Dell CX4 Series User Manual Download Page 1

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Dell/EMC CX4-series

Fibre Channel Storage Arrays

With Microsoft

Windows

Server

Failover Clusters

Hardware Installation

and Troubleshooting

Guide

Summary of Contents for CX4 Series

Page 1: ...Dell EMC CX4 series Fibre Channel Storage Arrays With Microsoft Windows Server Failover Clusters Hardware Installation and Troubleshooting Guide ...

Page 2: ...n permission of Dell Inc is strictly forbidden Trademarks used in this text Dell the DELL logo PowerEdge and PowerVault are trademarks of Dell Inc Active Directory Microsoft Windows Windows Server Windows XP and Windows NT are either trademarks or registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and or other countries EMC Navisphere and PowerPath are registered trademarks and Mi...

Page 3: ...r 13 Other Documents You May Need 13 2 Cabling Your Cluster Hardware 15 Cabling the Mouse Keyboard and Monitor 15 Cabling the Power Supplies 15 Cabling Your Cluster for Public and Private Networks 17 Cabling the Public Network 18 Cabling the Private Network 19 NIC Teaming 19 Cabling the Storage Systems 19 Cabling Storage for Your Direct Attached Cluster 20 Cabling Storage for Your SAN Attached Clu...

Page 4: ...ons Containing Multiple Hosts 43 Using Worldwide Port Name Zoning 43 Installing and Configuring the Shared Storage System 45 Access Control 45 Storage Groups 46 Navisphere Manager 48 Navisphere Agent 48 EMC PowerPath 49 Enabling Access Control and Creating Storage Groups Using Navisphere 49 Configuring the Hard Drives on the Shared Storage System s 51 Optional Storage Features 52 Updating a Dell E...

Page 5: ...Contents 5 A Troubleshooting 55 B Zoning Configuration Form 61 C Cluster Data Form 63 ...

Page 6: ...6 Contents ...

Page 7: ... fibre channel storage arrays with one or more Failover Clusters It provides specific configuration tasks that enable you to deploy the shared storage for your cluster For more information on deploying your cluster with Microsoft Windows Server 2003 operating systems see the Dell Failover Clusters with Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Installation and Troubleshooting Guide located on the Dell Support...

Page 8: ...taking the entire cluster offline Implementing Fibre Channel technology in a cluster provides the following advantages Flexibility Fibre Channel allows a distance of up to 10 km between switches without degrading the signal Availability Fibre Channel components use redundant connections providing multiple data paths and greater availability for clients Connectivity Fibre Channel allows more device...

Page 9: ...n your cluster nodes determines the minimum RAM required Host Bus Adapter HBA ports Two Fibre Channel HBAs per node unless the server employs an integrated or supported dual port Fibre Channel HBA Where possible place the HBAs on separate PCI buses to improve availability and performance NICs At least two NICs one NIC for the public network and another NIC for the private network NOTE It is recomm...

Page 10: ...be directly attached to a single storage system or attached to one or more storage systems through a SAN Multiple clusters and stand alone systems Can share one or more supported storage systems See Installing and Configuring the Shared Storage System on page 45 Table 1 3 Dell EMC Storage System Requirements Processor Enclosure Minimum Storage Possible Storage Expansion SPS CX4 120 One DAE OS with...

Page 11: ... between two storage systems EMC SnapView Captures point in time images of a LUN for backups or testing without affecting the contents of the source LUN EMC SAN Copy Moves data between Dell EMC storage systems without using host CPU cycles or local area network LAN bandwidth For more information about Navisphere Manager MirrorView SnapView and SAN Copy see Installing and Configuring the Shared Sto...

Page 12: ...er configuration Figure 1 1 Direct Attached Single Cluster Configuration EMC PowerPath Limitations in a Direct Attached Cluster EMC PowerPath provides failover capabilities multiple path detection and dynamic load balancing between multiple ports on the same storage processor However the direct attached clusters supported by Dell connect to a single port on each storage processor in the storage sy...

Page 13: ...ipped with your system provides important safety and regulatory information Warranty information may be included within this document or as a separate document NOTE To configure Dell blade server modules in a Dell PowerEdge cluster see the Using Dell Blade Servers in a Dell PowerEdge High Availability Cluster document located on the Dell Support website at support dell com The Rack Installation Gu...

Page 14: ...ion describes how to install if necessary configure and use the operating system software Documentation for any components you purchased separately provides information to configure and install those options The Dell PowerVault tape library documentation provides information for installing troubleshooting and upgrading the tape library Any other documentation that came with your server or storage ...

Page 15: ...s See the documentation for each component in your cluster solution and ensure that the specific power requirements are satisfied The following guidelines are recommended to protect your cluster solution from power related failures For nodes with multiple power supplies plug each power supply into a separate AC circuit Use uninterruptible power supplies UPS For some environments consider having ba...

Page 16: ...erEdge Systems 0 1 0 1 2 3 0 1 0 1 2 3 redundant power supplies on one AC power strip or on one AC PDU not shown NOTE This illustration is intended only to demonstrate the power distribution of the components primary power supplies on one AC power strip or on one AC Power Distribution Unit not shown ...

Page 17: ...e 2 1 NOTE To configure Dell blade server modules in a Dell PowerEdge cluster see the Using Dell Blade Servers in a Dell PowerEdge High Availability Cluster document located on the Dell Support website at support dell com 0 1 0 1 2 3 0 1 0 1 2 3 redundant power supplies on one AC power strip or on one AC PDU not shown NOTE This illustration is intended only to demonstrate the power distribution of...

Page 18: ...e public network segments You can install additional network adapters to support additional public network segments or to provide redundancy in the event of a faulty primary network adapter or switch port Table 2 1 Network Connections Network Connection Description Public network All connections to the client LAN At least one public network must be configured for Mixed mode for private network fai...

Page 19: ...wo or more NICs to provide load balancing and fault tolerance Your cluster supports NIC teaming only in a public network NIC teaming is not supported in a private network Use the same brand of NICs in a team Do not mix brands in NIC teaming Cabling the Storage Systems This section provides information on cabling your cluster to a storage system in a direct attached configuration or to one or more ...

Page 20: ...adapter HBA ports cabled directly to a Dell EMC storage system Figure 2 4 shows an example of a direct attached single cluster configuration with redundant HBA ports installed in each cluster node Figure 2 4 Direct Attached Cluster Configuration cluster node private network public network cluster node storage system Fibre Channel connections Fibre Channel connections ...

Page 21: ...o insert the connectors into the HBA port SP port or tape library port Cabling a Two Node Cluster to a Dell EMC Storage System NOTE The Dell EMC storage system requires at least 2 front end fibre channel ports available on each storage processor 1 Connect cluster node 1 to the storage system a Install a cable from cluster node 1 HBA port 0 to the first front end fibre channel port on SP A b Instal...

Page 22: ...6 Cabling a Two Node Cluster to a CX4 480 Storage System 0 1 0 1 2 3 0 1 0 1 2 3 cluster node 1 cluster node 2 0 1 1 0 HBA ports 2 HBA ports 2 CX4 120 or CX4 240 storage system SP B SP A 0 1 0 1 2 3 0 1 0 1 2 3 0 1 2 3 0 1 2 3 cluster node 1 cluster node 2 0 1 1 0 HBA ports 2 HBA ports 2 CX4 480 storage system SP B SP A ...

Page 23: ... 960 can support up to 12 node cluster The following example explains how to cable a four node cluster NOTE The Dell EMC storage system requires at least 4 front end fibre channel ports available on each storage processor NOTE The following steps can be modified to add more clusters or standalone systems 1 Connect cluster node 1 to the storage system a Install a cable from cluster node 1 HBA port ...

Page 24: ... available front end fibre channel ports on the CX4 series storage system also allows you to configure multiple clusters or a mix of cluster s and non clustered server s in a direct attached configuration For example the 6 front end fibre channel ports per storage processor on Dell EMC CX4 120 and CX4 240 storage systems allows you to connect 3 two node clusters or 2 two node clusters and 2 non cl...

Page 25: ... In the second cluster connect cluster node 1 to the storage system a Install a cable from cluster node 1 HBA port 0 to the third front end fibre channel port on SP A b Install a cable from cluster node 1 HBA port 1 to the third front end fibre channel port on SP B 4 In the second cluster connect cluster node 2 to the storage system a Install a cable from cluster node 2 HBA port 0 to the fourth fr...

Page 26: ...The connections listed in this section are representative of one proven method of ensuring redundancy in the connections between the cluster nodes and the storage system Other methods that achieve the same type of redundant connectivity may be acceptable Figure 2 8 Two Node SAN Attached Cluster cluster node cluster node private network Fibre Channel connections storage system Fibre Channel switch ...

Page 27: ...Cabling Your Cluster Hardware 27 Figure 2 9 Eight Node SAN Attached Cluster public network storage system cluster nodes 2 8 Fibre Channel switch Fibre Channel switch private network ...

Page 28: ... provides information for cabling your storage system to the Fibre Channel switches NOTE Adding more cables from the storage system to the switches can increase the I O bandwidth and high availability of data Although the CX4 960 has a maximum of 12 front end fibre channel ports per SP only 8 of them can be connected to fibre channel switches Figure 2 10 illustrates the method for cabling a SAN at...

Page 29: ...nnect a cable from Fibre Channel switch 0 sw0 to the first front end fibre channel port on SP A b Connect a cable from Fibre Channel switch 0 sw0 to the first front end fibre channel port on SP B c Connect a cable from Fibre Channel switch 1 sw1 to the second front end fibre channel port on SP A d Connect a cable from Fibre Channel switch 1 sw1 to the second front end fibre channel port on SP B NO...

Page 30: ...l switch 1 sw1 2 Repeat step 1 for each additional cluster node 3 Connect the storage system to the SAN a Connect a cable from Fibre Channel switch 0 sw0 to the first front end fibre channel port on SP A b Connect a cable from Fibre Channel switch 0 sw0 to the first front end fibre channel port on SP B c Connect a cable from Fibre Channel switch 0 sw0 to the second front end fibre channel port on ...

Page 31: ...ibre Channel switch 1 sw1 to the fourth front end fibre channel port on SP A h Connect a cable from Fibre Channel switch 1 sw1 to the fourth front end fibre channel port on SP B NOTE Additional cables can be connected from the fibre channel switches to the storage system if there are available front end fibre channel ports on the storage processors Figure 2 11 Cabling a SAN Attached Cluster to the...

Page 32: ...es to the appropriate storage processors on the processor enclosure For rules and guidelines for SAN attached clusters see the Dell Cluster Configuration Support Matrix on the Dell High Availability website at www dell com ha NOTE The following procedures use Figure 2 10 Figure 2 11 and Figure 2 12 as examples for cabling additional clusters 0 1 2 3 0 1 2 3 0 1 2 3 0 0 1 1 2 3 0 1 sw0 sw1 cluster ...

Page 33: ... end fibre channel port on SP A d Connect a cable from Fibre Channel switch 1 sw1 to the second front end fibre channel port on SP B NOTE Additional cables can be connected from the fibre channel switches to the storage system if there are available front end fibre channel ports on the storage processors Cabling Multiple SAN Attached Clusters to the CX4 480 or CX4 960Storage System 1 In the first ...

Page 34: ...single initiator zoning for connecting clusters to a Dell EMC storage system in a switched environment When using EMC PowerPath a separate zone is created from each HBA port to the SPE Connecting a PowerEdge Cluster to Multiple Storage Systems You can increase your cluster storage capacity by attaching multiple storage systems to your cluster using a redundant switch fabric Failover Clusters can s...

Page 35: ...uster to a Tape Library To provide additional backup for your cluster you can add tape backup devices to your cluster configuration The Dell PowerVault tape libraries may contain an integrated Fibre Channel bridge or Storage Network Controller SNC that connects directly to your Fibre Channel switch Figure 2 14 shows a supported Failover Cluster configuration using redundant Fibre Channel switches ...

Page 36: ...n for more information on configuring these components Configuring Your Cluster With SAN Backup You can provide centralized backup for your clusters by sharing your SAN with multiple clusters storage systems and a tape library Figure 2 15 provides an example of cabling the cluster nodes to your storage systems and SAN backup with a tape library cluster node tape library storage system cluster node...

Page 37: ...Cabling Your Cluster Hardware 37 Figure 2 15 Cluster Configuration Using SAN Based Backup cluster 2 cluster 1 Fibre Channel switch storage systems tape library Fibre Channel switch ...

Page 38: ...38 Cabling Your Cluster Hardware ...

Page 39: ...over Clusters with Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Installation and Troubleshooting Guide or Dell Failover Clusters with Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Installation and Troubleshooting Guide located on the Dell Support website at support dell com 3 Deploy the operating system including any relevant service packs and hotfixes network adapter drivers and storage adapter drivers including Multipath I O ...

Page 40: ...rver 2003 Failover cluster and as a Witness disk for Windows Server 2008 Failover cluster Ensure that this LUN is presented to the systems that you are configuring as cluster nodes NOTE For security reasons it is recommended that you configure the LUN on a single node as mentioned in step 8 when you are setting up the cluster Later you can configure the LUN as mentioned in step 9 so that other nod...

Page 41: ...epending on the operating system configured on your cluster For a list of Dell PowerEdge Servers Fibre Channel HBAs and switches and recommended list of operating system variants specific driver and firmware revisions see the Dell Cluster Configuration Support Matrix on the Dell High Availability website at www dell com ha For a general overview of cluster configuration tasks and more detailed inf...

Page 42: ...ort website at support dell com For more information about supported HBA controllers and drivers see the Dell Cluster Configuration Support Matrix on the Dell High Availability website at www dell com ha Implementing Zoning on a Fibre Channel Switched Fabric A Fibre Channel switched fabric consists of one or more Fibre Channel switches that provide high speed connections between servers and storag...

Page 43: ... share a storage system Using Worldwide Port Name Zoning PowerEdge cluster configurations support worldwide port name zoning A worldwide name WWN is a unique numeric identifier assigned to Fibre Channel interfaces such as HBA ports storage processor SP ports and Fibre Channel to SCSI bridges or storage network controllers SNCs A WWN consists of an 8 byte hexadecimal number with each byte separated...

Page 44: ...other When you create your single initiator zones follow these guidelines Create a zone for each HBA port and its target storage devices Each CX4 series storage processor port can be connected to a maximum of 64 HBA ports in a SAN attached environment Each host can be connected to a maximum of four storage systems The integrated bridge SNC or fibre channel interface on a tape library can be added ...

Page 45: ...nd Creating Storage Groups Using Navisphere on page 49 for more information The following subsections provide an overview of the storage management software and procedures for connecting the host systems to the storage systems Access Control Fibre Channel topologies allow multiple clusters and stand alone systems to share a single storage system However if you cannot control access to the shared s...

Page 46: ...to one or more host systems Managed by Navisphere Manager storage groups provide an organized method of assigning multiple LUNs to a host system After you create LUNs on your storage system you can assign the LUNs to a storage group in Navisphere Manager and then assign the storage group to a specific host Because the host can only access its assigned storage group it cannot access any LUNs assign...

Page 47: ...e host system NOTE In a clustered environment all nodes of a cluster must be connected to the same storage group Used host connection paths An additional storage group feature that performs the following tasks Lists all of the paths from the host server to the storage group Displays whether the path is enabled or disabled Each path contains the following fields HBA Device name of the HBA in the ho...

Page 48: ...uns in the web browser Optionally you can run Navisphere Management Server for Windows This software component installs on a host system connected to a Dell EMC storage system allowing you to run Navisphere Storage Management Server on the host system Using Navisphere Manager you can Create storage groups for your host systems Create bind and unbind LUNs Change configuration settings Monitor stora...

Page 49: ...provides the required procedures for creating storage groups and connecting your storage systems to the host systems CAUTION Before enabling Access Control ensure that no hosts are attempting to access the storage system Enabling Access Control prevents all hosts from accessing any data until they are given explicit access to a LUN in the appropriate storage group You must stop all I O before enab...

Page 50: ...ck OK 11 Right click the icon of your storage system and select Create Storage Group The Create Storage Group dialog box appears 12 In the Storage Group Name field enter a name for the storage group 13 Click Apply 14 Add new LUNs to the storage group a Right click the icon of your storage group and select Properties b Click the LUNs tab c In the Available LUNs window click an available LUN d Click...

Page 51: ...ly using Navisphere Manager A minimum of one LUN RAID drive is required for an active passive configuration at least two drives are required for an active active configuration It is recommended that you create at least one LUN or virtual disk for each application If multiple NTFS partitions are created on a single LUN or virtual disk these partitions will not be able to fail over individually from...

Page 52: ... another system without affecting the contents of the source LUN SnapView creates copies of LUNs using either snapshots or clones Snapshots are virtual copies that create an image of the source LUN at the time the snapshot was created This snapshot is retained independently of subsequent changes to the source LUN Clones are duplicate copies of a source LUN You can use snapshots and clones to facil...

Page 53: ...he Dell High Availability website at www dell com ha Installing and Configuring a Failover Cluster After you have established the private and public networks and have assigned the shared disks from the storage array to the cluster nodes you can configure the operating system services on your Dell Failover Cluster The procedure to configure the Failover Cluster depends on the version of the Windows...

Page 54: ...54 Preparing Your Systems for Clustering ...

Page 55: ... storage system See Cabling Your Cluster for Public and Private Networks on page 17 for more information The length of the interface cables exceeds the maximum allowable length Ensure that the fibre optic cables do not exceed 300 m multimode or 10 km single mode switch to switch connections only One of the cables is faulty Replace the faulty cable Access Control is not enabled correctly Verify the...

Page 56: ...between the nodes Configure the Internet Connection Firewall to allow communications that are required by the Microsoft Cluster Service MSCS and the clustered applications or services See Microsoft Knowledge Base article KB883398 at the Microsoft Support website at support microsoft com for more information Long delays in node to node communications may be normal Verify that the nodes can communic...

Page 57: ...sfully joined the cluster If these events do not appear in Event Viewer see the Microsoft Cluster Service Administrator s Guide for instructions on setting up the cluster on your system and starting the Cluster Service The cluster network name is not responding on the network because the Internet Connection Firewall is enabled on one or more nodes Configure the Internet Connection Firewall to allo...

Page 58: ...ailover Clusters with Microsoft Windows Server 2008 Installation and Troubleshooting Guide The private point to point network is disconnected Ensure that all systems are powered on so that the NICs in the private network are available Using Microsoft Windows NT 4 0 to remotely administer a Windows Server 2003 cluster generates error messages Some resources in Windows Server 2003 are not supported ...

Page 59: ...e the Internet Connection Firewall enabled blocking RPC communications between the nodes Configure the Internet Connection Firewall to allow communications that are required by the MSCS and the clustered applications or services See Microsoft Knowledge Base article KB883398 at the Microsoft Support website at support microsoft com for more information The disks on the shared cluster storage appear...

Page 60: ...nformation on how to configure your cluster with the Windows Internet Connection Firewall enabled see Microsoft Base KB articles 258469 and 883398 at the Microsoft Support website at support microsoft com and the Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Technet website at www microsoft com technet Public network clients cannot access the applications or services that are provided by the cluster One or more n...

Page 61: ...Zoning Configuration Form 61 Zoning Configuration Form Node HBA WWPNs or Alias Names Storage WWPNs or Alias Names Zone Name Zone Set for Configuration Name ...

Page 62: ...62 Zoning Configuration Form ...

Page 63: ... information about the cluster Use the form when you call for technical support Table C 1 Cluster Information Cluster Information Cluster Solution Cluster name and IP address Server type Installer Date installed Applications Location Notes Table C 2 Cluster Node Information Node Name Service Tag Number Public IP Address Private IP Address ...

Page 64: ...64 Cluster Data Form Additional Networks Table C 3 Storage Array Information Array Array xPE Type Array Service Tag Number or World Wide Name Seed Number of Attached DAEs 1 2 3 4 ...

Page 65: ...tem 12 direct attached 12 20 SAN attached 13 cluster storage requirements 10 clustering overview 7 D Dell EMC CX4 series 7 Cabling a Multi Node Cluster 23 Cabling a Two Node Cluster 21 Cabling Description 28 Cabling Multiple Clusters 24 Cabling Multiple SAN Attached Clusters 32 Cabling Storage 25 CX4 120 10 CX4 240 10 CX4 480 10 CX4 960 10 Zoning 34 direct attached cluster about 20 drivers install...

Page 66: ...d configuring 53 N Navisphere Agent about 48 Navisphere Manager about 11 48 hardware view 11 storage view 11 network adapters cabling the private network 18 19 cabling the public network 18 O operating system Windows Server 2003 Enterprise Edition installing 41 P power supplies cabling 15 PowerPath about 49 private network cabling 17 19 hardware components 19 hardware components and connections 19...

Page 67: ...e management software Access Control 45 Navisphere Agent 48 Navisphere Manager 48 PowerPath 49 storage system configuring and managing LUNs 51 configuring the hard drives 51 T tape library connecting to a PowerEdge cluster 35 troubleshooting connecting to a cluster 57 shared storage subsystem 55 W warranty 13 worldwide port name zoning 43 Z zones implementing on a Fibre Channel switched fabric 42 ...

Page 68: ...68 Index ...

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