storage behavious - redundant NICs and pathing software

There are also some key topics to cover once the above has been mapped out:

1. LUN sizing

2. Guest / VMFS alignment

3. Visibility of storage from VM, VC, ESX and VCB/Backup hosts

4. Correct pathing to match storage (path thrashing etc)

5. Zoning (single-intitiator, single-target best practice)

6. VMware snapshots vs SAN snapshots and quiescing

7. NPIV

The goal of this first session is a basic understanding of VMware networking components and how they interact with other network devices.

The second key part of this workshop is to explain the organization's storage systems, specifically those that apply to virtualization on Intel. This should be a diagram and discussion of the immediate storage components around the proposed solution, as well as any standards and constraints such as redundancy requirements or any constraints due to standards agreed prior to virtualization (e.g. standard LUN size for "Intel Machines" may no longer apply, if that standard is like "33GB LUN is default size").

The Storage expert should lead this discussion and keep the diagrams for later discussions.

1. Logical storage topology, showing storage network/fabric layout for FC, iSCSI and NFS options.

2. Available arrays (types - Active/Active or Active/Passive)

3. What is the storage design for Windows and Linux servers?

This part of the workshop can only be undertaken once the first two "awareness" pieces have been completed.

Now it is possible to draw up the VI3 components and the organization storage systems and visualize how they will be connected. Whereas previous discussion have been logical/high level, this discussion is physical/low level, showing the actual connections between VC, VM, ESX, VCB and the storage systems.

1. Draw VC connection to SAN storage

2. Draw ESX connection to SAN storage

3. Draw zoning

4. Mark LUN sizing

This final part of the workshop identified the next steps, which are:

1. Summary of design decisions from this workshop, if any.

2. Further research required, such as clarifying any VMware or Organization awareness items.

3. Sketch out the requirements for input to the VI3.Blueprint Technical Design Document.