March 2013
Dell EqualLogic Configuration Guide v14.1
5-37
•
If all members in the pool are running PS Series firmware v5.0 or later then you can mix
PS5500E, PS6500E/X and PS6510E/X models together with other array models in the same
pool.
•
If you are running PS Series firmware version prior to v5.0 then PS5500E, PS6500E/X and
PS6510E/X models must reside in a separate pool from other array types.
Figure 3 shows a PS Series group with the maximum of four pools. Note the use of Pool 3 for
containing PS5500/PS6500 series arrays only. Also note that Pool 3 contains arrays that implement
both 1GbE and 10GbE controllers.
Figure 11
Tiered pools in a PS Series group
The following best practices should be considered for storage pools unless the automatic
performance load balancer (APLB) is disabled:
•
Mixing arrays of different drive speeds and types is fully supported and is the primary reason
APLB was created.
•
Do not mix arrays with different controller speeds (1GbE, 10GbE) within a single pool unless
they are each running unique RAID policies.
•
To override the automated performance decisions for a specific volume, indicate a “preferred”
RAID type for that volume. If that RAID type exists within the pool, the volume will reside on
those arrays that match the preferred RAID policy for the volume.
If the APLB is disabled, the following recommendations apply:
•
Do not mix arrays with different drive speeds within a single pool unless they are running a
unique RAID policy
