Managing VMAX

This chapter contains the following sections:

• Summary of Steps, page 1

• VMAX Management, page 2
• Thin Pools, page 2
• Thin Devices, page 3
• Data Devices, page 4
• Regular Devices, page 5
• Meta Devices, page 6
• Meta Member Devices, page 9
• Initiator Groups, page 10
• Storage Tiers, page 11
• Storage Groups, page 16
• Port Groups, page 23
• Masking Views, page 24
• Fully Automated Storage Tiering Overview, page 25
• VMAX Properties File, page 30

Summary of Steps

Step 1 Add the EMC VMAX account(s).

After adding your account, you have a populated inventory for all reports, including drill-down reports for masking
views, thin pools, initiator groups, port groups, storage groups, and devices.

Step 2 Manage the needed pools, groups, devices and views:

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VMAX Management

a) Create the thin pools.

b) Create all devices: data devices, thin devices, regular devices, and meta devices.
c) Create the initiator groups.
d) Create the storage groups.
e) Create the port groups.
f) Associate Fully Automated Storage Tiering (FAST) policies with the storage groups.
g) Add devices to the storage groups.
h) Create the masking views.

VMAX Management
In a Cisco UCS Director EMC VMAX account, you manage the following pools, groups, devices, and views:
• Thin pools—Create or delete, expand, bind or unbind, and view details
• Devices—data devices, thin devices, regular devices, and meta devices
• Initiator groups—Create or delete, rename, add or remove initiator, replace initiator, set override flags,
and view details
• Storage groups—Create or delete, rename, add or remove device, associate/disassociate FAST policy,
and view details
• Port groups—Create or delete, rename, add or remove port, and view details
• Masking views—Create or delete, rename, and view details

Thin Pools
A new thin pool requires a unique name.
The buttons on the Thin Pools tab provide the following actions:
Button Name Description
Create Creates a thin pool.

Expand Expands a thin pool.

Bind Binds a thin pool.

Unbind Unbinds a thin pool.

View Details Views detailed reports on a thin pool.

Delete Deletes a thin pool.

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Creating A Thin Pool

Creating A Thin Pool

An EMC VMAX thin pool is a collection of data devices that provide storage capacity for thin devices.

Step 1 Click Physical and choose Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX data center.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Thin Pools tab.
Step 5 Click Create.
Step 6 In the Create Thin Pool dialog box, enter a name in the Thin Pool Name field.
Step 7 Click Submit.

Thin Devices
The maximum size of a VMAX thin device (TDEV) is approximately 240 GB.

Note If you want to create a TDEV greater than this size, combine TDEVs to form a meta device. Each TDEV
can be part of only one meta device.

The buttons on the Thin Devices tab provide the following actions:
Button Name Description
Create Creates a thin device.

Delete Deletes a thin device.

View Details Views detailed reports on a thin device.

There is no rename action for a TDEV. The device name is unique and remains the same even if the TDEV
becomes a meta device and vice versa.

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Creating a Thin Device

Creating a Thin Device

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX system.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Thin Devices tab.
Step 5 Click Create.
Step 6 In the Create Thin Device dialog box, complete the following fields:
Step 7 Name Description
Device Count field The thin device count.

Emulation drop-down list Choose the emulation type for the thin device.

Capacity Type field Select GB, MB, or cylinder.

Capacity field Number of GB, MB, or Cylinders.

Step 8 Click Submit.

What to Do Next
You can select a device and click View Details to see the drill-down report.

Data Devices
The buttons on the Data Devices tab provide the following actions:
Button Name Description
Create Creates a data device. Note: This action is unavailable in VMAX3.

Delete Deletes a data device. Note: This action is unavailable in VMAX3.

View Details Views detailed reports on a data device. Note: This action is unavailable
in VMAX3.

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Creating a Data Device

Creating a Data Device

Step 1 Click Physical and choose Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX system.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Data Devices tab.
Step 5 Click Create. Note: This action is unavailable in VMAX3.
Step 6 In the Create Data Device dialog box, complete the following fields:
Step 7 Name Description
Device Count field The data device count.

Capacity (GB) field The capacity, in gigabytes.

Emulation drop-down list Choose the emulation type for the data device.

Configuration field Choose the configuration for the data device.

Disk Group field The disk group name.

Step 8 Click Submit.

What to Do Next
You can select a device and click View Details to see the drill-down report.

Regular Devices
The maximum size of a VMAX regular device is approximately 240 GB.

Note If you want to create a regular device greater than this size, combine regular devices to form a meta device.
Each regular device can be part of only one meta device.

The buttons on the Regular Devices tab provide the following actions:
Button Name Description
Create Creates a regular device.

Delete Deletes a regular device.

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Creating a Regular Device

Button Name Description

View Details Views detailed reports on a regular device.

There is no rename action for a regular device. The device name is unique and remains the same even if the
regular device becomes a meta device and vice versa.

Creating a Regular Device

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX system.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Regular Devices tab.
Step 5 Click Create.
Step 6 In the Create Regular Device dialog box, complete the following fields:
Step 7 Name Description
Device Count field The regular device count.

Disk Group select button Select the Disk Group

Emulation drop-down list Choose the emulation type for the regular device.

Configuration drop-down Choose the configuration.

Capacity Type field Select GB, MB, or cylinder.

Capacity Number of GB, MB, or Cylinders.

Step 8 Click Submit.

What to Do Next
You can select a device and click View Details to see the drill-down report.

Meta Devices
A meta device enables you to aggregate thin devices or regular devices to increase the device size.

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Creating a Meta Device

You can create a meta device with a thin device as the head and create other thin devices as members, or you
can create a meta device with a regular device as the head and create other regular devices as members. The
total meta device size is the combination of the head size and all the member device sizes.

Note There is no delete action for a meta device. Removing the members from a meta device results in a thin
device.

The buttons on the Meta Devices tab provides the following actions:
Button Name Description
Create Meta Creates a new meta device.

Add Device to Meta Adds a device to meta.

Remove Device from Meta Removes a device from meta.

Dissolve Disolves the selected meta.

View Details Views detailed reports on a meta member device.

Creating a Meta Device

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX system.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Meta Devices tab.
Step 5 Click Create Meta.
Step 6 In the Create Meta Device dialog box, complete the following fields:
Step 7 Name Description
Select Device Type drop-down list Click Select Thin Device or Regular Device.

Select Thin Device select button Visible when Thin Device is selected. Select device from list.

Select Regular Device select button Visible when Regular Device is selected. Select device from list.

Select Meta Type drop-down list Select the meta type

Select Member Device(s) select Click Select.

button Continue to Step 11.

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Adding a Device to Meta

Step 8 In the Select dialog box, choose the head thin device, and click Select.
Step 9 In the Select Items dialog box, click Check All, Check None, or check the boxes for individual devices.
Step 10 Click Select.
Step 11 In the Create Meta Device dialog box, click Submit.

Adding a Device to Meta

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage .

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX system.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Meta Devices tab.
Step 5 Choose a device from the Device Name column.
Step 6 Click Add Device to Meta.
Step 7 In the Add Device to Meta dialog box, complete the following fields:
Step 8 Name Description
Select Member Device(s) drop-down Choose a member device to be added to the meta device.
list

Step 9 Click Submit.

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Removing a Meta Device

Removing a Meta Device

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage .

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX system.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Meta Devices tab.
Step 5 Choose a device from the Device Name column.
Step 6 Click Remove Device from Meta.
Step 7 In the Remove Device from Meta dialog box, complete the following fields:
Step 8 Name Description
Select Member Device(s) drop-down Choose a member device to be removed from the meta device.
list

Step 9 Click Submit.

Dissolving a Meta Device

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose the VMAX system.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Meta Devices tab.
Step 5 Choose a device from the Device Name column.
Step 6 Click Dissolve.
Step 7 Click Submit to dissolve the meta device.

Meta Member Devices

A meta member device (also referred to as a Meta LUN) is a LUN that is composed of several elements
(LUNs). Meta member devices are similar to private LUNs. A meta member device is used by the system and
is not available directly to any host . For example, you cannot place a meta member device into a storage
group. There are two types of meta member devices:

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Initiator Groups

• Concatenated Meta LUN—Creates a larger LUN from smaller LUNs and when performance is not a
high priority.
• Striped Meta LUN—Creates a higher performance LUN (for example, when working with a large file
system for a database).

Initiator Groups
A VMAX initiator group is a collection of host bus adapters (HBAs) that work together. Initiator groups that
contain other initiator groups are considered cascaded initiator groups.
You can add, replace, or remove host initiators for an initiator group.
A new initiator group requires the following parameters:
• Initiator group type
• Initiator group name
• Initiator type
• Initiator name
• Consistent LUN (on/off)

The buttons on the Initiator Groups tab provide the following actions:
Button Name Description
Create Creates an initiator group.

Rename Renames an initiator group.

Delete Deletes an initiator group.

Add Initiator Adds a host initiator.

Replace Initiator Replaces a host initiator.

Remove Initiator Removes a host initiator.

Override Flags Overrides flags for volume set addressing, common serial numbers,
disabling Q rest on UA, SPC2 protocol versions, environment set, AS400s,
avoid reset broadcast, opening VMS, SSCI support1, and SCS13.

View Details Views detailed reports on an initator group.

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Creating an Initiator Group

Creating an Initiator Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage .

Step 2 Choose the pod that contains the VMAX Solution Enabler account
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Initiator Group tab.
Step 5 Click Create.
Step 6 In the Create Initiator Group dialog box, complete the following fields:
Step 7 Name Description
Initiator Group Type drop-down Choose Standard or Cascaded. Standard is the default initiator group type.
list If you chose Cascaded, continue to Step 10.

Initiator Group Name field The initiator group name.

Initiator Type drop-down list Choose iSCSI or FCP. iSCSI is the default initiator type.

Initiator Name field The initiator name.

Consistent LUN check box Check this check box if you want to use a consistent LUN. Unchecked is the
default.

Step 8 For a cascaded initiator group, complete the following fields:

Name Description
Select Parent Initiator Group select button Select a parent initiator group from the pop-up.

Select Child Initiator Group select button Select child initiator group from the pop-up.

Step 9 Click Submit.

Storage Tiers
Tiered storage allows you assign different categories of data to different types of storage media to reduce your
total storage cost and maintenance.
The buttons on the Storage Tiers tab provides the following actions:

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Creating a Storage Tier

Button Name Description

Create Creates a storage tier.

Modify Modifies a storage tier.

Add Thin Pool Adds a thin pool to a storage tier.

Remove Thin Pool Removes a thin pool from a storage tier.

Add Disk Group Adds a disk group to a storage tier.

Remove Disk Groups Removes disk groups from a storage tier.

Rename Renames a storage tier.

Delete Deletes a storage tier.

View Details Views the details of a storage tier.

Creating a Storage Tier

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 Select the pod that contains the VMAX Solution Enabler account.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Tiers tab.
Step 5 Click Create.
Step 6 In the Create Storage Tier dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Storage Tier Name field Enter a name for the storage tier.

Storage Tier Type drop-down list Choose Disk Group Provisioned or Virtual Provisioned.

Include Type drop-down list Choose Static or Dynamic.

Configuration Type drop-down list Choose RAID-1, RAID-5 (3+1), RAID-5 (7+1), RAID-6(6+2), or RAID-6(
14+2).

Select Technology drop-down list Choose EFD, FC, or SATA.

Select Disk Group pop-up Choose a disk group from the list.

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Modifying a Storage Tier

Name Description
Bind to Thin Pool pop-up Only available when Virtual Provisioned option is selected in Storage Tier Type.
Select from list.

Externally Provisioned check box Only available when Virtual Provisioned option is selected in Storage Tier Type.
Check box if an externally provisioned Storage Tier is needed.

Step 7 Click Submit.

Modifying a Storage Tier

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 Select the pod that contains the VMAX Solution Enabler account.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Tiers tab.
Step 5 Choose a storage tier.
Step 6 Click Modify.
Step 7 In the Modify Storage Tier dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Select Technology drop-down list Choose EFD, FC, or SATA.

Step 8 Click Submit.

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Adding a Thin Pool

Adding a Thin Pool

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 Select the pod that contains the VMAX Solution Enabler account.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Tiers tab.
Step 5 Choose a storage tier.
Step 6 Click Add Thin Pool.
Step 7 In the Add Thin Pool to Storage Tier dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Select Thin Pool pop-up Choose a thin pool.

Step 8 Click Submit.

Removing a Thin Pool

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 Select the pod that contains the VMAX Solution Enabler account.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Tiers tab.
Step 5 Choose a storage tier.
Step 6 Click Remove Thin Pool.
Step 7 In the Remove Thin Pool dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Select Thin Pool pop-up Choose a thin pool to remove from the storage tier.

Step 8 Click Submit.

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Adding a Disk Group

Adding a Disk Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage .

Step 2 Select the pod that contains the VMAX Solution Enabler account.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Tiers tab.
Step 5 Choose a storage tier.
Step 6 Click Add Disk Group.
Step 7 In the Add Disk Group dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Select Disk Group pop-up Choose a disk group to be added to the storage tier.

Propogate check box If checked, propagates changes to all storage tiers.

Step 8 Click Submit.

Renaming a Storage Tier

Step 1 Click Physical and choose Storage.

Step 2 Select the pod that contains the VMAX Solution Enabler account.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Tiers tab.
Step 5 Choose a storage tier.
Step 6 Click Rename.
Step 7 In the Rename Storage Tier dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Enter New Name field The new name of the storage tier.

Step 8 Click Submit.

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Deleting a Storage Tier

Deleting a Storage Tier

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 Select the pod that contains the VMAX Solution Enabler account.
Step 3 Select the VMAX account.
Step 4 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 5 Click the Storage Tiers tab.
Step 6 Choose a storage tier.
Step 7 Click Delete.
Step 8 In the Delete Storage Tier dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Force check box If checked, forces the deletion of the storage tier that has pools or disk groups.

Step 9 Click Submit.

Storage Groups
A VMAX storage group is a collection of Symmetrix logical volumes that are used by an application, a server,
or a collection of servers.
Storage groups present storage to hosts and are also used for FAST policies.
In Cisco UCS Director you can create VMAX storage groups that are either Empty or Cascaded. A cascaded
group can be contained within a masking view to present storage resources to an entire cluster.
The buttons on the Storage Groups tab provide the following actions:
Button Name Description
Create Creates a storage group. Note: For VMAX3, Create is modified to set
the FAST setting while creating the storage group. This is applicable
only for VMAX3. No impact on existing VMAX operation

Delete Deletes a storage group.

Rename Renames a selected storage group.

Remove Device Removes a device from a storage group.

Add Device Adds a new device to a selected storage group.

Associate FAST Policy Associates a FAST policy with a selected storage group.

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Creating an Empty Storage Group

Button Name Description

Disassociate FAST Policy Disassociates a FAST policy from a selected storage group.

Reassociate FAST Policy Re-associates a FAST policy to a selected storage group.

Modify FAST Priority Modifies the storage group priority in a FAST Policy.

Modify FAST Settings Modifies the FAST settings in a storage group. Note: VMAX3 Only

View Details Views detailed reports on a storage group.

Creating an Empty Storage Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Click Create.
Step 6 In the Create Storage Group dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Storage Group Type drop-down list Choose the default option Empty Storage Group.

Storage Group Name field The storage group name.

Note In addition to the above fields, the following two fields are used in VMAX3.

Storage Resource Pool Select FAST SRP to associate to storage group.

Storage Level Objective Select SLO to associate to storage group.

Step 7 Click Submit.

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Creating a Cascaded Storage Group

Creating a Cascaded Storage Group

A cascaded storage group can contain one or more child storage groups.

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Click Create.
Step 6 In the Create Storage Group dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Storage Group Type drop-down list Choose Cascaded Storage Group.

Select Parent Storage Group field The parent storage group.

Child Storage Group field The child storage group.

Step 7 Click Submit.

What to Do Next
Add devices and associate FAST policies to the storage group.

Deleting a Storage Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Select a Storage Group and click Delete.
Step 6 In the Delete Storage Group dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Force check box If checked, deletes the selected storage group even if it contains devices.

Step 7 Click Submit.

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Renaming a Storage Group

Renaming a Storage Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Select a Storage Group and click Rename.
Step 6 In the Rename Storage Group dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Enter New Name field The new name of the storage group.

Step 7 Click Submit.

Removing a Device from a Storage Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage .

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Select a Storage Group and click Remove Device.
Step 6 In the Remove Device dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Select Devices pop-up Choose a device to remove from the storage group.

Step 7 Click Submit.

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Adding a Device to a Storage Group

Adding a Device to a Storage Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Select a Storage Group
Step 6 Click Add Device.
Step 7 In the Add Devices to Storage Group dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Device Type drop-down list To add a VMAX device, choose either Thin Device or Regular Device.
To add a VMAX3 device, choose Thin Device. Note: The Regular device is not
available for VMAX3.

Select Devices pop-up Choose one or more devices to add to storage group.

Host LUN ID type in field If the LUN ID is not specified, Host LUN ID will be auto generated in HEXA.

Step 8 Click Submit.

Associating a FAST Policy to a Storage Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage .

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Click on a Storage Group and then clickAssociate FAST Policy.
Step 6 In the Associate FAST Policy to Storage Group dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Select FAST Policy drop-down list Choose a FAST policy to associate to a storage group.

Storage Group Priority field The priority of the storage group. The range is from 1 to 3.

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Disassociate a FAST Policy from a Storage Group

Step 7 Click Submit.

Disassociate a FAST Policy from a Storage Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage .

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Click on a Storage Group associated to a FAST Policy and then click Disassociate FAST Policy.
Step 6 Click Submit.

Reassociate a FAST Policy from a Storage Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage .

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Click on a Storage Group associated to a FAST Policy and then click Reassociate FAST Policy.
Step 6 In the Reassociate FAST Policy to Storage Group dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Select FAST Policy pop-up Choose a FAST policy to reassociate to a storage group.

Step 7 Click Submit.

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Modifying a FAST Storage Group Priority

Modifying a FAST Storage Group Priority

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Click on a Storage Group associated to a FAST Policy and the click Modify Fast Priority.
Step 6 In the Modify FAST Storage Group Priority dialog box, complete the fol lowing fields:
Name Description
Storage Group Priority pop-up Choose the priority of the storage group. The valid range is from 1 to 3.

Step 7 Click Submit.

Modifying FAST Settings

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX3 account.
Step 4 Click the Storage Groups tab.
Step 5 Click on a Storage Group and the click Modify Fast Settings.
Step 6 In the Modify FAST Settings dialog box, complete the fol lowing fields:
Name Description
Storage Resource Pool Select the SRP

Service Level Objective Select the SLO.

Step 7 Click Submit.

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Port Groups

Port Groups
A VMAX port group is a collection of front-end ports.
The buttons on the Port Groups tab provide the following actions:
Button Name Description
Create Creates a new port group.

Rename Renames a port group.

Delete Deletes a port group.

Add Port Adds a new port to a selected group.

Remove Port Removes a port from a group.

View Details Views detailed reports on a selected port group.

Creating a Port Group

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Port Groups tab.
Step 5 Click Create.
Step 6 In the Create Port Group dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Port Group Name field The port group name.

Select Port Group Name pop-up Select port(s) to be included in Port Group. Click Select.
Continue to Step 9.

Step 7 In the Select Items dialog box, select a director port for Port Group.
Step 8 Click Select.
Step 9 In the Create Port Group dialog box, click Submit.

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Masking Views

Masking Views
VMAX designates three types of auto-provisioning groups: storage groups, port groups, and initiator groups.
These three groups work together as a masking view.
The masking view ensures that the target initiators in an initiator group can access the target storage resources
in a storage group by means of the target ports in a port group.
Masking views are also useful for making changes to how the storage is presented. Changes to groups that
belong to a masking view, such as adding a device or port, are automatically reflected in the masking view.
The buttons on the Masking Views tab provide the following actions:
Button Name Description
Create Creates a masking view.

Rename Renames a masking view.

View Details Views detailed reports on a masking view.

Delete Deletes a masking view.

Creating a Masking View

Before You Begin
You must create a storage group, initiator group, host LUN, and port group in the system.
You must attach devices to the storage group.

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Masking Views tab.
Step 5 Click Create.
Step 6 In the Create Masking Views dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Masking View Name field The masking view name.

Select Storage Group Name Choose the Storage Group.

drop-down list

Host LUN ID field The host LUN ID.

Note If a LUN ID is not specified, the Host LUN ID is
autogenerated.

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Fully Automated Storage Tiering Overview

Name Description
Select Initiator Group Name field Choose the Initiator Group.

Select Port Group Name field Choose the Port Group.

Step 7 Click Submit.

Fully Automated Storage Tiering Overview

FAST automatically moves the data to high-performance storage tiers and moves the inactive data to low-cost,
but high-capacity storage tiers. Policies dictate how the performance and cost are optimized while the automation
of FAST means that your storage system has no added management constraints compared with slower and
more expensive systems. A FAST system always monitors and identifies the current activity levels of your
data and moves the active data and inactive data to the most appropriate storage tier (according to your policy).

FAST Policies Overview

A FAST policy is a set of tier usage rules that are applied to your storage groups. A FAST policy describes
up to three tiers and assigns an upper usage limit for each tier. The usage limit specifies the maximum percentage
of the storage group that the FAST controller can allocate to a particular tier. Policy settings allow you to
control and manage automated activity.

Creating a FAST Policy

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the Fast Policies tab.
Step 5 Click Create.
Step 6 In the Create FAST Policy dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Fast Policy Name field The FAST policy name.

Storage Tier Name drop-down list Choose a storage tier.

Max Storage Group Capacity of The upper limit of space allowed for a tier in a policy as a percentage of total
Tier (%) field storage group capacity. The valid range is from 1 to 100.

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Step 7 Click Submit.

Adding Storage Tiers

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the FAST Policies tab.
Step 5 Select a FAST Policy.
Step 6 Click Add Storage Tiers.
Step 7 In the Add Storage Tiers to Fast Policy dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Select Storage Tier drop-down list Choose a storage tier.

Max Storage Group Capacity of The upper limit of space allowed for a tier in a policy as a percentage of total
Tier (%) field storage group capacity. The valid range is from 1 to 100.

Step 8 Click Submit.

Removing Storage Tiers from a FAST Policy

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the FAST Policies tab.
Step 5 Select a FAST Policy.
Step 6 Click Remove Storage Tiers.
Step 7 In the Remove Storage Tiers From Fast Policy dialog box, select the following button:
Name Description
Select Storage Tier button Removes a storage tier from the FAST policy.

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Step 8 Click Submit.

Modifying Storage Tiers

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the FAST Policies tab.
Step 5 Select a FAST Policy.
Step 6 Click Modify Storage Tiers.
Step 7 In the Modify Storeage Tiers in a Fast Policy dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Select Storage Tier button Modifies a storage tier in a FAST policy.

Max Storage Group Capacity of The upper limit of space allowed for a tier in a policy as a percentage of total
Tier (%) field storage group capacity. The valid range is from 1 to 100.

Step 8 Click Submit.

Renaming a FAST Policy

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 Click the Systems tab.
Step 4 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 5 Select a FAST Policy.
Step 6 Click Rename.
Step 7 In the Rename FAST Policy dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Enter New Fast Policy Name field The new FAST policy name.

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FAST Controller Overview

Step 8 Click Submit.

Deleting a FAST Policy

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose the VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the FAST Policies tab.
Step 5 Select a FAST Policy.
Step 6 Click Delete.
Step 7 In the Delete Fast Policy dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
Force check box If checked, deletes any policy that contains storage tiers.

Step 8 Click Submit.

FAST Controller Overview

FAST can be configured to operate in AUTO_APPROVE mode, where Cisco UCS Director automatically
executes data movements based on the defined policy. However, it can operate in USER_APPROVE mode,
where all change plans recommended must be explicitly approved prior to being executed.

Modifying FAST Controller Settings

Step 1 Click Physical and choose Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the FAST Controller tab.
Step 5 Click Modify FAST Controller Setting.
Step 6 In the Modify FAST Controller Setting dialog box, complete the following fields:

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Name Description
Data Movement Approval Mode Choose USER_APPROVE or AUTO APPROVE. USER APPROVE is the
drop-down list default selection.

Max Simultaneous Device Moves The number of maximum simultaneous device moves permitted. The valid range
field is 2 to 32.

Max Devices Moves Per Day field The number of maximum simultaneous device moves permitted per day. The
valid range is 2 to 200.

Min Initial Workload Period (hrs) The minimum initial workload period (in hours). The valid range is 2 to the
field current value.

Workload Analysis Period (hrs) The workload analysis period (in hours). The valid range is 2 to 672.
field

Swap Not Visible Devices Choose Enable or Disable to not swap visible devices.
drop-down list

Allow Only Swap drop-down list Choose Enable or Disable the ability to swap only devices.

FAST VP Data Movement Mode Choose to enable or disable (None) the FAST VP Data Movement Mode. Auto
drop-down list is the default mode.

FAST VP Data Relocation Rate The FAST VP Data Relocation Rate value. The valid range is 1 to 10.
field

Thin Pool Reserved Capacity (%) The Thin Pool Reserved Capacity (%) ) value. The valid range is 1 to 80.
field

VP Allocation By FAST policy field Choose the Thin Pool Reserved Capacity (%) value. The default value is Enabled.

FAST VP Time to Compress The FAST VP Time to Compress (Days) value. The valid range is from 40 to
(Days) field 400 days or never.

FAST VP Compression Rate field The FAST VP Time to Compress (Days) value. The valid range is from 1 to 10.

Step 7 Click Submit.

FAST Status Overview

The FAST Status tab allows to you modify the FAST state of your storage tiers by choosing either the Disk
Group Provisioned option or the Virtual Group Provisioned option.

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VMAX Properties File

Modifying the FAST State

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX account.
Step 4 Click the FAST Status tab.
Step 5 Click Modify FAST State.
Step 6 In the Modify VMAX FAST State dialog box, complete the following fields:
Name Description
FAST Type drop-down list Choose FAST Type to change the state.

Enable check box If checked, enables the FAST state.

Step 7 Click Submit.

Renaming FAST SLO

Step 1 Choose Physical > Storage.

Step 2 On the Storage pane, choose a VMAX pod.
Step 3 In the Navigation pane, click the VMAX3 account.
Step 4 Click the FAST SLO tab.
Step 5 Click Rename.
Step 6 In the Rename FAST SLO Name dialog box, complete the following field:
Name Description
New SLO Name field Type in a new SLO name.

Step 7 Click Submit.

VMAX Properties File

In earlier UCSD releases, when executing VMAX workflows, sometimes you will see the following error:

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VMAX Properties File

The SYMAPI database file is already locked by another process.

This happens when executing multiple Tasks/Actions concurrently.
To overcome this issue, you must resubmit the SR/action.
To reduce the user intervention in handling such scenarios, we have added logic to re-submit the task/action
automatically. The new logic will resubmit the Task/Action the specified number of times.
These configurations can be configured in the vmax.properties file, available in the /opt/infra/inframgr folder.
The vmax.properties file consists of following parameters:

emc.vmax.retryMessages This parameter sets the error Default Error Message: The
messages. If this error message is SYMAPI database file is already
captured for any of the locked by another process
Tasks/Actions, the same
Note More than one message
Tasks/Actions will be executed.
can be added by
separating with a comma
as the delimiter.
emc.vmax.maxIterationCount This parameter specifies the Default value: 20
maximum number of attempts to
be tried if the VMAX response
contains the message specified in
the property mentioned above.

emc.vmax.sleepTime This parameter sets the time (in Default value: 30000 ms (30 sec)
ms) the retry operation waits before
it connects to the VMAX device to
execute the command.

VMAX Sym Device Inventory Collection

UCSD collects the sym device inventory for every 500 devices. This also can be configured using
vmax.properties file.

emc.vmax.inventory.symdev.count If VMAX inventory is configured Default value: 500

using multi node setup. This will
be useful to reduce the inventory
time if VMAX has a large number
of sym devices.

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Editing vmax.properties File

Editing vmax.properties File

SUMMARY STEPS

1. Log in to UCSD appliance using root credentials.

2. cd /opt/infra/inframgr.
3. Type vi vmax.properties and enter.
4. Change the desired property and save the file.

DETAILED STEPS

Command or Action Purpose

Step 1 Log in to UCSD appliance using root credentials.
Step 2 cd /opt/infra/inframgr. This is to change the directory
Step 3 Type vi vmax.properties and enter.
Step 4 Change the desired property and save the file. The changes will be reflected immediately.

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